Seniors Find Eye Care Improves Lifestyle

By Tom Hays, ABOC, NCLE

Some older adults may be able to improve their quality of life with a simple device: new eyeglasses. In a recent study, those seniors who received eyeglasses for uncorrected vision problems were found to have improved quality of life and decreased symptoms of depression when compared to those with vision problems who had not received eyeglasses.

Cynthia Owsley, Ph.D., M.S.P.H., and colleagues at the University of Alabama at Birmingham conducted a trial in which 142 nursing home residents age 55 or older were assigned to a group that would receive eyeglasses one week after check-up (78 residents) or a group that would receive eyeglasses at follow-up two months after check-up (64 residents).

Vision-related quality-of-life and depressive symptoms were measured at baseline and at two months.

At baseline, both groups had similar demographic and medical characteristics and had similar visual problems uncorrected by eyeglasses. After two months, distance and near visual abilities for the right and left eye improved in the group that received eyeglasses, while the group that had not received eyeglasses had no change in visual ability.

At the two-month follow-up, the group that received eyeglasses reported higher scores for general vision, reading, activities and hobbies and social interaction as well as fewer depressive symptoms.

“This study implies that there are significant, short-term quality-of-life and psychological benefits to providing the most basic of eye care services—namely, spectacle correction—to older adults residing in nursing homes,” the report authors conclude.

You do not have to be in a nursing home to benefit from new, properly prescribed and fitted eyeglasses. They will make your life easier and more enjoyable wherever you live. See better, live better!

Tom Hays is a Board Certified and Registered Optician and a Fellow of the National Academy of Opticianry. He is currently President of Velocity Business Advisors headquartered in Napa, California. http://www.velocityup.com

Shocked Listeners Hear Civilized Life on Planet Amphibia

By Tom Hays

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about my experiences a few years ago in a recording studio in Oklahoma, in which we were fortunate to have recorded strange signals from a distant planet.

I invited readers to visit a web page where they could hear actual samples of those recordings and, if they wished, order the complete collection of those recordings. The results have been gratifying.

As predicted, some felt compelled to question my sanity, but many were amazed (or perhaps amused) and immediately ordered the CD’s by mail or simply downloaded their order from the internet. In my view, those who responded with an order were the smartest ones. They are already listening to every exciting episode in this historic series of recordings.

Now, it is your turn. If you have not yet listened to this series I urge you to order now!

Are there really little green men from outer space? Here is where you find out.
http://www.barkingfrogmusic.com/sbt/

Life Discovered on Distant Planet!

By Tom Hays

It was a few years back, a time when life had a different feel to it. The air in the recording studio seemed electric, sparking, crackling with activity and creativity, spiced by the smells of stale pizza, herb and cigarette smoke, filled with the amplified sounds of voices, music and sound effects.

As my friend John and I worked into the fuzzy hours of the night, building commercials for our advertising clients and educational audio programs for school publishers, we had little knowledge of just what was coming our way, courtesy of an errant sound mixing console.

My agency studio was filled with second hand equipment, mostly acquired from radio stations. That old broadcast console and the Ampex recorders had some miles on them, but I had a good consulting engineer go through the place on a regular basis who kept it right up to specs. Maybe too good.

As I said, it was late, and we were trying to finish up, but as we were listening to a playback, we started to hear some sounds that were not coming from what we had just recorded, faint sounds as if from far, far away. We were in a soundproof studio. Nothing was on except for the tape player, the console and the speakers. What was that noise? We turned off the tape playback, but the far away sound persisted. We turned the speakers all the way down, and still the strange sounds came. With our ears we followed the sound to the source, the small broadcast monitor speaker in the console. We were not a radio station. We were not “broadcasting” anything. It got weird after that.

“If we’re not broadcasting,” I said, “then we must be receiving.” John turned up the volume on the console monitor and the sound became more audible. It was like nothing we had ever heard before, like a microphone was on in a strange place and no one knew it was on, and it was being transmitted and somehow, our old radio console was picking up that transmission. Strange indeed, for the sounds were like an old radio serial from days gone by. “John,” I said, “we’d better get this while we can.” So, John turned on one of the recorders and we started recording.

The recordings continued, night after night, and in time we came to discover that what we were hearing was some sort of transmission from a small planet named Amphibia, in a far away galaxy known as Croakatoria. All in all, we managed to piece together 40 of these recordings. Astounded as we were, but fearing how the government dealt with those telling stories about "hearing people from outer space", we dared not release them to the public. The project was code named “Star Base Toad”.

Kept secretly and securely in my vault for all these years, I have now decided to risk ridicule and share these recordings with others who may find them of interest. People who may wish to hear about life on other planets, about alien civilizations and the distant reaches of space and time. It is important to me that the world has the opportunity, through these recordings, to study the society that exists on Amphibia so that we may try to better understand our own, and there has never been a time when we needed that more than right now.

In order to share this amazing audio discovery with as many others as possible, I have transferred these 40 recordings, each 6 to 7 minutes long, to 4 audio CDs. I am making the complete set available for only $34.95 plus $4 for shipping and handling. But wait, there’s more. The first 5000 people ordering the set will also receive the valuable Prologue recording, giving rare insight as to the origins of civilized life on Amphibia, a total of 41 recordings in all.

