May Contain Peanuts

G'day!

Or is it evening already?

This year, the government decided to push back daylight savings time a week to see if it would help save energy, among other reasons. I don't really care to the whys of this measure, but for once I am happy about a decision our government made.

Now, this one week extension is no great feat, but it did make me feel better that my country and I have a common interest. That is, daylight is a good thing to be in. I always dread when winter comes around for two reasons: 1. It gets really cold and my house is old and not very insulated (read: high gas bill) and 2. I get to wake up in the dark and get ready for work, then I get to return home in the dark. ITS THE DARKNESS! It stinks only seeing the sunshine from out your window (thank god my office is naturally lit), only to then watch it disappear by the time my shackle sets free at 5 pm.

In the summer, there was plenty of time (for me at least) to get home, change clothes and enjoy some outdoor time in the sun before dinner. I could go for a run (rarely), mow the lawn, etc and not feel like my day is confined and soon to be over already. Now that winter is here, I return home to the evening darkness and I am already in the mood for going to bed. It stinks.

I know there is a natural rotation of the seasons, daytimes and sun paths, so there is no real way to change or amend this issue. Winter must come along with the shortened days and colder temperatures. That's just science and you can't argue with it. But perhaps something could be done in the workplace, such as adjusting hours or accumulating time here or there. I know I would be ok with going to work at 7 am if it meant I would be out by 4 pm. This could easily lead into a discussion of work hours and the best management of such, but I will leave that for another post. I just know that people, myself included, seem to be happier during the summer hours and anything that can be done in the winter to improve our mood would be much appreciated.

Sure, the "early to bed, early to rise" way of life sure benefits from this time of year, but what normal person needs to be in bed by 7 pm? I like to do my own thing after a day's work, and I would prefer to have some daylight to do it in. Don't get me wrong, the night time is full of possibilities, just give me a little bit of light time to prepare me for the night. I don't need the night greeting me as soon as I step out of my office door. I guess it makes me value summer time even more once it returns.

PS - I had intended to try and incorporate the word "summernment" somewhere in here, but it just didn't work. Just let it be known that all privileges of the above word should run through here.