Your experience trying to help muggles.....

Don’t sharpen your horns, instead smile that the muggle missed out!

I totally get the situation you were in. Homer is a place many people ask for and need advice. The problem wasn’t what you did, it was the fact that you were talking about a flashlight! Under the same circumstances but about a wrench, a gas pipe or a ladder it would’ve been different.

Most humans view a flashlight like a broom or a plunger. Something they need, is cheap, isn’t worth thinking about and is something they already understand and know how to operate. To her, it was like you offered advice on a plunger and after she accepted, you went on a 15 minute rant about the ergonomics of the handle, the duabilty of the various types of silicone and what great advances there have been in plunger technology. She expected something like: that ones on sale but i own this other one and think it’s well worth the extra $5. You spent more time than a homer helper normally does explaining a fridge and even tried upselling her on muliple different places where she could buy an ultra plunger 6000 with anti-splashback technology built right in! It’s likely she asked herself “does anyone actually care about plungers this much!? Or is this guy trying to sell me something?” Hence, she asks and by your reaction is assured that there are people in this world that care THAT much about flashlights. I’m certain she felt bad but also sorry for you at the same time.

People would not only understand but expect that exact situation if it were about a gun, a phone, a car, a restaurant etc. When it happened over a flashlight (which to her is as important and thought about as a broom) you became an alien from a different planet or were secretly a ninja salesman in disguise who preys on unsuspecting victims in box store flashlight aisles!

Your only mistake was assuming that a normal person understood what in the hell a flashlight enthusiast is! People make curtains, show off their curtains, ask for advice about curtains, design and buy home reno magazines that feature curtains. You just exposed her to a world she didn’t know existed, or that she ever would’ve expected like with a gun or a car. Lol we’re so foreign to the rest of the world that we could show them a 100 000 lumen 4 km throw flashlight and instead of understanding us more, they’d ask “why? what’s it for?” because to them if it makes light enough to see in the attic, then anything more powerful or fancy is as useless, silly and unnecessary as a plunger that works like a normal plunger but has a special turbo mode that plunges your entire drain system for the mere price of $250 when a normal, all you’ll ever need plunger is $5.

Don’t stop helping, just realize that if your not talking to a cop or an SandR person you’re going to be perceived as a lunatic who gets excited over a plunger!

Nah, was a Nate Ford reference…

Hjeh, that was “the solution looking for a problem”. :laughing:

I did sales at Rat Shack when I was a kid. Learned early on, don’t sell someone what they want. Sell ’em what they need. They want the biggest-ass antenna that could pick up Mars, they’ll be getting ghosts from Philadelphia stations as well as local ones. Sell ’em the antenna that’s right for the area.

So when Ms Muggle pokes through the LED Lensers and Coasts and whatnot, and asks you if this is a good light, just smile and say “Sure”. If there’s one that really sucks, sure, point out the better one, and dumb down the explanation to something they could understand. “This better. Shinier. Light up more.”

But try to get them to see the wisdom of rechargeables, and chargers, and adapters, and USBs, and B’harni knows what else, and they’ll just glaze over and think you’re a con-man trying to swindle ’em out of their retirement funds.

The Plunge 6000 is just soooooo last year. I prefer the Plunge 8000 Pro. It has a self seeking sound detection looking for holes to unplug. Just make sure you disconnect the batteries if you have too much gas……

I agree with your take on this. About a month ago, in another forum, I got triggered by a moron who thought his phone light was enough in an emergency. Sure, go ahead and change your tire at 4 in the morning by the side of the road with a phone light. Or looking at that dark alley that you must go through…that may or may not hide that nut case that will rob you, or far worse…

Really, this attitude is atrocious… If a guy thinks his phone light is adequate, then so be it. Why is he all the sudden a moron? This is exactly the attitude that turns people off. These are grown adults - they got this far without us holding their hands; I’m sure they’ll manage the rest of their lives.

Even referring to non-flashaholics as “muggles.” Really, like these are lesser people? What are we - enrolled in Hogwarts or something? Not everyone is as smart as you - you don’t need to remind them. :smiley:

Your wife might be able to clear out a curtain aisle, but the day she has friends over and busts out of the closet going off about her new swiff-a-sweeper 5000 plus black edition with carbon fibre handle, synthetic horse hair bristles, rear view mirrors, active personal cooling fan and a patented trigger fire personal misting system for keeping you cool even in the most gruelling sweeping situations._. Well that’s the day her friends contact the local asylum instead of book marking the link to her latest and greatest homer depot find!!

Dude! If professor Snape catches you talking like this he’s going to feed you too the Hufflepuffs!!!

