In a recent study done in the UK it was shown that one-fifth of employers do not offer any eye care policy, and those that do rarely discuss the options and money saving benefits of it (according to Specsavers).   Bosses are required by law to meet the cost of eye care tests and corrective glasses for staff that use Visual Display Units. A Visual Display Unit is any monitor with a screen – most common is a computer.  Any staff that works at computer is thus required by law to have the cost covered for eye care tests.  These workers need to be made aware of their rights in order to benefit appropriately.

Some companies do reimburse their staff for eye care expenses, and some purchase eye care vouchers, but most employers and employees are not aware of the benefits that they can receive from getting eye care.

Using computer screens are highly taxing on the eyes.  People need to be informed to take regular breaks as to avoid blurred vision, headaches and fatigue.  It is highly recommended that when taking a break one looks away from their screen and into the distance in order to help adjust the eyes back to normal.

Our eyes are extremely important for taking in the world around us.  We need to stress eye care as an option for all employers and employees.  Find out what your options are from your office today.

There are a few basics.  One should always read the recommended age group and assess from there.  These labels are put on toys specifically to help a consumer. Secondly it is important to show your child how to use the toy properly.  Although it may obvious to us, it is not so obvious to children!  The third and more obvious one is to keep an eye on your child while they are playing with their toys, especially new ones.

Before even beginning your holiday shopping it is important as a parent, or consumer, to educate one self.  Toys are imported from other countries often and they may have different standards of production.  Older toys were made with high levels of lead and hand-to-mouth contact exposed children to this lead.  Check for any toys that are being recalled.

Before you buy a toy there are a few other labels to look out for.  If the box says ASTM it means that the product meets the national safety standards set by the American Society for Testing and Materials.  Also look out for any choking hazards!  Make sure there are no sharp edges (depending on the age).

Before letting your child play with the toy inspect it.  Inspect it for edges, broken parts, and any safety hazards.  Explain or show your child how to use it.  This way they can learn!  Train sets and such may need some explaining.  Lego’s can be hard to put together!

Many times sharp edges or broken pieces end up getting in one’s eye because they are flung around.  It is important to always check your children’s toys after usage for any broken parts.

We love the holiday season, but we all want to avoid disasters.  Be smart about your shopping this holiday season and be aware of the safety of the toys you buy!

We are proud to give you a taste of some of our new frames. We hope you love them as much as we do!

These are our new men’s Air Mag frames, the A6400. The Air Mag line is already unique because of our patented one magnet clip on shades that cut down on bulk and weight by using one set (instead of the traditional two sets) of magnets.

These sleek and modern new frames take a bold step further by adding genuine dual tone wood temples. They are completely unique in the market and are only made by Clariti Eyewear. They have a distinctly notable air of luxury but, like all of Clariti’s frames, they still come at a reasonable price.

The unisex KS1260 frame from the Konishi Lite Collection is another gorgeous frame featuring our luxurious wooden temples. These frames have antique silver rims and temples with royal blue and tan woods that are intertwined with one another giving it an extra kick of style and personality. These may be a retro frame shape but the fresh interpretation definitely shakes off all the dust!

Meet the KF2366 from the Konishi Lite Collection. These are absolute show stoppers and you won’t know their true power until you get them on your face. The frame combines a flex-metal nose bridge with matte black memory plastic temples for an extremely comfortable, feather-weight frame. Beauty may be pain sometimes, but certainly not with these.

These unisex frames ooze timeless style and give off a natural aura of intelligence and authority. They are a retro look that could easily be mistaken for a vintage 1950′s pair but they have been updated with the latest eyewear technology, a signature of Clariti products, which makes them as easy to wear as they are to look at.

They’re a unisex frame and are traditionally worn more by men but these are my personal favorites and a favorite among many of the other girls in the office. I’ve taken to wearing the sample pair around the office even though they just have clear glass in the frames. These frames are a knock out on guys and gals, truly a pair to love.

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More to come soon!

Every year in August, about 600 people meet in Urakawa, Japan at the Bethel Festival to try to one up each other with their stories of strange hallucinations.

To spice this otherwise bland affair up even more, the contest isn’t between hallucinating druggies, the contestants are all alcoholics, schizophrenics, or mentally ill. This sounds like the most amusing conference ever, I wish it was somehow justifiable as a business trip!

This year, the winner was a man who made up a dance to calm a 50-meter-tall man he named Mr. Hallucination. That’s relatively tame compared to one past winner who was never more than two meters away from his mother for 35 years! That’s the definition of a relationship deal breaker. How is that even possible? Did she go into public men’s rooms with him? Or did he follow his mummy into the women’s bathroom like toddlers do? It’s quite an achievement actually, albeit an achievement in extraordinarily creepy co-dependence.

There was also a past winner who spent four days in a train station bathroom because a voice commanded her to live in a public restroom. Did nobody think it odd that she walked into the bathroom with four days worth of food? That’s probably still more sanitary than going into a gas station bathroom with bare feet (ahem, Britney Spears). I wonder what the auditory hallucination behind Britney’s act was? Probably something like, “Ye shall go get thee foot fungus!”

At least the festival supports a good cause, the Bethel Center, which gives vocational training and therapy to the mentally ill. The Bethel Center says that this festival is an attempt to de-stigmatize mental illness through laughter. Yes sirs, I am definitely laughing. But if I were someone who attached a stigma to mentally ill people, I’m pretty sure that these tales would not make me abandon it. These stories don’t really highlight commonalities between the mentally ill and the (comparatively) sane or humanize the mentally ill.

