it’s about time: part one

As of late, watches and horology as a whole have become a passion of mine. It started with the YouTube channel Wristwatch Revival - a channel dedicated to mechanical wristwatch restoration. As the host Marshall states, there aren’t many hobbies that require that an object be completely taken apart to every last screw (quite literally). After consuming dozens of 45+ minute long videos, mesmerized by the infinitesimally small gears, springs, and jewels that make a mechanical watch run, I was hooked. Plus, it’s just beyond satisfying seeing the transformation of a daily worn 1970s Rolex to state of when it practically left the factory. Though as much as mechanical watches are absolute marvels of engineering, with quartz and digital watches being the norm (and smart watches too), mechanical watches have largely become obsolete when it comes to modern, accurate time keeping.

With mechanical watches, the power source of the watch comes in the form of a wound up metal spring called the mainspring. The mainspring is tightly coiled around an axle called the arbor and sits inside a flat cylinder called the barrel. The outside of the barrel acts as a gear (considered the first gear in the wheel train) and has teeth which mesh with the center wheel, which then meshes with the third wheel, which then meshes with the fourth wheel, and finally the escape wheel. There’s a TON I’m glossing over, but I think that gets the point across. Mechanical watches are, well, purely mechanical - relying solely on gear ratios and reductions to turn the watch hands in convenient, human-understood time units of seconds, minutes, and hours. Since we live in this universe and our mortal gears are not 100% efficient (nor our manufacturing tolerances 100% perfect), mechanical watch accuracy is measured in seconds gained or lost per day. Contrast that to commodity quartz watches whose accuracy is measured in seconds gained or lost per month. And high-accuracy quartz movements: per year.

Quartz watch movements utilize an electric oscillator that produces a signal which resonates a literal, tiny tuning fork-like quartz crystal at an incredibly precise frequency - 32,768Hz to be exact. This flip-flop (on/off) signal is fed into some circuitry, which can then power a motor to drive the watch hands. To power this grossly oversimplified description of a movement is a small battery that needs to be changed every few years. Don’t confuse this technology with being synonymous with “inexpensive” however. Life…uh…finds a way. Brands like Cartier have the Tank Française with a quartz movement that sells for $30,700 (okay it’s also 18K yellow gold and set with 27 diamonds…but what does that have to do with anything…) and Omega has the De Ville Prestige quartz for $16,600 (also 18K gold, but we’re moving on here). Quartz movements are objectively better at keeping accurate time than mechanical movements. But in our modern age, that’s not necessarily all that a wristwatch is for, is it?

As of March 2023, Apple has a market cap of over $2 trillion (that’s trillion with a “T”). In October 2022, it was reported that 30% of all iPhone users owned an Apple Watch. There is no denying that Apple has dominated the smart watch industry with its watch. It’s a literal computer on your wrist - You can make phone calls, send text messages, and check email (if only Dick Tracy could see us now!). Nevertheless, and as someone whose career is in Information Technology, it can be a bit much; Instant alerts and push notifications to every text and email and news story that comes your way. Sometimes, you just want to know what time it is. In August 2022, Timex ran a brilliant billboard advertisement campaign taking a light jab at smart watches: A stark white background with an image of an analog Timex wristwatch front and center and this single line in sans serif font below it - “Know the time without seeing you have 1,249 unanswered emails”.

So, after that digression, back to mechanical wristwatches! After being thoroughly captivated and enraptured by what videos and images I’ve seen online, it was time (ha! get it?) to take this hobby into the real world. I needed to physically hold and touch and see these watches in person to see if they were for me…and boy, were they ever for me. Out of recommendation from a friend, I headed to a watch store called Right Time Watches, off of Colorado and Florida - family owned and operated since 1979. After walking in through the unsuspecting door in this little strip mall, Owner and Master Watchmaker, Felix, could not have been nicer and more accommodating. While I explained to Felix that I was relatively new to the world of horology and mechanical timepieces, he remained extremely patient and showed tremendous knowledge and enthusiasm. Passionately, I weaved in what jargon I knew and clarified that I had absolutely no idea what I was looking for and what style of watch suited me. Okay, that’s not entirely true. I knew that if I were to get a mechanical watch, I’d want one that I could wear every day and not worry about water damage or scratches. I wanted a workhorse, but an elegant workhorse. Slowly, we made our way around the store looking and trying on different watches within my price range. At last, we reached the glass case with the Seiko Prospex Alpinist 1959 reinterpretations. Then I saw it: a transfixing blue dial, a date window, a metal bracelet, a sapphire crystal, an automatic mechanical movement, and an elegant case with 200m of water resistance. I tried it on and realized it was exactly what I wanted as my first step into the rabbit hole (I go through a lot of those). I stood there looking at this watch knowing I was going to walk out with it that day. I purchased it and now every time I look at it, it brings me joy. Knowing that there’s not a lick of digital technology in this watch’s movement and that those gears are keeping accurate time (+7 seconds/day), is pretty darn cool.

Now, as wonderful as my experience at Right Time Watches was, that’s not always the case at other dealers and for other people. Once you start getting into luxury brands and timepieces that cost multi-thousands of dollars, there is sometimes an air of superiority amongst the patrons and even (at times…especially), the sales associates.

cool books, warm people

A preface — I have been neither paid monetarily nor compensated in any way for the thoughts below.

A few weeks ago, I discovered the cutest, most charming book store I’ve ever stepped foot in. As it states on their website, “When it comes to rare and used books, Denver has a hidden treasure…“. The Printed Page Bookshop on South Broadway has become a home away from home.

