Time for Glasses

I just had my birthday and have to say that getting old really sucks. While I tell everyone that I am still 17, my true age is slightly north of that. Ok, maybe a lot north of that. This year for my birthday I got a string of doctor's appointments and news that I had better start taking better care of myself. One of those doctor's appointments was with an eye doctor.

My vision has always been pretty good and so I have never felt it necessary to visit an eye doctor. This year I couldn't opt out of it as my regular care physician made me go. My wife celebrated that I was finally visiting the optometrist as she has been wearing glasses for most of our married life. She was in the room when I sat down for the eye exam. The eye chart went up on the wall and I got to read off a bunch of letters. Then I read the smaller ones and had it confirmed that I still have 20/20 vision. That was the good news and I had a smug look on my face as my wife accepted the news that I don't need glasses for distance.

Then it came time to test my reading vision. My wife knew the outcome as she has slowly watched my arms become too short to read the time on my watch. I wish I could say that I came away from the appointment without needing any glasses. Fortunately I only need them to read and I don't think they are that strong of a value. Furthermore I can get them at any drugstore without a prescription. So Friday evening I picked up a 3-pak of glasses: one for the house, one for the boat, and one for the office.

I have been wearing my glasses in the evenings and have felt a much stronger urge to read. I didn't think my desire to read had diminished that much in the past few years. However now I find it much more enjoyable and realize that my diminishing eyesight has had a negative effect on my reading habits. So if you find yourself not wanting to read as much as you used to, you might want to get your eyes checked. Of course you also have the option to get an electronic reading device like a Kindle and just use a bigger font.