WHY DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME BEGINS AT 2AM _ If you happen to be awake and staring at your smartphone in the very early hours of the morning on Sunday, March 9, you’ll have the small pleasure of watching the time jump right from 1:59AM to 3AM — the start of Daylight Saving Time. But why that hour, specifically? The United States first adopted DST in 1918 as a way to conserve energy during World War I, following the lead of both England and Germany. When choosing exactly when to make the switch, officials were looking for an hour that could easily disappear without wreaking havoc on people’s schedules across the nation. Since no Amtrak trains departed New York City on Sundays at 2AM, losing that hour seemed a little less consequential than any other. According to the book Spring Forward: The Annual Madness of Daylight Saving Time, Sunday morning at 2AM was when “[a time change] would interrupt the least amount of train travel around the country. The United States didn’t stick with daylight saving time after 1918 — partially because so many farmers opposed it — but it did resurrect the tradition during World War II, and Congress formalized the practice in 1966 with the Uniform Time Act (which also created the time zones we use today). The reason DST’s 2AM start time has remained standard through the years isn’t just because it prevents confusion among late-night train passengers. Considering that most bars and restaurants are closed by then, and early shift-workers won’t be awake yet, it’s a pretty quiet hour across the board.
OUR COIN JARS _ A survey found…
• 73 percent of us have a change jar.
• $10.5 billion worth of coins fill those jars.
• 75 percent of us will stop to pick up a penny off the street.
• 12 percent will pass by a heads-down penny because it’s bad luck.
• 47% of us have thrown a penny away.
ENJOY A SHOWER ORANGE _ Some of the best foods are also the messiest. It’s almost impossible to devour a rack of ribs or a plate of wings without your face becoming a saucy, dripping mess. And your enjoyment of those foods would surely suffer if you ate them standing up in your shower. Also, it would be weird. However, if you have a really messy snack, one that can be consumed anywhere, why wouldn’t you eat it in the shower, because when you’re finished, you can just rinse right off? Almost makes too much sense not to, right? That’s what the people behind ShowerOrange are thinking. ShowerOrange is a subreddit on Reddit. Take an orange, eat it in the shower, then rinse when done. The concept arose out of a redditor’s response to a question about “something unconventional everyone should try.” One user said, “Tearing apart a cold fresh orange with your bare hands, just letting the juices run over your body. Not worrying if your going to get sticky, or anything. Just ripping it in half, and tearing into it with your teeth like a savage cannibal who hasn’t eaten in a week! Yes, this is the most carnal, ferocious, liberating thing a man can do.”
