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Extracurricular activities...
Jan. 14th, 2015 11:04 pmIn a concerted effort to get out of the rut that one is prone to falling into after a while, I made sure I attended this evening's convocation of the Lone Star Pen Club, held at a BBQ place over in Bellaire. The club attracts aficionados of writing instruments, and in particular, of fountain pens (both of the vintage and new variety).
The food was nothing much to write about (so I won't), but the company was most excellent. Everyone got an opportunity to introduce themselves and say a few words.
When my turn came, fairly early in the "rotation" around the table, I managed to recall that my affinity for fountain pens reaches as far back as 7th grade, where I was assiduously taking notes in science class with my cartridge-fed Sheaffer when we were informed that President Kennedy had been assassinated in Dallas.
Had I had a few additional moments to gather my thoughts, I might have made such moments a theme of my self-introduction.
I distincly remember the "cool" way and more important, the confident manner in which my Russian lit professor (who later went on to become a successful lawyer) used his Mont Blanc to scrawl additional remarks in my paper on Nabokov during our post-return-the-papers-to-the-students chat.
That Mont Blanc was the inspiration for the pen I received as a gift on the occasion of the publication of my first book.
I brought along that foutain pen to the closing on the house I currently inhabit, because I wanted to sign the seeming myriad of paperwork with a real pen. I did not realize that this would incur the wrath of the functionary at the title office whose job it was to expedite signatures. A real fountain pen required time for the signatures to dry, I was informed; would I please be a good fellow and use a ballpoint? I caved, except for the "main" document, which I insisted be signed with my Mont Blanc.
It was an interesting get-together, and although I'm not entirely sure the question of "What's the difference between an 'accumulator' and a 'collector'?" was adequately resolved, the discussion did provide adequate food for thought.
Time to hit the sack. I made some progress today, but not much.
Cheers...
The food was nothing much to write about (so I won't), but the company was most excellent. Everyone got an opportunity to introduce themselves and say a few words.
When my turn came, fairly early in the "rotation" around the table, I managed to recall that my affinity for fountain pens reaches as far back as 7th grade, where I was assiduously taking notes in science class with my cartridge-fed Sheaffer when we were informed that President Kennedy had been assassinated in Dallas.
Had I had a few additional moments to gather my thoughts, I might have made such moments a theme of my self-introduction.
I distincly remember the "cool" way and more important, the confident manner in which my Russian lit professor (who later went on to become a successful lawyer) used his Mont Blanc to scrawl additional remarks in my paper on Nabokov during our post-return-the-papers-to-the-students chat.
That Mont Blanc was the inspiration for the pen I received as a gift on the occasion of the publication of my first book.
I brought along that foutain pen to the closing on the house I currently inhabit, because I wanted to sign the seeming myriad of paperwork with a real pen. I did not realize that this would incur the wrath of the functionary at the title office whose job it was to expedite signatures. A real fountain pen required time for the signatures to dry, I was informed; would I please be a good fellow and use a ballpoint? I caved, except for the "main" document, which I insisted be signed with my Mont Blanc.
It was an interesting get-together, and although I'm not entirely sure the question of "What's the difference between an 'accumulator' and a 'collector'?" was adequately resolved, the discussion did provide adequate food for thought.
Time to hit the sack. I made some progress today, but not much.
Cheers...
