Health is the ultimate democracy, as every mortal knows, especially we squirrels who have gathered our nuts for the winter and been careful crossing busy streets. Many careful and industrious squirrels have died young, while rats and weasels have led long and happy lives. We tremble when we go to see the doctor, fearing that some terrible irony is about to be revealed.
I spent a few days at the Mayo Clinic recently, getting poked and probed, giving blood, peeing into a cup, coughing on command, listening for inaudible beeps over headphones, walking fast uphill on a treadmill as a young...