Useless Conversation

[Selby]

When I flipped it over later last night the screw holding the blade on was finger-turnable.  I'd checked it before starting the thing up, too.

How did you check it?  Use tools?  If you just finger-checked it the blade could have worked itself loose enough to be undone by the motor but not by the finger.

And I hated doing my own lawn.  Did it for years growing up and when I owned my own house.

[RhyssaFireheart]

Ugh, got a headache because I'm switching from wearing gas permable contacts to soft lenses.  Putting the lenses in was easy and fine, but now everything looks just a but fuzzy and "off" to me.  I'm sure I'll be able to adjust, just have to deal witih the headaches in the meantime.  That's what I get for wearing hard lenses for 28 years and then gas perm for the last 4.  My eyes are too used to having bits of plastic in them and not floppy rubbery lenses.

[Trippy]

Do you have an astigmatism in one or both eyes? Soft lens won't necessarily correct for those as well as some of the more rigid lenses do.

[Sky]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toric_lens

I can't believe you went with hard lenses so long. Soft lenses are great! I have a very slight astigmatism - so slight that the nurse busted my chops about even wanting toric lenses. I have the lowest correction available, but it's just enough to sharpen things up amazingly. Been wearing soft lenses for 23 years and only got toric a couple years ago. If you have an astigmatism, you should really look into them.

[Mazakiel]

I'd worn soft contacts years ago, and recently went in to get some again, and during the course of the eye exam they figured out I had keratoconus.  So I have to try hard contacts now.  Hooray. 

[RhyssaFireheart]

@Mazakiel - if your eyes are dry, you'll have problems with hard lenses, I'm afraid.

@Sky - I got contacts when I was 12 years old in 7th grade.  There wasn't a whole lot of choice at the time since soft lenses were still pretty new and much more finicky about care.  It was deemed easier to give the kid hard lenses because they are simple to take care of.  In fact, I wore the same physical pair of lenses for almost 20 years because I had no problems with them or my vision.  Periodically got them cleaned and polished to get the scratches out and all was good.

I called the eye doctor's office to ask about why everything still seemed so blurry - he's got my trying some monocular vision thing.  Distance vision for the left eye and near vision for the right eye (I'm right hand dominant and left eye dominant), so that will take longer to get used to.  I don't like it at all because I can barely read my monitor much less the paper on the doc holder in front of me.

Oh, and I do have some astigmatism.  It's gotten much, much better (almost gone maybe?) since I made the switch to gas perm lenses.

[Mazakiel]

They don't get too dry, at least as best as I can tell, though they get sensitive when my allergies flare.  Hopefully it won't be too big an adjustment. 

[Ironwood]

Fuck Blizzard.  Fuck their patching.  FUCK IT.

15mb worth of patch to Starcraft II and they can't even manage that simple five second job.  What a shit fucking system.

[Yegolev]

I need 420 more Club Nintendo coins and I have no idea where I'm going to get them.

[Lantyssa]

Doesn't everyone pop the Windows key off the keyboard or am I the only crazy one?

Until last year, I had been using a keyboard from the early '90s.  There was no windows key.  I don't even notice it on newer keyboards because of that.

[Lantyssa]

Do you have an astigmatism in one or both eyes? Soft lens won't necessarily correct for those as well as some of the more rigid lenses do.

AccuView Advanced with Astigmatism.

[Morat20]

I swear, I am getting my eyes freaking lasered as soon as I can afford it. And by "afford it" I mean "Mann eye clinic or better" not those fucking 500 dollar discount surgeries from tiny clinics offering coupons in the paper.

Nope, I want cutting edge wavefront lasik done by some guy that's been doing 30 of these a week since back when they had to cut your eyeball with a knife to do it.

Which admittedly costs a lot more, but I like seeing. On the bright side, the wavefront stuff will correct my near-sightedness AND mild astigmatism on the same pass.

[RhyssaFireheart]

I swear, I am getting my eyes freaking lasered as soon as I can afford it. And by "afford it" I mean "Mann eye clinic or better" not those fucking 500 dollar discount surgeries from tiny clinics offering coupons in the paper.

Nope, I want cutting edge wavefront lasik done by some guy that's been doing 30 of these a week since back when they had to cut your eyeball with a knife to do it.

Which admittedly costs a lot more, but I like seeing. On the bright side, the wavefront stuff will correct my near-sightedness AND mild astigmatism on the same pass.

I dream of the day I can get lasik.  I'm so freaking tired of dealing with putting contacts in/taking them out on a daily basis, which is part of the reason I'm looking to switch to soft and get extended wear lenses.  The switch will help when I do finally get the lasik done because it'll take less time without wearing contacts for my eyes to stabilize so they can get a proper reading on them if I have soft lenses versus hard or gas perm lenses.

[Morat20]

I dream of the day I can get lasik.  I'm so freaking tired of dealing with putting contacts in/taking them out on a daily basis, which is part of the reason I'm looking to switch to soft and get extended wear lenses.  The switch will help when I do finally get the lasik done because it'll take less time without wearing contacts for my eyes to stabilize so they can get a proper reading on them if I have soft lenses versus hard or gas perm lenses.

