I donated blood...to the garbage can

Yep, that's right. All of the blood they took out of me yesterday went right into the garbage...or wherever they put blood that can't be used.

Everything was going well. I checked in and then sat waiting for a really long time for my number to be called. The wait didn't seem nearly as long though because there was a very nice gentleman sitting next to me who was willing to strike up a conversation. He's the vice president of Joliff Glass Co - nice fellow. We both had 5:30pm meetings - him to meet his wife and me to meet my mentor - both of us were late. He attends Northwoods and we talked a bit about our churches, among other things.

Anyhow, I finally get called in, go through the screening process and they put me in a chair to start the donation. The lady tells me to turn my head away when she went to put in the needle. No way! I mean, how often do you get to watch blood flow out of your body and have it be a cool experience?!?! I find that stuff really fascinating so I watched her stick it in my arm and the blood starts flowing in to the bag. It was so cool to watch! But before long, I had another woman at my side frowning at the bag. Apparently the needle has slipped and my vein was no longer pumping out the blood like it should. So she adjusted it and the blood flowed.

FOURTEEN adjustments later, I had only filled up 3/4 of the bag and my time limit had expired. Apparently you have to fill the bag within a certain amount of time or you're out of luck. Bummer! All that time spent waiting and looking foward to donating and my donation was no good!

As cool as it was to watch, I must say that by the time they had adjusted the needle 7-8 times, my arm was beginning to hurt. But being determined to donate blood, I stuck with it. You see, fourteen years ago, I received a blood transfusion. Someone (probably multiple someones) took the time to extend their arm and offer the gift of life. Without their donation (and the hand of God in my life), I wouldn't be here today. I guess I figured it was about time for me to extend my arm and perhaps offer someone else the gift of life. But no, it wasn't meant to happen yesterday. Now I must wait 56 days before trying again. And I will try again. It was so cool to watch after all, I'm willing to make another attempt. Hopefully next time, they will choose a more cooperative vein.