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elwing surprised me yesterday with a pair of swimfins and a mask and snorkel. One of the days of the cruise this weekend is a stop at a private island, so she thought we might like to do some snorkeling. I tried them out at the fitness center pool and sadly discovered that I don't swim very well these days (I never was a really good swimmer in my prime). I couldn't find a rhythm or good stroke to use, and the fins made my legs and feet cramp up. Oh, well, I'll get the hang of it. It was a nice thought.

If you're using a mask and snorkel, I presume you'd be trying to enjoy the fish, so having a strong swimming rhythm isn't important, ear!

earendel wrote:elwing surprised me yesterday with a pair of swimfins and a mask and snorkel. One of the days of the cruise this weekend is a stop at a private island, so she thought we might like to do some snorkeling. I tried them out at the fitness center pool and sadly discovered that I don't swim very well these days (I never was a really good swimmer in my prime). I couldn't find a rhythm or good stroke to use, and the fins made my legs and feet cramp up. Oh, well, I'll get the hang of it. It was a nice thought.

If you are near sighted (as I am along with who knows how many other geeks/nerds like me. Not that I am saying you are also a geek/nerd... ) you might find a mask with a prescription correction nice. I love to snorkel but hated having poor vision so I made the investment in them. Tremendous improvement!

Of course if you don't plan to do much it might not be worthwhile. Then again your prescription only needs to be close so it can last awhile and for me it makes the experience so much more enjoyable. It can be done relatively cheaply and I have had the same mask for more than 5 years now.

tanstaafl2 wrote:

earendel wrote:elwing surprised me yesterday with a pair of swimfins and a mask and snorkel. One of the days of the cruise this weekend is a stop at a private island, so she thought we might like to do some snorkeling. I tried them out at the fitness center pool and sadly discovered that I don't swim very well these days (I never was a really good swimmer in my prime). I couldn't find a rhythm or good stroke to use, and the fins made my legs and feet cramp up. Oh, well, I'll get the hang of it. It was a nice thought.

If you are near sighted (as I am along with who knows how many other geeks/nerds like me. Not that I am saying you are also a geek/nerd... ) you might find a mask with a prescription correction nice. I love to snorkel but hated having poor vision so I made the investment in them. Tremendous improvement!

Of course if you don't plan to do much it might not be worthwhile. Then again your prescription only needs to be close so it can last awhile and for me it makes the experience so much more enjoyable. It can be done relatively cheaply and I have had the same mask for more than 5 years now.

If I take to snorkeling and do it often I might go for the prescription mask, but given the Coke-bottle thickness of my current lenses, there might be a weight problem with a mask fitted to my correction.

tanstaafl2 wrote:
If you are near sighted (as I am. . .) you might find a mask with a prescription correction nice. I love to snorkel but hated having poor vision so I made the investment in them. Tremendous improvement!

Tan, I am surprised that you, of all people, haven't had LASIK surgery. Is there some reason why it would not be advisable for you, or is it a question of your knowing too much about what theoretically could go wrong?

With the exception of Annie's and Ashley's vet bills, I still consider LASIK the best money I ever spent.

silvercamaro wrote:

tanstaafl2 wrote:
If you are near sighted (as I am. . .) you might find a mask with a prescription correction nice. I love to snorkel but hated having poor vision so I made the investment in them. Tremendous improvement!

Tan, I am surprised that you, of all people, haven't had LASIK surgery. Is there some reason why it would not be advisable for you, or is it a question of your knowing too much about what theoretically could go wrong?

With the exception of Annie's and Ashley's vet bills, I still consider LASIK the best money I ever spent.

Well, although you didn't ask about me, I feel compelled to answer anyway. For me it's a matter of two things - first, the cost involved, and second, my self-image. I've worn glasses since I was 6 years old and when I look at myself without them I don't like what I see.

earendel wrote:

silvercamaro wrote:

tanstaafl2 wrote:
If you are near sighted (as I am. . .) you might find a mask with a prescription correction nice. I love to snorkel but hated having poor vision so I made the investment in them. Tremendous improvement!

Tan, I am surprised that you, of all people, haven't had LASIK surgery. Is there some reason why it would not be advisable for you, or is it a question of your knowing too much about what theoretically could go wrong?

With the exception of Annie's and Ashley's vet bills, I still consider LASIK the best money I ever spent.

Well, although you didn't ask about me, I feel compelled to answer anyway. For me it's a matter of two things - first, the cost involved, and second, my self-image. I've worn glasses since I was 6 years old and when I look at myself without them I don't like what I see.

Maybe Tan's eyeballs are too flat, like mine are.

