Friday, February 03, 2006

Today's Interest In Genetics

The research behind genetics is pretty amazing. No, I am not thinking of making any of the local animals glow green or growing human ears on the backs of rats. I'm more intrigued by simple things like the tendency for a man and a woman to have a child with the same eye sight as the father. Nothing astounding.

I discovered that I had bad eyesight as a child. I can still exactly remember how. I was sitting in my father's car waiting to go home from the tennis courts with my siblings. I noticed my father's glasses there (he tended to use them most when he drove.) I put them on. It was the weirdest thing... the world really seemed to open up to me. I turned my head to the right and looked at what used to be the Desert Inn golf course and could see little white golf balls out there. This was amazing to me because I've looked at that area thousands of times. It was like super vision but I didn't know that it was pretty much standard. I didn't get my first pair of glasses until much later.

My brother also has vision issues but all 3 of us went in to look into Lasik a few years ago. My father and I were told we had rather thin cornea so we weren't candidates at the time. Matt got his vision corrected. Dad decided to go to another specialist for a second opinion and got his eyes done there. He actually mentioned it to me at the time but I was very wary with someone burning something that is thinner than normal. You ever see where the piano is dangling over the damsel in distress by a rope that has caught fire? Same idea.

So, of course severak years have gone by. My brother is thinking he needs contacts again. My father wears reading glasses here and there. And I? I'm getting my eyes looked at one more time in just a few minutes. They are going to have to make it sound pretty amazing for me to get something done (remember that pessimistic optimist thing?) but we'll see. I'm happy that I didn't do it earlier and I could wait a lot longer for better technology. But, I can't help seeing the irony of having my mother take me to have father's genetic traits corrected. hahaha

P.S. - They talked me into it. Surgery went well and I can see a difference already. I'd describe the process but I don't want to freak anyone out. The doctor did a great job and now I just have to rest th recover quick enough to watch UFC tonight and the Super Bowl tomorrow.

9 comments:

Bar L. said...

I can relate to this! I didn't know I had bad eyesight till I was 15 1/2 at the DMV to get my permit. When they asked me to do the eyechart I couldn't read a thing! I soon got glasses and the world opened up to me! I drove my friends nuts by stopping and saying things like "LOOK AT THAT TREE! You can actually see each individual leaf!" It was great to see what I had been missing. Now I wear contacts am afraid of Laski :(

Matt said...

You're my hero Martin, I couldn't do it. I can touch my own eyes, but the thought of someone, or something else doing it bothers me.

LoraLoo said...

I am not a candidate for the surgery as my eyes aren't "bad enough" so the doctor said. Ask my glasses that!

On a different note, I've watched that surgery. Congrats for having the courage and doing it!

Anonymous said...

Everyone has those few memories they can remember as if they happened yesterday. One of mine is when I finally put on my first pair of glasses. I was gettin migraines all the time when I was a teenager. Went through the eye check and everything, but didn't see anything unique about glasses until I put my first set on. Alone the side of his office was a long window. He pulled the blinds back and I could see the Bradford Pear trees right outside the window. I could see every leaf! It was sooooo cool. Sometimes I wish some moments in my life could be just as unique.

Congrats on the surgery :)

Ken said...

Glad everything worked out.

Frankly, I'm a little freaked by the thought of that surgery. I just don't have the balls to do it. Besides, if I'm going to end up in glasses again potentially, I figure what's the point. I have better things to spend my money on.

Fred said...

My eyesight didn't start to go until I was in high school; by the end I was wearing glasses most of the time.

I'm one of those who refuses to have surgery to correct my vision. I don't want to be the one-in-a-million that something goes terribly wrong.

I'm glad it went well. Congrats.

David Amulet said...

Human genetics fascinate me. I hear a story like yours, then I see the 7' basketball player from Sudan (or somewhere similar) whose parents were both of avergae height. Go figure.

-- david

Nik said...

Good to hear that the surgery went well and you can see better. Hopefully you're doing well and healing nicely.

So what'd ya think of the UFC Saturday night? Most of the fights sucked IMO, but Lidell v Couture was pretty good.

Krn said...

Congrats on a great surgery!

I had the surgery done in 2003 and have no regrets. I now have 20/15 vision and can read the alarm clock on the side of my bed at night!