Posted on 12/02/2018 6:27:19 AM PST by NOBO2012
Last year when two thirds of my Christmas tree lights failed to light I decided to replace all of them rather than get a new tree. Not in order to save the earth but because I liked the size and shape of the 8 year old tree that was otherwise in very good condition.
Buy LEDs they said, they’ll never burn out they said. So I opted for the micro LED lights, aka “rice” lights because I liked the way they twinkled at me in the store. And, as they said, they’ll never burn out. Right. This is me, this year; replacing last year’s LED warm white rice lights (made in China) with new LED warm white rice lights, also made in China because I dare you to find any that aren’t.
In the picture, I’m three quarters of the way through replacing the middle section. I don’t have a picture of the complete fail because I was so upset (read PO’d) that taking a picture was the last thing on my mind.
Let the record reflect that the pre-strung tree’s original lights lasted 8 – yes, 8 – years. Mind you, these new little buggers are nowhere near as easy to install (and uninstall) as the originals. First of all you need a lot more of them because they’re much smaller and have 3 times as much wire that must be wound (repeatedly) around the branches unless for some reason you like the look of unruly wires sticking out everywhere. That of course means there’s 3 times as much wire that needs to be unwound in the event that your LEDs malfunction (because they never burn out, they simply fail to work). Raj took pity and unwound the entire offending section of 1000 lights, lest I suffer a complete nervous breakdown.
Now when I say you need more lights, I mean you need a lot more lights. My skinny 7’ tree originally had 500 lights and was quite festively illuminated. Now it has 2500. Yes, you read that correctly, 2500. I had foolishly assumed that I could replace 500 lights with approximately the same number. Ha! It took 500 just for the small top section – which can be seen sitting on the floor off to the right while I restring, for the second year in a row, the derelict middle section.
I guess all’s well that ends well but if you decide to restring your Christmas tree with new lights this year just know what you’re getting yourself into. The rice lights have their charms but they are neither easy to install nor failsafe. I blame the Chinese.
Meanwhile, contrary to all the received wisdom of the modern free press, I see that VSGPDJT has reached an agreement with China’s President Xi to suspend planned tariff increases and open up markets while final negotiations on a trade deal take place. Just like with the Mexico/Canada anti-NAFTA deal, our esteemed betters in the media and Washington were wrong. Again.
Anyway, I think I’ll send a letter to President Trump asking him to make President Xi promise to stop selling us crappy Christmas lights that are clearly intended to drive us crazy so they can take over the world.
Posted from: MOTUS A.D.
This year, we did get an end-table-sized "Charlie Brown's" tree and an equally small version of the "Christmas Story" leg lamp. I'm not sure why we got them, but here they sit, with not more than five minutes total to have them in the living room sitting in all of their splendor.
My mom and dad were living from hand to mouth when I was little, so many of our family trees were of the Charlie Brown variety; dad was always the champion of the underdog anyway, and I think he chose some of those trees because he felt sorry for them. So for me, the spindly tree brings back memories of tough times that were nonetheless pretty good where it counted.
Report back when you have the exterior lights up and working correctly.
Is this picture representative of both the house and senate and both parties and what they do with our money?
Why would you ‘unwind’ the defective string?
Just be sure they’re unplugged from the wall, take a pair of heavy scissors or shears and snip away.
Start at the bottom and go up, cutting every wire, until the top.
Do this 3 or 4 times, then pull out pieces. Five minutes, tops.
There is a tool available at your local hardware store
https://www.ledkeeper.com/home/
I use the incandescent version
https://lightkeeperpro.com/home/
Takes 30 seconds to repair a light string far less time then it took to write this stupid piece
It’s a communist plot.
Fortunately, the lights are dirt cheap...easier to replace them than hunt through strings to re[place the individual mini-bulbs....we have a couple strings that are 3 years old and still working but they take less beating because we string them around and don’t wind them through a tree - stopped trees a few years back when the grand kids moved out so we just decorate and string some lights.
FEETS of Strength ?!?
I worry about Seinfeld.
As I sit here with my broken ankle elevated coming up on my fourth week, I’m so grateful that my family has to make all this happen. It will. We had a very subdued Christmas last year since it was the first after our son died. This year I’m ready to get more stuff out but whoops, broken ankle and two surgeries.
Try a manger or creche instead of a tree.
That was beautiful.
Yeah, we were lower middle class and before pop died when i was 14, life was SO WONDERFUL.
When did I, as so many others, decide that money would decide happiness?
I know when i realized it wouldn’t. when I received a severe head injury that took 5 years to recover from. It put things in perspective!!
God was great in letting my head heal so well, though some here might dispute that! :)
BTW, there were still a lot of good times After pop died, except for the times when I decided self pity was the better way to go :)
WHAT YOU WROTE SOUNDS LIKE THE GUY IN A CHRISTMAS STORY TALKING OUT LOUD AGAIN :)
Your post really cheered me up
I don’t know why, but it really did. :)
I’m gonna watch A Christmas Story today and enjoy the heck out of it. :)
Ya know, threads like these and the one yesterday with all of the adorable and funny stories about the different strategies folks here used to make their kids believe in Santa...
They make this more than a political Board..
It’s a home away from home.
It’s friends.
It’s almost family.
And sometimes i’m the bi polar cousin. Sorry about that!
And I know it’s early but I want everyone to have one of the best Christmases they’ve ever had this year.
And drink a toast to thank God for one of the best presidents this country has ever had! :)
See Post 18. How could I forget you! :)
You as well as anyone know I’m off my rocker but you give me leeway with it! :)
Nice tree... do you have a cat?
https://images49.fotki.com/v629/photos/2/292835/1608389/WhyCatsDrink-vi.jpg
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