Pens
My Favourite Writing Instruments
Pen Philosophy 101Along with the wheel, I consider the pen to be one of humankind's most important tools. Realizer of dreams, an extension of mind and body. I am one of those guys that feels naked without one of these 11th fingers in my hand or pocket. So I dedicate this page to the 4 pens that most influenced my life.
I was given this pen as a present on my 21st birthday. Well not actually this pen, the original had developed a mechanical fault and after several repair jobs, LAMY decided to give me a new pen. This instrument combines a ball point pen with a 0.5 mm clutch pencil. I always keep my pencils filled with 2B leads as they are easier to read and do not distort the paper as much as harder leads. This pen served me well during university, but I was always afraid of losing it. I don't care to think about how many hundreds of dollars worth of pens that I have lost over the years. There seems to be a Bermuda triangle for pens that exists as a region of space 10 cm (4 inchs) thick and 1 metre (about a yard) in radius centred around my feet. These days I usually leave it at home unless I need to dress up ( Yeah, yeah I know, pathetic Jim, get a life Jim, yadah yadah yadah Jim).
A very special pen based on a 0.3 mm disposable technical drawing nib with a gel ink. It produces beautifully clear and consistent lines. This is for the serious technologist who has no tolerance for dumbing down. Fine, easy flowing lines allow for detailed diagramming and note taking. You don't have to leave anything out due to lack of space. The fine nib will allow you to write in the smallest of available spaces. Six colours come in the basic set, unfortunately I have only ever been able to get them from Japan or Hong Kong but not in Australia. Fortunately they last a long time due to the fineness of the nib.
Another pen bought in Japan. These guys really take their pens seriously. This pen is my current workhorse, a fraction of the price of the Lamy so I don't worry too much about losing it, but sporting not 2 but 3 writing instruments in one compact housing. A blue pen, a red pen and a pencil. This is about the closest thing I have found to the ideal pen. Techos do not need to be told why you need at least a balck or blue pen and a pencil. The red pen is the standard weapon for proof reading and editing documents. The refills for the Lamy and the Mitsubishi are interchangeable. Rotring also have a range of multifunction pens that take Lamy refills. They now have a standard size pen that contains 4 instruments. The fourth is a highlighter.
OK so it's not a pen in the traditional sense, but I do do a lot of writing with it. And I mean real writing, none of this Graffiti or Jot stuff. This is the pen that comes with the Apple Newton MessagePad 2000 and 2100, beautiful isn't it. The stylish stylus is one of the many things that convinced me to buy my Newton. A piece of understated elegance that makes the pens for other palmtop computers look like MacDonald's coffee stirers. You get the sense that the designers actually expected you to use it all day long.
Email me at jimmyh@au1.ibm.com
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