Who Sat at Your Table?

We all remember the middle and high school cafeteria and your table reflecting your popularity, social circle, etc. My high school wasn't much different, except it was all girls and by junior and senior year most in the upper socio-economic stratospheres (and those who were friends with them) ate off-campus. Anyway, the idea's the same - you eat with your friends, and your friends are "like" you.

I always remember in high school we had this Race Relations club where we'd talk about self-segregation and how important it was for us not to close ourselves off to other people even in places like the cafeteria. This didn't really stop the behavior, but it at least acknowledged it. It turns out we were right. This new study confirms that when you sit with people who have diverse backgrounds, you are more likely to think of your campus as a racially positive environment, much more so than if you do not sit with people of diverse backgrounds.

Anecdotally, I agree. In high school, I had a lot of good friends who came from different backgrounds than my own, and we all hung out and ate together, but at my (very white) college I hardly made any friends who weren't white with wealthy parents. Plus, I could only afford the meal plan the first year. The lack of racial diversity, and the self-segregation (on both sides, I'm sure) was disheartening to say the least.

Now that I'm in the working world, I feel like my colleagues come from diverse socio-economic backgrounds, which is great, but the vast majority are still white. I hope someday that changes. I'd really like to sit at the diverse kids' table again.

[via Gawker]

WWF: Astonish Me

I've got to admit, this video for the World Wildlife Fund actually creeps me out a lot more than it impresses me, but I'm all about saving animals, so below is their video "Astonish Me." It's supposed to make you want to donate to the WWF, but it really just makes me want to not visit the Natural History Museum at closing time.



When I was little(r), I used to watch a lot of "George of the Jungle" and those other '70s TV shows, and at the beginning of the tapes (yeah, VHS!) there was always this spooky WWF commercial showing shadowy leopards in rainforests and how they're all disappearing. Well, I do love animals and protecting the rainforest in spite of the ad's creep factor, so I guess it worked then and they're hoping it works now!

[via Neatorama]

Why Writing is Hard

This is why I shouldn't put off doing all my blog posts until the end of the month, but it also could be the very reason why I put off doing my blog posts until the end of the month. It's a downward spiral. On the plus side, I still got two spec scripts written this summer in spite of it!

[via John August]

Pixar News Round Up

There has been a TON of Pixar news lately thanks to the D23 expo (Disney + Founded in 1923 = D23, the Disney version of Comic Con). Here are a few tidbits and links to more info, mostly gathered by /Film and The Pixar Blog.

• "The Untitled Pixar Movie about Dinosaurs" - to be released in November, 2013. The concept revolves around the idea that dinosaurs never went extinct. Interesting, for sure, but let's hope that the plot involves more than the small boy featured in the concept art. There's no rule that girls can't like dinosaurs, too, ok? Also, women can be protagonists without it having to be a fairy tale or even directed (or half-directed) by a woman... got that, Pixar? (I note this not because I want there to be fewer female directors - obviously, I want there to be more! - but because they love to use the excuse "I'm a male director so I have male leads" which is lame. [Temp logo here]
• "The Untitled Pixar Movie that Takes You Inside the Mind" - to be released in May, 2014. It's being directed by Pete Doctor and co-directed by Ronnie del Carmen (who directed the adorable and super-sweet short, "Dug's New Mission"), and there's not much more to know about the concept besides the faux-title. It is suggested that Michael Arndt (Toy Story 3) will write, but that's not definite. 
• "Monsters University" - may or may not be terrible. They pitched it as a college comedy that takes place in a world of monsters, which I'd actually like better if we hadn't already seen a world of monsters in "Monsters, Inc." You know? Plus, Sulley and Mike as rivals who become friends? Really? Anyway, let's just hope it's not terrible. 
• "Brave" - lots more info! They screened new footage (that looked both promising but also possibly too goofy to the guys in the /Film video blog) and released a new plot synopsis that feels too spoilery to put on here. One fun factoid is that it's been a major animation challenge because making things look old in animation is significantly harder than making it look new. This makes perfect sense, because old things have more layers, textures, and imperfections than new things have, which means you have to add a lot more detail. Poor animators! But I'm sure it'll look awesome. [Even more info at Pixar Planet, /Film's source on this]

Anyway, thanks to The Pixar Blog and /Film for gathering all of this great information. I don't know about you, but I can't wait to see these new movies (besides "Monsters University") and I'm so completely thrilled that Pixar is doing at least two original films after this recent rush of sequels. Phew!

