Cellar Scribblings

[Jeff Wrangler]

I knew what was coming in your case, because I've known for years that the Red Cross will not accept blood from gay men. However, I've never heard before that they won't accept blood from obese people. 

[Shakesthecoffecan]

Ok, so here's a story about a "family activity" yesterday.



My dad is a member of the Knights of Columbus, and they were doing a blood drive.  If you donated blood, you got a voucher for $15.00 towards groceries at Shop Rite, so mom thought this would be an opportunity to do something good, and get a discount on the grocery bill.



So mom, dad, my brother Chris and I go down to the local KoC to make our donations, and here's what happened:

Nurse:  Next.

Mom:  Hello!

Nurse:  Hello.

Nurse proceeds to ask mom questions, and gets to the question "how much do you weigh?"

Mom:  110 pounds.

Nurse:  I'm sorry, we don't take blood from someone with such a low body weight, it can cause you to pass out, it's a health risk.

Mom:  Oh, Ok.  (gets up)

Nurse:  Next.

Dad:  Hello!

Nurse:  Hello!

Nurse proceeds to ask dad questions, and gets to the question "Have you had radiation in the past year?"

Dad:  Yes, as treatment for prostate cancer.

Nurse:  I'm sorry, then you can't donate blood for another 2 years.

Dad:  Oh, ok.  (gets up)

Nurse:  Next!

Chris:  Hello.

Nurse:  Hello.  How much do you weigh?

Chris:  xxxx

Nurse:  I'm sorry, your morbidly obese, so I can't take your blood.

Chris:  Ok.

Nurse:  Next.

Me:  Hello!

Nurse:  Hello.

I roll up my sleeve as she's asking me questions.

Nurse:  How old are your tattoos?

Me:  Most recent one was in 2006.

Nurse:  Ok then, that's not a problem.  May I ask what that symbol is?

Me:  The pink triangle?  It's a gay pride symbol.

Nurse:  Oh, I'm sorry, according to the FDA, we can't accept blood from gay men.

Me:  Oh....ok.



So much for my family's attempt to donate blood!

Lawd have mercy. I can understand they have to have guidelines, but c'mon.

And the gay thing is just stoopid.

[Kelda]

Its gthe same in the Uk re: gay men although there is currently a review going on..

[Mandy21]

I cannot believe that, Chuck.  I'm sitting here with my jaw on the ground.  As someone who just three weeks ago had to have a 2-pint emergency transfusion, I know that I, for one, didn't care one hoot in hell who it came from, as long as they pumped it in to me toot-sweet.

At my last job, I was the head of the corporate Volunteer Committee, and oversaw 4 blood drives a year, which were always very successful.  But I've never donated myself; I tried once, but it turns out I'm one of those fainters that's more trouble to the nurses who have to stop what they're doing and attend to me instead of gathering more blood out of a non-fainter.  Had I known they asked questions and made insulting comments like these to prospective donors behind those curtains, I might well have stopped setting up these events.

This sounds dangerously close to being unconstitutional and/or deserving of a lawsuit at the least.  I wonder if any gay-right's organizations, or the ACLU, has ever fought against this?  If I were you, I would have thrown a hissy fit to whomever was in charge from the Red Cross.  I know it's in your blood, pun intended, to be a happy-go-lucky, glass-is-half-full kind of person all the time, but I would have walked out of there one very dejected and incensed soul.

[CellarDweller]

This sounds dangerously close to being unconstitutional and/or deserving of a lawsuit at the least.  I wonder if any gay-right's organizations, or the ACLU, has ever fought against this?  If I were you, I would have thrown a hissy fit to whomever was in charge from the Red Cross.  I know it's in your blood, pun intended, to be a happy-go-lucky, glass-is-half-full kind of person all the time, but I would have walked out of there one very dejected and incensed soul.

From what I've read, there are gay rights groups that are trying to get the policies changed, but as you can see from some of the posts here, there are other countries that do the same thing.

It's not something that upsets me, but I'm sure it upsets others.

Hissy-fits aren't my style, so I don't think I'll be doing that. 

[dejavu]

So, I went away for 10 days or so, and missed the party.

Congrats on 1,000 pages, Chuck.

I hope there are still some red velvet cupcakes around someplace.

[dejavu]

I don't know where else to post this


A video appreciation of Ang Lee's 2005 masterpiece to commemorate New York's recent recognition of same-sex marriages

BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (A video essay from Roger Ebert's Far Flung Correspondents)

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkXtu-x6v-o[/youtube]

Thanks for posting this here, John.  It's really good, I enjoyed those well-chosen highlights.

[dejavu]

And canoli, too!

It really was a good party!   

[dejavu]

Today's travel destination:

Lake Coeur D'Alene, Idaho, USA.

Snaking through a glacier-dug channel between low, forest-covered mountains not far from the border with Canada, Lake Coeur D'Alene offers fishing, windsurfing, steamboat rides, waterskiing, and the simple lure of the old-fashioned family vacation.

Very pretty!  My aunt mentioned that she'd been there once on vacation.  If I ever went to Idaho for a visit, this wouldn't be a bad place, at least from the point of view of scenery.

[dejavu]

You take the high road,
And I'll take the low road,
And Water-walking Jesus, take me away!
Me and my true love will never meet again
On the bonnie bonnie banks of Loch Lomond.

What a beautiful place.

What a beautiful song.

It's fun, catching up in this blog.