But as soon as they realized I was awake, they immediately started seeing to my comfort – repositioning my lounge chair, fluffing my pillow... putting “instant ice” packs on my neck. Ah! It felt so wonderful that I completely forgot about the blood pressure cuff and the needle in my arm!
My thanks to the wonderful ladies working for the Central California Blood Center for helping me out through my unscheduled “nap” while reclining in a blood donor's lounge. Special thanks to Rachel, my phlebotomist, and to her boss – who's name escapes me at the moment. (I'm sorry about that – my wits were still addled just a little when you told me your name!)I last gave blood during the National Day of Reason, and wasn't really expecting to give blood again today – but I stopped by the mall to have some Chinese food for lunch, and found out about the blood drive. How could I resist that opportunity?
Everything was fine – Rachel and I were talking, but when she started removing the needle my stomach started to feel a bit upset, and I felt my body start to 'buzz' a little, and then suddenly I decided that closing my eyes was a good thing. I drifted off to a dreamless sleep.
That's when I was woken up by a circle of pretty nurses calling my name. My ego would be sooo huge right now if it hadn't already been punctured! (sigh!)
So, I got to take a (very brief) lunchtime nap, and to top it off they gave me a T-Shirt and a coupon for a pint of Baskin Robbins ice cream! (I wasn't expecting that!) Heh - once again I've demonstrated that giving blood is more effective than prayer for helping others - and in this case, the rewards were much more immediate!
Thanks to everyone at the blood center, and we'll do this again sometime soon! But next time I'll remind you to make sure you have an ice pack ready for me!
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