Re: Captain John's Chronometer and Barometer


[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ Previous # Next ] [ Start New Thread ] [ TarBoard ]

Posted by Peter Ceresole on November 24, 2008 at 11:40:51 user PeterC.

In Reply to: Re: Captain John's Chronometer and Barometer posted by ACB on November 24, 2008 at 10:48:27:

It is interesting that only John has a watch in SA

I think that in the early '30s, having a watch wasn't nearly as common as it was later. The photos of the Altounyan children don't seem to feature any watches... I remember that in 1948, when I was eight, my dad gave me a watch, with a stop watch seconds hand, which even then was a kind of rite of passage. From then onwards, when we went on the train, I could time the passing of the trackside kilometer posts and work out the speed- he would provide the slide rule to do the calculation. From the '80s, my daughters had infinitely more accurate and relatively dirt cheap Swatches.

Captain John, with his naval commander father, would be aware of the importance of knowing the accurate time, but in general civilian life then, this wasn't nearly as important.

The reason it's important now is not, I believe, anything to do with a more hectic lifestyle, but mainly because then even a cheap wrist watch was a relatively expensive item whereas now digital electronics have made accurate watches trivially cheap.




Follow Ups:



Post a Followup

Name:
Eel-Mail:

Existing subject (please edit appropriately) :

or is it time to start a New Thread?

Comments:

Optional Link URL:
Link Title:
Optional Image URL:

post direct to TarBoard test post first

Before posting it is necessary to be a registered user.


[ Follow Ups ] [ Post Followup ] [ TarBoard ]