What Doesn’t Kill You

Stories of how people cope after brushes with death. Sometimes death comes as a disease. Sometimes it swims up and bites you. And sometimes it's a pen or pencil, sitting there, just waiting for you to ingest it. Prologue: Ira talks to comedian Tig Notaro, who recently had a bunch of horrible things happen to her all in the course of 4 months. (3 minutes) Too Soon?: In July, Tig was diagnosed with cancer. A week later she went on stage on Los Angeles and did a now-legendary set about her string of misfortunes. This is an excerpt of the full performance, which is available on the album LIVE. (13 minutes) Just Keep Breathing: A teenage girl gets bitten by a shark, rushed to the doctor's office, stitched up, and told she'll be totally fine. Crisis averted, right? Not so much. Ira tells the story. (21 minutes) A Real Nail Biter: Jessica Benko tells the story of a woman named Cathy who was almost killed several times by a thought that she just couldn't get rid of. (15 1/2 minutes) The Sweet Year After: Tim Kreider almost died after he was stabbed in the throat. But that wasn't nearly as interesting as the year that followed. A version of this essay appears in Tim's most recent book, We Learn Nothing. (4 minutes)