First day of winter

Trailblazers hiking Lookout Mountain today

And no, I wasn't with them, since it was only Tuesday I had that second eye done. I'm taking it easy, but I'll be back next week if all goes as planned. Chris sent me this picture this morning to tell me about eight hardy souls who hiked up Lookout Mountain in some light snow on this, the first official day of winter. As usual I had to laugh at Richard's short sleeves on a day like today when it isn't even going to reach freezing. He's just naturally warm blooded. Melanie sent me a couple of pictures, too. She must be behind the camera in this one:

Trailblazers at trailhead

Even at the beginning of the hike, Richard is underdressed, making me feel cold just to look at him. I'm pretty sure that they enjoyed themselves, even in the frigid temperatures, but I'm not sorry I couldn't join them today.

Leo blowing out his birthday candles

On Monday evening, I went to my friend Leo's home to help him celebrate his ninth birthday. We had a wonderful time, but I had to leave early because of the need to stop eating and get ready for the next day's surgery. It went very well, and on Tuesday I had the patch taken off and saw... not much. Everything was blurry and totally different from the previous surgery, when I could see everything as soon as they removed it. However, by yesterday, things were much more clear, and today when I woke I realized the miracle is complete: I am now able to see everything I need to without glasses except for distance.

And the other miracle is that my doctor was willing to give me a prescription for distance glasses ahead of time, and I took it to Links Optical here in Bellingham and bought a new pair of glasses, which were prepared for me in just a few hours! And when I put them on and looked out at the world, for the first time in simply ages, I could see 20/20 once again! For now, the missing vision is invisible with my two new intraocular lenses.

I am sitting here in front of my laptop without my glasses, seeing crystal clear, and feel like I've been given a reprieve from the darkness that I felt closing in on me with AMD. What a Christmas gift I've been given. I am feeling incredibly fortunate. Oh, and one more thing: a picture of Leo and me, showing how much he's grown this year.

Me and Leo on the occasion of his ninth birthday

:-)