I wear glasses. I tried contacts, but apparently my eyeballs dislike having things shoved onto them. My optomotrist has to play the sort of games they play with 4 year olds to try to get me not to blink for that puff-of-air test.

She swears my blink reflex is precognitve, claiming I blink before she even clicks the button to send that stupid air blast into my eye. I'm used to results like "Your eye is either fine OR about to explode from internal pressure. Are you in blinding pain, as if your eye was about to explode? No? You're good then".

I'm just really damn blind -- my nearsightedness is pretty extreme -- and I'd like to not wear glasses anymore.

[Merusk]

I thought about Lasik until both the guys who I know that got it in '03 said they now had nightvision problems.   Additionally, they were both told they'd need reading glasses sooner than they otherwise would. I know the older of them was told by his eye doctor last year he should consider getting reading glasses, so looks like that's held up as he's only 49.

So instead I figure I'll just make-do with my little bits of plastic that only cost me about $300 a year for the lenses and solutions.

Rhyssa: I had gas-perms from 15 until I was 23.  I hated those bastards, they hurt, made my eyes really tired and when you dropped them you HAD to find them.  I entered panic-mode quite often as I searched, worried I'd put a hand or knee down carelessly and smash this $200 piece of plastic to bits.   Then there's the time my dad had to take the entire sink apart because it washed down the drain as I was cleaning it.

Made the transition to disposable soft lenses about 10 years ago (after I graduated and finally had money. Wore glasses in the interim) and it's been marvellous compared to the gas perms.  You can replace them when they get dirty or torn or scratched up and there's none of that hard-plastic feeling on your eyeball.  Plus they let in so much more o2 that nobody asks me "are you high??" anymore because of my veined, red-rimmed, oxygen-deprived eyeballs.   Give the softs a little bit longer and I think you'll find you're a lot happier.

[Bunk]

I like my glasses, never really had an urge to try contacts. I wouldn't even consider laser, cause honestly, my sight isn't that bad. I went years without them before noticing how much I squinted at things in the distance (mild astigmatism).

Also helps that the company has really good glasses coverage, thus my Transitions lensed Armanis are quite nice.

[RhyssaFireheart]

@Morat - I've had maybe 5 pairs of glasses since I had to get them in 3rd grade.  I really don't like wearing them, yet I loathe being outside in the sun without my sunglasses.  My older brother tried contacts before I got them and he couldn't stand to put the lenses in either (also hard though) and until recently he happily wore glasses.  Oddly enough, he had some cataracts removed and now his vision is fine and he no longer needs the glasses.

@Merusk - I'd be fine with wearing reading glasses eventually down the line.  Don't most people start needing them anyways once they get over 50-60?  I think I stuck with my hard lenses /gas perm ones for so long simply because I had no problems.  Except for one extreme instance of scratches on my cornea when I was a freshman in HS (had my eyes glued shut for the day), I've never had a problem at all.  And my prescription didn't change so I had no reason to change the lenses.  Right now, the soft lenses physically feel great.  The lack of "I have a bit of plastic in my eye so I can see" feeling is just awesome and they don't shift around even a bit when I blink like the gas perm ones did.  My problem is with the prescription that the doctor gave me - I simply cannot see.  Everything is fuzzy to the point when I felt pretty unsafe driving this morning to work.  When you can't even see the traffic lights well enough to tell what color they are, it's not safe.  I switched back to my old lenses as soon as I got to work. :(  Once  I have the doctor abandon this "monocular vision" thing he wants to do with me, I think I'll be set.

[Morat20]

I was thrilled to finally get a pair of glasses BEFORE my old pair had broken, so I could have my old pair polarized. You don't know what happiness is until you can wear freakin' sunglasses when driving. :)

I'm so nearsighted I'm practically blind. I can't read the license plate off a car in front of me when driving. I'm okay with glasses, but everytime I pick up a sport I'm reminded of how limiting they are.

I'd use contacts, but they're just too hard for me to wear. Especially the one for the eye with the astigmatism. (Admittedly, this was in like the 1990s. Perhaps they've gotten better). Either way, my eyes are simply too twitchy and sensitive. I found trying to put the things in too frustrating, and my eyes reacted poorly to even soft lenses -- I remember going through several different cleaning agents before I found one that didn't irritate my eyes, even after hosing off the lenses with saline.

[Lantyssa]

It took me a lot of tries, but I did get used to contacts.  How thin they were helped a lot.

[Viin]

I got Lasik, but in hindsight I should have stuck with my 30-day wear contact lenses. (You sleep in them, replace every 30 days). The only advantage to Lasik is that i don't have to worry about a contact popping out when I swim/dive. But the likely risk of needing reading glasses soonish plus god-knows-what-later is probably not worth it. Time will tell.

[Polysorbate80]

Don't most people start needing them anyways once they get over 50-60? 

Happens for a lot of people past 40.  I finally got to the point (at 41) that I had to switch to bifocals for reading.  I got the progressive lenses, but it turns out I hate 'em.  They don't seem to correct either reading or distance vision as well as they should.  If I don't get surgery, I'm gonna try the old-fashioned bifocals instead next time.