Ring-Tailed Coatis are Cuties

Oh my goodness, how cute are these little baby ring-tailed coatis? Apparently, they are related to raccoons, but are infinitely more adorable. I wonder why that is? Could it be their piggish snout? Or the fact that they're not rooting around in my trash?

This reminds me of the time we found a baby possum scuttling through our backyard and we all thought it was adorable. Then we saw it crawl under our porch and we realized that's where its mom and its brothers and sisters live. I don't know exactly what happened next, but I do know that I flew back to New York before any animal control agents were or were not called.

You can see more pictures at Zoo Borns.

[Zoo Borns via Neatorama]

Government Sues ATT over T-Mobile Wireless Merger

What up, gov!

Looks like the Justice Department finally grew a pair and is suing ATT for its takeover of T-Mobile on antitrust grounds.

Wait a second, antitrust rules? We still have those? Who knew? I guess all you have to do to break them is by a multibillion dollar corporation buying out another multibillion corporation leaving pretty much just one or two remaining multibillion corporations to compete with you. And yet somehow Google and Apple are fine? Not to mention that whole Comcast buying Univeral/NBC business.

Anyway, I'm happy they're taking action, and I hope this is the start of a trend, not some random blip. After all, it still is the turn of the century, and last turn of the century we went monopoly-busting. I'm all about doing it again.

[Bloomberg via Gawker]

John August has a Podcast!

Super successful screenwriter and helpful (especially to us beginning writers) blogger extraordinaire John August released the first episode of his new podcast, "Scriptnotes" today.

He notes that it will include "items of interest for screenwriters." Well, John, I'm interested!

Take a listen. The second part of the first episode (about WGA elections) is not as exciting as the first (about pitching), but they're both worth a listen.

Keep 'em coming, John!

My Borders Just Closed

I wasn't all that surprised to hear earlier this year that Borders would be closing all of its storefronts. Yes, it's strange that the "big box" version of a bookstore that swept through the country and put all the little corner bookstores out of business is itself going out of business due to the growing e-book and online bookselling culture (hopefully to replaced by at least some of those local booksellers!). However, we've been hearing doom and gloom news about them for years, and they didn't seem to put up too much of an effort to stop it from happening (unlike Barnes and Noble, which is doing much better because of its Nook. They may also close some of their storefronts as their e-book business flourishes, but they seem better prepared to keep most of their doors open.).

However, when I stopping by the fancy Columbus Circle bathrooms after a nice walk in the park (after eating our delicious Laduree macarons!), and I saw the Borders with its "Everything must go! Store Closing! 50-70% Sale!" I couldn't believe it.

I had such great memories in this Borders. Admittedly, the only thing I ever bought there was a donut on "National Donut Day" two years ago, but after my transplant when the bf was working in the area and I had a six-day weekend (I had my two classes on Tuesday and that was it), I used to sit in the Fiction aisle for hours and read, waiting for the text that said "I'm here!" It was such a fun way to pass the time.

We decided to see what was left - not much. We flipped through a book on corgi training and I briefly thought about purchasing the second season of "How I Met Your Mother" (which was still over $20 even at 50% off - I guess that's why it's closing), but this sale must have been going on for a while because mostly we saw empty shelves, DVD's of classics like "Santa Paws" and "Twilight: New Moon", and misprinted calendars.

It was the end of an era, but it makes me thankful that the Barnes and Noble in Union Square is still open, and I do hope that it gives local booksellers a chance to reopen shops and reclaim their communities. At least a little bit.

[News articles via Publisher's Weekly]

Restaurant Week Lunch: Tocqueville

Tocqueville is a quiet, traditional "American with a European sensibility" restaurant with surprisingly unique cuisine.

Since our jobs prohibit us from leaving the building during the day, the bf and I rarely get to experience the beauty (and bang for your buck) that is the Restaurant Week $24.07 lunch. Finally, though, thanks to a well-timed New York staycation and the extension of Restaurant Week through Labor Day, we were able to try it out.

We picked Tocqueville because it's well-reviewed, right next to Union Square, and its menu looked intriguing, not to mention its wide variety of fonts.

We had a fantastic meal.

