Editing The Pen Addict 190/transcript (section)

== Pen Use ==


'''Myke Hurley:''' All right. Now, me and you talk every week, right? Talk about pens. Talk about paper. I'm starting to feel like a bit of a fraud.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I'm not using my stuff.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Mm-hmm.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Right? I have notebooks and field notes just piling up in closets. I'm using basically one notebook and one mechanical pencil a couple of times a day to take show notes. But it's not even really worthy of that. You know, like, it's not really enough. I'm coloring on my iPad. I'm not coloring in my coloring books.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I feel like I need to be using my stuff more. I have all these incredible pens that I love so much. But the thing is, the pens aren't good for what I'm doing with show notes taken because you hear this.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Mm-hmm. You hear this. Right. Right. And the point of it is, like, I take the notes so I'm editing stuff out. Right? Yeah. I don't want to have to then be editing this out constantly. Right? Because that's what I was doing when I was using the fountain pens. Yeah. I'd hear, like, the pen caps coming on and off all the time.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. So, in this show, you don't have to edit that out. But in other ones, yeah.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. Because the whole point is, like, I'm trying to make the show sound better by taking these notes. And then you end up making them sound worse by taking the notes. Right. And I've got all this stuff just building up. And I want to use it. But, like, I haven't got a use for it. Like, so I have to maybe create some uses. But I don't know what they are that, like, stick. I want to fix it, man. Like, I feel like I'm becoming a collector, an admirer more than a user. Mm-hmm. And I don't want that to be the case anymore.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' So, I've started to find that with notebooks. And I don't have a good answer for you yet. But I'm working on it.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' You know, I've started to get too many notebooks. Too much paper.

'''Myke Hurley:''' My field notes, like, the space that I have for it in my cupboard is getting obscene. One thing that I'm going to stop doing is buying extras. I have, like, a gajillion snow blind.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Well, that was an accident, sort of, right? Yeah.

'''Myke Hurley:''' But, I mean, I didn't even need all the ones that I did buy. So, I'm actually planning on bringing a bunch to Atlanta. Good. Giveaway. I'm going to be, yeah, I'm going to be, like, bringing some stuff to just get rid of, I think.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. So, I've slowed way down on field notes purchasing probably in the past year. Just getting the colors. I used to always buy extras. I've not bought extras the last couple editions. Just because I'm not using them fast enough to make it worthwhile. I don't need them sitting there. I would rather use them and not have, like, a collection of them, even though I do. I definitely haven't been buying, like, all the show editions, promotional editions, all those things like that. I actually had a rant on the field nuts group. Not a rant. It actually was not. It was actually far from a rant. It was just a statement of a, I don't know if it was an opinion. Or I have some nice long emails about opinions and preferences, which are really, really good. We'll share that another day. But I don't need to. I'm certainly not chasing notebooks. That's just stupid to me these days. Like, I like the cool notebooks and that if I can purchase them easily, okay, I'll purchase them. But, like, hunting down, like, just random editions that are so frequently released. Like, I'm done with that game. Like, that makes me not want to use them. So, finding, like, a core set of things I use every day. Okay. So, Jenny at Three Staples just did a post that I was actually going to talk about soon to where she's figured out the things, like, the setup that works for her every day. Right? So, she has, like, a calendar, a planner, like, a journal, a planner, and a notebook. And then the pens that go with it. And these things are used for specific things. And that's kind of what I've been working on as I've started to work for myself. You know, I've definitely been using my pens a lot. So, I don't have any issues with pens like you're having. Paper, I have not been. Like, I'm, like, overwhelmed with paper right now. And although I said the one thing that I want to buy is another notebook. Right? That's, like, the last thing I need.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' So, with these pens, I'm determining, or my keepers are, like, the best pens. Those are getting the most use. Those are getting separated from the rest of the crowd. And I'm enjoying. I'm getting the enjoyment out of those particular pens. And I'm okay with these other 30 pens that are sitting on my desk or whatever. Not using them. You know, maybe I'll sell them. I always talk about selling them. And we'll have to do, like, a bigger topic on this. Like, thinning the herd. We've talked about this on and off over the years. So, I've made myself use the pens. I don't have an answer for, like, your notebook issue. Right? Because you said this when you quit your job, you know, well over a year ago, that you were concerned that you're actually going to be using your analog tools less. Right? Because...

