lightbulbs and potatoes

contrary to the title, this one doesn't have anything to do with potatoes. not literally anyway.



people are like lightbulbs.

when they first get into the working world, they do their best to shine. like a new lightbulb.

they work hard, they put forth a strong presence in their field, like new lightbulbs that you freshly pop into the lamp to replace that one that blew. and as those who have changed their own lightbulbs would have noticed, the new lightbulb often 'doesn't feel the same' though you undoubtedly understand the desire and/or need for a new one, and that 'the new one' isn't 'the old one'.

that applies to lovers and spouses as well as people within the workplace, no?


and unless you have one of those electrical mojo gadgets that control the brightness (i believe they're called radiance regulators?) - chances are the light's going to be too bright, too harsh, too 'white', too - you get the idea - and while it is 'like the other one that left you groping in the dark' it is 'not the same'. you, regrettably, prefer (or shoudl i say 'miss' - should it be possible to actually miss a blown lightbulb? heh) the one that gave on you all the while understanding that it won't be the same. you'd endured through that one's first stark efficacy and as time went by, it not just did its job of illuminating the words of your nighttime read but mellowed and provided you with a seasoned glow that you grew comfortable with and had accompanied you through many an adventure in a book you're using as a bedtime read.


...but when a bulb's blown a bulb's blown - you have to get a replacement or you'd be stumbling in your daily (nightly) trials.

and the office tube giving on you and blinking incessantly trying to give you what it used to or remembering the bulb in your bedside lamp has died only after you'd flicked the switch on is something anyone can relate to.


- isn't that terribly like people too?

when someone joins the company, he tries his best to shine, to make his presence known and felt. that chap may be too cheerful, too hardworking, too efficient - an eager beaver. a new bulb. efficient, but irritating.

but as time goes by, the new bulb settles in to the flow of things and instead of casting harsh shadows it becomes "warm" and "forgiving" though at the same time still glows enough to allow you to see the faults/details of the surroundings should you WANT to examine the plaster on the wall.

and when the bulb's at that stage you enjoy it; its presence, its function. you will continue to enjoy that for a while, too. until of course, something happens and that bulb goes.

sometimes it's not the bulb, but a case of decayed wire (don't ask me how that happens - it does. but don't ask me how) and can be fixed. other times, something in the bulb's broken though it still tries to give you its support (them blinking office lights) but acheiving possibly nothing more than supreme irritation - and it makes better sense for you to get a new one.

or make do without one, let the nearby florescent chip in with their radiance until you get around to getting a replacement. if it's not crucial that you have that lightbulb up and lighting, of course.


..and isn't that similar to people?


amazing what the mind turns up in the middle of the night, eh.