Death...Taxes...Time Changes

It happens every year, twice a year, for most time zones. Fall back, Spring ahead is the easy way to remember in which direction to change your clock(s). We're now back into Standard Time.

Conveniently, many of our time keepers change all by themselves. Computers (if you're on line), cell phones, cable guides, fancy dancy wrist watches...they all update automatically twice a year.

We're warned about it weeks in advance. Despite these fore warnings in the news, on notes taped to time clocks, print ads, Post-Its at your desk, some people just don't get the message. Every year, year after year, the morning after (a time change) finds countless ignorant individuals showing up an hour late or an hour early for work or appointments. "You're late, buddy!" "Late?", he lamented, "I'm ten minutes early...its 6:50!" "No, it isn't. It's 7:50, dude!"
"Shit!" Of course, the "late" conversation comes in the Spring. Dummies show up early after the Fall time change.

Changing the house clocks is easy. Changing our internal clocks? Not so easy. Here it is, the morning after the morning after...and I'm up and awake at 4 am. For me, getting up at 5 am is fairly normal. Today, that "internal" time still chimes 4 am. And it's not just me! Our dogs start doing their afternoon feed-me-dance an hour early and wake us up an hour early for the morning feed. We have yet to be very successful training the family dog how to read time. On top of that, with dogs, we all know they run on their own time agenda anyway.

The sun will set today at 5:05 pm. Inevitably, Loretta and I will have this conversation this afternoon.

Me: Wow, it's dark already!
Loretta: Yeah, I hate this time of year.
Me: Really? I love it. Let's start making soups again for dinner.
Loretta: Hmmm. I love soup. But I still hate the time change in the Fall!

With or without government imposed time "changes", time doesn't really "change". We simply move the arms on a mechanical device. Or, dig around in drawers looking for operating manuals to "adjust" digital clocks. I still need that manual to adjust the time on my watch, a cheap Timex Ironman. This year, I managed to set it back an hour without the manual (good, considering I couldn't locate it). Last year, I distinctly remember placing that little folded up piece of paper somewhere secure and saying, "There, I'll put it in here so it won't get lost (again)!" One season my watch read the wrong time until the next time change. My car's clock is still wrong six months out of the year!

Time may change. But we never seem to get used to it. Dogs could care less, they simply get hungry!