expiration date

Working in a hospital has its share of quirks--probably more than it should--one of which is that we don't say people die, we say they expire.

I think this is weird, and dehumanizing. I mean, okay, I understand the literal meaning of "expire," but I also think of cartons of milk and eggs expiring; whilst I think of people as dying, or dead.

Maybe it sounds more professional than "dead" to say "expire," but I always have a picture of a carton of milk souring when I hear that word. And, I guess we do go sour after we die, in a manner of speaking.

But no one goes around saying, "My pet parakeet expired last night."

Unless maybe you smuggled your pet parakeet into the hospital, and it died there.