Swallowed by a whale

2026 has been a tumultuous year so far. I haven’t posted since March, and things were already very hard then. On the backdrop of the world’s ongoing horrors, we had to deal with our son’s surgery in April. He had complications. During that time we were also dealing with a remodel in our house that turned out much more invasive and extensive than planned. What should have only taken a couple of weeks took almost four months to complete. The work is basically completed, and my son is doing well. And I can use my office again. But now we are in the process of moving to a different place in town. It’s been a whirlwind time. Quite literally - there has been a tornado touchdown in town, and a few other severe weather events.

This week is a bit of a lull. I don’t think I’ve had a quiet day since the winter — but here I am in my old office, looking out at my old pin oak. It is time for something new, but I miss this already. I’ve written so much in this room. But now I can breathe a bit, and hopefully ease back into blogging before the big move and more changes.

Finished ch.3 of my current academic manuscript. The Visconti Homo Sapiens Bronze Age with the cursive italic grind is a great all-purpose pen for notes, scribbles, and journaling.

I carried my fountain pens with me between Airbnbs, hospitals, packings, unpackings, viewings, signings, and tornado warnings. We drove to Michigan for a conference recently and back again, and we stayed in a haunted house; I carried the pens everywhere. But I wrote very little by hand.

Wait, you might say, you stayed in a haunted house?

An enormous, gorgeous Victorian with three porches, a sagging entryway floor, and dark back staircases. It was a random Airbnb in a Chicago suburb; we were en route to Michigan and had to stop for the night. Carved wood, a huge ancient mirror reflecting other times with a darkness I did not want to peer into; a memory of fear and anguish. It’s mostly used as a wedding party reception house those days, I think.

I wrote very little by hand, but that morning I walked in the rain to a charming coffeeshop with friendly people, and wrote a little. I thought I took a picture; I did not. I’m trying to detox from social media those days, and taking photos is not always a priority.

Took a pressed flower workshop at some point. It was cool. I still have the flowers I pressed somewhere among my packed belongings. I want to revisit this in the new place.

I’ve seen many rivers this summer, and I’m glad for that. It made me think about rivers, and how strange they are; I’m more of an ocean person, but live in a landlocked state. I took a bottle of Taccia Ainezu with me and for some reason took it on a river stroll in Michigan, but I did not fill or even dip a pen. I’ve made a playlist with shanties for the endless driving I’ve done, and that has been nice. The titular “Swallowed by a Whale” is a song by Enter the Haggis. In the process of writing this post I discovered that the song was based on a true event that occurred in 2021 (heads up: everyone lives to tell the tale, including the whale).

My lifesaving Visconti Homo Sapiens Bronze Age with a cursive smooth italic nib has been almost the only pen I inked through this time, and I used it for pretty much everything. I’ve written about this pen before. I got it in 2021, and it took me four years and a cursive italic nib grind to get to a point of bonding and constant use. It makes me wonder about my other pens in the Gathering, and other pens I had and released.

Journaling from an Airbnb back in May, with my Visconti and the new Montblanc Starwalker.

At some point, I think in April or May in the height of remodeling and medical chaos, I acquired a rose gold MB Starwalker from Terri at Peyton Street Pens for a good price. I’ve written that one dry twice so far; it’s a nice pen for notes. I have been saving up for a more expensive Montblanc, but I tend not to bond with Montblancs long term. The Starwalker is actually a satisfying addition, and my only Montblanc; I like that it’s an “entry level” pen and I don’t think I need another Montblanc right now. The rest of the Gathering has been waiting for brighter days, and I hope they will come. Because we are preparing for a move, I had to pack and safely put away the Menagerie, and pack away most of the books. It feels lonely without them.

Montblanc Starwalker Rose Gold floating star finial. Looks lovely. Writes well.

I don’t know whether this update is going to be of interest to anyone, and I have no idea whether or not my musings are of any interest to the stationery community at this moment. My thoughts are convoluted, and my pens and inks have mostly served talismanic purposes. But at least my writing is not AI. It’s not regurgitated, it does not give you a listicle, it does not include the word “quietly,” and it has nothing to sell, or even to recommend. It simply is, and sometimes that’s all we can do. We can simply be.

Until next time.