Just as my ancient, beaten-up watch (a high-school graduation present!) does its annual “change my battery” stoppage, I read an interesting (though highly speculative) article in Slate that suggests that what with the proliferation of electronic devices with clocks on them (video equipment, kitchen appliances, computer, PDA, phone, etc), people are less likely to actually wear a watch any more. Watches may be worn as fashion accessories, or for sports-related reasons; they’re not really needed much for daily time-keeping.
Thoughts on the matter? Do you wear a watch less often than you used to? Nothing conclusive from this household: I still wear a watch; Peter and Jon never did.
No comment yet
David "Watch Me, Time Me" Barker says:
March 11, 2007 at 7:09 am (UTC 0)
I stopped wearing my watch several months ago when I lost it and then got my current cell phone. Pulling the cell phone out and checking the time is romantically/nostalgically like pulling out a pocket watch – sort of, considering I’m also checking voice message and missed call notifications, which you can’t do on an old fashioned analog wristwatch. Once I replace the battery in the wristwatch, of course, I will have redundancy in one area, anyway. Good modern systems planning, eh wot?
catherine says:
March 11, 2007 at 9:27 am (UTC 0)
I’ll delurk for a minute and say that I never wear a watch anymore (and I have a super fancy watch, a treat to myself during law school, shocking huh?). Even when I was still practicing law I just relied on my computer to track those 6 minute increments. The watch makes my wrist feel crowded — maybe I just need some sensory integration therapy 🙂
P.S. My sweet Billy (age 4) had his bilateral titanium rods/femurs surgery and so far so good. We are doing x-rays every 2 to 3 weeks to make sure they stay put (the screws were placed in “good” bone but you can’t be too careful with rod alignment).
Laura says:
March 11, 2007 at 8:31 pm (UTC 0)
Hi Catherine! I’m glad the surgery went okay—”so far so good” is good…just keep extending that “so far” as long as you can!
Alayne says:
March 17, 2007 at 1:51 pm (UTC 0)
I can remember in high school, the Monday after the change to or from daylight savings time, there would be a click and then the minute hands of all the clocks in the school, which were somehow magically/electronically connected, would spin around until all the clocks were set to the correct time. At my current school, none of the clocks in the building are connected, and all of them seem to be set to slightly different times, making class changes rather interesting. So I need a watch on my wrist a) to give me some sense of what the time might be, and b) as defense for the inevitable “But Mrs. So-and-So let her class out for lunch, why can’t we go now?” (although “Because I’m mean” is usually a satisfactory response)