Simple Living

My first watch in 2 years…for 2024 picking up a gold Casio A168WG to complement my silver one.  After much consideration I’ve decided to grow my digital Casio collection and this will be my 3rd Casio to join my 5600 G-Shock and silver A168. Why Casio?  The value proposition as the price and functionality are perfect.  I’m also finding it a lot more convenient as I’ve grown self conscious at times with the Rolex and bored of the Apple Watch.  Both still are nice and I’ll wear the Apple Watch for workouts and the Rolex when I’m feeling nostalgic. Initial impressions .  The clasp is rock hard and requires effort to open and adjust, but it feels solid and durable.  The gold resin case really pops and shines, exuding some confidence. It’s true though that the display is harder to read and the buttons are also harder to push than the silver A168.  But otherwise this is a great watch.  I’ll need to wear it for a few weeks to get a better feel for the gold version. One week review.  It’s a

Another year, another review of my personal collections.  My last review was in 2021.  I've dropped the Whisky collection as I'll treat it as consumables. Headphones -- 10 Tech -- 9 Watches -- 6 Swiss Army Knives -- 34 Sneakers -- 6 Fountain Pens -- 4 I. Total Value ~ $10,700 The value of my collections is actually modest as only a few items make up the bulk of the monetary value primarly my Rolex, Omega and iPhone 14 Pro.  Remove those and its about ~$2,400 value of rest of my 'stuff'.   This may change as I'm contemplating a major purchase in 2025 and finally acquire either a Rolex Submariner 14060 or an Omega Speedmaster Professional budgeting ~$4,000 to $8,000 for such a major acquisition.  This would double the value of my collections.   II. Full Collection 1. Headphones -- 10 Decreased by -1 as I chucked the AKG’s and can’t find a 3rd pair of old Apple earbuds, while same time adding several wireless options as well as a Lightning Apple Earbuds. I also cleared

I’m going to stick to a budget around $500 for 2024.  I’m getting better as I’m on track to hit $740 for 2023. My planned items will be mostly clothes and shoes: Shoes - $225 Air Jordan 1 Low 10.5M - $125 Stan Smith White/Green 10M - $100 Clothes - $260 Bomber Jacket - $200 Polo Letterman Navy - $160 -  Done Uniqlo T-Shirts 5x - $100 Watches - $40 Casio A168WG - $40 -  Done Tech - $40 iPhone 16 -TBD Anker 10k - $40  -  Done That’s basically it.  I may kick it up a bit to $800 if I need to replace other clothing items, but don’t anticipate needing much more. The only unknown is I may upgrade to the iPhone 16, if it turns out to be worth a swap from my 14 Pro.  I kinda want to standardize to Type C. Future Budgets - $300 As I near completion of my wardrobe and finish upgrading to higher quality items, I can slow down my purchases to replacement items only.  I’ll consider $175 for clothing essentials like new shirts and $125 for a new pair of shoes each year. If not for the $200 Bomber

The Casio A168 has a certain charisma and charm that once it hits, you can’t get enough of this inexpensive gem.  I’m debating rocking this again as my daily driver. Update - 10/14/23 So I tried wearing the A168 for several days and I’ve learned I actually rely on the Apple Watch for quick updates on the weather and other information that required me pulling out my iPhone to check. While at home, the A168 is ideal as I just need to know the date and time.  But when outdoors the Apple Watch is useful. At least I gave it a go and while it messed up my 3 rings and exercise records, does it actually matter if it’s logged on my Apple Watch so long as I keep doing the exercise routines?  Of course not.

As a souvenir I bought a 2000 Yen ($14.50 USD) Casio F-91W.  This is a very basic watch and the black resin version is ubiquitous and even cheaper in the states, but these translucent color ways are more for the Japanese market and sell for double on Amazon. I’m not seeking to sell it and more as an inexpensive souvenir of my time in Japan.  I’m not quite sure when I’d wear this as my A168 is actually better. But it was less than $15. Same time, I don’t think I’ll count it towards my collection and just something I’ll have on the side.  Which is something I may do as well for my other Casio watches as they are so inexpensive and maybe just focus on my luxury Swiss watches as my actual ‘collection’. I’ve already done so for my old Apple Watch Series 2 as it’s dead and sitting in my junk drawer of old electronics.  It’s not counted in my collection, but I still have it.