I tried the toric soft contact lenses in my 20s, but I found I couldn't wear them for more than about 8 hours before my eyes got tired and itchy.  By 10-12 hours, I had to take them out or life was hell.

[Selby]

Additionally, they were both told they'd need reading glasses sooner than they otherwise would. I know the older of them was told by his eye doctor last year he should consider getting reading glasses, so looks like that's held up as he's only 49.

49 is not "early" for reading glasses.  It can happen as early as 40 or so and 50 is considered the average age to need them.  My doctor said that lasik doesn't change your need for reading glasses, it all depends on genetics.  I went to a specialist who had been doing this for 30 years and he was NOT cheap like those discount places.  His post-op care instructions and follow-up appointments were well done too (I had to see him 3 more times for follow-ups to make sure nothing was going wrong).  It's been over 5 years since I had mine done and I still have great vision and no night vision problems (I actually see better at night amusingly enough).  No regrets as I hated glasses, except maybe having to wait as long as I did.

[Furiously]

I need 420 more Club Nintendo coins and I have no idea where I'm going to get them.

I think I need to get my speed reading checked... Cause I saw, "420 Mile high club points." Which made it a lot cooler.

[Sand]

I was born with 20/10 vision. Its now down to 20/20.
But Im deaf! (not completely)

[ghost]

I'm so happy that I have good vision.  My vision went on the fritz a little bit in medical school, I think from sitting so far in the back in a gigantic lecture hall, but it has recovered since. 

[Cyrrex]

I have daily disposable lenses, which essentially means you throw them out every night and put in a new pair in the morning.  They are so comfortable that I generally don't even realize they are there.  And in the odd chance that the do bother you, you lose one, you drop one on the ground....it don't matter.  Just pop in a new one.  They cost a bit more, but not as much as you'd think (it's a big racket, IMO).  I'd never go back to any other kind.

In theory, I want Lasik.  In reality, the thought of someone slicing my eyeball up with a laser gives me the heebie jeebies.

Also!  Several pages back someone recommended Coke Zero Cherry (I was espousing my love for the Diet Dr. Pepper Cherry).  I can now state for the record that whomever made the recommendation was spot fucking on.  That shit is GOOD.  Why the hell would anyone drink Diet Coke when Zero exists?  Diet Coke is goddamn foul by comparison.

[Merusk]

Yer Welcome, and mirror my thoughts on it exactly.

[Yegolev]

I need 420 more Club Nintendo coins and I have no idea where I'm going to get them.

I think I need to get my speed reading checked... Cause I saw, "420 Mile high club points." Which made it a lot cooler.

I would rather have the coins than sex on an airplane.

I considered lasering my eyes, but then read some FDA writing on it.  Also the tech seems to change quickly.  Instead, I go to Sam's Club for an eye exam and use the prescription to buy glasses from http://www.zennioptical.com/

[Khaldun]

One of those weeks. Just pretty much had it shoved in my face that my thinking about the road ahead in my line of work is shared by almost none of my co-workers, and I'm pretty sure that means that they're fucked in the medium-term. Happens a lot, I know, but it's still depressing as hell to realize that there is no possible way that you can get people to come out of their burrows and look at a bigger picture.

[Ironwood]

Not with that defeatist attitude.  Get a room booked, write a frigging presentation and SHOW them.

You pussy.

[Sky]

We're kind of weeding out the weak at the library due to the stresses from the government basically systematically divesting itself of everything.

It's been very interesting seeing who is stepping up to the challenge and trying to really shine in the toughest times. Because several people have basically thrown their hands up and gotten real negative and lazy. If you can't stand up and be stronger than before, well, frankly there's not going to be enough money even for some who can. Those who can't are going to discover that some prophesies are self-fulfilling.

I've found the best solution is to work my ass off, while at the same time making plans for several scenarios. Few of us are in that boat, the rest are split between stepping up but not having other plans in place and the fatalistic sloths. I've heard some really shocking things, and since most know I'm a team player, I don't hear the worst of it. I may not have a job next year, but I'll have respect and dignity and be in a hell of a position to move on to something new.

[Khaldun]

Not with that defeatist attitude.  Get a room booked, write a frigging presentation and SHOW them.

You pussy.

I kind of did that very thing this week.

Hence the whining.

[Paelos]

I kind of did that very thing this week.
Hence the whining.

How do you "kind of" give a presentation?

[Ironwood]

And 'lo, a voice did appear from underneath the burning boardroom table.

'Pay No Attention To the Man with the Business Strategy.'

[RhyssaFireheart]

Boo.  No soft contacts for me, which means no extended wear lenses.  Stuck with the gas permeable ones for now.  So tired of taking lenses in/out.  I guess if I wanted to leave my contacts out for an extended period of time so my perscription would stablize and the doctor can get a good read, but we tried 3 different sets of soft lenses and I couldn't see squat with them.  So sad.   

@Khaldun - if you've tried showing the co-workers the way and given them info about what they should probably be doing and they aren't following it, then sucks to be them.  Head on your career path and let them deal with the fallout from their (lack of) actions.