Spectacular !!!

It was my childhood dream. Something I nurtured since I was may be 6.

May be since I got to know the power of eyes and how much they could express. Or may be I was just fascinated.

Whatever may be my tiny brain's excuses then, my wish finally got fulfilled at the age of #^ (Girls don't reveal their 'real' age!! what!!). In retrospect it did take me a lot of years!! Geez!!

Anyways when I finally came out of the doctor's cabin holding my eye check-up report, I triumphantly acknowledged to my uncle 'Yes! Finally, some doctor agrees that I should get spectacles made! And yeah that to numbered ones!'

So this childhood obsession of donning my own chashma, started when my dad got his reading glasses done. I would wear them and ask my parents to click snaps (which they never did :|). After some years came my mom's turn. I used to doll up in her feminine glasses and get pleased when people used to tell me that I looked like a teacher (teacher-teacher is a favorite Indian indoor game for girls!). Then one fine day an older cousin gave me a long lecture on how one's eyesight goes bad because of wearing numbered spectacles, and my obsession became private limited from a public affair. And as I started growing up, mom-dad's spects had started to become less fashionable. As there was no other way of fuelling my passion of trying other people's spectacles, I asked dad to buy me those zero power glasses. I did not quite like the actual buy and hence stopped wearing them. But the little girl inside me who had always loved them, did not stop dreaming. What did she know, that it will take her more than 15 years to fulfill it!

So today I finally went to make the spects (you buy a lens and a frame and ask the optometrist to make it for you). I went to Lawrence and Mayo store first. Well some sale caught my eye. Apparently it was on a specific brand of frames, obviously out of which I did not like any. Then I moved to the lens part. The sales guy there did not take any pain in explaining me anything. So naturally giving him the usual 'budget ke bahar hai' reason I exited.

Then I entered Titaneye+, a tata enterprise. Entry to exit I was made to feel like a person who should be wanting to buy herself a pair of glasses and not hating her doctor for giving her the report! (I was obviously naturally inclined towards 'wanting to buy glasses for her own Sukh, Shanti and Samadhan' (Mind you these are not Rakhi Sawant's prospective better halves)). So I almost tried their entire aisle of 'on display' frames and ate the sales guy's and my brother's head over which frame suited me the most. Both proved pretty useless in the end as they started approving anything random I was trying. After settling down on a slight geeky, less nerdy and more Yo! frame, we turned towards the lens section. Titaneye+ people sell only essilor, nikon and canon lenses. The most reasonable for me were of course Essilor starting from 1800. I gulped. And decided to take off, when my brother pulled me back. The sales guy tested his 'always works' marketing gimmick. He said local vendors might sell you anything under the name of Essilor, whereas here you get guaranteed stuff and also an year's warranty (I felt like blurting out, its of no use as I am not going to be in India, mr. smarty!!). Anyways the next thing he did was open up the big fat lens booklet and give me some jargon. I understood a mere 5%, but I was impressed. I ermed and errrred and finally said yes. Then he also gave me a free eye check up (again!) where their doc told me some really cool eye exercises. Sharing them with you, as I know most of you just cant take your eyes off the laptop :P

1. 20-20-20 rule : take a 20 second break for every 20 minutes work on the laptop. In the first break consciously blink you eyes. In the next break concentrate at your infinity (distant) point. This would avoid your eyes from getting dry and the occasional blurring syndrome will also disappear.

2. tip of the pen exercise : take any pen and concentrate on its tip. Keep moving the pen towards your eyes until you get blurred image of the tip. Do this every hour.

So as I finalized my bill and payment, I was told that my spects would be ready in an hour. My jaw almost fell to the floor. Otherwise I will get a call, as to when I should pick it up. So much attention !! I was mighty impressed.

In a long long time I have had a truly satisfying experience in terms of shopping. I am recommending it to you. Sadly they are not paying me. Yet !

~nightflier :)