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04/10/2006 Entry: "The Tail Light"

Do you want to hear the ordeal of the tail light? Sure you do! While I was away this week, I lost a tail light. Specifically, the blinker/brake light. And technically, I didn't lose it, but it blew. So on Sunday, I stopped into AutoZone, and they helped me select the "right" bulb for my application. Let's say it was bulb number 58857. So I pay for the bulb, take it outside, open the package, and drop it on the ground. It cracks, and a little piece breaks off. Nice. Still the filament is whole, so I decide I'll try to use it. I take off the light assembly in the parking lot, find the bulb, and pop it out. Guess what? It's not a 58857--it's a 58856. Nice, again. So I go back inside, and buy the "right" bulb. I go back outside, and put the bulb in. Guess what? The turn signal still doesn't work. What's up? Well, it turns out the original light they sold me wasn't the turn light, but the back-up light! So this bulb has no "blinker" in it. So I pull out the other bulb in the tail-light, and that's the one that's actually blown. As soon as I get it out, I can see it's all black and sooty on the inside. So, I put my original 58856 back into the back-up light space, put the new "right" bulb back in the package, and go inside to the real "right" bulb--which is actually bulb #AB324, or some other part number that wasn't even close to what they sold me the first time. So three bulbs and 1/2 hour later, I was back on the street.