Daylight Saving Time has ended the weekend before Halloween for as long as I can remember. I always thought that was clever when I was of trick or treat'ing age, since it wasn't any fun to go around in a costume while it was still light out, and I much appreciated it getting dark at 5:30, instead of 6:30. In retrospect I think I had that backwards; most parents probably want it to remain lighter longer so their kids can trick or treat in at least twilight, but I was lucky enough to grow up before the media turned from new to entertainment, and began focusing obsessively on missing kids and child abuse. Therefore, back in my day, no one really worried all that much about child abduction or pedophiles or other bad things, and we had no problems wandering around after dark with bags full of bite-sized candies.
The other side of the daylight saving coin is that once the summertime clock change ends, it gets lighter earlier in the morning. I've not given that any thought since the misery of high school ended and I no longer had to get up at ridiculous, sleep-depriving hours. I'm awake today at 7:15am though and man... it's dark outside! No wonder they ended DST before Halloween. I'd hate to be a kid walking or biking to school today; it's damn near 7:30 and it's cold and still nighttime dark outside.
Darkness will come earlier and morning sooner, but
not until next week:
On August 8, 2005, President George W. Bush signed the Energy Policy Act of 2005. This Act changed the time change dates for Daylight Saving Time in the U.S. Beginning in 2007, DST will begin on the second Sunday in March and end the first Sunday in November. The Secretary of Energy will report the impact of this change to Congress. Congress retains the right to resume the 2005 Daylight Saving Time schedule once the Department of Energy study is complete.
Sunrise here is now 7:34am, with sunset at 6:13pm. So it'll be dark at 5 starting next week, and still hardly light before 7. Not that I plan on being awake again at this time of the day for the foreseeable future.
Labels: weather
