TimeOut

Emil Wojcik
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Time for another introduction...

I realized after making a few posts and reading various topics on the different brand forums that it sometimes helps to know who's posting. So a little personal information about our interests and even other types of collections we may have helps us understand what's important to that individual as it may relate to our obvious love of watches.

So here's a little about me...

I'll be 52 in a couple months. I spent my professional career in advertising where I was COO and creative director but after 20-something years in the field, decided to leave the corporate world behind to spend more time with my family. So eight years ago I resigned from my job and now spend most days doing whatever my wife and I think is important at the moment, be it spending time with the kids or her mother, or searching for antiques to buy and sell (so I'm officially only "semi-retired", doing for money what I used to do for fun on the weekends).

I started collecting watches back in the '80s when everyone seemed to be into vintage pieces. I worked my up through more common watches like 1940s Bulovas, Longines, Omegas, etc., constantly trading up to the next "I Gotta Have It" watch..

Eventually, when I was 29, I bought my first SS Rolex Datejust after going to look at them with my father-in-law. He planned on getting one for himself...he didn't. But I got one for myself. I thought it was the best thing in the world...for a while. But it wasn't long before I was looking for the next upgrade.

So over about a five year period in the late '80s - early '90s, I managed to find myself owning nine Rolexes, an automatic Audemars, a Patek, two Vacherons, a Piget and a few others.

But over the years I've sold most of them. Other things just seemed more important at the time...there were lots more collections that I was interested in adding to (more about that in a bit). So I didn't buy many watches after the early '90s and just stuck with what I had left which was a 1980s two-tone Rolex. (I wish I had kept one of my SS Rolex Subs instead).

Then in 2003 I bought a Breitling Navitimer Montbrillant Datora and gave the Rolex to my father-in-law...the one who was responsible for me buying a Rolex in the first place so many years earlier. Giving him that watch really made him (and me) happy! About a year ago he passed away...and I have the watch back. Getting it back is bitter-sweet, but at least I know he enjoyed it while he was able to.

So, as far as my other collections, there's ancient and medieval coins, Greek and Roman antiquities, 17^th century furniture, oil paintings, modern prints and etchings, medieval manuscript pages, 18^th century European and Chinese porcelain…and some others that I just can’t think of at the moment. I also have a couple vintage sports cars that have eaten up time any cash over the years. And keeping these collections growing has taken most of my spare time and money…so it had been a while since I looked for another watch. (I rarely sell anything from a collection these days - something I learned after having to deal with the grief over all those watches I sold years ago.)

But a couple months ago I decided it was time to get back into watches. I set out to find a replacement for the AP I had way back when. I planned on another vintage 18K automatic like the one I had but I was surprised to see how much things had changed in the industry over the years. The main shock was just how BIG everything is now! I was used to a watch the size of my Rolex and even when I got the Breitling I thought it was HUGH. But that’s not even close to the size of some of the new watches today. And I still don’t know if I can handle these larger watches (I’m 6’ 1” and 235 pounds, so it’s not that they don’t fit…I just don’t know if I like the sizes). But I decided I wanted something a little newer, that vintage wasn’t what I was after. So I opted for a first generation AP Millenary since it’s larger than the older sizes but smaller than the Breitling…it’s a good size to me.

So now I have the Datejust, a 1941 Bubbleback, a Rado for everyday (isn't scratch proof ceramic great!), the Breitling which gets quite a bit of use, a simple '60s automatic Bucherer, the Millenary and a few others.

I’ll end with a photo of me just because I think it’s nice to be able to place a face with a name. Sorry to be so long-winded…