The blog of photographer Kim Ayres

Windows of the Soul

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I’m currently sitting at the computer wearing my wife’s glasses, trying to focus on what I’m typing. It’s not easy as she has bi-focals and at the moment, only the stronger, lower part of the glasses make much difference, so I'm constantly having to tilt my head back and forth, and dizzyness is never far away.

Under normal circumstances I don’t need glasses but I’ve just come back from a check-up at the optician .


photo of me in the optician's chair, courtesy
of my daughter, Meg, using my mobile phone


Apparently I have unusually small pupils (and I’m not even a nursery school teacher… ba-dum tish!) and this, means I have better eyesight than I should at my level of deterioration.

If you’re into photography, it’s basically all to do with smaller apertures giving a larger depth of focus/ depth of field (click here for Wikipedia’s explanation). If you’re not, and weren’t interested in lenses and light in physics lessons in school then you probably won’t want a long explanation now either, so I'll not bother.

So if my eyesight’s better than it should be because of a quirk of nature, why am I wearing my wife’s glasses just now?

Well my tiny pupils meant the optician couldn’t actually take a photo of my retina, so had to give me eye drops to widen them. The image he had up on his screen moments later looked blurry to me, but he assured me it was in focus and my retinas looked fine.

Even blurred I thought they looked kinda cool, so I asked if he could email them to me. He took my email address and if/when they turn up, I’ll stick them on this blog post.

He warned me everything would be out of focus for a couple of hours, and when we stepped out into the sunlight I was virtually blinded by the glare. Meg had to lead me home by the hand as I squinted and stumbled along the pavement.

Meanwhile, it does at least finally explain a minor mystery that's occasionally bothered me over the years.

We once watched a programme on TV about how when you fancy someone, your pupils get larger when you look at them. Maggie was always deeply suspcious of the fact mine never became huge, despite my protestations that I did indeed fancy her something rotten. Enlarged pupils for me are just ordinary sized for everyone else, it seems.



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72 comments

Sandy said...

Your eyesight will have suffered from the long hours you've spent in front of the computer for the last couple of days answering comments here. I don't suppose this one's going to help either.

Pat said...

Too much of comments to read, huh? haha..

Pat said...

So presumably you could take drugs and stuff and no-one would be able to tell.
You deserve a medal for answering all those comments.

HeatherLynn said...

I've never heard that about your pupils enlarging when you "fancy someone"...i'm totally going to have to research that one! :)

Don't you love that blinded in the parkinglot deal. I didn't know about that little side effect and i had to sit in the parkinglot in my car for 25 minutes waiting for my eyes to get back to some sense of "normal"....

~hl~

Entrepreneur Chick said...

I am absolutely sure a double shot of whiskey will solve everything. If it doesn't, switch to Vodka and Red Bull. Cheers.

Unknown said...

I have progressive lens Tri-focal glasss, and I STILL have a hard time reading tiny print! So, I use magnifying glass quite a lot now! : )

Unknown said...

I have small pupils too, but have no idea if they are unusually small. Eye Doctor always places the drops in our eyes during an in-depth exam.

Ed said...

Your wife's got some seriously funky glasses. They look like some kind of wierd goggles/mask that a superhero might where. "Mr. Blogginator" is here to type you a tale.



P.S. I know those probably aren't her glasses, but that's how it sounded, and it struck me funny.

Sue said...

So, they dilated your eyes? I have that done every year, and it is blinding after. I usually have to take a nap to keep from getting a headache. Putting on the someone else's glasses and being on the computer...maybe not a great idea:)

Sue

Smoke said...

So what was the checkup for? oh, and on the photography point, seeing that you have a more focused depth of field, no.1 do you have to go without blinking for longer to get the shutter speed right and no.2 what film do you use?

angryparsnip said...

Want those glasses !!!!

I surprised they didn't warn you that you MUST wear sunglasses when finished with testing... because the pupils are dilated. . .
Hope your OK now.

Must make those glasses your blog only glasses.

cheers . . . parsnip

Ron said...

I too have never heard of the phenonomen of pupils widening when you're "fancying" (an English colloquialism that I normally don’t use but sounds like a fun way to say I’m hot for someone) somebody. However, I have been told I have "deep, dark, mysterious" eyes when I have been on the prowl. Which is interesting because I normally have lovely blue eyes. Now I know my pupils widened because I was horny. You learn something every day. I knew I liked your blog.

savannah said...

i'm surprised they didn't give y'all a pair of those yoko ono plastic glasses to wear afterwards, sugar! ;~D xoxox

mapstew said...

