It’s not Sunday and the pizza cooked yesterday, and here I am with a few minutes before dinner. The shortest day of the year was last month, but the mornings haven’t been getting any brighter. Due to an odd astronomical phenomena, the latest sunrise of the year actually happens in the northern hemisphere around January 8 or so and not on December 21st like you’d expect. Now sunsets have been getting later and here at my latitude sunset is almost 5 pm, with the sunrise being later each day, until a few days ago. Today sunrise was at 7:18 am and tomorrow it will be at 7:17 am.
Personally, I don’t think we should celebrate the longest day of the year or even recognize the shortest day of the year – it’s the sunrise time that really matters.
It has to do with sleep. I’m the type of person who wakes up with the sun. I’ve always been like that — when the sun is up, I’m awake. No sun and I could sleep a long time. Normally that’s not a problem as I just use an alarm clock when I need to get up before the sun. However, now that I’m retired, I hate that alarm. For decades it went off most mornings around six so I could be to the office by eight – I have bad memories about what the alarm clock got me into. These days I have little that I need to be up that early for.
Except on Mondays. On Mondays at 8:00 am is my Bible study group on zoom. In the summer it’s no problem to be at the computer ready to meet at eight as most likely I’d have woken up around six when the sun is up. When the sun doesn’t rise until 7:19, there’s barely time for a quick shower and a cup of tea before I need to log into the meeting. Today I was five minutes late – mortifying …
Now, I should point out that I’ve been meeting with these guys for about eight years now and while we’re a “study” group and have actually read and discussed the whole Bible (seriously, we took three years to read the whole thing), these days there are sports scores to review, health updates (we’re all old retired guys with interesting medical conditions), vacation reports and discussions of the sad state of our world to do before we get to any studying. For the last couple of years we’ve been watching these half hour lectures on comparative religions hoping it would give us some better insights into stuff.
Yeah, mostly it does, but apparently it’s basketball season so it took awhile to get to the next lecture on Hinduism. Which turns out not to be simple and most of what we thought we knew is wrong. Even the word Hinduism isn’t a good label for what they believe or are (and it’s a western word, not used until colonial times and not by the Hindus) and calling it a religion is likely a stretch. Today’s lecture was on wisdom and the only thing I really learned is that I have a lot more questions than answers.
I should also mention that one reason I didn’t write yesterday is that our daughter was over for dinner and we started watching this NetFlix series, You Are What You Eat, which is a study of identical twins and how diet affects our bodies. One twin is put on a vegan diet while the other is on a healthy omnivore diet and then they measure the results. There’s also a bunch of stuff on how food is produced, health aspects of food, etc. Basically what you think you know about food is wrong and while we’re only half way through watching, I’ve decided to just stop eating – food is bad for you. Okay, maybe just change my diet, a bit, something …
So at the moment the only thing I sure of is that sunrise tomorrow is 7:17 am, at least here where I live. What it is where you live, I don’t know, you’ll have to look it up.
Andrew's View of the Week 
I’m glad I got to this post a week late because the days are even longer now. Like you, I’m up with the sun that sneaks through our (curtained) bedroom windows. There’s a sliver of glass I can never seem to cover up and when that sliver is bright I know it’s time to get up. Nature’s alarm clock for us retired guys. Your Bible study sounds a little like a ladies’ book club, but I’d say the ladies are even worse about sticking to their advertised purpose. Finally, “You Are What You Eat” was interesting and we probably learned a few things while watching, but it didn’t cause earthquakes with our diet. We eat relatively healthy already (tho’ far from perfect). Every time I watch one of these types of shows I’m further sold on “everything in moderation”.
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Every so often we actually stay on topic … 😉
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Hey Andrew, this is what my health conscious friends are all worried about: food is bad for you, they say. My answer is, well, maybe for you it’s true but definitely not for me lol
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It’s only bad for you if you eat it … 😉
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And yes I do, no just cooking and looking for me
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My sleep patterns are similarly affected by sunrise. I think you’re onto something with the idea of celebrating sunrise rather than the longest day! I read in your comments that you might be solar powered. I’ve said that, too. This time of year when we don’t get our typical sunshine my productivity goes to about half power. I think if I lived in some climates I might really struggle with Seasonal Affective Disorder. My brother is completely opposite. So we are who we are, I suppose.
The Netflix doc you mentioned has been calling to me, and I need to watch it soon!
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I know a few people who are afftected by Seasonal Affective Disorder that they have to use a full spectrum very bright light for several hours a day just to function. The body can do strange things. I finished the documentary last night. It’s interesting and will make you want to change your diet.
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I am up with or before the sun every day and I agree our food is NUTS as well as pets food.
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These days I rarely get up that early, but our food situation is crazy.
