This is a new Sunday series that I’m calling Stuff that Works. Each Sunday I’ll pick an item that is for me a foundation element in my line up of stuff that matters or as legendary Texas singer songwriter Guy Clark put it – “The kind of stuff you reach for when you fall.”

I have a bit of a thing with watches. Not an Imelda Marcos kind of thing, but when I travel I take three watches with me just so I can pick one that fits the day.

I don’t really collect watches and wouldn’t even consider buying a watch that costs more than say, a Mini Cooper, but I like to find vintage watches. One of my favorite sources in the vintage category is military watches.

The military has a long history of watch specification that runs from the standard GI issue basics all the way up to very limited edition prizes awarded to high ranking officers on the occasion of some victory.

The watch in this photo is a Bulova 3818A that was made in 1960 and probably did duty strapped to a U.S. Army infantryman during the Vietnam War. (At least that’s the story it tells.)

I bought this one as a present for my wife recently and there’s just something very rich feeling about the way these old watches look, feel and work.