My Glasses Bug Me

Any artist's biggest fear must be the inability to continue to create and I suppose there are a number of possibilities that can cause that to happen. A loss of vision is what has always come to mind for me as a possible debilitating factor and sure enough, as so many others have, I began to have vision issues a few years ago. Reading glasses became necessary for both reading and my artwork. The detail work that is a part of my style requires hours of concentration and I now rely on glasses for any work I do. That goes for my retail job as well. I was miserable with the prospect of getting glasses. It represented something I wasn't yet willing to accept. I'm getting older! When did this happen? After all, I look good for my age, I'm in shape - I don't feel like my eyes tell me I should. Getting glasses for me was like getting notices in the mail from AARP. It was reality slapping me in the face. Soon I'd be able to take advantage of breakfast specials at Denny's and discounts at the movies on Tuesdays. I'm not ready for this. The dreaded visit to purchase my glasses finally took place but not without an extra intense workout at the gym prior to my appointment to assure myself that other parts of me remain vital. I told myself it wasn't a big deal...after all there are very young people that wear glasses and it isn't necessarily a sign of one's age ( am I really this vain?). During my appointment I was told I needed bifocals! Oh my God, don't people that soak their teeth at night wear those? Not me! I won't! Well, I did...and I do. I opted for a frame that I thought would look current and trendy to offset any Grandpa reference. I think they look good but they came with a set of issues. The frames are heavy and they slide down my nose constantly. I believe they cut off my peripheral vision because I can see the frames and I think they limit what I need to see. People think I'm looking at them when I'm not and I can tell as they are walking by that they had smiled at me and I didn't acknowledge them. I run into everything and I'm always bruised. They are an extra thing to think about on a daily basis. I hate it when I forget to bring them to a restaurant and I can't read the menu. I've actually had to ask the waiter to borrow a pair. The pinnacle of my hatred of my dependence to them came the other day. I was at work, carrying several boxes and the glasses had slipped down my nose. I couldn't push them back up because my hands were unavailable and tried unsuccessfully to use one of the boxes. I'm walking down the hall and someone points to my face and says "WHAT'S THAT!?!". I looked at him incredulously and thought maybe a sesame seed was left on my face from my bagel I just ate ( I love those "everything" bagels ) so with boxes in hand I tried to wipe my mouth. He said "no, THAT!!". I found a place to put the boxes down and, thinking he was referring to the fact that my glasses had slipped to close to the bottom of my nose I pushed them back up. One more time he pointed to my face and said "NO, THAT - YOUR GLASSES!!!". I took my glasses off and to my extreme horror there was a WAD OF GUM stuck to the bridge of my glasses ( please see a previous Andrea Marcovicci blog for additional gum mishaps ). How long had I been walking around that way? How could it have happened? Think back. Well, I just had a bagel a bit ago. I had just started chewing gum when I decided I was hungry. I'm not a wasteful person. I wasn't going to throw the gum away that I just started so I discreetly set it aside. I obviously chose to set my glasses aside in the same location. I've always had remarkable aim.