I almost made the title of this blog, “Men Don’t Make Passes at Girls Who Wear Glasses,” but it seemed kind of long, and weird for a 41-year-old married woman to even care about that.
But, the story here is that I got rid of my glasses and got contacts. It does seem like a strange decision, I realize. Most people these days are getting Lasik, not contacts. But, Lasik is more than I want to spend, plus, it won’t be long before I need reading glasses or bifocals, and then what would the point have been spending all that money?
I originally got hard lenses before I entered high school, then I switched to gas permeable somewhere along the way. I wore those for years without any problems. Then I had my son, and at that point I was lucky to get a shower in, much less put in contacts. So, I went to glasses.
Those of us who wear glasses know the pros and cons. The pros: You can see. The cons: They steam up when you open the oven. They steam up when you unload the dishwasher. They steam up when you drain the pasta. If you get prescription sunglasses, you forget you have them on when you go into a store. Then you look like Stevie Wonder. They steam up when you go from cold to warm places. When you go skiing, they steam up. (I don’t do it regularly, but I have skiied and they do steam up under your goggles.) You go out to get the mail in the rain and they get all spotty. You take a nap in them, and lie on your side, they smash up against your nose. OH! And, anyone with glasses will tell you that NOTHING hurts like being smacked in the face on your glasses. They hit your nose and you are like a boxer in the corner of the ring, ready to come out fighting! (Never mind that the person who smacked you is a 4-month-old baby who finds your glasses just fascinating and wants to put them in her mouth.)
So, contacts seemed like a good idea. Why not? I’ve got the time now to put them in, so even though I was going to get new glasses, I changed my mind at the last minute and decided to get contacts.
I love them! I feel like a different person. The 4th grade girl next door saw me and went on and on to her mother about how pretty I looked! Wow!
Then came the family comments. They were somewhat supportive, but you could tell they were holding back. I knew my son wouldn’t like them because he hates change. He was sweet and said, “Wow! Cool.” My daughter wanted to see the actual contacts. I told her she’d have to wait until I took them out. (Later that night, when I did, she got grossed out watching me. Typical.) My husband said nothing. So, I followed him into his office and said to him, “Yeah, so I went to the mall today and got contacts.” Still no response. He was IMing on his computer. Then, he spun around. “You got contacts?!?!? Why?” So, I went over the pros and cons with him. I asked him if he liked them and he said, “Well, I’ve seen you without your glasses before.”
Okay, so no big HURRAH! from my family. But, I didn’t do it for them. I did it for me. Yeah me!
The next day, my husband said, “I don’t know. I think you look tired without your glasses.” My friend said, “I think she looks great!” My hubby wasn’t trying to hurt my feelings. He was just analyzing this whole situation. The next day, he said, “I know what it is. The only time you aren’t wearing your glasses is when you are crying! That’s why I think you look sad.”
At first, I didn’t get it. Then, it hit me. Maybe my family was reminded of all the times they’ve seen me cry in the last few months. I didn’t really expect them to embrace me and say, “Wow! You look fantastic without glasses!” I actually thought it might take them awhile to get used to it. But, now I’m wondering if one of the reasons they aren’t so thrilled right now is because they’ve only seen me without glasses when I’m very unhappy or sick.
I know they’ll get used to it. Even I find myself moving my hands up to adjust my glasses and realizing they are not there. But, I’m trying to smile a lot more, so that they know I’m happy and not ready to break down. Sometimes I forget what all they have witnessed and been a part of these past few months. And, it takes little comments, like my husband’s, to remind me that life wasn’t so stable not so long ago. I’m thrilled to say my moods are much more stable now. So, soon we will be able to put that part of our lives waaaaaay behind us and enjoy the moment! Plus, a little undereye makeup wouldn’t hurt.
Kent, my therapist, rocks! He even sat with me for 1 1/2 hours! (no extra charge!!!!)
