On Mon, 04 Sep 2006 19:12:25 -0400, Bob Noel
wrote:

fwiw - my original medical certificate (1987) had words to the effect
of wearing corrective lenses and possess glasses to correct for near
vision or some such.

Yes, that's what mine says (again, more or less). The idea is that you
must wear the corrective lenses for distance vision, but you can
satisfy the near-vision requirement by carrying your reading glasses.