Boy, I must be getting pretty familiar with doing these trip reports because I'm doing this with one eye tied behind my back.
If you don't want to read this personal story and just want Disney I understand, skip ahead to the next chapter which isn't written yet.
It happened like this:
Diane was at work and I was working on bills and stuff when suddenly, the bill I was paying just faded away.
Now, I have always wanted bills to just go away, just not in this manner.
Those of you who've read my first trippy know this once happened before, at Pop Century when a giant Yo Yo disappeared on me, but that was attributed to a bad migraine with an aura.
This was different.
It was only in my left eye, but of course I thought, "Maybe my eyes are just tired."
It wasn't until I went outside and walked to the mail box that I could tell something was really wrong, this was on the day before New Years Eve.
So, I did what any idiot in this situation would do at this time;
I ignored it.
"I'll see how it is in the morning."
Next morning came and it was no better, but now it's full on Holiday period for the next 2 days, with a Sunday after that.
This was one reason I stayed home on New Years.
On Monday Smidgy talked me into doing something about it, though by then I didn't really neeed the encouragement and I called my opthalmologist. Normally you have to make an appointment over a month in advance to see him, he wants me in tomorrow!
You see, I have a history of retinal detatchments and blind spots from brokent blood vessels in the retina.
On tuesday we went and saw him, and as he was examining me, I heard him mutter, "Uh oh."
"Uh oh?"
That ranks right up there with some of the top things you don't want to hear from your doctor, like, "Whoops!," or, "Guess I'm getting that Mercedes after all."
He told me there's some new scarring in the macula, this is the most important part of the retina, the center that you use any time you focus on something.
It's also pretty much a medical emergency.
It's also out of his realm, I had to set it up ASAP with myn retinal specialist. Since by the time we got home it was night, Diane called for me first thing in the morning, and again, with this guy you need to call 2 months in advance for an appointment, found out he would be in the next day, get your butt in here so off we went yesterday, Thursday.
On the way there I was a combination of scared, and pissed.
The night before this happened we were talking about how maybe, if all goes ok with taxes and stuff we can rent DVC points from our friends again, maybe stay at BLT and AKV.
Now this.
Got to the office at 11:15, right on time, checked in, then called into the first of many little rooms. Smidgy came with me like always.
THis specialist I'm going to see, we go way back and I mean way. He fixed my first detatchment back in 1975 when I was a handsome young lad and he was a distinguished specialist of the retina. Yes, he's very old but sharp as a tack with a dry sense of humor.
We've had a strange relationship, he always want me to make regular appointments but I'd only see him when I needed him. The second time was ten years later, then 4 years later, then 20 years later until I saw him a year ago.
I was a nervous wreck when I was led into the first room for questioning, you know how I get when I'm nervous;
stupid.
"So Steve, what brings you here to see us today?"
"My eye broke and I'd like to trade it in for a newer model."
I half expected her to say, "Oh, ok, we have a nice model over here, in great shape and only used on Sundays by a little old lady to read the hymnal," but no, she was all business.
Then she took my eye pressure, had me read charts and dilated my eyes.
We'll get back to the dilation.
I was then back in the main waiting room.
Eventually, a doctor came into the room and asked for me by my last name, we stood up and followed him to another little room. After asking me a couple of questions that didn't make any sense, Diane and I looked at each other and she asked if he's got the right guy. He repeated my name, then spelled it looking at his charts.
Whoops, wrong spelling, I was the wrong guy.
You want to talk about your confidence level taking a hit?
Just then, MY doctor walked in, looked at me and said, "stay there a moment," and after talking to the other doctor had us follow him. This time he planted us in two chairs in the middle of a hallway, where we spent the next 3 days.
Without water.
Finally he tapped me on the shoulder from behind and brought us into a new little room and examined me.
"Yes, there's a problem in there, I'm going to need more information so I'll tell the photographer to clean off the lens of the scope and we'll take some color picures."
"Tell him to clean off the chin rest, too, ok?"
Then we were led back to the waiting room to, I'm guessing, get good seats for the Super Bowl on the tv on the wall.
They called me again but this time I have to solo, it's a tiny room with a seat for the camera guy and one for me.
I had forgotten how much I detested this.
I've played this game before.
When I mentioned dilated, it's not like what you are used to form an regular eye doctor. Retina specialists use industrial strength dilation, I think I even saw "ACME" on the side of the bottle.
