New Glasses! Nifty Purse for Wheelchair

[jesse_the_k]

Glasses

In the past I've rocketed among different frame styles and colors. This is the least variation in new glasses for at least three decades: I like the almost-round look, with the darkest part of the frame underneath, and just a hint of color in the frame above the temple line. My previous ones were were tortoise shell on the bottom and violet metal on top; these new ones are matte black and matte gray metal.

These new ones are more comfortable, even though they weigh 8 more grams than last pair. The optician installed "pillow nose pads": large, silicone ovals with air inside. My pressure sores went away in two weeks! (My Rx is very thick, with astigmatism and four different prisms.)

Nifty Purse Optimized for Wheelchair Use

The bag has a "gatemouth," like a doctor's bag--a frame with two spring hinges stays open to offer a completely visible interior. It's 6"h by 6"d by 14" wide. It holds my iPad as well as all the other necessities. When closed, the hinge forms a rack for my iPad mini giving my hands a break.


Moss-green ultra-suede fabric bag 14in wide by 6 in deep by 6 in tall. Interior lined in blue jean denim, two divided slip pockets on both long sides. Bronze swivel snap hooks connect to adjustable self-fabric belt.

I stumbled on Ruthy with a "doctor bag" search on Etsy. Her needlework is excellent, she accepted my customizations gracefully, I got it in sixteen days for less than US$100 from Israel. A+++ will bag with her again. Check out her stuff at

https://rutinet.etsy.com

Comments

[sonia]

Yay new glasses and bag! Beautiful *and* functional!

[jesse_the_k]

<3

[sovay]

That is a great photograph of you and purse!

[jesse_the_k]

All praise to sasha_feather, my "staff photographer."

[ismo]

Nice bag! and the glasses look good on you.

[jesse_the_k]

Thanks!

[capri0mni]

Nifty!

(And do I notice that your armrests are different heights, or is that a trick of perspective? And I like your joystick ball.)

/Wheelchair geekery

[jesse_the_k]

Tx!

Nope, perspective trick.

I'm proud of of my joystick ball, result of much trial and error. Only drawback is it increases magnetism for small children's attention to controller.

[capri0mni]

Hm. maybe paint it black with matte acrylic paint (waterproof), so it's the same color as the body of the joystick, and doen't look so toy-like?

[jesse_the_k]

Black would be good, but I don't want to mess with its velvety, high-friction* surface, which permits me to plop my palm on there without gripping.

A black condom, perhaps? /wanders off to the internet.

[capri0mni]

Well, that's one reason I suggest acrylic paint (the kind you get at art supply stores, not hardware stores). It would absorb into the foam and still give you a grippy, high-friction, surface, Especially since you can thin it down with water as much as you want/need.

I used to paint artwork on sweatshirts with acrylic paints. ... the kinds used to paint pictures, not the glossy dimensional paints that come in little tubes (though you can use that stuff to put grippy, non-skid designs on the bottoms of socks. And when the paint is watered down, it absorbed into the fabric without changing the texture at all.

[jesse_the_k]

Ahh! I’ve only seen the kind in tubes. Is there a particular brand or form factor I should look for? (Could I water down the tube kind?)

[capri0mni]

Easier to show a picture/link than to describe. Back when I painted regularly as a hobby (admittedly decades ago), this brand was the one I used:

https://www.michaels.com/liquitex-basics-acrylic-paint-4oz/MD002546S.html?dwvar_MD002546S_color=Deep%20Violet&dwvar_MD002546S_size=4%20oz#start=1

[jesse_the_k]

Mmmm, deep violet.

Thanks for these helpful details

[capri0mni]

No prob.

[jesse_the_k]

Done & done. thanks for your help.

Weirdly, the unthickened paint resulted in a higher-friction surface.

(The watered down version was sucked into the micro-hills to smooth things out.)

Thank heavens for A/B tests.

[capri0mni]

Glad I could help.

...unthickened, or thicker? If the watered down version was absorbed into the ball, does that mean the paint straight out of the tube was what worked?

Yeah... I always liked the textures I could get with acrylics, and that you can paint them on something, and it remains flexible (also, they don't have fumes, like oils).

