2010

IF MY MEMORY SERVES ME RIGHT – what a morbid conditional statement to kick off the year! – no other year in the past decade was quite as challenging as 2009.  Even the financial and economic crash in late 2008 paled in comparison to the convolution of natural and man-made disasters in the past year that I hope, would not make 2009 live forever in infamy.  We’re done with it and that’s it.

Christmas to New Year’s eve saw me really bidding the year with a bang – I had acute tonsillitis on the 24^th and stayed in bed watching “A Walk To Remember”…  twice; enagaged in a Mandalay Bay-caliber bout with gastroenteritis on the 28^th to the 29^th; and in the revelry to get 2009 over with, ended up as a statistic under the header of “firecracker-related” injury.  But they’ve all passed, and in the wise words of Stavie, 2010 should be all about happiness.

WE USHERED in the new year at my youngest brother’s family’s new house in Las Piñas.  And what will an occasion be with me without some of my favorite wristwatches.  So, here they are.  Happy new year!

All my wristwatches are wound 30 minutes ahead (so these ones were at 10 minutes to midnight). It's one of my quirks. I can't deal with a ticker that's wound any less or any more than that. Notice that the Technomarine says "THU" still when it should've been "FRI" already. I don't know but the day part of the "day-date" aperture feature lags by half an hour.

 

Once more with feelings!... A shot that includes the (vintage) Swiss Army automatic I was wearing on my right hand.

 

Copyright © 2010 by eNTeNG  c”,)™©’s  MuchTime™©.  All rights reserved.

To kill a mock Birkin?

SEARCHING FOR some books prove to be an exercise in futility.

Case in point?  My recent search for a copy of the very elusive “Bringing Home The Birkin” by Michael Tonello.  It’s one of the books I gave away this season.  Here is a short tale of one of the more hilarious of those futile attempts.

Obviously, the "elusive" book is not in this pile of oldies.

 

SOMETIME EARLY DECEMBER 2009.  But late into the evening.  The tundra that is the mall.  Yet again, another branch of National Bookstore.

Silence.  A weird silence in eNTeNG’s head.  The bookstore seen from the air.  A sea of anxious and easily agitated holiday shoppers for aisle after aisle, for bookshelf after bookshelf.  The fluorescent lighting fixtures are very unforgiving to faces that have skipped required every-two-weeks facials.  A lady wearing a Franck Mueller wristwatch has to keep her designer shades on to protect her eyes against the light.  Who is to blame her?

eNTeNG browses through books – spine after spine – the bright light reflecting off the sapphire-coated glass of his Philip Stein wristwatch, its reflection swimming over the contours and indentations made by the shelved books.  Running late for his shabu-shabu dinner, he resolves to finally resort to the years-old tried-and-tested solution:  ask the sales associate and hope that he shall receive.

eNTeNG:  “Do you have Michael Tonello’s ‘Bringing Home The Birkin?’”

Sales Associate:  “To Kill A Mockingbird?”

eNTeNG forces a half-smile.

eNTeNG:  “Oh, thanks.  I’m running late.”

eNTeNG exits and thanks God for the promise of a good dinner.  The book hunting is put off for yet another day.

Copyright © 2009 by eNTeNG  c”,)™©’s  MuchTime™©.  All rights reserved.

I didn’t guess who else was coming to dinner

This display on the second level greets shoppers from the escalator landing.

 

Victorinox Swiss Army wristwatches has an ongoing show at The Podium.

 

I love all the drama of these golden Christmas trees hanging from the ceiling.

 

ONE THING that people get about me off the bat is that I am unorthodox.  But that is not to say that I’ve totally broken all sense of convention and tradition.  Because I haven’t.  One such tradition that I’ve observed since a couple of years ago is a December dinner night out with The Dark Knight – both because it’s his birthday on the 21^st and it’s Christmas time.

Barring all the draining effects of the recession, I’ve managed to get two gifts still for Batman.  I wrapped the presents myself, bearing in mind just how finicky he could be with the gift-wrapping.  That’s yet another tradition I keep.  Gift-wrapping everything by myself, that is.  I’m saving talking about that on another post.

