Friday, January 09, 2004
Awww.
Well, my eyes haven't changed much, but could they really get much worse? Right: -7.25, Left: -6.75. But the big news is that I'm getting soft contacts. Well, actually I have a pair in right now, but they're just to try out for a few days until they get my exact prescription in. I used to wear gas permeable, which are hard. I think the reason I got them initially (back in the summer before eighth grade) was that the rigidity can help reduce further changes in the shape of the eye. Since they aren't floppy, they're easy to handle and remove (almost to a fault). But whenever the slightest bit of anything gets between them and my eye, it can be excruciatingly painful. Wearing eye makeup was always a big gamble because if a little speck got in there then my eyes would start tearing up like crazy and then I'd have smudged makeup and bloodshot eyes, which is definitely not attractive. But since my prescription has leveled off and I had some problems with the gas permeables, the optometrist suggested I switch to soft. I had an awfully hard time taking them out during the little training session, it took me 5 minutes apiece the first time. It's a lot different than what I'm used to, not to mention they're huge (my gas permeables were only 9 mm in diameter, soft are 14). But wearing them is fine, I don't feel a thing right now. I have a follow-up appointment next Wednesday. My mom got really pissed off when I told her I was switching because there was a fitting fee and the soft ones get replaced monthly, whereas the GP's lasted up to two years. But the soft are much cheaper to begin with, so overall it won't be a whole lot more expensive. Besides, she isn't the one wearing them.
I hope I don't get ridiculously afraid of change when I get old. My mom hates change for change's sake. After my appointment (she came along in case I had my pupils dilated and couldn't drive) we went grocery shopping. Although it's not a big deal, her comments sort of exemplify her attitude, "What happened to that brand of pop? They always have to go changing things!" "Why did they have to go changing around the aisles on me?" Ok, so it's a little annoying when you can't find what you're looking for right away, but it's not like the store goes changing aisles around just for the hell of it. They're not out to get you. You just have to adapt to changing conditions. I think my mom really has problems with that. If I make a comment as to how something in my life could be improved she'll usually say something like, "Well that's what I had to deal with growing up." Well I'm sorry, but why make your child suffer for it as well? Aren't parents supposed to want what's best for their kids? Like paying for school. Now I know that Cornell is expensive and I wouldn't expect them to pay for all of it, but they could definitely help me out more if they wanted to. But the answer I get is, "Should have gone to UW" or "Your father had to pay for school himself." Well I'm sorry, but going to Cornell was probably the best decision of my life.