Our waiter was, as the bf put it, a "stuffy guy trying hard to be cool" in the sweetest way. We could tell he was a professional, but that didn't stop him from being really nice and saying things like "I'll leave you with this bad boy" when he slipped us the check. He was also the only captain (lead waiter) there, which actually was appropriate, since there were only three or four other tables filled besides ours.

To start, an amuse-bouche: some sort of cured meat, a tiny potato chip, pureed asparagus, and a tiny, half-cooked dollop of egg yolk. The bf loved it, but seeing as I can't eat room-temperature meat or undercooked egg, I couldn't eat much of it. I did really enjoy the tiny potato chip and pureed asparagus, though.

For appetizers, the bf ordered "white and green asparagus with black truffle vinaigrette" and I had the "heirloom tomato salad with tomato lemon verbena consumme and olive oil ice cream." The truffles combined with the asparagus was a perfect, if surprising, fit. They were both earthy and hearty, but the truffles brought some elegance to what could have been a "yes, it's good but I could make it at home" dish. I certainly could not have made my olive oil ice cream at home. I've never had ice cream in an appetizer before, but it was a fun thing to try. The tomatoes were fresh and juicy, the consumme was tart and had a strange but tasty flavor I didn't expect, and the ice cream tasted like whipped butter and olive oil, which was just about perfect for me.

Our entrees were equally surprising. My "grilled marinated Pennsylvania quail" came with the tastiest, most heavily buttered quinoa I've ever eaten. I could have had an entire meal of that quinoa. It was full of roasted marcona almonds and dried fruits. Even the bf took two bites of it. The quail was adorned with carmelized onions and cherries that had had something delicious done to them because I couldn't get them in my mouth fast enough. I haven't had much quail in the past. It's a dark, flavorful meat, a little challenging to get off the bone, but on the plus side it made me feel like a giant eating a turkey, which was pretty cool. The bf had the most amazing "baby artichoke and spring garlic risotto." I don't even like risotto and I couldn't get enough of it. It was beyond creamy and in the center of the dish was a ball of melting house-made ricotta cheese - how perfect! He ate every bite.

Our desserts were not as outstanding as the rest of the meal, but only because they were plainer. The bf had a "bitter chocolate mille-feuille," which was basically three layers of cookie and two layers of dark chocolate ganache, resting on a pool of chocolate sauce. The sauce was especially good. My "duo of mixed berry sorbet and sheep's milk yogurt" was more interesting - the yogurt was my favorite part, because it tasted like vanilla ice cream until just a few seconds after I'd swallowed it, when I really tasted the sheep's milk. It also came with a strange orange fruit (maybe?) that tasted pretty good but I couldn't figure out quite what it was.

All in all, we had an amazing meal and can't wait until we have enough time off of work and money saved that we can return. They have a special $39 Greenmarket lunch menu that we hope to try sometime. It has a new menu every week and all of the meat and produce comes from the nearby Union Square Greenmarket. Talk about fresh!

Hyper-Efficient Solar Cells: The (Light) Wave of the Future

Some research nerds over at Stanford have created the most efficient solar cell, one that can generate electricity from both light and heat.

Part of the reason solar isn't as competitive with oil as it should be is that most solar cells are pretty inefficient. A lot of power is lost because they can only turn light (photovoltaic cells) or heat (thermal cells) into electricity. By doing both simultaneously, this new cell has the potential to reach 60% efficiency, putting it well above the 30% efficiency that would price solar power equally to oil.

The Stanford researchers believe these cells will be most effective in large grids as opposed to household rooftops. They think that with the proper funding these new cells could revolutionize the solar power industry. I certainly hope so.

[via Pop Sci]

Laduree in New York City!

Real French macarons have landed in NYC!

Beloved French tea salon Laduree has finally (finally!) opened a store in New York, at 864 Madison Ave.   Renown for their delectable macrons, Laduree has been hinting at opening a New York branch for years, but only now have they officially opened their doors in America.

As you will recall (from the above picture), this was the bf and my's favorite dessert in all of France. We didn't know how much we would love the little almond cookies until we ate twelve in about ten minutes (after waiting in line for half an hour). The flavors are bold, the cookies crisp but yielding, and the goo holding them together is, what I believe to be, the essence of happiness.

The bf and I are still on vacation, so after a scrumptious Restaurant Week lunch (which I will describe in detail in my next post), we headed over to check out the new shop. We arrived at 2:50pm and were out by 3:15pm, so only a 25 minute wait. Not too bad for the first week. Plus, the line was entirely indoors, which made the wait much more pleasant. We got eight macarons - two chocolate, two vanilla, one caramel, one coffee, one pistachio, and one raspberry - for $23, which is insanely expensive ($2.70 per macaron is more than a Magnolia cupcake!), but worth it as a rare treat.

