Blood Powered Lamp Makes Us Think, "Hmmm, Do I Really Need Light Right Now?"

Life is a precious thing, but how many of us recognize just how lucky we are to be alive on a daily basis?

More likely than not, we succumb to whatever mood strikes us (even if it is on the darker, pouty-er spectrum) and grumble about all the things that don't make us terribly happy.

Shouldn't breathing make us kick up our heels? Clean water and enough wholesome food to nourish our bodies? How about a clean bill of health? Now that's something to truly celebrate.

Designer Mike Thompson must have been contemplating this very issue one day while hunched over his lab (inbetween swigs of True Blood -- insider reference to the fanged HBO series) because he devised an unlikely eco-lamp that might possibly meet resistance from the masses.  Too bad, though...it would really teach us a good lesson.

His creation is simply called the Blood Lamp, and while it is a one-time-use glass item (which is NOT what greenies ever want to hear), just take a moment to consider the premise behind it.

We take so much in life for granted -- friends, family, simple eco-pleasures -- we even fail to appreciate the fact that light is always magically available at our fingertips. 

If we were forced to use light judiciously and sparingly, perhaps we'd really comprehend what a priviledge it is and take our conservational efforts a lot more seriously.

What if the only way that we could access light is via our own blood? Thompson figured that we'd finally pay attention because the only way to do so is via a cut or needle, and everyone hates needles.

So this is how his glass lamp works:

1. If you want to use it, you must break the top off to access the inside where all of the magic happens.
2. Wait a second...are you really sure that you need light right now? Think about it carefully, because this is going to hurt.
3. Alrighty then, add the accompanying tablet into the lamp and dissolve it in a special proprietary solution.
4. The only way that you're going to get real light is finally by adding some of your own blood to the mix.

His lamp helps us to remember that there is a cost for every convenience in our lives -- sometimes even our life blood. Of course, we've drained Mother Nature of her life blood for so long that isn't it time we step up to the plate for a change?