Ezra S

@ezra.zone

2067 Followers 583 Following

creator of longcovidstudies.net, member of the Patient-Led Research Collaborative, and freelancer.

screenshot of my garmin wearable app showing a sleep score graph. the sleep score is 20, quality is poor, and duration is 3 hours and 36 minutes. the graph shows that I was awake for most of the night.
Image from Wikipedia article about survivorship bias showing bullet locations on an airplane
Screenshot of email from "Substack Standards & Enforcement": Hello, I’m reaching out to let you know about a security incident that resulted in the email address from your Substack account being shared without your permission. I’m incredibly sorry this happened. We take our responsibility to protect your data and your privacy seriously, and we came up short here. What happened. On February 3rd, we identified evidence of a problem with our systems that allowed an unauthorized third party to access limited user data without permission, including email addresses, phone numbers, and other internal metadata. This data was accessed in October 2025. Importantly, credit card numbers, passwords, and financial information were not accessed. What we are doing. We have fixed the problem with our system that allowed this to happen. We are conducting a full investigation, and are taking steps to improve our systems and processes to prevent this type of issue from happening in the future. What you can do. We do not have evidence that this information is being misused, but we encourage you to take extra caution with any emails you receive that may be suspicious. This sucks. I'm sorry. We will work very hard to make sure it does not happen again. - Chris Best, CEO of Substack
Screenshot of the Aptitude Medical web store, with the following text highlighted: Due to an overwhelming increase in demand, we are out of Metrix® COVID-19 Test at this time. We expect to restock in mid-February.
Screenshot of iOS notification from the BILT rewards app that says: Final spots: Comedy in SF Join us Monday for a member-exclusive show at Punch Line SF. Two drinks included. Tap to book!
me, a white man in my late 30s with a mustache and smirk, standing in front of UCSF Pride Hall at San Francisco General Hospital prior to a study visit
Screenshot of Kaiser website that says: Vaccine updates Flu shots will be available starting September 8. Kaiser Permanente is reviewing the FDA's approval of the 2025-26 COVID-19 vaccine and awaiting CDC guidance. COVID-19 vaccines are expected in mid-September. Please check back for eligibility and details.
screenshot of new google drive app, with a grotesque skewed Google logo in the upper right corner
Tweet from (sigh) Pat Soon-Shiong: "Trial of Bioshield to explore treatment of Long Covid is open!! Please enquire via this form at http://cssifm.org and our team will respond to the many requests for Bioshield #anktiva #longcovid" Image showing screenshot of website with "Long COVID Clinical Trial" heading and "CSSIFM Clinical Trial Inquiry" section
Photo through a car windshield showing the Nevada car license plate “NOCHILL”
a screenshot from adsb.lol showing a blimp flying high over the Bay Bridge
graph of pm2.5 measurements at my desk in the last 24 hours, showing early morning spikes that quickly go down to 0.
Slide showing: Why Didn't It Work? Wrong drug: • Maybe AER002 did not have the activity we needed or the dose was wrong • Maybe virus had already escaped • Maybe participants had "mixed" reservoirs from exposure after August 2022 Wrong participants: • Maybe we did not enroll anyone with viral persistence • Maybe participants were too far from initial infection (most data for 3-12 months) Wrong approach: • Maybe we treated people too late (>2 years after infection causing Long COVID • Maybe a single dose is ineffective and a multi-dosing strategy is needed • Maybe a combination approach is needed (either targeting virus or immune system) Wrong hypothesis: • Maybe viral persistence is simply not a cause of Long COVID
screen capture from s2 e4 of The Rehearsal: nathan fielder, in a suit, sits down at a table in a replica congressional hearing room, with a placard with his name in front of him.
