These are the pencils that the purchasing elves stock the supply cabinet with. I think it's a cost-cutting scheme on the part of the college. Fewer broken leads means fewer pencils to buy, and less need for cleaning staff. The quality of my scholarship suffers, but all that means is that they don't have to give me tenure.
Bob, I used the same wonderful mechanical pencil for years, and tried several kinds of lead, until I found the one I liked best. In a fit of generosity, I bequeathed it to ex, so maybe you can ask her what kind it is.
My college buys those in bulk too. At first I was skeptical, but now I love them-- the lead is soft, which I like, and I enjoy the little springy action at the tip. Using the twisty motion for extending the lead frees up the eraser to work more efficiently, too.
Okay! I'll look for it. I do like Pentel's non-disposable pencil, though I keep losing mine. for some reason (maybe it's the yellow) I don't ever lose Sharpwriters.
Pentel used to make a really nice pencil, but now all I can find are those disgusting fat-barreled Quicker-Clicker things. I used to really like the Niji Grip series as well.
But FL, while that's good and all, it's not something to do with the Sharpwriter. It's just the miracle of the commons. If I can convince our purchasing people that we need to litter the halls with Pentel Sooperdoopers instead of with Papermate Mushytwisties, we could potentially begin a new era in pencilwriting at my college.
I heartily recommend the Papermate PhD mechanical pencil. It kind of looks like a fountain pen, is chunky and well balanced and with a nice grip so it's easy to hold even when writing for a long time, comes in staid colors (i.e. doesn't look like it was designed with the aesthetic sensibilities of 8-year-olds in mind), and is easy to use (it uses the classic click to extend or retract system and it's easy to refill the leads and replace the eraser).
But the best part about it is the eraser, which is very long, about three or so inches, and can be extended by twisting at the top of the barrel. It's the first mechanical pencil I've ever used where I go through lead more quickly than eraser. Much more quickly. (The Dixon Executive has a similar feature, but overall isn't as easy to write with and use.)
They are pretty pricey, though, six bucks plus, which is why I guard mine zealously. But I have two that I've been using happily for about four years now, and I use them pretty much every day.
And they do have models with the same features that will, if gradeschool aesthetics float your boat, cater to your pathetic tastes.
If you're not kidding Walter, that's one very funny comment.
and
We should have a thread that is nothing but commenters posting the time and date of their comment.
Obviously I'm missing something. It's only funny if I'm not kidding, so that must mean there's some good reason for it; but it's one that, unfortunately, my feeble mind is unable to conjure. Can someone let me in on the secret?
I can't even remember if I have a good reason, besides just not wanting timestamps, but it's funny because this comes up regularly, and it's become something of a running joke.
Ahh... I figured the "running joke" thing was a possibility, too. And I wasn't kidding, unfortunately for me, though apparently, it's fortunate for everyone else.
a) Considering which blog I'm at, I would say that no, I probably don't want a lollipop.
b) Just to be clear: I wasn't asking for timestamps, just curious as to why they weren't there. This is what I get for not reading through the comments regularly. That's something I shall have to remedy...
Walter, yeah, it's kind of a big in-joke fest here. I don't know if you've got caught in the middle of a Weiner-Wolfson one-upping typo-mongering battle, but I'd like to declare that I do it entirely for the running-joke value at this point.
Do I fucking sound like I'm kidding? I can't believe y'all are seriously considering one of those damn fat pencils. The Sharplet-2 is simple and precise. The "grippy thing" just lets you hold it with a minimum of pressure. But go ahead, by the faux-expensive-fountain-pen-pencil; maybe you can pretend you're the branch manager of the local fast-food chain.
The "grippy thing" just lets you hold it with a minimum of pressure.
And the PhAtness of the PhD (not to mention its nice triangular grip) lets you hold it with even less pressure. It makes writing so luxuriously cramp free.
Plus, I think you couldn't have the cool extra-long twist-up eraser thingy, which as I mentioned is the best thing since chopped bread, without the barrel being at least a little thicker than your average pencil: the mechanism for it is somewhat bulky.
So, the PhD has nice girth, and length. What's not to like, even if you're not, as rumored, a size queen?
