I'm by no means a germaphobe, in fact I'm firm believer that a little bit of grime is good for you. That being said, during a recent conversation with a political campaign worker my first thought upon hearing that he would routinely hand his cell phone to strangers to call officials were, "Ew, just think of the germs."

That segue brings me to the Gum Wall in Post Alley, Seattle. Somehow we managed to end up here three times during a seven day trip and every single time I wanted to douse myself, and everyone in my immediate vicinity, with disinfectant.

It started off innocuously enough, a little bit of gum adding a decorative touch to the paper street art...

... but quickly devolved into a seemingly seething mass of masticated polymers and DNA.

There is not enough Lysol in the world, my friends. Nuh uh, nowhere near enough.