ThinOptics Replacement Readers

Ever since we got our first pairs of ThinOptics readers, my husband and I will never go back to anything else. The reason we like them so much is because they can be carried with you in a key chain or in a small sleeve attached to your phone. We each have one on a keychain that is especially good when we are out and about. The other one in the sleeve sits beside me while I’m on the couch. My husband put his on his phone because the phone is always with him. While we were in central Virginia this weekend visiting family, he somehow lost the pair that were stored on his phone. He was taking a few photos and it probably fell out - it was a bit loose. So while we were there I ordered another pair on Amazon and they arrived by the time we returned home. He’s going to keep them in the house where they will always be readily accessible and leave the other pair on the keychain. I can’t tell you how easy these readers are. They sit on your nose and have no arms and are meant for short term use. But my husband likes them all day long for reading. It’s so nice to have the options. All of the items in the ThinOptics line are great - I have sunglasses that I wish would come in half readers and another pair of regular readers. But these glasses are so thin and light and just don’t take up a lot of room. As you can guess I highly recommend them!  

Sold on Thin Optics

When I had cataract surgery in August and September, I knew I would need to start wearing readers. So I searched the internet to see what was available. I always hated seeing my husband constantly searching for his glasses. So I knew I would want something that was always right at hand. And there they were - Thin Optics. They are tiny nose pieces in a small case that attaches to your keychain or phone. My husband likes his key chain one so much that I got him another pair that he attaches to his phone in a tiny black case. That way he keeps one at his side during the day and always has a pair when he is out attached to his keys. When I had jury duty my husband came with me and read while waiting. A very distinguished gentleman approached him and asked him where he got his readers because he was so impressed with them. I also love how thin their sunglasses are. My daughter in law loved them. I’m just sorry they don’t come in half readers. To round out the glasses supply I also have very thin regular readers that come in a very flat case that I use when we go on trips, or when I need to see something that requires more stability on my face. I’m still not used to needing readers because I was always able to read tiny print. But if I need to wear them, these are clearly the best. And they are so light weight to boot. 

I Can’t See Clearly Now

It can’t happen soon enough. I can’t wait for the second cataract surgery because I just can’t see straight with just one eye working at a time. But that won’t happen for another two weeks plus. It will be lovely when all is said and done and it is amazing to be able to see distance without glasses. But having one lens removed from glasses that are four years old doesn’t work. For whatever reason they couldn’t remove the lens from my current glasses because of the frame. And putting on my husbands readers don’t work either. It is completely blurred in both eyes. So after trial and error and a bit of frustration, what works best - and it certainly isn’t good - is not to wear glasses at all for non reading vision. The corrected left eye takes over and it is tolerable. But for reading and working on my iPad I need to wear my last pair of glasses that I can read with. So my right eye uses the prescription of the right lens and my left eye is useless. I didn’t think it was supposed to work this way. I am amazed I don’t have any headaches. Then there are the drops, the no bending, wearing the eye guard at night, and sleeping at a thirty degree angle that are somewhat uncomfortable. I cannot imagine living in a world with bad vision - and in my case - very poor hearing. Having corrective surgery and hearing aids make so much difference. So I am thankful for the resources we have to make life easier. But for now just trying to get through the next two weeks might be a bit of a challenge. 

Crate and Barrel Glasses and Spatula

We usually go to the mall when it’s raining so we can take a morning walk. But we have developed a liking for whiskey sours, and we only have two glasses that can be used for this purpose. That’s plenty for us, but in the event we ever have any guests, it would be nice to have a few more. And while we were at it, the kitchen spatula needed to be replaced because the old one was a bit worn and discolored. So we took a ride over to Crate and Barrel in Tysons to see what we could find. We found the same glasses that we already have so we got four more. They were $1.95 each. My husband found a spatula that he liked - in black. We walked around the store a bit to see what new products were on display. Since we really didn’t need anything else we didn’t stay long. On the way out we saw a goose laying in the roadway. It didn’t look very happy and we hoped it wasn’t sick. The trickiest part about driving around in the afternoon in this town is traffic. You just can’t seem to get away from it no matter where you live around here. I suppose that’s why we usually get things like this on line. But every once in a while it’s nice to get out and about. And yes, we used the glasses already. 

Too Many Glasses

My husband had cataract surgery in February and March of 2020 - just before the pandemic was proclaimed. I remember the outpatient center, located at the hospital, was taking precautions back then, but nothing had been official. The lenses used were not the standard kind and were much more expensive. One lens was for seeing far while the other was for seeing closer. We thought that would mean there would be no need for readers. Well we were wrong. My husband can drive and pretty much do everything with his eye lenses. But he can’t read without glasses. So over the last three years he has accumulated quite an assortment of readers. The first pair was from the CVS. But they were half glasses. Then we tried full frames with only reader lenses and didn’t like having to take them on and off when looking up. Then I found some on Amazon that were full lenses, and the top half was plain and the bottom was readers. They were frameless and looked more like what he always wore. But the material was so fragile they would break easily if they were folded. Today in the car I found another pair. There are so many pairs all over the place it makes me wonder what was the point. If and when I need to have cataract surgery I think I will go with the routine lenses and keep wearing glasses. I used to wear contacts but my eyes were so dry I stopped over twenty years ago - with the promise that I would get new glasses every few years. Well now it’s been well over that and my prescription has changed again. At least I only have one pair of glasses to watch out for. But the difference is I can’t see anything without them - near or far. I’m not sure which one is worse. 

