So last week my phone hit 1% at a coffee shop and I had a full-on existential crisis.
Just me, a lukewarm oat latte, and a wall clock ticking like it owed me money.
I stared at that thing for like ten straight minutes.
Here's the tea: analog clocks are quietly having a moment with people my age.
Not because we're trying to be vintage or cottagecore or whatever.
No notifications, no ads, no little red bubble begging for my attention.
I went down a rabbit hole and apparently a bunch of Gen Z creators are filming "clock check" videos where they just... look at a clock for sixty seconds.
Millions of views on people doing absolutely nothing but watching a second hand move.
We toggle between apps like 47 times a minute.
It doesn't care about your engagement metrics.
I ended up thrifting a chunky 1970s wall clock for eight bucks.
The thing ticks SO loud it sounds like a tiny woodpecker having a breakdown.
Now every morning I check the actual hands instead of grabbing my phone first.
I'm not saying it fixed my life or anything dramatic like that, but I'm way less glued to my screen before 9 a.m.
Turns out there's a whole subreddit of people showing off their vintage clocks.
Way cooler than another black rectangle on my wrist.
The whole vibe is basically: reclaim your attention by staring at a machine that only does one job.
Would I recommend buying a loud ticking clock?
Bottom line: sometimes the antidote to too much tech is the oldest tech there is.
Final Thoughts
Ticking away, unbothered, just waiting for you to look up.