Real Apple Fanboys Only Have Apple Watches

I make no apologies in terms of my Apple Mac fandom. Maybe it's the fact that I live 10 minutes from Cupertino, home base for what's arguably the world's most innovative computer company. Maybe it's because I'm stubborn and when I make a choice I stick to it. But whatever the reason, while my passion for their products can ebb and flow between product releases, I will never surrender my Apple fanboy card. And one of the most telling clues that I'm Steve Jobs disciple is worn on my wrist - every single day. You see... every single wristwatch I have sports the Apple logo. Two are the "Think Different" variety, with the numbers being presented in reverse order and the hands moving in counter-clockwise fashion. The other 4 are more traditional. Two are metal and the other two are leather banded.

In June of 2007, in a post for The Apple Blog, I gave Five Lesser-Known Tips on Being an Apple Fanboy. In that list, I said to "Present the Apple Logo in a Good Light", focusing primarily on how people use the sticker on their cars, but the same could extend to how you showcase the logo on the clothes you may wear, the watches you may have, or even how you position the product. A bad customer reference is no good - and know that as a Mac user, you are being watched at all times by curious PC drones who have always secretly wondered what it would be like "on the other side".


My Current Apple Watch Collection
My first Apple watch was the white face "Think Different" watch, which I ordered from Red Light Runner back in July of 2002, for a mere $49.95. The price for these increasingly-rare watches climbed to $79.95, $99.95, and later to nearly $200, before disappearing from the site, as well as its competition, at Missing Bite. But even as I knew my watch could score a few bills on eBay, I was not interested in selling, because to me, the value was more than a couple Benjamins.

The Apple logo watches may not all have the blessing of headquarters. One I got passed on from a former Apple employee who had been given it as an incentive award. Others I got from eBay or other sites. But even if they don't have the Cupertino seal of approval, I've gotten rid of all other watches. I can do without the databank watches from Casio, or the hipness of a Swatch, or the pretentiousness of Movado or Rolex. I don't need to do calculations with my watch, or peer at a compass, or convert units to military time. I just need to get the time, and promote a great brand while doing it. And just today, I took all the watches in for new batteries, and when needed, new bands - so they are in tip-top shape.

You've seen me be unequivocally promotional of sites and products I really like. But it was Apple that first won me over more than two decades ago, and it has been my single-longest obsession. You can get one of the few remaining available Apple watches out there and join the club by picking one up at Missing Bite for $59.95. There's no question in my mind it will be worth more soon - whether you sell it or not.

Think I'm nuts? And would anybody be caught dead with a Windows or Microsoft watch?

Our Unborn Kids Will Wear Your Web 2.0 Schwag

Now 23 weeks into our twin pregnancy, it's clear our son and daughter are already doomed. Although they don't even have names picked out, they are already unknowingly marching down the path to geekdom. Still a good few months before they debut, the pair are destined to be branded like the common race car, made corporate shills, through the donning of apparel featuring the logo of some of my favorite technology companies - and they could wear those of your favorites, if you feel generous.


Our Kids Want to Wear Logos. Here's a Starting Pack.
So far, we've managed to procure a pair of onesies featuring the Google, Apple and FriendFeed logos, as well as FriendFeed bibs and Google beanies, and we aren't done by any means. For while seemingly every mother wants her kids adorned in bunny rabbits, flowers and puppies, we'll have nothing to do with it. Similarly, we will push off any Disney and cartoon characters as long as we are able.

So here's the deal. I hereby promise that if you want to see one or both of our children sporting your company logo, whether it be on a onesie, a baby blanket, branded bottles, or any other baby gear, we agree to be sellouts, so long as you are in the technology space. We will not turn down any offers from hardware vendors, software vendors or Web sites. Want our children to mock me with their Windows Vista or MySpace t-shirts? Fine. We promise to dress them up and add their photos to our Flickr account for the world to see.

But rather than have our kids mocked for their poor judgment from the get-go, we already have some favorites in mind. I would love to go weeks without seeing the same logo twice. I want baby clothes from Digg, TechMeme, TiVo, Technorati, Ballhype, Facebook, ReadBurner, and Yahoo!. I'd love to see my kids bearing logos from TechCrunch, Twitter, Mashable, GigaOM and LinkedIn.

If you've got a favorite brand you want promoted, we're here for you. Send me an e-mail or call (my cell phone is on the right of the blog), and I'm more than happy to send contact information which puts my kids in the role of corporate babble-person.

Suits Me Just Fine

It's been a full year since I bought my last suit - and that suit, while it still fits fine, has seen its fair share of church services, business meetings, weddings and funerals. It's still great, and looks good, but even my wife is tired of it. Even more concerning, on the eve of another business trip to the East Coast, I would run the risk of seeing the same people I saw last year wearing the same outfit. So, this evening, we fixed that situation in a big way.

After leaving the office and ensuring our 17-year-old beagle was fed, I made a beeline for the nearby Men's Wearhouse, with the intent of getting one or two new suits - depending on cost and quality.

For me, clothes shopping tends to be pretty easy - pick the size and style, make sure the price and brand aren't bad, and go. Today, we had some good news. Measurements showed I was the same as last year - somewhat of a surprise given my current all-time high peak weight. But that made the decision process that much more simple. Though I had intended to only get a potential pair of suits, I ended up leaving the store with three suits, two new pairs of shoes and three belts. There was a little sticker shock at the end, but we should be set for the year, and as always, the Men's Wearhouse service was exemplary.

Now, we just have to hope all is ready by the time the plane leaves Monday.