"Slow and steady" often does beat out "fast and furious." It's an odd thing for a financial type to say, but that's been my experience. I say, "slow and steady" because that's what the eye care business is all about.

This industry is one of my favorite investment themes for medium- to long-term investors. The fact is that, eventually, if not already, the majority of us will need some kind of corrective eye care. Eye care's not as sexy as the high technology industry, but it does pay.

LCA-Vision Inc. (NASDAQ/LCAV) is one of the most successful laser eye surgery firms on the market. The stock's been a huge moneymaker over the last couple of years, and its upward trend looks fairly intact. This mid-cap company really knows what it's doing when it comes to laser eye surgery.

A super micro-cap company that I came across earlier this year is also very interesting. Coastal Contact Inc. (TSXV/COA) sells contact lenses and related products over the Internet and telephone. This is a Canadian company, trading on the TSX Venture Exchange in Canadian dollars. The company's been growing significantly over the last 18 months and has a loyal customer base.

Finally, there is IntraLase Corp. (NASDAQ/ILSE). This is a company that makes the sophisticated lasers that are used in laser eye surgery. This company is selling its product all over the world and recently went public on the NASDAQ. Even large-cap Bausch & Lomb Inc. (NYSE/BOL) is doing well in this market.

As you can tell, I really like the eye care industry. On a daily basis, I continually keep my eyes open (sorry about that pun!) for new investment opportunities related to the eye care business.

At the end of the day, eye care is a demographic, fundamental investment theme with long-term staying power.