Late at night

One of the things I love about Radio 4 is that you never know what you'll find when you switch on late at night. I put it on last night at 11:30 to listen to as I drifted off and found a programme called "A Sense of Place" which was clips of people who live or work near Waterloo Bridge or just commute over it regularly which was really lovely - very relaxing. I particularly like that style of programme where there's no presenter, it's just people talking. And there was a woman on it who sounded just like zoo_music_girl - anything to confess?

Of course some of the time you get a ropey old sitcom (specifically if you switched it on at 11 last night in fact) but that's just the way it goes - when you make the effort to commission lots of new stuff then some of it is going to be a bit rubbish but it's worth it for the stuff that turns out to be right on the button.

20-20

I've just taken my first step towards 20-20 vision. I've worn glasses or contacts since I was seven. I had a seat near the back of the class and I always used to take my exercise book and lean on the teachers desk in front of the blackboard so that I could see to copy from it. When she called me on it I explained that I couldn't see it from my desk and she sent me to an optician who said "Blimey - what rubbish eyes" (or something) and thus my fate was sealed. If I'd known a little more about evolutionary theory at the time I would have realised that with two parents with glasses, one of whom was extremely short sighted, I was always likely to end up needing glasses. I didn't get teased about them (I'm not sure the other kids realised that they were something you were supposed to mock) but I hated them. They were heavy and kept slipping down my nose. I still couldn't see things out of the corner of my eye. When I was riding or something else that made me very hot as well as slipping down my nose even more they would mist up at the sides.

When I was older I nagged and nagged my parents to let me have contact lenses. I practiced holding my eyes open and touching the eyeball so as to be sure I'd be able to put them in. The optician wasn't sure - he didn't think I'd take care of them properly - but my parents persuaded him that I was very sensible and I got them for my 15th birthday. They were, and still are, fantastic. I've got peripheral vision. I can combine them with cheap sunglasses I don't have to worry about, I can still see in the rain without having to stare at the ground the whole time. But they do have their disadvantages. I can't easily stay out at someone’s house (I've got to the point now where I always carry a spare case but they don't do the soaking solution in handbag sized bottles). Camping is a problem. So is swimming. Getting a bit of grit in the eye really really hurts (which can cause problems if it happens while cycling). And in the end, I can't wear them all the time. If I get up to change the CDs on the CD player I can't quite tell, looking back at Alex in the bed, whether he's making a face or not. If I want to read before I go to bed I have to hold the book up to my nose.

So, as you can imagine, as soon as I heard about laser eye surgery I wanted it. But it was expensive, risky and took a while to recover from. But of course that was then and this is now. 5 years is a long time in technology. Now you can get your eyes fixed by Boots opticians. It only takes 20mins, will give nearly everyone 20-20 vision and carries hardly any risk. You can even be back working on VDUs the next day. And it only costs £2500 for both eyes - a big hit for one go but I am still eligible for graduate loans. So I'm going for an initial eye test tomorrow to assess whether I'll be a suitable candidate, whether they can give it all back to me. Keep your fingers crossed.