I’ve always liked the acting style of the late Alan Rickman… He was great as Hans Gruber in Die Hard - probably my favorite villain!

LOLOLOL this got me thinking and prompted me to start a new thread dedicated to FLASHLIGHT ENTHUSIASTS pick up lines! Lol

Check it out and throw in some good ones!
https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/55957

I can count on one hand how many women I know personally that care about flashlights. Yep. None. Putting Flashlight and Enthusiast together in an attempt at a pick up line would get your man card revoked in my neighborhood. You save that stuff for the stuff you tell them about after the first year of marriage. They might run too fast to catch before that. :smiley:

Well, can you imagine going up to a woman a the local Home Depot, and telling her “I’m a Flashlight Enthusiast!” Oh… Wait… Sorry Spartan, had to throw a good ribbing in there :smiley: How she did not think you were a high-functioning autistic person, I will never know…

But no, not even after the first year. This is for when they don’t know why yo sneak down to the basement at night, then they catch you in your makeshift lab, putting a light into you home-made integrating sphere, when you told her you were changing the p-trap to the kitchen sink when you bought those PVC fittings.

I swear on my life THIS IS NOT WHAT YOU THINK! Well, what is it then!? Its a hommade integrating sphere imade to measure lux so I can post detailed flashlight reviews that impress and inform all my friends on my secret flashlight enthusiast forum._. Wife gives blank stare and says “I’m not sure what’s worse”

Nahhhhh just remind them that with your BLF GT you’ve got enough throw to ensure you will see her and you will catch her

Second funniest thing I have heard so far in 2019.

First place is held by my daughter (13) she caught my son (11) saying a cuss word, at which point I over hear my daughter say, “Alex, you better stop cussing, you know dad won’t put up with that s#!t”.

Nah… i have an autistic friend, he doesn’t like flashlight at all. He likes LEGO though.

You have no problem spouting your opinion about my opinion and…neither will I.

Save the nonsense. Changing a flat tire on the side of a dark road with a phone light is suicide. Period. End of story.

Having someone spouting that and telling others that they don’t need a flashllight doesn’t make them adults.

As for muggles, that term has been used a million times in here with nothing more derogatory intent then to define those who do not know much about flashlights.

Moving on….

Yes if it’s stupidity, it’s their stupidity. That you’ve appointed yourself the judge, jury, and executioner of these people is hilarious at best. Did he specifically state that he’d use his cellphone light in a dark alley or to change his tire, or did you impose the question?

The FACT is people that are otherwise smart do stupid things. Everyone does at some point and time. Almost everone carries their phone. Not everone carries their light all the time. Even you as a flashlight enthusiast don’t carry a light all the time - otherwise you could have shown the lady what a real flashlight is. So if you don’t even carry a flashlight all the time, how do you expect a kid with a cellphone to?

I see a lot of long winded posts in here. Let me sum up how I took this: You took what she was saying the wrong way. She was probably a bit shocked with your product knowledge. People don’t usually come up out of nowhere and say, “hey, hey you, not that one, THIS ONE!” Lol. You did the right thing just don’t expect a normal answer to a not so normal conversation.

Whoa there big fellas…………….Simmer down my friends.

I think it is fair to say everyone has strong opinions on this subject. Spartan, I see you as very enthusiastic new flashlight guy. I was too not that long ago. This bunch on here are good for allowing you to form and express your opinion but, you kinda have to take the criticism that comes with it. You mention changing a tire on a dark road without a flashlight suicide. Not true really. People have been doing it long before flashlights and, car headlights were useless at best. I also seem to remember a certain someone rushing out the door with their newly acquired Q8 to confront a conceived threat to an empty home. Probably more suicidal than using a cellphone light for changing a tire.

Nobody here means you any harm. They would really like to see you happy in this lighting interest we all share. There are options and opinions to keep all of us happy. When you make a poor decision or get butt hurt for the wrong reason what would you rather have. Everyone here sugar coat it or tell ya the truth. We wouldn’t do you any justice by blowing smoke up your bum.

Louie means well. Everyone does. Relax, learn, teach, breathe, repeat. 73 my friend.

I carry an Olight on my keychain and the Q8 plus VG10s in the car. None of them would suit someone who is judging a light by the amount of led’s.

As for the phone light, after I brought up the suicide level of danger in using a phone light as an emergency light to change a tire, he disappeared. And so did his post.

As for judge, jury and executioner, that is EXACTLY what you are doing with your opinion of my opinion. Your high horse has the same legs as my high horse.

Are we done on this?

If not, take it to PM….

You might want to give this a read Spartan…… :smiley:
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