(Sorry, friends. She wouldn’t take a photo without showing her chewed-up gum. At least it’s just gum?!)
1) I mentioned this on the post I published on Wednesday, but I am a candidate for traditional LASIK. On Tuesday, I had a very long consultation (3 hours!) where I went through a myriad of eye tests to see if I was a candidate. I think I did four or five tests using those machines you see at a traditional eye doctor’s office (where you put your chin in the little notch and your forehead against the bar). I would have to hold my eyes wide open for 5-8 seconds so the machine could gather all of the data it needed. That’s a long time to hold your eyes wide open! And then I did some traditional tests, like reading a line of letters on a wall. I also found out that my left eye is my dominant eye, during a really cool test that kinda blew my mind. (Try it!) My left eye has always been the stronger eye, so that makes sense.
After all of those tests, I met briefly with one of the eye doctors who was happy to report that I am a strong candidate for LASIK because I have really thick corneas. (I got complimented on my corneas a lot this day, lol.) I was worried that I might not be a candidate for traditional LASIK due to my strong astigmatism, but she said it wasn’t bad enough to warrant PRK. Hooray for that! I really want to schedule a surgery, but I need to figure out the finances first. Right now, until the end of the year, the surgery center is offering $1,000 off LASIK. I also get a 15% discount with my vision insurance, so that brings the cost of the surgery down by $1,500. I would probably have the finance part of the surgery, which I’m willing to do, especially since there is a no-interest option if paid off within 18 months. So I’m just noodling over my options right now, and since I’m always someone who asks “HOW DID THEY AFFORD THAT?!” when someone has an expensive (elective) procedure or goes on a really fancy vacation, I wanted to be honest about how I’m trying to figure this out myself.
2) I had a dental cleaning this week, and I would personally like to slap Past Stephany for scheduling a dentist appointment at 7 a.m. on a Wednesday. That’s a) too early in the morning and b) ruins my breakfast, since I usually get the fluoride treatment, which always makes me feel like I can’t eat for hours afterward so I don’t and then I get ravenously hungry. (It’s a me thing. I know I’m allowed to eat.) But the good news is that I didn’t have any cavities! I am one of the people who hit the genetic lottery when it comes to my teeth, and I didn’t really get cavities until I was in my late 20s. And now it seems like I’ve had a cavity during every visit! I changed some of my routines (always getting the fluoride treatment, using an antibacterial mouthwash specifically focused on improving gum health) so I’m hoping that’s the reason I was cavity-free this visit. My dentist recommended that I start using a Waterpik for flossing since I have a small mouth (ugh), so I need to just bite the bullet and buy one finally. But all in all, a smooth dental cleaning and I was finished within 40 minutes. (Much better than the experiences some of you guys have had at the dentist! I wish your appointments were as easy as mine!)
3) This week on the Currently Reading podcast, the group got together to play a round of “Would You Rather.” One of the questions posed was: Would you rather have to reread the book you hated the most once a month or never be able to reread your favorite books ever again? Of course, all of them chose the latter option, but the more interesting discussion was the book everyone said would be their most-hated book they’d have to read for this category. (It broke my heart when Kaytee said that Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng was hers. I loved that book!) I’ve been thinking about what my book would be, and I think I’d have to give it to Pride & Prejudice, which I know will make so many people gasp. I don’t enjoy the classics. I find them hard to read (which, yes, makes me feel stupid for saying). And I just really do not enjoy Jane Austen novels. If I had to reread Pride & Prejudice every month? I would stop reading.
4) I have been meaning to share this adorable routine between Eloise and my mom. As most of you know, my mom and I Facetime constantly. Like, multiple times a day is our norm. (We started during the pandemic. It’s our thing.) I started noticing that whenever I was on Facetime with my mom and I was either sitting at the dining room table or at my desk and had the phone propped up against something, Eloise would stop whatever she was doing and run over to the table to either sit near me while I was on the phone or just roam back and forth in front of me so she was on screen. A few days ago, Eloise had been sleeping on my bed for a few hours and didn’t wake up even when I went into the room to put things away, so I decided to test out my theory that Eloise loves when my mom Facetimes. I called my mom and sure enough, not even 15 seconds after she answered, there was Eloise, running out of the room and hopping on the table to greet my mom. Is that not the most precious thing ever?
