Replacing Light Bulbs

Driving.  All around.  From place to place to place.

And at every stop ... there was only one thing to do.  Look for the lights ... that weren't turned on.  Then check out the bulbs.

It was important that they ... the lights ... be turned on.  Very, very important.
There was a sense of urgency ... to the task.

Light ... after all ... is a form of energy that makes it possible to ... see things.

Sometime the lights were in the ceiling.  And other times they were lamps. On tables.
On the floor. On the wall.  Inside lights. Outside lights.  Lights to read by.  Lights to work by.  Lights to illuminate a path from one place to the next.

Each time I would encounter a light ... unlit ... I would frantically attempt to discover why ...
it wasn't shining.

Was it as simple as flipping the switch?  Could it be a cord unplugged?  Or was it the bulb?

That was my mission.  To locate the ... burned out ... bulbs.
And replace them.

If there was no beam ... no radiance ... I would unscrew the bulb and gently shake it.  Listening for the rattling sound of the broken filament against the glass.

Once identified ... I would quickly reach into my back pack ... and find a replacement bulb.

As I traveled from place to place ... in and out ... checking the lights, I was totally unaware of the backpack.  But as soon as I would discover the loss of light, the backpack brimming with bulbs
was readily at hand.

No matter the size, wattage or design, the exact one needed was there.  

Incandescent are the most common and are what traditionally comes to mind when one thinks of a light bulb.  They begin to glow when electrical current passes through a filament ... not really energy efficient ... but the best for high levels of brightness.

The government has now mandated that ALL incandescent bulbs must produce the same amount of brightness using less energy. ( US Energy and Independence Act of 2007). So instead of 100 watt bulbs ... they are 72 watt bulbs ... only they are now to be called 1500 lumen bulbs.
Guess that's to give the false impressions that there are no lapses in ... brightness.

Interesting ... to me ... that the government thinks it can regulate ... how bright my light shines.

Anyway ... in my dream ... all of the bulbs are old-fashion incandescent bulbs.
The ones that burn the brightest.

So I am driving about ... checking out the lights ...

Spot lights. Night lights. Plant lights. Lights beside sofas. Stake lights. Strings of lights. Globes. Lights on coffee tables.  Plain ole lights in the ceiling.

Some bulbs were tiny like Christmas lights ... others were big orbs found over bathroom mirrors ... occasionally they were decorative tear drop and flame shapes ... but most were those common ... every day ... ordinary light bulbs ... in that shape most often used to symbolize a ... great idea.

So what causes light bulbs to burn out?

Some common reasons include heat & humidity, changes in temperature, vibration,
rapid on-and-off switching, and not leaving the light on long enough when put into use.

In other words ... light bulbs ...burn out ... due to the normal wear-and-tear & demands
of every day life.

The dream was one of those that is intense in the moment.  I would wake up frantic ... and exhausted ... then rolling back over to continue the quest for the outages.  It was ... as if ... time was running out.  Like a video game, of sorts ... where my worth would be evaluated by the number of bulbs I replaced ... by the lights that were replenished ... not so much by anything I had to offer ... but simply because I took notice.

A few minutes and a new bulb ... from which the existing light would once again shine ...
that was all that was required of me.

It wasn't really obvious to me whether I was winning or losing.  I just knew that I had no choice but to take action ... to search for the missing lights.

To dream of a light bulb indicates movement into a new direction.

That was a week or so ago.

More recent nights ... have had me running through a tunnel ... in total darkness.  Something is chasing me ... but I can't see it ... due to the burned out lights. And I have no idea where the beginning or end is ... to the tunnel.

How deep is the dark?

I can hear IT following behind me .. it's pace always the same as mine.

If I am moving slowly ... it's moving slowly.  If I speed up, it speeds up.  When I am running and feeling out of breath, I can hear the thuds of steps and the panting ... the heavy breathing ... from it's exertion as well.

One night, I was awakened by the scary sounds I was making aloud ... even as I was sleeping.  Sounds like muffled screams.  I knew the moment I was awake and alert that I had been trying to scream ... but nothing would come out.

An unexplained scratch ... appeared behind my right ear.  Two thin red lines ... scabbing just enough to let me know that the wound is real.

I am wondering ... did the backpack somehow get lost in the chase?  Or will the bulbs be there .. within easy reach ... to restore the light ... should I allow myself to stop and make a stand ...
in the dark?

Do not be afraid, MJ!

The light isn't at the end of the tunnel ... it's wherever you are ... right now. 

(c) February 2015

www.lifelessons-mj.blogspot.com