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The watch that ends in the night
Nov. 18th, 2020 10:10 amIt's funny how little tasks that are normally pretty simple and routine can assume daunting proportions during a pandemic. Like getting your watch battery replaced. Mine died earlier this week.
Yes, I know a lot of people don't even bother with watches these days. Not because they lead lives of leisure where they don't have to punch a time clock - quite the contrary! These are people with smart phones and tablets and plenty of other devices - which are constantly reminding them what time it is, what they should do next, and how long it will take them to get from point A to point B, according to Google Maps.
But being old-fashioned in some respects, I like the reassuring presence of a watch on my left wrist, where I can consult if I need to but it's not constantly beeping and booping at me. And the one I normally wear is a Birks watch that the Government of Canada gave me to mark thirty years of loyal service. It IS a modern style watch in that is battery-operated; it's old-fashioned in that it displays the time in 12-hour analogue-style, with an hour hand, a minute hand and a second hand and Roman numerals in the 6, 9 and 12 positions. At the 3 position there's a little window to display what day of the month it is, although you have to advance it yourself when transitioning to the first of a month from a month with less than 31 days.
Best of all, when the battery dies, Birks replaces it free of charge. A battery can be expected to last at least a year but most of mine have lasted several months longer.
When I first got the watch, Birks locations in Ottawa would change the battery on the spot. But in recent years, with bricks and mortar retail harder hit, their procedures have changed and you now have to drop off the watch and pick it up when it's ready.
In Ottawa at least, Birks stores are open with pandemic safety measures in effect. But their hours have been scaled back and most services that they still offer are by appointment only. So I sent them an e-mail to ask about procedures for watch battery replacement.
I must say I got a pretty prompt reply too. One immediate generic e-mail to say my e-mail had been received and would be answered within 48 hours and the other about 48 hours later which told me everything I needed to know and did not read like a generic e-mail at all. Kudos to them!
The gist of it is that I can make an appointment if I want, or just show up. If I just show up, there's a risk that I may have to queue up outside the shop if it's at one of their busier times, since they are limiting the number of customers inside at any one time (and the "Maison Birks" locations are quite small). I think I'll probably go with the appointment option since when I looked at their site just now, there were no appointments available for today. The watch will then be sent to Montreal and turnaround time under current conditions is 6 to 9 weeks. Well, it's certainly a far cry from on-the-spot, but hey, I'll take it!
All of which means that these days, I rely on having a replacement watch lying around. And since I don't want to have to chance that the replacement watch will need its battery replaced at the same time as my regular watch does... I put my faith in a solar-powered watch that I bought a few years ago.
That's a watch that could end in the night too - but it won't, as long as it can get enough of its sunshine vitamin during some of the shortest days of the year...
At the end of the day, I've got all I need.
Yes, I know a lot of people don't even bother with watches these days. Not because they lead lives of leisure where they don't have to punch a time clock - quite the contrary! These are people with smart phones and tablets and plenty of other devices - which are constantly reminding them what time it is, what they should do next, and how long it will take them to get from point A to point B, according to Google Maps.
But being old-fashioned in some respects, I like the reassuring presence of a watch on my left wrist, where I can consult if I need to but it's not constantly beeping and booping at me. And the one I normally wear is a Birks watch that the Government of Canada gave me to mark thirty years of loyal service. It IS a modern style watch in that is battery-operated; it's old-fashioned in that it displays the time in 12-hour analogue-style, with an hour hand, a minute hand and a second hand and Roman numerals in the 6, 9 and 12 positions. At the 3 position there's a little window to display what day of the month it is, although you have to advance it yourself when transitioning to the first of a month from a month with less than 31 days.
Best of all, when the battery dies, Birks replaces it free of charge. A battery can be expected to last at least a year but most of mine have lasted several months longer.
When I first got the watch, Birks locations in Ottawa would change the battery on the spot. But in recent years, with bricks and mortar retail harder hit, their procedures have changed and you now have to drop off the watch and pick it up when it's ready.
In Ottawa at least, Birks stores are open with pandemic safety measures in effect. But their hours have been scaled back and most services that they still offer are by appointment only. So I sent them an e-mail to ask about procedures for watch battery replacement.
I must say I got a pretty prompt reply too. One immediate generic e-mail to say my e-mail had been received and would be answered within 48 hours and the other about 48 hours later which told me everything I needed to know and did not read like a generic e-mail at all. Kudos to them!
The gist of it is that I can make an appointment if I want, or just show up. If I just show up, there's a risk that I may have to queue up outside the shop if it's at one of their busier times, since they are limiting the number of customers inside at any one time (and the "Maison Birks" locations are quite small). I think I'll probably go with the appointment option since when I looked at their site just now, there were no appointments available for today. The watch will then be sent to Montreal and turnaround time under current conditions is 6 to 9 weeks. Well, it's certainly a far cry from on-the-spot, but hey, I'll take it!
All of which means that these days, I rely on having a replacement watch lying around. And since I don't want to have to chance that the replacement watch will need its battery replaced at the same time as my regular watch does... I put my faith in a solar-powered watch that I bought a few years ago.
That's a watch that could end in the night too - but it won't, as long as it can get enough of its sunshine vitamin during some of the shortest days of the year...
At the end of the day, I've got all I need.