I have to leave pairs of specs all over the place! I have my two god pairs, and others I bought 'off the peg'! Herself says I should get one of those neck chains, a la Larry Grayson!

Ooh shut that door!

mapstew said...

SEE?

Two GOOD pairs! Not GOD! Although....

Charlie said...

I like 'em. Steampunk all the way. And they give you a Johnny Depp look. I think you should wear them permanently.

boomtastic said...

I actually have unusually large pupils (I'm a basketball coach, ba-dum-tish), so people often ask if I am on something... and I'm extreme sensitive to the sun all of the time.

When I go to the eye doctor he gives me these horribly flimsy "sun glasses" which are really just thin brown plastic and two cardboard sticks...

Marjie said...

Well, for many years opthamologists told me I couldn't wear soft contact lenses because my eyeballs were too large in diameter. When I was about 16, I asked one if that meant my eyeballs were rather flat, because that would be better than some other regions being flat.

Congrats on being a blogger of note! Have you restocked your tea and biscuits yet?

Kim Ayres said...

Sandy - I'll have to start a new career as a bling mandolin player at this rate...

Patrick - and respond to...

Pat - you know, I've almost caught up with them. Once I finish this batch I will have. Until the next one 10 minutes later :)

HeatherLynn - took me about 3 hours before I felt my eyes were my own again :)

Entrepreneur Chick - A friend of mine is making Bramble Vodka, although I think it might make my eyesight worse...

Lorraine - Tri-focals? That must take a bit of getting used to!

Ed - I knew you knew, and it was a good comment. But I went back and made a wee adjustment to the caption under the photo, just in case... :)

Someone's Mom - but even dilated, they just looked the same as everyone elses. At dinner my son said my eyes looked wierd, but he couldn't figure out why, because the pupils still only took up less than half my iris. But of course he's used to seeing me with small pupils and had never made the connection

Smoke - I blink at half rate and have a retina set to an 800 ISO default

Parsnip - they kind of remind me of those glasses in the Johnny Depp version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Ron - Now you know, you need to make sure you look into people's eyes when the light is low, rather than bright. That way their pupils will always be a bit wider and you can feel smug :)

Savannah - I only live 2 minutes walk away, so it didn't seem worth it. I just kept my eyes squinted and let Meg guide me home :)

Mapstew - make one out of black leather with metal studs, so people either think you're n a rock band of an S&M relationship.

Charlie - maybe time for a new avatar... on second thoughts...

Little Lord - sounds like the kind we used to get free with the comics to see 3D pics

Marjie I've got a packet of penguin wafers somewhere...



karatemom said...

hmmm when we go to the eye doctor here they give us these super dark disposable sunglasses to wear home..you look a little dorky but it certainly does the trick.

Alan Richardson said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Alan Richardson said...

Sorry about that. what I said was . . .

The first time I had my pupils dilated for an eye exam the nurse gave a magazine to read whilst I waited for the ophthalmologist . . .

Alan, and thanks for dropping by my effort . . .

2:30 AM, September 16, 2009

Cindy said...

LOL. You are so funny. I love it!

Cindy said...

You are so funny. I love it!

Nyx said...

Wow. That's some spiffy eyewear you're sporting there.

At least you know that nothing is seriously wrong with your eyes, right? Just a little quirk of nature. :)

Postman said...

"Unusually small pupils"...ha, that's a good one mate.

What, really? Billions upon trillions of ways to show affection for your loved one in this life, and she decided to pick on you because your pupils didn't dilate enough? Gee whiz.

mapstew said...

It's just come to me, you look like some character from Mad Max with that eyewear!

Cool.

Kim Ayres said...

KarateMom - I only live 2 minutes walk up th road, so it was no big deal :)

Alan - superb :)

Cindy - thank you :)

Nyx - I'm ahead of the game - just you wait, Brad Pitt and George Clooney will have specs just like this next summer

Postman - she is still with me after nearly 19 years, so I don't think it counted for that much :)

Mapstew - that's it! Damn, I knew there was something familiar, but couldn't place it. But you're right!

ThePantaloon.com said...

The part of the body that enlarges most during sex is the pupil. Just saying.

http://www.thepantaloon.com/

Judearoo said...

Well I think you look rather dashing.. ;)

Kim Ayres said...

Pantaloon - but if it's smaller to begin with, any enlargement appears exaggerated...

