By admin on Wednesday, 22 May 2024
Category: Uncategorized

"It's About Time!" My Love Affair With Clocks & Fine Watches

By Will Seagers

 

Hi Folks - Will here. These last few blogs have been of a more personal nature. This one will let you know what makes me tick!

I always admired the way my father carried himself and how he dressed. I learned that meant including a watch to finish off the look. He was not much for jewelry or fancy watches... a simple Timex with a striped fabric band usually did the trick.

 

I don't remember wanting or having a watch for myself until I was into my late teens or early twenties. They were usually very nice watches that my father won in sales contests or the like. If they were too fancy he considered them "fag watches" and passed them along to me. LOL. Unfortunately, I don't have any pics of these "hand-me-downs" to show. But, I do remember they were both Bulova Accutron watches - great timepieces of the day. One was a round face and the other was a tank (Cartier styled) watch. I loved them and wore them with pride until the "watch buying bug" really bit me!

That happened back in the early 70s when I was a flight attendant stationed in San Juan, P.R. Although I noticed all the great Rolex watches worn by members of the flight crews, I had my heart set on on a more artistic representation in timekeeping - a black ceramic Rado watch. Beautiful lines that even rivaled the Movado Museum watch.

So, I took advantage of my flying benefits one day and took a short hop from San Juan to St. Thomas - a mere 20 minutes away. This was the place to come and shop for watches and jewelry! I remember walking into a duty free shop and right up to the Rado display. Out of the corner of my eye I could also see the Rolex display. I felt like someone yanked me by the scruff of the neck over to the Rolex counter. My jaw dropped as I eyed a very simple and inconspicuous "Air King" model. After only a few minutes of gazing at it and (of course) trying it on, I was out the door and headed back to San Juan. That watch stayed with me stayed with me for decades.

On my 40th birthday wearing my Air King Rolex.
 

"Rollies" were know for their quality and for holding their value. And, when some rougher times arrived in my life I sold mine to keep me afloat financially. I immediately felt a hole in my life (and in my heart). I was determined to get one back on my wrist ASAP! That happened shortly after I met my current spouse back in the mid 90s. A wonderful and lucky event happened in my life. I wound up with a painting that no one else in my family wanted from my recently deceased (Finnish) Aunt. I knew it had value. But, I was blown away when we took it to an auction gallery in the Upper East Side of Manhattan. A very distinguished man rushed over to us and asked about the painting. I recognized him from The Antiques Roadshow. Yep. He was of that caliber! Long story short, he took it to Amsterdam for the summer and showed it to many potential clients. In the fall he invited us to the auction where it was about to be shown. My spouse and I were shocked when the auctioneer announced, "The opening bid for this rare Dutch Masters oil on wood painting will start at $12,000!” It ended up at just under $25,000. My partner and I were delirious. It was quite an unexpected chunk of change! After the dust had settled, I went to the Tudor watch store on the west side and replaced my Air King!

That watch remained with me for over a decade. It was one day in my store that a client who was a gemologist from a local Rolex dealer commented on my watch. It was sort of a back handed compliment. She said to me that my wrist was really too big for the 34mm watch face and that I should come and look at a Submariner - which measured 40mm. So, I did. And, that started an almost decade long cavalcade of buying and trading up Rolex, Panerai, and Breitling models. It was a glorious period of time - I enjoyed every minute of it.

One of a couple of Rollie Submariners worn to a haircut!
 

A lovely Breitling Divers' model that I purchased around 2008 in Santa Fe.
 

Another Breitling - and a real looker. The "Navitimer Montbrilliant” But, with the joy of aging and decreasing eyesight, the multi dials were too hard to read.
 

A Panerai. Like the Breitling, I couldn't get used to the rubber watch band.
 

One of my favorites - a Rollie Platinum Yachtmaster.
 

A Gold and Platinum Yachtmaster - might just be the all time favorite!
 

A retirement self-giftie - a Rollie Oyster Perpetual.
 

