Donating Blood

I went and donated a pint of blood this morning. Something I quite enjoy actually, and encourage everyone else to do. To me it’s one of those pay it forward things. I’ve never needed blood and I hope I never do, but if that need should ever arise, I hope there is some available for me. And for that I think I need to contribute to the supply. It was my 38th time.

One thing that always makes me chuckle is when I walk in I notice people in chairs with the blood being pumped out of them. I go through the whole process – the pin prick to see if I have enough iron in my blood, fill in the squares for all the did blood start pouring out of your eyes after taking an experimental drug for your excessive ear wax problem questions, the taking of temperature and blood pressure, answer all the did you snort cocaine while fellating a steroid user and being sodomized by an intravenous drug abuser in a prison in Zaire questions. (I do always make it a point to tell them that their questions about tattooing and piercing are out of touch with reality. I think they still regard tattooing as something done in a scummy back alley hovel by unsavoury cretins. Wrong.) I sit in the chair, the stick the needle in, and the blood starts pumping out. My record I think was about 33⁄4 minutes for the pint to finish. I go have a cookie and a some juice or whatever, and walk out after a few minutes. The people who I saw sitting in the chair when I walked in are still sitting in the chair with a tube sticking out of their arm. Their blood must be like congealed mollasses.

But even if you are one of those poor saps who take an hour to donate, you should still go and do it. It makes you healthier (your immune system gets a boost from it) and it just makes you feel good that you did something worthwhile for someone else.  

http://www.bloodservices.ca/