Last week the folks at FrugalBits.com got me to SHARE five of my favourite "free, cheap or worth it things to see, do or buy in Vancouver". If I could go back I would add one more to the list, and that would be to hop aboard a vehicle called the Bloodmobile that's driving around Vancouver handing out free Peek Freans and juice!
While it sounds like something Halloween themed it's actually a new year-round thing that the Canadian Blood Services Agency just launched to make it easier for you to donate blood, and of course they're not just giving out free stuff - this is one of the perks you get for giving blood, aside from the feeling you get knowing that you're helping save somebody's life. I heard about it and immediately thought how it's going to make it easier for me to get back on a program of giving, so when it was around our neighbourhood last week (parked in front of the Party Bazaar) I dipped in to check it out. They hit a new location every day.
When they pulled up my file they noted that I hadn't been in to give blood since 2006, and while I was making my donation a couple people came in behind me, both first time donors who said that the main reason there was the convenience of it. If you've ever given blood in Vancouver you've likely been up to their clinic on Oak Street, and it's not a huge pain to get out there but this will make things so much easier and hopefully get a lot more people offering their blood to folks who need it.
Here's 2 cups of my blood! Bagged and ready to go. I blacked out the labels on it because it's got my private info and stuff on it but I will tell you that my blood type is B+. That's B Positive. Fitting, right?
There's more info on the Bloodmobile program along with it's schedule HERE.
Also, Kendall Harris from Shaw randomly popped into the Bloodmobile with a camera crew while I was hooked up, so she interviewed me about the experience for a piece they're doing about it. It'll air as part of THE EXPRESS’ half hour Halloween Special on Friday October 29th. Watch it on ShawTV Channel 4 at 3 pm, 6 pm, 8 pm, and 10 pm. Also Saturday at 10 am, Sunday at 2 pm, and Monday at 5:30 am, 10 am, 11:30 am, 12:30 pm, and 2 pm. Plus a few more at odd times in the middle of the night or early morning, for a total of 20 showings! Wowzers, if I would have known they were coming I would have taken off my rain pants that I was wearing and made myself a little more presentable!
