DR. WALLACE: I hate it when daylight saving time ends! Why can't we just have it all year and stop moving our clocks up and back so much? The reason I dislike it so much is that my mom has a rule that I have to be home before it gets dark, and now it's dark way too early in the afternoon!

I usually hang out at my best friend's house after school as she and her mom are really good to me. I then walk home when it's time for dinner at my house, but my mom won't let me walk home in the dark! This means I have to leave really early since it's about a 15-minute walk home from my friend's house.

I think this is unfair and I wish I could do something about this. Don't you agree with me? — I Need Steady Daylight, via email

I NEED STEADY DAYLIGHT: Daylight saving time has been part of American life intermittently ever since it was created 105 years ago in 1918! It was first used to create more daylight during World War I as the extra daylight reduced national fuel costs. However, seven months after its initial implementation, it was repealed. World War II caused a second stretch of DST for the same reasons as per then-President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's recommendation. This time, DST lasted about three and a half years.

It was not until a federal law called the Uniform Time Act of 1966 dictated daylight saving time as we know it today on an annual basis.

Two states, Hawaii and most of Arizona, stay on standard time all year, but every other state in America observes DST.

I agree with your mother's rule that you should not walk home in the dark, so you'll either need to start heading home an hour earlier, or perhaps you could see if your friend's mother could drive you home as it should be a rather short drive, based upon your stated walking distance of 15 minutes. And if your friend's mother can drop you off at home on some days, you and your mother should recognize her kindness by getting her a small gift and also offering to cover her fuel costs for helping you out.

MY ONE BAD HABIT IS A NASTY ONE

DR. WALLACE: I'm a college student who has a lot together in his life except for one bad vice that has me in its grips. Unfortunately, I've been smoking cigarettes for the past two and a half years every day.

I'd really like to quit, but I already need to lose about 10 pounds, and my fear is that if I can quit smoking, I'll eat everything in sight and this will cause me to become bloated and gain a lot more unwanted weight.

Subconsciously, I think my fear of excess weight gain has kept me from getting serious about stopping smoking. I know I need to quit this nasty habit as soon as possible. My girlfriend often tells me that I smell like a stinky chimney. — I Need to Quit, via email

I NEED TO QUIT: I suggest you "divide and conquer," meaning that you deal with one issue at a time. Make quitting smoking your top priority and get going on that right away without worrying about weight gain at all.

Most people who quit smoking do feel anxious, and they find various ways to combat that anxiety. And since you have a current girlfriend, have her help you as much as possible to deal first with your smoking habit. She will no doubt be rooting you on, and if you are able to succeed, I trust she can also help you stick to eating healthy snacks once you move your focus to controlling your food intake between meals.

Inaction is not your friend here. Push past your worries and get started right away in your battle to quit smoking. You'll only know what you need to do regarding your food intake once you reach the end of your smoking days.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at rwallace@thegreatestgift.com. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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