As a 10 year old child in 1950 I think I lived in the best period of time. I was too young to be affected by the Second World War, and after the war my father came home, and life became very simple for me. Also, by this age I had discovered that I liked girls who wore glasses, and although I didn’t know it at the time, within the next 16 years my ability to look at ladies who wore glasses was going to be severely curtailed as contact lenses became all the rage in the mid 60’s.
Fortunately, although I hadn’t realized it at the time, by the time I was 12 or 13 I had decided that because of my curiosity over glasses I was going to go into the eye care field. While I was in high school in the late 50’s I had researched my options very carefully, and I determined that I would really like to be an ophthalmologist. This was a hard field to get into for someone who didn’t have rich parents, however I managed to make the honor roll in school, and was able to get a couple of scholarships.
During my last 2 years in high school I worked for one summer in an optical lab, where I learned the basics of lens grinding, and in how the finished lenses were fitted into the frames. This was very interesting to me, and the sight of a pair of very high minus lenses coming my way to be inserted in the frame was sometimes more than I could stand. The only thing better would have been to be the optician who fitted these glasses to the face of the end user. I was able to determine from looking at the work orders for the glasses that there were a couple of opticians who seemed to have more customers who had higher prescriptions than most, and one of these opticians was located within an easy streetcar ride from where we lived. I applied for a job with this optician the following summer and I was hired.
During the summer just prior to me entering university, I was thrilled to be able to help a fair number of customers who had decently high prescriptions. At this time lenses were either made from a recently developed optical plastic called CR 39, or just regular crown glass. In a prescription of -10 and over, the CR 39 usually had to have a biconcave surface, and the front of the lens had some of the minus power in it. This, of course, depended on the size of the eye opening in the frame, and while a fairly small eye sized frame could get away with a plano fronted lens until around -13D, the larger ones needed the biconcave front somewhere around -11D. Crown glass didn’t usually need to be biconcave until around -15D, and at this point anyone who wanted crown glass were usually recommended to get myodisc lenses, because of the weight of the glass. I did see a couple of pairs of glasses that were over -18D that were made from crown glass, and were not myodiscs, and the weight of these glasses were what I would have considered unbearable. But in both cases the customers didn’t seem to mind.
In 1960, as I entered university for my 3 years of general courses I was beginning to realize that contact lenses were going to take over a large share of the glasses market. The contact lenses that were gradually being introduced to the general public were a little plastic disc that once inserted on top of the cornea just floated around there, invisible to anyone who looked at the wearer – unless the observer was an optician, or like, me a student of optometry. These original hard plastic lenses had to be carefully measured for the exact parameters of the patient’s eyes. Once the lenses were made and the doctor showed the patient how to insert and remove the lenses the patient had to go through a regimen that to me was absolutely not worth it. When first inserted the lenses caused a lot of pain. It was almost like having an eyelash stuck in your eye. But, to many very nearsighted patients the ability to see without their thick glasses made the pain tolerable. And, after a few weeks of gradually increasing the wear time, most patients were able to do quite well with their contact lenses. This didn’t mean that it was easy to look after them though. There was a special heat disinfectant machine that you had to purchase. And there was a cleaning solution to be used when you removed the lenses, as well as a special saline solution that was used to clean and wet the lenses before you inserted the lenses. All in all, one had to be highly motivated to wear these contact lenses. But, the people who they were designed for flocked to their optometrists and ophthalmologists to be fitted with contacts. Most of the initial wearers were women, and the largest group of them had prescriptions ranging from -4D up to -10D. Then the next largest group was women who had higher prescriptions – up into the low -20D’s. And then there were a few men, mostly those who were in a position of power, who had prescriptions ranging from low to very high that just felt that being glasses free suited their image better.
Since contact lenses seemed to be establishing themselves in the market I knew that over the next few years there would be massive strides in the development of easier to wear contacts. And I wanted to be in on the ground floor.
