Opinion: Daylight Saving: How long can I use it as an excuse to be late?

The clocks went forward an hour over the weekend. Photo / File

COMMENT
It's been almost five days since Daylight Saving so cruelly robbed us of an hour of sleep. I'm still struggling to get to sleep at a normal time and even more so to wake up when my alarm says it's 6am. I know it's really the old 5am.

But just how much longer does that get to be an excuse?

It was easily an excuse on Monday. And it was for everyone in my partner's office. He was five minutes late to work on Monday and was still the first person there!

Tuesday was just as much of a struggle as I tossed and turned trying to get to sleep the night before at what used to be 9.30pm.

Adjusting to the new time is a bit like having a case of very mild jet lag. You don't quite know what the time is and stumble through the day.

I remember being in primary school and hating the fact I needed to start going to bed while the sun was still out. Even now I pity the parents of young children who take longer to adjust to the one-hour change in sleep pattern.

Don't get me wrong, it's great to have an extra hour of sunlight in the evenings and I'll be making full use of that hour come summer, but the payoff is a tough week after the change.

Come April next year I'll be longing for the clocks to turn back so we can make better use of the daylight hours.

For now, I'll struggle to get to sleep, out of bed and through the day until I adjust.

And if I'm late for work tomorrow, I'll blame daylight saving.