Will donate blood for Dr Pepper

It all started with an offhanded remark I made to my friend Sarah, who happens to be the lab tech/blood bank person, about the Dr Pepper I saw in the lab.  We occasionally get Dr Peppers from the states, but we’ve recently had a dry spell of Dr Peppers and I haven’t had one in quite some time.   So I mentioned that I saw one in the lab, and she said, “Well, if we need your blood, then you can have it.”

Here on the ship we don’t actually have a blood bank, as there is no place for the blood to be stored, so the crew is our “walking blood bank” so to speak.  Occasionally you’ll hear someone’s name being announced over the intercom being asked to report to the lab and you know someone needs blood.  I signed up a while ago to be a donor, but I haven’t actually been cleared to give blood until recently.  I didn’t think much about my Dr Pepper comment until Sarah came up to me and said, “So how about that Dr Pepper?”  And I said of course I would give blood, especially if there was a Dr Pepper involved.  So a large needle and 500 mL of blood later, I had my blood and Dr Pepper in hand.

If I stop and think about it, I live in such an unusual environment.  I mean, my walk to work is shorter than my walk to get breakfast, and at any time I could be asked to give blood for the patients that we’re operating on.   It’s crazy, but I love it.  Especially when it means I get help someone AND enjoy a Dr Pepper at the same time.