Why I Just Spent P10,000 on Glasses (And How I "Hacked" the Payment)

The "Glitch" in My System

For the last few months, I’ve been ignoring a bug in my own body. As an IT professional, I stare at monitors for 8 to 10 hours a day. I thought the headaches and the blurry text were just "tired eyes."

I was wrong. My system wasn't tired; the hardware was failing.

Last week, on February 2, 2026, I finally admitted defeat. We went to SM City Butuan with my wife, and walked into EO Executive Optical. I told myself I was just going to "look around."

I walked out with a bill for Php10,000, but I also walked out seeing the world in 4K resolution again. Here is why I did it—and how I paid for it without breaking the bank.

The Diagnostic Test

If you haven't had an eye exam since you were a kid, it’s different now. It feels like a server diagnostic.

I sat down at the machine—the one with the little hot air balloon picture inside. Then came the reading test. This was the wake-up call. The doctor asked me to read the bottom line. I couldn't. It looked like a smudge.

Then she switched lenses. Suddenly, the smudge turned into letters. It was shocking. I didn't realize how bad my "normal" vision had become until I saw what "good" vision actually looked like.

The Verdict: Distance + Reading The doctor explained that my eyes were struggling with two things:

Distance: I couldn't see clearly when driving or looking across the room.

Near Sight: I was squinting to read my phone or inspect a motherboard.

She recommended a specialized lens that handles both. No taking glasses on and off. Just one pair to rule them all.

The Finance Hack: BDO Installment Then came the hard part—the price tag. The total bill for the frame and the specialized lenses came to roughly P10,000.00.

My "frugal finance" brain wanted to panic. Dropping P10k in one day hurts. It affects my monthly cash flow.

But then I asked about payment options. It turns out, using my BDO Credit Card, I could split the payment into a 6-month installment plan.

Option A: Pay P10,000 cash now (Ouch).

Option B: Pay roughly P1,666 per month for 6 months.

I chose Option B immediately. Why? In IT, we call this "Load Balancing." Instead of crashing my budget with a massive one-time expense, I distributed the "traffic" over half a year.

This allows me to keep my cash on hand for real emergencies, while still getting the glasses I need today.

The ROI (Return on Investment) It has been a few days since the checkup, and the difference is night and day. No more squinting. No more afternoon headaches.

If you are reading this on your phone and holding it a little further away, or if the road signs look fuzzy when you drive through Butuan, don't be stubborn like me.

Go to the mall. Get the checkup. And if the price scares you, ask about installments. Your eyes are the only hardware you can't replace.


Disclaimer: I am Mark V., an IT professional, not an optometrist or financial advisor. This is my personal experience at EO Optical. Always check interest rates before signing up for installments.