amazing vision

yesterday i was the day i got lasik. i'm not going to lie, i was really scared. but everyone at clearly lasik was really warm and understanding. i didn't have to wait long before my name was called and aaron and i went into the back room and discussed payment. they really tried to work for me to get it as cheap as they could. they even gave me the "teacher's discount" (because i work at a university), which saved me $500. then she went over all of the medicated drops i need to put in my eye. it's pretty intense. i have 3 kinds of drops that go in at different intervals. i have a running tally on the white erase board that helps me keep track. i then chewed up my valium and waited in the "relaxation suite". i probably waited there for about 30 minutes, while the valium took effect. the butterflies definitely went away, and i started to get drowsy. then my name was called

i laid down and numbing drops were applied to my eyes. there were two nurses in the "operational suite" with me and they were really good about counting things down for me and using reassuring words. my left eye was taped down and the began on my right eye. the doctor had to talk to me a bit to get me to relax a bit more. there was a lot of pressure that went to black, then i could blurrily see the laser. i looked into the light and there as a lot of clicking, then the smell of burnt hair. this would have scared me, but the nurses prepped me so i knew to expect it. once the laser quit clicking the doctor replaced my corneal flap. then the same routine with the left eye.

once i was done the doctor quickly looked at my eyes through a magnifying machine to make sure things looked alright (he had to remove a rogue eyelash). then i was sent along my merry way. by this time the valium had me in it's grip and i don't remember a whole lot. aaron got me home safely and i slept for 6 straight hours. when i woke up, i could see. no joke. it was amazing.

this morning i went to my first post-opt appointment and my vision tested out at 20/20. perfect! and it looked like both of my eyes are healing wonderfully. my aftercare is essentially eye drops constantly for a week, no eye make up for a week, no swimming for two weeks, and no rubbing my eyes. i also get to sleep with goggles for the next week so i won't accidentally rub them in my sleep.

hurray! this is so totally worth it. never was there any pain...i know a few friends who have been thinking about getting this done. feel free to ask me any/all questions. i would love to help you!

clearly anxious

yesterday i had my free consultation at clearly lasik in renton. i was feeling pretty anxious, but the staff there quickly made me feel at ease. they ran a series of tests on my eyes measuring all sorts of things from pupil dilation size, to cornea thickness, and the stability of my prescription. as it turns out...i'm a strong candidate for lasik! i'm not going to lie, there was a small part of me that wanted to not be a candidate. that way i could not go through with it, but at least i could say i tried.

i've already scheduled the lasik for next thursday, august 27th at 9:30 am. i figured the sooner i could get an appointment, the better. less chance of chickening out. i'm of course nervous, anxious, scared, but for the most part i'm really excited. my doctor has 50,000 lasik surgeries under his belt, so he's been through this a few times. also, 95% of people are happy with their lasik results. i keep repeating these statistics through my head. send calming, positive vibes my way, please.

hurricane andy

andy visited seattle this weekend. we knew he was probably coming sometime in august, but last thursday he let us know that he was coming on friday. the last few days have been a whirlwind of fun, laughs, and well, andy.

saturday was full of the normal (well, normal for us) saturday things. bocce, brunch, beer, and a bbq at the weekly home. an exciting hightlight was that i went with my friend, theresa to get her nose pierced. it appeared to be less painful than i had imagined it would be. i'm glad i went with her because i would be interested in getting it done sometime. i think the tiny diamond studs are very pretty.

sunday we went for an 8 mile hike to blanca lake. i'm not going to lie, the first 3 miles the beauty was lost on me. the trail gains 3,000 feet of elevation in just under 3 miles. this, to me, is significant. i also learned that my definition of the word "slow" is different from others (note to self: work on cardio so you aren't so pathetic). after all the climbing, i did finally appreciate the setting. the lake was an amazing bluish-green aqua color. really, stunning. probably one of the prettiest lakes i'd ever seen.

monday it was difficult to move. it has been awhile since i've been this sore. i wasn't alone though, andy was sore, too. spry aaron was left unscathed. it's tuesday and i'm still sore. this is probably good for me. i believe it is called "character building".

a change would do you good

i've been doing some thinking lately. i've come to the conclusion, that it is really easy for me to fall into a rut. this probably isn't a newsflash. i frequently do the same thing over and over because its easy. and easy is comfortable. not that there is anything wrong with that, but lately i think i should try doing a few things that i've thought about and have just procrastinated.

first on the list is looking into lasik. i've thought about getting lasik many times, but obviously have never gone through with it. at first it was too expensive for me. and now that i can afford it, i've just never gotten around to it. there are so many places here to do it, it's a lot of research. to be quiet honest, it's kinda scary and quiet easy to not call. but today i took the plunge. i made an appointment for a free consultation.

you know what? it's exciting! comfort and easy definitely have their place, but so does risk and adventure. i need to remember that.

myers-briggs

i'm a sucker for personality tests, and the myers-briggs is the mother of all personality tests. i've taken it numerous times online, and even attended a detailed workshop on it as a communication training for work. here is a quick run down what the letters stand for:

introversion vs. extroversion (where you get your energy)
sensing vs. intuition (literal, concrete vs. abstract)
thinking vs. feeling (logic, rational vs. values, feelings)
judging vs. perceiving (neat, orderly, established vs. flexible, spontaneous)

humanmetrics has a great online myers-briggs test you can take for free. the personality page is another great source for more in-depth personality profile descriptions. without fail, i am always an isfj. aaron took it once and he was an entp, which you will notice is the complete opposite of me. huh. weird. what are you?

isjf
the nurturer

you have a strong need to belong, and you very loyal. a good listener, you excel at helping others in practical ways. in your spare time, you enjoy engaging your senses through art, cooking, and music. you find it easy to be devoted to one person... a partner who you do special things for.

in love, you express your emotions through actions. taking care of someone is how you love them. and you do it well!

at work, you do well in a structured environment. you complete tasks well and on time. you would make a good interior designer, chef, or child psychologist.

how you see yourself: competent, dependable, and detail oriented

when other people don't get you, they see you as: boring, dominant, and stuck in a rut

a biking we will go

actually biking we went. saturday aaron and i biked with a couple of friends from our house to the redhook brewery. this bike ride has been attempted before with disastrous results that involved tears (me) and one of our companions flipping over the handlebars of his borrowed bike (hi, justin). this time the ride went much smoother. we left our house around around mid-afternoon and rode the 20 miles to the brewery. of course while we were there we took the dollar brewery tour and stayed a bit longer for dinner (we needed the energy). the ride back home was a bit more of a chore. we tried to break it up a bit by going bowling partway through. towards the last few miles we broke out into song, which included such hits as "you've lost that lovin' feeling"and "un-break my heart". classics. we arrived home exhausted at 10:45 pm. it was a fun trip, and not nearly as hard as i thought it would be. i'm glad i tried it again.