5) I got to have dinner with Mikaela and her family this week, and it was so wonderful! When I arrived at the restaurant, they were already seated and when Olive saw me, she gasped and said, “Stephany!” and then demanded that I sit next to her. What a friggin joy this girl is! (If you remember, Olive was the baby who was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer at 13 months and has beaten every single odd set in front of her. She’s two years post-treatment and all of her scans have come back completely clean.) I enjoyed sitting down with my favorite tiny humans and chatting with Mikaela and her husband about life in general. Their daughter, Eleni, who is 17 months, did not stop eating the entire time we were there. That girl can put away food better than any kid I’ve seen! Anyway, it was a delightful evening and I’m glad I made the time for it.
What book would you choose as your most hated book? I want to know!
I am jelly of your cavity-free status. IO am starting to think my dentist finds something to fix just to bill more…
Honestly, if my dentist had told me I had a cavity at this appointment, I would have gotten a second opinion because I have never been cavity-prone (thanks, genetics!) but my dentist seems to find them more frequently than I imagine. It’s a racket!
Congrats: I got complimented on my corneas a lot this day. That is an accomplishment I’ve never seen anyone else achieve.
As for the rereading book question: I’d choose rereading the hated book monthly because it’d be a small price to pay to be able to read whatever else I wanted the rest of the time. Kind of like that old saying about eating a frog first thing in the morning to get it over with, then be happy.
You could still read whatever you wanted, whether you chose the most-hated book or never being able to reread your favorite books! You just couldn’t reread your favorite books, which is fine by me because I’m not much of a rereader.
Jane Eyre is the book I seriously have hated most. I’ve DNFed it so many times. I just…can’t deal with it. I am with you that I would stop reading altogether if I had to read it every month!
When you say you can never reread your favorite books, how many books are we talking here? Like, I can’t ever reread my Top Ten list? Or whenever I give a book 5/5, I can never reread it? That seems like a lot to give up, too! I think that’s a mean would you rather questions and I’d rather do NEITHER, thank you very much.
They didn’t give any parameters about what would constitute as a favorite book? Maybe something you put on your all-time favorites list? There are a lot of 5-star books I read but wouldn’t list them as an all-time favorite… can I still read those?! A very good question you posed!
That is terrific news about Olive! So very happy she is doing well! Thank you for updating us.
LOL to the chewed gum photo. One “trick” I use when my kid won’t take a proper photo is I lean in to whatever she wants to do. “Okay, now we’re going to do a really mad face! Now let’s do a rockstar face! Now’s let’s do our best smiles!” Sometimes I get some really good ones that way!
I love the “most hated book” question! (Like you, I am really sad someone chose the Ng. That’s my favorite of her books so far!) I think I would choose The Canterbury Tales. Ugh forever. I actually dropped a class on Chaucer, I hated The Canterbury Tales so intensely. And I still have nightmares about that class, even though it took place more than two decades ago! Other books I hate are Catch 22 and House of God. Blech.
Olive is thriving! It’s been so amazing to see how well she has rebounded since her cancer treatment.
I haven’t read The Canterbury Tales or Catch-22 or House of God! And I don’t have any interest in doing so.
So many books I would hate to re-read: Lord of the Flies and Wuthering Heights would be at the top of the list. Though I recently re-read P&P and was NOT a fan.
Your “thick cornea” compliments reminds me of when I was getting compliments on my “beautiful ear canals” when I had hearing loss post-COVID. Who knew?!
