Random Moment of Defeat

As I was leaving work and about to step onto the elevator last night, I went to rub my tired eyes. In rubbing my eyes I somehow managed to knock my glasses off my head. I made a grab to catch them but only bobbled them in my hands, causing both lenses to pop out in different directions. With a second swipe I managed to catch one of the lenses but the frames and the other lens fell straight into the crack between the elevator and the floor, down into the elevator shaft and down 27 floors to the ground. This happened as an Asian man waiting in the elevator looked on in bemused disbelief. He politely said "good luck" before the doors closed and he continued on his way.

Using my one lens as a monocle, I was able to find a maintenance worker who volunteered to go into the chamber at the bottom of the elevator shaft and look for the frames and other lens. He told me as he was entering the chamber that I couldn't tell anyone what he was doing because, technically, the elevators are supposed to be shut off before anyone enters the chamber because, otherwise, you might get squished by a descending elevator. I started to say, "Well it's not worth..." but he was already gone, bobbing and weaving around the descending elevators, scanning the ground with his flashlight and then peering up at the elevators to make sure none were about to squish him.

Amazingly, he found my frames still in tact but could not find my lens. He said it could have landed on a ledge on any of the 26 floors below and would likely never be recovered. Fortunately, I had my prescription sunglasses in my car which enabled me to drive home. I don't normally recommend driving in the dark wearing sunglasses but if you have to drive in the dark wearing sunglasses, LA is a good place to do it because there is a lot of ambient light and most people never take off their sunglasses anyway.

The point of this post is that you should always make sure that your glasses and other belongings are properly secured before you step onto an elevator. I wouldn't want anyone else to have to learn this lesson the hard way.