Miscellany: Watches measure time in more ways than one

In an age where everyone carries a cell phone, the necessity of having a wristwatch has decreased significantly. It's a bit of a shame, really, because while I was growing up, I sort of measured my progress towards maturity by the watches I was allowed to wear. Watches were something big boys got to use.

I still remember the first watch I was really fond of - a blue plastic Swatch that looked much like this:



My next few watches were the Indiglo type. There was a switch that allowed you to light up the dial, which was pretty cool to a 6th grader:



I finally settled on utilitarian digital wristwatches with LCD faces. They're tough as nails, water resistant, cheap, and the batteries last for an incredibly long time (I've had the same one in my Ironman for about ten years now, and it still runs fine):



The high-end watch is the next step on the path to adulthood, I guess, when the watch becomes more like a piece of jewelry than a necessary timekeeping device. Here's a nice Maurice Lecroix branded with the name of tennis star Roger Federer: