Time

[darkshine]

I've avoided time for quite some er.... time.

 

Does anyone else?

 

But I've been given a stopwatch this evening and now I have this overpowering urge to time everything and I mean EVERYTHING.

 

Although that isn't possible because I can't physically time everything all at once, but the urge is there nevertheless. So I guess I have a desire to time certain tasks and stuff... the possibilities are both interesting and potentially annoying.

 

Has anyone done that either?

[Sa Skimrande]

A couple of months back I was without my wristwatch for a few weeks and to say, my life turned upside down in that time, I had no point of reference at all and realised how many times I look at my watch when I wasn't wearing the thing due to a pretty major failure, but it was bound to happen, I knew it was coming.

 

What it was, was a Seiko Kinetic has a rechargeable battery inside that bodily movement charges the cell to keep the thing ticking and accurate for about six months if not being worn, sort of like a hybrid between an old automatic wind watch and a battery powered watch, but the cell depletes over time and it did, almost eleven years since I bought the thing. £170 for a watchmaker to sort the issue out, sod that, get the parts off ebay and fix it myself and I did, then charge the thing with an induction charger and it was good to go. But lessons learned, keep the spares in or get another watch, preferably a seiko automatic as a spare.

 

But obviously I do time myself through the day, and lost I am without a time piece.

[raydon]

It's great having a new toy, exploring all the possibilities.

 

I did have a stopwatch once, it was great fun seeing how quickly I could start and stop it. I can't remember using it for much, I expect I forgot to stop it after I got engrossed in what I had intended to time.

Edited November 10, 2012 by raydon

[darkshine]

A couple of months back I was without my wristwatch for a few weeks and to say, my life turned upside down in that time, I had no point of reference at all and realised how many times I look at my watch when I wasn't wearing the thing due to a pretty major failure, but it was bound to happen, I knew it was coming.

 

What it was, was a Seiko Kinetic has a rechargeable battery inside that bodily movement charges the cell to keep the thing ticking and accurate for about six months if not being worn, sort of like a hybrid between an old automatic wind watch and a battery powered watch, but the cell depletes over time and it did, almost eleven years since I bought the thing. £170 for a watchmaker to sort the issue out, sod that, get the parts off ebay and fix it myself and I did, then charge the thing with an induction charger and it was good to go. But lessons learned, keep the spares in or get another watch, preferably a seiko automatic as a spare.

 

But obviously I do time myself through the day, and lost I am without a time piece.

 

When I used to wear a watch I used to check it all the time, when I stopped wearing it, which was years and years ago now, I found that I can tell the time of day quite accurately from the sun - not much use at night, and also not much use for timekeeping as I could be half an hour out in my estimates (which was accurate enough for myself - but not for getting to an appointment lol).

 

When I was a teenager my dad gave me his old watch, it self wound from movement (I'm not sure if the mechanism was the same as your Seiko) but it was really handy and I liked the fact that I never had to mess around with batteries.

 

It's great having a new toy, exploring all the possibilities.

 

I did have a stopwatch once, it was great fun seeing how quickly I could start and stop it. I can't remember using it for much, I expect I forgot to stop it after I got engrossed in what I had intended to time.

 

Yeah I've had it round my neck, arm, wrist, hand, pocket, head, back round my neck again and my housemate who gave it me is thoroughly regretting that decision, it took him 2 minutes 16 seconds to chop a carrot, 25 seconds to get the milk from the fridge, it took approx 5 seconds for him to get up off the sofa and advance towards me to remove the stopwatch from my hand (I say approx cuz I was moving away lol) at which point I stopped timing him doing things as it was peeing him off and he threatened to take it off me, although I admit that loitering around timing someone could get annoying pretty quick, especially when I can't help informing him of the timings - but its easier to time someone else isn't it?

 

It took me 4.53 seconds to walk the length of the house, 22 minutes to reply to an email, and then of course I had to see if I could stop it at an exact point several times (hit and miss) and I will probably kill the battery within a week, and yep, I've forgotten a few times already that I was timing something.

 

Anyway... play time is over (not completely but I'll tone it down), I actually want to know how I'm using my time and how I can use it better and stuff.

 

When I was a kid I had a digital watch and I ended up timing everything, I think now I'm an adult I can attempt to refrain from going OTT with the things I time.I'll try anyway

[Mike_GX101]

I used to have a wristwatch but no longer - I made the decision when my last one stopped working that I would not get another. I found it quite liberating not having one.

 

If I need to know the time then I've always got my mobile phone. Having said that certain draconian-type people still living in the dark ages get angry when I take out my mobile thinking I'm using it to text when really all I'm doing is checking the time.

[Sa Skimrande]

I think the resistance to being timed doing anything occurs when you have experienced being timed at work and being told how slow you are at doing something and how the employer wants workers that are quicker not slower. I have experienced as part of the ISO 9000 quality assurance certification a past employer was seeking where I tried to explain there is a difference in speed where accuracy is the goal as sure anyone can move fast and be variable in their accuracy whereas to be accurate and get it right every time requires more time and if the employer wants accuracy and speed replace us all with machines because people are not machines.

 

And when we are replaced by machines, make sure those machines can fault find any other machine, find the parts needed for repair, price them up and quote the customer, repair if the customer thinks it is economical to repair, repair the machine, thoroughly test it, clean it and inform the customer it is ready for collection and take payment, because if you can't find a machine to do that, you are stuck with humans who can be variable as the days pass by, because we are only human not perfect.

 

The employer wanted five repairs done per day, I did seven mostly and sometimes ten if the parts were in, but I tried to resist using up all the parts as the following days I would be struggling for something to do, but when the interest grabs you it's hard to stop. But if someone else took over the admin side of what I used to do and kept the parts arriving I could indeed work like a machine not stopping for breaks or dinner as often I worked through them as the interest had grabbed me and it is an odd feeling when the last person you see during the day is the key holder telling you to sod off home as everyone has gone and it half past the hour I was supposed to finish work. I used to do that regularly and my boss was always looking to pay us less.

 

But I time myself at home doing my big chain mail job to work out a costing should I do this professionally, but since I have done even at minimum wage my chain mail job works out at over 300 hours and no one will pay that, so doing chain mail work for a living is out of the question as most mailers work on a loss, it costs them more to make than what they can get in sales, so ideas of minimum wage are out the window as one has to work for much less than that if one is to sell.

 

But as my chain mail job progresses, 7000 rings fitted out of a projected 34 000 and I have just wound and hand sawed another 7700 rings, I have some external interest in the project when a professional dancer discovered the stuff follows the body form and feels nice worn and there asking if I would be selling on completion and how much, where I said yes if I get a good offer I will sell as I cannot sell at what it costs on minimum wage, which will be nearly £2000 and that would include tailoring to fit one person so it does not hang like a bag. The rings are 8mm external diameter and 5% magnesium alloy aluminium.

[robert7111a]

I could not do without my wristwatch. I live and work to a timetable. I catch a train to work and do my clinic where people come at appointed times. I use time and the position of the sun when out photographing. I use timetables a lot. In my youth, I learnt how clocks/watches etc work. My life is very much run on a timetable so time is definately of the essence.

 

But I am able to forget time such as if I'm having a social drink...

[Mannify]

When I married my husband I could ask him at any time of the day what time it was and he'd know. Even he wasn't sure how he did it, but he was spookily accurate time and time again to within 5 or 10 minutes, with no measured external indication. He can't do it any more, though. Downer, huh?

[Mike_GX101]

Anyone can be glued to their watches if their schedules depend on it. Most of these people though are likely to be highly industrious but are probably also highly stressed people.

 

There are plenty of other places where the time can be obtained other than from your wristwatch. Ditch it for a day and see - don't take it with you. You may even be surprised at how liberating it is as you can then truly appreciate the natural flow of time rather than seeing it as a human-made framework. Try it and see!

 

See how people used to live before the invention of the clock. See how people with autism might have viewed the world centuries ago without a sense of time as we know it today. Go on! Give it a go! Just for a day!

[darkshine]

When I married my husband I could ask him at any time of the day what time it was and he'd know. Even he wasn't sure how he did it, but he was spookily accurate time and time again to within 5 or 10 minutes, with no measured external indication. He can't do it any more, though. Downer, huh?

 

Maybe its cuz you stopped asking him

[Mannify]

Nah, even in an ancient 17 year old marriage like ours, I still ask him

[A-S warrior]

Im a dog. therefore this topic is redundant to me.

[justine1]

When I married my husband I could ask him at any time of the day what time it was and he'd know. Even he wasn't sure how he did it, but he was spookily accurate time and time again to within 5 or 10 minutes, with no measured external indication. He can't do it any more, though. Downer, huh?

 

Both myself and current partner are like that. I am lucky he is the first person I have met that does'nt mind me asking every 15min what the time is,used to drive my mum potty! We also both hate being late for everything and for us late means at least 10-15min beforehand. My ex was always late I would often suffer panic attacks because of his laid back attitude like the world should wait for him,loathed it(and him!)

 

All my boys stick to timetables and like to be on time. I don't know if its ASD(for the two who have it) past experience of their dad always making them late for everything or just hereditory(my eldest brother is the worst!!)

[Sa Skimrande]

Although time has always been a fascination through mechanical devices, I have always suffered from being late for everything and I always do everything at the last minute.

 

I have tried to deal with this by starting early, but I found other stuff would distract me if I had the time to look and so I would end up late as usual, as it seems if I have the time, I cannot seem to manage.

 

Or maybe it is, I need that stress buzz of panicking, which perhaps serves to keep me awake and tuned in.

[darkshine]

Im a dog. therefore this topic is redundant to me.

 

Clever boy, learnt to use the computer all by yourself did you?

[Mike_GX101]

I have always suffered from being late for everything and I always do everything at the last minute.

 

I have tried to deal with this by starting early, but I found other stuff would distract me if I had the time to look and so I would end up late as usual, as it seems if I have the time, I cannot seem to manage.

I have this problem too - and with the autistic preference for routine it makes it even worse because I become routinely late. It's not that I go without a wrist watch but more because i don't start things until it's too late (I always think I can rush it and do it on time like on some days).

 

I have tried varying the routine and yet when I come to leaving the door...albeit on time...I then have to check I've turned things like the iron and the cooker off just in case...and this makes me late. And if I don't do these things I then worry about it - one time I turned the car around half way to work just to check the iron was turned off because I couldn't remember unplugging it.

Edited November 15, 2012 by Mike_GX101

[raydon]

I abandoned my wristwatch in my teens, I wore it very loose but it still annoyed me so much. I absolutely hate being late for anything, so I work out an itinery to get me there. I know how long general daily routines take, as long as there isn't a queue for the bathroom in the morning! My reaction normally insures that there isn't