Dan Antion

Good Song – Too Early – #1LinerWeds

A winter scene before DST.
So much for driving in daylight

I know I’ve shared the song at the end of this post before, but, as the title indicates, it’s a favorite of mine. Many years ago, my best friend introduced me to the Allman Brothers. What can I say, he was right.

“Walk along the river, sweet lullaby, it just keeps on flowing,
It don’t worry ’bout where it’s goin’,
Don’t fly, mister blue bird, I’m just walking down the road,
Early morning sunshine tell me all I need to know”

I’m thinking about this song, because, as I was walking along the Connecticut River yesterday morning, there was no ‘early morning sunshine’ to tell me anything. There was a lot of early morning darkness. Yes, Daylight Saving Time happened, and I’m not happy.

Worse than DST happening, is all the momentum around making DST a year-round thing. They use the same old arguments:

“It will save energy” – No, it won’t. That thought is from a time when electric lighting was the expense they were trying to reduce. Today, DST is more likely to cause us to run our A/C longer and harder into the evening. Comparing the energy use of an air conditioner with that of a few LED light bulbs, is truly ludicrous.

“It makes driving safer” – for people driving home at night. What about the people driving to work in the morning, or the school children walking to the bus stop in the morning? Shouldn’t they be safe, too?

“It will improve profits for golf courses, restaurants and the companies who make barbecue grills.” – Oh, wait, that isn’t one of the arguments, but since those people throw tons of money at our elected officials, we’ll go with that.

Perhaps the craziest argument of all is that it will make businesses more productive because employees won’t be in a rush to get home in the afternoon. Great! I get to drive into work in darkness AND work longer than I’m being paid to – yeah, that’s a great idea – let’s do more of that.

I get it. There are morning people and not-so-morning people. I am one of the former, and I think DST is unnecessary. Days get longer in the summer and shorter in the winter, all – by – themselves. We don’t need to change the clock; the planet’s orbit will take care of extending our day when it’s warm. Given the number of people who work from home or have the option of working flexible hours, most of us can get to the bar/restaurant/golf course/deck out back in plenty of time to enjoy ourselves and drive safely home. I know I’m in the minority, but I say, leave the clocks alone.

The gallery includes a few before and after pictures.

This post is part of Linda G. Hill’s fun weekly series One-Liner Wednesday. If you have a one-liner, I’d encourage you to join in on the fun. You can follow this link to participate and to see the one-liners from the other participants.

The Connecticut River, one week ago.
A winter scene before DST.
A week ago. It was light, but cold. That’s ice on the parking lot.
The buildings are being lit up by the sunrise (last week).
Those aren’t lights inside the Colt complex, it’s the sunrise we were enjoying a week ago reflecting on the windows.
A week ago, it was light when I arrived at work.
The Cold Dome. Cold but visible.
It was nice arriving in daylight.
I do like the shadows of the trees on the river.
The Connecticut River today. Same time.
I guess walking along the river will have to wait another month.
So much for driving in daylight
I do like the reflections in the dark water, but I was ready for sunshine.
This is about as light as it gets on my morning commute now.
Even the office is dark
Arriving at work, in the dark now.

74 comments

  1. Oh yes, I am so with you on this. I loathe DST. There is none in Costa Rica. The sun rises around 4:30-5:00 which is fine with me because I am a morning person. Morning, as in, after the sun heralds the arrival of morning. Not an alarm clock ringing in the dark. More light in the evening only made it more difficult for me to convince my kids it was time to come in and get ready to settle down for the night. DST is for commercialism only. I hated putting my kids on a bus corner in the dark. And yes, they rode the bus. It’s one of the reasons I paid state taxes. I fear the world has finally moved beyond my ability to adapt to all the recycled excuses, plans and naivety that come from new generations not being taught by or paying attention to anything that went before. It’s pretty sad when you know you are running late because the sun is tising and you are just climbing into your vehicle. 🙄Nice photos, as always. Happy hump day Dan.

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    • Thanks Cheryl. I’m looking out of my office window and it’s just starting to get light, It’s downright sad. Oh well, if they pick one, at least I won’t be reminded of this stupidity twice a year. I hope you have a good time getting over the hump.

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    • I think I could live with either one, but I dread the idea of it being dark until almost 9:00am in December and January. That just seems wrong. It’s not like folks up here are going to go golfing after work when it’s 8°f . Thanks for stopping by, GP!

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  3. I agree with GP…pick a time and stick with it. I was so enjoying the ride into work, the pink sky and sun rise on days when it wasn’t snowing/raining/icing. Monday morning felt like reversion into the beginning of winter and no one wants that.

    Anyhow, the good news is that by the time I have the pretty sun rises back, it will be warmer and maybe, just maybe, all of the snow will be gone. Happy Wednesday Dan!

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    • It is the setback into darkness that bothers me the most, Mary. I just don’t enjoy watching the sun rise from my desk. Our snow is almost gone, we might see dry grass by the end of this week. Right now, the yard is a bit of a swamp.

