Thanks for the additional replies from the electrical gurus here and in the "Adapter" thread!

I do now recall Lonnie's previous post stating that the Stratford Point piece should stay lit for a long time.

I also prefer the HL's to just sit there and look nice, not perform tricks. But it would be nice to have the lenses work properly for those who choose to light them. I figured I had the battery problem licked with the adapter. I had the Xmas piece and the lens plugged into a power strip with one other item so that the whole works would be easy to turn on and off. Now I have to go out and find a longer lasting bulb? It would have been nice to have gotten one with the lens in the beginning. At the very least the lenses should come with some sort of caution as to their short "shelf life".

As to the original topic here, the new lens that will cost $154.....I don't think so.