LASIK Eye Surgery

While not a piece of technology that you can hold in your hands, LASIK is a technology that can dramatically improve your quality of life if you currently wear contacts or glasses. I know, I had LASIK surgery on January 14, 2008.

My earliest memory of needing glasses was back in elementary school. In fourth grade, our teacher had us shift our desks closer to the chalkboard once a month. The kids who were on the front row one month would be on the back row the following month. I remember one month that my desk was moved to the second row, and suddenly I realized I could see the writing on the chalk board. I was nearsighted. When it was my turn to move to the back of the class, I had to get special permission from our teacher to stay at the front. I don't remember whether I told my parents that I needed glasses or whether my teacher mentioned it, but soon afterward I was wearing a my new glasses to class.

When I started high school, I discovered gas perm contacts, got a prescription, and wore them every day for years. I hated to wear glasses, and when I wore them in public, people were surprised to find out that I needed corrective lenses.

Contact lenses weren't allowed on while I was on my mission, so I got an updated prescription before I left. I continued to wear glasses for about a year afterward. For the next ten years I wore soft contact lenses.

Because I was extremely nearsighted, I had to wear corrective lenses whenever I left the house or apartment. I preferred contacts to glasses, because my glasses would irritate my nose and my ears and had to be cleaned constantly.

A couple of people at work recently had LASIK surgery to correct their impaired vision. I asked them the usual questions about pain (there is none), dryness (yes, for the first couple of months), and recovery time (patients normally see much better immediately following the surgery).

I decided I had had enough of glasses and contacts. I asked around at work, got office contact info and made an appointment with an ophthalmologist. He and his LASIK coordinator explained the benefits, the risks (infections, additional enhancements down the road), and I scheduled a date and time for surgery.

During the surgery, I was nervous, but the doctor explained every step he took. I had Intralase LASIK (also known as bladeless LASIK), which means that a laser was used instead of a fine blade to cut the flaps on my corneas. After lying on the table for about 15 minutes, one of the assistants helped me up, and helped me into another room. In the follow up room, I could immediately read the magazine covers on the other end of the room. The doctor checked my eyes, said they looked good, and sent me home (my wife and kids were waiting in the lounge).

The next day I had a follow up appointment. I was shocked by how clearly I could see without corrective lenses while I was driving myself to the appointment. The LASIK coordinator checked my vision, and I had 20/15 vision (my right eye had normal vision, while my left eye could see at 15 feet what most people can only see at 20 feet). I have and will have the following follow up visits with my eye doctor, since the surgery: 1 day, 1 week, 1 month, and 6 months.

In the morning, I'm still in the habit of reaching over to the nightstand to grab my glasses, and when I look at the nightstand and see that they're not there, it's great. When I shave in the morning, I don't have to feel my face to see if I missed a spot. When I get out of the shower, I still have the habit of reaching to grab my contact lens case, which is no longer there, and now I can look down and see that it's not there. I can take naps on Saturdays without waking up to clouded contact lenses, and stay up late at night without my contact lenses feeling like sponges, soaking all of the moisture out of my eyes.

If you need corrective lenses to function throughout the day, like I did, go for LASIK surgery. You'll be glad you did.

Xbox 360 Universal Media Remote

Back on September 12, 2007, I wrote a blog post entitled "HDTV on your PC". In the post, I briefly mentioned that I watched recorded TV on my Xbox 360. It's much more convenient (and comfortable) to watch a TV show while sitting on the couch in front of the TV and the Xbox.

A week ago I was in a CompUSA store where they had their Xbox 360 Universal Media Remotes on sale. I bought one, and tried it out at home that night. It's great! The two-handed controller is great for playing games, but when I just want to watch live or recorded TV, the remote makes it easy. It has a Windows Media Center button in the middle of the remote. One push of this button, and the Xbox turns on and connects to my Windows Media Center PC. This is a 5 step process with the two-handed game pad. The remote also makes it easy to change channels and turn the Xbox off. With the game pad, it takes a couple of button presses to do the same.

With the remote, the Xbox behaves more like a digital video recorder (DVR) than a gaming machine. Watching TV on the Xbox has never been easier. If you connect your Xbox to a Windows Media Center computer, you've got to get one of these remotes. If you use your Xbox solely for playing games, you can skip this accessory.