10 things I’m grateful for, the fountain pen edition
This is a simple gratitude post, featuring ten fountain pen things I’m grateful for.
Pen frustration, pen magic
Our fountain pens and other stationery items are not just tools. They are artifacts, talismans against an overwhelming and cruel world. Pens can represent self-care and purpose, pens can bring delight and wonder. Pens are magic. That magic can come as a freebie gift, or in shape of a cheap, incredible, damaged antique-store pen.
The Soft Long Story
I care about story and intricacy, and the pleasure of using an older technology. Writing itself is a very old technology, but it, too, is new in the grand scheme of things.
Stationery Storytelling
What especially frustrated me about #montblancgate is that the ink did not have the same story. … What IS the ink about? Can the same ink mean something else three different times? I don’t think so.
On minimalism
I don’t see minimalism as a virtue. Maximalism is also not a virtue. I think our stationery choices are value neutral in the grand scheme of things. But our stationery habit can tell stories about us - about our identity, history, aspirations, character traits, joys and worries, and even neurotype.
Collecting as a contemplative practice
There is that feeling of joy that moves us beyond acquisition, towards coexisting with rare and curious objects. It is a contemplative practice that encourages us to slow down, to look deeper, to pay attention.