time continues......

Just an update on my last blog. That watch still reads 1:52. John took it to the store where it was purchased and even took his own set of tiny screwdrivers to open the back to replace the battery. It took a bit longer than anticipated for him to get the back open, but when he did, the clerk pulled out the old battery and found a replacement for it. Only problem was it did not work. Oh, I am told that the light now would illuminate the watch's face, but the time did not change.

This morning when looking through my jewelry for a certain stick pin I came upon five watches, three of which have been bought in the last 20 years. One of those three was absolutely identical to my 1:52 watch. One watch had been my mother's. Without looking, I could tell you the brand name because my parents were real believers in the quality of Bulova watches. When studying this timepiece, I could see it, too, contained a battery. I put it on my wrist and whacked it a couple of times and the second hand took right off as though it had just been stirred from sleep. Mother died in 1990, and that watch had not been worn since her death.

I knew I had her mother's Elgin watch which does not have a wristband so I hunted it down and wound it up and it keeps perfect time now. Mammy (my maternal grandmother) died in 1953. Both of those heirlooms still run. The one engraved to my grandfather in 1939 needs a good cleanng, but I'm thinking it would probably be wiser to clean them both than to purchase another watch made to today's standards.