Only in the Keys by Jana Vandelaar
KeysNet.com
I'm a nice person. I've always been known to be a nice person. (Well, maybe my hubby wouldn't exactly describe me as such.) But, on the whole, I'd like to believe being nice is sorta my gig. I truly believe people say, "Oh, yeah, Jana. I know her. She's nice." Sometimes they even throw in 'funny' too. "Jana is just a nice person. And she's kind of funny."
But, anyone who has been around me for more than a few lunch dates would also say I have one big character flaw. Timeliness. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being late and 10 being on time, I'm about a -5. Yep, MINUS 5.
I am one of those people who do NOT have a grasp on time. I'm time handicapped. I should be in a wheelchair that is controlled by an atomic clock, directing me to the next thing on my schedule so I can get there promptly. I don't care what I've got going on in my life, if I have to be somewhere, I've got a 50/50 chance of being late, like everyone else. But, in my case it's a 90/10 chance that I AM late.
And, that's on a normal day.
So, can you imagine how Sunday, Nov. 6 has me and my fellow habitual tardyistos stressed out? What in the world is the world thinking?
But, let's be honest. This time change doesn't just impact those of us who are time impaired. It affects even the sharpest on-time humans.
Everything goes haywire. People of all types miss flights, forget to pick up their kids from school "on time," and miss their favorite television shows. It's madness for a good 3-5 days. Why do we put ourselves through this?
I did some research and, I can safely say we should blame this disruption on Germany. Apparently, Benjamin Franklin threw around the idea back in the 1700s. But it wasn't really taken into consideration for almost a full century later when, in 1915, Germany was the first nation to adopt the notion officially.
The United States Congress passed The Uniform Time Act where this wacky time theory was standardized throughout most of the states in 1966. I'm telling you, it might have been before Hitler's regime, but I still suspect him.
I also read that the birth control pill was first approved for human use and Star Trek aired its first show in 1966. Both had a HUMONGOUS impact on our lives. Coincidence? Who knows? Oh and Barbie's twin was first introduced in 1966.
Can you imagine the confusion if you popped out twins at 2 a.m. on Nov. 6? I read a story written in November, 2007, about Laura Cirioli of North Carolina who gave birth to Peter at 1:32 a.m. and, 34 minutes later, to Allison. However, because Daylight Saving Time reverted to Standard Time at 2 a.m., Allison was born at 1:06 a.m. Try to explain that to poor Allison. I wonder if Barbie's mother had to deal with this problem?
I did find a semi-good story that happened in September of 1999. The West Bank was on Daylight Saving Time while Israel had just switched back to standard time. West Bank terrorists prepared time bombs and smuggled them to their Israeli counterparts, who misunderstood the time on the bombs. As the bombs were being planted, they exploded - one hour too early - killing the three terrorists instead of the intended victims, which were two busloads of people.
So, there you go. Allison may suffer psychologically but this time change has saved lives. Taking both stories into consideration, I thought it would only be fair to jot down all of the pros and cons of how this time change specifically impacts those of us in the Keys before I make my final determination.
PROS
Most people look better in the dark. (This might only be a priority for me as I'm getting older, but it's still a strong PRO.)
Everyone gets to feel a bit devious when the "approved" time to begin drinking - 5 o'clock - rolls around and it's really on 4 o'clock. Keys rebels love this type of thing.
Early morning fishing isn't so brutal with the sun's help.
We all stay cooler with the sun going down earlier.
BAD
Not easy navigating boats at night.
That's all I could come up with.
You'd think with four positives and only one negative, we'd all be thrilled with this time change. But the one negative overpowers all... never, ever mess with boaters.
Forget about my nice persona. I'm gonna show my true colors and make a statement for all: This time change sucks.
Jana appreciates all of the fun feedback she has received from her fans and welcomes more. Give her a tweet at www.twitter.com/janavandelaar or visit her website at www.janavandelaar.com where you can follow her blogs and read about her novels and children's books.
http://www.keysnet.com/2011/11/03/393357/what-daylight-saving-time-means.html