Me, wearing a 3M VFlex mask, in front of UCSF Pride Hall
A phlebotomy setup with coband, gauze, and alcohol wipe. A green test tube rack holds 8 large purple-capped vacutainers, one small purple-capped vacutainer, two black-and-red medium vacutainers, and one yellow medium vacutainer.
screenshot of Zoom UI showing a variety of features offered. This includes: Chat Docs Whiteboards Workflows Clips Notes Mail Surveys Apps Contacts
screenshot of email that says: WEIRD TIMES | 1.30.25 Hello hello, You may notice this email comes to you from a different source, yet again. I switched from Mailchimp to Substack a couple years ago, and I've been happy with that platform. It has a nice, seamless UI, and I found it easy to use and easy to direct people to. Well, it turns out it's also full of (and monetizing, and vocally supporting) out-and-out white supremacist content? Shoutout to a well-informed friend for that information! So, here we are. Luckily I already had a website, so I'm just running this newsletter from here now. I was going to post an up-for-grabs today, but instead I'm doing admin getting this up and running. I promise not to spam you, but it might be helpful to add this email to your address book so it doesn’t go to spam if you want to be kept abreast of booking. If you submitted in my last round of booking, I am sorry I did such a weird job of getting back to everyone. I am very bad at admin, and I am so lucky to get a high volume of submissions that are super good, so I end up waffling over a too-large yes pile for basically ever. I’m going to try to figure out a better system going forward. Either way, I appreciate you being here, and I hope your Friday is going as well as it can be amidst it all. I did sign up for bluesky, so find me there at onholliday per usual or just click below to find me. I'll still be on Instagram, for better or worse, because I can't not - but I'm excited for alternatives. Have a nice weekend. It's weird out here. In the meantime, please enjoy a painting I made of my friend Danny Boy the greyhound for a dear friend. I think he was born to play the unicorn in a tapestry, honestly.
Photo of me, a white man with brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a 3M Aura 9210+ respirator, with an ice pack on my neck, showing a thumbs up sign
lauren@rotatingsandwiches.com post: i made a little meme about going the farmers market aggravated meme person on left is carrying a “Choose Gratitude” tote and saying I NEED TO GET THE LONG EGGPLANTS smiling meme person on right is drinking a hot beverage and saying “I like enjoying the vibe”
Screenshot of linked paper with the following text: "My involvement began in this RECOVER initiative after an article was published on Oct 20, 2021, in “UIC Today for the Illinois RECOVER Initiative” [3]. Dr. Jerry A. Krishnan was the Principal Investigator for this RECOVER adult HUB at the University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System. In November of 2021, after reading this article about the launch of the Illinois HUB, Billy Hanlon, a Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), and Long COVID activist from Minneapolis contacted me as he had read several research articles I had written on ME/CFS, and he asked if I was connected with this Illinois HUB. I said I was not, and Billy then contacted Dr. Krishnan and encouraged him to involve me with this Illinois HUB. After several meetings with Billy and Dr. Krishnan, I was asked to serve as an ME/CFS expert for the University of Illinois RECOVER Hub. As part of my activities over the next few years, I presented several webinars and workshops to Dr. Krishnan’s RECOVER staff on diagnostics and case definitions for ME/CFS [4]."
Apple Notes screenshot that says: 2025 IN - deep, meaningful partnerships - asking for the things i want - platform trials - ambition - playing the game on the field - sleep - indoor air quality - telling it like it is - sending invoices - hot tub time - journal clubs OUT - the phrase “mysterious illness” - overcommitting - making excuses - monotherapies - living in the shadows - hoarding - food that doesn’t feed my soul - hiding from anxiety - overoptimization
product image of a wifi router shaped like a minion
a fluffy, old shih tzu with tongue sticking out sleeping on a wooden floor. or is it a mop? we'll never know
Screenshot of lab report that says: FINAL DIAGNOSIS Peripheral blood smear and bone marrow, right posterior iliac crest, aspirate smears and clot: - Cellular marrow with progressive trilineage hematopoiesis and blasts less than 5%; see comment. COMMENT: Aspirates are abundantly cellular and demonstrate progressive trilineage hematopoiesis with a slight decrease in the myeloid to erythroid ratio (1-2:1), no significant dysplasia, and no increase in blasts (~1%). Due to the lack of a core biopsy, cellularity for age cannot be determined; however, the clot contains cellular spicules which demonstrate 30-40% cellularity. Concurrent UCS flow cytometry (IM24-4413) showed no increase in myeloid blasts (1% of total events) and no evidence of a lymphoproliferative disorder. Clinical correlation is recommended. The following stains (COVID19, CD138, kappa, lambda) was performed and evaluated at UCSF on block Al and the results are reported in the microscopic description.
