You’ve had that moment – you forgot you had your treasured Swiss army knife in your  carry-on luggage and it had to be confiscated at customs.

Well you are not alone as 2,000 lbs. of tweezers, sunscreen, Swiss army knives, cuticle scissors, body building weights, corkscrews, skates, ski poles, golf putters, tools, hammers and even saws are collected every month at security checkpoints by the Canadian Transport Security Agency at Pierre Elliot Trudeau airport.

About 10 years ago, someone at Maison Victor Gadbois, a palliative-care centre decided to call up and find up what happened to those items. Serendiptitously, the airport was wondering what to do with the tens of thousands of things piling up yearly. All the liquids however – perfume, body lotion, sunscreen, liquor, are destroyed because they don’t know if they have been tainted.

Now, Maison Victor Gadbois receives all the rest of it and uses it as a fundraiser for this end-of-life care center, raising about $50,000 a year. They are displayed at local shows and events, and maybe even shopping malls, with suggested price donations posted on the bins of lighters, scissors, corkscrews, screwdrivers, hammers, small tools and knives of every kind – from steak to hunting. Prices might be $2 or $5 and never higher than $10.

There are about 14 events already posted for this summer, so make sure to refer to their web site for the most convenient time for you to visit their trove of goodies.

By the way, when you get to the checkpoint, you do have options of not losing your stuff. You can hand the item to a non-travelling family member in the airport, or check the item, or mail it home, or some airports offer a place to store it.

“Every month, a ton” said Melanie Marsolais with Maison Victor Gadbois in Beloil –  and that adds up to a ton of money.

Maison Victor Gadbois
Tel: 450-467-1710
Dates of sales: http://www.maisonvictor-gadbois.com/activites

Q1: Recently both the producer and I went shopping for eyeglasses and found the experience trying and pricey, do you have any information to help us?

There are tons of brands so it is pretty hard to comparison shop as you are comparing apples and oranges in most instances.
The glasses you choose are important as they change your whole face, define your personality and become part of your wardrobe. Bring a camera or your phone with you and take a photo of yourself in each pair that you like. Go home and look at yourself on your computer screen.

Q2:  So where can we buy them for decent prices?

Costco has an Optical department.
Some Walmart stores offers Greiche and Scaff outlets in them (e.g. Lasalle, Kirkland Carrefour Laval). Frames run $24.99-$100 there.
Laurier Optical is a home grown chain where you can buy progressives for  $99-299.
Lenscrafters is a huge North American chain. There ares lower prices as they buy in volume. Styles are more middle of the road and less trendy.

Q3: The cost for glasses with progressive lenses seems crazy, why are they so much more expensive?

With progressives, you just can’t  pluck a prescription of a lens off a shelf and slip it into a frame. Almost every lens is made to order because there are so many combinations of near vision, far vision and reading glasses. Also, they may not get the combination right for you the first time. If you are dealing with a good shop, you can come back within about 30/60/90 days, and they will offer to fix the combination for you if it doesn’t seem right – at no extra charge. This is built into that expensive price.

Q4: Any last words of wisdom?

– If the glasses don’t seem right (blurry, dizzy, the ground seems off), don’t let your eyes adjust to the problem, get the glasses corrected.
– Most optical stores anywhere in North America will offer you free minor adjustments (lens pops out, need screws) if you have a problem on the road.
– There are glasses that have no screws between the glass and the frame. They will never loosen and fall apart. You’ll never need that little screwdriver again.
– Carry a spare pair when you are traveling. Just keep your last pair and use those for an emergency.
– Titanium frames are unbreakable. If you are klutzy, you might want to consider them – but they are pricey.