Cheap Flights and Cheap Watches [We return to Japan]
I'm writing this as we fly over the deep blue headed for Japan.
We planned our 2020 trip to Japan quite quickly. It was spur of the moment and came about as a result of cheap flights. This is exactly the type of example as to when you should buy something cheaply. Luckily for us, we have been to Japan before and loved it. It was my very first trip out of Australia back in 2013 and I have been wanting to go back ever since. Access to cheap flights just gave us the perfect excuse to get back over.
This article isn't about our ten day getaway. It's about the cheapness of the watch I'm wearing right now. It's also the first brand of watch I bought for myself and regularly wear as an adult. Coincidentally, I bought it in 2013. In Japan. Well, not exactly.
I've been wearing Casio F-91W watches since 2013. I think I've been through about five or six of them. The watch has never failed to work, it's the band that's the weakness. These watches are simple in design and very cheap. I thought I lost my last one, which is always a possibility with ANY item we buy that we take on and off our person regularly whether it's a watch, jewellery, phones, wallets or sunglasses. As a result, when I was shopping for a new one, it was cheaper per watch for me to buy two. So I did. Then I found my old one. Drats.
Was it a poor choice to have bought two more watches when I already had one? Is it a poor choice to buy cheap rather than "high quality"? - Whatever that means.
I know the watch band on my current watch will inevitably deteriorate. Will it be in twelve months or two years? It doesn't really matter. I'll have another to replace it. The reason I don't just buy watch bands is that the last time I checked, replacement bands are more expensive than an entirely new whole watch. The environmental sustainability of that choice might be best discussed in a separate article.
My F-91W is one of those items in my life that I get value from. I love it's simple design and I use it every day. It even sounds like a 90's fighter jet. Funnily enough, in a world where we all own smartphones that can do everything from communicate with our car to record high definition video and even act as a spirit level, I only regularly use two of the four features of my $9 watch - telling the time and using the stop watch (it also has a light and an alarm with TWO chime sounds). For the fact that these watches will all get used eventually, I'm not really concerned with having three right now. They take up minimal space which is also a huge benefit.
After these watches in my possession perish, should I buy a "high quality" watch in their place? To me, my watch already is high quality. It also just happens to be inexpensive. As I mentioned, I love its simplicity and practicality. The small "wrist print" is also perfect for my spindly wrists. It doesn't shout anything. It just hints that I'm not a slave to the clock on my phone. And no matter how smartphone native you think you are, it's still faster for me to flick up my wrist to my eye than it is for you to unpocket your phone, press a button, then read the time.
We seem to think that "high quality" is an objective fact; the more you pay, the better your experience. I don't agree. I also delight in people having a very different idea of quality. Or I suppose, just different tastes to me. I guess that's why I enjoy and value our short range electric Mitsubishi iMiEV. It's literally the CHEAPEST car that is currently unavailable in Australia. Incredible.
I'm aware of the price of "good" watches. Maybe $100 buys you a good watch. But it's more like $250. To justify the price of these watches, they might add wood and other special features but for the most part, just add weight. Things that are expensive are supposed to be heavy, right?
Well, that's exactly what I don't need on my skinny wrist. While my watches fall apart every few years and I think I may have lost one, the sum total over the last six years has been about $60, give or take. If I had of bought even the hundred dollar watch and lost it, I'd be behind by $40 and still in need of a new watch. And that's if I didn't get bored of it.
While I'd like to think that I'm immune to having my preferences change over time, these things have happened to me. Back in 2013, I also bought a (used) Nintendo 2DS. In 2019, I bought a (new) Nintendo Switch. The Switch is just a better experience. It's probably time for the 2DS to find a new home. There's no guarantee I'll still be in love with the style of the Casio next week, but seeing as though I've been consistent since 2013, it's a safe bet. Have you considered whether you'll still like the last product you bought in a year's time? Will you continue to find value in it? You may, but the price you pay is the wager you're having against the tastes, needs and wants of your future self. Is it really worth that price tag or the space it occupies in both your mind and household? Well, we just don't know.
I think being practical and staying within your budget is the most important thing. I made that gamble back on a street market in Japan just over six years ago and it worked out great for me. The best part?
It was only a $9 bet.
Keep looking for value in your life. Whether it's an item or an experience that interests you, question how it can best add value to your life.
And for what it's worth, my watch doesn't make me happy. It tells the time. To think the contrary (of anything) would be akin to expecting a Lamborhini to fly.
Nick
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