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    • I think this issue brings out the old and cranky in all of us, Judy. I was so happy when I started seeing the sun rise on my way to work. Then, bam. I guess I’m OK, either way, this is the last time I’ll spring forward on my way to work.

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    • Wait, this is Pam, right. Pam doesn’t have an opinion??? I’m confused.

      It may be the combination of bozos thinking they can change time and the fact that I have to abide by their schedule that gripes me the most. Fortunately, that will be less of an issue next year.

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  11. I honestly thought I had messed up my alarm–it was so darn dark outside! My little outdoor cat friends were confused, too. No one showed up for breakfast until way later. One time. That’s all we need. Just one time and make it stick. Thanks for the Allman Brothers…always a good choice.

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    • Thanks Lois. I’m glad there are so many fans of the Allman Brothers. I just love their music. Maddie is still confused. She just doesn’t get it, plus her meds are messed up. We used to phase that in gradually, but it’s only an hour. Still, we have to wake her up for the pill.

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  12. Choose one or the other and be done with it for Pete’s sake! I’m good with either, but I’m no longer driving to work or getting my kids on the school bus in the morning.

    Love the photo gallery today….all those great reflections. Great song and perfect choice for this post.

    Happy Hump Day Dan.
    🐾Ginger 🐾

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    • Thanks Ginger. I think as I move beyond commuting, I won’t care either way, but the idea of it being dark until 9:00 am will never make me happy. Still, the changing back and forth is the worst part.

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  16. Definitely would prefer leaving the time alone. As you said, this has all already been taken care of for us — God knew what He was doing when He designed things. We don’t need to stick our noses in and mess it all up!

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  17. Thanks,Dan, for sharing your thoughts on DST and for the Allman Brothers soundtrack accompaniment. As I read the words of your posting, I was instead thinking of Pink Floyd….We don’t need no daylight savings, we don’t need no time control…hey, leave them clocks alone. :)

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  19. Changing the clocks back and forth in spring and fall is a ritual I’d like to keep. It reminds me there is a seasonal change coming and I, too, need to make adjustments. Is there a petition to sign???

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  20. It’s the same problem whether we set the clocks ahead one hour or not. There will always be some point during the year where people are going to work/school when it’s dark or coming home when it’s dark. Whether the decision is to set the clocks permanently ahead one hour or to leave them on standard time and quit messing with them, the point is not to mess with them again. Maybe we need to adjust our schedules instead.

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    • You’re right about the darkness, John. There just isn’t enough sunlight to cover the day in December and January. But I would truly dread having it be dark until 9:00 am. I’d be happy adjusting the schedule. My fear is that the New England states succeed in the effort to move us into the Atlantic Time Zone and stay on Standard Time. That would effectively give us full time DST, but we’d be out of sync with the TV and sport schedule which will always be anchored on New York City (why, I don’t know). time.

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      • TV schedules are always given in Eastern Time because the networks are based in New York City. Same with sports schedules, because the leagues are all based there. The rest of us just have to figure things out.

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  21. There are two groups of people in this world, those who divide people into two groups and those who don’t. But that is wrong-headed thinking. The two groups are those who hate DST and those who don’t give a rip. :) :) :)

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  24. I guess I’m one of the few here who likes DST and really doesn’t mind changing the clocks twice a year. DST always meant the beginning of spring and summer to me so it makes me happy. But, I can sure understand those on a different schedule not liking it at all. Please drive safely, Dan!

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    • Thanks Janis. I guess, since I’ve always been up and out well before 7:00am, I get the sense of spring from seeing the sunrise. I do my best to stay safe, but this is a dangerous week to be on the road.

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  27. I’d like to leave a nice, long comment, but I’m too tired from trying to adjust to this week’s change to DST. My body keeps telling me I’m getting up an hour earlier than I really need to. I’d be happy to see DST eliminated.

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  28. It is a good tune :)
    I like the reflection of the trees on the water, too.
    I hate DST and I have felt poorly all week, because an hour of my life has been stolen. Also, Mercury is in retrograde. ANNNNND the office is WHACK right now, too. It’s tough times, man, tough times.

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  29. I just wish they’d pick one and leave it alone, Dan. :)
    No matter which side, all the reasons are about the same thing to me as statistics. I share Mark Twain’s opinion of statistics. He said, “There are lies. There are damn lies… and there are statistics.”
    Hugs.

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  30. Great pics as always….Daylight Savings Time…..ugh….I loved the 5 years we were in Arizona….no changes and it truly was a relief after living with Daylight Savings Time. Now that we are back in it….a great big ugh….!!

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  32. In India, most of us follow IST (Indian Standard Time) which means: Always Be Late. Oh, wait, wait, wait. Before all those punctual Indians target me I would like to say that there are Indians who do value time and are punctual (like me) but that percentage is in the minority.

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