Round Up: “Tick Check!”

I don’t know about you, but I can’t look at a photo of happy people lolling in the grass without thinking “Tick Check!”

It has been reported that emergency room visits for tick borne illnesses are up across the nation and in California. Even as I write this I am getting a wicked case of “tick fever” – where you feel like ticks are walking on you even when they aren’t.

I was at a concert yesterday sitting outside and felt something that caused me to reach inside the back of my shirt. Yup, it was a big tick just walking up towards my head. They seem to really like that area on the back of the neck along the hairline. I pulled the little bugger off me and was planning to squish it between two rocks when I dropped it in the dirt. 

Moments later I saw it heading back towards my feet. I retrieved it and ended its tick life. Ticks generally live about three years and have different phases starting with nymph to adult. Female ticks can lay thousands of eggs. Eeeeeew. I have had at least one tick bite this summer, but I caught it early. They really need to be biting you for at least 24 hours to most likely infect you with tick borne diseases.

A good friend of mine told me that they had just been in the hospital due to contracting anaplasmosis from a tick bite. The flu-like symptoms can mask a serious condition. My friend is on the mend thanks to a treatment of doxycycline. She recommended we do a tick focussed interview, and I plan to pursue that, but here it is for you all to read.

There are some great resources out there about how to avoid getting ticks on you in the first place, and what to do if you do get bitten by a tick. It’s a good idea to tuck your pants into your socks, apply insect repellent that works on ticks, and check for ticks after working in the yard or recreating out in nature. Shower after returning from such escapades, and wash your clothes in hot water and dry them on hot (washing only may not kill ticks).

A pal informed me recently that if ticks bite lizards it can neutralize lyme disease pathogens. Hmm. I was skeptical, how often do lizards get bitten by ticks? It turns out they are a likely and regular host for the nymphs. Well, good on ya lizards. Thanks for helping out! I have always been fond of lizards.

We call Waylon a “tick bus.” He has his oral flea and tick treatment that does kill them once they latch on to him. But pets are likely carriers of ticks so it is recommended to check your animal for hitchhikers before they crawl off onto you.

Now that I have been writing this article I am fully itchy and continuously checking myself for wayward crawlers. 

I hope this helps others avoid getting a tick borne illness and I’m sorry if I made you squirm and get tick fever.

Amanda Eichstaedt
Station Manager and Executive Director

P.S. KWMR aired a “Tick Season Special!” in May and June with more ways to defend yourself from ticks. Find it here. 

P.P.S. Jordan Bowen is bringing you the latest actions from Protect My Public Media. Read below. 

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What Does KWMR Mean to You?

Hey, it’s KWMR Interim Communications Director Jordan Bowen. Here’s why I’m still stepping up for this station.

I remember the night I first discovered and fell in love with KWMR. It was 2014, and I had just moved from New York City to Inverness to live with my partner and future husband. It was a culture shock for this New Yorker: Socks with sandals? Strangers hugging me? Spending time.. outdoors? I wasn’t sure if I would ever belong here.

Then one evening, one of our roommates (probably Ben Livingston) turned on the radio. A host named DJ Barbarella was spinning some of the funkiest, nastiest, grooviest, most mysterious tracks I’d ever heard on “Barbarian Beach Party”–music from other countries and past decades that sounded like signals sent into the ether and snatched from distant planets. Between sets, Barbarella’s knowing, teasing voice made me feel like I’d stumbled into some secret to life out here at the wild edge of the continent.

“Oh, that’s just Katie,” I was told. So, I profiled her for the Light, and we became close friends. Soon, I had my own show: a late night hour of chaos with Miguel Kuntz called “Sit Down!” The late, much missed Paul Reffell made frequent cameos in various comic guises. Reviews were mixed, but the show helped some people, like future Programming Director Jeff Manson and board member Danny Vitali, think about what KWMR could be. The radio’s chain of inspiration brought new energy and voices into the station.

Ten years later, I’m back to help while Mia’s out, and KWMR is better than ever. The station is still home, and my new show, Love on the Beat, has helped me revive that feeling I had listening to DJ Barbarella on a dark night in Inverness.

You probably have your own story about what KWMR means to you. Every week, I see wide eyed folks walk in for the first time. “Is this place really a radio station?,” they often ask. “Do ya’ll like, play these CDs?” Today, new hosts like DJ TJ on Point Tayes, James on Marshall Radio Hour, and Jahandar on Forgotten Futures, are all people like me who heard KWMR one day and decided to do something they’d never done before. The station, of course, said yes, come do your thing–and showed them how. The chain of inspiration lives on.

But the funding we rely on to make it all work could soon be gone. Congress has until July 18 to vote on a Rescissions Package that would claw back already approved federal funding for public media, including KWMR. (That’s about 25% of our revenue.) 25% isn’t everything, but it’s a lot.

We want to be doing more for West Marin, not less. We want to spend less time raising money and more time helping you start your own show, or get the word out about your event, or partnering with your organization to do something great.

We now expect this vote to take place next week. What can you do to save funding for public media?

Sign up to be an advocate at Protect My Public Media. Call your Senators–if you can. It’s more effective than an email. You can also call any Senator in the U.S. Tell them to strike public media from the rescissions package. 

What else can you do? Protect My Public Media has put together this nifty guide to sharing the message to your friends and followers online. Help spread the word! Our listeners, supporters and volunteers are the heart and soul of KWMR. We couldn’t do this without you.

Jordan Bowen
Interim Communications Director

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