Day of Doctors: Lasik Follow-On, Too Sick For Words, Cholesterol Drops, and So On

What a hell of a week last week was!  I started getting sick last Saturday afternoon and, minus a brief pause Monday, felt horrible right on through to lunchtime Thursday.  Finally, Wednesday afternoon, I gave in and called the doctor.  Thursday morning he said I had a respiratory infection, prescribed antibiotics, and it was then off to see the eye doctor for my one-month follow-on.

Lasik Update

At the eye doctor, the verdict was that my eyes are improving as they heal.  If I recall what she said correctly, my eyes were 20/50 and 20/60 as of my last visit; this visit I was 20/20 and 20/50.  That's all good and well but the test I'm using is how things look to me in everyday life and I'm not as convinced.  The things that I look at everyday from the same distance and perspective (the television; the Metro "next train" sign; things like that), are not nearly as crisp, clear, or, sometimes, even in focus at all.  I'm still frustrated and not pleased with the result but I'm also still withholding final judgement.  But, I didn't imagine that, a month on, I'd be worse off than I was when I had my contact lenses.

Tackling My Cholesterol Issue

On a brighter topic, while I was at the regular doctor I asked him to check my cholesterol.  Two physicals ago he told me that my cholesterol level was "elevated" and needed my attention; last physical he told me that it was "high; borderline."  Again, I needed to change my diet and better watch what I ate.  In January we decided to clear foods with animal products out of the house and transition to a vegan diet, which we did by mid-January.

One month on, my cholesterol has dropped 74 points!  Amazing.  That's my overall cholesterol but my LDL number, the "bad" cholesterol, has dropped a whopping 46 points.  Now, my cholesterol is totally within the normal range and not a concern at all.  In one month.  One month!  I've heard of similar--or better--results from other people.  It really makes me wonder why people won't at least try to reduce their cholesterol through diet.  I understand that it doesn't work for everyone but the percentage of people it does work for is apparently very high.

I was interested that the doctor didn't ask what changes I'd made to get the number down so much but I suppose, late on a Friday afternoon, he's got other things to think about.  For me, it's empowering to know that I can really make such a difference in my own health and can really take control of at least some parts of my health through lifestyle changes.  Of course, all of the wonderful dishes Philip has been fixing most nights has helped immensely.  A little will power and delicious food is the answer!

What I'm On About Today

1, 25, and 27 were my favorite, but so many amazing photos here.

Looking for something gross to drink?  Look no further!

Regarding the sunken cruise ship, if you haven't read the transcript of the conversation between the Italian Coast Guard and the captain of the doomed ship, you should.  Also interesting is a New Jersey couple's recounting of their experience aboard.

Lasik Update

Day after my Lasik surgery my vision had gone from 20/400 to 20/25.  Amazing!  In just a few hours I'd gone from not being able to see much of anything without the aid of contacts to being able to see everything, unaided.

Fast forward a week.  Sadly, as of my one-week follow-on appointment this past Thursday, I was down to 20/50.  Yes, I know, I also didn't think it was supposed to go in that direction.  Between my procedure Wednesday and the following Saturday, my vision had bettered to the point that I was amazed.  Thereafter it headed south.

My doctor told me that my eyes were healing very rapidly, which meant that they were correcting backward too fast.  She didn't think there was any reason for worry.  Hopefully this fixes itself so that I don't have to have the procedure done again.  I'm told there's lots of fluctuation in the first four weeks.   In fact, from Friday to today, Sunday, I do notice some slight improvement.  Nevertheless it's all a little vexing and I'm pretty disappointed right now.  But, I'm holding out hope that it'll sort itself out without the need for a second "adjusting" procedure.  Stay tuned.

What I'm On About Today

E-tailers are hoping you're hitting the bottle before you go online.

Don't watch this before your next flight.  Yikes!

A couple of weeks ago The Post had a piece about the coming infrastructure catastrophe.  I was surprised to find that some of DC's sewer system dates back to the Civil War and that most of it is 100 years old.  Crazy.

Post-Lasik

Yesterday I went under the laser and had Lasik performed on by of my eyes.  I was a little nervous, mainly because I wondered if ditching contact lenses was really worth whatever minute risks may be associated with the procedure.  But, mainly because of the nearly-universal raves I heard from friends, colleagues, and acquaintances who had undergone it, I decided to bite the bullet.

