I do most of my drinking alone, which makes it not feel like drinking at all. It’s just a thing I do on the way to doing something else.
Great essay over at Jezebel.
In February, Raffi Khatchadourian wrote about Dallas Wiens, the first person in the United States to receive a full face transplant. Today at 1 P.M. E.T., Wiens will join Khatchadourian to answer readers’ questions in a live chat. Click-through to re-read Khatchadourian’s article, and join the discussion!
There is a shame in this
My most-played songs on iTunes, in order.
“Toxic” by Britney Spears
“Calgary” by Bon Iver
“I Don’t Want Love” by The Antlers
“Moment 4 Life” by Nicki Minaj & Drake
“Light Up” by Tegan and Sarah (yes this is a bonus track and only awesome people have it)
“Everytime” by Britney Spears
“Stronger” by Britney Spears
“The Ocean” by Tegan and Sara
“All of the Lights” by Kanye West
“We Used To Wait” by The Arcade Fire
The “shame” part mostly pertains to numbers 1, 6 and 7. But also: When did I become such a pop-music-slut? Also apparently a slut for lesbian twins. But I already knew that.
Soldiers, Injuries And Substance Abuse
Over at The Fix (which you should bookmark, RSS, and read regularly), I’ve got the first in a three-part series about substance abuse and addiction among this generation of soldiers and veterans.
This link between addiction and mental health is precisely what makes the situation of today’s soldiers so dire. More men and women who have seen combat in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are suffering from brain-based damage—primarily, PTSD and traumatic brain injury (TBI)—that frequently precipitates addiction. And, crucially, these soldiers have received grossly inadequate care from the military’s medical system.
BURN PIT BROUHAHA.
If you missed my colleague, Spencer’s, story (published earlier this week) on a leaked memo about the ill effects of open-air burn pits, read that first.
Then check out my follow-up for Wired: An exclusive look at new research that shows how mice exposed to dust from Camp Victory, Iraq, suffered lung inflammation and significantly decreased immunity.
Is this t-shirt too offensive to wear on a plane? American Airlines thought so, and told a woman wearing it that she had to change her clothes. What say you, Tumblr?
Then this happened
“Darpa, the Pentagon’s far-out research arm, has kicked off a program designed to take the conventions of manufacturing and apply them to living cells. Think of it like an assembly line, but one that would churn out modified biological matter — man-made organisms — instead of cars or computer parts.”
Read the rest, and be amazed (at the science, not my futile efforts to come up with more synonyms for words like “cell” and “engineer”) @ Wired
(Source: nickholmes)
At Danger Room, I’m telling you all about SOCOM’s new plans to use “NeuroTracker” — a virtual reality game that revolves around balls (yes) — in an effort to better prep commandos for battle.
Also. I’ve been too sick to update my Tumblr lately, but please read my recent Danger Room stories on the Army’s desires for a means of objective pain diagnoses and, um, Oxford docs who think that Tetris is the hottest PTSD prevention tactic.
The Doctor and Daniel Radcliffe
I took the Q train to Manhattan this morning to see a doctor about my aggressive cough and pneumatic lung disease. I hoped she would prescribe a Valium solution.
On the subway, I suffered a fit of full-body coughs. Mid-throttle, I looked up. Daniel Radcliffe — the actor who has sex with horses — was staring at me from the opposite row of benches. He swiftly relocated to the other end of the car, preferring to stand far away from me than to sit within my airspace.
Sorry, Daniel.
$125 later, the doctor gave me an inhaler and a codeine-infused cough syrup. She said she didn’t think Valium would help.
