Michael & Liz are Bloggable

It is no secret that I LOVE to donate blood. No, it's not some masochistic thing where I enjoy pain although with all the marathon training I've been doing maybe that's the hidden truth. Actually pain is part of the reason I like donating, because for me there is very little. You feel a sting for about 5 seconds and then you have two hours of not moving your arms. It's more inconvenient to not move than painful to have needles in your arm. Not only does it not hurt, but I love donating because it's really needed by those who need the most help, they let you watch a movie, and then give you Little Debby snacks at the end. Nothing says congratulations like Little Debby.

Very soon we are going on a cruise to some select places in the Caribbean. For anyone who donates blood, you know there are some places you can't go for fear that you might contract Malaria. I have looked our destinations up on the CDC Malaria Map and unfortunately they are labeled as being somewhat risky. Risky enough that if you go to those places you cannot donate blood for 1 year.

First Argument: 
It's not like we're going there for days on end staying with the locals. It's a cruise ship that stops in these touristy areas. We are only going to stay, at most, 12 hours at each stop. Is it really a Malaria risk to stop by places that are "somewhat risky"? From what I understand, symptoms for Malaria show up between 9 and 18 days of getting it. It's very rare for it to show up after that.


Second Argument: 
The Red Cross has rules for a reason and they can't make any exceptions. It's smarter to wait 1 year just in case. It's much better to wait a year than it is to risk infecting someone already sick with Malaria. Also, you'd be a liar.

What should I do? I really hate giving up donating blood for a year, but it seems like I may not have a choice. I've kind of already made up my mind about it, even though I don't like it. If it's one thing I really despise, it's lying.