CINCINNATI—Looking very tired, the smartphone alarm clock owned by 31-year-old Evan Mercer was said to be having serious stress and worry on Tuesday after being snoozed every morning for 417 days in a row.
The alarm, which has gone off at 6:30 a.m. every weekday since 2024, has started getting nervous every night because it knows another morning is coming. People close to the phone said the alarm now spends hours worrying, only to ring, get slapped with a snooze button, and wait nine more minutes to do it all again.
"The not knowing is the hardest part," said sleep expert Dr. Lena Hollis, who studies how everyday electronics act under stress. "Imagine getting ready to do your job every morning, only to have someone hit you and angrily say, 'Not yet,' over and over. After a while, you stop believing anyone wants you to ring."
Mercer said he has done nothing wrong.
"I don't ignore it," Mercer said. "I listen to it six or seven times every morning."
People close to the phone said the alarm has started expecting to fail before it even rings. It now thinks someone will hit snooze almost right away, and the other apps on the phone have started covering for it whenever the clocks change.
Things got even worse this week after Mercer hit "Stop" instead of "Snooze" by mistake. For a few happy minutes, the alarm thought it had finally done its job, before finding out Mercer had just slept an extra hour.
At press time, the alarm has now been set for 6:15 a.m. because Mercer thought that might finally help.
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