h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I almost forgot to tell you. I got new glasses (as usual), but this year I got new frames as well. Quite an exciting occurance. So I got to spend an hour or so in the glasses shop trying to see how I looked in various frames, but I can't see without my glasses on. The presence of a magnifying hand mirror helped a lot, but I was a bit nervous about actually getting them, because as I've said, I didn't really know what I looked like. Three days later I'm still happy, and I've regained my depth perception (new prescription. ) And I almost feel normal even if I look at the ground. Ah yes, and massive eye strain trying to choose out the darn things, but the headache went away. And it's better than getting one due to a weak prescription as soon as I start school.

A and her glasses. What a touching picture. (and yes, that's what I look like with the new glasses, but with hair. And it's what I looked like with the old glasses too.)

maybe we should start a new club on h2g2 for people who are blind without their glasses, no?

so did your eyesight worsen? mine's been stable for the last five years... that is, until i joined h2g2, after which i had an additional 25 added to each lens!!! am currently wearing titanium frames, so my nose isn't actually getting squashed. i assume you have chosen similarly light frames, yes?

oh, by the way - and going off-tangent - had the strangest dreams about our bartok project last night. it suddenly occurred to me that if you don't have any major exams coming up, that this might be a good time to start working on it a bit, seeing as hannah (are you here?) is currently between school and college, and i've got a bit of spare time on my hands. suggestions?


wearing my specs with pride

My eyesight is a little worse. My said if I really wanted to I could probably put off changing the prescription, but I felt like I needed the new one. I wasn't getting headaches (yet) but I also wasn't in school, so not doing as much reading/writing. My eyesight hasn't been stable since I got glasses (althougth there was a two year period in which I did not get new glasses in between those years), but I'm also only 15. I think it's expected to stablize eventually, but I've only been wearing glasses for 8 years, so I don't think I've hit eventually yet. Myoptic means maybe when I'm old and my close vision starts going (eg, need bifocals) my distance vision may improve, though. My current prescripton is -6.50 and -6.75, so pretty heavy with a large lense. So I got titanium frames, also with a smaller lense opening (but not that small. I like to be able to *see* out of my glasses, thanks). Renee has titanium frames, but with a very weak prescription (her vison is abt 20/45), which is freakily lightweight. I always get ultralight lenses at this point, but mine are still heavier than hers (not going to mention obvious difference in prescripton)

Bartok..well, I actually have a test tomorrow and Poets, but I'll see what I can do. Going away (with Renee!) this weekend, but maybe after that...

(wearing old specs due to headache from reading too much 12pt. font today)

golly, you just got back to school - and you have tests??? and i don't even have thursday to blame...

re: bartok - it's ok. i suppose i'll go in first and see if there's anything to tidy up (i know our notes were all over the place), and then when we all have the time we could sit down and try to put them into complete sentences

jen-i know exactly what you mean; i hate haveing to choose new glasses! but my prescription is pretty much stable now-i have been in them since i started school, and i'm happy with my frames, so i don't think i'll have to go thru it again!
farlander-i was thinking along those same lines recently, we probably should get this project sorted out. i will probably be more online when i get to uni-dad has banned us at the moment becuase of this virus, so i am snatching a couple of minutes at andrews house!

are yours glass or plastic, hannah? if it's the former, i would strongly advise you to get a spare, just in case. my bf broke his while washing them in his first year, and (given his eyesight is something like 1000/1000) went around the university blind as a bat for half a week.

i suppose i shouldn't laugh... the drivers we have here are complete *maniacs*.

er, why do you need a land rover? i was under the impression you were moving to college, not sherwood forest

Just looking around... Couldn't help but ask...

Do you know the prescription for your glasses?

farlander-i think they are plastic, so i'll be alright. i also have about 6 pairs of contacts-they send me them evry month, but i don't wear them enough to need new ones every month, so they're just sitting at home!

viojen, I'm afraid your eyesight is unlikely to improve for distance vision to the extent that you won't need glasses in the future.

When a person needs reading glasses this is due to the natural lens in the eye ot being as 'elastic' as before which means they need extra help to focus on 'near' objects

This help (called an 'add') is usually between +1.50D and +2.50, so myopic patients who have a prescription of around -2.00DS are unlikely to need reading glasses, as they can just take off their distance glasses.

Hope this makes sense - I studied to become and was a dispensing optician in a previous career

... and before anyone goes off on one ... I know it's all written in simplistic, layman's terms

No, I realize I'll always need glasses, even for distance. My vision is such that I can't really see anything up close either (to read 12 pt font at the same clarity as with my glasses the tip my nose is 3 inches away from the page).
But my mom has said that as she's needed reading glasses her distance prescription has gotten slightly better. We joke that it's "compensation" for having to use bifocals. (thank I don't need them yet!)

I'm not sure what my exact prescription is (has some correction on cylinder and axis), but generally speaking, -6.5 and -6.75 diopters.
But I have v nice "ultralight" lenses and a good frame shape, so it's not too heavy.(been discouraged multiple times from getting larger frame because my prescription gets pretty thick at the edges)

NVM, I jus realized that I can't tell what the prescription means anyway. Rather stupid of me really.

jen - do you have astigmatism? blehhh... without glasses, my world is one big smear of light

Apparently I have astigmatism to a mild degree in both eyes, but my main problem is myoptia. My world is just one big smear. Generally speaking, everything is just blurry, v fuzzy around the edges. I can see stuff really clearly if I get about 3 inches away, and read (fuzzy letters) from about 4.

i have a stigmatism in my left eye-apparently its hereditery. this makes it more dofficult with contacts apparently-i have to have toric lenses to correct it, but my vision with contacts is subtley different to my vision with glasses, so changing over can be quite weird.
farlander-we#re hopefully getting a landrover to go around europe next summer, should be pretty fun!

ah... i see...ok, try not to *wreck* the landrover, hey? i'm planning to go to greece and rome in 2005, and *might* make a detour to uk

that would be cool alternatively, i'll definitely have the travel bug by then, we could meet up on the continent or something

i hope you speak greek, then, 'cos i don't!