Road Warrior
Road Warrior

I used to really dislike driving long distances.  However, in the last few months I’ve done a few things to completely change my mind.

  1. Use a GPS. I no longer have to worry about leaving directions at home, taking a wrong turn, finding food or fuel, or needing a detour.  I just hop in the car, hit the road, head in the general direction of my destination, and plug in the address on the way.
  2. Buy prescription sunglasses. Sunglasses have made a world of difference.  Yesterday I drove out to Auburn in the morning and back to the East Bay in the afternoon, driving into the sun both ways.  Having the sunglasses has completely eliminated squinting and strain on my eyes.
  3. Take Music. Loading up the GPS with music has really helped pass the time.  I even added a few hours of MCLE, just in case!
  4. Drive slower. I’ve made a point of obeying the speed limit, even when I’m running late.  Driving fast saves a negligible amount of time and can be very stressful.

These four things have transformed my long drives from stressful events into fairly enjoyable trips.

Glasses, online
Glasses, online

As I mentioned about two weeks ago, I had ordered some glasses online through two different retailers.   ((Photo courtesy of Morningstar Lee)) At an average of $20.00 a pair, it was hard not to get carried away.

One pair of glasses had “polychromatic” lenses and cost about $35.00.  The other three pairs included a regular pair of glasses, a pair of tinted glasses for use as sunglasses, and a funky pair since they were totally free free (complete with frames and prescription lenses!?!?!)

I ordered from two different retailers because (1) $35.00 for those “transition” lenses aka “polychromatic” lenses was too good to pass up and (2) so I could compare the customer service and quality of the two companies.

Service through one company was a little better than the other.  However, I’m not qualified to judge quality.  Although I’m very happy with the look of these frames and lenses, I’d feel a lot better if I took them to my optomologist to be sure.

That said, I’m going to postpone an in-depth review until I see my eye-doc.  When I post the review I’ll include a few tips for ordering glasses online. ((You know, from my vast experience.))

Glasses, online
Glasses, online

I’ve already said I’m a big fan of NPR.  A few weeks ago they ran a story about the “Best-Kept Online Secret: Cheap Eyeglasses.”  The author, tired of paying hundreds of dollars for glasses, tried out a few different online glasses retailers.  ((Photo courtesy of Morningstar Lee))

This weekend I ordered glasses from two different websites. (I’m going to hold off mentioning which ones for now.  I’ll wait to find out what kind of a job they do.)

I ordered four pairs of glasses for much less than what a single pair used to cost me.  If all goes well, I’ll be getting one pair of sunglasses, one pair of color changing glasses, one pair that looks almost identical to the ones I wear now, and one pair of funky glasses (this was the free one).

The trade-off is that the glasses will take about two weeks.

See you in two weeks! ((Ha ha!))