The past week or two have been somewhat unsettling for me, as Terry and I have been considering - some major, some minor - decisions.
I have again been considering laser eye surgery. After all, the procedure has come a long way in the past 20 years - since my brother had his done - and he was (and still is) happy with his results 20 years later... I have thought about it for a long, long time... What's holding me back? Maybe I should get it done now too...
So last week I went for a pre-operative assessment, and discovered that I had two options open to me: laser surgery or "cataract" surgery - like my mother had last winter. I don't have cataracts, but ophthalmologists now do similar lens replacements, replacing the lens in the eye with a corrective lens. That would probably be good for me, at my age, I am advised, as it would mean that I would not face cataract surgery in the future. (Cataracts would not form on the artificial corrective lens.) There are some risks, however... It is unlikely but nonetheless possible that an eye infection caused by the surgery could, in a worst case scenario, lead to blindness... There is also the (unlikely) possibility of getting a detached retina (also risking vision loss). These risks don't seem so serious when a person is facing vision loss because of a cataract, but for a healthy eye...! Should I take the risk?
Laser vision correction, on the other hand, would involve more initial discomfort (itchy, sensitive eyes) for a week or so, but... Nobody goes blind from laser surgery! the ophthalmologist assured me...
Both options are open to me... What should I do?!!
Another decision involves Terry's retirement... He has been working in the often stressful field of child welfare - helping kids in crisis - for almost 30 years now. He loves his current job (most days) - but has been planning to retire in about 20 months... (But who's counting?!)
Last week he came home with some news: His agency is planning to cut back on staff, and - before laying off workers - will be offering "incentives" for people to resign... Should he take "early retirement"?
Life seems to suddenly be fast-forwarding several years - to impending retirement~ though he hasn't made a decision yet! As we consider the financial - and lifestyle - implications of all this, we are both somewhat anxious.
What should he do?!!
Our third (previously major) decision has paled in comparison to the other two. Our 25-year-old furnace was "acting up" last winter - so we decided to replace it. Spare parts were hard to find... and we didn't want to get stuck in the winter without heat!
So after talking to our "furnace man," we were left having to decide whether to get a simple furnace or a "fancy-dancy" furnace-with-heat pump, to cut back on energy costs. We have to decide very soon ... as we don't want to be caught without heat this winter! But our furnace problem has suddenly paled in face of our other life-changing decisions...!
What should we do?!!
Stay tuned for updates!
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