Appointment & Glasses
Yesterday I had an eye doctor appointment. It went really well considering I've never been seen by this particular clinic before but they accepted my insurance so I figured why not? Little did I know I would love the people there!
I was checked in by Judy. She was nice and outgoing, someone who you could actually stand there conversing with and I rather enjoyed our chat. The downer was it was just a preliminary exam to get your background and learn your flaws more or less. When I set up the appointment I assumed It was a lenses prescription exam for glasses. Judy told me that the shorter eye tech might do the refraction is the term they used there which is using the equipment to help you discover your vision. Judy said don't expect it but they might. She also told me a tall blonde woman wouldn't do it because she had told her "no" regarding another patient. When that same eye tech walked into my room my hopes deflated like a balloon..
I asked her if it was possible to do the refraction and explained my situation. That being newest pair broke, older pair got chewed up by my little pain-in-the-ass dog Pessa, then the older was too old of a prescription and I believed the oldness of those glasses were what was causing eye strain and my double-vision (Not that i'm an eye tech or doctor) The woman was very kind, she explained that it's a separate appointment and if the receptionist had made that clear. I didn't want to get the receptionist in trouble so I exclaimed she did make it clear except I had been under the assumption it was a package appointment. The kind woman warmed up to me a little and said since it was a slow day she'd make an exception for me and follow through with the refraction that day. I couldn't have been more grateful and thanked her a few times.
After the refraction it was determined i'm actually a 20/20 vision (WHAT!?) but my astigmatism is fucking up my vision and making my view difficult. She suspected my double vision and eye strain was due to chronic dry eye. She then left me for a visit with the Ophthalmologist Dr. Huang. He was surprisingly well-natured and a bit goofy which made me feel like i'd been going to them for years. He was very expressive with his body language and using analogies that made me giggle. I knew right then and there I picked a good new Eye Doctor. He confirmed the blurred vision was from chronic dry eyes and also possibly from the old prescription.
I had gotten the prescription and a few coupons and samples for eye drops. I'm supposed to use them 3-4 times a day. I found a full bottle of my dad's eye drops and have been using those whenever I feel the dryness or strain coming on. 4-6 times a day. My eyes are royally fucked with this Winter cold.
That's not where this story ends though. I asked my father if he would take me to Walmart to pick out frames. I got there and had never been so disappointed in my life. The lady working there was nice enough but wasn't too welcoming. Their selection was shit. You could pick between the $9 or $17 frames and there were really only three from each price. I found one pair I really liked but they'd cost $54 and I had no money on me or even that much to my name period. I just hurried up and picked a pair that were acceptable and went through the motions of getting them measured to fit. I still regret not just waiting to go to my usual glasses store called Eye Zone Optical. The glasses I picked out are very much the same as the ones pictured below.
I felt guilty about bugging my dad into taking me to the optical that day so I picked a pair there instead of the better place. Moral of the story, Thought and patience before impulse. I figured out how i'm going to right the wrong though. At first I was going to "accidentally" leave my glasses somewhere for my dog to find, call the insurance, and tell them my dog ate them and I need a new pair then go to Eye Zone Optical. I decided against it. I don't like being dishonest. Sometimes I'm too honest that it's a flaw. I decided that i'm just going to stick it out with the glasses until I get my tax return then go to Eye Zone and buy a nice new pair complete with Transitional lenses. I'd then save the cheap ass pair as a back up and just be extremely careful with the new pair. At least I've learned my damn lesson. I'm never going to Wally-World for my optical needs again. Next year it's Eye Zone Optical or nothing.
