microphone question

[GateandGarden]

I've successfully ruined what's probably my fifth or sixth RadioShack microphone in about three or four years and I have to wonder what I've done so wrong. Eventually, every single one I've had has lost its ability to convey sound because (my guess) something became disconnected in the cord. The one I have right now works but barely and the sound is very much distorted. I have a habit of wrapping the cord around the microphone, and though I do so slowly it's not always neatly. So, that is a very bad practice? What should I do instead?

Also, a related and unrelated question--how does one transfer something from a cassette tape to a CD? Do I need to buy something to be able to do that?

Thanks in advance for any answers/advice.