Problem Identification

For John, BLUF:  Life is an adventure and sometimes we go down weird paths.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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I noticed the lamp on my Wife's Night Stand flickering.  I immediately assumed a problem with the socket or a frayed wire, and got to work.

I went to Home Depot, looking to buy a cord to wire into the lamp.  I already had a light bulb societ.

At Home Depot I went to Aisle 43 and looked for a wire with a plug on one end and a couple of soldiered wires at the other end.  I found a heavy duty replacement for a power tool.  Not the visual presence I was looking for.

I wandered around, looking for a clerk, and couldn't find one.  I tried calling Home Depot and was told that they would send someone.  Five or so minutes later I repeated the call and again I was promised they would send someone.  After a couple of minutes I spotted "Bonnie" down at the other end of the Aisle.  She had been there when I had first started looking, thinking to do it on my own, but wandered away.  Now she was with a customer, so I waited.  I explained my problem and she took me in a totally different direction, so an "End Cap" that had what I wanted.

Equipped, I took the pretty large brass lamp into my lap and began to disassemble, which involv3d several parts.  I had to get a pair of vice grips to deal with a pipe in the middle, to free up the remainder of the socket, the cap that screwed onto the pipe.  Then I found that the replacement socket was not the same size as the pipe running through the lamp, but God smiled on me and I had a different socket available, which fit.

I got it all wired up and took it to the bedroom and plugged it in.  The light still flickered.  I pushed the mattress away from the wall, but the plug looked fine.

My wife suggested it might be the light bulb.  I was dubious, but we tried it and it worked fine.  The problem, all along, was the light bulb.

Regards  —  Cliff