I studied diligently, and after 3 years I was able to go on to medical school. It was hard, but finally I became an intern at the pediatric ophthalmology department of the children’s hospital in our city. Some of the cases I was involved with were heartbreaking. There is nothing funny about seeing a pretty 8 year old little girl with over -30D of myopia and another 5 diopters of astigmatism who has nystagmus so badly that her eyes will not stop dancing. And there were case after case of children who were severely myopic in one eye, but had very good vision in the other eye, and the parents hadn’t even noticed that the child was literally blind in one eye. There were times when patching and eye exercises could still help the child obtain usable vision in their bad eye, but in a few cases the child was left almost blind in the one eye. But there were lots of good times as well. Maybe the parents didn’t think it was all that great to leave the eye clinic with a 6 month old baby wearing -12D glasses, but I was thrilled that the child would now have a chance to develop their vision properly. And sometimes we had to remove cataracts from the eyes of babies, leaving them having to wear very strong plus lensed glasses that made their eyes look like owls. Finally the day came where I had passed my board exams, and I was able to leave the hospital to set up my own practice.
When I was 24, I was in my second year of internship at the hospital. In many cases I was given the task of examining the eyes of some of the younger patients. If it was a simple case of progressive myopia I was often able to provide the child with a prescription for either glasses or contact lenses, and I was also able to fit them with contacts if they wanted them. This was how I met Heather. Heather came in with her mother, and had been referred to us by her own doctor. Heather had her eyes examined the past spring, a few months earlier, and the doctor had come up with a first prescription of -1.75D. Heather’s parents bought her a pair of glasses, but Heather refused to wear them. No amount of cajoling could get Heather to put her glasses on. Now it was early September, and Heather, who had finally decided that she would try to wear her glasses, could see no better wearing her glasses. She had returned to her own doctor, who had examined her eyes again, and discovered that Heather now required a prescription of -7D.
Her doctor had very little experience with progressive myopia, which he was sure Heather had, so he sent her to our pediatric clinic.
Heather still didn’t want to wear glasses, but when I examined her eyes I discovered that her own doctor had been a little low with his prescription of -7D. Heather could easily have taken a prescription of -8D, or maybe a little more. I explained to Heather’s mother that Heather was very nearsighted, and if Heather wanted to try a new brand of contact lenses I might be able to get her involved in a trial of these lenses. Of course Heather was thrilled to hear this.
I ordered a pair of lenses for Heather. I decided that I would experiment slightly myself, and so I ordered her first lenses for a glasses prescription of -9D. When the lenses came in Heather and her mother came by for her first fitting. Heather was a fast learner, and soon she was able to insert and remove the little plastic discs with ease. When I checked her vision with the slightly stronger lenses I was surprised that she could see the 20/20 line perfectly, and I wondered if the supplier had made a mistake. But this was highly unlikely.
Heather was supposed to start off wearing her contacts for 2 hours a day for the first week. Then she could increase her wear time by an hour a day for the second week, ending up with a wear time of 9 hours a day after 2 weeks. I had her booked for a checkup again after 1 week, and then at the beginning of the third week. When Heather came in after her first week she was of course wearing her lenses, and I asked her how she was doing. She surprised me when she told me that she was wearing them for 8 hours a day, and they felt wonderful. I realized then that no one was going to tell this girl anything. She had to find things out for herself. I told her to continue wearing her lenses and that she should increase her wear time by up to, but no more than, 2 hours a day. I did caution her that wearing her lenses for more than 16 hours a day was very bad for her eyes, and if she did that very often she might end up not being able to wear contact lenses again. I hope this scared her enough that she followed my instructions, but I doubted it.
Instead of seeing Heather at the end of the second week, I had her come back in 2 months for a follow up. When I sat her in the chair to check her vision I was surprised that she couldn’t read the 20/30 line when only 2 months earlier she had easily been able to read the 20/20 line. I had to add -2.50D to her -9.00D prescription to get her back to 20/20. This time I ordered her a new pair of lenses to correspond with a glasses prescription of -12.50D, a slight over correction of -1D for her.
My next appointment for Heather was in 3 months, and I found myself anticipating her visit. I set aside a little more time to spend with her, and this worried me a little. She was only six months past her 14th birthday at this time, and I found myself having sexual fantasies about her. Yes, she was very pretty, and she was starting to develop a very nice figure, but I knew I could not let myself become involved with her. I knew that my attraction towards her was more about the fact that she had developed around -11D of myopia in only a few months rather than that of a sexual nature; however the sexual arousal did come because of the myopia. Finally the day I had been waiting for arrived.
