My friend Earl

Wherever you choose to live there is always a balance of elements. In a city, you have access to culture and diversity, museums and fine dining but you have to put up with overcrowding, noise and crime. In the north country, you have long, harsh winters matched with pristine mountain landscapes, cool summers and crisp autumn days rich with a tapestry of color blanketing the hillsides. In the Caribbean, you have warm climates, breathtaking sunsets and an ocean playground coupled with seasonal tropical storms and hurricanes.

Today, we have the threat of Hurricane Earl lurking off to the east. Over the past 24 hours there has been a shift in the energy on the island. People reaching out and stopping by, checking in on neighbors and friends. People I have just met offer to help me prepare for my first hurricane. There is a lot of talk of what to do, where to go and how to deal. And during these conversations the direction always turns back to hurricanes of the past. I see a change in the faces as they recount their experiences. They know each one by name and refer to them as if they are talking about an old friend who died a tragic death, shaking their heads and looking towards the ground. A humbled silence in the words they speak. It's powerful to see the concern and fear build around me. I try to imagine what it will be like. Will I be alone, sitting in my bathtub with cushions piled around and flashlight in hand? That seems a bit extreme and lonely but it's very real. I think I will take up a friend's offer to ride out the storm at his place. He's been through many a hurricane and his house is sound. My house is probably sound too but I am perched up on a hillside, a beautiful spot normally but exposed and vulnerable when 100mph winds are knocking at my door.

I look around me and take an inventory of my belongings. What do I want to protect most? My computer, guitar, photographs? It would be nice to have these things protected, have everything weather the storm OK but it is just stuff. What I really care about right now is me. Fingers and toes, heart and soul, save myself. A coworker said it best, "when it hits, all bets are off, save your own ass and forget about everything else." If I had a family here, a child, it would be such a different feeling. I would be terrified for the safety of the ones I love. To run and hide alone is easy. To carry your family to safety is hard.

I have survived my own storms over the years. The family storm, a tornado that ripped apart our farm, killing my father and putting my mother in the hospital for months. My personal storm, a devastating divorce and having to start over from scratch at 30 years old. Blizzards, car crashes, the death of loved ones too early in life, 9/11. Storms take on all shapes and sizes, sometimes you are fortunate enough to have the time to prepare, to see it coming. And I will do my best to be ready for Earl when he comes knocking.

Island Jam

When I first thought about moving to this Island, I imagined myself riding a bike or scooter along meandering paths into town, to work, the store, the beach. It would be the best way to get around. This is what I thought. The men that hired me laughed and cringed when I told them my preferred mode of transportation. "A bike, are you crazy? Even if you were the best cyclist in the world, I wouldn't recommend riding around on St Thomas, fastest way to get yourself killed."

The lay of the land:

The roads, when they are paved, are rough and steep with rarely a guard rail protecting you from the cliff on one side and the mountain on the other. You drive on the left here, even though the cars are from the states. One benefit of this is you have a great view of how close you can get to the edge of the road, when another car is sprawled out and approaching fast. I have seen some bad accidents since I have arrived. Driving here is similar to navigating an obstacle course. The locals use the term "island handshake" for the inevitable occurrence of side view mirrors smashing together as cars whiz by each other. I have come close several times to experiencing the island handshake and lately I have left my passenger side mirror rotated in.

Road Rules:

1. Driving while using your phone and you will get pulled over by the police or in my opinion, you will have an accident. 2. Driving without a seatbelt and you will get pulled over. That's a no-brainer. 3. If you are out at a restaurant or bar and you have been drinking and you have not finished your drink, you can grab a convenient plastic to go cup by the door and take it with you. Drinking and driving is totally acceptable here. I'm sorry, what? This makes no sense to me. Of course, if you cause an accident and you are over the legal alcohol limit, you will get a DUI. But if you are just driving drunk and STILL drinking while you are driving drunk, this is totally fine. This takes the obstacle course to a whole new level. Now, some people have said that because the roads are so winding and steep that you really can't go that fast. "How much damage can be done going 25mph while intoxicated?" Well, I don't have a radar gun but I am sure people are driving faster than 25mph. I would say the average speed is around 40mph, which is still on the slow side of the speedometer. But any moving vehicle, no matter the speed, can do damage if used while being stupid. And if that is not enough, I have met some crazy fools that brag about getting their car or better yet, their motorcycle, up to 120mph here. No good can come of that. Yet another reason why Hull Bay is so appealing to me. It's off the beaten path. It's made of old school locals, families and surfers. People who are too cautious, too mellow or too stoned to drive like maniacs.

My work commute usually takes about 12 minutes, hardly long enough to get my NPR fill. On the way into town, over the crest and down the main road, there is always a delay. A line of cars creeping slowly along, the island traffic jam. This isn't because of congestion or overpopulation. It is because of a woman named Lamencia. Every day she stands on the side of the main road and sells newspapers to the commuters. I have even seen her out there in a torrential downpour, newspapers piled in trash bags and Lamencia in a plastic suit. There is no horn honking while we wait in line, just another example of “island time” and the relaxed nature of the people here. Every morning we say hello as I slowly drive by. I would buy a newspaper from her but I am really trying to cut back on my paper consumption. Recycling has yet to be introduced to this island.

Return to Paradise

Returning to St Thomas was a surreal experience. I had almost forgotten that I live here now. It definitely has taken a while to get back into the island rhythm. The service center is still under construction. All of the equipment is being shipped from the US and Switzerland and we hope to have everything delivered and installed by October. My new home is covered in a layer of island dust and all of my free time has been spent scrubbing my home back into a livable condition. And I do love my new home. I am perched up on a hillside above the green blue waters of Hull Bay. My morning routine consists of coffee and breakfast on my porch. At night, I play my guitar as green parrots flutter about and the sun sets in a stream of color behind the scattered islands. I am still unpacking and cleaning and arranging my new life but I am finally feeling back in step with the island. Though, at least once a day, I have to remind myself that this is where I live now. I have left city life, all that I know and the people that I love. It doesn't scare me, but it does give me pause.