Judearoo - it's all smoke and mirrors, but I'm a complete sucker for flattery so I'll allow myself a brief *smug* moment - thank you :)

2to4aday said...

I saw that another reader said you looked like Mad Max in your photo on this blog entry. Darn it--just when I had identified you as a Count Dracula with Harry Potter overtones.

Lauren said...

How unusual for you to blog about this, I am currently reading a book that just last night mentioned how your pupils enlarge when you fancy someone. Something I did not know until last night. It's amazing how most of us probably didn't know this.

Kim Ayres said...

2to4aday - that works too :)

Red Lotus - It's a bit like when we learn a new word and suddenly start hearing it being used all over the place, even though we were convinced we'd never heard it before :)

Jeffrey said...

I know what you are going through Kim it is called Dilation and I have to have that done every year when I go to the eye dr. Great blog i have read your last three and you seem to be a very interesting person. Now if only I could get motivated to start doing something with my blog.

Lil_Gema said...

That is really interesting. I have never heard of that before. Love the pic lol.

Cindy said...

Hhhmmm I wonder how big my pupils are... and is that why men think I'm always flirting even if I'm just asking where the restroom is? Interesting.

mapstew said...

BTW, you are THE Kim, only, no need to feel guilty, you ARE sort of full up here at the moment. Hope it's all good for you. Map.

Unknown said...

Ahhh...you're the blog of note guy with the accent (I know you guys think Americans are the ones with the accents...lol). So, glad you stopped by to visit little ole me. I feel so privileged

Bits-n-Pieces said...

Good Grief, you get a lot of comments!!
My mother has Retinitis Pigmentosa, and her pupils are ALWAYS large. they never shrink. She has to wear the dark glasses, and take meds...it's the same disease Elvis had (hence his dark glasses and many prescriptions. They even went to the same eye specialist in Kentucky.)
Flourescent lights give her major headaches, too.

Anonymous said...

That's fascinating. My brother has one pupil that appears like it's dripping (elongated). I understand this anomaly actually improves his vision in that eye too.

By the way I think your writing wonderful. I wish I could write as well.

boomtastic said...

thanks for visiting my site... I just added some new pictures (taken on a shitty camera and I'm not that great either) but it's a start!

I am Alive said...

thanks for comments...
Blogrolling you...
tc

Just Curious... said...

I just wanted to say Hi.

I stumbled on your blog from blogs of note. It's quite impressive to answer all comments!

I've just spent a little time on your blog and I know I'll be back.

JC

Kim Ayres said...

Jeffrey - thank you, and welcome :)

Lil Gema - love your profile pic - show's one of your passions :)

Cindy - a surprising number of men seem to think that a woman saying anything to them is flirting, even "do you want fries with that?"

Mapstew - I'm honoured

Roschelle - you shouldn't have to feel privilaged. I'm just little ole me too :)

Bits-n-pieces - a great deal more comments since last week...

What a great Elvis connection :)

Allen - I wish I had your talent for drawing :)

Little Lord - practice, practice, practice - the more we do anything, the better we get :)

Alive - you're welcome, and thank you :)

Just Curious - hi! :)
I answer comments because the kind of person I want to become is the kind of person who acknowledges the time people took to make comments :)

Jo ~ said...

wow, your fan base got a little large, LOL, but that happens once your blog hits the "Blogs of Notes" as it did to another blogger friend I have. I don't list my blog for blogger search engines to crawl so as to avoid that. It's great to make new blog friends though, and you definitely deserved to be on Blogs of Note.

by the way, the picture is funky! funny thing about pupils mine are always dilated and have always been oversized for no good reason through no fault of my own but a cop once tried to make an issue of it when he pulled me over on a minor traffic violation.

Mike Tubes said...

Very bad for your eyes guy you can make your vision much worse doing what you are doing.... glasses are expensive though.....

Kim Ayres said...

Bella - aye, strange things happened last weekend, and I'm still trying to recover :)

Mike - I only wore my wife's glasses for the time it took me to write a blog and answer a few comments -my eyes returned to normal a couple of hours later :)

Anonymous said...

Whew- you are Mr popular now! I appreciate you adding me to Squidoo! I don't know either how they missed moi ;). Interesting bit about the eyes- nice pic! hey- do you know why, every time I come here now, starting recently I get an alarm for malware?

Dalton Stallworth said...

I could keep myself entertained for quite a while scrolling through this blog - I salute you, sir ;).

Archivalist said...

