For a long time I thought that the greatest unsolved problem of our age was

whether, factoring in wear & tear, cost of electricity & so on, it was

better to leave one’s computer on all the time or switch it off when not

using it. Now I have changed my mind. The greatest unsolved problem is

this: SHOULD I TOSS OUT ALL MY CHRISTMAS LIGHTS WHEN THE SEASON’S OVER, OR

KEEP THEM TILL NEXT YEAR IN THE SURE AND CERTAIN KNOWLEDGE THAT HALF OF THEM

WILL NO LONGER WORK AND I SHALL HAVE TO SPEND NUMBERLESS HOURS FIDDLING WITH

THE CONFOUNDED THINGS AND TRYING TO REMEMBER WHERE THE &%!@#*?*$? I PUT THE

LITTLE BAG OF SPARE BULBS THAT CAME WITH THE SET?