Daylight Saving Time has come again. For an old guy, springing forward is easier said than done. I understand the concept; however, I think Indiana is doing it all wrong.
The idea is to help conserve energy by having more daylight in the evening so people will use lights a little less. It is also thought to help having more light while people are out on the road.
The trouble is Indiana wants to be like New York instead of Chicago. Sunrise on March 17 in New York was 7:04 a.m. In Indianapolis, sunrise was 7:52 a.m. Using the same Eastern Time, sunrise in Chicago was 7:58 a.m.
So where am I going with this? Indiana should go back to our old way of not changing at all. If New York wants to change, good for them. If Chicago wants to change, hallelujah. We need to just keep our clocks exactly the same all year long.
Yes, that means for part of the year, we are in the Eastern Time Zone, then for the other part of the year we are in the Central Time Zone. Realistically, what New York and Chicago are doing in changing their time is trying to be just like Indiana if we do nothing at all.
The good Lord put Indiana right in the bread basket for a special reason. I think he thought about the time the sun rises and sets in Indiana, and I think it is perfect.
Just leave the clocks alone, and all will be just fine.
One of the best commodities everyone has is a good amount of rest. That being said, why in the world would we want to mess with the most important thing, which is our sleep pattern?
Our bodies are amazing things. They protect us from all kinds of things. So when the newsman says, “OK, everyone, it’s time to spring forward, so set your clocks up one additional hour,” my body says, “Wait a minute. The clock might say its 7 a.m., but really it’s only 6 a.m., so lay back down and sleep one more hour. It will do you good!”
Now for a dainty woman, that voice telling you it is really 6 a.m. is probably just the most perfect-pitched soft voice. But when you are a big ol’ boy like me, that 6 a.m. voice is deep and loud. I’m almost afraid to get up, and therefore, it makes no sense to me to spring forward.
Let’s do it right in Indiana. Let’s go back to the deal of keeping the clocks in Indiana the same all year long. When New York springs forward to get that hour that we already have in Indiana, bless their hearts, and we can watch the TV shows an hour earlier. Everyone can record the shows and watch whatever time you want to anyway.
The sun both rises and sets later in the day in the Indianapolis area than in any other of the top 50 metro areas. Try to go to an Indiana drive-in movie in the summer. We have so much daylight; it doesn’t get started until almost 10 p.m.
Like I said, an old boy like me needs plenty of beauty sleep, and that’s just too late to start watching a movie. Like the old Indian said, only the government would believe you can cut a foot off the top of a blanket, sew it to the bottom and have a longer blanket.
Wayne Addison is chief probation officer for the Hancock County Probation Department. Send com
ments to [email protected].
