As expected, I had an unusual Friday.

Let me tell you all about it. Your Daily Lex So a car was sent for me to take me into Long Island to meet with the medical staff at the Kidney Transplant Center so they could evaluate me.

And the idea is basically this, right?

I have a kidney that matches a person who needs a kidney.

I know a few things about him.

He’s a 50 year old man.

This would be the second time he had a kidney donated because kidneys last 10 to 15 years.

He’s a widower.

That’s basically what I know.

25 year old daughter.

Um, but next they need to see, are you healthy enough to give the kidney?

Because from the transplant hospital’s perspective, at least the team I’m working with, I’m the patient, right?

And they’re going to take my health and needs into account as the only thing that matters for them before they consider whether I could donate to this stranger. And so even though they know that I’m physically a match, the question is, am I healthy enough?

Am I mentally healthy enough, etc.

They said I could drive there and they’d cover my gas such as it is and tolls and or that they could send a car.

And I was like, well, it’s really far and it’s really early and I can sleep in the car and get work done if you drive me.

So I prefer that if it’s not a burden, like not a burden at all, no problem.

So they drove me.

Car was a little bit late, no problem.

Um, I thought that the person would know what they were doing, who was taking me there.

But once we got very close, he had no idea what it was, but we got it done.

I get in there.

First thing to do is take blood, something like 18 vials of blood.

I had to give them the urine.

As I told you, I had produced a lot.

So they were shocked at just how many jugs of urine I brought out.

But it was all good.

And after the blood draw, then I started meeting with doctors and I meet with so many doctors and some nurses and they do an EKG and several people examine me.

Everybody takes a history.

They would all say, we’re going to take the history again.

We’re going to ask you questions you’ve already been asked.

Sorry.

It’s totally fine with it, whatever.

And they kept going, did a lot, met with the transplant surgeon, met with the kidney doctor, met with a couple of different social workers, was asked if I had been sexually active with anybody who’d been incarcerated for more than 72 hours.

Not that I know of.

But I don’t know how long they’ve been incarcerated for.

So, but a lot of testing and a lot of a lot of doctors and they tell you over and over again that you can back out at any time, including right up until they administer anesthesia on the day of the operation if there is one.

And they say that if you back out for any reason, they will tell the recipient that it’s a medical reason because basically their point is it is a medical reason.

Like if you decide you can’t do it, that’s a medical reason not to do it.

So lots and lots of testing.

And then they sent me to another place where I had a chest x-ray and a CT scan with contrast.

And the fun thing, as you may know, when you get a CT scan with contrast, is they tell you once the dye goes in that they inject into your IV, you’ll feel warmth throughout your body.

You’ll feel like you’re peeing and you might get a metallic taste in your mouth.

I can tell you I didn’t get a metallic taste in my mouth.

Everything else was 100% right.

So funny.

I was reading later about why it makes me feel like you’re peeing.

Pretty great.

Science is crazy.

And then it’s time for me to go home.

And so I’m supposed to call the person who’s going to arrange a car to get me home.

And because the organization through which I would be donating is Jewish, it’s called Renewal.

They are open to anybody.

Jews and non-Jews alike can donate and receive kidneys through this and livers actually through this org, Renewal.

But because they are a Jewish organization, their volunteers are mostly observant Orthodox Jews.

And they were clearly concerned that they could not drive me back to New Jersey and they get back in time before the Sabbath started on Friday night.

So they’re like, why don’t you just Uber and we’ll reimburse you?

It was a little tricky though because nobody wanted to drive you home in an Uber to New Jersey from Long Island at 3 something p.m.

It was going to be a three hour ride.

It was a valuable ride.

Like they were getting paid with tip like $220, $230.

But I had four cars reject before the fifth car came and actually took me home.

So get a little nervous when you get those cars who start to come and they’re going to pick you up and then all of a sudden they just go away and find you a new car.

It’s a little nerve wracking because like I did not want to live at the transplant hospital or the imaging center.

But luckily I won’t have to.

I also got to meet with the rabbi who was the person who initially reached out to me to tell me that I was a potential match and wanted to know if I would be willing to donate to a stranger.

I got to say this.

There’s something really interesting because every doctor and nurse who I saw and social worker was like, so who are you donating this to?

And I was like, oh, I don’t know.

It’s a stranger.

And they already think you’re a good person because you’re willing to donate.

Then when they find out it’s a stranger, suddenly you’re like a god.

And I’m like, I appreciate where you’re coming from with this people.

But it’s not like I was best friends with my friend’s mom.

I didn’t know my friend’s mom either.

I knew my friend.

The friend’s mom was the one who needed the kidney initially.

But when I was meeting with the rabbi, he knew that I knew my pal and thus sort of his mom.

So he was showing me photos of the celebratory dinner where the mom met the donor.

It was very sweet.

See my friends in a photo, seeing the beaming woman.

Actually, he was telling me that they had done something like four successful kidney transplants that week.

And this rabbi was like, I love going in.

If the surgeons let me observe, I always go in.

I’m squeamish around blood and stuff, but watching those kidneys go in is so cool.

I never get tired of it.

And he was saying that when he goes in to visit the recipients after surgery, like 12 hours later, that they already look and feel better.

Like one was saying, oh, my brain fog is gone.

And like, that’s so cool.

The fact that you can get that kidney in and like within 12 hours start to feel positive impacts from it.

That’s crazy.

That’s very cool.

Still, 50% of the people who go through the day that I went through are not chosen as donors for various reasons.

Like they want you to be in perfect health and they’re looking at, you know, the rest of your life.

Can you healthfully handle this donation?

So they may still tell me no.

It’s as likely as not.

So we’ll see what happens next.

Anyway, tomorrow I have the surgery that it’s just for me, not for anybody else.

Where I’ll be getting my spinal fusion at C5, C6.

So everybody get excited about maybe my arm stopping being a piece of crap because it really is a piece of crap right now.

That’s all I got.

Happy Monday, everybody, and have a good week because I don’t know when we’re talking again.

It’s going to be a couple days.

Lex.