By the fall of 2018, I had become convinced that I was ready to leave smartwatches behind and to embrace a new path into the old world of mechanical watches. I pondered embarking upon this journey over the previous five years but with the birth of our daughter as a milestone to celebrate, I decided that it was time to venture forward. With much to learn, I read articles and watched videos for months while preparing for my initial purchase. I especially enjoyed learning from discussions on the Watchuseek forum and the Urban Gentry channel on YouTube.

Having worked as a graphic designer in a past life, I enjoy intentional design so this informed part of my search. My longstanding fascination with history both as the focus of my academic studies and my own personal interest, made me want to find a watch that would hold some kind of historical connection to my life. Along with design and historical interest, my only remaining criteria was that I wanted to keep the cost relatively low.

I received my first watch on my 13th birthday as a gift from my step-father. As part of a rite of passage, it felt appropriate to receive the message that I had grown up enough that I could be expected to keep track of the time. Unsure of where that watch might be, or even what kind of watch it was, I keep hoping that someday it will turn up among my things. This watch served as the initial spark of a fire that would burn brightly more than two decades later in life.

Keeping track of the time, or my things for that matter, has never been my strength. When I purchased my first cell phone, just out of college, I liked the convenience of having the time available in my pocket without having to wear a watch that I might lose. It took another ten years for me to start thinking about wearing a watch again when I pondered finding something nice to wear for my upcoming wedding. I started noticing watches and even keeping an album of watch photos online of models that interested me.