Blogging?
It’s been a year, but my reasons for the blog hasn’t changed. I started the blog as an extension of my journaling, as a means to connect to others who enjoy a good story, maybe a common interest, and the hope I can help or prevent others from making the same dumb mistakes I am making.
How I got into pens
My wife calls me a nerd and I frequently muse the question: “Why Do I Collect Pens?” I caught the bug while on a business trip to Hong Kong where I acquired a “Mont Blanc.” (Stop laughing I know it’s not real.) To the extent one might call what I’ve accumulated as a “collection,” I view it as an assembled group of mostly vintage writing instruments – fountain pens primarily. As I descend deeper into the rat hole, so has my interest in pens expanded. I also discovered inks can be fun. I know – duh!
Tell a good story
I have always enjoyed a good story, be it oral, be it written. As I hold a vintage pen, especially those with the owner’s name stamped on it, I feel there is a story waiting to be known. Maybe I have an overactive imagination, or just hopelessly sentimental, both I’m sure, but these vintage writing instruments have a story to tell. Sometimes I’m lucky enough to know the provenance, sometimes I just imagine what letters it may have written? The stories it told; were they happy or sad? Did it write passionate love letters or was it a simple tool in a business workplace?
Often the condition and age of the pen may help trigger my imagination which gets to the genesis of this blog. I hope to add a new chapter to the story of a select few fountain pens as I endeavor to bring those pens back from the brink of extinction. In short, this blog will primarily detail the refurbishment of pens in poor to very poor condition. I hope through these stories I can encourage, empower and incentivize others to endeavor to give those same pens a new life and another story to be told.
Chronicles of a Fountain Pen 