My story of buying a watch cheaply at the Hawaii Navy PX (Why I settled for a Seiko after almost asking my wife for a Citizen)

‌Hello.
My previous post about hotel keys was selected as a "Bullpen Featured Post." There were many good comments and many uncomfortable ones, but I consider all of them as interest. There are many reasons to write on this community, but if I don't receive interest from fellow Bullpen members, there is no reason to write. Thank you, everyone.
Today is a post about watches. This isn't a post to brag about expensive luxury watches, but to brag about how cheaply I bought one, so if you find it uncomfortable, feel free to leave a comment, but please show some interest. (I used ChatGPT's help to wrap up the writing after finishing the main content.)
I am currently residing in Hawaii. To exaggerate a little, it feels like Oahu is half civilians and half military, as there are many soldiers, their families, and government employees working at the bases living here. In addition to the Air Force and Navy bases in Pearl Harbor, which many people know because of movies or historical fame, there are military bases of various sizes all over the place.

Recently, I have been frequenting the NEX, the Navy Exchange in Pearl Harbor. It hasn't been long since I realized that, unlike the Air Force or Army exchanges, the NEX is large and carries a wide variety of watches. It's great for shopping because they carry not only Seiko and Citizen but also Hamilton, Tissot, and Longines at low prices. And. There. Is. No. Sales. Tax. (Civilians are not allowed to shop there).
And. They were also having a 20% sale on all watches except for Longines and Hamilton this time.

And lol, they even gave out these scratch-off papers you see in the photo for the U.S. Navy's birthday. I'm not supposed to scratch it; instead, the clerk scratches one of the three spots chosen by the customer, and they give an additional discount on top of the 20% based on the number that comes out (When I first received it, I scratched them all myself, but I was told it was invalid, so I went back, told the truth, and got a new one lol. They were all 5% lol).
Since my wife is in Korea and my mother is in Seattle, I have been clamoring for a GMT watch under the excuse(?) that I need to check multiple time zones. The list of watches I showed my wife was:
(First is the regular price / Second is the price at NEX)
Longines Spirit Zulu Time GMT 39mm: $3,500 + tax / $3,000 - x% scratch discount
Citizen Series 8 GMT: $1,500 + tax / $1,100 - 20% - x% scratch discount
Seiko 5 GMT: $500 + tax / $390 - 20% - x% scratch discount
I also showed her the Tudor Black Bay 54 and the Galápagos, but those are too much for my current capacity.


I ended up purchasing the Seiko, which best fits my current situation. As expected, the scratch game resulted in a 5% discount. The final price after all discounts was $301, and I purchased it for a total of $314, including a $12.99 one-year warranty. When I asked GPT, it said I bought it at a great price. My wife bought it for me in advance as an early birthday present for next month.

Actually...
It was a timing where I could have potentially bought the Citizen if I had pushed a little more and added more of my own money.
However, while driving yesterday, I was looking at my phone and got a $344 ticket from a police officer, so I couldn't even bring up the word "Citizen." Please, if you are in Hawaii, never look at your phone while driving. It hurts a lot. (I know some comments might say, "I've gotten tickets in Hawaii too and it wasn't that bad, don't lie," so if such comments appear, I will post a photo of the evidence in another post.)

I also bought a 1-year warranty for $12.99. Since it covers everything from watch glass scratches to the strap for about $1 a month, I couldn't pass it up.

Between the ticket I got yesterday and my lingering attachment to better watches, I'm not jumping for joy just because I bought a new watch, but I am very satisfied that I got it at a good price. The GMT function isn't even that amazing. It's also quite heavy. Since my wife bought it for me, I will wear it with much love.
If any Bullpen members have good watches, please share them along with good posts.
Thank you for reading.