When I Got This Idea, a Little Light Bulb Turned Off in My Head

A few days ago, I lamented the upcoming loss of the Virgin Megastore chain. In that post, I noted that I had also bade farewell to Circuit City a while back. It's truly a sign of the times (perhaps like this one).

So I was out shopping last night near one of the former Circuit City locations, and I reminisced for a moment about what it looked like when the company was still open, adding its (figurative and literal) light to the retail landscape. It might have looked a bit like this:



So what's wrong with this picture? Well, for one thing, it wasn't taken when Circuit City was still in business; it was taken last night. So my question is, why would anyone want to waste that much electricity to light up a store that's closed down?

I don't consider myself a "greenie" or anything, but I also see no reason to waste energy pointlessly, like they're doing here. I can understand the idea of keeping on a few lights to discourage vandals and vagrants, but there's no reason to have all those spotlights on, not to mention all the signage of a brand that has ceased to exist as such.

This Circuit City isn't by any means the only offender of its type around here; most of the Bennigan's were completely lit up--to the point that anyone who had been in a cave for a few months might well mistake them for being open--for quite a few months after the chain closed, and there's a former Eckerd Drugs in my old neighborhood that still has most of its interior lights on, 24/7, even though it closed several years ago.

Somebody has to pay these bills, and they probably are getting paid, but the big question is still, why? Turn a few lights off, already.

I'll try to get a few more pictures of some of the more egregious offenders in this area and either add them to this post or start a new one. And if you know of any other "lit after their time" vacant buildings in the area, feel free to tip me off in the comments or even email me your own pictures.