They had a blood donor clinic at work today. I tried to give, but they rejected me. I snuck out the back door, head hung low, trying to ignore the whispering from the crowd in the room. “What’s he leaving for? What’s wrong with his blood? He must be an addict or something. I heard he used to be a (very successful) male prostitute”
No, I’m not gay; and no, I don’t have a boyfriend who is. I haven’t been in jail for more than 48 hours in the last six months, I haven’t shared needles, I haven’t traded money or sex for drugs, I don’t have AIDS, syphilis or gonorrhea, and I haven’t handled monkeys or handled their body fluids at any time in my past. (They actually ask all of these questions, including the monkey one.)
But…
I have had an operation in the last six months, I did get a vaccination recently (flu shot), and I did travel outside the US and Canada in the last three years, twice.
Apparently, my trip to India was the show-stopper. Sorry, my Indian friends, but because I spent 10 days gracing your piece of the earth-pie with my presence, my blood must be filtered through my liver and kidneys or whatever for a total of 12 months before it is fit to flow through someone else’s body. I guess Malaria can sometimes take a while to show its ugly head and there is no test available for it in Canada.
So… if you’re looking for A+ blood anytime between now and the end of October 2008, I can’t help you. If you are wondering where to find a good burger in Chennai, India…. well, actually, I can’t help you there either.