And while the initial costs are a bit steep, if you amortize it out, it's not bad at all (assuming, of course, that you don't, like a moron, lose it). Come on, ogged, don't you think you're worth it? Spending a little on a nice pencil is less gay than all those grooming products you've started going on about.
Also, I still maintain that ogged's aversion to time stamps has to do with fear of his boss learning his secret identity and then figuring out that he never does any "real" work ever.
Not that I mind that feature. I have a boss too, you know.
The thing about the PhD is that it's butt ugly. Basically. I don't understand the mindset about fountain pens that holds that they should be big thick fat things, like your corpulent boss's sausage-fingers or his gently stretched cock. Especially when the barrels, as they frequently seem to be, are shiny and monochrome, in some hideous shade of blue or the like. Stuff that looks like plastic. People! Everyone knows that matte is infinitely more stylin' than shiny! Ask anyone—ask Junichiro Tanizaki, for example. (This would be a decent example of the kind of pen I find odious, though its bulging throb isn't nearly as offensive as some I've seen. The model name being "leman" is, of course, a horrible offense to Scandinavian feminists everywhere.)
My fountain pen is, of course, a model of elegant restraint and stylish sophistication.
God help me, I agree with everything Wolfson says. I almost made the PhD=dildo comment, but I'm trying to class things up a bit, as you've probably noticed.
My pencil has a matte metal finish. Not shiny or plastic at all. If they had one with a wooden barrel, though, I'd totally buy it.
And the girth, at least for me, isn't about bling or some sort of SUV/golf umbrella syndrome. It's about not having to grip as hard on the barrel, thus lessening cramping if you're writing for extended periods of time, as I often do. It really is much more comfortable. Why the fixation on pencils being thin?
The lamy is the glass dildo of mechanical penicls.
I have no idea if that's a good or a bad thing. Are glass dildos considered particularly classy or desirable? And if so, why? I mean, I can see how they'd clean up easy, but other than that . . .
Also, you mistyped "pencil". (I can't let bw have all the fun, you know)
But, but...PaperMate alone has 25 other mechanical pencils. Were you just gifted with a lifetime's supply of Sharpwriters, or what?
And what's a "liquid pencil?"
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 9:48 AM
the conical collar subtending the tip
I love you, Bob.
"Hate" isn't too strong a word for what I feel towards those pencils.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 9:50 AM
These are the pencils that the purchasing elves stock the supply cabinet with. I think it's a cost-cutting scheme on the part of the college. Fewer broken leads means fewer pencils to buy, and less need for cleaning staff. The quality of my scholarship suffers, but all that means is that they don't have to give me tenure.
Posted by Bob | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 9:51 AM
The first draft of my comment was just, "How did Wolfson get Bob's login?"
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 9:51 AM
Bob, I used the same wonderful mechanical pencil for years, and tried several kinds of lead, until I found the one I liked best. In a fit of generosity, I bequeathed it to ex, so maybe you can ask her what kind it is.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 9:58 AM
My college buys those in bulk too. At first I was skeptical, but now I love them-- the lead is soft, which I like, and I enjoy the little springy action at the tip. Using the twisty motion for extending the lead frees up the eraser to work more efficiently, too.
Posted by FL | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 9:59 AM
You got that right, ogged. The post had a decidedly Wolfsonian tone.
I think maybe Bob could use a drink, or a holiday abroad, maybe? (Backs away slowly.)
Posted by peter snees | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 9:59 AM
Aha! It was this one! Black barrel, .5mm tip.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 10:20 AM
Okay! I'll look for it. I do like Pentel's non-disposable pencil, though I keep losing mine. for some reason (maybe it's the yellow) I don't ever lose Sharpwriters.
Posted by Bob | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 10:23 AM
Pentel used to make a really nice pencil, but now all I can find are those disgusting fat-barreled Quicker-Clicker things. I used to really like the Niji Grip series as well.
Posted by SomeCallMeTim | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 10:40 AM
While we're on the subject of nit-picking complaints, I've always wondered something: why are there no timestamps on the comments here?
