Unmanly Watch Behevior: Perpetual Sumo Regret

There was once a man who struggled to amass "manly watches." One watch, the Seiko Sumo, proved to have a mysterious, some say destructive power over him.

He could only appreciate the watch after selling it and experiencing the regret of no longer having it. So every twelve months or so, he'd re-purchase a Seiko Sumo, convince himself that he was bored with it, sell it, and then no longing having it, pine for it as a great Grail to restore his mental and spiritual balance.

He did this over and over again until one day he was reminded of a famous quote by Albert Einstein:

"Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result."

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Comments

[Gary]

As I mentioned on Jonny's blog recently, around 1970 a friend of my dad had an Accutron Spaceview (the one with the see-through dial displaying the tuning fork movement). Now there is an Accutron II Alpha with a modified Precisionist movement that is an homage to the original Spaceview. I think this is a very unusual and cool looking watch, and it is reasonably priced as well.

http://www.ablogtowatch.com/bulova-accutron-ii-alpha-watch-hands-new-affordable-spaceview-precisionist-movement/

[Angelo]

But Jeff, we might be interpreting the relevance of Einstein's quote differently. I get the feeling you think buying the watch and expecting a different result is insanity. But from where I sit, it's selling the watch that is the insanity. If you like the watch enough to buy it over and over----something tells me the act of selling it is where the breakdown is. As I mentioned, I just bought my third Realistic Patrolman SW-60 radio----bought one, sold one, bought one, sold one, bought a new one----will I sell again? You once told me about my Panasonic RF-3000, "You don't love it." and you were right. I sold it and really haven't had any pangs of regret. And truth be told, I don't LOVE the Patrolman. But for some reason, I have a need to own one. I think you have a need to own a Sumo.

[Paul]

I am looking for a new or near new Seiko SBCM023, the perfect dive watch for smaller wrists, but discontinued. Any help would be appreciated.

http://www.chronograph.com/store/catalog/products/SBCM023J.jpg

[Gary]

Paul,

Here's another smaller Seiko dive watch, the Prospex SBDN003. It's relatively compact (39mm diameter by 12mm thick), made of titanium so it is lightweight, and solar powered.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/111302337012

[jonnybardo]

Jeff, I'll counter your Einstein with some Blake: "The fool who persists in his folly shall become wise."

But I kind of agree with Angelo - the crazy part is selling it a second or third time.

How about this: the Sumo is more like a spouse than a fling. The latter you do "sell" after the lust has waned, but the former you ride through the ups and downs, fall in and out of love. I have, for now, decided to commit to the Sumo - and in fact will upgrade it with a new clasp and crystal, sort of like refreshing one's vows or going on a second honeymoon.

I think what happens is that we like frequent purchases, which are more justified (and possible) by selling watches. So it is tricky, because if you (or I) are lusting after a new watch, and you're on a down-cycle with the Sumo, you know that's a quick and easy $400-425.

[herculodge]

Reading Jonny's words only intensifies my Sumo regret. A spouse! I am a WIS, for sure.

[jonnybardo]

On the other hand, I put on my Sumo today for a few minutes but it didn't last. The Omega is ruining all other watches except the Oris. Have I become a Swiss Man?

I'm away for the week doing my grad residency, so only brought three watches - the Omega, Oris, and Sumo, so we'll see how I feel when I get back.

[Angelo]

All of this talk of selling and buying watches put me in a panic----so I'm now selling 8 or 9 watches myself. But I see now path to shedding nearly as many watches as you did Jeff, no way. Some of my keepers---have too much sentimental value and are probably more valuable to me than they would be to anyone else----not even worth going through the trouble of selling.

[Angelo]

Meant to say see NO path. I wish we could edit!

[Ulysses]

Einstein never said that, or many other quotes attributed to him, especially those that sound too flowery and metaphysical to come out of the mouth of a scientist. However, the good people at Narcotics Anonymous are right, because this very much looks like the behaviour of an addict with poor impulse control.

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Narcotics_Anonymous

In her latest book, Amy Chua (the Tiger mother) mentions this as one of the features of the "Triple Package" that successful people tend to have. Her book is focussed on how immigrants tend to be more successful than their peers due to three key traits, but I think it can apply to anyone, immigrant or not, who wants to succeed in an endeavour or life in general.

I haven't read her books because I don't believe she is qualified to talk definitively on such subjects, but I have a distinct feeling that there's a vein of truth in the gist of what she says. Success in life, or even retaining a modicum of self-respect, requires impulse control. I am not one of those people who believes that if you can afford an indulgence and are not hurting anyone else, there's no harm. You ARE hurting someone - yourself.

Anyway, I came here mostly to defend Einstein, something I am very anal about. I'll just disappear back into the ether now.

[herculodge]

Welcome back, Ulysses. We love your wisdom.

[jonnybardo]

Stick around, Ulysses - I miss your voice in these conversations.

That said, I will disagree somewhat and say that Einstein was a bit more mystical than you seem to imply, at least from what I've heard. A lot of great scientists often veer into the mystical because the more you know, the more you realize that you don't know - so the sense of wonder and the mystery of the universe is a kind of mystical experience.

[Angelo]

Speaking of which, there's a quote that's often attributed to Vince Lombardi: "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing." His actual original quote was "Winning isn't everything, but wanting to win is." Ironically, when the world started saying that he said that winning is the only thing, he actually might have said that a couple times, thinking it had a nice ring to it. But his original thought was less confrontational and more motivational, at least in my opinion.

[Ulysses]

Mystical perhaps, but he was also quite vocal about not really believing in a god, at least not in the form that we're familiar with from the Abrahamic religions. It's like what they say about quantum physics - if you think you understand it, you probably don't. I reckon it's inevitable that the more you learn about the Universe the more wondrous it appears and the more likely one is to question existing doctrines.

On a clear night if I happen to be outside, I look up - straight up - for a few minutes, and get a little dizzy. Trying to comprehend such depth and distance does strange things to your mind. I guess the greater knowledge a physicist has must enhance that sensation a hundred fold. Knowing how numerous habitable planets are thanks to better telescopes, there's a fair chance someone or something is looking back at us.

[jonnybardo]

I think we agree on the basic difference of "mystical" and "religious." I would argue that any scientist who contemplates the universe has some degree of the mystical in their blood, unless they're extreme reductionists (which many of them are).

What you describe is a kind of mystical experience, in my opinion. I don't know if a physicist experiences it a "hundredfold" more - but certainly the degree to which we consciously put our attention to the mystery and vastness of the universe, will this sensation be enhanced. In other words, don't sell yourself short - we are all potential mystics if we're only willing to peek outside our little mental ego bubbles every once in awhile.

Actually, self-proclaimed "standup philosopher" Timothy Freke wrote up this in his book "The Mystery Experience":

www.amazon.com/Mystery-Experience-Revolutionary-Spiritual-Awakening/dp/1780281498/

The tone of the book is a bit saccharine (or maybe that's just my latent cynicism talking), but I like the general thrust of it: that the mystical or spiritual is accessible through contemplating the mystery of the universe, through what he calls the "WOW" experience.