The Morning: Changing the clocks

Daylight saving time ends tomorrow. How will you make use of the extra hour?

View in browser|nytimes.com November 2, 2024 By Melissa Kirsch Good morning. Daylight saving time ends tomorrow. How will you make use of the extra hour? María Jesús Contreras Taking time The midday sun in my apartment this time of year is like a searchlight, illuminating every windowpane streak and every mote of dust. It's obnoxious, honestly, like a teacher's pet showing off: "Look how bright and unsparing I can be," the sun seems to taunt, "just before I decamp for the next four months." An extra hour of sleep is no small thing if you can seize it. This is what I'll remind myself as I make the rounds of the clocks tonight before bed, anticipating that brief moment of confused excitement tomorrow when I wake and check the time: It's 7, no wait, it's actually 6! Every first Sunday in November, I contemplate becoming a different, better person, one who gets up one hour earlier to meditate or exercise or meal-prep. I could be the person who spends an hour journaling, or fixing a large, healthy breakfast or taking the dog for a brisk walk in the cold dark. (In this alternate reality, I have a dog.) And every first Sunday in November I do none of these things. I spend the extra hour in bed, trying to go back to sleep, probably fretting a little about how I'm squandering this precious opportunity to begin leading a truly productive life. I know, it's just one hour. How one spends it or doesn't is hardly determinative of whether they're making the most of their time on earth. But the scarcity of daylight this time of year does make every hour feel that much more valuable. As we enter the final two months of the year, thoughts naturally turn to how we're filling our days. I like the handy suggestion that we change the batteries in our smoke detectors every time we change the clocks. A potentially lifesaving precaution, easy enough. If daylight saving is this built-in, twice-yearly reminder, we could use it to prompt ourselves to perform other life-improving tasks. Maybe it's the day you make a list of all the things you'd do if you had an extra hour, and commit to doing at least one of them daily between now and March, when we give that hour back. Or you could just sleep in. Luxuriate in the extra hour without any mandate to do something with it. You could even do as a reader of The Morning advised a couple years ago, when I asked for tips for acclimating to the return to standard time: Wait to change your clock until an hour on Sunday that you'd like to experience again. Maybe you'd like to redo coffee and bagels at 10, or maybe an extra hour for an afternoon lie-down at 2feels like just the thing. "A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life," Charles Darwin said, rather imperiously, but I guess his body of work does speak to some pretty impressive time-management skills. I've often used this sort of injunction as a way to urge myself into action. But I'm as inspired by the psychologist Amos Tversky, who said, "You waste years by not being able to waste hours." Whose wisdom will you heed this weekend? For more How to fall back without missing a beat. Why do we change the clocks, anyway? An opinion writer on the case for and against daylight saving time. THE WEEK IN CULTURE Film and TV Jesse Eisenberg, left, and Kieran Culkin in "A Real Pain." Searchlight Pictures "A Real Pain," which stars its director and writer, Jesse Eisenberg, alongside Kieran Culkin, is a melancholic yet funny exploration of Jewish belonging and loss, Manohla Dargis writes. In "Blitz," Saoirse Ronan plays a single mother in London during World War II. It is one of the eight movies our critics are talking about this week. The actress Teri Garr, who earned an Oscar nomination for her performance in "Tootsie," died this week at 79. See her life in pictures. Timothée Chalamet showed up unannounced at his own look-alike contest in New York City. (He did not compete.) Martha Stewart does not like the new Netflix documentary about her: "I hate those last scenes," she told Brooks Barnes, our film-industry reporter. "Hate them." Social media users are filming themselves crying after seeing "We Live in Time," a new drama starring Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh. Music Two years ago, the singer and songwriter Shawn Mendes canceled his world tour. Now he's back with a stripped-down album. Thanks to TikTok, younger listeners are discovering artists across genres and eras, including Pavement, Cocteau Twins and Three 6 Mafia. Mariah Carey says the holiday season has officially begun. She spoke to The Times about her 30 years as the queen of Christmas. Art Rather than asking whether we should be doing drugs, a new exhibition in Norwich, England, tries to understand why we always have. Prosecutors in Manhattan obtained an arrest warrant for a Princeton-educated antiquities dealer based in Italy, accusing him of trafficking thousands of illicit artifacts. The Frick Collection will reopen at its Fifth Avenue Gilded Age mansion, which was closed for renovations, next year. More Culture Clockwise from top left, Kenny Giarla/NBAE, via Getty Images; The Hapa Blonde/GC Images; Washington Wizards; Jeff Haynes/NBAE, via Getty Images Kyle Kuzma unleashed a parade of N.B.A. fashion with his outlandish pregame outfits. This year, he plans to wear a bland sweatsuit to every game. Pizza Hut's Book It! literacy program, which celebrated its 40th anniversary, has reached more than 70 million students. Starbucks will no longer charge extra for milk alternatives, an effort to improve slowing sales, The Washington Post reports. THE LATEST NEWS 2024 Election Kamala Harris and Liz Cheney at a campaign event in Brookfield, Wis. Jamie Kelter Davis for The New York Times Donald Trump called Liz Cheney a war hawk who should be sent to a combat zone. "Let's see how she feels about it. You know, when the guns are trained on her face," he said. Kamala Harris called his language disqualifying. In a legal win for Democrats, the Supreme Court will let some Pennsylvania voters cast provisional ballots in person if election