It used to be expensive to wear glasses, but not anymore! Glasses are now available online for much less than they cost at Glassmasters or whatever mall eyeglass emporium you used to shop. My latest pair of glasses came from Zenni Optical, an online glasses store where the glasses cost anywhere from $8 to $19, plus shipping, which is $4.95. So, get this, my glasses cost $12.95, total, not including the $50 eye exam from Costco.
You will need your prescription, including your "pupillary distance," or PD. This is the measurement between your eyes, which is possible to measure yourself. Your eye doctor is required by law to give you a copy of your prescription if you request it, without a purchase. My advice is to do some research in your area to find an inexpensive eye exam, and then order away. Your glasses will arrive in the mail after about two weeks. The only downside to the whole process is the two week wait; if you need your glasses that day, it's not an option, so order a spare pair before you need them. Incidentally, shipping is $4.95 whether you order one or a hundred pairs of glasses, not that ordering a hundred pairs of glasses would be frugal, but you get my point.
Glassy Eyes is a great little blog devoted to online eyeglasses. There you will find links to several of the major online glasses manufacturers with reviews of each site and even forums where people discuss their new glasses! Zenni is the only site I have tried; it's not so coincidentally the cheapest of all. I have had good luck with all of the glasses I have purchased, five pairs for a grand total of $52.97. At these prices it's easy to have several pairs of glasses to suit your moods, whether you want serious glasses for the job interview, cool glasses for the blind date, or goofy prescription sunglasses just for riding around in the dune-buggy with the rest of the Banana Splits.
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