Of needles and blood

Pictures taken from HERE.

Today is yet another Monday in the fifty two weeks of a year. For all schooling kids, it is another week of classes and tuition and other activities made up of music, sports and so on.

For working people, it is the most dreaded day of the week- the first day of the working week and four more excruciatingly looooong days of hard work before comes the weekend. Beautiful weekend where one can kick back, chill and relax provided one has no draining obligations to carry out.

I no longer suffer from Monday blues as I used to whilst working in audit and at the bank back home in Malaysia but at the same time, I miss out on happy Fridays. I really do. Everyday is like Friday and weekends for me. Monday has become like any other days. It is another day of unemployment- freedom from the rat race (for now). Leading it to be yet another day of uncertainties.

It is truly awesome that it is another day I get to sort of relax and do whatever I want and whenever such as reading one of my many novels loaned from the library, surf the net for all kinds of information available, sleep if I am so inclined to and the list just goes on.

Today, Monday is all the above except that it is my brother's birthday. That and I'll be prodded by a needle. My brother's a big boy now but that's not the point of this post. And he probably doesn't want me to make a mountain out of it, let alone even make this tiny announcement.

Back to needles and being prodded. I don't faint at the sight of blood or needles unlike some people but I sure do get fainthearted. Can't tell if I get weak knees over it since I am usually sitting down awaiting my turn.

This brings me back to memories of my last medical check up last October that I had to undergo for my employment with the bank. There was a line of about three people ahead of me and I had the privilege to see each and everyone - reach their turn, sit on the black chair lay their arm out for the person in charge to draw blood - suffering the prick and for some, worst pained feeling ever.

It is a fairly quick and simple process but watching from a distant and waiting my turn just makes my hand clammy, wishing at the same time that someone was there to distract me from the sight of blood and needles and the thousand and one morbid thoughts assaulting my mind.

This is why despite my ardent desire to help those in need of blood, I have NEVER ever donated blood. I am ashame to admit this but nary a single drop. I almost did once during uni times and once at the bank when they were holding blood donation drive but the coward in my prevailed.

I don't know what is it about blood and needles that agitates me but it just does. Let's not even talk about peeing in a cup. At least, I don't get vein spasm like a friend of mine, inviting countless poking of the needle in various vain attempts to draw blood.

Do you get nervous when it comes to blood and needles or you're pretty much a cool cucumber with no apprehensive feelings?