We saw a London clock that had no face and no hands. It was built to simply chime when the hour changed. I often go to the web site of the US National Bureau of Standards to see the time. We have four main time zones in the US plus other zones. This is the web page that I often turn to, mostly just for fun.
I read recently that the Chinese emperor was presented with a European clock and immediately decided to keep it for himself. I wondered why and what he planned to do with it. The book "How We Got to Now" by Steven Johnson has a chapter on time. He says that not so long ago each US town would keep its own time, using the sun to set its own time.
I find that I enjoy trying to know the exact time and to do things with a connected device at agreed-on or set times. I am quite aware that various clocks and time devices such as the time shown on phones and tv sets disagree a bit as to the current time. The web page linked above includes a statement of how much off my computer is when showing the time.
I don't enjoy having to wait until the right time to meet or call or whatever. I have found, as I think many others have before me, that getting involved in a task or a book or something can move the time effectively and often profitably. I don't usually get so engaged that I am late.