'''Myke Hurley:''' That has happened.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' At work, you had specific uses for specific things at specific times. You knew those things were going to get used. And starting working for yourself and building Relay FM. You knew that that's kind of going to ramp down a little bit in how would you handle it. But, um, I just think, you know, it's a lot of the things that we've talked about over the years. Like, I now carry, like, starting probably in the beginning of this month, I started carrying, um, a notebook with me all the time. Not that I didn't before, but if I forgot it, I was like, ah, no big deal. Now, I don't leave the house without it. Even if I don't use it or don't have any intention to use it, I always have something there with me at all times. Even if it's just like a scratch pad, just a doodle or whatever. And then I have things separate that I keep, like, work-related stuff in. Like, my Hobonichi Tekko has a lot of, you know, works, dates, planning, that kind of thing. So, I kind of have those two things going in conjunction to where I have just kind of some inboxy type notebooks. And then I have some defined use notebooks. Right? And I don't know what those uses are for you besides editing. But, you know, when you're going to, if you're going to a co-working space or something, you know.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah, I take, I always have them with me, right? Right. I have them in my bag. I have them on my desk here. But the thing is, like, a lot of the stuff that I would want to write down or, like, say, for example, my to-do list or my calendar and stuff, people that, things that people keep in their notebooks. I get anxiety that I'm going to lose them. Like, I was thinking about this the other day. I was sitting in a waiting room for Adina. And she was going for, like, a cosmetic thing. And she came out and she was booking her next appointment. And she booked it and she put it in her phone. And I was thinking to myself, previously, like, you know, before these devices, people would put these things into a paper planner, right? Like, into a diary or a journal. And I was thinking, what happened when you lose that? Did you just never go to the appointments? Right? That's true. Like, that was actually, obviously, that must have been what happened, right? Like, people would lose their diaries and then they wouldn't know what their appointment is in a month because they haven't got it. Like, I never had that problem because it's all synced. You know? And it's on these digital devices. And that's what I worry about with a lot of this stuff. Because where I sit, well, we all do. But, like, maybe me especially sit right in the middle of all of this. Right. A lot of that stuff I want to put in a digital tool because it means that I can't ever lose it. Right. So I'm still trying to work out what that thing is for me. Maybe it is, like, forcing myself to get into a habit of taking some notes or something every day. I don't know what it is, but I know that I have to have more of this going on in my life because I kind of miss it.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Do you have – Brandon in the chat room had a good point. Do you ever take, like, a digital break? Do you ever go to the coffee shop with just a pen and paper?

'''Myke Hurley:''' No, never. Yeah. Because all of my work requires it. You know? Like, if I'm leaving to go with a pen and paper somewhere, I'm doing something else. Mm-hmm. And that's fine, but, you know, for work stuff, like, I need to be doing things online. I need to be connected and all that sort of stuff. You know? I don't really know – this is the thing. I don't know what it would be. And then maybe that's the thing. Like, and I'm sure we're going to get lots of feedback, and I really welcome it. Like, I want people to give me ideas of what I should be doing. Like, whether it's stuff that seems simple, whether it's stuff where it's, like, Myke, can you just slap yourself in the face and write a journal every day? Like, just deal with it. And maybe that is what it is. But I feel like I need something, and the only thing I can think of right now is to turn to our incredible audience and ask for the suggestions.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' And I think the purchasing of less stuff is a good start. I mean – Yeah, I'm going to.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Well, I just bought three mechanical pencils today, but –

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah, we don't actually practice what we preach all the time.

