Spring Ahead
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Spring Ahead
Just a friendly reminder that we are supposed to move our clocks forward an hour tonight
leave the time alone
We say this every year; I don't know why they keep doing it. But I'll admit it does give you a bit of pep, to have it stay lighter longer tonight. And for me, the saddest day of every year is when you have to turn the clocks back and the days of darkness start. But I see this year that they're going to wait until the middle of November for that, so that will be nice. But now, as Art always complains, I have to locate every clock on every electronic device I have and change the time. Aaaaaaaahhhh...........
Did you ever stop to think, and then forget to start again?
Every year I post my enthusiastic approval of the use of DST. I read and hear on TV all the truly weird misconceptions people believe about DST and I feel the need to express my dismay.
I just read a short article linked off of MSN front page that said we 'gain an hour of sunlight in March and lose it in September'. Some people believe that they lose an hour of sleep every night that we are on DST. Some people are saying that SAD is made worse by DST. I don't see how that could be, with having more sunshine hours when most people are active during DST. And recently 'they' found many people to be vitamin D deficient in the northern states due to lack of sunlight.
Last year I was going to chart sunrise and sunset every day for a year. Well I lost that thought quickly and didn't do it.
Today I found a website that has the info for every city, every day for years (not sure how long), I think it's a Naval site. (Sun or Moon Rise/Set Table for One Year).
A lot of people are evidently unaware that the amount of sun we get varies all year due to our position in the solar system. I have known this for a long time due to the spring sun shining on my bedroom window earlier and earlier, in to summer. In fact the dawn, when light brightens the sky before sunrise, happens about 4:00- 4:15am in June and July. With DST it happens at 5:00- 5:15am - which is still early but an easier time to accept waking due to sunlight (to me).
Now if you have an early schedule and get up at 3:00- 4:00am every morning, then I can understand your dislike of DST. As with newscasters who get up in the middle of the night and have to drive or be driven to their job in darkness or dawning morning light. I'm wondering who else gets up that early? And as for farmers; I don't believe they lack the ability to adjust their clock alarms to get up with the sun no matter what time it is. The crops don't know the difference. Some of the 'con' stuff I've read is really 'duh' (as in dumb). I would like to hear some viable detrimental or just bad science reasons not to have DST. And I'm not talking about the issue of how much effort it is for anyone. Silly indeed.
Anyway, Badspell check the site I mentioned and you might see why it's better to utilize DST seven months rather than six months. I had thought it might be a good idea to have DST all year, but that isn't possible due to naturally lessened daylight. In January the sun rises at 7:20am here. So if it was DST time it would be 8:20am and that's a bit late.
I pulled up times for Las Vegas and San Diego and for some reason the January sunrise times are earlier than Denver. The plains are to the east here so I'm not sure why that is, but the sun sets around 4:30pm. Very little daylight to play with. Adjusting morning or night wouldn't be helpful to anyone for any reason. That is why it is so wonderful in the Spring to get more of the days light in the evenings, and all the way through summer.
I for one, do not need more sunshine in the morning at 4am.
Is there anyone here who agrees?
PS- I just remembered we didn't get off of DST until after Halloween last year (Nov 1st, 2009), which made it nice for parents with little kids to eat dinner and then get out at around 7pm just as it was getting dark. Or for tiny tots between 6 and 7pm. I looked on two calendars for this years DST fall back and they both say November 7th.
I'll be interested to see what it looks and feels like. And how many people like it or dislike it.
I just read a short article linked off of MSN front page that said we 'gain an hour of sunlight in March and lose it in September'. Some people believe that they lose an hour of sleep every night that we are on DST. Some people are saying that SAD is made worse by DST. I don't see how that could be, with having more sunshine hours when most people are active during DST. And recently 'they' found many people to be vitamin D deficient in the northern states due to lack of sunlight.
Last year I was going to chart sunrise and sunset every day for a year. Well I lost that thought quickly and didn't do it.
