This is a small blip on my life's timeline, but I think it's worth mentioning if only for jokes.
I was a government test subject when I was 3 and living on the Neu Ulm Pershing Missile Base in West Germany (this was before the wall came down, and shortly before the reactor at Chernobyl blew).
My Mother took me in for a checkup and was informed that I was going to be part of a case study. My Mother was taken aback of course, and refused. She was then informed that if she didn't comply, I would no longer be insured. So, grudgingly, my Mother agreed.
Soon after that, I was a "healthy" test subject in an HIV medication study. The cool thing is, this was a big deal looking back. We were still learning about more than fighting HIV in the early 80's; so I feel proud to have been a lab rat for the sake of bettering and prolonging the lives of others by as much as 30 years.
I sometimes wonder if the prolonged effects of the drug, if there are any, are the reason I rarely get ill. I get the flu of some kind once every other year or so. Maybe it's karma, maybe it's the hygienic caution my Mother taught me :P
I was a government test subject when I was 3 and living on the Neu Ulm Pershing Missile Base in West Germany (this was before the wall came down, and shortly before the reactor at Chernobyl blew).
My Mother took me in for a checkup and was informed that I was going to be part of a case study. My Mother was taken aback of course, and refused. She was then informed that if she didn't comply, I would no longer be insured. So, grudgingly, my Mother agreed.
Soon after that, I was a "healthy" test subject in an HIV medication study. The cool thing is, this was a big deal looking back. We were still learning about more than fighting HIV in the early 80's; so I feel proud to have been a lab rat for the sake of bettering and prolonging the lives of others by as much as 30 years.
I sometimes wonder if the prolonged effects of the drug, if there are any, are the reason I rarely get ill. I get the flu of some kind once every other year or so. Maybe it's karma, maybe it's the hygienic caution my Mother taught me :P
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