The Time Change Effect

We just adjusted our clocks this past weekend to end daylight savings time and return to standard time. Did you notice?

I remember when I was kid when the time changed, we would wake up that Sunday and spend some time (pun intended) to reset our clocks: the alarm clocks, the kitchen clock, the living room clock, the VCR clocks, the microwave oven clock, the stove clock and all our watches. It was quite a feat to change all of them. In some cases, we'd have to dig up instructions on how to change the time on a particular device.

Nowadays, it's noticeably different. Yesterday morning I changed 2 clocks: the clock in the living room and the clock on the stove. I haven't changed the one in the car yet - I need to find those instructions first.

Most of our devices update the time automatically. Our laptops, tablets and cell phones update the time from the internet.  Even our cordless handsets get the time updated from our Vonage phone adapter. I don't wear a watch on a regular basis and my alarm clock is my cell phone.

Since we gained an hour of time, I got an extra hour of sleep and today, I'm not as tired as I usually am, so the extra hour did me good, which means I wasn't physically effected by the change. Unlike when daylight savings time starts and we lose an hour. Losing that hour is like jet lag, it takes a couple of days to acclimate.

My wife didn't realize that the time had changed until today. Because I changed the 2 clocks before she woke up Sunday morning, she had no indication of the change. It made me wonder if someone had no clocks that needed manual adjustment, would they notice that the time changed?

It also makes me wonder why we need the time change at all? I;m sure there was a good reason for it when it was implemented, but does it still make sense?

I guess that is something I can ponder as I change the clock in our vehicle. Now, how do you change the clock in a 2004 Jeep Liberty? Time to find the owner's manual ...

A Fatherly Moment of Zen

Each day, with the exception of Sunday, I get up around 6:00 AM so that I have some time to myself before the rest of the family wakes up. During this time, I meditate, practice my Tai Chi, Qigong, Yoga or some conditioning exercises. After that, I'll grab something to eat if I am hungry and then I head to my office to do some writing. This is my "me time." The time I spend on just myself to rejuvenate my mind, body and spirit. It's a great start to my day and helps energize me for what I have planned for the rest of the day. The meditation, tai chi and exercise help with my writing as they get my mind settled and focused and the blood flowing. All this before I have my morning cup of coffee or tea, too! I follow this practice most days, or at least I try to. I go with the flow with whatever the morning, or the night before, brings to me. Like this morning.

On Focus, Confidence and Building a Business

My daughter has been sick with a persistent cough that has kept all of us awake at night. After getting about four hours sleep, she woke us up. After my wife finally got her asleep, I was still awake. Every time I dozed off, I immediately woke up. I kept thinking about my Tai Chi school and what I need to do to get it rolling.



Lately, I've been struggling with what I need to do. When I was laid off over a year ago, my plan was to take on project work because I wanted to be my own boss. It never materialized like I wanted it too. When I got my certification to teach Tai Chi in February, I started to plan my Tai Chi school.

Time Is An Illusion

My daughter starts school next week and my thoughts (as incoherent as they are) turn to what I'll do with all the "free" time I'll have. Since being laid off last year (exactly one year tomorrow), I've spent most of my days taking care of my daughter, surfing the web, making lunch, doing the laundry, helping my wife with the technical side of her jewelry business, looking for freelance projects and starting up my Tai Chi school I suppose my days won't change too much, except my daughter won't be here, but they do need to change.

Time Enough For Nothing

Every month, my Sifu sends out a monthly lesson. Each lesson contains an assignment to be done by each student and returned back to him by the end of the month. This was my response to his assignment: "Write a paragraph explaining whether you feel you have enough time in your day, and why."

Do I have enough time in my day? Hmm, well from a purely scientific point of view, I have 24 hours - the time it takes the Earth to rotate 1 revolution around it's axis. I physically can't have any more time no matter how much I demand (or think I need) it. I also can't have any less time. We all have 24 hours in a day - no more and no less.