Switzerland likes to be on time. Trains, buses or fundamentally anything that has a schedule is dependent on being on time. Indisputably clocks and watches are an important part of daily life.
Clocks
Some people like the tic-tock sound clocks make, others stop them so they can sleep. I know this for a fact because we have more than the ‘normal’ number of clocks in our home. There is at least one clock in every room, even in our guest room. A lot of people who have stayed overnight stop the clock so they can sleep.
Someone once counted how many clocks we have. It turns out more than 100. And no, we don’t have 100 rooms in our home. So there is a lot of ticking and chiming going on where we live. Luckily none of the clocks are 100% correct. No precision timekeeping for us; some are faster, some slower. Which is good, imagine what would happen if they all chimed at the same time. The noise level would be so high that you couldn’t hear what anyone was saying, let alone think straight.
The Love of Clocks
One would think that when someone is so fascinated with clocks he would be adept at fixing their innards. Ben’s father loved clocks and enjoyed taking them apart and putting them back together. Ben’s not like that. He is very good at positioning a clock so it ticks evenly, like tick-tock-tick-tock and not tickTOCK——–tickTOCK. But he doesn’t have the skill to fix them when they’re broken. He’d rather let the experts do that so he can enjoy their beauty.
Although we like the clock chiming sound we have one renegade clock. Every day or so, around 3.30 it would just break out in penetrating chiming. It was a rebel just doing its thing, singing its own song. Once I counted more than 35 rings and I didn’t even start counting at the beginning. When a clock rings that many times you start wondering what time it really is. Ben fixed it like any professional would do; he stuck a wad of paper between the bell and the hammer. It’s still a rebel, we just don’t hear it anymore. Ah, peace and quiet.
Clockmakers
We found a good clockmaker in Berne. Within 4 or 5 weeks he was always able to fix and revise the clocks we gave him. Interestingly the price to do this was always the same: SFr. 300.00. It didn’t matter what the problem was, that was the price. His work came with a 5 year guarantee, too. Then, at some point the shop closed.
When we moved away from Berne we moved right into the heart of clock and watch making country! This was where, during the clock-boom all of the important clockmakers were. There is still even a clockmaking school in the next town.
One of Ben’s favorite clocks broke when we moved. He found a retired clockmaker who said he could fix it. Every time Ben asked how far along he was, the clockmaker had some reason why he wasn’t finished. Reasons like the material he ordered hadn’t arrived yet or another clock had to be fixed in a hurry. Excuses upon excuses. After about three years of waiting Ben got frustrated and picked up his still broken clock to take home. It had been taken apart completely and was in at least a hundred pieces. Sort of like Humpty Dumpty. Ben couldn’t believe that that had happened. That was not a good day.
School
A friend of Ben’s taught in the computer department of the clock maker’s school. When he retired he suggested that Ben take over teaching the few hours per week, which he did. Everyone has to know computer fundamentals and so everyone has to take a couple of computer courses. A lot of the students enjoyed the computer class but many just tolerated it.
Ben enjoyed teaching but, like I said, there was always a couple of students who despised it. One student tried to explain why. He said that he didn’t go to that school to become proficient in computer technology but in clock making. Knowing that Ben was not a clockmaker he added “Just like you will never be able to take a clock apart, I will never be good at a computers.”
Ben smiled and said “Sorry, but you are mistaken. I can very well take a clock apart, putting it back together again might pose a problem. But I can take any clock apart.”
Well Intended Advice
Ben related a story to me that his father told him. When his father was in the army his commanding officer wanted to stress the importance of being on time. He told a group of sergeants that “Every sergeant needs a watch.” Well, that was what he intended to say.
Unfortunately the officer spoke German with a very thick French accent. He mispronounced the German word for watch, “Uhr” and turned it into “Hure”. In essence what he said was “Every sergeant needs a ho.” The men chuckled at the unintended advice. Still, years later they all knew what every sergeant needed!
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