A Source of en-LIGHT-enment

Bio-Brite SunRise Digital Alarm Clock

The other day I realized how old my alarm clock is.  I think I"ve had the same radio clock since high-school.  While there's nothing wrong with it, it still wakes me up and plays music, there are days I think it would be nice to replace this with something a bit more stylish. 

One thing that I have considered is getting a light alarm clock.  This one has gotten pretty good reviews over on Amazon and includes a pretty good list of features including a white noise creator, variable dusk and dawn functions.  It does use a 60-watt bulb, so you'll get quite a bit of light out of it, however it's not going to be as bright as the lamp I currently use as a dawn simulator. (I have a box/timer that i can plug any lamp into that I want.

Still for $140, I might think about this for a while before I decide to get one.

Link: Bio-Brite SunRise Digital Alarm Clock Dawn / Dusk Simulator Clock with White Noise

Winter Days Keep Getting Shorter

Well, it is definitely getting to be the middle of winter here.  Dead of winter actually seems more appropriate, given how little light there is and how little of it seems to get through the clouds in the last week or so.  It's dark and rainy.  I left for work this morning at 7:15 am and it was still pitch black outside.  That's disconcerting.  It's about 4:15 right now and the light already fading outside.  The sun won't start setting earlier until after the first of the year.  We're still going to loose another 15 minutes or so of light in the morning.   The latest sunrise is at 7:58 am on approximately Dec. 30. I already feel like I'm going nuts.  This is going to be another few long weeks.  On the upside though, we've reached the latest sunset times for the year.

Mid-Afternoon Energy Boost

Ugh, I think I maybe should have gone for a walk instead of going for coffee and donuts.  I felt really sluggish since about mid-afternoon.  I realize that part of it is probably from doing a number of things to disrupt my body clock lately, including drinking a bit more than normal (blame that on Holiday parties), staying up late, and drinking far too much coffee.  By this afternoon, I'm doing the classic winter blues stuff.  I'm tired, craving  carbohydrates and am having a hard time being motivated to do anything.

I turned on my Litebook since I sat down at the computer for a few minutes, and that is helping some.  I might also go for a walk once I sit here fora few more minutes and the double Americano really kicks in.  I'm going to have to make an effort to walk more in the next couple weeks because I'm not in my normal job where I'm on my feet, running up and down stairs for 3 or 4 hours every morning.  Things should be better after the first of the year, but until then, I've got to make sure I don't fall prey to typical winter patterns. Those of course being, lack of exercise, sleeping too much, eating too many carbohydrates,  not eating a balanced diet, etc.

9 and 1/3 Hours of Light

Seattle days are getting really short and it is kind of annoying. I guess I shouldn't complain while the days are still technically longer than most of us work--talk to me again in a couple of weeks though when we get down going to work and coming home in the dark. 

November 13, 2005	Rise	Set
Actual Time	7:12 AM PST	4:34 PM PST
Civil Twilight	6:38 AM PST	5:08 PM PST
Nautical Twilight	6:01 AM PST	5:45 PM PST
Astronomical Twilight	5:24 AM PST	6:21 PM PST
Moon	3:21 PM PST	4:22 AM PST
Length Of Visible Light:	10h 29m
Length of Day	9h 22m Tomorrow will be 2m 39s shorter.

via Weather Underground

Ordering More Levity Vitamins:

I haven't ordered Levity vitamins for quite a while, probably since this summer.  That's not really a surprise being I typically get two boxes of sixty tablets, so 120 days or almost 4 months.  I think the price has gone up a little bit since last time, so I did a bit of price shopping.  I checked out both The Store for Healthy Living, and Geneva Health.  Initially, I was going to go with Geneva Health, whom I think got my business last time.  I chose to go with the Store for Healthy Living and the official store for the Body Blues site, because they offered  two boxes for $25, instead of two boxes for $30.  Add USPS delivery for $3.95, and I thought I'd be at $29 or so.  Unfortunatly, it looks like Washington must have started charging sales tax for online purchases to be shipped in-state.  I only ended up saving $2 or so, but if someone is outside of Washington, they might do better to order from the Store for Healthy Living.  Just my personal two-cents.