I think most people hallucinate (although not quite as extremely). For example, Donald Trump has the hallucination that a Flock of Seagulls hair style swept over his bald head looks halfway decent. Everyone has visions about the world that aren’t quite 20/20.

Winning this very prestigious competition must be quite a conversation starter with real people and the voices in their heads. It would also make for a great addition to one’s resume.

Read more information about the festival here.

If there were ever a reason to wear your glasses it’s so you can see these videos from a group of artists in the Czech Republic called The Macula.
This video is live, so if you were to be standing in front of that building when this was happening you would see exactly what the video shows – no 3d glasses needed or special effects after the fact – one hundred percent live.
This is called projection mapping and is one of the latest and coolest new technologies. The videos are done using extremely high intensity projectors that are placed at at least 200 yards back from the object to be projected on.
The first step is to meticulously and precisely measure every facet of the face of the building. Then they are able to use the projectors to highlight certain points and darken other points to make it look like the building is moving, crumbling, filling with water, made of building blocks, etc.
This technology is mind blowing. There are a couple of companies working with this technology and they are almost all in Europe. There have been projections like this all around the world but only a few to my knowledge in the US.
What do you think Macula? Or anyone else? I think it’s time for a show here in Southern California! I would love nothing more than to see this live.
I encourage you to watch all of their videos but don’t start unless you have a couple of hours to dedicate because you won’t be able to look away!

http://ow.ly/6IMcw
http://ow.ly/6IN3U

http://themacula.com/

The Macula’s Facebook

I’m not sure that self-certification is that great of an idea. I have certainly noticed a few drivers during my commute that must be blind but they’re not voluntarily getting off the roads so why let them self report and continue their lies or complete delusion?

They should at least print these self certification letters in absurdly small type. Then honest people who have eye problems will realize so and will check the “no, I can’t see” box or go see a doctor. Those people who check yes after having to read their renewal letter one millimeter away from their nose or under a magnifying glass will never self report no matter what we do.

They’re the same people who will show up at the DMV thinking that they need to take their vision test and will proceed to recite from a cheat sheet of letters because they can’t see that there is no longer a vision chart hanging on the wall (or see that the friendly DMV officer they’re performing for is really a trash can).

Those people are who we have to fear with this new self-certification process. They look the same as a person with normal motor skills in almost every way so keep your eyes open for clues because while you might be able to see them after some careful study, they’ll never be able to see you.

Drive safe.

http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/27/d-m-v-to-drop-eye-exam-for-license-renewals/

Good thing is, there are lots of Halloween costumes that involve wearing glasses!  Depending on your generation Austin Powers is a great Halloween costume for men whom wear glasses! Clark Kent, the “man” of Superman wears glasses, which is a great costumer for kids or adults!  For kids the girl in Scooby Doo wears glasses and Sponge Bob gets glasses in one of his episodes as well.  And, my personal favorite is Waldo, it is great for any age and any gender!

All of these costumes are also easy to make at home!

Sunglasses are crucial for anyone’s eye health, especially for those who wear glasses.  The amazing part is that sunglasses can now have a prescription in them!  We also have clip-on shades so that we can put them over our regular glasses.  We all have our own styles, and so we should all choose what we like best!  Let your children try on a few different styles and find out why they like best.  If they enjoy their glasses they will be more inclined to wear them.  Remember that just because it’s not summer anymore you still have to wear your sunglasses!

Basketball and Baseball lead the way in eye injuries.  The most common eye injury is actually getting poked in the eye, not at all ball related.  A poke in the eye can cause other problems such as a scratch on the cornea.  A minor injury like that may be irritating, but it is easily preventable by wearing eye protection.   Golf has the most call related injuries, as the balls are small, hard, and very fast. They can cause the most devastating damage of all ball related injuries.

There are three types of major sports related eye injuries: corneal abrasion, blunt injuries, and penetrating injuries.  Corneal abrasion was spoken about above; it is when the cornea gets scratched.  The most common cause is being poked in the eye.   Blunt injuries are usually caused from the impact of an object.  These injuries range from a cut on the eyelid to a black eye.    \Penetrating injuries are when a foreign object pierces the eye.   For children a common cause of this type of injury is from the BB gun pellets.  Although your kids may see think its dorky, ask them to put on eye protection as it will save everyone a lot of trouble!

The main way to protect your eyes is by wearing eye protection.  If you wear glasses you may get eye protection goggles that can go over your glasses.  Your eyes are very precious and they are easy to hurt, be sure to practice safe sports by wearing eye protection.

Taking your child to see an optometrist is highly recommended, whether they are having trouble in school or not.  Over 64% of teacher notice an improvement in children’s academic performance after having received vision care.   Many children playing sports will also notice an increase in their abilities.  All sports involve large amounts of hand-eye coordination, which is improved through vision care.

Children are not always as aware of the fact that they may not being seeing as properly as they should be, which is another reason it is very important to have their eyes checked.  Most commonly a child will complain about not being able to see the blackboard.  A parent can also look out for complaints about reading books, or looking at the computer screen.

Teenagers are harder to deal with, as they become more embarrassed to wear their glasses, as well as to admit they are having problems.  Schedule a yearly visit to the eye doctor to make sure that their eyes are in tip-top condition.