Waski_the_Squirrel
Resident of the least visited state in the nation.
My "new" house got its wiring in 1948. I decided to put in some new light fixtures. The bedroom and living room had very basic fixtures, so the bedroom got this:
and the living room got this:
They were easy (I can handle basic electrical work). Then I got to the bathroom. It still has the original (2-bulb) fixture. The shade has long ago disappeared, so it is just bare bulbs. My plan was to put in a cheap fixture with an actual shade. Then, down the road, I would put in a good fixture that included an exhaust fan. I removed the old fixture and...behind it is a rat's nest of ancient wiring and electrical tape. I have no idea what to connect where. I decided to put it back up and then see if I could fit the shade from the cheap new fixture onto it. It worked ok, so at least I have a proper light in there. All I can say is the 1948 electrician didn't have plans for a mere mortal to mess with his fixture!
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On a related note, when I was teaching circular motion to my Physics class this year, I used a turntable and mouse ball to demonstrate. One of the boys asked me what the ball was, so I said, "A mouse ball."
He said, "No, seriously."
I said, "A mouse ball. I took it out of a mouse."
He said, "How?"
It took a little more back and forth before I understood. In his world, mice are all optical mice. He had never seen a mouse that used a ball, so he thought I was making an off-color joke about a real mouse. Yipe! The new technology is already obsolete!
and the living room got this:
They were easy (I can handle basic electrical work). Then I got to the bathroom. It still has the original (2-bulb) fixture. The shade has long ago disappeared, so it is just bare bulbs. My plan was to put in a cheap fixture with an actual shade. Then, down the road, I would put in a good fixture that included an exhaust fan. I removed the old fixture and...behind it is a rat's nest of ancient wiring and electrical tape. I have no idea what to connect where. I decided to put it back up and then see if I could fit the shade from the cheap new fixture onto it. It worked ok, so at least I have a proper light in there. All I can say is the 1948 electrician didn't have plans for a mere mortal to mess with his fixture!
****
On a related note, when I was teaching circular motion to my Physics class this year, I used a turntable and mouse ball to demonstrate. One of the boys asked me what the ball was, so I said, "A mouse ball."
He said, "No, seriously."
I said, "A mouse ball. I took it out of a mouse."
He said, "How?"
It took a little more back and forth before I understood. In his world, mice are all optical mice. He had never seen a mouse that used a ball, so he thought I was making an off-color joke about a real mouse. Yipe! The new technology is already obsolete!