[Peter Wieck]

WARNING: Very Graphic Images Attached!

All:
Now that there are actual flowers in bloom (Crocus, Forsythia &
Snowdrop), it is time for the annual post on stalking the wild Audio Item.... and what accidental passengers that may come along with it:

1. Insects and other arthropods: Anything from spiders to wasps to
fleas and more. Any Audio Item that has spend substantial time in a barn,
basement, shed, garage or any other damp or exposed area may well be
inhabited by or infested with various small and potentially painful
critters. Especially those found in the southern states, home to the
Brown Recluse and Black Widow spiders. Wasps, centipedes (quite
poisonous as it happens) and other vermin are no fun as well. And, if
you do find some critter of this nature, KILL IT. Being soft hearted
and releasing it into _your_ environment may make you feel all warm
and fuzzy, but that creature may then cause considerable harm being
somewhere it does not belong and where it perhaps has no natural
predators. EDIT: Global Warming (whether you believe in it or not) has pushed the Recluse range into Maryland, with some few transported by human agency as far as Michigan and Pennsylvania. This is one NASTY spider with a very nasty bite.

http://www.tcnj.edu/~hofmann/humor/M...ider/Day10.jpg THIS is a Brown Recluse Bite.

https://ee_ce_img.s3.amazonaws.com/c...2_400_301..jpg THIS is a centipede bite(s).

2. Evidence of Rodent Inhabitation: Handle with GREAT care.

Hanta-Virus (a relative of Ebola) is endemic throughout the entire
United States, Mexico and parts of Canada. It is a disease without
effective treatment and an over 50% mortality rate worldwide (36% in
the US). It is carried in the feces and fresh urine of many
rodents...and there is limited recent evidence that reconstituted waste (dried but inhaled) will also spread the disease especially if inhaled, a
possibility not accepted in the recent past.

http://www.cdc.gov/hantavirus/images...042114.jpg.jpg

Lyme Disease: Carried by deer ticks that winter over in the white-
footed deer mouse (an omnivore, BTW) that will winter over anywhere
it can find shelter. The ticks that mice carry will leave the mouse
to lay eggs... perhaps in that Audio Item that served as their temporary
winter dorm and latrine.

http://pad1.whstatic.com/images/thum...oms-Step-1.jpg

Various other tick-borne diseases include Rocky Mountain Spotted
Fever, and a whole bunch more *very* nasty diseases not worth
risking, all endemic in the US.

3. Bird Dung & Old Nests: Per a recent (June, 2007) paper, there have
been over sixty (60) diseases that may be carried in wild bird poop
including Avian Flu, Fowl Typhoid, Infectious Coryza, Paratyphoid,
Salmonellosis, Schistosomiasis, strep and on-and-on. ((Those of you
servicing your Bluebird and other bird houses about now need also keep
this in mind.)) Most wild birds are carriers of these disease and show
no visible symptoms. We bleach our birdhouses - THEN we clean them
out. Amazing the number of dead insects and other vermin we get out of
them every spring.

Asbestos: Dangerous only when friable - small particles able to become airborne easily. If you are a smoker, even more dangerous. A single (one (1)) fiber can cause a fatal reaction over time. For all that, it is fairly easily made safe with a little bit of care and caution. But even if you do not believe it is dangerous, you do not have the right to expose others, or transport it in conveyances where residual material may come in contact with others - that is, do not transport it openly in the family minivan.

Bottom line: A proverbial ounce of caution beats the hell out of a
pound of care. Common sense, rubber gloves, a breathing mask, Lysol,
Bleach, Moth-balls, Insecticides (which often do not work on Spiders or Ticks, so read the label), and other elementary precautions conscientiously and carefully applied will "safen" even the nastiest of wild radios.

I did pick the ugliest pictures I could find. I can be thick at times, so they are chosen to get my attention at my thickest...

So, be careful out there, guys and gals!

Peter Wieck
Melrose Park, PA