It’s Hard to Walk With Foggy Glasses

I’ve heard of walking in a fog, but never really expected to do so - unless it was actually foggy outside or my brain was not functioning. We have been walking with the additional fashion statement - face masks - for the last eight months. We are in the “at risk” age group - if over 65 still stands - so we feel the necessity to stay safe. We have several different types of masks and generally don’t have a problem with them and our glasses. I do notice that if a wind is blowing it helps keep the fogginess at bay. Today however, was quite cold. It was only 36. For most of our walk I couldn’t see the side of a barn because the lenses were completely blocked. After a while the bubbles and fog usually subside - but they just didn’t.  It was so annoying trying to adjust the nose piece of the mask while waiting for the glasses to clear up. They just wouldn’t. Not until we got in the car to take a ride to get some gas did they finally begin to clear up. The only thing good about it was I tried taking some photos of the condensation that I could potentially enter on the 52Frames website this week since the subject matter is “texture.” If nothing else comes along it may be selection! These are the times I wish I wore contacts again. But since that’s not going to happen, I may have to just get used to it. 

Bifocal Reading Glasses After Cataract Surgery

Cataract surgery changes things - and not always for the better. My husband used to wear glasses all the time and liked wearing glasses. In February/March he had cataract surgery along with laser. One lens was for distance and the other was for “intermediate.” Since then we have gone through several “readers” versions since he ended up still needing glasses to read and the ridiculousness of taking them off and putting them back on. We have even been through the strings that keep them around your neck and he hated that. He needed sunglasses where he never wore them before. We have so many glass cases in the house we could start selling them. There are glasses in the car and in the house. In order to get away from the on and off carousel, I finally found a bifocal solution where the top is clear and the bottom is 2.00 strength. At least then he can wear them all the time if he is so inclined. One of them broke in half so we ordered another brand. What I’ve learned from this whole thing is that the simple cataract surgery would be the best and wearing corrective lenses might be easier than what I am witnessing. The sad thing is is that he has perfect vision for everything except reading - which is his major activity. The only advantage is at night where there is less likelihood of a stumble. 

Lindberg Titanium Glasses

When we moved to northern Virginia ten months ago we finally decided now was the time to switch to an eye doctor in our new neighborhood. Driving to DC is bad enough, and worse when you have an appointment. It’s been four years since my last new pair of glasses. So with an eye exam in January my prescription changed enough to warrant a new pair. We ended up going to Georgetown Optical in Tyson’s. My first pair of glasses in DC was also at the Georgetown Optical - but in Georgetown. My last pair was bought at Voorthuis in Alexandria. It was a nightmare too long to talk about so I didn’t want to go back there. When the salesperson asked what I wanted, I told him to find something he thought would look nice rather than say anything specific. After a few tries both my husband and I liked the Lindberg titanium frame. It was light, pretty, a bit more oval than usual, and the color was nice. So we picked them up today and so far they feel nice and I hope look as nice as we thought. The only issue left is getting sunglasses that fit over these frames because the ones I use now aren’t large enough. I just don’t feel like getting separate sunglasses at this time. Hopefully the new glasses will do the trick. 

Lunch, Repaired Glasses, Car Scraper and Parking Space

You know who has a garage after a snow storm. When you are on the freeway it’s really obvious when the ice and leftover flakes start flying at your windshield from the vehicles in front. So after three days of being housebound, we decided it was time to get outside aside from taking a morning walk. So we went to lunch in Alexandria. But the real reason for our trip was to pick up my husband’s repaired eyeglasses at Voorthuis. We made sure our car was brushed clean before we started out, but noticed our scraper was a bit worn. So we stopped at Ace Hardware after munching on tortilla soup, salad, and a chicken sandwich. Of course we also ordered a chicken Parmesan dinner to go so we don’t have to think about dinner. We ended up with a long handled neon green scraper with a brush - and my husband used it to clear off any remaining ice on the car roof. The best part is that the repaired glasses are so much better than the very old substitute pair he’s been wearing for the last three weeks. They are lighter, less bulky, with a more recent prescription lens. And to top it all off when we got back home there was actually a parking space right in front of our house. We don’t have a garage so it’s always a pain to get parking in the neighborhood especially during the week. But with the government closed, we can tell because it’s so much less congested. Hopefully we won’t need the darn scraper any more, but I have my doubts. We’ve had more snow in DC than the Midwest town we escaped from. At least there we had a garage.