aka14kgold:

For the first time, my block is unsafe for me to be on after dark. A balcony towards the end of the block has moving colored lights – not good, but not too terrible on its own. However, on the other side of the street – the house right next to my building – one window is blanketed in strobe-fast Christmas lights. Like, you can see a square of light flashing on the sidewalk from a block away. Avoiding the full force of it entails approaching my building only from the north and east, so I’ll have to detour a couple blocks when coming from anywhere except Steinway. And I’ll have to have my sunglasses on hand – I didn’t tonight, but I was focusing really hard on keeping my head low and eyes glued to the ground, which is not conducive to crossing the street.

So, here’s your yearly reminder that if you put up Christmas lights which flash, blink, cascade, flicker, or move in any other way, you are, statistically, likely putting someone in serious danger and/or pain.