Jonathan Smith is a web designer, graphic designer, and photographer in Harrisburg, PA.

I couldn’t help but link these two subjects together. With all of the news of large corporations getting bailout money from the government we often see these companies making the news when we see how the money is being spent. Big bonuses and new corporate jets for everyone! Ok, so I am exagerating a bit there. But it has taken the public eye because it is our taxpayer money that is going to these companies. We hope that they will be able to turn their companies around and pay every penny back with interest.

Maybe now more people will understand the anger people feel who pay child support. This is something we have felt forever and yet our concerns fell on deaf ears. Leaving the sexist comments out of this topic because I know that both men and women can pay child support. Our money goes to Domestic Relations which is then sent to the custodial parent. The custodial parent can then spend that money any way they like. They do not have to prove to anyone that the money is spent on the child. Yet not a single person seems to care about this situation. There is absolutely no accountability on the custodial parents part.

As for the person who pays the child support, we are held very accountable. If we decide to not pay, we go to jail. If we miss a payment, we are no longer eligible to purchase a home. These child support laws differ from state to state, and county to county. But I wish the laws would change so that us child support paying parents can see some documentation as to how the money is being spent on our children. Just the way all of us Americans would like to see how the bailout money is being spent by the corporations. We want to see a return on our investment!

My consultation with Premier Eye Care today went as expected. They performed the usual tests and dilated my pupils and took some cool photos of the topography of my eye. The results show that I am a candidate for LASIK or PRK. 

I was told that which ever I chose, I would probably need reading glasses in my 40′s. Unless I chose to only have one eye corrected for myopia. Then I could use one eye for focusing close and the other for focusing far away. They recommended trying to wear just one contact for a few days to see how it feels.

Next comes the price. Premier seems to be a lot more expensive than I had anticipated. Here’s the prices I was quoted.

Intralase LASIK
iLASIK with Intralase FS, Visx Star4 and Advanced CustomVue: $2,495 per eye 

PRK
Epi-LASIK and AST (Advanced Surface Treatment): $2,295 per eye

Enhancements: $190 

That is a lot more than what I was looking at spending. But now I can try a few other places and see what works best. I’m not necessarily looking for the lowest price. But I do want to see what my options are.