Twice each year, some of the world changes to DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME or back to the Standard Time in the timezone. Note that many people have confused the official name for the time-change — it is not Daylight Savings Time, but so many people have added the "s" to the end of the second word for so long that many dictionaries and encyclopedias are now including the mistake as an alternative accepted spelling.
I have yet to meet anyone who actually likes Daylight Saving Time. Some of us despise the task of having to change the clocks twice each year and having to become accustomed to differences in daylight -versus- dark during our waking hours. Changing the clocks also becomes very problematic in listing times for events, as (1) not all of the world observes Daylight Saving Time in their timezone, and (2) not all people understand how to calculate the correct times for events listed in other parts of the world. I have actually met several conservative Christians who believe that changing the clocks is going against "God's time," as if their concept of deity is the one who decreed "Standard Time" across the globe.
In the late 1990s, I was thrilled to find an alarm clock that is actually programmed to set itself each year when the time changes. It is the SmartSet alarm clock made by Emerson™, a long-trusted name in electronics (since 1912). Twice each year, the clock sets itself when Daylight Saving Time (DST) begins and again when it ends! It worked beautifully until a certain head-of-state signed a legislative bill into law that changed the dates (from 2007 onward) for which DST changes. 😖 Now, it changes on incorrect weekends twice each year, although I am sure if I bought another SmartSet clock now, it would change on the now-current dates. I would highly recommend this clock, as it has otherwise worked beautifully for the 22 years I have had it! It also features dual-alarms which can be set for weekdays -versus- weekend days. It also resets itself automatically after power-failures, too, by means of a long-life lithium "button" battery rather than a quickly-drained 9V battery that many other alarm clocks use.
Many parts of the world do not observe Daylight Saving Time, however, and some of the parts that do observe it change to it at different times of the year. Even within one country, some constituent states have differing traditions regarding if/when the switch is made.
To help alleviate the confusion, I like the TimeAndDate.com which shows an interactive world map showing time around the globe. Users can hover their mouse-pointer over parts of the map to highlight time zones and see the offset from UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) at the bottom of the map. Users can also click on parts of the map to see more details of the time in that particular zone. It is an incredibly helpful and fun site to explore!
All of the photos in this post were taken at Maggie's Galley seafood restaurant where I saw the gorgeous dinnerplate dahlia flowers earlier this year. This display of artistic clockwork-like pieces were displayed just outside the restrooms and I thought they were fascinating! Beside the clockwork art were a handful of seashells and a couple of fishing creels, one for bait and one for fish. Perhaps the creels are reminiscent of how we are always fishing for more time in which to do things, or perhaps fishing for the correct time during time-change weekends? 😜
I spent the better part of a hour a while ago changing the time on clocks and watches. None of my watches are very expensive, but I have several to coordinate with different outfits — a blue one, a white one, a red one, etc. The last couple of years, though, I mostly just wear one of them, my favorite (and the easiest to read), and should probably give the others away. Then there's the clock on the wall of the den, the oven, the car's dashboard, coffee maker, the bedroom, and so forth. I have an "atomic clock" that changes itself, thankfully.
OMG, and I just noticed the clock on the wall here in the den stopped. 🙄 Every time I take it off the wall to change the time and hang it back up there, it runs for a few seconds and stops. I take it down, fiddle with it until it restarts, hang it up, and it stops again. It has been running smoothly since I finally got it restarted after the last time-change. The strange thing is that another clock that hung on that wall years ago did the exact same thing. Makes me wonder if my wall is haunted...?!?!? 👻 😱
I would love to see Daylight Saving Time abolished in my country and for us to revert to the old Standard Time that was followed for much of my early life. Do you agree, or do you actually like the time-change twice each year?