Today I found a website that has the info for every city, every day for years (not sure how long), I think it's a Naval site. (Sun or Moon Rise/Set Table for One Year).
A lot of people are evidently unaware that the amount of sun we get varies all year due to our position in the solar system. I have known this for a long time due to the spring sun shining on my bedroom window earlier and earlier, in to summer. In fact the dawn, when light brightens the sky before sunrise, happens about 4:00- 4:15am in June and July. With DST it happens at 5:00- 5:15am - which is still early but an easier time to accept waking due to sunlight (to me).
Now if you have an early schedule and get up at 3:00- 4:00am every morning, then I can understand your dislike of DST. As with newscasters who get up in the middle of the night and have to drive or be driven to their job in darkness or dawning morning light. I'm wondering who else gets up that early? And as for farmers; I don't believe they lack the ability to adjust their clock alarms to get up with the sun no matter what time it is. The crops don't know the difference. Some of the 'con' stuff I've read is really 'duh' (as in dumb). I would like to hear some viable detrimental or just bad science reasons not to have DST. And I'm not talking about the issue of how much effort it is for anyone. Silly indeed.
Anyway, Badspell check the site I mentioned and you might see why it's better to utilize DST seven months rather than six months. I had thought it might be a good idea to have DST all year, but that isn't possible due to naturally lessened daylight. In January the sun rises at 7:20am here. So if it was DST time it would be 8:20am and that's a bit late.
I pulled up times for Las Vegas and San Diego and for some reason the January sunrise times are earlier than Denver. The plains are to the east here so I'm not sure why that is, but the sun sets around 4:30pm. Very little daylight to play with. Adjusting morning or night wouldn't be helpful to anyone for any reason. That is why it is so wonderful in the Spring to get more of the days light in the evenings, and all the way through summer.
I for one, do not need more sunshine in the morning at 4am.
Is there anyone here who agrees?
PS- I just remembered we didn't get off of DST until after Halloween last year (Nov 1st, 2009), which made it nice for parents with little kids to eat dinner and then get out at around 7pm just as it was getting dark. Or for tiny tots between 6 and 7pm. I looked on two calendars for this years DST fall back and they both say November 7th.
I'll be interested to see what it looks and feels like. And how many people like it or dislike it.
Last edited by Escargot on 03-14-2010 03:44 PM, edited 1 time in total.
I don't have a problem with it at all.
My daughter can now walk from her job to the light rail station instead of us having to drive across town to pick her up because it was dark when she got off work (and not safe). That's a + for me (and her, since she enjoys walking).
As a gardener, I like it because it gives me an extra hour before sundown, provided I adjust my getting up time along with the time change. I love that it stays light late in the summer, too. Those are things on the + side, too.
I can't think of any negatives for me. I've never had a problem with it. I actually like it.
My daughter can now walk from her job to the light rail station instead of us having to drive across town to pick her up because it was dark when she got off work (and not safe). That's a + for me (and her, since she enjoys walking).
As a gardener, I like it because it gives me an extra hour before sundown, provided I adjust my getting up time along with the time change. I love that it stays light late in the summer, too. Those are things on the + side, too.
I can't think of any negatives for me. I've never had a problem with it. I actually like it.
Anchors Aweigh!Escargot wrote: And I'm not talking about the issue of how much effort it is for anyone. Silly indeed.
Escargot, good essay! But I take issue with this point. How long did it take you to: change the DVD clock, change the answering machine clock, change the stereo clock, change the TV clock, change the alarm clock, change the cell phone clock, change the computer clock, change the wall clocks (at work and at home and at church), change the car clock, change the watch clock, change the stove clock, change the microwave clock, and then change my own clock.
Silly indeed?
But it's 5:30-really-4:30 here now, and I like it! A tough, cold, grey, dark Winter, it has been. This is nice.
Did you ever stop to think, and then forget to start again?
Good point Joolz. I used to love to do yard work in late afternoon when the sun is low and the air is still warm from the heat of the day. Ahhh great days.