I've tried for years to lose weight and each attempt has ended in failure.  While I was able to see short term gains, I would lose focus and give up in a short period of time.  I've decided once again to try as my weight has hit 184 lbs and it’s making me feel depressed as I look and feel bloated. Old goal 155, new goal 150 My original goal was to reach 155 lbs.  I'll need to lose 29 pounds or 101,500 calories.  I'm budgeting 2 pounds per week so about 15-29 weeks to realistically achieve this. After learning 155 lbs is BMI 22.2.  I’m going for 150 lbs or another 5 lbs for 34 lbs total weight loss. Outline, Plan & Log Summary - Weekly Vacation Perspective of 20k steps/day Diet Strategy Goal - 10k steps/day Diet - Avoid Junk Food & Eat Healthier Diet - Limit Alcohol Reward - AirPods Journey Log   I. Summary Starting Weight - 184 lbs Week 01 - Goal 182 - 4 lbs lost - 180 lbs Week 02 - Goal 180 - 5 lbs lost - 175 lbs Week 03 - Goal 178 - 0 lbs lost - 175 lbs Week 0

Going to skip watch buying this year and stick to my set of 6 watches. Rolex 114270 Omega 2531.80 Zenith Cal 126 Casio A168 Casio G-Shock 5600 Apple Watch SE2 I’m fairly content with this collection.  Typically, I’m wearing the Apple Watch most days and sometimes swap to my A168 or G-Shock.  It’s surprising how versatile is the humble A168. Added a silicone case protector and screen cover.  The Apple Watch screen is unfortunately easy to scratch.   Update - 6/12/23 - 2 Watch Shuffle - Rolex and Apple I've been in the habit now of wearing the Apple Watch for most of the day to hit my 3 rings and for workouts then swapping for my Rolex in the evenings.  I'm missing the Rolex as it's the most comfortable watch in my collection.  In many ways my Rolex Explorer is the 'perfect' watch and I've grown to love it.   Especially as I get older, sometimes having a Rolex to glance down at makes me feel like I at least did something good in life.  Sometimes you need that pic

Finally!  They had the Moon Swatch in stock and snagged the Mission to Mars.  My 1st choice would have been the classic Mission to Moon, but the Red Mars is captivating. The watch is so thin it actually does better on a NATO strap and the stock white strap is too stiff and bends at an odd angle that swapping to a new strap is a must. Overall, for $260 this is an expensive Swatch, but seems worth it as a value prop in getting a cool collaboration with Omega. Ironically, this is the closest I’ve gotten to acquiring a real Speedmaster…someday. Update - 11/11/22 - 5 day review So, the verdict is in…the MoonSwatch is a meh…it’s too fragile for certain tasks and I have to be mindful if I’m near water like cooking or washing my hands. Otherwise, it’s comfortable and light on the wrist.  Takes a few days and adjustments to wear in the watch strap, but it starts to settle and you get used to how it sticks out on the side buckle. The best part of this Watch is the red and white colors pop and gi

It shouldn’t be this hard to close all 3 activity rings for my Apple Watch, but this is only my second time ever and the first time was almost 4 years ago! My goal for rest of 2022 is to make this happen 12 more times in the final 12 weeks! Then keep it up in 2023 and onward. Update - 5/14/23 This is hard!  I only got my 4th consecutive just now this week in May 2023.  Last time I got this was October 2022. I’ll keep trying and will hopefully get it a few more times this year.

Did it.  Got the Apple Watch SE 2nd Gen 44MM in White.  I have the Cellular+GPS model so curious to see how that compared to my old Series 2 GPS only model. I wanted to wear for a few days then get around to giving my review.  Overall, it’s very similar to my old Series 2. Update - 10/1/22 - 10 day review It’s good.  I’d recommend an SE 2nd Gen for anyone seeking a smartwatch and didn’t want to spend $400 for a Gen 8 or $800 for an Ultra.  The SE covers all the basics and I find it helps me ‘untether’ from my phone. There is something liberating not having to always have my phone with me. It takes time to configure the watch faces and I’ll likely continue to experiment until I find the right set of Watch faces. Another benefit, the activity rings help motivate me to exercise more and I’ve pushed my daily walking average to about 8k steps; before that I was closer to 4-5k steps. Update - 7/23/23 - 10 month review The SE 2 has been a good watch.  It does what its supposed to, but I'm

Pulled the trigger and picked up the Timex Mk1 Mechanical Field Watch for $79 on Timex’s website; they had it both 50% off and another 20% discount offer code EXTRA20. The MK1 reminds me of my Zenith and I’m planning to retire that watch and replace it with the Timex.  Overall, it seems like it’ll be a Seiko 5 grade watch and something fun and simple to wear.  Lack of water resistance limits this to casual wear, but that’s totally fine. While, I should have waited for the Apple Watch 8 or  Swatch Moonwatch…eh…why not?  I made room by selling $2,000 worth of stuff.  Something inexpensive and fun to alternate between my Casio’s and this Timex. And based on the brand, design and low price, this is sure to become a future classic.  Specs Case Material - Stainless Steel Case Diameter - 36mm Case Height - 11.5mm Lug Width - 18mm Water Resistance - 50 meters Movement - Mechanical (Seagull ST6?) Accuracy +11 seconds/day Frequency - 21,600 bph (3 Hz) Power Reserve - (43 hours) Update - 8/13/22

