A very interesting post! Watches are such a personal item, the purchasing and wearing of which does not seem to be entirely dependent upon one's wages, wealth or social status.
To give an example: I work for a rather small, privately-owned printing company. My supervisor, who is paid a lot more than me, wears no watch at all. My boss, who is the owner of the company, wears a Seiko quartz chrono that he got on sale for about $200.00 at some outlet store near Seattle. He is very successful, although just over 60, has worked very hard all his life to make his business a success. His wife, who is also the accountant, wears a small gold ladies' watch, which looks like a small Rolex, but I am not sure. Most of my other coworkers have no watch at all. One of the girls in the digital print department wears a Russian-made watch, brand unknown to me, which she paid about 50 bucks for. The other employees wear miscellaneous inexpensive watches, like 20 buck Timexes etc., but most do not have a watch at all. Nearly everyone carries a cell phone, and uses that to tell the time, or the clocks in the shop. That includes most of the Sales and Customer service staff.
Anyway, I have a Steelfish and an AS Blacksteel, plus a Tissot Le Locle costing about 550 bucks, and a Raymond Weil Don Giovanni costing about 1300 bucks. I am the lowest paid employee in the company, working in the finishing department at 14.00/hr. On the other hand, I rent a room in the house of two friends at 400.00/month, and I don't own a vehicle. I have a small monthly income from a private pension fund, and that is about it.
Sometimes, I do notice people looking at my watch, then I can tell they are looking at me, trying to figure out why, at the age of almost 60, I don't fit into the stereotype of the successful business person wearing an expensive watch. I am a fairly low-paid prodution worker who " should " be higher on the emplyment scale. The psychology of the whole thing really is very interesting, and I get a jolly good buzz now and then when I realize that some people have absolutely no idea what to make of me. I can read between the lines of our conversations, that one is puzzled because he/she cannot seem to categorize me. I spend a lot of money dining out, at times very expensive restaurants, take lots of unpaid time off work, and occasional very expensive holidays.
I guess, when all is said and done, it's really just a matter of priorities in one's life. I love my Breitlings, especially the Steelfish, and have no regrets about spending the money I did on expensive watches. Unfortunately, the spending will be curtailed for at least a couple of years, and I may sell the Blacksteel. However, that will not affect my ongoing interest in watches. For the next couple of years at least, I will be more than happy with my Steelfish. The more I wear it, which is all day every day, the more I love it.
Regardless of who you are, whatever your income or financial status, wear your Breitlings with pride and joy!
Cheers,
Carl
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