Sunset from my porch

Favorite sushi place, Watahoshi. Located in Hull Bay out of reach of most tourists. Traditional sushi, divine in taste and presentation.

Some of the old Danish warehouses downtown still show the original stone facade. I have been told that sand and molasses were used as the mortar.

Breitling Training

I had to save my Breitling training for last. The training was epic, 5 weeks! I really got to know the company and the people during that time. I was so impressed with Breitling’s dedication to after-sales service. The training program they have in place is by far the best I have seen. And the staff, trainers, managers are all very dedicated and passionate about the program and the company. It was an amazing experience.

Breitling Uunderground passage

I spent my first week of training in polishing. The second week was a solo program in which I spent a day in each department of the after-sales service facility. The remaining three weeks were level 1 and 2 training, which covers a majority of the Breitling watch calibers on the market. The program was harder than I expected, we were graded on everything. Our trainer, Stefan Kuonen, scrutinized our work to a painful degree and he really pushed us to improve at every stage of the training. I have to admit, I had a couple meltdowns, some bad days when I felt all my watch skills had left my body and I couldn't do anything right. I don't know if it was the grading that started to get to me or the exhaustion that comes from travelling and living in a hotel for too long or the fact that I was also having to work on the island service center project at night. But all excuses aside, what the program did accomplish for me personally was to wake up my mind to watchmaking again. After 12 years, I'll admit I had gotten lazy. I had gone through the motions for so long and stopped questioning them or remembering why I do what I do. I'm happy to have had this experience. I'm really happy that I passed! And I feel that I am still waking up to my watch world. Questioning it in ways that I haven't in a long time. Taking it apart and figuring out what about it I really like and what about it I need to fix. This is a good thing.

Polishing training group

Level 1 & 2 training group

More Swiss Training

Tag Heuer Training in La Chaux-de-Fonds

At the very end of my Swiss journey, I had a three day training course with Harry Schumacher, Training Manager at Tag Heuer. It was a solo program that covered the Grand Carrera collection plus general Tag Heuer after-sales service procedure. I was also given a tour of the 360 Museum at the factory. The museum is designed to mimic the construction of a watch case. it was very cool and the collection and timeline of Tag Heuer is impressive.

This year marks the 150th anniversary for Tag Heuer. It just so happened, they were having their big company celebration party on my final day of training. I was invited to join the company for a dinner cruise on Lake Neuchatel. The party also had a costume theme: 1860 (the year the company started). I wasn't given this information until the day of the party, so no costume for me. The party was a blast. It was a beautiful night, filled with great food, dancing and fireworks!

Cocktail hour on the upper deck

The couple in white won the grand prize

Fireworks Finale!

Swiss Training

My training was split between three watch companies. My first week was in Geneva with Chopard. The middle 5 weeks were spent with Breitling in Grenchen and the final week was with Tag Heuer in La Chaux-de-Fonds. It was a training marathon and an amazing adventure. I had forgotten how much I love Switzerland. The culture, people, countryside, small cities, there is something about the way of life there. It rarely feels chaotic; the country is built around living a balanced life. The shops close early most days. Public transportation is everywhere and clean. Small cars and bikes flow together through the city streets. Switzerland is the most diverse country in Europe, which is something I really like. I love hearing and seeing so many different cultures mingle together. (That was one of the things that I loved most about Brooklyn.) And during this trip I really got to see so much of the country. The training was intense. The amount of information I had to take in and carry with me seemed endless. By the end of the trip, I had to buy an extra duffle bag.

Chopard Training in Geneva

The Chopard factory is located on the outskirts of Geneva. The buildings and grounds are lovely. There is an outdoor garden terrace next to the company restaurant, of course. I love that so many of the Swiss watch companies have restaurants for their employees. And the food is always very good. The week I was there, 2 men made their way through the parking lot and terrace and entered the factory. They dined in the restaurant and meandered the halls. Once they were noticed as uninvited guests, they split but came back the next day to try again. Not very bright. The police were waiting for them. Needless to say, security has been tightened.

The Chopard trainers, Christophe Boffin and Olivier Piboyeux. We covered Module 1 and part of Module 2 during the week. This included the Happy Diamond and Happy Sport watch collections, ETA 7001, JLC 889 and 630, polishing and pallet fork adjustments. It was a great week and I look forward to returning next summer.

Transition Mission

I am amazed by the extreme differences in my dwellings over the past 5 months. To go from Brooklyn, to St Thomas, to Switzerland, to back to St Thomas, has been a whirlwind, to say the least.

View from my old apartment in Brooklyn

View from my temporary lodgings on St Thomas

View from my hotel in Solothurn, Switzerland

View from my new home on St Thomas

I had one month on St Thomas before heading to Switzerland for training. During this time, I had to design the layout of the service center, research all of the elements, flooring, lights, cabinets, watch benches, tools and equipment, plus convince the company that all of these things are essential for the success of the service center. The climate down here is great for vacationing, lounging and water sports but a watch service center, with all of the parts and tools made from different types of metal, will rust within a day if the facility is not properly outfitted and sealed. Doing this is not cheap but absolutely necessary for protecting the investment. By the time I had to leave, orders were being placed and the intended space was gutted and construction was underway. I also finally found a place to live. The night before I was leaving for my training, I moved into my new home overlooking Hull Bay. I unloaded what belongings I had, grabbed my bags and began the long journey to Geneva.

Gutting the space for the service center

Construction begins!

The space takes form

The current state...

My new home just before leaving for Switzerland