Horological Meandering

First Impressions (what did you feel?)

 

They say, the first 5-10s of meeting someone will determine our lasting impression of them.

Omega: 

My first encounter was with my dad’s SM300 Quartz in two tone. He never let me touch it. Sad really. It cemented my idea that Omega was something precious. In that era, the adults were discussing “why did James Bond switch from Rolex to Omega?”

Rolex:

Some manager of a gym I worked for liked to show people his success in hitting sales targets, by wearing a Seadweller. The other managers followed suit, and soon they were all clad in Seadwellers. When I first held it, it was chunky, heavy and incredibly macho. This has got to be the stuff of success.

Cartier:

Don’t really recall which piece I encountered first. It could be a Santos which my hairdresser used to flaunt. I thought it was incredibly beautiful from a design perspective, but lacking in engine power.=/

Jaeger Lecoultre

A gift from my girlfriend back then, was an 8 days Reverso. I remembered the feel of the silky smooth case and bracelet. Something about it oozed tradition and restrain, and WASP sensibilities. It was a proud moment to own a Reverso, when one’s mother who worked in stock market in the roaring 90’s always declared that JLC was the rich man’s Rolex (The older me would debate this, with examples from De Bethune, MB&F and FPJ and not forgetting the magical Lange)

Breitling

I never actually held a Breitling until I asked to see a Navitimer and Superocean Heritage during my visits to an AD. Breitling was in a confused identity crisis then. I still feel this identity crisis. They could overtake IWC on their aviators if they wanted to, but they haven’t got the Eureka moment. Limbo limbo.

Panerai

I saw Luminors dotting every yuppies wrist in Singapore. It was getting ubiquitous. It was getting cult-like with the Paneristi. My first touch was with a colonel’s submersible. This colonel has a knack for visiting me (a private) to talk about watches while I was in active service. This is one tough colonel, who is fighting fit in his 40s.I secretly bought a Blackseal to wear under my military uniform - it felt good. Yes I like Panerai, but I like it for myself, not for being a groupie squeezed in a crowded van playing a guitar while on a road trip. 

More coming...i hope to hear from everyone. 

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