Posted by Walter Sobchak | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 10:58 AM
If you're not kidding Walter, that's one very funny comment.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 10:59 AM
[redacted]
Posted by [redacted] | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 11:00 AM
That pentel is one ugly-ass pencil
What's wrong with it?? I loved that pencil; you can't just go dissing it like that. Simple, black, sleek, with a touch of fast chrome. I'm hurt.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 11:04 AM
But FL, while that's good and all, it's not something to do with the Sharpwriter. It's just the miracle of the commons. If I can convince our purchasing people that we need to litter the halls with Pentel Sooperdoopers instead of with Papermate Mushytwisties, we could potentially begin a new era in pencilwriting at my college.
Posted by Bob | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 11:18 AM
We should have a thread that is nothing but commenters posting the time and date of their comment.
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 11:21 AM
To that, Bob, I say "fat chance:" Sharpwriter: $3.19 per dozen (at Staples); Sharplet-2: $1.35 each.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 11:22 AM
I heartily recommend the Papermate PhD mechanical pencil. It kind of looks like a fountain pen, is chunky and well balanced and with a nice grip so it's easy to hold even when writing for a long time, comes in staid colors (i.e. doesn't look like it was designed with the aesthetic sensibilities of 8-year-olds in mind), and is easy to use (it uses the classic click to extend or retract system and it's easy to refill the leads and replace the eraser).
But the best part about it is the eraser, which is very long, about three or so inches, and can be extended by twisting at the top of the barrel. It's the first mechanical pencil I've ever used where I go through lead more quickly than eraser. Much more quickly. (The Dixon Executive has a similar feature, but overall isn't as easy to write with and use.)
They are pretty pricey, though, six bucks plus, which is why I guard mine zealously. But I have two that I've been using happily for about four years now, and I use them pretty much every day.
And they do have models with the same features that will, if gradeschool aesthetics float your boat, cater to your pathetic tastes.
Posted by Mitch Mills | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 1:00 PM
If you're not kidding Walter, that's one very funny comment.
and
We should have a thread that is nothing but commenters posting the time and date of their comment.
Obviously I'm missing something. It's only funny if I'm not kidding, so that must mean there's some good reason for it; but it's one that, unfortunately, my feeble mind is unable to conjure. Can someone let me in on the secret?
Posted by Walter Sobchak | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 2:10 PM
3/2/05 3:12 pm Chicago time
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 2:13 PM
I can't even remember if I have a good reason, besides just not wanting timestamps, but it's funny because this comes up regularly, and it's become something of a running joke.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 2:14 PM
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Because the co-bloggers are in DIFFERENT TIME ZONES! Do I get a lollipop?
Posted by Walter Sobchak | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 2:15 PM
I don't know; do you really want a lollipop?
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 2:16 PM
Ahh... I figured the "running joke" thing was a possibility, too. And I wasn't kidding, unfortunately for me, though apparently, it's fortunate for everyone else.
Posted by Walter Sobchak | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 2:17 PM
a) Considering which blog I'm at, I would say that no, I probably don't want a lollipop.
b) Just to be clear: I wasn't asking for timestamps, just curious as to why they weren't there. This is what I get for not reading through the comments regularly. That's something I shall have to remedy...
Posted by Walter Sobchak | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 2:25 PM
[redacted]
Posted by [redacted] | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 2:36 PM
Walter, yeah, it's kind of a big in-joke fest here. I don't know if you've got caught in the middle of a Weiner-Wolfson one-upping typo-mongering battle, but I'd like to declare that I do it entirely for the running-joke value at this point.
Posted by Matt Weiner | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 2:44 PM
Do I fucking sound like I'm kidding? I can't believe y'all are seriously considering one of those damn fat pencils. The Sharplet-2 is simple and precise. The "grippy thing" just lets you hold it with a minimum of pressure. But go ahead, by the faux-expensive-fountain-pen-pencil; maybe you can pretend you're the branch manager of the local fast-food chain.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 2:48 PM
[redacted]
Posted by [redacted] | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 3:05 PM
The "grippy thing" just lets you hold it with a minimum of pressure.
And the PhAtness of the PhD (not to mention its nice triangular grip) lets you hold it with even less pressure. It makes writing so luxuriously cramp free.
Plus, I think you couldn't have the cool extra-long twist-up eraser thingy, which as I mentioned is the best thing since chopped bread, without the barrel being at least a little thicker than your average pencil: the mechanism for it is somewhat bulky.
