Digital Gee

Tomorrow (Thursday) is my birthday. For once in my life, it looked like everything was lined up so I could take my annual ride my age on my actual birthday.

Then today an eye problem has developed. Until I see the doc tomorrow i can't be sure, but it sure feels/looks like my old nemesis, a fungus on the cornea. If so, it will be my THIRD in the past two years. It's serious, medication has knocked it out twice but if that ever stops working I'd lose the sight in that eye. I wear contacts which i've removed, of course, and now i have on prescription glasses which take me a few days to adjust to since i always wear contacts.

I've called after hours requesting an appointment tomorrow afternoon and I may try to ride with the glasses, unless the brightness is just too much. Doggone it!

On top of that, my email program crashed today, and i lost ALL my emails. Everything. I thought it was backed up with the rest of my data; but no, it wasn't. And i can't seem to be able to fix it. So now i have to start all over and it's a royal pain in the wazzoo.

I am just really PO'd right now. I can always do the ride later; I know that. it's just that tomorrow i had carved out the time, AND the weather is going to be perfect, AND it is my b-day, after all.

Sigh.

scottogo

I'm sorry. Hope it doesn't hurt you. Prayers for healing.
Have a happy birthday anyway.
Perhaps someone got you a nice present.

Paydirt

Happy Birthday, and sorry for your eye issues. Hope you start feeling better soon.

But, the weather is always perfect in San Diego. Try Michigan where I am, now that is a crap shoot (it snowed last week).

Oh and Go Tigers!

howsteepisit

I have had days like that too. It is a pisser, But Happy Birthday, and maybe just force the ride. I rode for years without sunglasses, and it was not really a bother, especially this time of year with the sun lower in the sky. One bit - can you get LASIC (sp) eye surgery? There are lots of talented Dr. in Souther Cal, and getting rid of the contacts would be a health benefit. With you history of fungal infections perhaps it would be a medical necessity and insurable or tax deductible. I had the surgery about 8 years ago and its pretty wonderful, except accelerating my need for reading glasses, which is a pain, but not nearly as much as a pain as contacts or glasses for 20/600 vision.

jm01

even if there is a fungus mungus...best wishes for a very happy birthday

At our age every day is a gift, that's why we call it the present

LynnH

Hope it's well soon! and have a very Happy Birthday!

Coloradopenguin

happy birthday!

I would second exploring lasik -- going on 2 years for my surgery. Great for outdoor activities . . . if you want more details, just let me know.

centexwoody 

Sorry here about the convergence of negatives right around yr B-day. Do these things happen for a reason? I used to think so - now I think s**t happens and that is just it and it is, as you well know, how you deal with it.

At least you've got your bicycles, the day after your birthday is a Saturday after all, perhaps a pair of sunglasses will enable you to ride. I've NEVER been able to do those really cool things that I thought I should get to do on my birthday - things come up, s**t happens, something else more time-critical comes along but somehow if the activity is really important to me, getting to do it within a day or two works out fine. It's not like it's your first birthday nor your 50th!

You still da' Man, Gary, so sigh and oink around a bit, put the pieces back together, gather yourself with stubborn chin jutted out and RIDE!

Digital Gee

Thanks, everyone. I've had an Attitude Adjustment and feel better already.

Somehow I managed to puzzle out the problem with my email, and I've restored the database, so all's well in that arena.

I called for an appointment with my eye doc, and discovered he's on vacation until Monday, but his parter (who does lasik!) can see me. Had to fight the urge to have a meltdown when the office manager's first question to me (I'd left two messages overnight) was not "How are you?" but rather, "What kind of insurance do you carry?" She furthermore said without proper insurance I'd be, in her words, "treated like a walk-in" and God knows what THAT would mean to my bill... Anyway, got her supervisor on the phone and got it straightened out and began to feel like a person again, not something attached to an insurance card making it okay or not okay to talk with. (Poor grammar, forgive me.)

I'm having to wear a patch temporarily on my eye, under the glasses, so on top of getting used to the glasses, I have to get used to no binocular vision for a while. I'm pretty sure this will keep me off my bike today in the interest of personal safety.

