In a message dated 8/20/00 11:20:43 AM Central Daylight Time, Diane Hofstetter writes: << As the first four or five keys came out, I noticed something brown, took more out and more brown. It seemed to be dog food. More keys came out, more dog (and cat and hair and miscl. coins) food. Almost every last space under the keys was filled with dried dog and cat food! No wonder the dip was shallow! >> This is a fairly common occurrence. Mice have dutifully transported the dog food, kernel by kernel to the keyed of the piano and stored it there. Just think of how long this must have taken and how it had to be done when no one saw it going on, not even the dog or the cat! I find this condition every other year or so. I have cleaned out dog food or bird food (mostly sunflower seeds) at least a dozen times over the years. There usually has been no serious or permanent damage but dealing with the look of absolute horror and disgust on the face of the customer is as much part of the job as cleaning up the mess. This is a good example of why I don't think in terms of "PSO" when I see a piano or situation like this, I think "$$$", because I will get them when I finish. The customer always has that checkbook out and wants to know how much that will be as I play the final arpeggios and it is seen that the piano is in tune, all keys are working normally and a bag of debris has gone out in the trash. Bill Bremmer RPT Madison, Wisconsin
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