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Wednesday, September 3, 2008

I Hear He’s a Real Fun Guy

posted by on September 3 at 11:00 AM

Nicholas Evans, who wrote The Horse Whisperer, has been hospitalized for eating bad mushrooms in Scotland. Apparently, he was with a group of people who ate a mushroom that infects the kidneys, and now all four of them are on dialysis. Remember, kids: Always go mushroom hunting with a specialist.

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1

Now drink! Driiiiiiiink!

Posted by Mr. Poe | September 3, 2008 11:06 AM
2

In France, all pharmacists are trained mycologists. Take your foraged bounty to the pharmacy and they'll toss all the poisonous ones. Be sure to wash the remaining mushrooms, as they've likely been touched by a Frenchman.

Posted by Ziggity | September 3, 2008 11:07 AM
3

He could well be fucked. One of the common nicknames for that mushroom is "destroying angel."

And it doesn't 'infect' the kidneys, it poisons them. He may end up needing dialysis for the rest of his life.

Posted by Yeek | September 3, 2008 11:12 AM
4

Even specialists can screw up. I almost lost a friend to a poisonous mushroom that appeared in a batch that we all ate. It appears that a single death cap was growing among a clump of fun ones, as only he got sick.

Posted by Sean | September 3, 2008 11:24 AM
5

i got food poisoning this weekend too. nothing as exotic as mushrooms though... just plain ole' apple cider.

Posted by pain | September 3, 2008 11:31 AM
6

if he never writes another book as awful as the horse whisperer, hell, if he never writes at all, that's not necessarily bad. is that what you're secretly thinking, mon brave?

Posted by scary tyler moore | September 3, 2008 11:31 AM
7

Here's an idea: don't go hunting for fun mushrooms. There are much better ways to enjoy altered states of consciousness without as high a risk of death or permanent kidney damage.

Posted by Greg | September 3, 2008 11:31 AM
8

Many of the serious poisonings occur when someone who knows just enough about mushrooms to be confident travels somewhere else and finds something that superficially resembles a choice edible back home. That's how some SE Asians have been poisoned by amanita phaloides here over the years.

If you're hunting in a new environment, you're essentially starting over.

Posted by onewink3 | September 3, 2008 1:27 PM
9

@7: They would have to have been pretty clueless to go looking for psilocybin and end up with amatoxin. It's far more likely that they were looking for non-psychoactive edible mushrooms, some of which are easily confused with the toxic varieties.

Posted by Furcifer | September 3, 2008 1:45 PM

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