The best watch I’ll ever own

I have a Tag Heuer Link Automatic in boy size with a white dial. It stopped working over twenty years ago.

It was my father’s - gifted to me when I made it into university. Truthfully it had been mine for years before then, as I “borrowed” it so much.

You see, I grew up watching F1 with dad. Niki Lauda, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Gerard Berger, Ayrton Senna, the legends…and that guitar 🎸 riff from the Chain by Fleetwood Mac. Absolutely brilliant! Sunday F1 Racing on the box with Dad - he would always fall asleep. He loved F1 and Heuer for its racing heritage. That, of course, automatically made me a huge fan too.

This Tag Heuer was so different in design and “radical” for the time - it was and still is instantly recognizable. I still think it’s a great looking watch - that and so much more.

I think we can all agree, just like Heuer and F1, one’s family history is always full of ups and downs and some tragedies too, right? My family was no exception. No exception at all.

I didn’t get to enjoy this watch for long after entering uni. My father was diagnosed with cancer in my first year. I missed my first round of exams because of the terrible news. In the following short months, Dad put up a brave fight but was somehow allowed to drive under the influence of chemotherapy drugs - they have a terrible and sudden comedown. Fatigue and uncontrollable sleep is swift and unavoidable. The worst happened. Thankfully not involving anyone else. Dad hit the center barrier of a motorway while flooring it in an Impreza Turbo R. It flipped three times I’m told. Somehow he held on just long enough for me to see him before the end. He made me vow to continue my degree no matter what. He was making it as difficult as possible though, he died just before my second round of exams which I duly missed.

After the funeral, I did as I promised though.

I owe a lot to my tutor who pulled all the strings to allow me to “re-“sit all 11 of my first year prerequisite exams in two straight days.

Of course I didn’t pass all of them, and I still hate Excel! Failed that module, hard! On the fine day I see my Dad again, I plan to give him a good talking to about his poor timing! 11 exams in two days was a mental marathon! I had to change my degree to Japanese and East Asian Studies to continue - and so I scraped by the first year with just enough credits! My studies continued, but I couldn’t bring myself to wear the Tag. The pain was too close. It still went with me to Japan after I graduated though. However, along the way, it stopped working. I had it repaired after my first three years of working life. And for a while - it was back.

But just like that, it stopped again only a few months after repair. This time I couldn’t even hear the rotor. That was 22 years ago. A lifetime in Japan ago.

The photo above was taken yesterday. I’m waiting for word on what’s wrong with it and more importantly, whether they can fix it at all. I’m genuinely nervous about it. I’ve decided that I want to fix it. I’m ready to wear it once again and make new memories with it. I want it to move on like I had to learn how to. I’m ready to introduce it to the family I have made since those sadder days. If I can get it fixed, it’ll be the best watch I’ll ever have. To be honest, even if they can’t fix it, it’s still the best watch I’ll ever own.

To be continued - I hope!