KI at the NS: An American Odyssey

This past Sunday while I was checking for news updates I noticed that the US Embassy in Tokyo had started making KI pills freely available to US citizens at two locations in Tokyo. Previously this was something offered only to the families of government officers (diplomats and military)…and wealthy expats. I had read an article the previous day in the WSJ about an elite Tokyo club (annual membership dues of $10k) that had circulated information to its US citizen members about the availability of KI tablets. “If Dave Spector was getting potassium iodide from the US government, so was I,” I vowed.

Actually, it was more than that. As I wrote earlier, I honestly believe the danger of iodine-131 radiation in Chiba to be negligible. But rather than appearing negligent to my family and readers, I thought I would pick up the pills as a purely precautionary measure (plus it makes for an interesting blog post). Who knows when you’ll run right into a nuclear crisis, right? Hopefully this will help to calm my family down. Not only that, but the pills give me reason to start the hobby I’ve always dreamed about: scrapbooking.

On Sunday I headed into Tokyo to meet a friend who was visiting from Kyoto. I figured I better start preparing for real American contact so we headed to one of Tokyo’s best burger joint, Reg On Burger. I’m not a burger freak, but once in while I get the craving (kind of like a werewolf and the full moon). If you’re a meat-eating American who has lived in Japan longer than a month, you know that finding a real burger here is like taking on a quest for the Grail. You gallop off chasing after a beautiful dream, but the search leaves you grizzled and trail worn, burger-less as ever. Reg On Burger is about as close as I’ve come to the real thing.

After lunch, I said goodbye to my friend and headed off with passport in hand to the NSH(otel). When we finally arrived, the security guard informed me that the medicine wasn’t available today and told me to come back the next day (Monday). I know that the Embassy is incredibly busy, but this really should’ve been corrected on the website. A round trip for me in and out of Tokyo costs about 2 hrs and $10 USD, but I’m certain that for others the cost and commute is much more taxing.

On Monday I woke with a sore throat. I survived the school year without catching anything, but as soon as spring break starts I catch a cold. Not a big deal, just ironic.

After work (the students are off but I'm at the BoE during spring break), I prepared to head off to New Sanno Hotel once more. I learned my lesson, so Before leaving the house I thought to call the US Embassy and h(otel) to confirm. Unfortunately no one I spoke with could say for sure what was or wasn’t happening at the NS in regards to the KI tablets. That sounded promising to me, so I decided to try my luck again. When I arrived, I was greeted by a security checkpoint (apparently only US citizens may stay at the NS). Walking into the lobby, the first thing I notice besides the dark wood is that it smelled like the States. It’s hard to explain what I mean by that. When I was a kid, I used to fly Southwest airlines every couple of weeks. I remember the smell of these airplanes very well…roasted peanuts, cabin-pressurized air, cologne, stewardesses, well-read magazines, etc. The NSH(otel) smells like the US, or maybe I mean it smells like those planes and those planes smell like the US.

The Embassy staff was very helpful. The ballroom where they were distributing tablets was not full, but there was a steady stream of people coming in for the KI tablets (families, couples, individuals). We each got a week’s worth of KI tablets without any difficulties. I thought some of you would be interested in reading the information provided with the tablets...

So we each got a week’s worth of KI tablets, which is more than enough for either of us. It’s extremely unlikely (and becoming more and more unlikely) that these will become necessary during the current crisis. I doubt I will ever need to use them, but then again I can’t say that I expected any of this to happen. Sure, I had heard that the Big One was coming to Kanto, but in my mind it was always just “coming” not “arriving.”

The Embassy staff told me that if it were necessary to take the pills, it would not be advisable to take a week’s worth. If it ever became necessary to take the pills, one should plan on leaving the area as soon as possible. The pills should only be used until you’re safely away from the Iodine-131 threat.

Not quite your average Sunday in Tokyo...