Ponder this:

Sunday, March 11, 2012

It is 6:30. Really 5:30.

Daylight Saving Time.
I turned the clocks one hour ahead last night. My ghastly early hour of rising is now an acceptable time for rising, although, perhaps, not on the weekend. Either way, it suits my early-up, morning-nap Sunday routine. In somebody's blog yesterday I read the oft-repeated question: Why do we have to live by clocks, anyway? When I woke up at 4am (really 3am) today, and realized that even for me that would be too early to get up on any day of the week, I was thinking that over the length of this soon to be past winter I have lived less by the clock than ever in my life before. I went to bed at will, sometimes as soon after getting home from work as possible, staying there until time to get up for work. In the winter, that's fine with the dogs now that they are old. We all want to hibernate. Living without a television goes a long way toward not living by the official time. 


I never was a habitual moviegoer, but now that I no longer see trailers for movies on tv, I don't know any of the celebrities whose names I see. Husband and I have been watching dvds of movies we saw in theaters years ago. Those actors' names, I know! 


Somebody said to me last week, "...back when Brad Pitt was good-looking," and I knew exactly what she meant. Brad has nothing to prove anymore and he's all scraggly and shopworn. Is he cutting his hair by sticking it in a blender? Robert DeNiro's always been kind of scruffy when he's on his own time. I recently mentioned that to somebody and he said, "He doesn't have to impress anybody." Well, yes, that's true. But in theory, none of us has to impress anybody and we don't walk around looking like ungroomed messes.
What an Old Lady I sound like!


And now it's 6:43 (really 5:43).  At one clock-changing time when I was twelve I kept doing that "It's really..." that  and my friend L sputtered, "Well! If you're going to keep doing that...!" the implication being that I might as well not change the clocks at all.
There y'go!

18 comments:

DJan said...

I do that, too! It's really 4:00am but I'm busy reading blogs and commenting. I wasn't sure whether the clocks had changed (we have lots of radio controlled stuff) until I turned on my computer. Yep, it happened all right.

I think it's great that you live by your own internal clock. I go to bed awfully early, too, and rise when I feel like it, since I don't go to work any more it doesn't matter to anybody but me. And hubby, who is a night owl and is my exact opposite. :-)

georgia little pea said...

I hate daylight saving. It disorientates me for a few days. Georgia too. Observing her, I now believe dogs tell time by the amount of light in the sky.

Thank you for your thoughts on bones and chuckups btw :)

June said...

DJan, I'm so glad that I'm not the only one who think it's okay to go to bed when I'm sleepy. Thank you for that!

Georgia (or more properly), Georgia's Typist . . . you are welcome to my (often half-baked) thoughts. I think every living thing in the world, except humans, tells time by the amount of light in the sky!

Hilary said...

Everyone does that for a day or three. :) I'm reading blogs instead of walking Benny. But it's really only 9:45 and he doesn't usually go out until 10. ;)

Joanne Noragon said...

I'm for one or the other year round. The time police could even out people's daylight by adding a few more time zones. Few things are logical any more; let's try that.

VioletSky said...

I always get confused by the time change. And it doesn't help that I rarely remember to change my bedroom clock, which has been an hour fast since the last time change. Now I will likely be late for everything for a few days.

Olga said...

Well, I got to see the sun come up this morning because it was "really 7" when I dragged out of bed. 4 to 8 is when I get my restorative sleep. My husband, of course, goes to bed early and gets up usually by 5...quietly.

Friko said...

I do that bit about "well, it's really..." particularly because the dog's stomach doesn't know when we change cocks; it drives Beloved bananas. His new time is set in stone the minute he twists the dial.

Barb said...

You need to move to AZ so you don't have to change the clocks! (Once I called my best friend in AZ at what was 6 AM in CO to wish her Happy Birthday before work (this was pre cell phone), and I woke her at 5 AM. It's weird that some states change and others don't. We had the Grandkids overnight and luckily our 9 year old Granddaughter knew it was "spring forward" time.

Anonymous said...

My cats keep me up, I get up no matter to make sure there is no fussin going around since our littlest now has to be an indoor kitty since he gets all chewed up by other cats and the fleas, long hair, you get the picture?! Got him cleaned up, deflead, washed up, clipped nicely by a neighbor who does dogs and cats, I tried to pay her but she refused when they go someplace they cannot take their brood, I go over and feed them, scoop the poop and pet the indoor cats she fosters until they find homes..Daylight savings time is to me another way retail places can get a person to spend more money, we are semi retired (me) my hubby fully retired I rise to catch a bus and walk everywhere, people are complaining cause the price of a gallon gasoline is over $4.00 here and climbing daily..not much a person can do about that can a person..Love love love your blog, you seem to be able to tell it like it is and for that I am so grateful..have a great week!!!!!!!!!!

Jinksy said...

I think you need to read THIS

June said...

Thank you, Jinksy, for that linksy!
I knew already about the first sleep/second sleep . . . prior to electricity's ubiquity. It works for me if I get to sleep early enough, or can sleep past 6am without having to hustle for work.

Linda Myers said...

I like Daylight Savings time because I then I sleep more of the darkness away in the morning.

There's also the promise of spring it offers.

And I can drive later in the evening before the auras of the headlights make me a road hazard.

Tamara said...

I love the fact that Arizona doesn't "do" DST! I only wish I had known it earlier. I would have moved here with my children as the time change always disrupts their schedule!

As always, love your post!

Tom said...

The time change didn't bother me this go round b/c I just got back from a plane flight west, then another east. I did a two-hour time change, then another hour, then a three hour. That's one way (not nec. the best way) to get used to it.

SmitoniusAndSonata said...

Yes , it's jet lag without having to leave the comfort of your own home !
I just hate getting up in the morning , whatever the time .

Rose ~ from Oz said...

Wow June, I'm a bit late - everyone has pretty much summed it up for me too. Hate the stuff. Our natural days in summer are long enough anyway! And over here one of the BIG reasons for DST was for the tourists....Hmph, how handy......when very little is open past 5pm anyway! Mmm, yum all that lovely bright light and nothin' open....I'm with Ms. Pea it disorientates me too only longer!
Warm wishes
Rose

Saku said...

I get totally confused by the time change because I live in a Canadian province where we don't change our clocks. Apparently we used to but back in the mid-60's (when I was a young child) they moved to daylight savings time and never changed it back.

I'm grateful not to have to change my clocks, but always confused about what time it is in another area of the country...is it one or two hours ahead (or behind?).

Good luck with the transition.