But, as everyone pointed out, Stuff Happens, and I've come to realize there was no Vast Right Wing (or even Left Wing) Conspiracy against me so the Stuff would Happen on my birthday. I am indeed Happy To Be Alive!

And, as was also pointed out, I can ride this weekend! And so...

THANKS EVERYONE!

howsteepisit

Gary,

Go ahead and ride w/o binocular vision, you adjust really fast. Beware driving though, those two busses may be a bit closer together than you think.

seafoam

Glad you're feeling better. Happy birthday -- and even if you're not able to ride, you will be able to again in no time (and you'll appreciate it even more!).

Shelley

BubbaDog

The Birthday Boy, after seeing his capable physician, consumes some medicinal spirits and dreams of bike rides that lay ahead ....



B'Dog

Digital Gee

CrossChain

Aaaaaaaaaargh, Gary. There be fungi here. Seriously, glad you've recovered your (emotional) equilibrium. In a sense, every day is a B'Day for us 50Plus types...others have fallen by the wayside thru mischance or, most often, inertia and apathy. We're still chuggin'. Still, we all want our birthday to be somehow "different" and special...........and so yours is.....black patch and no ride. But, somewhere your sweet daughters are bubbling, your friends both fleshly and virtual are beaming good wishes, and the San Diego sun is evershining, Not to mention the road will be there tomorrow and is ever-beckoning.

P.S. One more "Happy Birthday" to a deserving guy!!!

fopianki

One of my son's (24 year old) has been blind in one eye since he was very young...he played baseball, soccer, etc and is now an avid cyclist...I agree that you''ll get used to it fairly quickly but be sure to turn your head enough to keep yourself safe on that side. Whenever we ride together I have to stay on his left side so he knows where I am Frankp

NOS88

Gary, Hope your birthday turns out better than the start of today. I know what you mean by the "brightness". I had an ulcer on myt cornea, left over from a case of the shingles. You can't really wear a patch over the damaged eye and hope it would help. For some reason the brain dosen't make much sense of that... bright lights still hurt. Of course looking at your computer screen probably doens't help much. So, I'm hoping you read this after you make your Dr.'s visit.

Digital Gee

Well, I decided to make lemonaide out of lemons.

If I can't ride 56 miles today, then by God, I can ride 5.6! I thought of it like getting a cupcake with one candle, instead of a three layer cake with...well, you get the idea.

So off I went, wobbling around the neighborhood with untested monocular vision, wearing my patch over my bloodshot eye which insisted on watering profusely (another good reason for non-fingered gloves!). I got in a nice 5.6 miles, got into trouble only once at a busy intersection that somehow became confusing because I couldn't judge the speeds of the on-coming cars for a moment.

Otherwise, other than being brief, it was an OUTSTANDING ride. I'm off to the eye doc now, having snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. Maybe I didn't get the metric century I'd anticipated, but I did ride, and didn't let a little thing like a stabbing pain in my right eye and an eye patch stop me!

All in all, it's been a happy birthday already!

Here's a shot of me I took before setting out. Don't I look sexy? (It helps that this is Halloween season. No one gave me a second glance!)

CheeseLouise

Shoot Gary, you and Steve were born on the same day, four years apart. Steve turns 52 today. Sorry about your eye! At least you were able to get in 5.6 miles. Good luck and I hope that eye feels better real soon!

Linda

centexwoody 

yep, wid a mug like that, you should just be grateful you're still upright and able to pedal... (just kidding... )

perhaps you should offer to lend this picture to Big Paulie to put on the Rogues' Gallery? Not that it matches his profile or anything but at least you'd get to claim the ability to post for two...

BTW, Happy Birthday!

BlazingPedals

At your advanced age, it might be time to consider hanging up the contacts, at least as your 'regular' eyewear. I only wear mine on rides, and wear glasses the rest of the time. A natural consequence of aging is reduced tear flow/oxygen transfer. Unlike every other part of your body, the cornea relies on air contact to get its oxygen, and contacts interfere with the process.

CrossChain

No way Gary or I will behanging anything up...especially contacts. We're single guys and chick magnets like us don't walk around "bespectacled". We may bump into walls, get squished at busy intersections, and be unable to read the fine print....but we have priorities.