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It sure is as is or medicine and healthcare oh and fresh water as well. 😦
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I’ve been noticing (and appreciating) that the sun is finally starting to rise a little earlier. As far as wisdom goes, the older I get, the less I’m sure of. And I’ve decided to eat whatever I want, in moderation. As long as I maintain a healthy weight, I figure if one of my food choices decides to kill me, well… ya gotta go sometime. At least I’ll have enjoyed my food until the last moment! 😉
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I have found that as I get older, I like meat less – the fats bother my tummy, so I eat less of that and more grains and veggies. The program I watched didn’t show the chemicals they use to grows our plants, and some of those are nasty.
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Yes, the herbicides and pesticides commercial growers use are worrisome. We grow almost all our own fruits and veggies and preserve them to eat throughout the winter, so at least we know that food supply is safe. 🙂
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We’ve been grow more stuff here.
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I am, and always was an early riser. As I get older, instead of getting up later I go to bed earlier. I love the dark, quiet mornings. Any time after 4 am is fine for me to get up. I love having that first cup of coffee in dim lighting and – well – quiet. On occasion, I have really (REALLY!) soft classical music playing in the morning as I scour the internet looking at art, inspiration, and friends’ posts. It is a beautiful time of day for me and keeps me grounded.
I have a ‘bird alarm’ on my iPad that is next to my bedside. If I sleep later, it softly chirps me awake and I set that to 5 am. The problem is, I am so used to the chirping that it doesn’t always wake me. I sometimes sleep until 7. (EGADS!!!) That is usually the latest I naturally wake up whether it is light or dark.
I see lots of people complain about how dark the winter is and how ‘short’ the days are. I never really get that. Unless you have a job that requires sunlight. The world has been doing its thing for thousands of years. I don’t see it changing for those who are uncomfortable with it. I like to think our ability to adapt is one of the keys to our happiness.
Me? I am kind of a ‘go-with-the-flow’ girl. I worry about other things while finding the darkness cozy and comforting.
So that is my take. 😉 Thank you for another thoughtful post. Have a great week.
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I used to always get up with an alarm and loved getting to work early. I turned off the alarm when I retired. The dark doesn’t bother me, but I think I’ve got a bit that seasonal affective thing. My body seems to need the sun. In the winter I slow down and sleep more, but in summer I’m more active and sleep a lot less. Lately I’ve been telling people that I’m solar powered.
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I see nothing wrong with resting a little more. You earned it. I see many retired people not able to get on an “I’m retired” schedule, and that is sad. I don’t know if I will ever fully retire, being self-employed. I like my boss too much. (and my job, actually) But I have learned to slow down when my body tells me to. Or even back off when I feel like I am doing too much. It’s all about pacing ourselves. We are all different and the way I see it, no judgment should be made regarding others. It makes me happy to see everyone going at their own pace, whatever that is. 🙂
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I’ve done just the reverse of you–with alarms to notify me of events like waking up. Now, because of my growing list of daily meds, I have about 8 daily alarms that keep me from going blind or my joints from freezing up.
An aside: My fictional characters love rising with the sun. You would do well with them.
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I’d fit right in with those guys. I’m lucky that my pill schedule is still simple – morning and evening pills, nothing time critical.
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As I stumbled out of the bedroom in the dark this morning, I thought about how it seems dark later in the morning even as it stays light longer in the early evening. And now I know I was right! Thanks.
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I didn’t know that about the later sunrises until I moved further north and when the sunrises after 7:00 am I started to notice something was up.
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I’m in central Montana. After moving back here a year and a half ago from Iowa, I’ve really noticed how the sun seems to move north and south through the seasons.
I remember moving from Montana to Puerto Rico and being astonished that the length of daylight was always about the same as the length of dark.
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When first moved to Northern Nevada, I hadn’t realized how much further north it is than where we were living in the SF bay area. The winters are darker, and the summers more daylight.
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I’ve been sleeping so well lately, because of the late sunrise. Like you, I’m up when it is daylight, but now that it is so dark in the AM, I’ve been sleeping longer. I actually like it. Spring is here soon, then it will be back to 5 AM wake up.
LOL – I watched some of the Netflix show too on the twins studies. It was so sad. As you mentioned, basically, almost all food is bad for you. And chicken/beef/fish… you wouldn’t want to eat it again after watching that show. What’s left?
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Kale – you can eat kale as long as it’s organically grown and locally sourced …
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LOL…
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Interesting about the sunrise times, Andrew and I had not idea! Today seems wonderfully light and loving the sunshine even if rather chilly outside. Your bible group sounds a lot of fun and I think a lecture that raises more questions is one that succeeds! Enjoy learning more!
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We like our group – we ask lots of questions. I didn’t know about the sunrise times until a couple of years ago.
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Here in England it is definitely the Winter Solstice that is celebrated. Every year on December 21st thousands of pagans assemble at Stonehenge to celebrate the return of the sin’s heat and light.
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Here both tend to get ignored, but the last few years our church has started a “longest night” service for the 21st.
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Interesting. My biological clock wakes me each day at 5am..Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring, regardless of the sun and if I really need to get up that early 🤔. I’m looking forward to retirement in 2-3 years.
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When I was working, I was a bit more like that, but still I think I might be solar powered – without the sun, I’m not awake.
And you’ll enjoy retirement.
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