I was sitting in my family room last night and, as I am sometimes want to do, I glanced up at the light fixtures on the ceiling.  They were lit with a soft, warm, beautiful light that really made the whole scene inviting.  This room is a place my family calls The Lodge, and it has wood floors and ceiling, with a knotty pine bar and light fixtures with ornate tree leaves carved into them.  It’s a place that gives us the feeling that we are in a national park lodge (much like Disney’s Wilderness Lodge Resort or The Old Faithful Inn.) 

I couldn’t help but think how much different it would look and feel if I used energy saving fluorescent lights in there.  I couldn’t bring myself to do it!  As a light bulb fanatic, I certainly use compact fluorescent bulbs in many, many places of my home, but, as is the case in The Lodge, not in all places.  I was immediately sad knowing that in a relatively short while, the federal government demands on light bulb efficiency will make my beautiful Lodge Light Bulbs dissapear.  Instead of ”Let’s find more ways to produce more energy”, it seems we are taking the path of “Too bad, you need to use less energy”.

Ornate chandeliers in grand ballrooms will not be the same.  Dramatic sconces designed for accent lighting will not be the same.  And, much to my chagrin, The Lodge Lights will not be the same.  Who knows, maybe in 30 or 40 years, my kids will be saying “I sure miss the generic and sterile lighting of our old CFL bulbs.  Why are they making me change to these new Fission Bulbs?”  When that happens, I’ll be the one in the corner in my rocking chair with my Service Lighting polo shirt on, drying the tears from my eyes,  muttering about the warm embrace of my “old fashioned” incandescent bulbs.