Face saver with stains

My wardrobe was starting to look antiquated and jaded. I had not replaced many things, including absolutely essential apparel, for a long time. It’s typical of me not to buy anything for months and then suddenly acquire everything in a heap in a short period of time. This habit of mine has irritated my parents and my wife for quite some time now, and it is something that I’m yet to fix. I was now on one such buying spree, which was almost coming to an end, much to the relief of everyone at home.

I had finished buying most of the things I had wanted to buy, save for a good watch. So my wife, my son, and I went to a nearby mall to buy one. Somehow, it seemed too much for me to splurge on an ultra-luxurious watch given that basic functions do not change much across price segments. The advent of digital watches with numerous extra functions has only made it even more tricky to buy an expensive analogue watch.

Anyway, we entered a watch store only to be presented with a wide choice that created more confusion. I was wondering how to go about selecting from them all. Thank God for my wife, who quickly narrowed the choice down to three, and then I chose one of them.

The moment I reached home, I was so excited that I wanted to try the new watch immediately. To my chagrin, when I opened the package, I noticed some stains on the dial. I had chosen from the display watches but asked for a new one to be packed. And I was furious with the saleswoman for her carelessness.

Still angry, the next day I was at the mall, bawling at the saleswoman and accusing her of carelessness. With disarming calmness, she said there was a thin plastic film on the watch dial that carried those stains. Within seconds, she expertly removed it to reveal a dial with the smoothest and shiniest of surfaces. While my eyes had noticed only those stains, they had missed the ever-so-thin plastic film.

I was embarrassed beyond words but managed to immediately apologise profusely to her. I wish I had listened to her at least once before I complained. The milk had spilled over, and now it was too late.

More often than not, we compound our mistakes by doing something even more silly before we understand reality. It was a lesson well learned, and I vowed to be a bit more patient going forward!