For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for June 10, 2019

hang in there, Elizabeth

“the lenses will accentuate those pretty blue eyes”! Oh, Elly. That’s not what glasses do. Spoken like a woman who has never worn glasses. Where’s John? He’s a glasses-wearer. He should be doing this talk.

My son was the same way. He wore his eyeglasses fine for the first few years when he was a child but when he entered high school, he would purposely lose or break his eyeglasses to the point I stopped replacing them and I asked why and he said, “Four eyes.” It was not until he was an adult when he realized he truly does not see well and bought his own eyeglasses – and handles them with care.

I’d tell her I got the 4-eyes bit as a kid too and very few of us wore glasses in those days, and it was worse if you were a girl. But they help you see the black board (or whatever colour it is these days) and read without getting headaches and all that. It may not seem fair that some kids can see without glasses but you can’t, and life isn’t fair. Usually though, if you have a deficiency in one area it’s made up for in another. You may find you’re better at something else that others are not so good at.

They only will accentuate your eyes if you are FAR sighted. Then they make your eyes look huge. If you are NEAR sighted (which Lizzie is), they make your eyes look smaller.

She needs a female who wears glasses and gets passes.

To be honest, they have lots more choices of glasses today than they did only a generation ago.

Elizabeth’s problem is not the opinion of adults. It’s the opinion of the other kids that scares her. She won’t know for sure how they’ll react until they see the glasses.

Not yet, but she WILL, Elizabeth!

Elly should remind Liz that she fell in love with her dad, a guy that wore glasses.

It’s always fun passing your glasses to others and letting them see things are on the other side. My friends always did that with me. It’s a great way not get teased

Iwas 13 whenIfirst got eyeglasseswishIhad contact lens then!!

What is supposed to be the attraction of “getting passes?” In today’s world that is more commonly known as “unwanted attention.” Romantic interest should grow out of at least some sort of relationship, in which appearance is not really an issue.

My years in the classroom have proven that kids that need glasses rarely realize that they do need glasses — they don’t know just how acute eyesight should be — especially at their age. I can relate. I remember asking my father if police cars had special windshields (with something like a telescope) that let the cops see license plates from several car-lengths distance (We watched Adam-12). All I could see was a blue rectangle. Finally went to the optometrist and was blown-away with what I was missing. I don’t remember how I handled seeing (well, not seeing) the blackboard in school.

Charming and attractive? Have you looked at today’s styles? I swear most of them that you pick out make you anything but attractive. Fine, they are trendy, I get that. Ok, wear them, but please keep them cleaned. I can see them on your face, you know. Kind of hard to miss.

I never had anyone call me four eyes from the time I first got glasses (at 6) until sometime well after I reached adulthood. I burst out laughing at that lame attempt; it was WAY too late for that particular line of attack.

The Baby Blues strip for Sunday (June 9) shows Daryl getting new glasses and Zoe and Hammie are laughing at the selection of frames at the store.

My older daughter was eager to get glasses. She knew that trouble reading the whiteboards at school was making things hard for her. My younger daughter got glasses at the same time. Even though her eyesight is worse, she didn’t realize it because she always sat near the front of the class. She was absolutely terrified both of the exam and of having to wear glasses. Fortunately, the staff helped her pick out a pair she liked. This year, getting new glasses was exciting instead of scary.

As Dorothy Parker quipped: " Men seldom make passes at girls who wear glasses. "

I never had a problem or just ignored it.

Time for contact lenses.

Young woman I see nearly every day alternates between glasses and contacts. Without her glasses she’s merely pretty. With her glasses she sparkles.

I always liked confident, smart women; glasses enhanced that characteristic. The real turn off, for me was being over weight.

I got glasses in the second grade. I don’t remember anyone making fun of me but for some reason, I remember “losing” them frequently…on purpose…just insecurity I guess. I think most kids go through that when they have to wear glasses for the first time.