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By Posted on Posted in Author, Business, Not Workers Compensation Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Mar
2
2009
Glasses, online
Glasses, online!

I recently ordered three pairs of glasses from GlobalEyeglasses.com and one pair from Goggles4U.com.1  Last Wednesday I had my doctor check all four pairs.  Read on for the details!

I chose to try GlobalEyeglasses.com because I heard a glowing review on on NPR, they seemed to have good online reviews, had a decent website, and their prices were really incredible.

Review of GlobalEyeglasses.com

  1. Website. The GlobalEyeglasses.com webiste merely lets you see a larger photo of each pair of glasses. I am was the kind of person who needed to try on lots of different frames before I could make a choice 2  Incredibly, not being able to try on the glasses just didn’t bother me at all.  Once I had gotten my prescription and narrowed down the frame choices, it was surprisingly easy to find the glasses for me.
  2. Selection. There were easily several hundred frames from which to choose.  They have every imaginable style and variation.  They also have a wide range of lens options: clear, tinted, polychromatic / transition lenses, and super thin materials.
  3. Price. Using the coupon code at the bottom of this review, I got 10% off my order.  You can find frames as cheaply as $1.003 and lenses starting from $6.99.  They appear to have several designer frames.  The only shipping option is by UPS and costs $5.99.  When I was buying a month ago they were running a promotion where I bought two pairs and got one pair free.  $45.00 for three pairs, shipped, is basically unbeatable.
  4. Frame Quality. Each pair fit with minimal adjusting of the nose pads and behind the ears.  On my pair of sunglassses4 one of the screws in the nose pads fell out the first day I wore it.  When I replaced the nose pad I discovered that the screw fell out because the threads on that side had been stripped.  I used an extra screw and tightened it.  I haven’ t had any problems since.
  5. Lens Quality. I have had no problems with the prescriptions on any of the three pairs I got from GlobalEyeglasses.com.  I didn’t require any “adjustment” period or any time to get used to these glasses.  More importantly, the lenses themselves were confirmed by my doctor to be the correct prescription.
  6. Shipping. Two weeks, just about on the button.  Shipping was $5.99.
  7. Customer Service. A day after I placed my order I received an e-mail from GlobalEyeglasses.com saying that one of the pairs I had ordered was now out of stock and would I please select a new pair.  While a little bummed that one of my first choices was no longer available, I was very happy that they let me know immediately.  I chose a new frame and made a small change to another frame I had originally ordered.  They adjusted the price accordingly and immediately refunded me the difference.
  8. Extras. Each pair comes with its own free case, eyeglass cloth, and replacement nose pads and screws.

Verdict: I would absolutely recommend GlobalEyeglasses.com and use them again.  When placing your order, use the coupon code, “glassyeyes” for 10% off.

  1. Photo courtesy of Morningstar Lee [↩]
  2. It’s an important decision! [↩]
  3. Not that you’d want them. [↩]
  4. Just a tinted pair of prescription glasses [↩]

By Posted on Posted in Author, Not Workers Compensation Tagged with , , , , , ,
Mar
1
2009
Remember: Not all fortunes are fortunate!
Remember: Not all fortunes are fortunate!

I got Chinese take-out on Saturday night. I know I had promised a review of online glasses retailers, but I just had to share this with you.  Tune in tomorrow for the GlobalEyeglasses.com review and the day after for the Goggles4U.com review.  My fortune cookie had three fortunes in it! 1 I typically consider this lucky.  Saturday… not so much.

Fortune: Your magnetic personality will draw people to you this month

Saturday night was February 28th, as in the end of the month.  I didn’t notice anyone drawn to me. 2

Fortune: Your financial situation will soon be improving

Soon is relative, so I guess this could still come true.

Fortune: Sonn a visitor shall delight you

This one undoubtedly came true.  In the wee hours of Sunday morning an unexpected visitor presented themselves.  My typically delightful moo shu paid me a visit in the form of food poisoning.

Anyone interested in some Chinese take-out leftovers?

  1. Original photo courtesy of TheTruthAbout.  Photo editing – all me! [↩]
  2. You know – any more than usual. [↩]

By Posted on Posted in Author, Business, Marketing, Not Workers Compensation, Technobabble Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Feb
26
2009
Glasses, online
Glasses, online!

