DannyBoyinExile

I got into a big argument with a guy the other day – simply because he asked me a question and I had the audacity to know the know the correct answer.
“Do you know what the purpose of Daylight Savings Time is?”
I said, “Yes. To conserve electricity.”
He immediately went into argumental overdrive. “No it’s not! It’s so the farmers will have more sunlight, to grow their crops.”
Maybe I could’ve answered more diplomatically, but I couldn’t help it. “That is the DUMBEST thing I’ve ever heard. You CANNOT give a farmer ANY more sunlight, unless you stop the earth from spinning, or change its orbit around the sun.”
“OK, Einstein, tell me this: what happens when you turn your clock back an hour? You get an extra hour of sunlight! I thought you were smart?”
Well, I didn’t think HE was very smart. I’m like, “Sherlock – the farmers I know of go to work when the sun comes up, and come in when the sun goes down. You can set your clock to any time you like, but that won’t give a farmer ANY more sunlight. You can unplug your clock at noon, if you want to. Do you think the sun will just stay up until you plug it back in? The amount of sunlight in any location will not change, no matter what time your clock says. Right now, for example, it’s 2pm and 85° outside. If I change my clock back to 8am – do you think it will get any cooler outside? Will the sun go back down? Use your head!” (For something other than a bowling ball, I mean.)
The purpose of DST is to conserve electricity for the people who DO live by their clocks – in banks, stores, offices, and courthouses across America. If you artificially shorten the time that it’s DARK outside, you lessen the amount of electricity they have to use, to keep it artificially lighted.
Officially, the time changes twice a year – and lately I seems that my JOB has changed just as often. I’ve been fired from some jobs, and hired for other ones. On occasion I’ve even quit, and followed the advice of Johnny Paycheck. “Take this job and shove it!”
I’m better suited for some jobs than others, but one thing all jobs in TDCJ have in common is their salary. They all pay exactly the same thing: nothing. Another thing they have in common is that they are rarely permanent. At any time, at the whom of practically anyone in the administration, you can easily (and quickly) be replaced. With a simple phone call, they can assign another inmate to any job (whether they like it or not) – and there are always plenty of inmates who feel like they can do it better, anyway.After so many years in TDCJ, I try not to let myself be stressed out by something like a job, because I KNOW how easily it can be changed. If I have a job that I don’t like, or one that brings unnecessary stress or drama into my life, I don’t fret about it. I’ll either find someone else to hire me at another job (which is as easy, remember, as a phone call), or I can do enough peaceful nonviolent resistance to get myself fired, painlessly. Which I just did. 🙂
I enjoyed working for the Major, on his Utility Squad. I DIDN’T enjoy working for some inmate who felt that HE was my boss. Especially when it became obvious that he didn’t know as much as he thought he did (and not just about Daylight Savings Time!). He just wanted to run something – including running to the Major’s office or the supervisor every time you butted heads or just disagreed with him.
I have no problem with an inmate feeling as if he’s running something – as long as it’s me! (just kidding) But if you really don’t know your job that well – and resent anyone else who dares to show you a better way of doing something – then it’s not gonna work out, in the long run. At least, not with me.So when our supervisor noticed the tension amongst us all, and asked if any of us didn’t like our job, and wanted to get it changed, with no hard feelings – I immediately volunteered. That was my last day on the Major’s Utility Squad.Now my daily routine will change – but everything changes, eventually. Jobs change, schedules change – even the time changes twice a year. The one thing that WON’T change is my salary! I don’t even need to file for unemployment benefits, since I’ll quickly find another job that pays the same as me having NO job. I like to think that I’m versatile: I can be a good worker anywhere, or I can be a good worker nowhere! So says DannyBoy.