How to dispose of a poisoned deck?

...and by poisoned I mean black mold. I won this deck on Ebay and when I broke the plastic on it and opened the box there was serious moisture, black mold, and mildew. The seller will be replacing it so that's not a problem. My issue is how to dispose of the deck. I have never disposed of a deck before and I want to do it respectfully and appropriately. I'm not going to throw it in the garbage. Just can't do that... its tarot after all! Even if it's got ucky black gunk growing on it, and it stinks, and it could potentially make a person sick I still feel respect for it. I don't have a fireplace, so I don't know how I would burn it. Right now I'm thinking of burying it in the back yard. Guess this all sounds silly, but tarot is my spiritual path. It feeds my spirit and heals my soul. I want to respond in kind.

Riverstone

Yes...a proper burial is in order, I think...especially if it gives you release from the situation...

I received a deck like that as a gift from a friend...she used to sell antique
books and such...and asked me one day if I wanted an old tarot deck...

Of course, I said YES!!! ...When she brought it to me, it was in a little plastic
sandwhich baggie!... I opened it and got a horrible wiff of black mold that
made me deathly ill and weak for a long time after...I found out that I am
allergic to black mold...not everyone is...

I hope you will be okay after opening and smelling your ebay deck...

I did find a good solution whenever anything similar happens:

It sounds weird, but I soak the end of a crunched up paper towel with
3% peroxide and just swab both of my nostrils and that does the trick!!!
No more black mold sickness. It works like a charm.

Yep...I would put that poor little tarot deck to rest in my backyard.
tarotlyn

I know that the appropriate way of disposing flags is to give them a burial. I have also heard that this is the same process for sacred books. I think that burial would be a good options.

Interesting question.

Onyx.

Burial is the way to go... you don't want to burn it, and release spores of mold in the air.
So, give it a proper burial in a place you feel the tarot would be best placed.

Since you are lucky enough to have a back yard, i agree that a burial would
be ideal. Maybe you could get a flower-pot filled with soil, out the deck in
that and plant some seeds of a flower that you love?

Thanks for your feedback on this. Burial it will be.

greenbean said:

Since you are lucky enough to have a back yard, i agree that a burial would
be ideal. Maybe you could get a flower-pot filled with soil, out the deck in
that and plant some seeds of a flower that you love?

Click to expand...

Well, that's a lovely idea except for the black mold. Black mold will make you sick even if it's deep in the walls of your house so maybe in a flower pot might not be safe. I think I'd bury it fairly deeply in the yard but you could still plant something special over it.

Grizabella said:

Well, that's a lovely idea except for the black mold. Black mold will make you sick even if it's deep in the walls of your house so maybe in a flower pot might not be safe. I think I'd bury it fairly deeply in the yard but you could still plant something special over it.

Click to expand...

Grizabella, it is obvious I do not have a green thumb. Of course, there may be
danger. Thanks for pointing that out. I now recall cases where people have
become ill from exposure to potting material. My favorite lawn is green painted
concrete.
B*B

I totally rolled my eyes when I read the title!

I'm glad it wasn't that kind of post.

I don't how harmful mold is so I would check that out first. I would assume it would grow in dirt and be destroyed by fire but I know nothing about it.

I had always heard it's best to burn our old flags out of respect. Plus then you can pretend it's the 60's and burn a bra too! I vote for fire but I'm a pyro.

I'd advise not handling it with your bare hands, and by all means getting it out of your home as soon as you can. If it were me, I'd have already put it in a sealed plastic bag and thrown it away - the very moment I spotted the mold. But as you don't feel comfortable doing that, then yes, a deep burial might be just the thing. I'd seal it, though, before burying it.