A few years back, my energy level started to slip. I consulted my nutritionist, and her advice helped with an assortment of other problems that had cropped up at about the same time, but my energy continued to sag.

The following May, I was suddenly full of pep. I figured that my supplements had finally kicked in, and dived into a major project that I’d been putting off. When my newfound energy tapered off in late summer, with my project only half-done, I blamed the heat (and it certainly could have been a factor), but my energy did not return with cooler weather. I decided that the brief reprieve had been just a fluke.

The same thing happened again the following year, and the year after that. I finally realized that this was not a coincidence, it was a genuine pattern. I called it my “Memorial-Day Power Surge,” but had no explanation for it. I just learned not to begin any projects that couldn’t be finished by Labor Day.

I need to mention that after I retired a few years ago, my bedtime began to slide later and later, until finally I wasn’t generally getting up before noon. On days when I happened to get up earlier, I noticed that I had more energy, but I had never put the whole thing together until a few weeks ago.

By sleeping until noon, I was creating an artificially-short day length for myself. During the longest days of the year, this was not a major problem – I still had eight or nine hours of daylight left. But by January, I was down to a mere five hours, even though the sun was above the horizon for nearly twice that long.

Many people feel “down in the dumps” during the short days of winter. In pronounced cases, this is referred to as Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). I had found a way to suffer from SAD almost year-round!

Fortunately, I believe I have finally come up with a way around my night-owl tendencies. More on that next time.