The procedure was very quick, no more than about five minutes to do both eyes.  There wasn't what I could term "pain," but instead what the doctor called "pressure."  It was discomfort but it was bearable.  During the quick procedure it all seemed surreal, with lots of directions being given, various noises, and even odd smells from whatever the laser was doing to my eyes.  They'd given me two foam balls, one for each hand, to squeeze as a stress-reliever.  By the end of the procedure, I'd literally flattened them from squeezing them so much!

When I got up from my laying position, I could see quite well, though there was a little haze in my vision.  I was tired and felt like I'd been through a bit of an ordeal.  But, I wasn't in any pain.

I headed home, took some tylenol, and went to bed for a couple of hours.  Later in the evening my eyes were very sensitive to the light and they felt scratchy, dry, and uncomfortable.  I wasn't in pain but it was certainly the focus of my attention.

This morning when I woke up I wasn't having any pain, discomfort, or problems of any sort.  Throughout the day I've noticed from time to time that I feel like I've got something in my eye or that they've felt dry, but no real issues.  And, I'm able to see quite well.

At my follow-up visit today the doctor said my eyes looked great and that she was impressed with how quickly my eyes are getting themselves together.  Let's hope it continues!

Giving Up On Hilton HHonors

I’ve been loyal to the Hilton family of hotels now for several years.  Over the past year, as an HHonors Diamond, I’ve increasingly felt like my loyalty is unrequited.  Finally, last month, I decided I was giving up on the program and, with it, Hilton hotels in general.  Here’s why:

Status Give-aways to Anybody

Qualifying for HHonors Gold requires 16 stays or 36 nights at a Hilton property; for Diamond it’s 28 stays or 60 nights.  This year I logged twenty stays, making Gold for next year.  A few months ago, anybody with a Visa Signature card could gotten the same status without doing anything other than asking for it.  I was not eligible for the promotion because I was already elite.  As I type this (December), anyone with a code widely available on the Internet can get Gold just for registering with that code.  My loyalty of 20 stays is being rewarded with Gold status, the same thing available to everyone just for the asking?

This matters because I will now be competing with these same people for rooms, upgrades, and other amenities.  It also matters because it says to those of us who achieved our status by being loyal to the brand “you are a chump.”

Lack of Upgrades

Twenty stays at Hilton properties this year from Pensacola to Paris and Seattle to Dublin to Warsaw, and I saw zero room upgrades.  Zero.  Not one.  The closest I came was the Hilton HHonors floor, which is just the same as the others except that it has a plaque in or near the elevator lobby that announces that it’s the HHonors floor.  No suite for me.  No junior suite.  Nothing of the sort.  And, in more than one instance, mentioning that I was Diamond and asking if an upgrade was available got me nothing more than a dismissive grunt.

Lackluster Properties

Then there are the properties themselves.  There are some really nice Hiltons out there, don’t get me wrong, but there are so, so many mediocre or just plain bad ones.  There seems to be no standard and the quality is so spotty that one never knows quite what to expect.  The problem is within each brand and across their brands:  some Hilton Garden Inns are better than some Hiltons; some Doubltrees are okay or even nice, while most are lacking, to say the least.  Hilton's whole branding strategy needs some serious rethinking:  I should be able to tell if I’m in a Doubletree or a Hilton or a Hilton Garden Inn or a Hampton Inn just by looking around the property.  Their brands should speak for themselves and they just don't.

Severe Devaluation of HHonors Points

Then there’s the severe devaluation of the points that Hilton undertook more than a year ago.  For instance, I stayed at a property in Paris the November before devaluation at a cost of 40,000 points per night.  I tried to book into the same property this October:  about 120,000 points per night.  Before Diamond members had the benefit of the Diamond Desk calling the hotel to do a “Diamond Force.”  That is no longer offered, further diminishing the points and the value of the program.  The crux of the change in points pricing is that hotels have a certain number of "standard"-point-rate rooms.  Once that inventory is exhausted, you can still book a room with points but this is where they really sock it to you and where the real devaluation shows.  They've basically gutted the program.

This is all too bad.  I used to love the HHonors program and was willing to overlook its shortcomings and the glaring issues with the properties themselves.  But now I’m just giving up and moving on.  So, to all of the new HHonors members who are suddenly Gold for the asking, enjoy the program.  You’ll have one less HHonors Gold member to compete with for your benefits.

What I'm On About Today (Tuesday)

David Frum on the Jesus-Versus-Santa Celebrity Smackdown.

The Pope warns of the evils of ... glitter.  Funny.

When I first heard about 3D printing, my reaction was similar to my reaction when I heard about the Internet:  it's almost impossible to get my mind around it.  I think this technology will be as revolutionary as the Internet has turned out to be.  This is one to watch.