daylight savings craziness

david sumner · Post by **david sumner** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 1:31 am

While most U.S. clocks spring forward one hour on Sunday, Pulaski County will do double time when it moves the courthouse clock ahead not one, but two hours for daylight-saving time.

Under a new law, daylight-savings time begins the second weekend in March and ends the first weekend in November.

Confusing as it might seem, folks in this northwestern Indiana county hope the move actually ends a time zone muddle born of Indiana's 2005 decision to observe DST statewide.

"Whenever I make an appointment I say, 'It's 11:45 here, what time is it there?"' said Sheila Garling, owner of Gear Up Sports & Apparel, who has trouble keeping track of which time zone she's in.

Pulaski County was pulled an hour into the future - at least on the clock - when lawmakers approved statewide observance of daylight-saving time two years ago.

The U.S. Department of Transportation initially recommended that Pulaski and several surrounding counties remain in the Eastern zone. But the department ultimately placed Pulaski in the Central zone and most other nearby counties in Eastern.

Pulaski County officials disliked being an hour out of sync with their neighbors and vowed to move to Eastern time on their own. They changed their minds when government lawyers threatened to sue and decided instead to formally petition for a return to Eastern.

But many individuals and institutions never took to Central time. The county's biggest school district, which has students who live in Eastern time zone counties and shares programs, decided to observe Eastern time to minimize confusion.

The clock on the county courthouse in Winamac stayed on Central time, while the digital clock a half mile away outside the First Federal Savings Bank moved to Eastern. So one shows 10:15 a.m. while the other displays 11:15 a.m., and neither is wrong.

County officials switched the work hours for most county employees from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. EST to 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Central time - making the change in time zones a change in name only for some.

"That was confusing in itself, but people lived through it," County Commissioner Michael Tiede said.

Some residents in this farming community about 90 miles north of Indianapolis find it simpler to refer to fast time or slow time when making plans.

"They usually don't say Eastern or Central time, because then you have people who are really particular who will say, 'Is it Eastern Standard time or Eastern Daylight Saving time?"' Tiede said. "But if you go fast or slow, you just know it's an hour difference."

To the relief of many, federal officials in February approved Pulaski County's request to return to Eastern time.

But Dennis Gutwein, the pastor at the First Baptist Church, thinks there's still room for confusion come Sunday.

Gutwein has kept his clocks on Central time, so with daylight time and the return to Eastern time, he'll move them forward two hours Sunday. He predicts some people might show up for Sunday school at 9:30 a.m. EDT, others at 9:30 a.m. EST and others at 9:30 a.m. CST.

"It will be strange," he said.

Parishioner Lori Carlson said she won't take any chances before heading to Sunday's service.

"I'll have to call," she said.

Post by **cwallace** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 1:46 am

Hah...when I saw the topic this is EXACTLY the story that came to mind...I had read this today while watching the server rebuild..

I don't get the DLS crap...I mean who cares...it is ONE HOUR...Most of this state is late by at LEAST that much in everything they do...

Who gives a rats ass...

Chris

zenmandan · Post by **zenmandan** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 2:00 am

My high school was near the county line between St Joseph and LaPorte. Half of the school was from Laporte county (central time), the other half from St Joe (eastern). For half the year, we had school time and town time (for most of the kids that lived in/near New Carlisle in St Joe county. The eastern time zone kids loved it because they didn't have to be at school until 8:30, while those of us in Laporte county still had to get up stupid early.

The county line was just over a mile from my house, which was an hour ahead half the year, and was also long distance to call my friend on the phone. Oh well. I guess there has to be a "line" somewhere. It just so happens that we were on the far west of the eastern zone, or the far east of the central zone.

The_Dude · Post by **The_Dude** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 9:52 am

People don't like change.

People are stupid. I'm all for an "extra" hour of daylight in the Summer.

zenmandan · Post by **zenmandan** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 10:28 am

I never got what the big deal was either. It's an hour...get over it. Some asshat last year in the Journal Gazette wrote that we would all suffer jet lag like symptoms for up to two weeks because of this and all productivity would be lost in the business sector. What a f-word head.

Post by **cwallace** » Sat Mar 10, 2007 10:57 am

You just said 'f-word head'...lol..what a dipshit..

Chris

zenmandan · Post by **zenmandan** » Sun Mar 11, 2007 1:23 am

That's funny I typed in f - u - ( - K head, not f-word head, although f-word head is funnier.

Post by **cwallace** » Sun Mar 11, 2007 10:59 am

Where am I? What is this place? What is going on? did I wake up in a time warp???

dizziness...

Chris

P.S. Welcome to a different time..

CW

=^-..-^= · Post by **=^-..-^=** » Sun Mar 11, 2007 3:02 pm

DST claims first casualty:

I went to tmove my watch ahead one hour last night. I couldn't get the stem out to change the time, so I grabbed my handy Swiss Army knife to wedge it out. It slipped and I cut my finger pretty good.

That and all the extra water I use on my garden in the Summer because of the extra hour of sunlight are making me not a fan of DST right now. . . .