Making some room as I find stuff that I seldom use anymore. Victorinox INOX watch - $300 Swatch - $400 Timex - $170 Tiffany Ring - $250 Tiffany Bracelet - $200 iPad 2018 - $150 GoPro 5 - $150 Switch Lite - $125 PS4 - $175 Fire HD8 - $25 Sansa Clip - $40 Anker Speaker - $15 I’m taking a bath on the electronics all selling for less than half their original purchase price…but that’s the reality of tech, they depreciate in value. Overall, not a bad haul and about ~$2,000 in cash.  Although that’s 60% of the original value of all these things. The Switch and PS4 were worth it in terms of how much use I got out of them..the rest I’ll need to reevaluate my spending habits . Update - 12/4/22 Added a few more items for sale this year as I clear out my storage and collections.  Was good timing as I ended up spending over $1,200 on new stuff this year. Update - 12/25/23 It’s actually cheaper and more profitable if I don’t buy stuff that I end up having to resell later at a loss.  While sometimes

It’s amazing what a simple strap change can do to the look and feel of a watch.  I’ve tried multiple combinations with the Zenith and none felt right (leather - to dressy, NATO - to casual, all metal - this is not a sports watch…) I never considered the Hirsch as it’s meant for 20mm lug width and the Zenith is 19mm, but surprisingly it fits, barely. And wow, I’m really liking this combo.  It feels like a good compromise between semi-formal and semi-casual; that sweet spot to make this watch ideal for daily wear. Never stop experimenting, you never know what cool new thing you may discover. Update - 8/2/22 - Timex Mk 1 Mechanical The watch bug is biting again and I saw the beautiful Timex Mk 1 Mechanical for sale at $99 and was sorely tempted to pick one up, but instead sought out my Zenith to prevent me from spending money. It seems to have worked and only way I'll opt for a new field watch is to replace the Zenith.  Ironically, I have the best field watch out there in the Rolex Ex

For 2022, I’ve reduced my collection to six watches.  I’m planning on adding 3 more watches (Apple Watch 7/8/SE2 Timex Mk1 and an Omega x Swatch). As it stands my collection: Rolex - Explorer 114270 Omega - Seamaster 2531.80 Zenith- Cal 126 Seiko SKX781 Casio - Gshock DW5600 Casio A168 Future additions: Omega x Swatch (Mars) - Nov 2022 Apple Watch SE2 44mm - Oct 2022 Timex Mk1 - Aug 2022 — Oct 2022 My daily wear has been mostly quartz models and occasionally sporting an automatic like the Seiko or Omega. My hunch the Timex Mk1, Omega x Swatch or Apple Watch will become my main daily wear with only some slight wrist time for my other quartz watches and sparingly my mechanical watches. Culling the Herd Again?  Parting with the INOX & Zenith I parted with the INOX to get to six and am considering also letting go the Zenith to limit myself to 7-8 watches if and when I acquire the Apple Watch and MoonSwatch. I’ve considered also parting with the Seiko, but at same time it’s a rare and c

I didn’t get one yet…I was in line on Saturday morning, but alas they only had a few units for sale.  But I’ll keep checking in and eventually try to snag the Mission to the Moon and Mars versions. Kinda cool and exciting that Omega and Swatch did this wild collaboration…it actually makes sense. I’ve always liked Chronograph’s and someday do want to own the original Omega Speedmaster Professional…this Swatch version would be a fun daily wearer.   Update - 4/20/22 I'm hearing word that some of the watches bleed ink and saw a video for the blue Neptune claiming to show the blue dye left a stain on a person's wrist.  Hopefully, this is limited to specific colorways and doesn't impact the red Mars or gray Moon that I'm waiting to acquire.    

Casio digital wristwatches have become famous as they offer the best value.  You will be hard pressed to find an alternative. The G-Shock DW5600 and vintage A168 are excellent examples of their respective model lines and can be had for around $45 and $20 respectively.  It's that low price point that make these watches so attractive relative to their very high quality and feature list. When comparing watches you would want to compare 5 criterias: Features Accuracy Reliability / Durability Wearability Aesthetics I. Features - DW5600 wins The huge advantage that digital watches have over regular analog watches is its display.  For an analog watch to hold multiple features it would need to reserve room on its display for each feature and this can be inherently difficult due to the limited real estate on a wristwatch dial. Digital watches avoid this problem as they can cycle through multiple features sharing the same display.  By pressing the mode button either Casio can cycle through 4