workers reject their mail ballots. U.S. employers added just 12,000 jobs last month, far fewer than forecast, as a Boeing labor strike and hurricanes affected businesses. The Trump campaign blamed Harris. The rapper Cardi B campaigned with Harris in Wisconsin. She said she hadn't planned to vote this year, but that Harris's entry into the race changed her mind. Harris is trying to recapture working-class voters who have slipped away from Democrats. But they seem likely to favor Trump again. An annual security conference in Atlanta models emergency responses to fictional disasters. This year, election conspiracy theorists and prominent Republicans shut it down. Other Big Stories A federal jury found Brett Hankison, a former Louisville, Ky., detective who shot into Breonna Taylor's apartment in 2020, guilty of violating her rights. Mayor Eric Adams of New York City is set to stand trial on corruption charges in April. He has pleaded not guilty. Russia is making steadier gains in eastern Ukraine than U.S. officials had anticipated, deepening a sense of pessimism as Ukraine's military struggles to recruit soldiers. The death toll from flooding in Spain rose to 205. Dozens of people are still missing. Ends soon: Our best rate on unlimited access for Morning readers. From in-depth coverage of Decision 2024 to unlimited news and analysis, Games, Cooking, The Athletic and more, subscribe now for only $1 a week for your first year. CULTURE CALENDAR By Andrew LaVallee 🤣 "The 2024 S.N.L. Election Special" (Monday): Perhaps you are jittery and stressed out by the presidential election. But you're also reading The Morning, which means you're taking it all in and have accepted there's no avoiding the headlines. Lean into it, and allow yourself to laugh at an impression or two, during this collection of "Saturday Night Live" political sketches right before Election Day. RECIPE OF THE WEEK Romulo Yanes for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Vivian Lui. By Melissa Clark Buttermilk-Brined Roast Chicken Now that the wild candy rumpus that is Halloween has come and gone, you might be looking to make something on the more healthful side. You can't go wrong with a simple, crowd-pleasing roast chicken, especially when it's been brined in buttermilk and salt before roasting. Samin Nosrat's five-star buttermilk-brined roast chicken is everything you want in a roasted bird — tender meat that's juicy and evenly cooked, covered by burnished, caramelized skin. You do need to let it marinate in the fridge overnight, so start it today for dinner tomorrow. Then serve it with a healthful green vegetable and a baguette, and let it compensate for all those Halloween treats. REAL ESTATE Jon and Ashley Oliver in Culver City, Calif. Amanda Friedman for The New York Times The Hunt: A doctor and a D.J. wanted a house for their growing family in Los Angeles. Which one did they choose? Play our game. What you get for $750,000: A Craftsman-style house in Evanston, Ill.; a two-bedroom condo in Peterborough, N.H.; or an 1899 Queen Anne Revival in Knoxville, Tenn. LIVING Erinn Springer for The New York Times Face Value: A writer shares the lessons she has learned from growing out her gray hair. Psychic to the stars: He did readings for John Lennon and Princess Grace. At 83, he's still talking to ghosts. Test strips: The team behind Starface pimple patches want to make recreational drug use safer. Till death: Some couples are marrying in cemeteries. Voting: Is it legal to take a ballot selfie in the U.S.? It depends on your state. Zynfluenced: Small pouches of nicotine made their way from Sweden to the U.S. and created a new type of guy. ADVICE FROM WIRECUTTER A white tee is a layering workhorse The weather on the East Coast has been fluctuating between summerlike days and bone-chilling evenings, which makes dressing a challenge. The best advice is, of course, to layer. But before you start buying barn coats and chunky cardigans, you need a solid foundation — and there's no better building block for a transitional autumn outfit than a good white T-shirt. I prefer a fitted tee, something that doesn't add much bulk under sweaters and that also looks tailored on its own. But Wirecutter's style experts have several favorites for all sorts of style preferences. Pick something that you'll be excited to wear over and over again, no matter the season. — Maxine Builder GAME OF THE WEEK Lions quarterback Jared Goff in last week's game. Carlos Osorio/Associated Press Detroit Lions vs. Green Bay Packers, N.F.L.: The Lions, who reached the N.F.C. championship game last season, are having another stellar year. In their past four games, all victories, the Lions have scored 42, 47, 31 and 52 points. They have an elite pair of running backs, Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, and quarterback Jared Goff has been playing at an M.V.P. level. But, as The Athletic's J.J. Bailey notes, those wins all came in the cozy confines of indoor stadiums. This week, they head to Lambeau Field, where the forecast shows temperatures in the 50s and a chance of rain. Tomorrow at 4:25 p.m. Eastern on Fox NOW TIME TO PLAY Here is today's Spelling Bee. Yesterday's pangram was evading. Take a special election edition of the news quiz to see how well you've followed the 2024 campaign. And here are today's Mini Crossword, Wordle, Sudoku, Connections and Strands. Thanks for spending part of your weekend with The Times. — Melissa P.S. The most popular story this week in The Morning was about the recent discovery of a work by the composer Frédéric Chopin. Listen to it here. Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Reach our team at themorning@nytimes.com. Editor: David Leonhardt Deputy Editor: Adam B. Kushner News Editor: Tom Wright-Piersanti Associate Editor: Lauren Jackson News Staff: Desiree Ibekwe, Sean Kawasaki-Culligan, Brent Lewis, German Lopez, Ian Prasad Philbrick, Ashley Wu News Assistant: Lyna Bentahar Saturday Writer: Melissa Kirsch Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for the Morning newsletter from The New York Times, or as part of your New York Times account. 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