The Cost of Staying in Focus Weekly Link Round-Up

Since I don't have the best eyesight in the world (cough) and since I also can't seem to take a shine to audiobooks, I have my eyes checked every year and pray that none of the eye problems that run in my family (glaucoma, cataracts, macular degeneration, etc.) get their hooks in me. Unfortunately the process of aging isn't kind to a person's eyes.

Last week it was eye exam time, and when the dust had settled, I spent $541 on four pairs of new glasses. (Hey... I remember when I had to pay $120 per lens-- not including frames-- when I bought new glasses!) Part of that price wasn't a shock. I knew my reading prescription needed to be changed because I could read more easily with my glasses off than on. But... four pairs??? Yup. Four. 

(1) an everyday pair, (2) sunglasses, (3) reading glasses, and (4) computer glasses. This is the first time for computer glasses, but I spend about four hours a day on the computer, and if they'll help keep me in focus with no eye or neck strain, so be it.

As I was perusing the selection of frames at Costco, I was dismayed to see that bling is coming back to women's eyeglasses. I hate rhinestones! I'd keep pulling out frames that I liked the shape and color of only to find rhinestones on the ear pieces. Yuck! I did find some fun frames for my reading and computer glasses, though. I won't be wearing either one in polite society, so who cares if they both have shades of bright blue on them?

And may I just say that I feel a bit... extravagant... with my four pairs when I know there are so many people who can't even afford one. I am very fortunate indeed to be able to keep my world in focus-- especially since I have to get out to the corral and round up all these links I've been keeping for you! 

Head 'em up! Mooooooooooooove 'em out!

 

►Books, Movies & Other Interesting Tidbits◄

• What do your reading habits reveal about your personality? 
• For those of you who are on Pinterest, take a look at Ann Parker's boards. She's letting us take a look at the type of research she does for her excellent historical Silver Rush mysteries.
• Science says silence is much more important to our brains than we think.
• I had to laugh as I read this millennial's review of Columbo. 
• Barnes and Noble is opening a concept store in Texas.
• 77% of Americans say libraries provide needed resources.
• The manuscript of Jane Eyre is on its first trip to America. 
• More than thirty Charleston Southern football players have been banned in a bizarre bookstore violation. 
• Alvaro Enrigue welcomes a globalization of Latin American writers.
• The return of the omniscient voice in literature.
• Americans aren't reading less, they're just reading less literature. 
• F. Scott Fitzgerald's last unpublished stories will be released in 2017. 
• Meet the parents who won't let their children study literature. 

►Channeling My Inner Indiana Jones◄

• This crocodile carving played a ritual role in an ancient Mesoamerican city.
• A cache of more than 180 Roman lead sling bullets has been unearthed in Scotland.
• A stud found in Walsingham, England has links to East Anglia's Roman past.  
• Off the coast of North Carolina, NOAA is searching a World War II battlefield-- the largest in history.
• The UK's National Gallery has been sued over a "stolen" Matisse portrait. 
• Once dismissed as fake, the Maya calendar is the Americas' oldest manuscript. 
• DNA has confirmed the cause of 1665 London's Great Plague. 
• A secret tunnel has been found in an ancient Hittite capital. 

►Channeling My Inner Elly Mae Clampett◄

• Incredible photos of the hermit crabs who live in trash. (Mother Nature has always known how to recycle.) 
• The remarkable comeback story of the American bison. 
• The best national parks for wildlife spotting. 
• When an elk snagged itself in a tire swing, it knew right where to go.
• This won't come as a surprise to some of us, but scientists have learned that dogs understand the tone and meaning of words.
• Some wonderful photos from the 2016 National Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year contest. 
• You'll never guess who came to sit down with this wildlife photographer. 
• A recent study has revealed that giraffes are four species, not one.

►Fascinating Folk◄

• Lillian Gilbreth, the woman who invented the kitchen.
• Eerie evidence suggests that Amelia Earhart died a castaway.
• Greta Zimmer Friedman died recently at the age of 92. Most of us have seen her in her youth, but didn't know her name. 

►The Happy Wanderer◄

• One of these days, I'm going to have to visit Truth or Consequences, New Mexico.
• Forty American towns you haven't heard of but should visit ASAP. 

►I ♥ Lists◄

• Twelve emojis for book nerds. 
• Ten series to read if you love Rizzoli and Isles. 
• The world's most famous introverts. 
• A London Word Dictionary for words that are unique to that city.
• Nine fun ways to keep kids interested in reading and storytelling.

That's all for this week! Don't forget to stop by next Friday when I'll be sharing a freshly selected batch of links for your surfing pleasure.

Have a great weekend, and read something fabulous!