At some point around the time I started, my new job (Summer 2023), I broke my glasses. I left them in my backpack for several months. They jostled around and broke. Oops.
I hadn’t regularly worn my glasses for several years at that point. I lost my last few pairs.[1] I was on a backup of a backup.[2] Several years of poorly fitted frames left permanent discoloration/scars on my nose, and sensitive areas behind my ears. I only wore my glasses when I really needed them, which is how they ended up in my bag for months.
Driver’s License
I didn’t take issue with my broken glasses until I decided to update my driver’s license to my new state (I moved for work). Transferring a valid license between states is fairly straightforward. You need your old license, and proof of residence. No need to retake the road and written tests. The one wrinkle is that they may administer a vision test. I didn’t have my glasses and thus failed.[3]
So now I needed new glasses. If I downgraded to a non-driver ID, I worried I might be treated differently. And I don’t want to give up my driving ability, even though I drive infrequently.
The Eye Doctor
Fortunately, I live in an artificially induced tumour city[4] and have a several eye doctors within walking/biking distance.
I pick the closest one.
They correct my insurance mixup (I confused my general insurance and eye insurance, fuck America). An underpaid secretary/intern administers the usual battery of tests. He fails to get a good ¿photo? of my eye whilst shining a laser into it and sending puffs of air. We give up after 15 mins, my eyes red and tearing up.
I go the actual doctor, who measures my prescription and ignores my questions/answers. She tells me to schedule a followup to complete the failed imaging. It is "the end of the day" and she is "out of time". I am the last appointment, there remain empty appointment slots after me, and the practice is open for nearly another hour.
Oh well, I get my prescription and go back to the desk to pay. Apparently my insurance might not cover the reasonable appointment cost. They ask me to pay, and hopefully I will be reimbursed.[5]
I peruse the store’s selection of frames. They are all ugly AND overpriced. I leave victorious but drained.
Capitalism
I visit a glasses store known for their quality. I actually visited several weeks earlier with family, and so I know what frames I want. Finally, with my insurance and prescription in order, I can make an easy purchase. Spending money is supposed to be the easy step right?
I learn they do not take my insurance. I don’t know how to use my HSA/FSA.[6] However I do find their frames and deals to be a reasonable level of rip-off. The sales associate encourages me to shop around, but her caring and self-assured demeanor betrays that I will not get a better price elsewhere.
Insurance Sucks
I check my insurance’s coverage for glasses: I pay a flat $20 for lenses, and $120 towards frames. I estimate I will pay $40 each for two pairs of glasses.
Fortunately, I live in an artificially induced tumour city [4] and have a several glasses stores within walking/biking distance.
I visit several and discover a disturbing pattern.
The sticker price of glasses / lenses is artificially inflated at stores that accept insurance (which is most of them). My eye insurance is owned by the glasses monopoly company. My allowance is effectively the starting price for frames. Wonderful, I mentally adjust all the prices in-store for insurance.
I note a variety of frames, and notice that the good looking ones come out to about the same price as the high-quality store.
I legitimately seethe in public and furiously call my mom. If the price is the same with/without insurance, WTF AM I PAYING FOR? I knew insurance was a scam, but to this extent? My mother laughs at me. Her frugal shopping habits make sense all of a sudden. Even though I can comfortably afford whatever I want, the obvious price manipulation makes me want to not buy.
I buy a consolation coffee and sulk on my way home.
Word of Mouth
I ask around / overhear at work of websites that sell glasses for cheap. A coworker shows off their stylish pair. The internet says these cheap websites are owned by the monopoly. I wonder if the websites are a plot to "outcompete" brick and mortar stores.
This seems suspicious (companies lure in customers with deals, then become nasty once they’re trapped, this website is no different), but the prices are low enough. $~25 for lens, and frames each. I shell out $100, my original naive budget. Notably, I tack on features (blue light filters, transition lenses) I planned to omit.
They arrive in the mail. They are not sized quite right, but who cares. I get compliments at work.
Lessons learnt/reinforced
- I as a wealthy person still struggled. I procrastinated for months, despite all of the above steps (dmv, eye exam, purchase) occurring within walking distance. If I had to drive everywhere it would’ve been game over for me
- If businesses can cheat, their competitors can cheat less and call themselves "better". Consumers are at their mercy.
- Maintaining normal social relationships with normal people is important even for these fairly material things. Google could have compensated, but I failed to search.
- I lose things a lot ↩
- Eternally grateful to my mother who anticipated my forgetfulness and always purchased multiple pairs for me every few years, timing it with our insurance allotment and back to school sales ↩
- I brought my broken lenses, but they were not strong enough and I awkwardly held them ↩
- My city sucks because of its artifice, but cities are great in general ↩
- I was not. I rudely received snail mail a few months later denying coverage ↩
- Savings/Investment accounts for medical expenses, in the US ↩