the first time i discovered that i was myopic, i was in denial. it was 2008, and my friend Anne jokingly suggested that i was myopic when i had to hold the phone at a longer distance to read a text message. months after that i found small printed letters becoming blurry.
in 2010 when i went to change my long sighted glasses, i told the optician that my eyesight should be checked for myopia. his answer? "you're not yet 40, you're still okay". but this year, the myopia started to become a constant irritation. the distance at which i hold the printed text is getting longer and longer. a few months ago, i went to the same shop to have my eyes tested. the optician obliged. he inserted several lenses into the frame and asked me to read the projected letters on the wall, as the standard procedure requires. this time he exclaimed "Haiyaaa, you sudah ada penyakit tua laa" yeah right, thank you for saying that out loud. despite my wish to use a multifocal, the optician told me to wait for 2012 when my eyesight should worsen and the power increases.
this afternoon, i decided to pay the shop another visit, as i knew that if i didnt have multifocal glasses, my reading would be hampered. that, and also because i discovered that because of my constant use of phone to log on to facebook, i've been having migraine for the past 3 days. so the guy told me that i didn't have to change the frame. haaah?? you've got to be kidding. ask anybody who wears glasses and he will tell you that when you increase your lens power that means you change your frame. most of the time, that is. but not this shop. the other guy did the eyesight test again on me and before he did, he said
" there is a cheaper alternative, there is this lens that relaxes your eyes. it's cheaper than multifocal but it can last until you're 40"
i wondered how the business is doing, because the opticians are clearly more interested in the well-being of my purse than the well-being of their tauke's wallet. so i voiced out my opinion
"people do business to make profit and here you are asking me to get a cheaper alternative".
sheepishly, the guy said "the tauke is more interested in the welfare". well, that's a first...and yup, i have the multifocal glasses made for me. no reason to be in denial anymore. burned a hole in my pocket too.