So, the PhD has nice girth, and length. What's not to like, even if you're not, as rumored, a size queen?
And while the initial costs are a bit steep, if you amortize it out, it's not bad at all (assuming, of course, that you don't, like a moron, lose it). Come on, ogged, don't you think you're worth it? Spending a little on a nice pencil is less gay than all those grooming products you've started going on about.
Posted by Mitch Mills | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 6:16 PM
Also, I still maintain that ogged's aversion to time stamps has to do with fear of his boss learning his secret identity and then figuring out that he never does any "real" work ever.
Not that I mind that feature. I have a boss too, you know.
Posted by Mitch Mills | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 6:17 PM
The thing about the PhD is that it's butt ugly. Basically. I don't understand the mindset about fountain pens that holds that they should be big thick fat things, like your corpulent boss's sausage-fingers or his gently stretched cock. Especially when the barrels, as they frequently seem to be, are shiny and monochrome, in some hideous shade of blue or the like. Stuff that looks like plastic. People! Everyone knows that matte is infinitely more stylin' than shiny! Ask anyone—ask Junichiro Tanizaki, for example. (This would be a decent example of the kind of pen I find odious, though its bulging throb isn't nearly as offensive as some I've seen. The model name being "leman" is, of course, a horrible offense to Scandinavian feminists everywhere.)
My fountain pen is, of course, a model of elegant restraint and stylish sophistication.
Posted by ben wolfson | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 6:26 PM
God help me, I agree with everything Wolfson says. I almost made the PhD=dildo comment, but I'm trying to class things up a bit, as you've probably noticed.
Posted by ogged | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 6:43 PM
That is a nice pen, BW.
My pencil has a matte metal finish. Not shiny or plastic at all. If they had one with a wooden barrel, though, I'd totally buy it.
And the girth, at least for me, isn't about bling or some sort of SUV/golf umbrella syndrome. It's about not having to grip as hard on the barrel, thus lessening cramping if you're writing for extended periods of time, as I often do. It really is much more comfortable. Why the fixation on pencils being thin?
Posted by Mitch Mills | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 6:45 PM
Inferior pencils are for inferior people. Go with class.
I almost made the PhD=dildo comment, but I'm trying to class things up a bit, as you've probably noticed.
The lamy is the glass dildo of mechanical penicls.
8:40pm Undisclosed Location Time
Posted by Michael | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 7:41 PM
The lamy is the glass dildo of mechanical penicls.
I have no idea if that's a good or a bad thing. Are glass dildos considered particularly classy or desirable? And if so, why? I mean, I can see how they'd clean up easy, but other than that . . .
Also, you mistyped "pencil". (I can't let bw have all the fun, you know)
Posted by Mitch Mills | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 9:24 PM
[redacted]
Posted by [redacted] | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 9:30 PM
I'm actually in the market for a nice pencil.
Rumor down at the Mineshaft is that what you really need is some lead in your pencil.
Posted by Mitch Mills | Link to this comment | 03- 2-05 9:41 PM
I love you guys.
Posted by alameida | Link to this comment | 03- 3-05 4:35 AM
What, you people -- with the exception, obviously, of Wolfson -- never graduated to pens?
Me, I use a Mont Blanc Meisterstuck, 75th anniversary edition, complete with a little diamond chip. But I'm fond of Flair fine points, too.
Posted by peter snees | Link to this comment | 03- 3-05 4:40 AM
That's so gay, peter. I bet you have them imported too.
Posted by Mitch Mills | Link to this comment | 03- 3-05 5:36 AM
Yeah, I was going to say 'well la-di-dah Mr Mont Blanc!'.
But didn't want to lower the tone.
Posted by Anthony | Link to this comment | 03- 3-05 5:42 AM
I got it as a gift in Italy, to be honest. Before then, all I ever used were black Flairs, whose name always struck me as, well, kinda gay.
Posted by peter snees | Link to this comment | 03- 3-05 5:59 AM
[redacted]
Posted by [redacted] | Link to this comment | 03- 3-05 7:30 AM
Wow. In that picture, he looks like something you'd find on a back shelf at the Mineshaft's gift shop.
Posted by apostropher | Link to this comment | 03- 3-05 7:59 AM