My eyes are entirely pupils now, a lit match is blinding to me.
After just enduring excruciating pain from the bright lights my doctor used in the exam, that was just a warm up.
With my chin in the holder, we were ready to start.
I had to stare into this incredibly bright light while he focused, then, just as I was ready to slug him, he pressed the button.
And my head exploded.
I gasped, jerked back, but it was just the beginning.
I was whimpering by the 14th picture.
I would compare it to walking right up to the sun and 5 feet away whisking off your blindfold and staring at it.
Through a magnifying glass!
Finally he told me I could sit back.
Whew
Did I mention that since we're already doing this, might as well take pictures of the other eye as well?
By the time he was finished, I was ready to scream, "OK, ALRIGHT, I'll TALK! Honest, I didn't know she was only 17 back then, she said she was older!"
Then I sat there while the images were transferred to a printer in some other little room and they were studied.
Soon, my doctor came back with the photographer, only this time my doctor has some paraphenalia with him.
I asked, "Is that a needle in your hands or are you just happy to see me?"
I HATE needles, so do my veins, they can actually see one coming near them and they all run away, that way I have to get stuck many times while a doctor or nurse tries to catch one.
Then he told me what I didn't want to hear and I almost bolted, probably might have if I could see anything.
They need to take all the pictures again, only this time with dye running through my veins and up to my eyes.
As he was searching and jabbing for a vein I tried to find a happy place for my mind to go to and started humming "In the big, blue world,,,,,,"
They led me out of there shaking, a shell of my former self back into the waiting room to wait for results.
Again.
Then the doctor came himself and led us into,,,, oh,,,, go ahead, guess...
yes, that's right, another small room.
And he showed us pictures and they weren't of Magic Kingdom.
Due to the extremely long eye I have, (the longer the eye, the more nearsighted you are and the farther back the retina is from the cornea), the center of my retina is stretched extremely thin, and it's breaking down. Some fluid but not blood this time, is cracking through. My eyes are so long that I can just about massage my retinas by scratching the back of my head.
He went on to say that in the recent past they used Laser to try and fix the problem, but int only worked 25% of the time, and when it didn't work, it would leave another scar, doing more damage then good.
And then he got funny.
He told me he want to try a procedure which they've had more success with, it involves injecting a drug into the eye,,,,,
And this was where my brain shut down.
The Meatloaf song came to mind again:
"Stop right there!"
"I want to know right now, before we go any further,,,,,,,,"
I stared at him, "Couldn't you just say you were going to "Put" some new drug into my eye, did you have to use that word?"
"Steve, "put" would be inappropiate, it's "inject".
"Will there be any pain?"
"Always."
Then he went on I think to tell me what the nurse/helper/whatever is going to do to prep me,
but all I heard was,,,"Blah, blah, blah, yada, yada yada..
HE'S GOING TO STICK A NEEDLE IN MY EYE!"
She came in and proceeded to give me a drop from every bottle from all the rooms in the office and started the numbing process.
Silly girl even told me that all I would feel from the shot is a little pressure. Boy, was she naive but I didn't have the heart to tell her that later.
My doctor came back in and it was time.
"Look to the right Steve, look to the right, keep looking to the right,,,,,DONT MOVE YOUR EYE"
I was shaking with effort.
When somebody tell you not to move something, now you just HAVE to move it.
And I felt it all right. No, not just a "little pressure."
"Ok Steve, you can sit back, we're done, good job."
"Can I unclench my butt now?"
More drops followed with more instructions.
I wobbled out of there and the girl said to me, "By, take care now, nive to meet you."
I responded with, "Yeah, been fun, let's do it again sometime, you busy Saturday?"
Diane paid and we were on our way.
They tell me that it will take awhile, two weeks before I see any changes, if any so all I can do now is wait.
Yes, I will of course let you know.
good night, I wish I could say that this was one chapter that I embellished, or exaggerated but I can't, all I could do with the story was tell it in a matter I'm used to, like an idiot.
I probably shouldn't share this but.. you all know my age anyway:
and you're right, they charge a fortune!!!
I just leave them in the suitcase now, just in case....
I sure hope it works for you, it sucks not to be able to see. I had cataracts, so I know a little bit what it must be like, not like you though.
I really hope in 2 weeks you will be 
or 
All I can say is 
and 
he he. 
...a few months late but we are also celebrating my BIL 50th, so we are meeting in the middle. 
maybe some day....
