In 2008, I got my first "big boy" job out of college. I was making the most money I'd ever made in my life, so I decided it was time to buy the watch I'd been lusting after for the past eight years: the Omega Seamaster Professional chronometer, model 2531.80, aka "The James Bond Watch." I did my research to make sure I got an authentic specimen on eBay, and I've been enjoying it ever since.
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| Omega Seamaster Professional, model 2531.80. Cue the James Bond theme music. |
Flash forward to 2009. I'm still at my big boy job, trapped in a mind-numbing tax code training class. My fellow inmate, Paul, notices the Bond watch on my wrist. He says that he, too, owns an Omega and that he'll wear it the following Monday. Monday comes and we both try on each other's watch. His is an older model Seamaster, a cross between a De Ville and a Seamaster. The white face and two-tone gold-and-stainless-steel construction make it dressy, but the metal Seamaster bracelet and the wave pattern on the dial keep it somewhat sporty. I instantly start wondering if Paul would consider selling his timepiece of the last 10 years. However, given my lack of cash at the time, I do not give voice to my curiosity.
To my pleasant surprise, Paul approaches me a few weeks later, giving me first dibs on purchasing his watch. I make a cash offer he rejects as too low. He proceeds to list the Seamaster on eBay and I resign myself to buying that model Seamaster a few years later. Flying out to visit my buddy Jacob in California takes my mind off the near-miss.
The day after I returned from California, I received a voicemail from Paul. In a fit of sentimentality, he decided to return the money to the winning eBay bidder and hold on to the watch that he loved. However, he ended up contacting me because he was hard-up for money and absolutely needed to sell the watch.
I met Paul and his young daughter over lunch the next day. Paul honored my original offer (which was less than what he would've received from his eBay buyer) and I went home with a time-telling trophy.
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| Omega Seamaster, model 2301.21. |
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| I still thought it was beautiful, scratches and all. |
I enjoyed my second Seamaster for several months and one night...it all ended. I heard something pop when I was winding the watch and from that point forward, the watch wouldn't wind or keep time at all.
Thinking it would cost more to fix the watch then the amount I spent on it, I never looked into getting it fixed. I would pretend it worked when I wore it...to sleep.
Earlier this year, my mom convinced me to take it into the Russell Korman jewelry store for a free repair quote, just to see if it would cost as much as I thought it would. And that is where Part Two of this tale picks up. Look for it soon...