My favorite is the vanilla, and his is the caramel. The vanilla has the strongest vanilla flavor you can find in the United States aside from eating a vanilla bean straight up. I was amazed, but somehow they tasted just as good here in the United States sitting on a bench in Central Park as they did in Paris watching the sunset from the apartment. Unbelievable.

Serious Eats has a much more descriptive article here. They spoke with David Holder, the chairman of Laduree (he also runs Paul, the delicious bakery from our Paris adventure). He claims that we'll be seeing a Laduree tea room with a full kitchen in Soho or the Village sometime next Spring. What a treat! Although, I'm sure reservations will be incredibly difficult to get and the prices will probably be through the roof, but it will certainly be worth it.

Hunger Games Teaser and Commentary

Woo! Hunger Games news! It's been a while, and since Harry Potter 7P2 was released, I haven't had a big YA movie to get pumped about, so it's great that this seems to be the beginning of a series of reveals and tidbits on the movie. /Film has a whole bunch of great info on the teaser, secret website, and director Gary Ross' commentary here. Plus I've embedded the teaser below.

The teaser is a big tease, but I think the most exciting thing about it is how young they've made Jennifer Lawrence look. Everyone was worried she'd look too old, but I think she looks exactly sixteen in this clip.

I'm hesitant about the possibility of too much voice over while Katniss is fighting, especially by Gale (I'm not a huge fan of his), but I'll put up with it if it's sparing, and I trust Ross to make sure it is.

I can't wait!

Are you all Hunger Games fans, too?

Funny Summaries of Literary Classics

I'm not sure why the arbitrary numbers (58 classics summed up in 33 words or less) but MTV's Clutch Blog list is pretty hilarious. I really enjoyed "The Scarlet Letter" - "Ho's gonna ho. Hater's gonna hate." As true today as when it was written.

[post via Mental Floss]

Robot Chat

Man, the robot version of "The Conversation" is not going to be nearly as interesting. However, it may have more unicorns.

These are two MIT computers programmed to chat with humans, but, as you can see here, chatting with each other. It's pretty neat that they can have a conversation, but I love that they're both very aggressive. Sometimes it's ok to say things twice! You don't have to be so robo-catty!

Au revoir!

[video via Neatorama]

Time-Lapse September 11th Memorial Construction

In case you, like me, thought that they were just covering and recovering a big hole there for ten years, this suggests otherwise, which is good, since there's supposed to be a big unveiling in like, a week.

OK Go! Covers the Muppet Show Theme Song

I love this cover of "The Muppet Show" theme song from OK Go! It's really funky and fun, and the ending is perfect. I hope they do more videos from the newly released Muppet cover CD, "The Green Album." Should be great!

You can listen to the whole album at NPR right now. Check it out!

My only quibble? It's too short! Then again, I can always do with more Muppets.

PS. /Film posted this great behind-the-scenes video on their Page 2. I've embedded it here, but you can only really watch it on YouTube.

California Proposes Ban on Styrofoam

Wow, I thought I was the only person who didn't understand why we didn't ban styrofoam in the mid-'90s when we found out how horrible for the environment it is.

I guess I was the second-to-only-person, because Alan Lowenthal, a Democratic state senator in California, is proposing a statewide ban on the substance. Go, Alan!

The law would fully enforce the ban in 2016, giving restaurants, coffee shops, and packing peanut makers plenty of time to find and budget for greener food and drink containers.

[AP via Gawker]

10:25am: Hurricalypse Overcalypse?

Earlier this morning, around seven or eight, the wind and rain woke up the boyfriend and me. We watched it for a little while, but it wasn't too bad or scary. We went back to sleep, and when we woke up again it had all passed.

No more rain, no more wind, just quiet. We just saw a greyhound being walked outside. The weather reporters are commenting on trees falling in Brooklyn (I thought they only grew there?... Get it?) and low level flooding outside of New York. I think their main purpose now is to give kids and joggers a chance to get on TV.

Manhattan seems to have escaped the worst, which is great. The subway may still take a day or two to work properly, which may make businesses slow to reopen, but it looks like we made it!

What are we going to do with all those burger buns and peanut butter? PB BBQ!