'''Myke Hurley:''' No, but that's part of the collection aspect. And I'm fine with that, like, right? Because a lot of the stuff that I have – I am a collector, and I'm good with the collecting, right? But what I'm collecting is stuff that can be used, so I should be using more of it.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, you know, me, like, kind of backing down on field notes, you know, just all the extra stuff, not the color stuff. I like that. But not buying extra colors editions, just having what comes in my subscription and actually using that. I get more enjoyment out of having used notebooks than seeing notebooks in packaging, right? So stopping, you know, piling up the packaging and actually, you know, lowering that tower of notebooks is very cool. You know, that gives you a feeling of satisfaction. Then the next time you buy something, it gives you more enjoyment knowing that you're going to rip it open and start using it right away. But I know we all just have massive hordes of this stuff. So, you know, it's a challenge. I mean, for sure. You know, you don't want to, you know, spend money blindly and not be using the things that you're purchasing. So it's certainly a challenge. And it's been a challenge for me so far this year. But I'm feeling like I'm coming around as pens. I feel pretty good about paper. I'm definitely having a challenge with.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. But you are just a general user of this stuff in those ways more than me. As in, like, you do have a paper planner and stuff like that, which I don't have. And for me, like, I don't care that my field notes are piling up. That doesn't bother me because they are my collection. You know, that's what I like. My problem is I'm just not using my stuff. Yeah. You know, if I use one field notes for every five I bring in, I'm totally cool with that. And eventually I'll just give more and more of it away to people. Like, every now and then I give Adina a stack of them. Right. And she goes and uses them. Right. And that's totally fine with me. And I'm probably, you know, I'm thinking about now, like, what can I bring to Atlanta to just give away to people? I'm going to start doing more of that. Absolutely. But I look at this, like, this Sailor Pro gear and my Edison over there, like, my two favorite pens in the whole world. And they never get used. You know, like, the ink is just sitting in them. Yeah. Sorry, Thomas. He'll get real mad at me for that. Yeah. And they just don't get used. Like, this thing. Like, I'm just grabbing this. Well, there it goes flying across the table. So, I've broken it now. So, I don't need to use it anymore. You know, I could just, let me undo this thing here. Like, how beautiful that is. Mm-hmm. That beautiful orange ink that I have in it.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Mm-hmm.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I've got this Franklin Kristoff over here with this stormy gray thing in it. Well, that needs to be cleaned. Yeah.

'''Myke Hurley:''' That's not writing at all, is it? Yeah.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Not with that glitter.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Not with that glitter. I think it's all clogged up in here.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. You get my point, right? Yeah. Yeah. It's a challenge. I mean, that's for sure. You know, I just think it's okay to, like, cull the herd. If you need to, like, start, you know, selling things or find, like, the perfect things for you. There's always going to be more, you know, down the line. So, I never hesitate. You know, if you want to get rid of something, get rid of it. I would not hesitate. And, you know, the time you have away from these things kind of refreshes you. So, when you do buy something, you know, six months or a year down the line, that it becomes more special. And you end up, you know, enjoying it more. And you get more pleasure out of it.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. No, definitely. Definitely. Again, like, it's not even so much of giving away because, oh, I'm not using them. I just want to use them more. This Franken-Kristoff is screwed, by the way.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' You're just going to have to soak it. Yeah. Remember that time a long time ago I'd never get, like, said I'd never get an ultrasonic cleaner? I keep thinking about that these days. Do I need one of those? Maybe I should have one of those.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. This thing is going to need some serious work for it.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' That's going to need some more.

'''Myke Hurley:''' It starts working again.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Yeah. That's the danger zone, leaving that stormy gray in any pen.

'''Myke Hurley:''' Yeah. This is the Emerald of Shivor I've got in there.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' Oh, okay, okay. Yeah, that'll do it. Yeah.

'''Myke Hurley:''' So it's not as bad as the stormy gray, but this thing is, the ink is slushing around in here. Yeah. But there is absolutely zero coming out of it. Yeah. There you go, Franklin. You are a little project for sometime in the future.

'''Brad Dowdy:''' That's right. Well, we'll get you fixed up, Myke. We'll get you on the right path.

'''Myke Hurley:''' I've already started taking some notes from people in the chat room. So, like, I'm going to build some suggestions and stuff like that, and we can come back to this. Yeah. Hopefully next, or maybe week after next.