Ordered bifocals. I'm now "old"

Ordered my first set of graduated lenses today.

While I could slog my way through a couple more years without them, I do struggle with the near detail and far away vision that I need with my job (high school shop teacher).

I've been using a cheater lens in my welding helmet for a couple years now already.

So, since the graduation in the lenses isn't too huge yet, I'm hoping it makes the adjustment to them a bit easier.

Guess I'll go stock up on Depends and prune juice now.

Welcome to the age of finding that there are now places I you car where there's no place to put your head and focus on what you want to work on.

I've found foot wells to be just about impossible.

SkinnyG wrote: Guess I'll go stock up on Depends and prune juice now.

I lol'd. Its cool, I've got a cataract. Let me know if you find any good deals on either.

In reply to SkinnyG:

My very first pair of eyeglasses were bifocals; I was seven.

I got transitions and could not wear them, could not walk wearing them and could not adjust to having to move my head to the right position to be able to see.

My next dot exam I will probably get a glasses restriction on my license.

I love bifocals. I wear contacts because I'm just about blind, but I keep cheap drugstore reading glasses around in 1.5x magnification to help out on fine work like solder joints and guitar setup stuff. I got a pair of bifocals with clear lenses on top and 1.5 or 2x mag on the bottom just so I wouldn't have to keep taking the reading glasses on and off - and misplacing them. Plus I look sexy in glasses.

Of course, then they bounced out of my pocket when I was on the motorcycle...

Welcome to the club. A few years back when I got an exam for new specs, the young whippersnapper doc says 'Mr Curmudgeon, as we get older our eyes change'. (He's still wearing diapers, how the hell would he know first hand?) That's when I discovered that my prescription would be for 'progressive lenses', such a nice name.

The day I came in to get them, another young whippersnapper asks me to sit down before I put them on. Jeez, do I look that decrepit? I shoulda left the walker in the car... anyway I'm glad I did because MAN did things look weird. I sat there feeling queasy and a bit like an idiot, when I was confident that I could get up the whippersnapper says 'your depth perception is going to be messed up for a day or two'.

He was right; I went across the parking lot to an Office Max, when I got to the curb I couldn't tell where to put my foot! I know the people inside were wondering why that old fart outside was waving his foot around.

Prune juice is great if you cut it with vodka.

At 40 the optician told me I'd need bifocals w/ my next pair of glasses. Within a year I was back and actually wanted bifocals because I couldn't even read the berkeleying newspaper normally anymore.

Took some getting use to at first but 14 years later I don't even notice them now. Can't wear smaller lenses as I'll have to move my head around hunting for focus.

Before the diopter lens in my welding helmet I wondered aloud why the hell my welds were going to E36 M3. Old timer says welcome to the club... now that made me feel old. When our shop got some quality new welding helmets the youngers wondered why I wouldn't use them as I keep my own w/ my diopter. I tried to explain... you wait young man, you wait.

I guess I am one of the lucky ones.

I am near sighted, so I wear glass's for distance. Been like that for 20 some years. No real change.

My doctor kept insisting I get an eye checkup because I'm getting old. So I did. 20-40 without my glass. None of the other, glaucoma etc. He said the reason my vision as only 20-40 was that cataracts from old age are starting and that we will keep an eye on them. No pun intended. So next year we will see when I go again.

Day two of progressives/bifocals. It's not that bad; I'm getting used to them.

Stay tuned for "Day two of Prune Juice and Depends. It's not that bad....."

Prune juice isn't that bad, but prunes by themselves are even better I tried to avoid the bifocal route by finding some skinny glasses (for nearsightedness) then "look under them" for close in. That worked for a while but eventually went for the progessives -- hated them as I only had good far vision in a smaller sweet spot up top and good near vision in a smaller sweet spot down below. Vision was blurry everywhere outside of the 2 sweet spots. Complained incessantly to the wife about how I paid for a whole pair of glasses, but could only use really 2 spots on them to see well. Eventually I bought a pair of what I learned are called "executive lenses" (no kidding). They have a line through them the top part is for distance vision and the bottom part for reading. I can see clearly in distance through the entire top part of the lens and clearly up close through the entire bottom part of the lens. They are a little more satisfying, but now I don't mind the progessives that much any more. Don't tell my wife...

I tried the progressive lenses, but wasn't crazy about them, so I've been using the lined (executive) bifocals for about five years now.

SkinnyG wrote: Guess I'll go stock up on Depends and prune juice now.

And a good flashlight. Any time now, you're going to be wondering, "why is it always so dark in here?" I pretty much need a flashlight to see any detail where the light's not exceptionally good, or direct. Welcome to the club.

I think current frame styling is a big contributor to those having problems with progressive lenses. The stuff getting pushed are rectangular and tend to not have much vertical area to accommodate multiple focal lengths; that makes for a very narrow viewing area.

I prefer relatively small, round (or oval) styles that provide room for more than little slits of focused vision.

oldsaw wrote: I think current frame styling is a big contributor to those having problems with progressive lenses. The stuff getting pushed are rectangular and tend to not have much vertical area to accommodate multiple focal lengths; that makes for a very narrow viewing area. I prefer relatively small, round (or oval) styles that provide room for more than little slits of focused vision.

Same here. It's tough finding round or oval frames, they just don't make that many compared to rectangular these days. Why designers push rectangular is beyond me, they're years overdone IMO.

I wear contacts, but either take them out or wear cheaters for reading and computer work. As long as I can do twenty push-ups without pausing, and fit into my 25-year-old jeans, I'm not admitting to old age.

I have worn contacts since age 13 and rarely wear my glasses out of the house/garage because my eye doc added me to the list of needing bi-focals and I really dont see very well with them. I just keep the "readers" in all the important places so that I can see the details. I didnt need them this morning to do oil change on the 4runner but have had to run into the house to find a pair when doing brakes or other fine work. Dont ask about going fishing without the readers.

Zomby Woof wrote: I tried the progressive lenses, but wasn't crazy about them, so I've been using the lined (executive) bifocals for about five years now.

SkinnyG wrote: Guess I'll go stock up on Depends and prune juice now.

And a good flashlight. Any time now, you're going to be wondering, "why is it always so dark in here?" I pretty much need a flashlight to see any detail where the light's not exceptionally good, or direct. Welcome to the club.

Zomby's right again. BTW get an LED flashlight. They are so much better and they can be on for hours without screwing the batteries.