1:18am: The Hurricane Hurrican't

So our rain is still moderate to heavy, but nothing crazy yet. Looks like I won't be relaying any interesting coverage tonight.

We've grown tired of Settlers and moved onto The Twilight Zone and laptop time.

I think we're hitting the hay soon, and then who knows? We may be awoken by hurricane sounds in the morning, or it may be so tame we sleep through the whole thing, wake up tomorrow and just hope the power's still on.

We shall see!

10:50pm: The News Really Tries to Make the Hurricalypse Interesting

After two games of Settlers of Cattan, I've lost by the most twice - TWICE! How shameful.

The only good news besides the fact that it's still only raining outside is that it's been pretty fun watching the reporters try to make it sound interesting. The same reporters have been outside with umbrellas and raincoats all day, just standing there and sometimes talking to un-evacuated people watching the storm - I can't imagine how impossibly boring and uncomfortable that must be. How wet are their socks?? Very wet, is my guess.

My favorite moment was when they talked about some guys who were surfing back before the rain got too hard. "Now, I want to stress. No one should be surfing right now. That being said, the waves are the perfect condition for surfing."

Also, watching Mayor Bloomberg try to speak Spanish is gold. His saying that "New York is the greatest city in the world" in a dejected, "Why do I have to do a press conference right now?" voice was also excellent.

8:35pm: The Hurricalypse Slowly Continues

So far, so much of nothing. It's rain slowly and intermittently. We've had a delicious dinner of pasta, vegetables, and bread. Now we're settling in to play a few rounds of Settlers of Cattan. I've never played before, but it's really fun, if somewhat frustrating.

Really I feel like we're more or else having a fun slumber party than anything else, but the weather guys are thinking we're not going to have any real problems until tomorrow morning at high tide.

We shall see!

Climate Change and Irene

In case you're in the mood for a more scientific approach to this hurricane (the rain's been very stop-and-start in New York so far, mainly focusing on the stop. Then again, the hurricane's not supposed to really start getting to us until tonight, so I'm enjoying the quiet), check out this Scientific American article debating the influence of climate change on this year's tropical storms.

Personally, I think that climate change + 24 hour media cycle = every weather event breaks every record in history from now on. The news loves to freak people out about something and make them feel special even when it's 75 degrees and sunny, but also climate change causes severe weather and record-breaking events, which in turn feeds the news beast.

Earthquake Miracle

A man's hearing came back after the D.C. earthquake. Isn't that amazing? Ok, who knows how it came back, but let's say it was the quake and that good things can happen from natural disasters!

Really sets the bar high for this hurricane. It better get a paralyzed man walking again if it doesn't want to look like a bubbaffoon in front of the quake.

[Miracle Article via Gawker]

Children of the '90s

If you're wondering what to do now (good thing I was on vacation, because I've got plenty more Google Reader to go through before I get bored of the internets), then read Buzzfeed's "25 Ways to Know if You're a Kid of the '90s" - It'll bring back a lot of good memories.

Pog! Remember that? So cool for about a month. I even had a pog-labeler. I would draw something in the circle and then make an awesome pog out of it.

Ah, twenty-something nostalgia. So much fun.

Where's Wall-E?

If you're getting bored of watching the weather (we've had it on for about an hour now and they just started replaying what we watched an hour ago, so clearly they're not a lot going on right now), then try out this fun 'Where's Waldo' style artwork by Richard Sargent via Hopewell Studios.

You can view the full-size picture here.

You can try to guess who all the robots are via this guide here.

Enjoy!

Underground Amazon River

If you haven't been to the huge, super-secret underground 'Rio Hamza' underneath the Amazon River, then you haven't really been to the Amazon.

[Badass River article via Guardian UK]

Diamond Planet

If your engagement ring doesn't come from a diamond planet, then you're not even really engaged.

[Diamond planet via Scientific American]

12:00pm: The Hurricalypse Begins

The subways just shut down.

It's official.

Hurricalypse 2011 has begun.

So far, we've had a little rain. We went out to brunch (as did everyone else in Manhattan, apparently). The place was packed. We got our food 45 minutes after we ordered it and we never got napkins, or my order of scrambled eggs on the side. Clearly, they were understaffed and overbooked.