screenshot of message: Your Additional Settlement Payment $7.44
Screenshot of test results with the following text: FINAL DIAGNOSIS 1. No increase in myeloid blasts (blasts are 1% of total events); see comment. 2. No evidence of a lymphoproliferative disorder; see comment. COMMENT: No immunophenotypically abnormal cell population identified. Lymphoid gate (bright CD45, low side scatter): 19% of total events -B-cells: 13% of gated events Expressed: CD19, CD20, CD22 Kappa:lambda ratio: 1.4:1 No co-expression of CD5, CD10, CD34 - T-cells: 58% of gated events Expressed CD2, CD3, CD5, variable CD7, and either CD4 or CD8 CD4:CD8 ratio: 1:1 No loss of a pan-T-cell antigen - NK-cells: 29% of gated events Expressed CD2, CD7 Subsets co-expressed CD16, CD56, and/or CD57 Blast gate (intermediate CD45, low-to-moderate side scatter): - Myeloid blasts: 1% of total events Expressed CD13, weak CD33, CD34, CD38, weak CD71, CD117, HLA-DR No co-expression of CD14, CD15, CD16, CD64, CD123, lymphoid antigens Normal immunophenotype - Hematogones: 1.5% of total events Expressed CD10, CD19, variable CD20, variable CD34, bright CD38, HLA-DR Normal immunophenotype Myeloid events: - Granulocytes (intermediate CD45, moderate-to-high side scatter): Expressed CD13, CD15, CD33 Normal immunophenotype - Monocytes (bright CD45, moderate side scatter): Expressed weak CD4, CD11b, CD13, CD14, weak CD15, CD33, CD64 Normal immunophenotype
tweet from @deerhoof: FUN FACTS ABOUT SPOTIFY •demonetized 80% of platform •invests in Al battlefield technology •pays $0.003 per stream max •fired 51% of curatorial team, now relies on Al •CEO claims cost of making music is "close to zero" •CEO makes 2.5 billion x salary of average musician
screenshot of classic art deco style design, a gold pillar in the middle with sweeping gold rays coming out
Screenshot of REVERSE-LC website showing Patient Led Scorecard evaluation, with most grades in the +2 "Ideal" category and a few in the +1 "Great" category. Text reads: "The Reverse-LC Study’s Patient-Led Research Scorecard Our trial was graded by leaders at the Patient-Led Research Collaborative (PLRC) (Hannah Davis, Gina Assaf), ME-Action (Jaime Seltzer), and National Academy of Medicine Long COVID testifier (Kelly Sealey). This scorecard was created by Patient-Led Research Collaborative. The figure shows the high degree of collaboration between the physician-scientists and patient-researchers with not only lived experience of the illness, but also experience with the research process, participatory design, patient engagement, and study design. We are grateful for the input from so many who shared their wisdom and advice to make this NIH-funded trial the best it can be. Reverse-LC is a campaign of human service and scientific discovery."
yours truly wearing sunglasses and a t-shirt of an [18F]FAraG PET/CT scan showing widespread T-cell activation throughout my body
Screenshot of longcovidstudies.net filter options
Letter to the editor titled "Long COVID has destroyed my life" published in the Boston Globe. Text contained in skeet thread
pink zeroXposur jacket
Closeup of a cute dog named twyla sitting on a couch with eyes closed, looking sleepy
photo of boxes containing secret/classified documents in the mar-a-lago bathroom
screenshot of trump indictment, with the text: "I don't want anybody looking, I don't want anybody looking through my boxes, I really don't, I don't want you looking through my boxes."
Screenshot from gmail inbox showing email with the subject: "Help teams at gmail.com move quickly, together"
orange inflatable air dancer with smiling face
screenshot of an inbox containing an unread email from Kaiser Permanente with the subject "Your new medical bill is now available"
3d meri image of head, with brain extracted above the head