Back to Eastern Standard Time Again

     Wow, did it get dark early tonight, and it's only going to get darker for the next couple of months.  Last night before you went to bed, hopefully you remembered to turn back your clock one hour, so you didn't get up earlier than you had to. I had to work this weekend, and I did set the clock back , but then failed to set the alarm! Luckily, I got up in time to catch the bus.

     I think a lot about turning the clocks back in the fall because it's the day I always dread. It comes a lot later than it used to these days, but still, when this day arrives, you know it's all downhill where the weather is concerned.  Before you know it, it will be dark by 4:00, and cold, dreary, wintery. Yuck.

     My grandmother hated to see this day coming too.  We used to complain about it together, and on that Sunday each year, we always made sure to visit Grammy, so we could suffer through it together. When we were sitting in her livingroom, I sat next to her on the divan, as she called it, and she in her wing chair.  I wouldn't notice what time it was, or the fact that it was already dark. I was too busy drinking tea and eating a piece of her cake.  Somehow it seemed less painful when we dealt with it together.

     Grammy had a clock in the kitchen that played bird songs instead of chimes. Every time we had to turn the clock forward or back, the bird chirps would end up being wrong.  I was able to fix it once, but after that, my uncle would just remove the batteries for an hour, and they kept the inaccurate chirps from then on. 

     As the weeks went on, slowly we gained back minutes in the morning and at night. I always loved the way my grandmother kept track of how much we gained back, and in turn, how many days until spring.  She wrote it in on her calendars, and every time I went to visit, I could keep track. When we chatted on the phone, she'd always let me know how many minutes we were towards daylight savings time. Boy, do I miss my grandmother.

    Do you ever get caught up in the nonsense that happens when you change from daylight to standard time?  You can't help telling yourself "It's really ten o'clock, not eleven". I don't think I ever really gained an hour of extra sleep, because I justify staying up because I won't actually lose any sleep.  Then when we lose the hour of sleep but gain the hour of light, I probably lose two hours of sleep, because "it's really midnight, not one o'clock".  I go back and forth with this conversation in my head for a couple of weeks before I let it go. But I should remind myself that Eastern standard time is the real time, and Daylight savings is not.

     In keeping with the theme of this blog, there are some good things about it getting dark, and the onset of winter. With the leaves off the trees, you can see more of the sky, and that means beautiful sunsets. I am lucky that my office at work is on the third floor, and with a picture window. The photo above was taken from the office, I think in 2010. The flash kind of ruins it, but you get the idea. I tried to insert a cropped version of this photo, but it didn't work.

   
     Another advantage of fall? Without leaves to get in the way, you can see the skeleton of a tree, and all those branches silholetted against the sky.  In dim light, it's really beautiful. In the above shot, you can see a bird in an upper branch.

We also have fall foilage. This year, I hate to say that it's November 6th, and many leaves are still green!! It ain't happening this year. But I will be sure to appreciate it more next year.

     How do you feel about losing that hour of light today? Does it bother you? Do you look forward to daylight savings in the spring?  Share your thoughts with me!
One last thought before I go- at least I'm not getting up in the dark for the next couple of weeks!
Take care until next time.
Karin