Sunglass Liberation

In February, I had an eye appointment, and the doctor said I needed cataract surgery. Ok, sure—no problem, I thought. But I was almost done with my dissertation, so I figured if I planned it for June, I’d be finished. That way, if I went blind during surgery (yes, catastrophizing is my specialty, but I’m working on it), at least the dissertation would be complete.

The surgery was one eye at a time, and I have to admit—I enjoyed going under anesthesia. Then, as a bonus, I got crackers and cranberry juice afterward. The real joy, though, is that now I have 20/20 vision at a distance and only need reading glasses.

So what did I do for fun? I bought sunglasses! I’ve been wearing glasses since 2nd grade—a good 40 years. Back in college, I once lost my prescription glasses, and after that disaster, the only sunglasses I could wear were those hideous “over-the-glasses” driving ones. But now? I’m free. Free to wear sunglasses outside and actually see.

Feeling bold, I went on Amazon and found a pack of colored sunglasses for about $15. I bought them, and now I match my sunglasses with my shirts. Purple shirt? Purple glasses. Pink shirt? Pink glasses. And on weekends, I go full ensemble: Converse All-Stars, red shirt, red glasses, red shoes—or swap it all for blue.

It’s fun, and honestly, it gives me something to look forward to. With so much crazy and nastiness in the world, why not carve out little joys for yourself?

What’s your version of “colored sunglasses”—the small thing that makes life a little more fun?