Normally, in the grand scheme of things, one would think that the balance is tipped favorably to Batman’s side as he gets two gifts against one he gets me for Christmas.  But no, once I put onto the scale all the other gifts he would give me just because, the balance tips my way.  But no, I’m not in the business of counting gifts.  It just so happens that I’ve never met anybody else who could put my own brand of generosity to shame.

Batman's gift!

Yet another one of Batman's great book gifts! Malcolm Gladwell's The Tipping Point.

Here are two gifts I myself wrapped for Batman!

Presenting to Batman the second gift.

We met up at the Megamall like we usually do, then walked our way to The Podium.  His cellphone rang and that was when I realized that the gifts weren’t the only surprises for the night.  There was a mystery guest.  I checked my personal cellphone and saw seven missed calls, all from the same number which wasn’t on my directory.  All from the same person speaking with the Caped Crusader at that very moment.  All from someone who came all the way back home from Korea – the Harryboy himself!

Crossing St. Francis Square, I glanced at Batman and before I could even finish my asking as to where we’d have dinner, my tongue curled from the last consonant sound I made and in one smooth rolling action said, “Indian!” in unison with the superhero to my right.  So off we went on our way to The New Bombay Authentic Indian Cuisine at the topmost level.  But not without first making requisite stops at shops I love – the Philip Stein boutique being foremost on my list.  With the ultimate “kunsintidor” (loosely translates to “enabler” in Englsh) beside me, I feared for my own limited resources.  Hahaha!  After the amiable sales associates rattled off the retail prices of two models I loved from the Prestige Collection, I knew it was time to remove myself physically from the premises.  Besides, they were still out of the yellow lizard leather strap I’ve been lusting after.

Comfortably seated at the restaurant, Batman and I first asked for drinks.  As expected, he asked for just house water, while I asked for steaming hot Indian tea with condensed milk.  Exchanging of gifts was the first order of business.  I hope Batman liked the simple gifts I came up with – with one actually taking more than two hours of unceasing staring at a host of options at Powerbooks at Town weeks ago.  Looking back now, I think I kept on babbling about all the effort I put into the gift-wrapping.  Hahaha!

We were in the middle of really animated conversation – one of my “binabasag ang katahimikan” (shattering my silence) moments – when a celestial being deigned to finally grace us with his glorious presence.  The Harryboy had landed.

Batman captions this photo: "Nagpapaliwanag."

Yes, that's the Harryboy. And Batman captions this one: "Nagpapaliwanag pa rin!"

Harryboy's wristwatch has my name written all over it! I want!

Harryboy and his wristwatch. Me likey that bling!

Unfortunately for Batman, I got gifts from the Oil Rigger.  (Hahaha!  Sorry, Batman.)  Finally, I laid my eyes on red string, rock crystal and sterling silver bracelets he got me from an online store in Korea.

Reminiscing seemed to be the theme of the night as we recollected good times from when we were all still working at the same company – where and when I wasn’t friends yet with their circle. But I knew them from afar and they knew me from afar.   I couldn’t imagine there was that time!

As Batman and Harryboy launched into catching up – as they really do have a lot of that to take care of – I took it upon myself to do all the ordering.  It was easy because The New Bombay happens to be a fave.  At one point, they even joked that I didn’t allow them to have a say on the evening’s gastronomic delights.  Anyway, I just made sure Batman and my usuals were part of the spread, plus a couple of new items.

We started with Chicken Soup (Php 85.00, already good for the three of us) and Butter Tandoori Roti (Php 75.00).  The soup was like a stew with the perfect blend of soy sauce and vinegar – but more on the sour side.  It was chockful with white chicken meat.  The chopped coriander leaves perfumed the dish with just the right amount of pungency.  I loved it.  And I think Batman did too (as Harry kept offering him his share.)  The bread was the traditional roti, baked to a chewy crisp in the tandoor.  Soaked well in good butter, it was good on its own.  But nothing prevented us from mopping the plentiful curry sauce with each piece we tore from the huge roti.

For our main courses, we asked for the Chicken Tikka Masala (Php 195.00), the Shrimp Goan Curry (Php 195.00), and the Mushroom & Green Peas Masala.  Of the many rice options, we decided on the Saffron Basmati Rice (Php 175.00).

Chicken Soup (with lots of fresh coriander leaves)

Butter Tandoori Roti

Shrimp Goan Curry

Chicken Tikka Masala

Mushroom & Green Peas Masala

Saffron Basmati Rice

As this dinner was Harryboy’s third of four mall stops for the night – having first gone to Galleria, then to TriNoMa – we had to let him go ahead to meet The Girlfriend at the nearby Megamall.

Batman and I continued our own catching up while taking a leisurely stroll of the fantabulously decorated The Podium.  At one point, I even managed to squeeze in checking on the services of a watch repair store at the basement as I have been meaning to have a vintage automatic wristwatch serviced.  But first we had to get Starbucks – really hot Starbucks.  I earned yet two more stickers on my way to snatching myself their 2010 planner.  No, two plus those that were already on cards Batman and Harryboy gave me over dinner.

This is it!

The best part of the night?  Harryboy demanded that he’d pay for dinner.  And Batman wouldn’t hear a word of me arguing the point as to why I should pay for coffee.  Oh, the joy of friends!

Copyright © 2009 by eNTeNG  c”,)™©’s  MuchTime™©.  All rights reserved.

Wonderful newspaper read

THIS POST is about breaking my ultimate blog rule.  Eversince this page’s inception, I’ve resolved to only post my own writing.  However – for the first time – an outgoing link deserves mention on this page.  Thanks Sagewin for sharing this most wonderful read.  You are such a “wonderland.”  Hahaha! 

One of my favorite guitar men, the John Mayer, is a wristwatch afficionado!  Read David Colman’s “The Time Keeper” in The New York Times.

“Even a brief brush with Mayer’s wrist will tell you that the man has done his homework. He got through childhood and adolescence with two watches — a “Star Wars” -themed Armitron, followed by a Casio Databank. (There was also a Swatch or two in the mix, but nothing memorable.) In college, before he dropped out to pursue music full time, he had a Timex Ironman. It wasn’t until 2000, when Mayer was 23 and making it big, that the collecting bug really bit.

“When I started to make a little bit of scratch, I thought it was time to get a Rolex,” he said, recalling the swagger with which he picked the Explorer II, with a white face. Although buying it was a marker of success — like his first Grammy, which he’d won for “Wonderland” — it wasn’t long before it was not enough. “I get very into something. I want to research it and check it out,” he said. “The Rolex was just kind of the first rung on the ladder. I remember people saying, ‘Oh, Rolex is all right, but IWC makes a great watch. Audemars Piguet makes a great watch.’ So I go, ‘What’s IWC?’ ””

Copyright © 2009 by eNTeNG  c”,)™©’s  MuchTime™©.  All rights reserved.

Keeping score

WHILE MOST people “people watch”, I “wristwatch watch.”

And one of the best places to do this really subtly is at the supermarket.  Last Saturday I went to one at the Southern tip of Metro Manila.  I didn’t go there just to really do my “wristwatch watching” because I had a battle plan – a list I took down on acid-free Moleskine paper (thank God for the perforated pages!).  I love this supermarket so much because eventhough its size is not prententiously imposing, its shelves are full of groceries that can put humungous establishments to shame.

But I’m shelving my adulation of this supermarket for now, saving it for a later post.  What I want to share with you is the result of my very subtle observation on what were strapped on shoppers’ wrists!

I was totally so into my grocery list but when a gentle, mild-mannered lady reached out for the roll of plastic bag at the produce section, I couldn’t help but squint when the light reflected on the sapphire crystal of her wristwatch hit my eye.  Omega Constellation!

I got distracted and ended up “wristwatch watching” as I moved from aisle to aisle.

The tally?  Omega – 3 (2 Constellation, both ladies’, and 1 Seasmaster, gents’).  Rolex – 5 (but none was the Milgauss).  Technomarine – 2 (both ladies’, with one of the wearer treating her wristwatch-less boyfriend like an “alalay”…  Here!  There!  Get that!  No, one more!).  Gucci – 1 (ladies’, leather strap).  Philippe Charriol – 1 (ladies’).  Casio Databank – 1 (I used to wear one in high school).  Tag Heuer Aquaracer – 1.

I didn’t espy anybody wearing a Philip Stein except myself.  (Batman, I can hear you laughing!)

Oh, before I finally made my turn for the checkout counter, I almost bumped into a nice American expatriate lady toting a Birkin in the supplest black leather.

