Can You Stop a Watch by Wearing It?

I am intensely interested in this subject and the purpose of writing this article is to find others out there that have the same ability. This article does have to do with plants and gardening so I think is appropriate in this category.

I've had a very detrimental effect on watches since I was in my teens. Analog or digital, I wear them, I kill them.  I was given a digital watch for graduation and they were new at the time.  I loved it. Unfortunately, within 2-3 weeks, the poor thing went hay wire. I sent it back to the maker to get it fixed. They fixed it and sent it back to me. Within 2-3 weeks, again, it wouldn't work correctly.  I sent it back, they returned it fixed and the same thing happened within the same time frame. Again I sent it back and in less than a week I got the watch returned to me along with a check for the price of the watch and a note telling me that they preferred to return the money because it was obvious to them, I was one of those people who had a detrimental effect on the functioning of a watch. So I set out to see if I did that to all watches. Over the years I sporadically tried several brands and types, expensive, inexpensive all with the same effect.  Though, the effect seemed to occur at shorter and shorter intervals. It only took about a week to kill a watch. I finally gave up trying to wear one and found I could keep one in my pocket without destroying it.

All through this time, I tried to find information about this phenomenon.  The watch company insinuated this is a problem that occurs occasionally with people so there must be others. I did meet a few people that also couldn't wear a watch for the same reason and we would have lively discussions on how fast we could stop a watch.  The only explanations I ever found or hear were that watch stoppers may have some natural electrical or magnetic energy which was more intensified in them, especially when something was in direct, prolonged contact with the skin. I am a research based sort of person and don't want to make up my about it until I see research results.

Anyone who has read my profile or bio knows that I am a rabid plant person.  I have a way with them since I was 8 years old, went to college for horticulture, taught the subject, and started a business selling plants and seeds.  I love plants and always seem to know exactly what they need to grow. I like their endless variety and they are just endlessly interesting to me.A few years back,  I went to work at a greenhouse/nursery.  I noticed none of us wore watches or if we had one on us, it was kept in a pocket.  So I started asking why they didn't wear one on their wrists. With only one exception of a gentleman who just didn't like to wear watches, we all killed watches. Four people in one area who exhibited this same dubious ability and the only other thing they had in common was they too were rabid plant people. We all had the equivalent ability or way with plants. We spent a lunch time or two speculating on reasons and everyone else let it drop but I just couldn't.  When I would spot a customer who had a certain gleam in their eye when looking at plants or talking about them which indicated they shared my enthusiasm for plants, I would ask them if they could wear a watch.  More often than not, they couldn't wear one either, for the same reason of disabling it within weeks of wearing it.

I don't pretend to know what is going on with this. My informal study is just that informal, but I can't keep from noticing the correlation between watch killing and plant people. I've met several plant people who can wear a watch.  Several non-plant people who not only kill watches, they kill plants as well because they don't care about them.  Since I've totally turned my life to plant production and am working with them more and my ability to care for them has improved, I noticed something else. It now only takes 2 days to kill a watch if it is contacting my skin.  I decided to put a watch on a chain to wear around my neck. It was always dangling in my way and annoyed with it, I put it inside of my shirt next to my skin. It stopped the second day. I've given up having a time piece of any kind on my person.  This ability is just too expensive. My sons won't let me near their watches let alone borrow them or even touch them.

I am still intensely interested in this subject and the purpose of writing this article is to find others out there that have the same ability.  I would like to hear from them to continue my informal study. If anyone has heard of a credible, science based reason for this, I would love to hear it. You can leave a comment on my blog or contact me through author contact if the site this is on allows it.

The question is: if you discombobulate watches when you wear them, are you also a plant person.  Plant person meaning that you love to work them, you own lots, and they seem to grow wonderfully for you. If you are not a plant person and still stop watches, is there any reason you know of?

12/14/2010  This just in.....I just stumbled across a website concerning NDE or Near Death Experiences.  80% of people who have had a NDE also can not wear watches because they cause them to stop. I have not had any NDE.  The site also mentioned that 2% of the population is able to do this.