Monday, July 29, 2013

Bring Out Yer Dead - West Nile Edition

Here is a pleasant scene, across from 920 20th St. in Midtown - except for one detail.  Walking back to work from Subway after lunchtime, I stumbled across a dead crow. It was disturbing, because this location, right next to a sidewalk, is in a high-traffic area, full of passersby, and their dogs. So, realizing the dangerous and contagious nature of the West Nile virus that has swept through the area in recent years, I reported the dead crow to the Authorities.

Later in the afternoon, the Authorities left a message on my voicemail. They had already made pick-ups for the day in Sacramento. Would I mind going out there myself and put the dead crow in a plastic bag, to isolate it for pick-up later?

There's the dead crow.

I always figured that if I died from disease in Sacramento, it would be from meningitis. For being a rare disease, meningitis is shockingly-common in Sacramento. But West Nile virus will do too.

Now, in a plastic bag.

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