Page 3 of 6 FirstFirst 12345 ... LastLast
Results 41 to 60 of 101

Thread: Not a Hobbyist

  1. #41
    Member
    Join Date
    Jun 2019
    Posts
    47
    Thanks
    19
    Thanked 34 Times in 16 Posts
    Rep Power
    0

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Quote Originally Posted by silverlifter View Post
    I agree with your conclusion, but not with one of your premises:

    Quote Originally Posted by Zou
    As a tool, the fountain pen is horrifically impractical. It can't be knocked around, it's sensitive to changes in temperature, it can be very expensive, it is difficult to iterate with, it is difficult to perform searches on the resultant text, its paraphernalia take up a lot of space.
    I find them eminently practical. My Targa was knocked around for 20 years, and continues to write perfectly. I treated it appallingly and it never failed, burped, skipped or otherwise failed me. Iterating with a pen (drafting) is superior to a machine (unless everything is in version control), especially for those of us who enjoy the tactile nature of working with drafts. I care not for the lack of search and to claim that the accessories take up more space than the electronic crap that infests our homes and offices is simply not true.

    Yak shaving and rabbit holeing are not particular to a tool or a medium, in this we are in complete agreement. But, for me, analogue tools are more effective, much cheaper, and far more satisfying to use, whether I am actually being productive or not.
    Fair. For me the primary virtue of the fountain pen is that it hurts less to use than a ballpoint, and it is smoother and more expressive than a technical pen, and the line is more consistent in width than the pencil. This of course is the answer to the question "Why fountain pens?" But I live in a place where the summers get very hot, and the winters get very cold. I live in a place where it rains and snows a lot. If I write travel directions on a piece of paper and put it in my pocket, I learned my lesson the first time that dye based inks run even in a rain coat or winter coat. I would never take a fountain pen out with me in -20C weather. I also know when I thumb through sketchbooks and notebooks from more than a year ago, dye ink will reactivate just from the tiny bit of moisture on my fingers. That was okay when all my drawings were just practice, but I find it a little unattractive since I got a little better and started liking my drawings.

    The ephemeral nature of work notes, and being able to get into a different headspace away from the computer, makes the fountain pen reasonably practical. But not more so than a two dollar mechanical pencil. The difference in tactile feeling is subtle, while the difference in price is not.

    Comparing to the computer, an indispensable tool used for much more than writing, fountain pens can take up less space. But the piles of notebooks on my shelves, the drawer of ink bottles, the box of no longer used pens, the bulb syringe, ink rag, pottery specifically used for cleaning fountain pens is stuff that takes up space in my fountain pen world. Heavier, bulkier, and more difficult to transport than my computer stuff, which even if I didn't use it professionally, is not optional, unlike fountain pens. When I just used a ballpoint or pencil for poetry or ideas, I needed hardly more than a notebook or two. When I do a lot of writing with fountain pens, I amass a shelf full of them. When I write creatively on the computer, I can endlessly revise and modify and delete until I get it flowing and sounding right, and I can type at the speed of thought. With a fountain pen I don't bother, because I would have to cross out or grab a new sheet of paper and write the same things over and over, creating clutter (and while that's the way many writers worked before computers, it's never the way I worked). If I want to share my work, it's easy on a computer. Few people would read my stories if they were just scanned in, and even that would be tedious.

    But you're right, it's not fair to call the fountain pen impractical. I just think its use is more narrow than I originally hoped when I first started. I think what startles me is than my 2 dollar mechanical pencil and 10 dollars for a lifetime supply of leads is competitive with $2000 worth of fountain pens, in terms of what I want to use at any given moment. I didn't HAVE to spend that amount on fountain pens, but my favourite fountain pens, the FA and the PO on the 743, were never going to be my very first purchases. A cheap pencil is all you need to write or draw magnificent things, there's something so elegant and beautiful about that which I was always enamored with as a kid, but somehow as an adult I got seduced by fountain pens. Even though a computer can be a few hundred dollars, it can do so much, it opens a huge world. I see no point in comparing the computer to the pen.

    I never wonder if another mechanical pencil might be nicer, because the graphite is all that matters, and good graphite is cheap. I never wonder if a different ball point might be better, one is just like another. The beauty and the curse of the fountain pen is that the nibs are quite different, and each one costs a lot. There's no one fountain pen that makes you feel 'this is all there is to fountain pens,' and that's the gateway to the rabbit hole I know some people get crazy about mechanical pencils and ballpoints as well, but that is a breed of people that really cares how it looks, and about the weight and material of the pen, and that sort of shamelessly takes on concerns far away from the practical points of the instrument.

