Intro
Six days ago I began my last quarter of undergraduate studies at Rose-Hulman. Each day, I have made time to hit the gym, lifting weights, cycling, and running on a treadmill, albeit without a specific routine. I've been looking for a good routine to help me prepare for OCS, but most I found assumed I was already somewhat close to PFT standards and only needed to improve a bit. I finally found one that claims I can start now, at my present state of physical (non)fitness.
The full program can be read here.
More after the break.
UPDATE: Calendar added
I have created a public calendar for all the exercises I will be doing over the next 12 weeks. Click here to subscribe or click here to view it online.
20091120
Step 1 – finalized.
On Thursday, 19 November 2009, I stopped by Whitson Vision in Indianapolis, IN for my “6 month” post-operation follow-up.
The results are in: I have 20/15* vision in both my eyes. Dr. Smith commented, “you can’t even tell we touched your eyes!”
This is excellent news. It means that my eyes will not prevent me from serving as a pilot in the United States Marine Corps.
Dr. Smith informed me that I did not need to be scheduled for any more follow-up appointments, but she also advised that I should have my eyes checked once every 1-2 years simply to watch for any changes, side effects, or eye diseases. The checkups need not necessarily be by Whitson Vision, but if I were to have any problems, I should contact them directly right away.
Caleb, out.
The results are in: I have 20/15* vision in both my eyes. Dr. Smith commented, “you can’t even tell we touched your eyes!”
*How is visual acuity measured? Find out here.
This is excellent news. It means that my eyes will not prevent me from serving as a pilot in the United States Marine Corps.
Dr. Smith informed me that I did not need to be scheduled for any more follow-up appointments, but she also advised that I should have my eyes checked once every 1-2 years simply to watch for any changes, side effects, or eye diseases. The checkups need not necessarily be by Whitson Vision, but if I were to have any problems, I should contact them directly right away.
Caleb, out.
20090428
Step 1 - check.
Today is the 7th day since I underwent PRK to correct my vision. I had the 1-week follow-up meeting yesterday, and this is what I learned.
The top 2 layers of my cornea, which were scraped off during the procedure, have healed fully. The inner layers of the cornea, which were affected by the laser, may take several more weeks to fully heal, but they are looking good so far. With neither eye was I able to read from the 20/20 line, but when using both eyes together, I could read about 3/5 of the 20/20 line's letters. I'm OK to drive. As the rest of my cornea heals, my vision, which is still a bit blurry, should clear up the rest of the way.
If I had to describe the way my eyes feel and the way that I am seeing, I would say that it seems like my contacts aren't quite sitting right. If I was still wearing lenses, I would consider taking them out for a while. Alas, this is not an option for me; I can't wait until my eyes clear up the rest of the way, but I am so glad that I don't have to "take my eyes out" every night any more!
I still need to schedule another follow-up not sooner than 4 weeks from now. Since that starts to move in on Graduation territory, I suggested to my parents that they seek to extend their hotel reservation in Terre Haute by a night so that we may simply head back to Fort Wayne on Monday, stopping in Indianapolis for the appointment on the way through. I was informed that this appointment should be at least 4 weeks from now, but could be moved back to fit with my schedule, so there is some flexibility there. Also, my eyes will be dilated, so I can't just drive myself down for it. Regardless of those details, we'll figure out a way to get there, and hopefully my eyes will be even better by then!
Caleb, out.
The top 2 layers of my cornea, which were scraped off during the procedure, have healed fully. The inner layers of the cornea, which were affected by the laser, may take several more weeks to fully heal, but they are looking good so far. With neither eye was I able to read from the 20/20 line, but when using both eyes together, I could read about 3/5 of the 20/20 line's letters. I'm OK to drive. As the rest of my cornea heals, my vision, which is still a bit blurry, should clear up the rest of the way.
If I had to describe the way my eyes feel and the way that I am seeing, I would say that it seems like my contacts aren't quite sitting right. If I was still wearing lenses, I would consider taking them out for a while. Alas, this is not an option for me; I can't wait until my eyes clear up the rest of the way, but I am so glad that I don't have to "take my eyes out" every night any more!
I still need to schedule another follow-up not sooner than 4 weeks from now. Since that starts to move in on Graduation territory, I suggested to my parents that they seek to extend their hotel reservation in Terre Haute by a night so that we may simply head back to Fort Wayne on Monday, stopping in Indianapolis for the appointment on the way through. I was informed that this appointment should be at least 4 weeks from now, but could be moved back to fit with my schedule, so there is some flexibility there. Also, my eyes will be dilated, so I can't just drive myself down for it. Regardless of those details, we'll figure out a way to get there, and hopefully my eyes will be even better by then!
Caleb, out.
20090330
Step 1: Fixing my Eyes
Prelude
Some may argue that this isn't the first step since I started actively pursuing this during summer 2008. I agree with those some, but remember, I'm a Computer Science major, which means I use a 0-based counting system. Thus, "Step 0" was to contact the Marines and begin making plans to get this show on the road, or in the air, as the case may be. (Refer to my MySpace blog for more of the info on the background/Step 0.)
Schedule
My natural, uncorrected eyesight is nowhere near to good enough to fly. Before I can pass the flight physical to get into the program, I must be six months post-op from eye surgery. In order to make that happen as soon as possible, I have to get the surgery as soon as possible. So I have scheduled PRK for both eyes on April 21 at Whitson Vision in Indianapolis, IN.
Payment
My parents have been gracious enough to pay for the $4,200 procedure up front, allowing me to pay them back over time without interest. I'm going to make payments as I can, and whatever balance I still owe them, if any, will be squared away when I receive my commission bonus.
Caleb, out.
Some may argue that this isn't the first step since I started actively pursuing this during summer 2008. I agree with those some, but remember, I'm a Computer Science major, which means I use a 0-based counting system. Thus, "Step 0" was to contact the Marines and begin making plans to get this show on the road, or in the air, as the case may be. (Refer to my MySpace blog for more of the info on the background/Step 0.)
Schedule
My natural, uncorrected eyesight is nowhere near to good enough to fly. Before I can pass the flight physical to get into the program, I must be six months post-op from eye surgery. In order to make that happen as soon as possible, I have to get the surgery as soon as possible. So I have scheduled PRK for both eyes on April 21 at Whitson Vision in Indianapolis, IN.
Payment
My parents have been gracious enough to pay for the $4,200 procedure up front, allowing me to pay them back over time without interest. I'm going to make payments as I can, and whatever balance I still owe them, if any, will be squared away when I receive my commission bonus.
Caleb, out.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)