I wouldn't call myself flashaholically dead, but I feel that I've climbed all the mountains I've set out to climb. I've owned some of the most awesome lights available (with the exception of some tremendously overpriced special editions, which I don't have the $$ to afford). In terms of the technology, I've got something in every power class and I have my personal favorites down pat, to the point where they're not changing. My EDC lights are pretty much constants after nonstop carry for close to 18 months and being completely unable to find anything that tops them.
I've got a few mods to my name, a few popular mods that are helping out other folks, and LUDICROUS lumens avaliable on command (currently: USL, homemade 35W HID spot, Supernova 35W HID spot came earlier this week). I'm happy......
For the hopelessly afflicted, there is an end in sight - when you own or have built something in every available power class.
My tech levels are 3mm LED, 5mm LED, 1W Lux, 3W Lux, 5W Lux, <60 lumen incan, 100lu incan, 200lu incan, 350lu incan, 500lu incan, 1000lu incan, >2K lumen incan, 10W HID, 24W HID, >30W HID. beentheredoneitall
But it's not the end of the road: I am still looking for higher mountains to climb. Right now, the only mountain that still defies me are the kilowatt-class tank spotlights, but I have neither the engineering expertise, gensets, or physical space to house them. Just firing them up would **** off everybody in the neighborhood so bad I'd be explaining myself for weeks. So I'll pass on that at the moment. Remember, that when you clock your 35W homemade HID at a range of 1500 feet, that it can be *SEEN* for a 1.5kft radius around you. Simple calculations - if you can see the beam at 1.5kft bouncing off your target back to your eyes, anybody in a circle can, too.
Plus, as has been said, it's the community that keeps me here rather than anything else. I have always enjoyed the company and the extraordinary folks who make up CPF, so whether or not I am buying lights at the moment (I'm not), I still enjoy the community for everything it is.