No matter which website you order glasses from online, I would suggest the following five steps: 1

  1. Get your prescription. When getting your eye prescription, being sure to have your physician provide your “Pupillary Distance.” 2  I’ve put together a chart at the bottom you can take with you to the doctor’s office.
  2. Measure your glasses. Measure your current glasses using a metric ruler.  The most important measurement is going to be “Temple Width.”  The “Temple Width” is the overall front width of your glasses.
  3. Choose frames. On the website of your choice, narrow down the available glasses by the “Temple Width.”  From there you can narrow down the available choices.
  4. Wait. Both of the websites I ordered glasses from took about two weeks to get the glasses to me.
  5. Double check. Take your new glasses back to your eye doctor.  They will have a machine that can check the prescriptions on the lenses.

SPH

(Sphere)

CYL

(Cylinder)

AXIS

ADD

(Addition)
O.D. (Right)
O.S. (Left)
Pupillary Distance

mm
Temple Width

mm

Coupon Codes:

  • I tried GlobalEyeglasses.com and used the coupon code “glassyeyes” for 10% off.
  • I also tried Goggles4U.com and used the coupon code “glassyeyes” for 5% off. (I have no idea why they both use the same coupon code…)

Yesterday I had my doctor’s test out all four pairs of my glasses.  Tune in next time for the reviews of GlobalEyeglasses.com and Goggles4U.com!

  1. Photo courtesy of Morningstar Lee [↩]
  2. The “Pupilary Distance” is the distance between your two pupils, measured in millimeters. [↩]

By Posted on Posted in Calculators, Case Law, COLA, Death Benefits, Life Pension, PDRater, Permanent Total Disability, SAWW, Website Updates, Workers Compensation Resources Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Feb
25
2009
XYZZXSJO2 - The motion picture!
XYZZXSJO2 - The motion picture!

Last week while Steve was at the Sacramento WCAB he heard about a recent case that held the COLA / SAWW adjustments and increases are calculated based upon the first January 1 following the date of injury. 12

This case involving SIF (the subsequent injuries fund) is from the San Jose WCAB.  The name of the case is “XYZZXSJO2 v. Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund, ADJ 1510738, SJO 0251902”.  The name of the Applicant was anonymized to protect their identity.  34

Download a copy of XYZZXSJO2 now!

Thus far the conventional wisdom has been that the COLA/SAWW increases are calculated starting with the first January 1 after life pension gets paid out.  This is a tremendous change in the COLA/SAWW calculation of life pension.

Assuming a 1/1/2003 injury at exactly 70% permanent partial disability, there would be 426.5 weeks of permanent disability paid after the permanent and stationary date before the life pension gets paid out.  This equates to 8.2 years from the permanent and stationary date that has, thus far, not been taken into account with life pension calculations to date.  To put this in perspective, if someone had an injury on 1/1/2003 and became P&S on that same date5 , the traditional method of calculating the life pension with COLA / SAWW increase would be too low by approximately 44%.

At the moment I’m finalizing a COLA / SAWW life pension calculator to determine what the future life pension rates are assuming a COLA / SAWW increase of 4.7% per year.  If you’re interested in becoming a beta tester for this COLA / SAWW calculator for life pension increases, please drop me a line and ask for access.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a citation for the 4.7% COLA / SAWW increase, but I believe it to be the offiical average used by the DEU6 to calculate commutations of COLA / SAWW increases and adjustments.  If you have an official citation or document from the DEU, please drop me a line so I can include that citation here!

  1. COLA = cost of living adjustment. [↩]
  2. SAWW = state average weekly wage. [↩]
  3. I hope to have a scan of this decision for you soon! [↩]
  4. David DePaolo of WorkCompCentral.com has graciously allowed me permission to offer you a copy of XYZZXSJO2 for download!  Thanks David! [↩]
  5. Not likely. [↩]
  6. Disaiblity Evaluation Unit. [↩]

By Posted on Posted in PDRater, Search Engine Ranking, SEO, Technobabble, Website Updates Tagged with ,
Feb
24
2009
PDRater.com breaks another record!
PDRater.com breaks another record!

I’m out of the office for one lousy day and what happens?  A record number of visitors to PDRater.com, that’s what.1  I suppose I should spend more time up at the Santa Rosa WCAB, eh?

On Wednesday February 18, 2009 this website had a record number of individual visitors.  On that day I  234 unique visitors.  2  In the grand scheme of things, this is a fairly low number of unique visitors to a website.

However, most people come to this website looking for information about California workers’ compensation, workers’ compensation resources, workers’ compensation calculators, and updates regarding recent workers’ compensation cases.  The vast majority of website visitors (I’m extrapolating from those who have signed up for free) are claims adjusters, law office staff, and applicant and defense attorneys.

This sort of website traffic is considered to be very “high quality” as in the number of people from my target demographic comprise the vast majority of those people who actually visit my site.

  1. Photo courtesy of Ann Althouse. [↩]
  2. The previous record of 180 visitors was set on August 23, 2008. [↩]