“I need stronger contacts Doctor. And I think I should get a pair of glasses as well. I can’t see well enough to do anything when I take my contacts out.” Heather said.
“I am sure I can fix that for you Heather. Please come into the examination room and we will get you a new prescription.” I replied.
Heather was correct in thinking that she needed a stronger prescription. I was easily able to add a further -2.50D to her prescription, and with a further -1.00D she was still able to read the 20/20 line. Her new glasses were going to be -16D, and her contacts were going to match.
Heather’s myopic progression continued to occur at a very steady rate over the next 3 years. By the time she turned 18 she needed a prescription of -23D, with a little bit of astigmatism in each eye. She was turning into a very attractive young lady, and I wanted very badly to ask her out for a date. But, I felt that this would not be a good idea, so I managed to keep my thoughts to myself. Heather was coming in every 3 months for a checkup, and when she came in for her next visit I noticed that she gave my ring finger more than a casual glance.
“I don’t see a ring on your finger Doctor. Are you not married?” Heather asked.
“No, I am not. I just haven’t gotten around to dating anyone because I have been so busy with my studies. However, now that I am finished I guess I had better start looking around a little. How about you young lady? Do you have a steady boyfriend?” I asked.
“No, not a steady boyfriend, but I have 2 or 3 guys who I go out with whenever they ask me.” Heather replied.
“And do they ask you out a lot?” I queried.
“Not really. Usually I get asked to any of the school dances by one of them, and sometimes we will go to a movie. But it seems that if I go to a movie they don’t like it because I want to sit closer to the front of the show than they want to.” Heather said.
“I can’t do much about that Heather. You are so nearsighted that your vision isn’t as good from the back of the show, especially in the dark. You could likely get a driver’s license if you went for the eye test wearing your contacts, but you would be a borderline case with your glasses.” I replied.
“I did get my license Doctor. I was able to pass the eye test part with my contacts. But if my eyes keep getting worse I will probably have to give it up.” Heather replied.
“Not for a while I hope. Just come back to see me before you need to go for your renewal.” I answered.
“I see so much of you it is almost as if we were in a relationship. I should marry you and then I wouldn’t have to worry about my eyes. You could look after them for me.” Heather said.
“I would love to do that Heather, but I am afraid that the hospital would frown on my dating a patient.” I responded.
“You told me that you were almost finished your residency. What are you doing after you leave your position here?” Heather asked.
“Actually I am finished. And it is funny that you mentioned it right now, because I am in the process of setting up my own practice. I have the office space rented, and I am buying some of the necessary equipment. I haven’t hired a receptionist or a nurse yet, and I probably will do all that myself for the first few weeks until I see how it goes.” I told her.
“I could be your receptionist. I just finished a secretarial course at the college.” Heather answered.
“I see where this is going - receptionist, girlfriend, wife, mother of my children, and so on. Here is the address of my new office. I have no phone yet, so here is my home number. Call me in 2 weeks and I will hire you as my first receptionist. Then we can work on the other parts.” I replied.
“How about if I give you my home number and we can work on the second part first?” Heather queried.
“I will call you tonight or tomorrow night. We can go out for dinner.” I replied.
With that Heather left my office and I sat there pondering what had just happened. I hadn’t come on to her, but she had definitely come onto me. I didn’t mind that she had feelings towards me, because I definitely had feelings towards her. At age 18 she was about 10 years younger than I was, but I didn’t think that would be an insurmountable problem.
That night after I got home I called Heather. We talked like school kids for more than an hour and when I hung up the phone after we made a date for dinner on Friday. I really would have liked to suggest that she wear her glasses for our date, but even though she had glasses with her current prescription I was pretty sure that she never wore them in public. If I were to marry her that was something that would have to change but I wasn’t sure how I could do that.
On our Friday night dinner date we talked about what had to be done about getting my new office set up. I did need a receptionist more than I needed a qualified assistant because I could do everything that required a licensed professional by myself. But I couldn’t be in 2 places at one time. I needed a receptionist who could watch the optical store part to make sure that no one ran off with any of my demo frames. She would also answer the telephones and schedule appointments as well as doing all the billing. I did have more use for Heather than she probably realized.
She wanted me to pick her up on Saturday and have me show her the storefront I had rented, so I agreed that we would do that. We arranged for a time for me to pick her up, but before I dropped her off at her parent’s house I had a question for her.