MarleysGh0st wrote:

earendel wrote:

silvercamaro wrote: Tan, I am surprised that you, of all people, haven't had LASIK surgery. Is there some reason why it would not be advisable for you, or is it a question of your knowing too much about what theoretically could go wrong?

With the exception of Annie's and Ashley's vet bills, I still consider LASIK the best money I ever spent.

Well, although you didn't ask about me, I feel compelled to answer anyway. For me it's a matter of two things - first, the cost involved, and second, my self-image. I've worn glasses since I was 6 years old and when I look at myself without them I don't like what I see.

Maybe Tan's eyeballs are too flat, like mine are.

If he's nearsighted, wouldn't they be too curved?

earendel wrote:
Well, although you didn't ask about me, I feel compelled to answer anyway. For me it's a matter of two things - first, the cost involved, and second, my self-image. I've worn glasses since I was 6 years old and when I look at myself without them I don't like what I see.

I didn't mean to seem as if I were ignoring you, ear. I was curious about Tan's reasons because he's an opthalmalogist.

Bob Juch wrote:

MarleysGh0st wrote:

earendel wrote: Well, although you didn't ask about me, I feel compelled to answer anyway. For me it's a matter of two things - first, the cost involved, and second, my self-image. I've worn glasses since I was 6 years old and when I look at myself without them I don't like what I see.

Maybe Tan's eyeballs are too flat, like mine are.

If he's nearsighted, wouldn't they be too curved?

That ought to be the case for me, too, but the measurements they took at the local Lasik center said my corneas didn't have sufficient curvature to make me a good candidate for the procedure.

MarleysGh0st wrote:

Bob Juch wrote:

MarleysGh0st wrote: Maybe Tan's eyeballs are too flat, like mine are.

If he's nearsighted, wouldn't they be too curved?

That ought to be the case for me, too, but the measurements they took at the local Lasik center said my corneas didn't have sufficient curvature to make me a good candidate for the procedure.

I guess your eyes are too short then.

silvercamaro wrote:

earendel wrote:
Well, although you didn't ask about me, I feel compelled to answer anyway. For me it's a matter of two things - first, the cost involved, and second, my self-image. I've worn glasses since I was 6 years old and when I look at myself without them I don't like what I see.

I didn't mean to seem as if I were ignoring you, ear. I was curious about Tan's reasons because he's an opthalmalogist.

I should note that I am not an opthalmalogist.

I am however an ophthalmologist...



I have considered LASIK but have several reasons why I have not done so. Since I would still require reading glasses after surgery and my work requires frequent reading I am not sure I would wear glasses that much less. And it would be one more thing to keep track of when I was not wearing them. Since I would loose my head regularly if it were not screwed on I fear I have little chance of keeping track of the reading glasses. And I am NOT doing the necklace thing...

Occupationally I have rationalized that it is helpful to have glasses on as it provides a barrier against splashes when in the clinical setting, which I still do a little of. Also having worn glasses all my life I am accustomed to having them on and having them protect my eyes, at least some, when doing things where I should really wear safety glasses or even just traipsing through the woods. It really is surprising to me how often something hits my glasses.

But mostly knowing what I know about the procedure, even knowing it is quite safe in the vast majority of cases, makes me pause.

I do know other ophthalmologists that have had it done and are happy. I am not one of them.

Yet.

tanstaafl2 wrote:
I should note that I am not an opthalmalogist.

I am however an ophthalmologist...

Double damn. I even looked it up in the dictionary, because I knew you'd come down on my head if I spelled it wrong. Obviously, the problem is that, despite my excellent vision, I cannot read.

As for all the rest, I was sure you had good reasons. (I was lucky enough to gain reading vision -- or non-dictionary-reading vision -- in one eye and distance vision in the other, so I don't have to mess with reading glasses. Obviously, I don't know if that will remain true throughout my life.)



Perhaps I'll find out after I turn 40.

silvercamaro wrote:

tanstaafl2 wrote:
I should note that I am not an opthalmalogist.

I am however an ophthalmologist...

Double damn. I even looked it up in the dictionary, because I knew you'd come down on my head if I spelled it wrong. Obviously, the problem is that, despite my excellent vision, I cannot read.

As for all the rest, I was sure you had good reasons. (I was lucky enough to gain reading vision -- or non-dictionary-reading vision -- in one eye and distance vision in the other, so I don't have to mess with reading glasses. Obviously, I don't know if that will remain true throughout my life.)



Perhaps I'll find out after I turn 40.

I couldn't resist the dig!

I presume your surgeon planned it so you ended up with monovision. It is a good solution for many people but I don't think I would like that very much and would want the best possible distance correction in both eyes. I think it would bother me in doing eye exams amongst other things although I don't really know that for sure.

And I hope your 40th birthday, when it finally comes, proves to be a happy one...