Forty years of commuting into Manhattan for school or work and there are still details to observe especially in landmarks as rich as Grand Central. Today, because there was a workman changing one of the bulbs in an overhead fixture I noticed these ceiling lights. Bare bulbs yet still elegant. I wondered if he was happy with the extended life of bulbs today—fewer for him to change—then wondered if that meant less work for him and other maintenance staff—jobs lost.

But our jobs have to change, I thought, mine too, and maybe I have to create new jobs—at least if I want to be a long-life bulb.