“When is the last time that you went for a full day without wearing your contacts?” I asked.
“Probably never.” Heather replied.
“You remember how much I cautioned you against wearing your contacts too long do you not? I only warned you about that because I didn’t want you to ever reach the point where you could no longer tolerate contact lenses. I want to see you wearing your glasses when I pick you up tomorrow or I will be looking for another receptionist.” I said.
“I never go out wearing glasses.” Heather protested.
“Well, I guess there is no reason for me to pick you up tomorrow then. That is too bad because I like you and I was hoping that this could develop into something like you suggested back in my office earlier this week.” I replied.
“You are a hard ass aren’t you?” Heather said in anger.
“Not really. I just know what can happen to someone like you who doesn’t follow the recommended directives for contact lens wear, and if we are going to be together I can’t allow you to damage your eyes to a point where you can’t ever wear contacts again. But it is your choice. I will still be your eye doctor, but I won’t be your boyfriend or maybe even your husband if I know you are going against my directives as a professional.” I replied.
“You are serious.” Heather said.
“I am very serious. Now it is up to you to decide what you want to do. But tell me now so I don’t waste my time tomorrow.” I replied.
“I’ll wear my glasses.” Heather said sullenly.
“And I will see you at 10am.” I answered.
The following morning I stopped by to pick up Heather. I had seen her glasses a few months earlier when her prescription had climbed to -23D and I knew why she didn’t want to go out wearing her black plastic framed myodiscs with the oval shaped lenses. They looked quite strong and unusual, but as an eye doctor I had seen a few pairs that looked worse. When Heather came to the door she had them on, and even though I knew it was done reluctantly I liked how they looked on her and I told her that. She accused me of just saying that as we walked to the car, but I told her I meant it.
We went by my new office. The carpenters and the drywallers had pretty much finished the main reception area along with the frame display area, two examination rooms and the washrooms. The painters were there giving the walls the first coat of primer and the place, while messy and unfinished looking, showed a lot of promise. Heather was impressed.
After we left the office I asked her where she wanted to go, and her reply was anywhere as long as no one she knew saw her. I suggested that we go back to my apartment and I would fix lunch for her. She agreed and we ended up at my apartment having lunch.
After lunch we were sitting on my couch listening to some Eagles on my stereo when she surprised me by sitting on top of my knees and kissing me. I knew I was in for a ride when she started to unbutton my shirt and before long we were naked in on the floor of my living room. Well, we were not quite naked, because Heather still had her glasses on, but all our other articles of clothing were scattered all over the room. I was a little surprised by her forwardness, but I soon realized that this had been her plan all along.
After our little sexual encounter was over we went into my bathroom and showered together. Heather took her glasses off and had me help her into the shower. Then I climbed in and helped her wash herself all over. Then I washed myself and we got out and I towel dried her as well as myself. But after we were all clean I found that I was all hard again.
“So do I have the job?” Heather asked.
“And what job would it be that you were trying for. Was it the receptionist job, or was it the wife and mother of our children job?” I asked teasingly.
“I was actually trying out for both.” Heather replied.
‘I can pay you for the receptionist job, but the wife and mother part will have to be volunteer labor.” I answered.
“When can I start?” Heather asked.
“I think we might have already started on the mother part. I didn’t wear any protection.” I replied,
“Would that be a bad thing?” Heather asked.
“No, it wouldn’t be. I like you a lot and I could easily see marrying you.” I responded.
As it turned out Heather did not get pregnant that time. And after we opened the new office and got everything working smoothly our relationship progressed to the point where we decided that it would be better if Heather was on birth control pills for a few years until we had some money rolling in and I could hire more staff so that she could become a full time mother.
We married a couple of years later after Heather turned 20. She was still working as my receptionist, but we now knew that we would begin a family within the next couple of years so that I wouldn’t be too old to enjoy my children. She still had a strong aversion to wearing her glasses in public, but I had gradually started to overcome that, and she now wore glasses at least 2 days each weekend and sometimes she would wear them to the office a third day.
My receptionist eventually did go on to become the mother of my children.
Specs4ever
Jan 2013
Statistics: Posted by Specs4ever — Sun Feb 08, 2015 2:51 pm