DR. WALLACE: I've already graduated from high school, I'm 18 and I have a pretty good job. I have to drive about 15 miles to work every morning, and the direction I'm driving puts me in direct sunlight almost every morning.

The glare is pretty tough, but for whatever reason, whenever I try wearing sunglasses, they really feel uncomfortable, and I have to take them off. I mentioned this to a good friend of mine, and he told me that I should force myself to wear them when driving in the glare, both for my automobile safety and to protect my eyes.

Do you think he's just saying this because he loves walking around in sunglasses even sometimes after dark? He's one of those guys who thinks he's cool wearing sunglasses at all hours of the day. That's certainly not my style. I've never felt comfortable wearing sunglasses. Is it really that big of a deal? — I've Made it This Far Without Them, via email

I'VE MADE IT THIS FAR WITHOUT THEM: Even though your friend overuses sunglasses in an effort to look cool, he's right on the two points that matter to your situation.

Studies have shown that sunglasses dramatically cut down glare and enhance safer driving. In addition to that, your eyes will benefit from the filter protection that quality sunglasses provide.

My suggestion is that you absolutely find the most comfortable pair of sunglasses you possibly can and practice wearing them as a passenger in cars. You can also practice wearing them at other times. Gradually, you'll become more comfortable with them and then you should immediately use good sunglasses with UV protection for your morning drive every day.

I'M TRYING SOMETHING DIFFERENT THIS YEAR

DR. WALLACE: My two older brothers are big sports stars at our local high school, where they excel at football, and although I did well playing seventh-grade sports, I'm really interested in music right now and so I decided to play in the eighth-grade band at my school instead. There was a conflict overlap between the two schedules, and I had to choose one.

School just started recently, and I really like learning how to play an instrument. I like sports as well, and I'm pretty good at one in particular. I probably will go out for sports at some point once I'm in high school, but my brothers are ruthlessly teasing me for dropping sports to "play a tuba," even though my chosen instrument is not a tuba or anything close to a tuba. They just like saying that word and laughing at me. Do you feel I'm making a mistake here? — I'm Trying the Band This Year, via email

I'M TRYING TO BAND THIS YEAR: There is absolutely no reason to regret the choice you've made at this point. You've stated that you enjoy learning an instrument and fitting into a band. That's a great life experience in my book.

Yes, I coached varsity sports in high school back in my day, but I also have children and grandchildren who are outstanding musicians, and I'm as proud of them as I possibly can be.

Any challenging, organized endeavor that an individual wishes to try is absolutely worth the effort to pursue and evaluate. As an eighth grader, you still have plenty of time to map out a high school athletic career as you see fit.

In the meantime, tell your brothers that they would benefit more by studying their football playbooks than wasting their breath teasing you relentlessly. You can tell them that you got the joke the first time, and now it's simply boring to hear them yammer about the same thing. Tell them it's like a football team running the same unsuccessful play over and over without any positive results — not a good use of time and effort.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at rwallace@thegreatestgift.com. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: Janosch Diggelmann at Unsplash