Living on Broadway, I’ve passed Printed Page countless times and it being on Antique Row intrigued me. On a cold and snowy January afternoon, wanting to warm up, I parked my car on Arkansas Avenue and walked the 150 feet or so around the corner to the entrance. Printed Page is “tucked away in a charming Victorian house“ — a true cozy, mom-and-pop feel. Climbing the few steps to the grayish-blue front door, I was greeted with a sign that there may be a dog inside (the owner’s). Though when you live in Denver, you kind of half-expect to encounter at least one dog everywhere you go. The forewarning was appreciated nonetheless. Stepping inside, an overwhelming sense of warmth washed over me — both literally because of the heater and figuratively. A delightful gentleman welcomed me in and introduced himself as Dan, one of the two owners of Printed Page.

Dan runs the Printed Page Bookshop along with the other owner, John, who I have yet to meet. Dan asked if I’ve visited the bookshop before and I answered that I haven’t. He explained that “Printed Page Bookshop is a co-op composed of more than 10 different booksellers“. Each proprietor has their specialty and section in the store. After entering the store, nonfiction is on the left and fiction is on the right (mostly). It’s staggering the amount of books on the shelves! Dan enthusiastically insisted to let him know if I had any questions. Let the hunt begin!

I had to do a couple rounds of the bookshop to take it all in. There’s anything and everything from Colorado and Western history, the World Wars, and European History, to physics, chemistry, and psychology. From all manners of children’s books to the most daunting Atlas Shrugged and War and Peace. Printed Page has anything your book-loving heart desires and if they don’t have it in store, they know where to find it.

My first visit (of many), I ended up purchasing two books: a Colorado tour and traveler's guide from 1880 - Colorado: its gold and silver mines, farms and stock ranges, and health and pleasure resorts by Frank Fossett and a quaint little book from The Family Library (Harper) of Natural History simply titled The Elephant as He Exists in a Wild State, and as He Has Been Made Subservient, in Peace and in War, to the Purposes of Man. Told you, simple. This 4”x6” book from 1844 pulled me in with the first sentence from the publishers’ advertisement: “The elephant whether considered in relation to his natural or domestic condition, is undoubtedly the most remarkable of quadrupeds“. Although I’m slightly biased and would argue that the domestic cat is “undoubtedly the most remarkable of quadrupeds“, I had to find out more about the elephant.

I have since returned to Printed Page three or four times — each time leaving with a stack of books larger than originally intended. Now part of my growing collection are works by Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Nathaniel Hawthorne, H.G. Wells, J.D. Salinger, Frank Herbert, Joel Chandler Harris, and Stephen King. Upon my returning trips, I have met and chatted with a couple of the other equally wonderful, kind, and helpful booksellers — namely Chris and Cherie. Dan, Chris, and Cherie all pride in running a bookstore with the core values of creating and nurturing relationships with the community. Real people, making real conversation, reading real books. I look forward to many more afternoons melting away at Printed Page, seeing what next adventure awaits in, well, all the printed pages.

If you happen to stumble across this post, please visit Printed Page’s website at: https://printedpagebookshop.com/, or better yet, pay them a visit in person at: 1416 S Broadway, Denver, CO 80210

Printed Page Bookshop — a home away from home — really does live up to their motto: “cool books, warm people”.

drinking caffeine to wake up? or waking up to drink caffeine?

This one is a shout out to the nomadic tribes of Ethiopia, all those thousands of years ago…

Coffee.

Before moving to Denver, coffee to me was a tall, hot White Mocha latte from Starbucks. Or, being from Miami, Café Bustelo brewed in a moka pot (cafetera). Ever since moving to Denver and being introduced to the magical world of specialty coffee and local roasters, my mornings (and let’s be honest, mid-afternoons) have never been the same.

My first foray into this Wonderland was a cortado at Queen City Collective Coffee, on the corner of 1st and Cherokee (a small, cozy shop filled with awesome, welcoming people). Taking the first sip filled my mouth with incredibly complex earthy undertones. Well, at the time, it was more like getting punched in the face by what tasted like hot dirt and grass — an acquired taste we shall say. Definitely not like a tall, hot White Mocha latte from Starbucks. A few more trips to Queen City and over time I’ve noticed my palate has begun to change and is growing accustomed to picking up subtle flavors and pleasant aftertastes — fruity vs chocolaty vs earthy, etc.

Another shop I’ve explored is Sweet Bloom Coffee Roasters, off of Colfax and Reed, and to my novice taste receptors, surprisingly different from Queen City. At risk of sounding snobbish (though we’re way past that), coffee is not just coffee. There is no “one size fits all“. Sweet Bloom’s — name apropos — Colombian and Ethiopian Hometown Blend, I’ve found is, well, sweeter than Queen City’s Colombian Maria Eugenia Rodriguez and delivers less of a “punch“, but nonetheless makes for a very smooth and enjoyable cortado.

Denver is also host to Corvus Coffee Roasters, on Broadway, in between Mexico and Colorado (I’m talking about avenues — otherwise this sentence makes no sense whatsoever). Although I’ve been a handful of times, admittedly I’m not as familiar with the plethora of roasts Corvus offers. However, I can attest that they make a pretty darn good cortado as well. As I’ve been told, cortados are supposedly a great way of assessing the strengths and weaknesses of different coffee shops. I can so far agree.

Lately, my beans of choice have been the Mexican Finca Muxbal from Queen City, which has tasting characteristics of vanilla bean and cacao nibs. My mornings have become considerably more enjoyable with a hot cup of Finca Muxbal brewed with my AeroPress.

Oh lord…the AeroPress. I haven’t even mentioned the never-ending coffee accoutrements one can purchase. The AeroPress, V60, Hario Switch, Chemex, all kinds of grinders, brewers, kettles, tools, and machines…Talk about another expensive hobby…

I won’t even utter the words “espresso machine”.

For now, I’ll just appreciate and savor another cup of coffee.

Down the rabbit hole I go… *

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* For more examples, see the 1865 novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll