One night a few years back I visited a friend's apartment, always cute and charming in the light of day. Something was, how shall I say, different.

Me: "Are we having people over or performing open heart surgery?"

Her: "What are you talking about??"

Me: "Those lights ... I feel like I'm in a bodega at 3 a.m."

Her: "My mom brought me a bunch of compact fluorescent light bulbs from Sam's Club! They're super energy-efficient."

Oh. I'm going out on another limb here (having already offended my dear Auntie by knocking accordion shades !) to say I'd rather sit alone in the dark than under one of these Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFLs). Seriously, I know they last for milennnia and will save the planet and put an extra Andrew Jackson in your pocket every year, but is that worth zapping all the color out of your living room? Or your face's pallor in the bathroom mirror? So depressing!

Call me oversensitive-I can't even abide those incandescent "Reveal" bulbs and would prefer a 25-watt pink glow in every room-but lighting concepts can make or break a room, not to mention parties and, erm, romantic encounters. Catherine Deneuve says women eventually have to choose between their face and their rear; must I really choose between my soft and inviting apartment and the polar icecaps?

DISHCUSS.