SOTC time!

I normally don't do SOTC posts but as we head into 2024, I thought I'd do a stock take of where things are watch wise and what's on the horizon for the next year (all things going well):

• Casio Pro-Trek Pathfinder PRG-80. First watch that I bought for myself. Bought in 2004/5?? This watch has been with me for the longest time and has seen the most action. The resin strap has already been replaced once, as the original perished. It would be a long time between drinks between this and the next watch...

• Seiko 5 SNK-803 - First mechanical watch and the second watch in my collection. Bought in 2019 off Amazon. Looks much better on a single pass Nato.

• Sinn 556 I RS - Bought just prior to the pandemic. Arrived in March 2020, just as things were starting to kick off, from a lockdown perspective. My interest in Sinn came after a trip to Frankfurt in 2019 and visiting the AD in Römerberg Square. Bought it on a leather strap, but have since replaced it with a Haveston single pass Nato.

• Rolex Datejust 16030 "Buckley Dial" on Jubilee - Pandemic purchase from Germany. Not sure why I'm attracted to Roman numerals, but it would not be the last time I bought a watch with this dial config.

• Serica 4512 "California"- Came across California dials during the pandemic, which soon lead me down the rabbit hole. Came across Serica, just as they were kicking off pre-sales of the 4512 (after the release of the WWW WMB Limited Edition, the year previous). Serica did a solid for me, regarding price.

• Oris Divers 65 V1 - Lusted over this watch for a few months, before finding it 30% off at a jeweller. Easiest trigger pull. Love the "Archer" Arabic numerals on the dial. The lume on this is really distinctive and bright! Went for the dark blue/purple sunburst dial.

• Casio G-shockGA-2100SKE-7AER "Jellyfish". Post pandemic purchase. Distinctly remember buying this, during a round of mini-golf.

• Mr Jones Watches "A perfectly useless afternoon" - bought this on a whim. As the elements sit on top of transparent discs and these sit on top of the "pool" background, it actually looks like the man and the duck are floating in sunlight. Very cool, but the battery seems to have died on me.

• Mido Ocean Star Decompression Timer 1961 LE - I LOVE THIS WATCH. It's so loud (multicoloured dial, polished surfaces everywhere, shiny Milanese bracelet) and has so many things going on. The table on the dial is a decompression timer. Under a loupe, this is a feast for the eyes!

• Cartier Santos Medium - Wanted this, but wasn't expecting to buy it, at the time. Originally walked into the AD to buy a Tank for the wife. Got talking to the sales rep about the Santos. Before you know it, I had dropped a deposit on the Santos and went back to collect it 3 weeks later. A beautiful watch in every sense. You can feel the refinement in the bracelet, the movement when winding. Again, another Roman numeral watch.

• Aquastar Deepstar 2 - The detail in the "dial furniture" is amazing. From the applied cardinal markers, the lume, the 9 o'clock subdial and the grey sunburst finish. The polished bezel is a dive decompression table so it has some similarities to the Mido. I have it on a Strapcode FKM Tropic strap.

• Tudor Pelagos 39 - Latest acquisition, from a business trip that went awry. I had been waiting for over a year with local ADs, so when the opportunity came up, was an easy decision. Sunburst dial is amazing. Bought it at an AD under retail, had I bought it locally.

As we move into 2024, I have a few things goals (I may not get to all of them):

• Move on from the 16030 and use the funds towards something else. Eyeing a Reverso, Tribute to Deepsea, Geophysic 1958 or a chronograph. I would love a modern Pepsi GMT, but understand the impediments.

• Banking away funds for a Day-Date 18248 "Bark" for a milestone birthday.