Copyright © 2009 by eNTeNG  c”,)™©’s  MuchTime™©.  All rights reserved.

Meaningful five

FIVE HAS always been a special number to me.  All the time I was in school, I was always – ALWAYS – seat number five, arranged alphabetically by surname.  And my nickname begins with the fifth letter of the alphabet.

The number has again managed to reveal its meaning to me when I realized that there are that many wristwatches that have come to mean much in the course of the past year.  And before 2009 comes to an end, I thought it’d be nice to look back.

Tag Heuer Aquaracer

Tag Heuer Aquaracer in all stainless steel with a brushed silver dial.  The thing about Tag Heuer is that it is really strong, they being proud about carving each wristwatch from a solid block of stainless steel.  To be given something like this could only mean strength.

The one on the upper right corner is the Raj by Karim Rashid for Alessi.

Raj by Karim Rashid for Alessi in black.  This is one of the time pieces Alessi created in partnership with the foremost names in innovative and cutting edge (interior) design.  The stark simplicity of this wristwatch is what I find really attractive – arrestingly so.  I think only someone with an equally commanding presence could strap this on their wrist.

ToyWatch chronograph, as featured on the last page of US Men’s Vogue magazine.  This wristwatch got major backing when Oprah put it on her Christmas Favorite Things list.  But what I love most about it – aside from its ingenious use of plastic and other lightweight materials – is the fact that it comes from Chicago, one of my most beloved cities in the whole wide world.

Philip Stein Teslar Signature dual time zone wristwatch in black dial with gunmetal steel face.

Philip Stein Teslar Signature dual time zone wristwatch in black dial with gunmetal steel face.  Another wristwatch that got the blessing of the Oprah.  But for me, what I love about this is the fact that it is the perfect gift for someone who doesn’t really drool over something that it thought of as trendy or “in the moment” but may give something that has health and fitness benefits a consideration.

Philip Stein Teslar Signature dual time zone wristwatch in white dial with white face.

Philip Stein Teslar Signature dual time zone wristwatch in white dial with white face.  This is the one I’m wearing right now.  And this early, I can vouch for its purported benefits!  It’s a great plus that everytime I glance at it to check the time, I get reminded of someone.

Copyright © 2009 by eNTeNG  c”,)™©’s  MuchTime™©.  All rights reserved.

A year – or so – in wristwatches

AS HAS always been the case with me, if I will have to express my highest regard for another human being in terms of something tangible – an actual material thing – it will have to be thru a wristwatch.

A few days ago, I finally felt it was high time to accord my own self with that same regard.  The one wristwatch that I have been pining for for months now, I finally got.

That's my gift to myself – the Philip Stein Teslar wristwatch! It works wonders!

And in a year – or so – that blitzed through hell and high water, natural and man-made disasters, I look back to five other wristwatches that have come to mean so much in my life.

I can’t help but feel thankful for some things that we can hold on to.

 

Copyright © 2009 by eNTeNG  c”,)™©’s  MuchTime™©.  All rights reserved.

Lusting after more pieces that keep the time

WITH THE sky above still overcast with thoughts of the recession, I find solace in spite of the fact that I wasn’t able to replenish my wristwach funds.  No, make that “raise” a wristwatch fund.  I bow my head in shame, which, while intended to help deeply take stock of a seeming failure, managed to open my eyes to where the vanishing funds went.  What I had previously dismissed as empty worries of a continually expanding girth are now a layer of fat beneath a skin with a tangible protrusion threatening to dent my study table.

But I’m renewing my resolve to get new wristwatches soon enough (Hahaha!).  Especially since I’ve come across two brands that have managed to capture my attention, hold it for a while – and put it under a spell.

The first one is called CHOTOVELLI – “Chotovelli E Figli Pilot Watches from Torino, Italy.”  I love love love big-faced pilot watches!  My two favorites from their collections are the Chotovelli TS 7700–1 (SKU: 77–1) and the Chotovelli TS 9950–1 (SKU: 995–1).  I think “TS” stands for Twin Spark.  I first came across this brand name when I read in the papers that its Philippine distributor presented their wristwatches to two men they had aptly called their “Chotovelli Men.”

Chotovelli’s official site is here.  And they have a blog too, here.

