Yep, it's official. I am now a participating member in the Glasses Wearing Community. I'm well aware there have been some rumors circulating around the net about my being a specimen of the spectacle wearing variety. But up until today, they were merely rumors.
Sure, I've owned my glasses for a little while now but up until today, I had yet to wear them in public. Now, before you judge me, just know that this was a huge hurdle for me to overcome. Me and 'aging' have never been the best of friends. Let's just say we've never seen eye to eye. As far as I'm concerned and despite what the calendar says, I'm still 28... and holding. Unfortunately, my eyes never got the memo.
Nope, they decided to go ahead and age as if I was actually getting older as the days passed. How dare they. The optical nerve of 'em.
As you can tell, I've been in a bit of denial when it comes to admitting I wear glasses. OK, more than just a bit. Let's consider the past 18 months that I've actually owned them as my being a 'rookie' and from here on out, I'm actually a card carrying member of the Glasses Group.
The incredible thing about today's foray into the world of Four Eyes was an incredibly pleasant experience. To say that I didn't have a clue what I've been missing is a serious understatement.
As I ran my morning errands, I couldn't help but continually give them the up & down "on-off" test and I'll be damned if I couldn't see a whole lot better with 'em on than I could with 'em off. Like, night and day difference. It was amazing.
I had been 'testing' them around the house over the past 1 1/2 years and came to the conclusion that they pretty much sucked. For the most part they did nothing for the up close stuff, especially the computer where I needed them most. And even more importantly, they kinda made things look 'twisted' in one way or another.
I blame the progressive lenses for that. I think trying to cram so many distances into one lens is too much to expect. I think it's a sacrifice, rendering all depths not 100% great.
And after spending about $700+ on the eye exam, frames and lenses, I was anything but stoked. Talk about a waste. I LOVED the frames. Everything after that, not so much. So in the drawer they pretty much stayed. :'(
I'd drag 'em out every so often, just in case they had magically morphed into something amazing while I wasn't looking. Not that I could see them anyway. I'd need glasses for that.
But every time I tested them, it was just another disappointment. Nothing changed. I had high hopes and yet, nothing happened. Sure, I could see the palm trees 50 yds away a whole bunch crispier and the rocks on the mountains a couple miles away a bit better. But was that worth $700? Hell no. And that's why I never gave them a shot in the real world.
To feel as if I needed glasses because I was getting older (ouch!) as well as have them make very little difference in my overall vision, definitely a recipe for leave 'em in the drawer and forget about 'em.
However, today was different. As I mentioned earlier, I love the frames. And I think they fit me really well. And so, as weird as it sounds, I actually decided to give them one last chance and wear them on my morning errands run because I think I look better with 'em on. Who'd a thunk.
And a crazy thing happened on the way to the grocery store. To my amazement, I could actually see a whole lot better. All kinds of stuff looked better. I had no idea. It didn't take me but a couple of miles before I was convinced. Glasses are for me. And what sealed the deal even better for me was when I got to the Post Office.
As I stood at the counter, waiting for the lady to return from the back room, I began to look at the signs up on the wall about 15ft. away. Signs that I've seen a hundred times but never really paid any attention to prior to today.
Mostly because I couldn't read them. And I had no idea why they'd put these signs up so far away, with such small print, that I was convinced nobody could read.
All of a sudden I realized that I could read them. Because I was reading them. And it was awesome. I instantly imagined myself at the DMV, rattling off all those super minuscule letters on the eye chart like a BOSS! And when the lady returned, she noticed the look of pure amazement on my face and asked "What's up?"
I proceeded to tell her the whole "first day with my glasses" thing and she totally got it because she wore glasses as well. And she put the icing on the cake when she said that whoever picked out the frames (uh, that would be me) did a great job because they fit me perfectly. And not only that, they made me look younger as well. KACHING!
I thanked her for her kind words, turned around and as I opened the door to leave, I'll be damned if my head hadn't swollen up so much that I was barely able to squeeze through the doorway. Luckily I had my glasses on, so I was able to navigate the situation just fine.
