Watches

Maybe the staggering volume of email spam offering "CHEAP IMITATION ROLEX" (or similar catch-lines) has caused a few people to wonder about spending money on watches. The following are portions of emails I received asking about watches:

"Can you please tell me what to look for in a watch?"
"I am considering investing in a nice watch. What should I look for?"
"What is the best watch to wear when formally dressed?"

If you are interested in spending a few-to-several thousand dollars on a watch, I suggest that you put little-to-no stock in what some writer of a blog has to say about it.

So long as the watch isn't ugly or flash to the point of distraction, the three qualities it should have are:

(1) keeps accurate time
(2) won't fall off easily
(3) if you lose it, you will be able to get over it

I have several friends with very pricey watches and very fast cars - two devices that should facilitate a prompt arrival - yet they are unable to meet me anywhere close to the agreed upon time. For the most part, the watch hides under the cuff, and if you're in a social setting it's best not to check it in view of others ("I'm sorry, do you have someplace better to be? Is my anecdote about Margaret Thatcher boring you?"*). Without fully fleshing out the possibilities in a longer and far more tedious discussion, my advice is try harder to be on time, and not really worry about buying the "right" watch.

Merry Christmas, all.
-Yankee-Whisky-Papa



*Yes. It is boring. After she quipped smugly, you had a well-phrased response. We've heard. At least a dozen times. But your wife told us that this was when [The Rt Hon. The Baroness] Thatcher [LG, OM, PC] was Education Secretary, and that you later apologized to her lead aid.