When I decided to stop working I literally pulled the plug in one fell swoop. I was very uncomfortable in my final retail selling position and needed to be free from all of the pettiness of the retail scene. I didn't have anything lined up in the wings. So, I made a pact with myself to sell to sell my final Rolex, a GMT Coke model, back to the jeweler from whom I bought it. It pained me to do so. I thought I would never see one again. And, that has been the case, so far. It was a nice lump sum to put in my bank account as I figured out how to start my retirement years. All of my crazy buying patterns came to an abrupt halt. And, I have survived!

A Rollie GMT "Coke" with its distinctive dual colored bezel.
 

During my retail working years I also enjoyed adding various clocks to our home. I love regulator clocks, cuckoo clocks, mantle clocks and of course my French styled Bonnet Grandfathers' clock. It's really very amusing when the hour arrives in our home - it sounds like a clock store!

One of two regulator clocks. This one in the living room.
 

I always loved the way the French did a Grandfather’s Clock.
 

The newest Cuckoo clock hangs in the kitchen.
 

A musical time piece from my friend George!
 

A very futuristic digital clock gifted to me by Tommy, my first partner, in 1977.
 

So, there you have it. You know a little bit more of what makes me tick! In a day when most people tell time by their cell phones, I delight in looking down at my analog watch face or looking across the room at these pieces of history, waiting for them to chime. And, in very quiet moments, I love to listen to the subtle murmuring of the machinery of time... tick tock, tick tock.

PS, folks - I am a Capricorn, the sign ruled by Saturn and, in Greek mythology, Kronos, the keeper of time.

Bio of Will Seagers:

Will Seagers (also credited as Matt Harper), within his multifaceted careers and participation in numerous gay communities across the country in the '70s and '80s and beyond, worked as a print model, film performer, and DJ, just to name a few. He made iconic appearances in releases from Falcon, Hand in Hand, Joe Gage, Target (Bullet), J. Brian, Steve Scott, and more, including in lead roles in major classics like Gage's L.A. Tool & Die (1979) and Scott's Wanted (1980). He brought strong screen presence and exceptional acting to his roles and was scene partners with many fellow legends of classic porn.
 


You can read Will Seagers' previous blogs for Bijou here:
Welcome Matt/Will
What's For Dessert?
On and Off the Set of L.A. Tool & Die
Wanted, Weekend Lockup and Weekends in Hermosa Beach
Honeymoon in the Palms
Birds of a Feather
The Stereo Maven of Castro Street
The Pass Around Boy
The Ecstasy and the Agony
Fitness and Fantasy: The Early Gyms
Chasing the Boys and Chasing the Sun: My Story of Sun Worship and Where It Got Me
Becoming Invisible
The Reverse Story of Dorian Gray
Pin Money
One Organ Leads to Another! Part 1
The Wheels of Steel
Feast and Famine: The 1970s to the 1980s
An Alphabet Soup of Powders and Pills
Merry Christmas (and Getting Re-Organized)
Now and Then
DEEP INSIDE THE CASTRO: The Badlands
DEEP INSIDE THE CASTRO: Moby Dick Bar
DEEP INSIDE THE CASTRO: "Just Another Stroll Down the Castro!"
Diving Into SoMa/Folsom: Hamburger Mary's
Diving Into SoMa/Folsom: Long Live the Stud!
Diving Into SoMa/Folsom: Club Life..."Hit me with your Rhythm Stick!”
A "Split Ticket" - SoMa/Folsom and The Haight!
Back to Basics: "Staying Vanilla in a Flavorful Culture!"
A Little Secret
"I love a Parade!" Recollections of the 1977 S.F. Gay Pride Parade
Pics, Pics & More Pics... Life's a Beach
Flora & Fauna - the Flora part anyway!
Once Is Just Not Enough!
A Love of Cultures – A Knack for Languages!
"For the Birds": My Lifetime With Feathered Friends!

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