That glowing feeling

A New York moment:

Coming up this week I have a scan to check the effectiveness of a kidney surgery I had a few months ago. I’m still overwhelmed by the vast resources available here, just for my little kidney. Not long after my surgery I traveled to a rural hospital in Burundi, an institution where the surgeon had sutures and not much else. The Burundian hospital accomplishes incredible feats with few resources. But boy, did it make me grateful for the team of doctors, surgeons, nurses, and one robot who took care of me at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.

This will be the second time I’ve done a nuclear scan. You lie on a table for about an hour as they shoot radioactive tracer through your veins, watching to see how your kidneys process the dye. After I did the first scan, the nuclear medicine technologist handed me a letter, telling me to keep it with me in case the police stopped me. I raised my eyebrows.

The letter stated my name and information, noted that I’d had a nuclear medicine procedure at such-and-such place, and said I would be radioactive for three days. The technologist explained: The New York Police Department has portable radiation detectors that officers carry to identify nuclear devices or dirty bombs. The radioactive tracer in my blood could set off the detectors. It’s happened with other patients.

“Maybe avoid Grand Central for a few days, if you can,” she added, referring to one of the train stations where the NYPD and U.S. military have a high security presence. Over those three days no one stopped me, but I did walk around feeling a little bit like Spider-Man, with a radioactive spider bite in his veins.

Worth your time:

One of the best live performances I’ve ever seen came from pianist Daniil Trifonov. Here the 26-year-old Russian plays a short Chopin-focused concert on a grand piano in a tiny office. He astounds me.

This week I learned:

That my Google Home assistant has advice for an incoming nuclear attack (yes, we asked!). It said to take cover, below ground if possible, in a solid building made out of brick or concrete. Thanks, digital assistant.

A court case you might not know about:

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck down an Idaho law that criminalized undercover recordings of animal production facilities, on the grounds that it violated the First Amendment. The state passed the gag law after a video exposed poor treatment of dairy cows.

Interestingly, the 9th Circuit is also handling a few issues related to the undercover videos about the abortion industry from the Center for Medical Progress. Planned Parenthood and the National Abortion Federation sued for a gag order on the videos—that case is ongoing at the circuit level.

Culture I am consuming:

Jonny Greenwood’s Phantom Thread soundtrack, now available on streaming services like Spotify. I haven’t seen Paul Thomas Anderson’s film—featuring Daniel Day-Lewis’ apparently final performance before retirement—but the music is beautiful.

Postscript: Email me with tips, story ideas, and feedback at ebelz@wng.org.