This is such great news about LASIK. I wish – so much – that I had been a candidate for LASIK. Oh well, I got PRK and it is what it is. I have an in-person followup next month. They won’t do an enhancement surgery until I’m 6-months post-op, but I’d definitely consider it if my vision doesn’t get sharper. It’s good (great), but not excellent and it’s bugging me! Numbers at a distance are still blurry and I’m hoping that it will continue to improve (they say it can take up to 6 months), but that is a LONG time to wait.
I am so relieved I can do traditional LASIK because, I swear, your experience has not made me a fan of PRK. I can’t believe you’re still dealing with blurry vision! I hope your follow-up appointment gives you some answers/help.
GASP! I’m one of the gaspers about Pride and Prejudice- I love Jane Austen. But, I get it. My husband hates Jane Austen as well. Actually I don’t think he would even say he “hates” her books because I don’t think he’s ever gotten past the first page. I’m trying to think what my “most hated” book was. I really hated “Most Wanted” which I read recently- I would be extremely angry if I had to read that every month. But there must be other books as well… i have to think about this one.
Oooh, I can’t wait to hear about LASIK. I want to get it. I wear contacts and hate wearing glasses. But as I get older contacts are getting more and more uncomfortable. I haven’t gotten as far as actually finding out if I’m a candidate, but I’m seriously thinking about LASIK.
I encourage you to get a LASIK consultation, Jenny! Knowledge is power and all that. It would be helpful to know if it’s even a possibility for you!
I’m sorry for the Jane Austen hate – I knew you would be sad about that!
I didn’t like P&P either! Or any Jane Austen book. I just don’t like classics either. It does make me feel a little stupid but oh well. Life is too short to suffer through a book I hate. My least favorite book ever was The Road by Cormac McCarthy. I read it back when I bought books and immediately sold it to a used bookstore. I hated it so much I did it want it in my house. Our July book club was McCarthy’s latest book. I was not sad I couldn’t good. We vote on books and I am like – who the F voted FOR this??
That is great news about lasik. I should have another assessment done but fear I would need PRK and I would not go through what Elisabeth went through! Give me daily contacts over that any day of the week! Since getting dailies I have not minded wearing contacts. When I had contacts that were supposed to last a YEAR or even monthlies, I hated them. Dailies are expensive but pretty awesome!
I would not get PRK either. Elisabeth’s experience scared me so much! I think if I could wear contacts more often, I would be less interested in LASIK, but even the toric contacts for astigmatism don’t work well. I can’t wear them if I’m working at a computer because they just get stuck out-of-place in my eye so I have to constantly try to adjust them to get clear vision again. It’s very annoying! I do have the dailies now, though, and I much prefer them!
Wow! I had no idea the LASIK consultation could take that long! Whoa! Is the estimate coming in around $4K total for it all? Or more? I’m glad they have a financing option.
And I am glad your dentist appointment went so well. I know what you mean about the fluoride. Ick. You can totally eat after it, but super ick.
OMG Eloise and your mom! That is so freaking adorable! I love that so much!
Mikaela and her family is so sweet! I love reading updates on them!
It was a super long appointment. I’m glad I had the foresight to schedule the afternoon off work for it.
The $4K would be the total price. It’s doable, which I kinda wasn’t expecting it to be, lol.
Oh no, a dental cleaning at 7 am in the morning? That’s brutal. I hope you scheduled the next one at a better time! 😉
I love that routine between Elly and your mom… <3 whenever I am FaceTiming with my sister, her cat ALSO always comes over and sits right between her face and the screen like she wants to be part of the conversation. LOL
That’s so cute! Something about these cats who just want to be part of the conversation. <3
Eloise cracks me up! Cats. You seriously cannot control them. 🙂
Also, I lost the genetic lottery when it came to my teeth. Add in fluorosis as a kid and let’s just say that I count it as a good year when my appointments other than cleanings are <5. Sigh. (And I floss! And brush! My enamel just… sucks.)
I'll be interested to follow along on the Lasik saga!