First of all, I'd just like to say that this is one slightly negative experience concerning a very good cause. I have happily and successfully given blood in the past and I will continue to do so in the future.
Today one of my friends posted something on facebook about NZBLOOD doing a drive for O+ blood. I figured that I should do my good deed for the week and make a donation since I'm O+. I called up and to my surprise they booked me an appointment in twenty minutes.
At the clinic I filled out a form. No I don't have HIV. No I have not slept with any prostitutes lately. No I am not a prostitute myself. No I don't have mad cow disease even though my boyfriend would have answered differently (wow I'm lame). I thought for a moment that I wouldn't be able to give blood as I had been to the dentist the day before but as it turns out it was over 24 hours ago so I was in the green zone. PHEW.
Anyway! I was ushered into another room where there were around eight people currently giving blood. I sat down while the nurse prepared and had a giggle at the tv in the room which was showing a polar bear attacking a walrus. The nurse looked at me like I was crazy. It was far too awkward for me to explain that the only reason I found it funny was because I could just imagine the walrus saying "Bad day. bad day. bad day, bad day..." as it was being chewed in front of it's friends.
So I gave blood and finished in record time for me. Another nurse came and took out the needle but when she had set the bag down she lifted up her hand to find that it was covered in blood! My blood!
"It's leaking she said" and ran to wash her hands and was there for at least the next five minutes using most of the soap in the dispenser no doubt. I got down from the seat and just stood there in shock as the blood leaked out of the bag before my eyes and formed a growing puddle on the desktop. For some reason all I could do was laugh inappropriately just as I had done in a morbid part of the documentary they were screening. It was just crazy to me that there was at least a cup of blood that had come out so far and none of the nurse had tried to move it or clean it. "It must not have been sealed properly" the male nurse who had observed my inappropriate laughter before said.
The nurses just sort of stood there looking at me and after a while I realized that they were hoping I would leave so that they could clean it up. Obviously they wouldn't be shoveling the blood back into the bag and mailing it off to some poor sod who needed it any more. I had no delusions about that. they certainly wouldn't just reseal the bag and then send it away half empty either. It had already been partially exposed to the air and was no longer safe. My blood was on a one stop trip to the rubbish bin while it was still warm! And wow was the awkwardness written all over their faces. I hesitantly excused myselg "I'm just going to go." I had my cookies and juice and then I laughed the whole way home.
The looks on their faces were totally worth the whole ordeal. "Bad day. Bad day, Bad day. Bad day..."
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