A Brief History of Messing With Time

Twice a year, we all participate in a tradition where we collectively agree that the time is wrong.

Not because the clocks are broken. Not because the Earth has started spinning differently. Just because, at some point, a group of people decided we'd all be better off moving the clocks around.

And somehow, we've just gone along with it.

In the spring, we lose an hour of sleep. In the fall, we get it back. Which sounds like a pretty fair deal until you realize they're returning something they stole from you eight months earlier.

And they don't even pay interest.

The Great Fall Back

This past weekend, we turned our clocks back an hour.

For most people, this means an extra hour of sleep. For parents of young children, it means absolutely nothing.

Your child, who normally wakes up at 6:30 a.m., is now standing beside your bed at 5:30 a.m., asking for breakfast.

You can explain that it's actually 5:30 in the morning, but the child doesn't care. The child has never cared about time. The child has a waffle agenda, and frankly, your concerns aren't part of it.

Meanwhile, it'll be dark by the time you finish lunch.

Wonderful system we've got here.

Your Phone Has Already Taken Care of It

One of the interesting things about daylight saving time is that most of our clocks don't even need us anymore.

Your phone adjusts automatically. So does your computer. Even your car might figure it out, depending on how much you paid for it.

But your mechanical watch?

That one's on you.

And I kind of like that.

A mechanical watch doesn't know about daylight saving time. It doesn't know what time zone you're in. It doesn't know that Congress has been arguing about changing the clocks for years.

It just keeps doing what it was built to do.

Ticking away.

Completely unaware that we've decided an hour has gone missing.

An Hour With Your Watch

There's something enjoyable about taking a minute to reset a mechanical watch.

Unscrew the crown. Move the hands. Check the date. Screw the crown back down.

A small interaction with something you wear every day.

And if you've got a collection of mechanical watches, congratulations. You've now got a little project.

Personally, I spend enough time working with tiny watch components that you'd think I'd appreciate a Sunday morning where I didn't have to touch another watch.

But here we are.

One important thing: when adjusting the date on a mechanical movement, be mindful of the date-change mechanism. On many movements, using the quickset date function late at night can cause damage. Check your movement's instructions before making adjustments.

After all, the goal is to change the time. Not create another project for the watchmaker.

And Then We Do It All Again

Come March, we'll move the clocks forward.

We'll lose the hour we just got back. Everyone will complain about being tired. Someone will point out that we should stop doing this. Everyone will agree.

And then we'll do absolutely nothing about it.

But at least the evenings will get longer.

For now, enjoy the earlier sunsets, the confused children, and that one clock in your house that will remain wrong until April.

And take a minute to set your watch.

Time may be something we all agree to change twice a year. But the memories we make with it? Those are worth keeping.

Wear the memory.

JMR Watches