Links:  Geneva Health, The Body Blues, The Store for Healthy Living

Natural Lighting in My Daily Life

Ever since I came back from a month long vacation, spending many hours every day outside, I find that I feel better and am more inclined to spend time outside even with the fall weather that's come to Seattle this week. 

I find myself running errands via bike, even if its drizzling out.  Of course, this is when I am able to go home and change clothes or curl up with a blanket.  The most surprising part of all of this is that it really isn't daunting.  Usually, the thought of going outside in the rain when I could take my car, is unthinkable.  Its just easier when I feel better, and the daylight definitely contributes to that.  Hopefully with my new schedule, being off for several hours in the middle of the day, I can keep that up.

Light Therapy for Travel

In a month, I'm heading to Europe for three and a half weeks.  I've been debating if its worth taking my LiteBook with me or not and think I've made up my mind that it is a good idea.  From the LiteBook site:

Jet lag, or 'dysrhythmia', occurs following east-west travel when your body clock isn’t synchronized with your new time zone, causing a disruption of more than 50 physiological and psychological rhythms.

Upon arriving at your destination in a new time zone, you may find you experience some of the following: fatigue, insomnia, irritability, difficulty concentrating, and low mood.

The general rule is that, unaided, it takes your body 1 day per time zone crossed to readjust – and it may take two or three weeks to completely realign your rhythms.

Rule of thumb for light exposure is to seek bright light in the morning (destination time) when traveling east – and in the evening (destination time) when traveling west. Typical exposure times are 30-60 minutes on Day 1 (day of travel) and 15-30 minutes on Day 2.

Of course, this means I now have to chase down an adapter plug for my LiteBook as well as finding room for it in my bags (don't get me started on how I'm supposed to pack for a month in two carry-ons...).  I do remember that when I traveled to Europe in high school, that we arrived in the morning and had a full day and I suffered relatively little from jet lag. Besides, I don't have time to spend 1/2 of my vacation adjusting with a 9-hour time difference.

  With days already noticeably shorter , I figure that fighting SAD as well as adjusting to the jet lag may be worth the extra 1/2  pound or so in my luggage.  I'll be sure to update everyone on the success (or not) once I return.

Daylight Savings Time Extension Set for 2007

The US has  a year and a half to argue about the benefits and woes of enacting an extended daylight savings time.  Everyone is talking about how great it will be for SAD sufferers,  unfortunately, being the biggest benefit of daylight savings time is that evenings get more light, not mornings.  Most SAD sufferers need bright light first thing in the morning, not later in the day, to help reset their body clocks.  While I'm not opposed to more light once I'm off work for a few weeks during the fall, I'm not really seeing it help sufferers as much as some would like me to believe.

US Senate Gets One Step Closer to Extending Daylight Savings Time

Most everyone has probably already heard that the Energy Bill waiting for President Bush's signature could extend daylight savings time for two months each year, after making it past both the US Senate and the US House.  Further updates will be forthcoming when I have a chance to follow up on the issue.  In the mean time, a link is provided to an L.A. Times article on the matter.

Those of us who suffer from SAD suddenly won't get the extra daylight in the mornings come fall if this goes into effect.

Link: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/politics/la-na-energy21jul21,1,593616.story?coll=la-news-politics-national

Seattle Days are Still Getting Shorter

I'm definitely noticing that the sun is going down earlier lately.  Sunset may not be until 9:00 PM, but that means that its getting pretty dark by 9:30 or so. 

July 18, 2005	Sun Rise	Sun Set
Actual Time	5:30 AM PDT	9:00 PM PDT
Civil Twilight	4:52 AM PDT	9:38 PM PDT
Nautical Twilight	4:01 AM PDT	10:28 PM PDT
Astronomical Twilight	2:53 AM PDT	11:35 PM PDT
Moon	(7/18) 7:12 PM PDT	(7/18) 1:53 AM PDT
Length of Day: 15h 30m, tomorrow will be 2m 3s shorter
Length Of Visible Light: 16h 46m
Moon Phase: Waxing Gibbous, 92% of moon illuminated