Supplies are limited! Not available in stores. Great gift idea! Order yours today! Operators are standing by. An opportunity of a lifetime! Don’t miss out on this fabulous offer. Do it NOW! http://www.barkingfrogmusic.com/sbt/ for more information, to hear samples of the tapes and to order.

Become Involved

There is an artist living inside you. Have you ever looked at a ceramic bowl or a hand made piece of jewelry, a needlepoint pillow or a hand carved wooden sculpture and said "Gee, I wish I could do that". Well, you can. You just have to try it.

The fact is, with the right instruction, you will surprise yourself with the creative ability you perhaps did not know you had until you set it free. So often I've heard, "I don't have a creative bone in my body." from someone who goes on to create perfectly charming works of art, because they finally decided to give it a try.

What particular art form has held the most fascination for you? Want to put your hands into some clay? How about some silversmithing, or beading? Working with fibers, making handmade paper or woodworking? The creative options are endless.

Look over the articles on the pages of the Creative Enrichment department at PlatinumPearls.com and see what inspires you. There you can even get help finding an expert instructor in your area. It's your turn to explore. Just do it.

Wrong eyewear choice can be a “glaring” mistake.

By Tom Hays, ABOC, NCLE

Good vision is more than just having the right prescription in your lenses. As spring blossoms and summer approaches another important consideration in selecting and purchasing eyewear is how to deal with glare.

Glare is a vexing visual problem. Glare can be described as “extreme brightness” from the presence of excessive visible light. Glare can be distracting and even dangerous and can occur day or night in a number of ways. It can cause you to squint, resulting in eye strain and eye fatigue, and in extreme cases, glare can even result in temporary blindness.

There are actually four types of glare that must be dealt with:
Distracting glare is created by the reflections on lens surfaces. The images they generate can be distracting to vision, hence the name. The way to eliminate this problem is to use an anti-reflective coating on the lens. This is particularly true for sunwear where back-side surface reflections can be especially distracting since the dark lens color accentuates the reflected light. Computer users also benefit from anti-reflective coatings.

Discomforting glare is caused by everyday bright light where the eye is unable to adapt naturally, as when light conditions change often. Photochromic lenses are a good choice here, as they automatically darken and lighten to meet the lighting conditions.

Disabling glare is caused by intense bright light. Fixed tints or photochromics help in this instance. An Optician is trained to recommend the correct shade and tint.

Blinding glare is due to reflections off of shiny surfaces, such as water, automobile windshields or snow. Polarized lenses are the best solution for this problem.

Where there is light there is glare in some form or other, and finding the right way to deal with it is not something that can be done in a “self service” store. A professionally trained optician can help you choose the right lens type or treatment for the distinctive kind of glare you wish to eliminate. So, before you head outdoors to enjoy the sun, make sure your eyes are properly equipped for the tasks expected of them. Visit a professional eyecare provider.

Tom Hays is a Board Certified and Registered Optician and a Fellow of the National Academy of Opticianry. He is currently President of Velocity Business Advisors headquartered in Napa, California. http://www.velocityup.com

Not For Babies Only

by Susan Hays

TREAT YOURSELF LIKE A BABY

As I turned on the water to draw my bath, I glanced at the shelf by the tub lined with bottles of bath oils and lotions, reflecting various colors of the sky, the earth and flowering desert plants. Many of those bottles were given to me by friends at a birthday party who said, "Be kind to yourself, take a warm, long bath, relax, luxuriate and treat yourself like a baby." Hmmm...

I began by dipping my elbow into the bath water to check the temperature. As I slowly stepped into the water, the warmth of it engulfed my leg, and my foot felt the security of the smooth mat on the bottom. I lowered myself into the tub and cradled my neck in a soft pillow and breathed in the rising steam scented by a mild eucalyptus oil. Closing my eyes, covered by a cool eye mask, I consciously relaxed every muscle in my body. I listened to my deliberate, steady breathing, felt my heart beat ever so slowly and I fell peacefully asleep.

Upon awakening I ran a hot shower and washed my hair, massaging my scalp with the hardness of my fingernails and the softness of my fingertips, making thick lather. Using one of my scented soaps and loufa, I washed my body, the roughness of the loufa scrubbing away dead skin, the faint lavender scent of the soap making me feel lusciously clean.

Stepping out of the bath, I wrapped myself in a large, soft towel, heated by the towel warmer. As I poured the cool moisturizing lotion into my hands to warm it and smoothed it over my body, I luxuriated in the silky feel it was giving my skin, and it reminded me of the obvious joy a baby feels when rubbed with baby lotion after a warm bath.

Babies are touched, caressed, massaged, nurtured for a reason. It gives them a feeling of security, love and acceptance. The human touch is so immensely important, not only to babies, but to all of us.

Even if we don't have the time or resources to indulge in professional massages, manicures, shampoos, or aromatherapy treatments, there's nothing to keep us from pampering ourselves and recalling those same feelings a baby feels.

As I dry my hair and dress, I think how I feel nurtured, loved, safe and relaxed, and it makes me recall those same feelings as when I was growing up. And I'm the one who made me feel this way. Pamper yourself -- treat yourself like a baby!

Warmest regards,
Susan Hays

Tell Us About Your Art

by Tom Hays

Now it's your turn! Tell us about your art and the medium in which you work. We welcome and encourage you to send us stories, pictures or videos to share on this site. WHAT DO YOU HAVE YOUR HANDS IN?