Light Bulbs

Light bulbs have pushed me RIGHT OVER THE EDGE.

The bulb in my kitchen blew. No problem. I go up to my linen closet only to discover that I used the last of the light bulbs that Christopher bought for me probably, oh, three or four years ago. Still no problem. I should have saved the package, but I am a woman of reasonable intelligence. I will go to the store and buy my own darn light bulbs.

Problem.

Have you been to the light bulb aisle in the store lately? There’s day light, night light, soft light, soft white, extra soft white, electric, household electric, fluorescent, 3 way, compact, compact fluorescent, flame tip, general, vanity, 15 watt, 25 watt, 45 watt, 60 watt, 100 watt, 125 watt, track, flood, globe, frost, decorative, inside frost, natural, enhanced natural, clarity, and energy-saving.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I just want a light bulb for my kitchen. NONE of them say “for your kitchen”.

So I called my Dad. He said, “Just buy a standard light bulb. A 75 watter should do you.” Wise guy. Which one of the above choices is “standard”? And NONE of the boxes said 75!

I JUST WANT A LIGHT BULB FOR MY KITCHEN!

It's times like this I miss my brother the most. I can practically hear him rolling his eyes.

Maybe it's just time for me to get out for a couple hours. I think I will get a sitter, call Hope, and go throw darts someplace. Screw the light bulbs.

Michael said...
I was in Vegas lately, and it was very clear that every casino on the strip was trying to outdo all the others with "the most. The most size, the most lights, the most skimpy outfits on the girls, the most... You get the idea. All of this designed to attract the attention of wide-eyed tourists, and seduce them to empty their wallets.

Same with most everything in retail. Same with light bulbs.

"Soft" means there is a coating inside the lamp to help diffuse the outgoing light and prevent harsh, stark shadows... i.e. to create "soft" shadows. That is the current "standard" light bulb your dad was talking about.

Sidebar - In the name of energy conservation, there is a legislative push to outlaw incandescent lamps (the ones with a tungsten filament) in favor of fluorescent ones. The industry rightly claims that fluorescent lamps use less energy to produce the same amount of light. However, in my experience, fluorescent lamps do not last anywhere near as long as incandescent lamps unless you leave them on continuously. The on-off cycles seem to dramatically shorten the life of fluorescent lamps.

>day light For folks who dislike the yellow-orange color tint of “standard” incandescent lamps, these babies enhances the blue end of the spectrum.

>night light Very low wattage

>soft light Diffused for soft shadows

>soft white an early attempt at making the light look more like daylight

> household electric most likely for appliances, such as in your oven or fridge

>3 way For use in special lamp sockets that provide three lighting choices. If you don’t know what this is, you don’t own one.

>compact, compact fluorescent, Reduced size of the glass envelope for use in tight confines, such as the insoide of curio or china cabinets

>flame tip For living room chandeliers

>vanity For use around bathroom mirrors where there is no additional decorative glass to make it look pretty and diffuse the light.

>15 watt, 25 watt, 45 watt, 60 watt, 100 watt, 125 watt The lower the wattage, the dimmer the bulb.

>track With built in reflectors to channel light and heat down away from the ceiling.

>flood Light is directed into a general area by an internal reflector.

>globe A variation of Vanity.

>frost A variation of “soft”

>natural, enhanced natural Variations of full-spectrum lighting (enhanced blue end of the spectrum)

>clarity Marketing gimmick

>energy-saving. So they say. The best way to save energy on an incandescent lamp is to run it on a dimmer and NEVER turn the dimmer all the way up. Running the lamp at 90% power makes it last forever and uses less wattage.

As with everything else, you get what you pay for, so if you buy the very cheapest you can find, you will replace them more often. Stay in the middle of the road.

Good luck.

Serena said...
Good heavens. I'm going to need all the luck I can get!

Thank you, Obiwan. I've printed this out to take to the store as a 'cheat sheet'.

It's funny how this worked... There are certain things I have always, without fail, relied on the man in my life for. "Hey, Chris, I'm out of light bulbs and the kitchen light blew." "No problem. I'll grab some on my way over." And he does his guy thing in the guy store and comes home with exactly what I need. I never knew I didn't know how to buy light bulbs because I've never done it!

Never again. I'm going to tackle the extension cord aisle next. I am woman - hear me roar! (After, of course, initial whimpering over the magnitude of it all...) :D

Palin Scares Me.

