I've become a germophobe since moving to New York, particularly while riding the subway.

As I grip the handrails, I swear I can feel microbes crawling around under my palms. Salmonella. Influenza. The common cold. I think about all the people who must have touched that rail before me and how clean or dirty their hands must have been.

I realize that most reasonable people will wash their hands after urinating, defecating, handling raw meat, masturbating, and doing lord knows what else, but at least a few people don't.

And that's really all it takes, isn't it? Just a few people.

Ick.