Fort Nelson Says Goodbye to Daylight Savings Time
I hope Fort Nelson could start a trend. This year is the last time anyone in this BC town has to set their clocks back or forward an hour…ever. They voted to do away with the Daylight Saving tradition that so many of us still follow. Part of Fort Nelson’s decision was made because it’s near the Albertan border. By making this change, for half the year they are on BC time and for the other half the year they are on Alberta time. Still, I’m game for following in their forward-thinking footsteps.
Fall Back, Spring Forward
I know it’s only an hour. But it’s an hour that throws me. I feel zombiesque and just that bit off – more so than usual. And it’s not only me. I had to scrape my kids out of bed and sludge their little bodies out the door. There was whining, irritation and clumsiness, yes, myself included.
Others were feeling the early morning pain. At my kid’s school, there were two full pages filled with names of everyone who was late. Later at the supermarket, a woman in the line up was talking about how she was making mistakes and feeling out of it today and the cashier said he was having an off day too. We all nodded our head and agreed it was that lost hour messing with us.
Studies Find Daylight Saving Time Switch Isn’t Good for People
Every year when we fall back or spring forward news stations report on the negative impact of the time change. The latest study this year is from the University of British Columbia. Researchers found that there are more fatal accidents on the roads after the time switch. An American and a Swedish study both found the risk for heart attacks increases during this time as well. The Swedish study linked it to a lack of sleep.
Change the Time on Everything
Perhaps I’m just whining because I don’t want to have to fiddle with the stove clock, amongst a bunch of other appliances in the house, to figure out how to set the hour forward. Or maybe I will rebel this year and just leave my clocks wrong by an hour. I’ll tell my kids it’s a learning opportunity to do a little addition every time they want to know what time it is. Ah, these are the kinds of decisions you make when you are sleep-deprived by an hour. I should be back to normal in a week or so. 🙂
