A bloody triumph at the convention center

Well, once again, I forgot to tell you about a blood drive beforehand so you could participate.

But this time, it didn’t matter. I am happy to report that the American Red Cross’ Famously Hot Blood Drive at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center today was hugely successful.

The goal was 100 donors. Red Cross Donor Recruitment Representative Kelly Moore told me late this afternoon that when it was all over, 160 had given.

You’ll note the row of seated Columbians above waiting their turn. There was another full row behind them, and it was like that much of the day.

Of course, I did my bit (come on, you knew that you wouldn’t get all the way through this post without a little self-aggrandizement from your humble correspondent). I gave double-red cells, because I’m just that sort of overachiever. Also, I think it’s cool the way they take the blood out, remove red cells and put it back (quite literally cool, because it’s not as warm as it was when it went out, having been mixed with a bit of saline to replace volume). I was a little worried that I couldn’t. You know how I occasionally fall short on the iron standard. Well, my ruse of buying some iron pills and taking a double-dose last night, and that much again this morning, worked — I scored a 14 on the test. Yes! Aced it, by cramming.

Anyway, I’ll try to remember to tell y’all ahead of time next time. But this time it worked out great anyway. Congratulations, and thanks, to Red Cross Blood Services, to the Columbia Rotary Club (quite a few members showed up), and to all those other folks who showed up to give.