Maintenance Day

[bjarvis]

These days, two things are taking an increasing amount of maintenance: my car and me.

My car sucked up a lot of money this past summer, catching up on deferred maintenance. I can't begrudge it the expense: cars aren't cheap to maintain and my Civic has been a reliable vehicle thus far. Tomorrow, however, it will be back in the shop as part of a recall concerning the airbags; I'll have the oil changed while I'm there.

Today was my maintenance day though. It began with an 8am dental cleaning, followed by a haircut and finally a visit to my optometrist. No issues were found with my teeth, my hair while thinning is doing just fine and my eyes are fine. I expected to be told I needed bifocals but instead the good doctor suggested I simply get a second pair of glasses with a slightly different prescription for use exclusively at my work desk; my regular glasses will be fine for all other daily activities.

With the appointments completed and glasses ordered, I'm now digging back into my regular work day with a gleaming dentally-hygienic smile on my clock and new glasses on order.

Comments

[frauholla.livejournal.com]

You look so shiny and new!

[bjarvis.livejournal.com]

Freshly scrubbed & polished!

[billeyler.livejournal.com]

I'm just about to throw money at my car, something I really haven't done much in the 7 years I've had it. The cheap tires (tyres) I bought in an emergency in Denver 3 years ago are driving me nuts with bad balancing and road noise, so off they go to be replaced with something quieter and safer--probably $800 or so. Do you know how many bicycles I can buy for that? Or even a motor scooter!

I also think it's time to replace the serpentine belt (70,000 miles on the car) and have it tuned and such, so who knows how much that'll go. What a money suck the auto industry is!

[bjarvis.livejournal.com]

$800 for tires?! Do you have a Costco or Sam's membership? You might get cheaper tires there. AAA discounts might also apply. Also check online at your local NTB or Napa Auto Parts for coupons & sales.

[billeyler.livejournal.com]

It's an SUV, so yeah. Bummer. :-)

No Costco or Sam's, but the notes about AAA are good, since I have that. I'm looking for particularly QUIET-rated tires/tyres!

[apparentparadox]

I've been avoiding getting bifocals because I like being able to hold a book in any position, rather than only in one area or another. It's easier for me to switch glasses than to make sure that I look out of a particular place in the glasses.

bifocals / close glasses

[trawnapanda.livejournal.com]

speaking as one who has had bifocals for ten years -- you don't adjust where you hold the book, you'll find yourself moving your head instead. I have graduated bifocals (which I love, and took zero time to adjust to), and everything is in focus, if I adjust the angle of my head. It's something I tend to do subconsciously.

Only recently I got a second pair of "monitor" glasses, that are in focus for something 50cm from my eyes. I had found I was taking my glasses off when working at my computer, to read the screen, because my eyes are now to the stage that I was getting a sore neck from tipping my head back (again, subconsciously) to look through the bottom of the bifocals. But that's a) only recently (after a decade of bifocals) and b) because I spend LOTS of uninterrupted time looking at an object I can't move, or move relative to.

but I'd recommend the bifocals for daily use, there's more to look at up close than monitor screens.

[bjarvis.livejournal.com]

My optometrist suggested bifocals wouldn't be a good select for me (yet) because of my preferred workstation: I typically work in front of a large monitor stationed 18-24" from my face only slightly below eye level, as opposed a smaller laptop screen significantly below eye level. If I used the lower laptop screen more regularly, bifocals would work since the screen would be center of the bifocal lens portion.

[theoctothorpe.livejournal.com]

oh, on your *clock*!

nevermind ;-)

My goodness, I enjoy your smile!

::smooch::

[weekilter.livejournal.com]

Are the frames on the new specs similar/the same as the ones you have now or are they some sort of exciting with jazzy colours and shit? :)

[trawnapanda.livejournal.com]

I hope the new glasses are in frames different enough from the current ones so you can 'meejutly tell them apart (without any glasses on)

[bjarvis.livejournal.com]

The ones I've ordered are largely similar to the ones I'm wearing in the photo above --I like the style. The new work desk glasses however have wider lenses so I have a better panoramic view and have slightly different arms so I can easily tell the two glasses apart.

[beartalon.livejournal.com]

I need new glasses. I'm overdue by more than a year for my benefits, but the part where I have to take them off now to see up close... I really don't want to move to bifocals. The high-index lenses I've been buying for several years are quite expensive enough, thanks!

[trawnapanda.livejournal.com]

are you now Skweek-E-Kleen and Mint-E-Fresh?

[bjarvis.livejournal.com]

Sanitized for your protection!

[trawnapanda.livejournal.com]

like Kent's rubber-duckies-in-a-clear-plastic-bag!

[rsc.livejournal.com]

I don't remember the question coming up at the time, but I think I would have chosen bifocals rather than try to keep track of two pairs of glasses, although if one of them is only used in one particular place that's not so bad. And as a matter of fact last year I broke down and got a second pair for use at the piano, for which the bifocals were just Not Working.