Recorded, Analog Style, part 2

Oh dear, how many times have I brought up my pen and notebook over the years? At least once a year, if not more. Truth be told, it's a big part of my day and a big part of my life, this composition notebook and my fountain pen.

Yes, the merits are many, the pulp and ink. I suppose the merits are really this: the pen and notebook are readily and cheaply available and they do not need electricity to operate which means that will not run out of batteries.

For me, I get this feeling to write longhand and especially in cursive, the mind will stay intact longer. I feel like writing cursive is like eating organic vegetables, better for you now and in the long run.

A few days ago, while I was thinking about pens and paper, I decided to look on the web for others who might be in the composition notebook club, or cult. There are. I also looked up fountain pens.

What I found was a whole bunch of people who review pens, ink and notebooks. There was even someone who reviewed several brands of composition notebooks. Fascinating and well, maybe a little boring.

I will not review one notebook over the other, same with pens and ink. Although I'm currently using Parker's blue Quink which I am very pleased with.

Ultimately, it isn't the notebook or the pen. No rather, it's what you do with it. Each time you load your pen with ink, you have 20-30 pages to write and that's pure possibility. Each time you open a new notebook, that's also pure possibility, 200 pages of it. How great is that? At the onset of a new notebook you have no idea where you'll go.

And when the notebook is filled, it's the beginning of creation. It's 200 pages of creation. It's 200 pages of accomplishment. It is a tangible, tactile and real piece of writing. Beautiful.

What might be more impressive, or at the least somewhat more interesting on the web is someone who reviews a filled notebook. The descriptions of what was written, where and how, and a contrast of process versus product.

It doesn't really matter what you have. I've always believed that. It's what you do with it. You do not need a new computer or a fancy office to write. All you really need is a pen and a piece of paper.