So I have decided to do a weekly post, every Friday, about something on my desk. I have at least 4 months of fodder too. 🙂

Today we have….

The Plague! Yes that’s right, I have a stuff version of the Bubonic Plague sitting on my desk. I love throwing it at people and telling them I gave them Plague.

In High School, like many other children, I was subjected to a form of torture called research papers. Much to my teacher’s dismay I chose to write my paper on the Bubonic Plague and the decimation of the European population. I had recently read a book call The Plague Tales by Ann Benson. Needless to say, I wrote a rather superb paper on this gruesome topic.

Even now, years later, I am fascinated with this concept of viruses that wipe out entire populations. These natural organisms that are in fact designed to prey on humans. One of my favorite books of all time, Caverns of Socrates, begins with the world population having been almost eradicated due to an airborne version of the Ebola virus. These cataclysmic events lead to a complete breakdown of society and everything “safe”. What would you do in such an event?

I am not sure why I have a fondness for the Black Plague, other than the paper and a few books I have read, but the History Major side of me love the stories of the chaos surrounding the spread of the disease.