The second one I saw in the pages of an American magazine.  Their ad was an almost immaculate white that was beautifully blemished only by the image of a lone big-faced wristwatch.  The brand is called NIXON.  From their page on men’s wristwatches, I love the THE ZILLAMATIC, THE CERAMIC 51–30, THE CERAMIC 42–20, and THE VOLTA.  The last one is solar-powered!

Nixon’s men’s wristwatches can be viewed at their website here.

 

———————————-

Wristwatch thoughts can’t help but bring back my previous timepiece-related posts.

From my Lust List: Morellato MASTER wristwatch, here.

Ticking away, here.

Puttin’ on the wrist, here.

I think this photo fits in this post. This is actually something I kind of made. Made it my own, that's for sure!

Hurling wristwatches

I REALLY felt like hurling my Technomarine wristwatches at my laptop monitor.  Only thing was, at the end of it all, I realized that it wasn’t my laptop’s fault.

That is, it wasn’t my laptop’s fault that the screen was tuned to YouTube, showing that he-who-shall-not-be-named in his latest nationally televised outburst!  He can explain all he wants, but what I’m certain of is that he won’t be able to soothe the cuts he made with those scathing remarks he let out to a public grieving a most sorrowful, irreplaceable loss.  I got what he wanted to say, but gosh, the way he said it only goes to show how dismal a disappointment a lot of those “celebrities” could be.

I have kept my peace – by the skin of my teeth! – from when I realized that this personality had started to shamelessly endorse Technomarine wristwatches.  When he blurted out in his saliva-impeded speech that he even has his own line named after him, I needed to take off the yellow chronograph I had on – the exact same one as what he was wearing at that time.

I turned to Spider-man for a dose of wisdom.  I told him about my plan of hurling my Technomarine wristwatches for catharsis.  He told me to go on with it – only that he will be waiting to break each wristwatch’s trajectory.

Spider-man made a good point.  It wasn’t my Technomarine wristwatches’ fault they are being endorsed by he-who-shall-not-be-named.

All apologies to Voldemort.

Puttin’ on the wrist

I LIKE my wristwatches to have an attitude.  And it helps if I could find one that wouldn’t really have to cost an arm and a leg.  I have to tell you, all my thoughts about my “dream wristwatch” have just gotten to a screeching halt right at the first milestone towards getting it – “save paycheck.”  My only consolation is accepting the fact that most of the things I really aspire for are just so unreachable anyway.  Hahaha!

But as I have said, I just want my wristwatches to have an attitude.

Technomarine Apnea in red – the first one!

My work doesn’t require me to dress up really elegantly – or at least semi-formal – so I’ve always felt that to be able to give my smart casual get-ups an edge, I’d have to put something on that will break all the monotony.  And there’s nothing like a wristwatch to give the ol’ shirt-and-jeans look an edge – or at least a pop of color!

And that’s exactly what I’ve gotten with my Technomarine wristwatches.

Technomarine Raft Chronograph in yellow with black gel strap

 

The Technomarine Raft Chronograph standing right up

In the flurry that is the wristwatch industry, Technomarine got lodged in my consciousness because of its assertive position to not conform to the norms in high-end Swiss timepiece-making.  Against the backdrop of time-honored traditions, Technomarine broke new ground.  They married stainless steel, gel, and (sometimes) diamonds perfectly together in wristwatches that while appearing whimsical and playful, actually mean serious business that could take you even to hundreds of meters deep into the blue.

My love affair with Technomarine began with a gift from someone special.  I loved that the APNEA – like most Technomarine models – has interchangeable straps.  Depending on my mood (I tell you, I have a lot of these!), I swap between translucent / clear, red, orange, and black.

In the past year, I added at least a couple more to my Technomarine line-up.  I got reminded just how beatiful and functional these wristwatches are when I found myself contemplating just this week – with one of my really good good friends at work – to get at least one more!

A nice close-up shot, with my royal blue adidas bag at the background.

You can’t have enough Technomarine wristwatches.  They are form, substance and function that come surprisingly in friendly price points.  They are traditional and modern-day cutting-edge.  They are “technologie d’ avant-garde” embodied in precision masterpieces you can strap on your wrist.  What’s not to love?

Orange and lemons – Technomarine Raft Chronograph in yellow with yellow gel strap!