…of my glasses, I slipped it back in the frame ever-so-carefully and called my eye doctor to see if the optician was in. She was, so I gathered my coat and purse and, also, my wits and drove ever-so-gingerly to have it replaced properly. It only fell out again once and I caught it before it hit a hard surface. Whew!
Not only do I have just one pair of glasses (which I actually don’t need for distance since my cataract surgery some years ago) but I have been on the search for the same exact frames which I feel have “ME” written all over them. I got them originally maybe 10 or more years ago at a little boutique frame shop on NW 23rd in Portland. They were grotesquely expensive but Nyel and I both agreed: I had to get them. And, as far as I’m concerned they have to last as long as I do.
I feel that way especially because the boutique is no more and I have been unable to find a pair of glasses — perfectly round with no nose pads. The optician at my former eye clinic said she couldn’t find them. So… I was worried… Deep in my soul, I felt that this might be the beginning of the end…
And, sure enough, when the optician repaired them she said the screws are pretty well stripped and I’d best think about getting new frames. I told her my sad story and she said, “Well, give me a minute…” and disappeared into the back room with my glasses She came back a few minutes later with a print-out showing my exact frames from the manufacturer. In Portland! Still being made! “But,” she said, “it looks like they only come in bronze.” I don’t think I said “Oh Yuck!” out loud, but she said, “Their contact information is on here. Why don’t you give them a call?”
It took me a few days to get over the sticker shock but I justified it with the old “I deserve a Christmas present from myself” argument and I worked up the courage to call. “Hang on a minute and I’ll see,” said the pleasant voice at the other end in answer to my “Do they come in black?” query. YES! And today they arrived in my mail!
Am I lucky or what? Now the question is… should I have these lenses put in them or wait until my insurance will pay (well, partly) for a new pair of glasses? I think that might be a year from now… I guess another phone call is in order.