By Ward Degler
The good news is the clock in my car is on time. The bad news is all the clocks in my house are an hour off.
There’s a button on my car dash that says, “Clock.” Actually, it says “Clk,” but I’m sure it means clock. You would think that pushing that button would allow me to change the time in my car. Sorry, it’s more complicated than that.
Something to do with the radio. AM or FM, or Tune, or Vol. Or a combination of all of the aforementioned.
I know what you’re thinking: Look it up in the car’s owner’s manual. I would love to do that, but, unfortunately, I bought my car used, and it didn’t come with an owner’s manual. I guess the dealer just assumed I knew how to drive. I do. Except for setting the Clk.
A couple years ago, my 6-year-old grandson was in the car when we launched daylight saving time.
“I’ll set your clock, Grandpa,” he said, clicking the radio on. He flipped a couple of buttons and presto: DST. Unfortunately, he wasn’t available in the fall to move it back an hour, so my clock is permanently set on daylight time.
Between now and next fall, however, I can feel content my clock is telling me the truth. Come fall, I’ll have to remember to subtract an hour.
I’m not sure why we have daylight time at all. It just stays dark an hour longer in the morning. And I seldom mow my lawn at night. Besides, Indiana has a strange relationship with DST.
Back in the 1960s, we were on daylight time, and someone of importance suggested we stay there all year. For years, our time never changed. I could call my sister in Arizona – the only other state that didn’t switch time back and forth – and we always knew what time it was.
Sadly, folks apparently forgot what happened in the 1960s and suggested Indiana should go on daylight time. Everybody agreed, and the clocks got set ahead another hour. Ever since then, we have been on daylight time in the winter and double daylight time in the summer.
Come to think of it, it really doesn’t matter. I can just sleep an extra hour in the morning. One of these days, I’ll get around to setting the clocks in the house. And the Clk in my car is right on time.
