had been with her parents and siblings when she'd been in high school. She could picture the sparkle of the water of the Grand Canal as it reflected off the gothic facades. With equally startling clarity she could remember the bustle of St. Mark's Square with the competing quartets from the two famous opposing coffeehouses. She'd told herself back then that she would return someday to that most romantic city. Of course that fantasy had included Carlton, who was not along at the time, but whom she was already seeing.
"And there's something else," Deborah said, interrupting Joanna's brief reverie. "Giving a few eggs, which by the way we have several hundred thousand of so they won't be missed, will provide a tiny bit of satisfaction to our procreative urges."
"Now I know you are teasing me," Joanna said.
"I'm not!" Deborah insisted. "Donating some eggs will mean that a few couples who couldn't have children will have them, and these kids will have half our genes. There'll be a few 'half Joannas' and 'half Deborahs' wandering around."
"I guess that's true," Joanna said. In her mind's eye she saw a little girl who looked something like herself. It was a pleasant image until she saw the little girl was with two total strangers.
"Of course it's true," Deborah said. "And the good part is that we don't have to change any diapers or lose any sleep. What do you say we give it a whirl?"
"Wait a minute!" Joanna said. She raised her hands as if to protect herself. "Slow down! Assuming we got accepted, which is hardly a sure thing given all the stipulations in the ad, I've got a few major questions."
"Like what?"
"Like how do we actually give the eggs? I mean, what's the procedure? You know that I'm not fond of doctors and hospitals."
"That's a fine thing for someone to say who's been dating a doctor-in-training for the last half century."
"It's when I'm a patient that the trouble starts," Joanna said.
"The ad says there'd be minimal stimulation,' Deborah said.
"Is that good?"
"Absolutely," Deborah said. "Usually they have to hyperstimulate the ovaries to get them to release a number of eggs, and the hyperstimulation can cause problems in some people like PMS from hell. The hyperstimulation is done with strong hormones. Believe it or not, some of the hormones come from menopausal Italian nuns."
"Oh, come on!" Joanna complained. "I'm not that gullible."
"I swear to God," Deborah said. "These menopausal nuns' pituitaries are cranking out gonadal stimulating hormones to beat the band. It's extracted from their urine. Trust me!"
"I'll take your word for it," Joanna said, making an expression of disgust. "But getting back to the issue at hand: Why do you think the Wingate people are not hyperstimulating?"
"I suppose they're aiming for quality, not quantity," Deborah said. "But I'm only guessing. It's a reasonable question to ask them."
"How do they actually get the eggs?"
"I'm only guessing again, but I believe it would be by needle aspiration. I imagine they'd use ultrasound for a guide."
"Ugh!" Joanna voiced with a shudder. "I definitely don't like needles, and we'd have to be talking about a mighty long needle. Where would they stick it?"
"I imagine vaginally," Deborah said.
Joanna visibly shuddered again.
"Oh, come on!" Deborah said. "I suppose it wouldn't be a walk in the park, but it can't be all that bad. Lots of women do it as part of in vitro fertilization, and remember we're talking about forty-five thousand dollars. That's worth a bit of discomfort."
"Would we be put to sleep?"
"I have no idea," Deborah said. "That's another question we could ask."
"I can't believe you're serious about this."
"But it's a win-win situation. We'd get some serious money and a few couples would get children. It's like we'd be paid to be altruistic."
"I wish we could talk to somebody who's gone through it," Joanna said.
"Hey, we might be able to do that," Deborah said. "The egg donation issue came up in a biology 101 lab group
"And there's something else," Deborah said, interrupting Joanna's brief reverie. "Giving a few eggs, which by the way we have several hundred thousand of so they won't be missed, will provide a tiny bit of satisfaction to our procreative urges."
"Now I know you are teasing me," Joanna said.
"I'm not!" Deborah insisted. "Donating some eggs will mean that a few couples who couldn't have children will have them, and these kids will have half our genes. There'll be a few 'half Joannas' and 'half Deborahs' wandering around."
"I guess that's true," Joanna said. In her mind's eye she saw a little girl who looked something like herself. It was a pleasant image until she saw the little girl was with two total strangers.
"Of course it's true," Deborah said. "And the good part is that we don't have to change any diapers or lose any sleep. What do you say we give it a whirl?"
"Wait a minute!" Joanna said. She raised her hands as if to protect herself. "Slow down! Assuming we got accepted, which is hardly a sure thing given all the stipulations in the ad, I've got a few major questions."
"Like what?"
"Like how do we actually give the eggs? I mean, what's the procedure? You know that I'm not fond of doctors and hospitals."
"That's a fine thing for someone to say who's been dating a doctor-in-training for the last half century."
"It's when I'm a patient that the trouble starts," Joanna said.
"The ad says there'd be minimal stimulation,' Deborah said.
"Is that good?"
"Absolutely," Deborah said. "Usually they have to hyperstimulate the ovaries to get them to release a number of eggs, and the hyperstimulation can cause problems in some people like PMS from hell. The hyperstimulation is done with strong hormones. Believe it or not, some of the hormones come from menopausal Italian nuns."
"Oh, come on!" Joanna complained. "I'm not that gullible."
"I swear to God," Deborah said. "These menopausal nuns' pituitaries are cranking out gonadal stimulating hormones to beat the band. It's extracted from their urine. Trust me!"
"I'll take your word for it," Joanna said, making an expression of disgust. "But getting back to the issue at hand: Why do you think the Wingate people are not hyperstimulating?"
"I suppose they're aiming for quality, not quantity," Deborah said. "But I'm only guessing. It's a reasonable question to ask them."
"How do they actually get the eggs?"
"I'm only guessing again, but I believe it would be by needle aspiration. I imagine they'd use ultrasound for a guide."
"Ugh!" Joanna voiced with a shudder. "I definitely don't like needles, and we'd have to be talking about a mighty long needle. Where would they stick it?"
"I imagine vaginally," Deborah said.
Joanna visibly shuddered again.
"Oh, come on!" Deborah said. "I suppose it wouldn't be a walk in the park, but it can't be all that bad. Lots of women do it as part of in vitro fertilization, and remember we're talking about forty-five thousand dollars. That's worth a bit of discomfort."
"Would we be put to sleep?"
"I have no idea," Deborah said. "That's another question we could ask."
"I can't believe you're serious about this."
"But it's a win-win situation. We'd get some serious money and a few couples would get children. It's like we'd be paid to be altruistic."
"I wish we could talk to somebody who's gone through it," Joanna said.
"Hey, we might be able to do that," Deborah said. "The egg donation issue came up in a biology 101 lab group
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