I read a blog entry about Palin's religious beliefs. Frightening, at best. So this was in the back of my mind when I was listening to NPR the other morning, and they were discussing the release of the candidate's medical records, and the rethuglican party is going to release Palin's medical records "soon. Very, very soon." I wondered if they are having trouble finding them...after all, do witch doctors, er, I mean, annointed healers, keep written records?

Then I watched the vice-presidential debate. I want a vice-president that can answer questions in relatively complete, grammatically correct sentences.

Is that too much to ask for?

Chains

As I'm sitting here typing, Ian has informed me that he wants a chain that he can tie around two of his belt loops to make a loop.

Why?

For decoration!

It reminds me of that Jeff Foxworthy red neck routine...

"If both your dog and your wallet are on a chain . . . you might be a Red Neck."

What's up with the chain thing? Does anyone have a clue? Please tell me this isn't another baggy-pants-with-your-underwear-showing type of fashion statement...

Shoelaces

Ian’s shoes are forever coming untied. He knows how to tie his shoes, but not tight, so the laces, more often than not, come undone.

Today, we were getting ready to leave Marco’s after Aikido and Ian’s shoe is untied, so I tell him to tie it. And he can’t because the laces are full of knots.

I asked him how this could happen. Remind me not to do that again.

Robert did it.

What do you mean, Robert did it?

He tied pencils to my shoes. And little pencil boxes.

Why did he do that?

He sneaked!

Wait a minute. He is tying pencils to your shoelaces, and you didn’t notice?

No! He SNEAKED!

I’m sitting on the floor trying to get the knots out of his laces, and Joe tried to get the real story out of him. He stuck to it, though.

Robert must be pretty amazing, to be able to tie pencils and pencil boxes to Ian’s shoes and not even be noticed.

I just do Not understand boys.

I love my Aveo.

It's a great little car. I'm getting well over 30 miles to the gallon. Plus, it fits me! I can see over the dash AND reach the pedals AT THE SAME TIME. I like that in a car.

Ian also loves the car. Webkinz have taken up residence in the back seat, and Ian tells me they love the car, too.

The only thing I do not like about it, in fact, cannot stand about it, is that god-awful new car smell. UGH! It is nauseating. Ian and I went to Target and bought about six car air fresheners and cracked them all open. Now the car smells like polyurethane, glue and soap. I'm driving with the windows open. Hopefully it won't last long.

Bumper Sticker

Good Thing Joe's Got a Sense of Humor

Aquarium alert!

First, you have to know that I often sit in the deli next door to Ian's Aikido dojo, Marco's Italian Deli, and do my homework while Ian takes class. The guy that puts up with me is Joe, but Ian, for the longest time and against all reason, believed Joe's name was REALLY Marco.

Ian has now decided on permanent names for his other two fish: Marco and Vinnie. Marco and Vinnie chase each other around the tank, while Ian sits in front of the tank pretending they are talking. "You wanna piece a me?" "Hey, leave me alone-a. I gotta maka my sangwiches!"

I feel like I've got The Godfather Fish Tank going on. Mr. Kahn, Marco and Vinnie. Joe would probably get a kick out of it.

Hook, Line and Sinker

At the dealership, I was telling the salesman what I wanted/needed in the car I was about to buy. I knew, from research, that the Aveo was available in either a 4-door sedan or a 5-door hatchback.

The saleman looked at me and said, "So, how many doors do you need?"

I looked at Ian, looked back at the salesman and said, "Really, I only need one. He can slide across the seat."

The salesman didn't miss a beat. "One it is, then! Or, even better, you could drop him in the sunroof!"

"Yeah! I'd have to stop feeding him, though, so he doesn't get too big."

"You're right." He looks at Ian and says, "And carbs put weight on you, so no more macaroni and cheese for you!"

Ian looked absolutely stricken. As we were biking home from the dealership, my beautiful little boy said, "Mommy, can we please get two doors on the car?" It was all I could do not to laugh. I said sure, and we left it at that.

A few days later, I picked up the car, and Ian was thrilled to discover it was the 5-door hatchback. Joe from the Deli asked him, "Hey! I thought it was supposed to have only 1 door! How'd you get your Mom to get all those doors?" Ian just grinned and said, "I don't know! She just did!"

He's going to need psychotherapy when he grows up, I just know it.

Somebody Play Taps

{heavy sigh}

My Car Broke.

My poor, poor baby. The clutch finally had enough on Wednesday, when I actually made it home in second gear.

It needs the clutch kit and flywheel. The cheapest price I can get to have it fixed is $1500. In general, the car also needs a new power steering hose and valve gasket seal. Whatever those are, they are apparently leaking. I'll also need tires about mid-winter, they guestimate.

