Fall Back

In this episode (179) - Fall Back . . .

Going through the Farmer’s Almanac, I was curious about Daylight Savings Time (DST). Wondering why we “Fall Back”?

Tomorrow, the first Sunday, November 6, 2022, at 2 a.m., is when Daylight Saving Time ends in most areas of the United States, returning to Standard Time. Be sure to set your clocks one hour back before bedtime on Saturday night! Listen carefully, and you will hear the cynics, “Alright! We gain another hour of sleep Saturday night; why can’t it stay this way?

Moving the clocks twice a year is to take better advantage of sunlight. Face it; most folks get out of bed after the sun has risen and gone to bed after it has set. But what if the sun rose and set earlier?

“Pull that shade down. I’m trying to sleep in.”

When we fall back, we’re not really “gaining” time; we’re just giving up a little daylight in the evening and adding it to the morning. Just wait; soon, everyone will be complaining, “This getting dark at 5:00 p.m. sucks!”

Ok, but if it’s darker in the evening, doesn’t that mean more electricity will be needed to get through the night, your energy provider’s peak hours? You bet it does. If you’re interested in how you can save this winter on your electric bill, check out episode 172, Turn off the Lights.

Since Daylight Saving Time was introduced, lawmakers have occasionally seen fit to fiddle with it. This happened in the 70s, during the oil crisis. In 2007, Daylight Saving Time got longer, beginning in March and ending in November, instead of April and October, respectively. But it looks like we won’t be doing away with it soon.

Which States Don’t Observe DST?

According to U.S. law, states can choose whether to observe DST. Arizona (except for the Navajo Nation) and Hawaii, plus a few other U.S. territories, are the only places in the U.S. that do not observe DST and stay on standard time all year long.

Indiana did not vote to observe DST until April 2006.

Before that, some counties in the state observed it while others didn’t, which caused a lot of confusion, mainly since Indiana is split into two time zones already!

What about Other Countries?

At least 40 countries worldwide observe Daylight Saving Time, including most of Canada, though most of Saskatchewan and parts of northeastern British Columbia don’t participate. For obvious reasons, most countries near the equator don’t deviate from standard time.

It's said Benjamin Franklin is to blame for all this. Well, yes and no; Ben Franklin is credited for inventing the idea of Daylight-Saving Time due to his tongue-in-cheek letter to the editor written in 1784. However, Franklin seemed to understand rather than changing the clocks; he simply advised us to change our schedules to better align with nature. That seems sensible.

Changing the number on a clock doesn’t add time to our days. Anyway, tomorrow we “fall back” into the darkness, like to or not.

I’m Patrick Ball; thanks so much for listening. See you in the next episode.

Comments

We Need Awe More Than Ever

In this episode, Why We Need Awe More Than Ever Yesterday morning, I slipped into the cool stillness of my backyard before dawn. The air was crisp, the silence deep—broken only by the faint rustling of leaves and the familiar calls of birds waking early. Then I looked up. A thin crescent moon hung low in the east, with Venus just above it like a shining jewel. The sky was clear and full of stars, and for a moment, I felt something I hadn’t in a long time: Awe! For thousands of years, the heavens have carried on their steady dance, untouched by human noise. No ruler, no election, no breaking news has ever changed their rhythm. And yet here I was, tempted to reach for my phone—to trade the eternal for the urgent. Instead, I stayed. I watched the moonrise, the sky slowly lighten, and the world around me stir. Ducks passed overhead in a loose V, hummingbirds zipped past to visit their feeder, pausing mid-air as if curious about me sitting so still. Little by little, the static in my mind f...

The Silent Grid–Part Two

In this episode, The Silent Grid – Part Two Sirens split the night as Greenwood went dark. Marvin knew instantly—the blackout wasn’t an accident. It was a warning. In this quiet town, where life once unfolded at a predictable pace, a sleek, intuitive smartphone—a so-called gift from the future —has arrived. But it’s no tool for connection. It’s a silent force, erasing individuality and turning neighbors into something less than human. Marvin Gellborn, a man who values independence, sees the truth. His device isn’t helping; it’s testing him, watching him, and quietly embedding itself into the life of Greenwood. Welcome back to On the Fly . In this week’s episode of The Silent Grid , GridBot tightens its grip. After a hopeful community gathering, Marvin and his robot companion, Norman, notice a troubling absence—the very generation they hoped to reach has vanished into the neon glow of The Signal Box , a youth tech hub pulsing with digital obsession. When Greenwood’s lights vanish, Marvi...

The Pessimism Aversion Trap

In this episode, The Pessimism Aversion Trap Picture this: a room full of bright minds nodding in agreement as a bold new strategy is unveiled. The slides are polished, the vision is grand, and the future, we're told, has never looked brighter. Everyone beams—because who wants to be the one to say, "Um… this might not work"? Heaven forbid someone spoil the mood with a dose of reality. Better to smile, add a buzzword or two, and march confidently toward disaster. That's how the Pessimism Aversion Trap works. Even now, I can still hear the sound—a high-pitched shriek and a digital hum, followed by the slow, rhythmic clatter of data pouring from a 5¼-inch floppy disk. It was the late 1980s, and my makeshift home office (our living room) was dominated by what felt like a marvel of modern engineering: a used Tandy 1000 PC with not one, but two floppy drives. To top it off, we purchased a 'blisteringly fast' 300-baud modem—which, for the uninitiated, could downloa...

History Isn’t a Museum

✨ In this episode, History Isn't a Museum—It's a River . . . History isn't a museum—it's a river, and like it or not, we're already swimming in it. Its waters carry timeless lessons forward, flowing through each generation, waiting to be rediscovered . This profound realization struck me while reading Marcus Aurelius's Meditations . Imagine: a Roman emperor and philosopher two thousand years ago, writing notes that sound like advice from a modern mindfulness coach. When he says, "You have power over your mind—not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength," it feels like he's speaking directly to us. The water may change, but the river is the same. Examining this writing with a fresh, childlike perspective and a wealth of experience, I realize how consistent human nature remains over time. Every generation faces familiar challenges, marked by frustration, peace, courage, faith, baseball, and the search for meaning across the ages...

On The Fly

Search This Blog