Shine On ...

... or the little lightbulb that could.

Just down the road from the lab was a fire station.

And in that fire station was a light bulb. A very special light bulb. A very old light bulb.

You can see it shining in the photo above, in the center of the image. A bare bulb with a security camera aimed at it.

The bulb has been shining for 113 years.

Someone flipped the switch in 1901. And they haven't turned it off since (perhaps it is stuck?). It has become famous. And it is one of the off beat tourist attractions listed in Roadside America (as was the lab museum and a few other places we stopped along the way). Unlike the lab they did have a small gift shop. With hats and shirts and things. (We made no purchases as we now expected free stuff!.)

Think about it. This bulb has been shining for my entire life. And your entire life. And everybody else's entire life. That's a lot of electricity. And plenty of photons, some of which have been recycled here for your enjoyment.