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August 16, 2000 |
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I have been neglecting sending out the modem to Ling. My life has been a bit hectic lately, but
still I was the one with the problem getting online. I think I would break
down and buy the modem today. However, I know she is not as much
of an online person as I've become. [I keep an online journal, for
heaven's sake!]
I did make plans to sent out her package today. I went to work. Work is
work; there are always things to look into at work and there is always
someone telling you that his/her particular problem is more urgent than the
next.
I did have a scheduled eye exam, and even a confirmation for my appointment. I made a
quick stop before going to my eye exam, to sent off the package to my
cousin. Didn't send any instructions however, I'd just have to wait for
her to get the package and talk her through the installation. First things
first though; send the package.
As for the eye exam, the place I go to is at the Bellevue Square, mostly
because their eye exams and contact lenses are covered by my insurance from
work. I've been going to them for years and they have pretty good service,
probably not as speedy as some. I wear disposable contact lenses however
and unless you plan very poorly, you should never be out of contact
lenses.
I sat down while I waited for my doctor to finish with his current patient.
I occasionaly wear glasses, though mostly when I come home at night or my
contact lenses are bothering me. Out of boredom, I looked at all the
options they had for eyeglasses. Anti-glare coating… different types
of tint… and others that involve bifocals. I also looked at the some
of the options they had for contact lenses. The colored contact lenses
looked interesting.
A little history here… I have worn colored contact lenses in the past; my friend, Seema had once said I looked possessed with my blue contact lenses. They're fun to wear, although since they come in different sizes (different diameter, no kidding), I can't wear them for too long. Also, I have brown eyes, dark brown eyes. This generally means that you have to get a specific type of colored contact lenses that are opaque. The clear translucent ones are only work well with people with light eye color.I debated getting a pair again. I suppose it would be a moot point if they didn't come in disposables, so I figured I would ask my doctor, who incidentally was finally ready.
My doctor was an Asian man without a speech impediment. I know that sounds biased, but most of the Chinese folks I grew up with do not speak English perfectly… myself included, but I've got other problems entirely that go past the immediate Asian-American thing.
He was a good doctor and explained things well. He ran a series of tests. The first was the one where they ask a series of "which one looks clearer?" questions. The problem with this test is that oftentimes, they both look equally clear or that although the two views may be different, one is better in some respects and the other better in others. I keep wondering if inability to properly distinguish between the two will someday render me sightless. Okay, I don't really think that, but at least give me an inaccurate perscription.
The next test was one where he asked me to look in one particular direction and then proceeds to shine this incredibly bright light into my eye to presumably inspect back of the eye. I personally think it is some sort of torture mechanism, which only serves to humble the patients. The moment I walked through the door I looked like a troublemaker and thus he is doing this to keep me subdued. Fool!
One of the last tests was one where they shoot a stream of air into your eye. Okay, for those of you who have not had an eye exam for a while… I am not joking. Apparently this tests the pressure of the eye and is the test for glaucoma. Still, it is a bit unnerving to experience even if you are prepared for it.
He asked what kind of contacts I was planning to get. I told him they would be mostly clear disposables, and possibly opaque colored ones, if they had them as disposables, which they did. [Score!] He asked if I was planning to get a new pair of glasses, which is a "no" since I seldom wear them. It would appear that although my perscription hasn't really changed, except for the angle of my astigmatism, it as rotated a few degrees. For about the fourth consecutive year, the prescription on both of my eyes are the same. This makes life so much easier.
I ordered the contact lenses through one of the attendants at the front desk. They maximized the coverage of my insurance so I wound up getting seven boxes of my regular disposable lenses, which ordinarily would be pretty weird, except that the prescription on both eyes are the same… like I said, it makes life easier. [Keep up here!]
And yes, I broke down and ordered one box of the colored contact lenses.
As I walked towards the parking lot, I was sucked in my the Athlete's Foot. My pair of Reeboks have been looking pretty worn lately and I've been meaning to get a new pair. I just haven't had the opportunity nor the inclination to go out and get a pair. I figured that I would simply take a quick look and if they didn't have anything that would fit the bill, I would simply walk out.
They had a couple of styles that looked appealing, I wear normally wear a 9½ or possibly a 10. I tried them at size 9½. They were both Reeboks. It's not so much that I have brand loyalty. I bought a pair of Nikes the same day I got my current pair of Reeboks, but since they didn't feel as comfortable I don't wear them as frequently. I ended up buying a pair, the cheaper of the two, simply because they felt better. I also ended up getting a pair of sandals, I suppose I've grown tired of putting on my shoes and socks when I make a quick trip… or having to take the trash out barefoot since I'm too lazy to properly put my shoes on.
If you think that this is frivoluos spending, I'll have to point out that I have less than half a dozen pairs of shoes: My every day shoes, which are normally basketball shoes… my Nike's which are crosstrainers, which I should probably wear to kickboxing… my running shoes… a pair of dress shoes… and now, also a pair of sandals. Pam has about thirty pairs of shoes. What on earth do you do with these many shoes? I've told her that if she needs to ask me, "Which shoes should I wear?" she obviously has too many options and should perhaps stop buying new shoes.
I had plans with some friends tonight… to play D&D actually, but as it turns out we weren't going to have a good turnout, so we just cancelled. It's been a bad week for cancellations. I decided I would just work through the evening. I needed to catch up a bit anyway, and I had taken some time off in the afternoon in the eye exam/shoe purchase/homicide excursion… check that, it was just eye exam/shoe purchase today.
I was right in the middle of finishing something
so I ended up staying pretty late. I got a knock on my office door a
little past midnight; it startled me. I answered the door. It was Jim. He stood at the threshold with an
incredibly amused look on his face and asked, "Do you have your camera?" I
told him I did. He asked if I would take a picture of his head.
Naturally, I did take a picture of his head. You see, he had gone to a softball game tonight and there was a… mishap. And it would seem our friend Jim had made a trip to the emergency room, to get stitches. As you might imagine, now that we know that he's fine, we're both quite amused by this… you might even say that it had us in stitches. Sorry, I couldn't resist.
We went back to his office and took pictures with his camera as well, and then we transfered them to his computer so that we could take a closer look. They turned out well, certainly well enough to put a picture on this page. We also chatted for a little while, before I went back to work. [Stitches… ha!] I'm not sure how many other people he'll tell, he needs the joking and ridicule like he needs a hole in the head. [Okay, I'll stop now…]
August 16, 2000