Live365 I don't have a cell phone and I'm sorry you have the task of changing everything at work and church. Neither of which I attend at this time.
Since I moved recently I don't have the VCR, DVD or CD player radio hooked up.
(However I did change all of these before I moved).
What I do have is the car clock, microwave, oven, thermostat clock, 1 watch and 6 wall and table clocks. My computer clock and office wall clock change themselves. My land line phone has answering service included, but when I can find the owner's manual I probably need to see if there is a clock in the table phone??? Seems like I used to change it.
Most of those items I change the night before. And when I think of how much I love sunshine (it does lift my mood) it is well worth the 1/2 to 1 hour of time it takes to do it.
And this comes from someone who is allergic to direct sunlight. It makes my skin get a wicked welt rash and hives bad if I get in it directly for too long (like 10-20 minutes). I love the bright sunlight all day and in to the evening though and I think of all the other reasons that DST is good for other people too, not just myself.
Live365 I don't have a cell phone and I'm sorry you have the task of changing everything at work and church. Neither of which I attend at this time.
Since I moved recently I don't have the VCR, DVD or CD player radio hooked up.
(However I did change all of these before I moved). What I do have is the car clock, microwave, oven, thermostat clock, 1 watch and 6 wall and table clocks. My computer clock and office wall clock change themselves. My land line phone has answering service included, but when I can find the owner's manual I probably need to see if there is a clock in the table phone??? Seems like I used to change it.
Most of those items I change the night before. And when I think of how much I love sunshine (it does lift my mood) it is well worth the 1/2 to 1 hour of time it takes to do it.
And this comes from someone who is allergic to direct sunlight. It makes my skin get a wicked welt rash and hives bad if I get in it directly for too long (like 10-20 minutes). I love the bright sunlight all day and in to the evening though and I think of all the other reasons that DST is good for other people too, not just myself.
Last edited by Escargot on 03-14-2010 06:29 PM, edited 1 time in total.
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Cherry Kelly
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Growing up in a farming community - farmers were up at sunlight (or near sunlight time) and often worked until sunset (sometimes later) as they plowed and planted and took care of animals.
For me - makes no difference what the clock says - but I'm older and work from home. I'm an avid gardener and love being outdoors as soon as its warm enough to BE outside (weather cooperating).
The only clocks I haven't set are the ones in the car. The cell phone changes by itself as do a lot of the others as does the atomic and computers. Watches can be a pain to set, why I like my good ole Timex - don't have to punch buttons in certain sequences in order to change the time. Our TV clock also changes on its own!
cloudy days and no sunshine
For me - makes no difference what the clock says - but I'm older and work from home. I'm an avid gardener and love being outdoors as soon as its warm enough to BE outside (weather cooperating).
The only clocks I haven't set are the ones in the car. The cell phone changes by itself as do a lot of the others as does the atomic and computers. Watches can be a pain to set, why I like my good ole Timex - don't have to punch buttons in certain sequences in order to change the time. Our TV clock also changes on its own!
cloudy days and no sunshine
Live365 much if not all of newer electronics has receivers or whatever tech name so they can keep track of everyone That's why they ask you to register ownership of products. Heck I wouldn't be surprised if they all have transmitters too. That's how they let all clocks know what time it is. They are all 'in touch' with their god clock, the Atomic clock (In Boulder Colorado?). I think of it as a kind of clock mold/fungus truly the biggest one on the world- actually off world too. It allows for the WWWeb to propagate.
Escargot wrote: They are all 'in touch' with their god clock, the Atomic clock (In Boulder Colorado?).
Yep. The 'god clock' in Boulder!
Most of my stuff (computers, DVR, cell phone, etc.) resets automatically with that. I reset the microwave clock and the stove clock, but that's easy. My alarm just has a button to push that makes it go up or down an hour. I don't wear a watch - I just check the time on the cell phone if I'm away from the house and need to know. The car clock I haven't set, but I rarely use it anyhow, so don't much care. Not a whole lot to do for me. Anchors Aweigh!-
Bobbi Snow
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