Contacts

Many people probably don't know, but my vision isn't perfect. Five years ago i used to wear glass on a regular basis. Back then my vision was -1.5/-0.75; meaning that i could see well up close but not so well for distance, luckily my vision was always within the legal driving limits. After loosing my glasses a number of years back i have been lazy and haven't had a chance to go in for another eye test or buy new glasses. So the years passed, and i forgot about it completely. But recently, i started thinking about contacts....they were never really an option for me before since i have seasonal allergies and used to suffer from dry eyes syndrome (DES). My DES was cured a few years back with something called punctal plugs which are essentially really, really small silicone plugs that are inserted into your tear-ducts to slow down tear drainage; you're not producing more tears, but they take longer to drain from your eye. And my seasonal allergies are gone as Ireland doesn't really have any seasons :) So i went in for an eye test and to my surprise found that my vision had improved...now only -1.0/-0.5. woohoo! now i got some disposable contacts and am enjoying my new found vision :)

Long time, no blog...

It seems like the summer has gone by without a single blog entry from your favorite blogger. I know this fact because when i compare the dates of my previous post to the little date popup at the bottom right side of my computer screen, apply some complex mathematics and turns out a few months have passed. If i didn't have that magnificent little popup, which i admit i've used more times than any other computer program (except for the web browser), i would still think it's spring. why? cause there has not been a summer this year in Dublin...period. rain, clouds, wind for 4 months. wonderful. luckily i managed to escape to Fuerteventura for a wonderful sun-filled week of windsurfing and relaxation. more about windsurfing in a later post.

but now onto a more important topic: the US economy and in particular the event some of us have been waiting for for a while...the housing market crash hehehe. alright, 'crash' is probably much too harsh of a word for what is happening but it's fun to exaggerate once in a while. some economists call it a 'correction' or 'rebalancing'. Im living in Ireland and if you thought the housing market in the US was a little over-cooked...come check out the fine real estate for sale on the emerald isle. For example, this lovely shack on the edges of the city center will be yours for 450,000EUR (multiply by 1.4 for USD or CAD). I imagine this rebalancing will spread to other countries around the world which have gone through the recent housing boom due to 'free money'. Even places like Colombia have had high rises built, the apartments scooped up by foreigners for 200-300k per apartment in a mad frenzy to buy...but how many people actually need a vacation home in Colombia? If not, who's gonna rent the place? And if they have to sell it, will regular Colombian's buy them? Anyway, this topic goes on and on...luckily we have some very smart people up top who know exactly how to help out...idiots.