Editing The Pen Addict 94/transcript (section)

== Pen Podcast ==


'''Brad Dowdy:''' Is this a pen podcast? Should we get on track?

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah, let's do that.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' All right. I got a good email from last week from Tim Drowdy. He made sure to pronounce his last name, because it's very similar to mine, although spelled completely differently. In an email he sent me, he sent me a good email on a couple of topics that we talked about. First is the Everyday Carry show. So let me read a little bit of what he says. And I thought he made some good points. So he says, over the past couple of shows, there have been a few discussions that have spurred me to write this email. Firstly, on the EDC show, I know you touched on the fact that pen addicts and EDC folks have different opinions on what EDC means, what happens when you're in both camps. And I think that's something that I can relate to, and I think probably a lot of listeners can relate to. So he says, as an EDC nut, I want a pen that I can trust will write in almost any condition. As a pen addict, I want it to be a good writing experience. That's my reason for carrying a Jetstream-filled F701. That's the zebra pen we talk about a lot. This will get me through the tight spots in the grocery line or the garage. Sorry, Fisher, no space pens for this addict. He says, but that isn't the whole story. I don't think you will ever discover a pen addict by only what is in his or her pocket. You need a bag dump, too. You need to understand what is being carried in the pen cases, what notebook or planner is being used, and even what apps are on the guilty party's phone, tablet, or PC, and why those specific choices were made. That is where you will find the true nuances of the pen lover. Would you rather leave the house with your Leuchtturm or your iPad? Which do you take to a meeting? Which do you think about more? How much ink is in your Twisby or how much battery is left in your iPhone? Pen addicts know the right answer. As a tech nerd, too, the answer is all of the above. I know. I have issues. So I thought that was a good point, and that's something I think about, too. It's not just for the EDC side of the ledger, for the pure EDC side of the ledger. It is just about, you know, the pen, I think. You know, is it durable? Is it going to write in any situation? You know, is it, you know, small and portable? Things like that. But I think on the pen addict side of the ledger, where you're worrying more about the writing experience, I think the other parts come into play. Like, well, what are you writing on? You know, what are you carrying your pen and paper in? And it's kind of this whole, I don't know, this whole area that I think about a lot. And, you know, I like carrying, you know, my bag. Like, I have my dome paper mountain briefcase, Topo mountain briefcase that I love. And, you know, my Notco Brasstown pen case goes in that. And there's a Rhodia dot pad in there. And my Hobonichi planner's in there. And there's a field notes in there. And this is all the junk that I carry that's, like, totally overkill. But you know what? If I left the house without that stuff, I'd feel naked. Do you ever get that feeling? Like, if you don't carry certain things? It doesn't have to be a lot of things. But, like, even just, like, a pen and a piece of paper. If you go out, say you're just going out to the store and you don't have those things, do you ever feel like, I don't know, you left your wallet at home? You know, I get that feeling if I don't have certain things with me to write with.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I don't carry a notebook in my pocket anymore. So I don't really have that feeling so much. I don't like really not ever having my bag with me. And when I have my bag with me, I have all the stuff that I need. You know, I have a couple of pens and I have a couple of field notes and my iPad. Because they go in my Rotofod and Tashingberg glider. Right? They go in there. So I'm pretty comfortable with that.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Right. And I think that's the point. You know, I think that's the point that Tim's getting at is, like, for us pen addicts, it's not just about the pen. It's about the whole shooting match, right? I mean, if we care that much about the pens that we carry, we're not just carrying any old junky paper to write on. You know, we've thought about the paper that we're going to write on. And then we've thought about maybe the pen case that we're going to put our pens in. And then maybe about the bag that we're going to carry all this stuff in that we've been suckered into buying. You know, by this dang show, you bunch of enablers.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' So Tim's second part of the email, which is what I really wanted to get into. And I thought he made a good point. It was about when we talked about how to carry pens in the cold weather.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah, we got quite a bit of feedback about this and the airplane, actually. Maybe we should talk about planes after this.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah, yeah. So we got some feedback on that. The question was, the Twitter question was, and I forget who asked this last week, but was, how do you carry your pens and inks in cold weather? And both of us said don't. So we got some flack for that. So let me read what Tim said. He said, secondly, I wanted to call you out on last week's comment about cold weather carries. I live in Canada. If the only answer to the question about how to manage pens and inks in cold weather is don't, then I may as well start looking for the Pencil Addicts podcast, because I would only have the use of my pens for about eight months a year. He says, believe me, I know cold. I also carry fountain pens. Last week, I received a new bottle of J'herbon Pearl Noir via mail. It was negative 25 degrees Fahrenheit. No problems. Carry your pens in your inside coat pocket. Request inks be held for pickup. Vendors that know how to deal with cold weather will take a little out of the bottle and still include it in a separate vial so that there is room for expansion. Yes, U.S. vendors too. I feel that the issue of how to handle pens in cold weather is no more stressful than whether you should use a converter instead of a cartridge. Neither things are a problem if you're smart about it. You wouldn't leave a can of soda in your car overnight when it's freezing. Why would ink be any different? That's the common sense aspect of it that we've talked about. It says, I don't want to leave the impression that living in the Canadian prairies is akin to living at the North Pole. I know what negative 40 feels like in the winter, and I know what 100 degrees feels like in the summer. I enjoy my pens in both. We have heaters and air conditioners. He said, sorry for rambling. Thanks for keeping the podcast awesome. Keep it up. So, yeah, I mean, he's got a point there. You know, and I definitely, you know, that's probably a lack of experience on my part and maybe your part too, to where we really haven't had to deal with like super extremes. Yes, it gets cold here, but not like wicked cold like he's getting in Canada and things like that. So common sense plays a lot into it. And, you know, Tim does go through a few extra steps to ensure that all his pens and inks are taken care of. And I definitely appreciate that feedback to get some perspective from someone who actually has to deal with it instead of me who is wearing flip-flops as we do this podcast.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Should we talk about planes very quickly in the same sort of idea? Yeah.

'''Myke Hurley:''' So we kind of mentioned never take your pens on a plane and a few people got in touch and they're like, I'm fine, you know. Basically, at different pressures, fountain pens can react peculiarly. Your mileage may vary on that one. I think is maybe the best way of sort of putting that. Sure. You know. Yeah. I would advise. There's definitely some variance. Yeah, I would advise don't because the one time that it happens is so much more of an effect than the thousand times it doesn't happen to you.

'''Myke Hurley:''' But, yeah.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah, I think the key, the few tips that we got were to definitely keep them in an upright position at all times.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' And I've always heard to keep the, if you're using, you know, a converter or even I guess it would go for a cartridge too, is to ensure that the ink is full. So there's not, I don't know, so there's not a lot of room for it to expand into other areas. But I don't know. I don't have enough. I'm not a frequent flyer enough to be willing to test out all these theories. But people, most people seem to not have too, too much of a problem with it and flying with, I think the one email we got, the person was flying with like five or six fountain pens loaded up at once and say no problems at all. So that's good.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I just, you know.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' But, yeah, what you said is exactly right. It's, for me, it's the one time that it explodes and makes a mess is not worth, you know, the ten other times where I can control it by not doing that. Yep. So. All right. We got some new products releasing. And in our show notes, I was a little, I guess, explicit in my description of what I felt about this. But for those playing at home, we're going to go with bleeping Twisby and their bleeping prototype pictures. I didn't write bleeping in the.

'''Myke Hurley:''' No, you didn't.