Let there be (no) light in Adventures in paradise

  • Nov. 21, 2016, 8:26 p.m.
  • |
  • Public

I just got in from a walk outside and I’ve never been so glad to take all my clothes back off before. Welcome to almost-Summer in Queensland! My phone’s saying it’s only 28 degrees but I find that very hard to believe lol.

I see that Melbourne ran out of Ambulance services yesterday on account of their scorcher of a day that (naturally) created a storm and it brought all the pollen and small bits of crap into the air, which was a nightmare for all the asthmatics and allergie sufferers who were out at the time or had their windows open.
I saw that article and was like, ‘Us QLD’ers have storms like that pretty much every afternoon!’, so we’re used to it!

The new housemate seems to be settling in. He has a lot of kitchen stuff which he’s brought in, so now we’re really overloaded with kitchen crap everywhere. He has a huge slow-cooker taking up most of his space on his shelf in the pantry. He seems pretty cool so far. He goes out a lot of his nights off, so he appears like a real scene-queen.
I found out this morning when I was eating my breakfast and he walked in and I said, “Good morning,” that he’s not a morning person. I know that because I asked him, “Are you not a morning person?” and he says straight away, “Definitely not!” Haha.
I hope he and Nick are getting along. I actually don’t know.

Lately I’ve been on the hunt for a floor lamp for my room. Ever since that electrician replaced my faulty light, he removed the dimmer switch that was with it, so I’ve lost my dimmer and I really miss it :( Now when I’m up late, it’s either lights on (which is really bright) or lights off. No more mood-lighting for either reading, romping, or simply because it hurts my eyes. Ironically, the bulb in that fixture that was replaced is no longer working, so I’m on three bulbs atm, but at least this time it isn’t sparking every time I turn the lights on, and it’s less bright minus one bulb, so I’ve just been leaving it.

So yesterday, I wandser around the city seeing if anywhere sells floor lamps with a dimmer. The only place that sells floor lamps at a half-decent price is Target. Big W is useless and there’s no KMart near me. Problem is that Target doesn’t have the dimming ones.

I had a look in Myer upstairs, and yes, they have some, but of course they are asking like $600 for ones with a concrete base lol. Ya, as if.
Then, stupidly, I look in David Jones.
I asked a sales assistant if they sold any, and she said that the only dimming one that they sell is the Dyson one.
I didn’t even know Dyson did floor lamps. I thought they were just vacuums and more recently fans. I guess it made a lot of sense that they’ve branched into lighting.
So she shows me the Dyson display, and I already know it’s going to be expensive.
$1200. For a fucking FLOOR LAMP.
And it was kind of a strange design anyway. Like if you were in a snazzy highrise apartment with all the latest kitchen gadgets etc, you might get one. But not me lol.
So anyway, I waste like an hour in there getting her to demonstrate this thing for me and they couldn’t find a power-point to work and then they got the desk one working ($850 for that one!) but it’s dimmer was a button whereas the floor model wasn’t anywhere to be seen, so she had to go to the stockroom to open up a new box to read the instructions and finally figured out where the dimming button was, and then it wouldn’t work half the time.
I felt bad knowing there was no way I was forking out that much dough for something that seemed to stupid to even get working. I knew I wasn’t going to buy it, but I guess when you’re in that job and it’s a potential sale that big, you’ll pull out all stops.
In the end, she said that she’d learned something and I said that I did too, since I didn’t even know Dyson made those. She thanked me for being patient with her running around for an hour.
Maybe if I was loaded. Maybe in another life. But that’s like 2 months rent for me right there on a fucking light.


magicstar November 21, 2016

If you can't find a floor lamp with a dimmer, would something like this work for what you need? https://www.target.com.au/p/liza-floor-lamp/56421507 I used to have a similar one and you can get three different light levels from it.

KissOfLife! magicstar ⋅ November 21, 2016

I was looking at this one in Target yesterday but I was so keen on a dimmer that I wouldn't settle for a mother/child one. I did like the price though!
A friend commented on facebook that she wants to sell hers so I'm gonna check hers out to see if i like it.

cazoob November 22, 2016

I don't know about being dimmable, but Bunnings have a good range of cheaper floor lamps, got mine for $49 recently.

here is no why November 22, 2016

Wow, that is an incredibly expensive lamp. What happened with you and the sales person sounds like a situation I'd get myself in, where I couldn't tell them thanks but no thanks. Talk about a hard sale.

-.Just.Keep.Swimming.- November 27, 2016

I don't know if they make/sell them in Aus, but I have a floor lamp in my bedroom that has 5 bulbs, and clicks 3 times to be all the way on... The first click only lights one bulb. The 2nd lights 2 more and the last click lights them all. Not exactly a dimmer, but kind of the same concept and I think they're only $30!

Deleted user December 01, 2016

Don't you have an IKEA there? They got all kinds of lights. The only prob is you have to assemble it yourself but it's cheap.

KissOfLife! Deleted user ⋅ December 02, 2016

Yes I looked at Ikea but they want $140 plus there's none near me so they want another $90 just to deliver it lol

You must be logged in to comment. Please sign in or join Prosebox to leave a comment.