Is this a gender thing?

[elettaria]

You know how some people will take off their glasses during conversation, most often for emphasis? Has anyone else noticed that this seems to be a predominantly male practice? The only time I've ever noticed a woman do it is President Roslin in Battlestar Galactica, and I can't think of any women I've seen do it in real life, while I've seen umpteen men do this, both in real life and in films. If you wear glasses, do you do it yourself? I don't, but then I'm just about into severe myopia, so I never wander around without my specs on and have no desire to make life suddenly foggy.

[Poll #1266699]

Comments

[sam-t.livejournal.com]

I can see perfectly well with my glasses on, only after a while I can feel my eye muscles working harder than they should be if I'm looking at things at the wrong distance. I don't know how it affects other people, but taking my glasses off mid-conversation feels a bit awkward to me - after all, it's not something I intended to do. On the other hand, it does give me something else to do with my gaze for those occasions when I'm listening to someone explaining something at length and I really can't look them in the eyes/face any longer without a pause without looking like I'm staring.

[elettaria.livejournal.com]

Eye contact is weird stuff. I've noticed that the norm seems to be that the one listening is the one to keep eye contact, while if you're talking your eyes stray around. Occasionally you meet people who keep unbroken eye contact pretty much all the time, and it generally takes a while to figure out why this person is making you feel subtly uncomfortable. At least, that's my experience.

So are you long-sighted, then? I don't have any useful range of vision without my glasses on, I can't even read. Though I'm not as bad as D, who's well into extreme myopia and even keeps his glasses on in the bath. His focal point is the end of his nose, whereas I can't hold my eyes focused at such short range!

[sam-t.livejournal.com]

Yes I am, sorry - forgot to say so outright.

When I was younger, my vision was fine at all distances further away than my nose but not wearing my glasses for e.g. reading, sewing etc. longer than about half an hour gave me headaches. These days, I can't focus on small print at a comfortable distance for more than a few minutes (seconds, if already tired) before my eyes stop trying. Conversely, I used to wander round absent-mindedly with glasses on (and wonder why my hand-eye co-ordination stopped working) far more than I do now, because now it's harder work to use the glasses when I don't need them.

This means that anyone getting within kissing range is a bit blurry, but that any other sort of social interaction is more comfortable for my eyes if I'm not wearing glasses.