20:20

i enjoy playing with the features of this blog engine (is that even what this is called?);  you will notice  that i even revised the font.  i made my first blog on my iPad;  that's good if you're on the go and suddenly had a eureka moment that you wanna put in writing pronto,  but i now realize that it is best to do it on the laptop or desktop because some functions just do not work on the ipad.  

talking about fonts,   just the other day,   while i was in an office meeting,   i was discretely checking my blackberry when a seatmate nudged me as he was so surprised at the size of the fonts in my blackberry (hmpph,  eavesdropping at my BB) -  he wondered if font size was probably 20 ish. . .  that's Mr Exaggerated for you!  it was probably 12 or 14. Standard size is around 10. 




okay, the fonts may be gigantic, by blackberry standards

 I revised the font settings of my blackberry 4 years ago when,   during an overseas seminar, i noticed that i was having difficulty reading the materials given to me -  it seemed i was reading the book while underwater - literally,  there seemed to be some sort of a film stuck in my eye. 

So when i came back to Manila,  i trooped to Sarabia Optical in Greenbelt 1 - apart from the fact that i knew their head optician,  i found the staff generally very pleasant and welcoming  (okay,  so i had a not so good experience there a couple of years after,  but that could be material for another blog, woohoo).  The verdict was,  my vision was still 20:20  (read as,  i can recognize people from afar and still read signages, etc)   but i need reading glasses already -  huh,  reading glasses?  so there, they had me fit this eyeglass-like contraption which is  then fitted with various grades of lenses to determine what my reading glass "prescription grade"  would be.   Then they had me walk around the store,  just to see if my eyes will adjust to the chosen grade.    

The next step was my favorite -  choosing the frame.  I equate this to shopping for clothes as i have to find one that will fit my face shape and even skintone best.   Sarabia has a quite a big collection, from the budget ones to the branded ones.  As this would be my first pair,  i wouldn't want to make a mistake but i knew i wanted something lightweight and of course,  topmost of which,  it should make me look good and not nerdy or something.   I found this semi-rimless pair,  whose temples are pink (wow!);  but what probably did it for me was the picture of a model wearing it -  it looked soooo good on her -  and maybe,  a little part of me thought i would look like her if i wore the glasses,   hahaha. .. . so it was done for me!  i'm such a sucker for ads  :) 

Okay,  the picture does not do justice, but i like the fact that it is lightweight
and has pink temples, which do not look too obvious, oh well. . .  

Before i forget,   i also had progressive lenses fitted in it as i didn't want to wear a "doble vista" pair -  progressive ones are just more expensive but at least,  i wouldn't need to take off my glasses everytime i am not reading.    It was amazing how i compare looking at the same newspaper text with and without the glasses -  it's simply magic  how the letters became incredibly clearer as i looked thru the glasses.


It took sometime for me to totally get used to my new pair.   For one,  i was on denial for a couple of months -  couldn't and wouldn't believe that my eyesight was no longer perfect.  I just couldn't fathom.  During one of my annual check-ups,  the doctor said that when one reaches the age of 40,   the eyesight really deteriorates;   In time though,  i got used to it.  i've come to accept that i do not have super eyesight contrary to what i thought a couple of years back.   I am now saving up for my next pair :)