Fetching, Kim. Can you get those in designer colors, like a Swatch?

Kim Ayres said...

Starrlife - if you have ANY suggestions about the Malware alert, PLEASE let me know. I've had several people comment on it, but I've been through the code with a toothcomb and can find nothing. I even left a comment for help on the Blogger Forum, but got nothing, so I'm out of ideas :(

Dalton - welcome, and thank you :)

Archivalist - you can indeed, but they cost 4 times the price...

Ivan Toblog said...

Gee... I wonder if the folks who don't use AVG get the malware threat?
I mean do any other "threat potectors" provide the warning?

Ashley said...

Found you through blogs of note! I think fancying your wife "something rotten" might just be one of the sweetest sentiments I've heard in a while!

Mary Witzl said...

I've heard that people's pupils widen when they tell lies. For the longest time, I've tried to catch my kids out, but they must have that tiny pupil thing going too. Either that or they're just first-class liars.

Anonymous said...

You not only can feel honored to gain so much attation on something where the chances of getting noticed are astronomically small, but you also can feel honored to recieve the first comment I ever wrote on a blog! Yes, by me :)

So, concerning the enlarged pupils - you are not alone! My boyfriend has that occasionally, too. Though in his case it's either they remain "normal" or become huge. Latter was once unpleasant because the cops once stopped him in the middle of the night and suspected him to have taken drugs. He only had a coffee though. They dropped the matter, for one of the officers had the same problem and they had no quick drug-screens with them...

Good Luck with your blog, more followers etc.

Greetings from the Old World

Kim Ayres said...

Ivan - so far AVG seems to be the biggest problem. What's particularly annoying is they have no mention of the ~bitrid thing on their database, so what on earth are they warning of?

Smile Steady - it's romantic poetry, I know...

Mary - really? I thought they were supposed to narrow when lying. However, another body language trick to detect lying is, apparently, if someone's hand comes up to their mouth - it's said it's a subconscious attempt to cover the falsehood. Can't say I put too much weight on these things though :)

Missing mile - then I feel honoured indeed :)

Heidi Sue said...

Fancying someone rotten seems like an interesting way to go! Is that somewhat like pretty awful?

It was fun to stop by...

Adam Abbas said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Adam Abbas said...

Hi Kim,

I removed my initial comment because I repeated the word 'well' too much. I just wanted to say hello. I've always had a respect/interest in Scottish culture (as well as Irish) and I hope to visit there sometime, walking through the Highlands with my future girlfriend or fiancee.

I hope your family's doing well. I looked at your wife Maggie's website and really liked her artwork, esp. Red Centre. I also bookmarked it.

Take care,

Adam Abbas

Jean said...

you look cool in the spec!

ps you're invited to comment on my post too =)

mapstew said...

663 followers (at this moment!), full time job replying to comments at this stage!

Kim Ayres said...

Heidi Sue - it's one of those phrases from childhood that doesn't stand up to interpretation, but just flows off the tongue :)

Adam - the difference between the spoken word and the written - we're always repeating words in speech and no one much cares :)

SJ - thank you, and welcome :)

Mapstew - let's just hope it doesn't freeze at 666...

YOSEE said...

LOL! Enjoyed that quip about "small pupils" and "nursery school teacher" !...and i certainly wouldn't want to have a sub-normal-sized pupil and spend an eternity trying to convince the spouse that he is indeed the apple of my eye! :-)

Kim Ayres said...

Eternity wasn't so long - she believed me eventually :)

The Confessionist said...

You sound just like my dad... only he refuses to get his eyes checked and just steals my mums glasses... haha

bloggingforliving said...

just read your blog for the first time, and i see that you're an avid blogger and a popular one as well. please take time to read my project-- http://bloggingforliving-blogproject.blogspot.com

hope you'll have 20/20 vision my friend

thank you

Kim Ayres said...

One in Six Billion - there was a time when I was like someone else. Now, it seems much more common that I'm more like someone else's Dad :)

BFL - I do indeed have 20/20 vision. Just not when I've had eye drops in :)

Anonymous said...

You must've done something right 'cause the malware warning is gone!

Kim Ayres said...

I had to go through every aspect of the site bit by bit. Eventually it vanished when I deleted the "Sporadic and AWOL Bloggers" section on the sidebar and rebuilt it

Development Catalyst said...

That's strange but this post gives me the creeps i have dilated eyes too.

Kim Ayres said...

raphnexx - why does it give you the creeps?

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