A wild gift that you wanna give

I BELIEVE THAT EACH DAY AS I SIT DOWN TO WRITE the nonsensical blurbs and randomosity that I post, I secretly hope that someday, someone will read them and it will miraculously change their life.

Pish posh. I am no superhero of sorts, a goddess nor demon. I cannot read minds nor jump from burning buildings, and I most certainly cannot fly (though my brother tried this on Christmas day in the mid-90’s and landed in the emergency room). The extent of my valor may very well have been the conquering of several largely vertical waterslides, saving my sister from an inflatable raft that incidentally sprung a leak in 4 feet of water, and showcasing myself on the karaoke stage at the North Dakota State Fair whilst belting out various raunchy tunes with such lyrics as, “Baby got back” and “I love you in your big jeans, you give me nice dreams, etc.”.

I am pleased to announce, ladies and gentlemen, that as of today these are no longer my greatest acts of spunk.

I saved a life today, maybe two, possibly ten. But there were no burning buildings, nor damsels in distress. I didn’t push a car out of the path of an oncoming train, nor set zoo animals free from captivity, send food to hungry children in third world countries, or stop genocide in Darfur. No, no, and no.

I gave blood. A whole pint of beautiful, healthy, HIV/AIDS/malaria/[insert any blood-related disease here] -free blood. I’d never given blood before, and for lack of a less cheesy description, it was a powerful experience. I feel good about it.

My intentions in telling you this are not to appear smug, but rather to encourage you to donate. The United Blood Services did not send me out of their Bloodmobile demanding that I advocate their cause and recruit fellow people with blood (that’s you!), but they did give me an Oatmeal Creme Pie, a sweet bandage, and a reason to come back. People out there need my blood more than I do! WHOA!

Though I’m not eligible to donate again until the end of March, I plan on doing so. It is easy for me to dream of making a difference through these silly posts, or to stop global warming. OR I could simply take a needle for the team and hand over a pint of sweet, sweet vital fluid for a greater cause. I think yes.

Ya-woo.

[Postscript: If you have had sex for money even once since 1977, you are unfortunately not eligible to donate. UBS does not support you or your tainted blood. Sorry.]