Wednesday, September 20, 2006
I think it’s the black lung, Pop
Gettin’ down in the Dirty Mosk! And man, is it ever dirty. Moscow has to be the most polluted city I’ve ever seen (and I’ve been to Gary, folks). The water is laden with nitrates and phenols and one should avoid contact with it at all costs. Unfortunately, it has proven rather more difficult to avoid the air, for reasons of my aerobic eukaryote physiology. Air pollution in Moscow is 30 to 50 times (TIMES!) the level deemed safe for human life by the World Health Organization. And you can tell, too; just walking around outside the air smells acrid, and with every breath you feel like you’re sucking on the exhaust pipe of a big rig. My companion and I have both already come down with respiratory infections as a result. According to my guidebook, this is a prelude to the stage of what I’ve deemed “Russian Air Syndrome” characterized by apathy and unpleasant skin conditions. So I guess I have that to look forward to.
On a far more positive note, things at the museum have gotten much better. My contact showed up after all, smoothed everything over with the rest of the staff, and hooked me up with my precious skullage. And precious it is: already I’ve cradled six irreplaceable holotypes in my skull-loving hands. I also got asked to go on a dig out in the Russian countryside, but unfortunately had to decline due to an upcoming hotel switch (will the lines at this one be as agonizing as the last? Only time will tell, but all signs point to yes.)
Gettin’ down in the Dirty Mosk! And man, is it ever dirty. Moscow has to be the most polluted city I’ve ever seen (and I’ve been to Gary, folks). The water is laden with nitrates and phenols and one should avoid contact with it at all costs. Unfortunately, it has proven rather more difficult to avoid the air, for reasons of my aerobic eukaryote physiology. Air pollution in Moscow is 30 to 50 times (TIMES!) the level deemed safe for human life by the World Health Organization. And you can tell, too; just walking around outside the air smells acrid, and with every breath you feel like you’re sucking on the exhaust pipe of a big rig. My companion and I have both already come down with respiratory infections as a result. According to my guidebook, this is a prelude to the stage of what I’ve deemed “Russian Air Syndrome” characterized by apathy and unpleasant skin conditions. So I guess I have that to look forward to.
On a far more positive note, things at the museum have gotten much better. My contact showed up after all, smoothed everything over with the rest of the staff, and hooked me up with my precious skullage. And precious it is: already I’ve cradled six irreplaceable holotypes in my skull-loving hands. I also got asked to go on a dig out in the Russian countryside, but unfortunately had to decline due to an upcoming hotel switch (will the lines at this one be as agonizing as the last? Only time will tell, but all signs point to yes.)
Comments:
Have you recovered yet? Do you find yourself getting all the cold bugs that now roam in Chicago? Those pollution levels are amazing, makes one really thankful for the freedoms we have here to protest, investigate, and stop such...(the ongoing recovery of the Great Lakes is a case in point, imagine them in Moscow...no don't..
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