To get the car back to where I need it to drive, it will cost me about $2000, which includes tires. I've never replaced anything on this car besides the tires, so this is my first major repair. It is 11 years old, and has almost 100,000 miles on it. Everything on it is original.

Decision time. Should I put $2000 into a car that is, at best, worth $500? Kelly Blue Book value for this car is $690 for "fair" condition. If I repaired the car, and got into an accident tomorrow, I'd only get something like $250 from the insurance company. As my boss said, when I pondered this with him, it does not make good economic sense to put $2000 into an 11 year old car with 100,000 miles on it.

So I will take my money and put it down on a new car. I found one I really like, too. It reminds me of my last favorite car, a 1981 Citation, that died when I lived with my brother. I loved that car, and I cried my eyes out when the tow truck came to take it to Chevy Heaven.

Anyway, the Chevy Aveo is my choice. I test drove a bunch of cars, but the Aveo is the most comfortable for me, not only in price, but also in size. Here it is:

Winter is Coming

It was 46 degrees when I left to bike to work this morning! Brrrr!!! I am NOT ready for this!

JT said...
Not missing that AT ALL... been nice here in the mid to upper 70's...:)

Serena said...
Rub it in, rub it in. I need to move somewhere warmer. Who'da thunk Seattle would qualify?

Aquarium

Hope gave us a 7 gallon fish tank with a filter and heater. She said to start it with tropical fish.

On Friday, the senior partner at the law firm I work at, Dennis Kahn, came to Ian and asked what his plans for the weekend are. Ian responded that we were going to buy fish. He asked Ian, "If I give you some money, will you buy a great fish and name him Mr. Kahn?" Ian, of course, said, "Sure!" Here he is, our fish, Mr. Kahn:

There are actually three fish in the tank, but they move so quick, I had trouble getting a picture of them. They are Zebra Danios, a hardy fish that is good for starter tanks. Apparently bacteria has to build up in the tank (eeeuuuu) in order for the fish to live healthily.

I wonder what I've gotten myself into.

"Party Guy" - Sarah Vowell

An interesting opinion from the New York Times, September 7, 2008, concerning the presidential election:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/07/opinion/07vowell.html?ex=1378440000&en=f38dca75da3a2a4e&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

My Final Semester

The semester, my final semester at ECC, has begun. I am taking Calculus II, Business Finance, Marketing I, and Intro to Theater. I'm thinking the Theater course will be the most fun this semester.

With a little luck, I'll have my Associates in December. Provided, of course, that I can make it through Calculus. {heavy sigh!}

Telling It Like It Is

This was originally posted in October of 2007, but I just ran across it, and thought it interesting.

http://www.patcondell.net/

Family Picnic

Lani and Dad invited Ian and I out to their place for an afternoon of games followed by dinner on the gril. Here they are, with Ian and Justine (Cindee's daughter), playing with a huge frisbee.

It was a beautiful day! I'm glad we were welcome there.

Change is good!

HEEELLLLLLPPPPP!

I'm reviewing calculus in preparation for the semester to start on 9/2. There's no hope for me, I think. Can anyone help with this one? Liiike, Jehf, maybe? :D (Calvin and I have such faith in you.)

[antiderivative symbol] √(4-x) dx

I'm thinking it would be [antiderivative symbol] (4-x)^1/2 dx, but then do I use the formula [antiderivative symbol] x^r dx = (1/r+1) x^(r+1) + C?

I'm getting lost.

JT said...
I got (4-x)^3/2---------- + x3/2by the first rule of Anti-diff. (Anti symbol) x^n dx = x^n+1 divided by n+1 then + C. Hard to show here.. call or email with questions!

JT said...
CALL ME!!

Serena said...
I will - I'm just struggling with the time change. When you're getting home from work, we're heading for bed!

Calvin says hi, by the way. :D

149 Days Left

"I try to go for longer runs, but it's tough around here at the White House on the outdoor track. It's sad that I can't run longer. It's one of the saddest things about the presidency."

- George W. Bush, interview with Runner's World, August 2002

Taken from my Bad President Calendar, August 24, 2008

Check-Up

I had my 4-month blood pressure check today. I'm 'normal' and I've lost 15 pounds.

WHOO HOO!

Note to Self

Ian wants to know how fast the Earth spins, and he figures it's about 500 miles per hour, because when we are on the thruway doing 55 miles per hour, that's really fast, and the Earth moves faster.

I have to remember to show him this website:

http://www.livescience.com/mysteries/070312_earth_moves.html