The downside is: they're plastic. *sigh*

[jesse_the_k]

Yeah, writing "unthickened" when I meant to say "undiluted".

I remember being able to write down what I meant, and if I erred, on review I could fix it.

Hmmm, wonder where that went?

[capri0mni]

No biggie. I could figure out what you meant by context -- your brain just came up with "Thick" and "Undiluted" at the exact same moment.

(as for where your inner editor went... maybe they've retired someplace warm and pleasant.

Enjoy more time free from their nagging. :-)... maybe I could send my Inner Editor down to join them, while I do NaNoWriMo, this year.

[jesse_the_k]

Hmm, “enjoy less inner-editor nagging” is a new concept to me, and one worth exploring.

[capri0mni]

It's a concept well known to writers and other artistic types.

Your Inner Editor is the one who keeps telling you you've made a mistake -- which isn't always bad. But the problem is that the I.E. often butts in when you're in the middle -- or even just starting -- to do something creative:

"That sentence is cliche!"
"No one will believe this story!"
"Stephen King told the exact same story -- and he told it better!"
"This paragraph is way too long!"
"What are you, 5?"
"You're writing "said" too many times!"

Etc. etc.

(But it's also the part of your brain that criticizes how your body looks, or how you speak, or do anything.)

That's a big reason why writers can spend all day "Writing" and end up with a blank page by bedtime.

Nanowrimo fora are full of advice for shutting up your inner editor, so you can get to 50 K words in 30 days. I saw one suggestion from a woman who made the inner editor a character in her story, and wrote all its nagging into the dialog. ;-)

[decemberthirty]

Very nice new glasses! And you look happy to be wearing them. Or just happy in general, perhaps. Either way, it's nice. :)

Wonderful that they're more comfortable, too. It is so awful when glasses are uncomfortable and you wear them all day every day!

curtsies

[jesse_the_k]

Amen. I've been wearing spex since I was four, so I've had tons of experience. These nose pads are a remarkable improvement.

[talkswithwind]

Etsy wins again. Once Upon a Time, the only place I ever ran into bespoke-friendly retailers like that would be a RenFest. That bag is pretty nifty!

[jesse_the_k]

I've had such mixed luck with Etsy: I've been searching for "doctor bags" for three years and this is the first time I found this merchant--and she's been selling for a decade.

I wish I could go to a RenEvent--they sound like so much fun. (Unpaved roads = endless coughing for me.)

[monanotlisa]

Huh, almost-round is an interesting glasses design! I like 'em.

[jesse_the_k]

ml stamp of approval is worthwhile.

The wacky thing is my previous spex were exactly this shape--and I thought they were round the whole time I was wearing them. It was only when I was browsing for these that I realized they were elliptical.

[luzula]

You look great in that photo! Beaming at the camera...and the glasses look good, though I don't remember what your old ones looked like. I too have new glasses, though I'm too lazy to post a photo.

Maybe we should Skype soon, btw? : )

[jesse_the_k]

:)

I've put off Skyping because I haven't done my homework yet (Murray Bookchin's essay). Either I should read it or just let it go, eh?

[luzula]

Oh, what Bookchin essay is that? I have two of his books lying in my to-read pile--I've never read anything of his except that book from the '80:s where he debates/discusses with Dave Foreman.

ETA: Wait--are you mixing him up with Graeber's Fragments of an Anachist Anthropology, which we were talking about discussing? You can read just the part titled "Democracy" if you want, it's really short. : )

[worlds_of_smoke]

I like the glasses on you! :) And that bag is definitely nifty.

[jesse_the_k]

Thanks.

[grrlpup]

I agree, the round shape is cool! And I'm glad to learn about the pillow nose pads. My current glasses are light thanks to high-index materials, but I've had the sore nose problem before and hated it. I should tell my dad...

[jesse_the_k]

My Rx is +8 in one eye, plus 9° of prism, so they truly are as thick as coke bottles--even with the highest of high indices.

[replyhazy]

What IS it about the feeling of finding just the right bag for one's needs? Ridiculously triumphant, is it not?

Comfortable glasses that don't hurt you: achievement unlocked. Well done.

Totally triumphant

[jesse_the_k]

I'm celebrating recent good things in my life with this purse--proves I have some inner femme after all.