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Wednesday, January 26, 2011

The Collection of Pens

I talk about having a collection of pens in my About Me page. This is the foundation of The Pen Bin - essentially, all of the pens were put into the same place for easy accessibility. Currently, it's trying to bubble over and ooze into a newer and bigger bin, but I'm holding it back with a desperate hand. Don't get me wrong, I don't have a room devoted to a pen collection, nor do my pens cost more than the house that I live in.

As the title says, these are working class pens. They were gotten out of necessity, or they were gotten because of a sudden urge to have a pen in my pocket. They're not the high class and uppity pens that are talked about in Pen Geek or some of the fountain pens that are featured in Pen Addict. While it's true that there's a Namiki somewhere in my future, I'm more likely to get a Sherpa to guide my working class pens through the fog, cold, and damp without needing a security guard.

I've always been of the philosophy that any collection to which I devote my time should be practical. What's more practical than being able to write with it? I can disseminate thoughts and ideas anywhere I desire. With the right type of pen or marker, I can put my mark anywhere on the planet!

And, truthfully, I never understood the draw of things like Faberge eggs and knick knacks. They're pretty, they're nice and kitschy, but you can't eat them. You can't do anything more than look at them and use them as paperweights. Those Hummel clowns are entertaining, but exactly how much joy can you get out of something which takes up space on the mantle? I often wonder whose idea that was, to make something that's completely useless.

The fountain pens border on that for me. I can't write for anything using a fountain pen. Yes, I know it's about precision and knowing where to move my hand. I know that I need to keep my fingers straight, and write in a certain way to even get the ink to flow. Luxury pens are a curiosity to me, but I'd never use them for making a grocery list - in fact, I'd probably never use them on a regular basis because I couldn't find an application that was 'worthy' of the hundred or thousand dollar pen.

You will find a ton of cheap promotional pens in my collection. You will find your share of Pilot Precise v5s. You will find great additions from the Foray line, Pilot G2s, metallic colored pens, sparkly pens, Micron Pigmas, Rapidographs, and the like. I even own a Pilot Varsity because I felt a little masochistic. That kind of collection - usable and loved - is the one that I want.

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