Welcome to that magical time of year when, for one glorious day, we have one more entire hour to do with as we please. It's November Daylight Saving Time, that moment we “Fall Back" and gain 60 more minutes, when one minute it's 1:59 a.m. and then suddenly it's 1 a.m., again.
OK, so most of us don't celebrate that bonus time in the middle of the night, but at some point in the day you have a spare hour to fill (unless you live in Hawaii, most of Arizona or the U.S. Territories overseas – where you just have to go on living your non-DST day).
So, with all this new-found time to kill, here are some productive things you can do to live your best life, at least for an hour once a year.
You've heard Daylight Saving Time exists so that farmers had an extra hour to harvest crops. Well, sorry, but that's #fakenews (it was more about a failed attempt to save gas and energy).
In fact, farmers hated the idea so much they lobbied against it when the Uniform Time Act of 1966 was being passed. So, in solidarity of those farmers that lost the vote, go outside and pick some apples or buy some corn.
Just haven't had the free time to catch up on some TV shows you've been missing? What a perfect time to flop on the couch and crank up the DVR.
Been avoiding spoilers online for that latest episode of “A Million Little Things?" No time like the present. And if you flip through all the commercials, you'll even have an extra 12 minutes to get started on that “The Good Place" episode you've been meaning to get to.
In the era of cell phones and digital clocks, it's not the giant task it used to be, but making sure all of the clocks in your house are on the right time when you get up in the morning can ease time confusion.
Sure your phone, cable box and computer will all auto-update, but don't forget about the random clocks around your house like your microwave, your coffee pot and manual watches. Leave yourself about a half-hour to figure out how to update the confusing clock in your car, as well.
In addition to setting your clocks, there are a few other chores you should complete during the extra hour in your day:
One of the biggest benefits of falling back is an entire extra hour to get ready for Sunday NFL games. Head to the stadium an hour earlier than usual and get a full 60 minutes more of parking lot tailgating before kickoff.
Or, wake up at seven instead of eight and have your buddies over for Football Brunch, especially if you live on the West Coast.
Who needs Black Friday? Take advantage of Black Hour and hop on the internet to get started on your gift list a full two weeks before those rabbles standing outside of Target at midnight.
Take a well-earned quiet hour to yourself, find a cozy corner and curl up with a good book. Learn more about why you have this extra hour (and why so many people want to get rid of it) with a topical book such as “Seize the Daylight: The Curious and Contentious Story of Daylight Saving Time" by David Prerau.
You can go to bed an hour later Saturday night so why not fill that extra evening time by throwing a dinner party to celebrate this underrated holiday. Make up an Instagram-worthy spread of time-related dishes like Minute Rice, instant oatmeal and slow-cooked ribs.
Or, since you're getting up early anyway (or not early, who ever knows exactly what time it is when you get up after Daylight Saving), why not cook yourself or your family a hearty breakfast?
Instead of setting out a feast the night before, use your extra time Sunday morning and cook up a full English or big Amish breakfast to wake up to.
A super-late-night run can be one of the most refreshing and enjoyable exercise experiences there is. Throw on those jogging shoes (and coat, depending where you live) and get ready to bolt out of the starting gate (i.e., your front door) at the stroke of 2 a.m. and run straight through until it is 2 a.m. again.
A quick google search comes up with a trove of dessert recipes that only take an hour. Bake up this One Hour Flourless Chocolate Cake and by the time it's done, you'll have it ready to dive into to celebrate the end of Daylight Saving. Candles and “Happy DST!" icing decoration are just a bonus.
Working the Sunday morning of the Daylight Saving change? Convince your boss that since you're falling back, you're actually working an extra hour and collect that sweet, sweet OT bonus.
All over the world there are pockets of people that consider unattended and dirty clothes to be a sign of bad things to come. That's why many believe you shouldn't go into the new year or a new season with unfinished laundry.
Why risk a bad winter? Walk through the end of daylight saving with an empty hamper by doing an hour's worth of laundry before the clocks change.
The most fun way to spend your 25th hour is to actually do so between 2 a.m. and, errr, 2 a.m. Many bars and pubs around the country celebrate Fall Back by taking advantage of the once-a-year loophole in local statues that say bars must close at 2 a.m. by staying open an extra hour until the second 2 a.m.
And even better, a large percentage of establishments that stay open run Daylight Saving Happy Hours beer and drink specials.
There's no such thing as “Daylight Savings Time." The proper term is “saving," not “savings." Tell your friends, tell your neighbors. And spend an hour on Twitter kindly telling everyone that incorrectly tweets it that they should learn the proper terminology. Explain to them that we are “saving daylight, not savings daylight," and we're sure they will appreciate being corrected.
Celebrate the change in Daylight Saving in the traditional manner: Wind your way through the National Watch and Clock Museum, located in Columbia, PA. It's the largest collection of clocks, watches and timepieces in North America – and should take you about 60 minutes to tour.
There are very few things more satisfying than watching your phone as Daylight Saving counts down. Keep your eye on the clock and watch as 1:59.59 strangely becomes 1:00.00.
While 48 and a half states celebrate the wonder that is Daylight Saving Time, all of Hawaii and most of Arizona (with the exception of the giant Navajo Reservation) do not change time at all during the year.
If you're interested in seeing what it's like to watch the rest of the country change times and bemoan the loss of daylight while you're not, drive over to Phoenix for an hour where at 1:59 a.m., it's the same time as California but a minute later, it's the same time as Colorado.
Really want to mess up your internal chronometer at Daylight Saving? Spend your extra hour in the Canadian province of Newfoundland (but not most of Labrador) where not only will you be the first place in North America to fall back, you'll be a full hour and a half off the U.S. East Coast by the time the extra hour is over. Because of quirks in history and geography, the Newfoundland Time Zone is a full 90 minutes earlier than Eastern Time.
Drop the needle at 2 a.m. and groove the last fadeout just in time for the next 2 a.m. Suggested listening: “Blonde" by Frank Ocean (60:08), “Oceania" from The Smashing Pumpkins (60:02) or Anderson Paak's “Malibu" (60:02).
Do you know Malcolm Gladwell's “10,000-Hour Rule?" In a nutshell, the theory states that it takes 10,000 hours of practicing or perfecting a task to become successful at any endeavor.
While that 20 hours a week for 10 years seems daunting, no better time to pick up a guitar or start studying engineering than now. After Daylight Saving ends, you'll only have 9,999 hours to go!
Go into Standard Time ready to feel fit and trim (or at least start training for holiday meals) by hopping onto the treadmill at 2 a.m. and push yourself until 2 a.m. comes back around again. Not only will you feel good about yourself, but nothing helps you sleep better and fall asleep faster than a good workout.
Who are we kidding? There's only one productive thing to do with your extra hour of the end of Daylight Saving Time. Crawl into bed, turn off the alarm and sleep until you pry your eyes open the next morning.
You'll wake up an hour earlier, ready to tackle the day. Unless you have kids or a dog, then there's very little chance you're going to get to sleep in.
Michael is a Philadelphia-based writer with a variety of interests, including music, TV, politics, travel and sports (Fly Eagles Fly!). His background includes a decade as a programming executive in network television, six years as a marketing executive at a technology company and time at two magazines and two advertising agencies. He also sits on the board of a non-profit law firm that assists veterans with disabilities. His work has been featured in nexxt.com, Ale Street News and Radio TV Interview Report Magazine. Michael is a proud Syracuse grad (Newhouse) who has lived in Kansas, Chicago, Saratoga and beyond.
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