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The start of daylight savings time will begin this Sunday, March 13th, a full week before the official start of spring on March 20th. Officially this begins at 2 a.m., the time to set our clocks ahead one hour, to “spring ahead” as they say. That's when local time will instantly become 3:00 am.
Although we’ll technically lose an hour of sleep, the new time provides captured daylight which can be utilized starting Sunday afternoon and evening. But what do we do with this supposedly found time? Glad you asked!
Interestingly,
daylight saving time was never intended to help American farmers with their crops. It was actually popularized in Germany to save coal during World War I. In the US, it became a national standard in 1966 when LBJ signed the Uniform Time Act, which was established as a way to conserve energy, including using less lighting in your house.
Getting back to that one hour, one possibility is getting a head start on your spring cleanup. Rake up those pesky leaves that escaped your fall clean up, sweep away all that ice melt and sand on your driveway, and maybe sweep out the garage and clean your car. Hopefully the holiday lights are down and stored by now!
If you’re ok with the cold temperatures, a nice brisk walk could be in order, or head down to Nissequogue River State Park. There is something majestic about nature on a chilly afternoon and Nissequogue is perfect with its high diversity of bird species, as well as long tailed ducks, white-tailed deer and cottontail rabbits.
If you’ve really ready for spring, and weather be darned, fire up the bar-b-Que for the first cookout of the season. You may need a couple of gas heaters if you’re looking to don the traditional ware of t-shirt, flip flops and baseball cap. But hey, let the grilling season begin!
Whatever you decide to do, don’t forget our loving, four-legged companions. They’ve been in also this winter so consider taking them along for an outing. Stay safe and enjoy the weekend.