Afterwards, we headed over to the Duane Reade and picked up a few last-minute supplies. The usual: band-aids, matches, Diet Coke, and Starburst FaveREDS (the ones where all the flavors are red: cherry, strawberry, watermelon, and fruit punch - they're awesome). We're all set.

Now we're all settled in to not leave the apartment for at least 24 hours. I'll be posting non-hurricane-related posts, as well, since, quite frankly, I've got nothing else going on today besides sitting at my computer and maybe playing Taboo later.

Artful Stew: Live Blogging Hurricane Irene

Hi Readers!

I've been on vacation the past week, so I thought I'd catch up on posts by live blogging my experience of Hurricane Irene this weekend.

So far, I'm hunkered in my bunker, ready to go with hamburger buns (no bread left), peanut butter, chocolate bars, and several cans of chickpeas (my friend's pick - no idea why, but I like the initiative). We've also got plenty of water and Seltzer (also my friend's pick - I think she wanted to class up the bunker food?). Clearly, we're all set.

I've never been in a hurricane before, so I don't really know what to expect. I'm hoping that it all dies down before it even reaches New York and I end up eating peanut butter burgers just for fun, but I feel good being prepared.

I'll keep you updated throughout the weekend on how Manhattan is holding up, how our food supplies are, and when I've been eaten/eaten someone else for sustenance in our post-apocalyptic world.

And I thought it'd be the squirrels that finally took me down.

Then again, they could have a weather-controlling device that's causing all of this in the first place. Hmm... that may make more sense.

[Image of Hurricane Irene credit: Flickr user NOAA/NASA Goddard Photo and Video]

Antiviral Drug that Kills ALL VIRUSES? Heck Yeah!

Some MIT researchers have created a drug that may cure almost all viral infections - from the flu to bird flu to swine flu - and they are calling it DRACO*.

Seriously? Did any of these guys ever read Harry Potter? Or what about Greek history? Or really just wonder where the word Draconian came from?

Anyway, regardless of the ridiculous name (it stands for the equally ridiculous, "Double-Stranded RNA Activated Caspase Oligomerizers"), the drug targets a specific kind of RNA that is only present in virally-infected cells.

My question is - would it also wipe out good viruses? Are there good viruses? Because we do have good bacteria all up in our bodies, which is why we have to be careful with antibiotics. Would we need to be as careful with this antiviral? Or are they so different than this broad-spectrum drug would just be totally amazing and that's the end of the common cold?

Because I'd be into that. What about you?

*He also dubbed a biosensor CANARY (Cellular Analysis and Notification of Antigen Risks and Yields), which seems much nicer until you think about the "Canary in the coal mine" connotations. So just don't think about them and it's a nice name.

Drugs for Life! (Transplant Drugs, that is)

Good news, Everyone!

Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Thad Cochran (R-MS) and Scott Brown (R-MA) have introduced legislation into the Senate to grant all transplant recipients Medicare immunosupressant drug coverage for life. This will help all transplant recipients pay for and keep their new kidneys, leading to happier, healthier, longer lives.

This is incredibly important legislation. As I've mentioned here before, covering a transplant patient can costs up to $20k a year - that is a lot of money. However, covering a dialysis patient costs upwards of $77k a year - that is a lot more money. The amount of savings per patient is astronomical. Just look at this "hypothetical" patient the Political News discusses:

The effects of the disparity in coverage are evidenced in the hypothetical case of a young woman. A 26 year old woman living with ESRD would have lifelong dialysis covered by Medicare at $77,500/year. Medicare would cover the cost of a transplant at $110,000/transplant. The immunosuppressive drugs she would need to ensure the organ is not rejected by her body are only covered for 36 months and the drugs are far less costly at $10,000 to $20,000/year. Without immunosuppressive drugs to keep kidney transplants from being rejected, many patients find themselves right back where they started: in need of a kidney. This circular cycle of care is costing taxpayers a lot of money and putting thousands of lives at risk.

Doesn't that person sound familiar? Yeah, she sounds a lot like me. This could happen to me if this legislation is not passed. And I am not giving up my kidney - my aunt gave it to me, I have to defend it.

This legislation has been defeated twice before - we cannot, we must not, let it be defeated again. It is a truly bipartisan effort, a cost-saving, life-saving measure that we cannot afford to lose. Big Dialysis (yes, that is a thing) will try to stop it, but if you call/email/tweet your congressperson and senator, we can help pass this crucial legislation.

Act today! I know I, and all the other transplant recipients out there, will appreciate it forever.