Here’s A Thing
The light in our closet went out. It’s a fluorescent fixture with two four foot tubes and one of them had burned out. I bought a pair of replacements, might as well change them both, and brought in the eight foot A-Frame ladder to do the job. Not a problem.
Here’s The Problem
The fixture uses the smaller, mini-tubes. They are the same length, but different diameter. The tubes I bought were of course the large diameter tubes and wouldn’t fit.
It’s A Bulb Thing
I’m a big fan of electricity and electric lights. I’ve grown up with them. I’ve never known a day without indoor lighting. Except of course when camping in the wilderness. Even in 3rd world countries without electricity, I’ve stayed in hotels powered by generators.
There are all kinds of light bulbs in my house:
fluorescent bulbs and tubes
incandescent bulbs
low and high wattage bulbs
energy efficient curly bulbs
refrigerator bulbs
oven light bulbs
tulip style bulbs
mini-lights under the kitchen cabinets
desk light bulbs
flashlight bulbs
three in one bulbs
spot light bulbs
small and large base bulbs
night light bulbs
media room bulbs
bathroom fixtures bulbs
wide/large bulbs for the kitchen “can” lights
and more…..
Are you kidding me? Really? Mr. Edison would be so happy.
Why Does It Matter?
It doesn’t matter, not really. But up on that ladder, realizing that my closet’s low-end light fixture utilizes “special fluorescent tubes” just struck me as odd.
When did I become special, so deserving of so many light fixtures? If I had to replace all the bulbs currently in my home it would take at least twenty different kinds. And some of the individual types would need at least a dozen or more.
This morning, at 6:15, I walked through the house and counted 96 bulbs currently installed. They are rarely, if ever, all turned on at the same time, but still, nearly 100 light bulbs!
Some Questions
- Are we afraid of the dark?
- When did light become a fashion thing?
- Just how bright does every room, corner, and closet need to be?
- Are we in danger of catching the dreaded “dark-disease?”
- And besides the 96 light bulbs, there must be a dozen candles in our house.
Are we lost our minds?
Finally