• Q: Almost all the streetlights near my house are out. I called Florida Power & Light's ''Care Line,'' but it should be renamed the ''I Don't Care Line.'' When I leave my house at 6 a.m., it's almost total darkness out there. Five months is too long to take to repair something like this.

• A: Our advice to anyone in your predicament: Take the extra time to write down a long number that's on a thin metal strip on each streetlight. Make a note of the precise addresses of the households nearest each pole. Then, call the FPL service number that's on your personal utility bill and follow the prompt until you get a live human being. Patiently give him or her the streetlight numbers, with the addresses of the homes nearby. This is tedious and time-consuming, but it's the quickest way to get you in the pipeline for repairs.