    In short, the fountain pen's virtues are easy to think of, but they are not in proportion to its expense, particularly when you enter into a deep exploration of its possibilities. When I see artists with fountain pens, they usually just have one or two Lamy Safaris, they don't often dig into the madness of gold nibbed pens, multi coloured inks and the like. So to bring it back to the topic of a person who has fountain pens but is not a hobbiest, that is the first category I think of. The next category I think of is a person like myself who just had too much disposable income and started looking at nibs other than a basic fine or medium steel. I am unintentionally a hobbiest, because in the pursuit of an alternative writing instrument to the computer, I became more interested in the pens themselves, or at least equally interested in them. And yet having done that exploration, half my collection is meaningless, I am reluctant to reduce it, and I do not write particularly more than I did before. Fountain pens may be practical, but they're probably the least practical things I own! I struggle to come up with examples of things less useful than my pen collection lol.

  2. #42
    Senior Member penwash's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2015
    Location
    Dallas, as in the 80's TV Series
    Posts
    3,661
    Thanks
    3,363
    Thanked 6,701 Times in 1,971 Posts
    Rep Power
    14

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Quote Originally Posted by Zou View Post
    Fair. For me the primary virtue of the fountain pen is that it hurts less to use than a ballpoint, and it is smoother and more expressive than a technical pen, and the line is more consistent in width than the pencil. This of course is the answer to the question "Why fountain pens?" But I live in a place where the summers get very hot, and the winters get very cold. I live in a place where it rains and snows a lot. If I write travel directions on a piece of paper and put it in my pocket, I learned my lesson the first time that dye based inks run even in a rain coat or winter coat. I would never take a fountain pen out with me in -20C weather. I also know when I thumb through sketchbooks and notebooks from more than a year ago, dye ink will reactivate just from the tiny bit of moisture on my fingers. That was okay when all my drawings were just practice, but I find it a little unattractive since I got a little better and started liking my drawings.

    The ephemeral nature of work notes, and being able to get into a different headspace away from the computer, makes the fountain pen reasonably practical. But not more so than a two dollar mechanical pencil. The difference in tactile feeling is subtle, while the difference in price is not.

    Comparing to the computer, an indispensable tool used for much more than writing, fountain pens can take up less space. But the piles of notebooks on my shelves, the drawer of ink bottles, the box of no longer used pens, the bulb syringe, ink rag, pottery specifically used for cleaning fountain pens is stuff that takes up space in my fountain pen world. Heavier, bulkier, and more difficult to transport than my computer stuff, which even if I didn't use it professionally, is not optional, unlike fountain pens. When I just used a ballpoint or pencil for poetry or ideas, I needed hardly more than a notebook or two. When I do a lot of writing with fountain pens, I amass a shelf full of them. When I write creatively on the computer, I can endlessly revise and modify and delete until I get it flowing and sounding right, and I can type at the speed of thought. With a fountain pen I don't bother, because I would have to cross out or grab a new sheet of paper and write the same things over and over, creating clutter (and while that's the way many writers worked before computers, it's never the way I worked). If I want to share my work, it's easy on a computer. Few people would read my stories if they were just scanned in, and even that would be tedious.

    But you're right, it's not fair to call the fountain pen impractical. I just think its use is more narrow than I originally hoped when I first started. I think what startles me is than my 2 dollar mechanical pencil and 10 dollars for a lifetime supply of leads is competitive with $2000 worth of fountain pens, in terms of what I want to use at any given moment. I didn't HAVE to spend that amount on fountain pens, but my favourite fountain pens, the FA and the PO on the 743, were never going to be my very first purchases. A cheap pencil is all you need to write or draw magnificent things, there's something so elegant and beautiful about that which I was always enamored with as a kid, but somehow as an adult I got seduced by fountain pens. Even though a computer can be a few hundred dollars, it can do so much, it opens a huge world. I see no point in comparing the computer to the pen.

    I never wonder if another mechanical pencil might be nicer, because the graphite is all that matters, and good graphite is cheap. I never wonder if a different ball point might be better, one is just like another. The beauty and the curse of the fountain pen is that the nibs are quite different, and each one costs a lot. There's no one fountain pen that makes you feel 'this is all there is to fountain pens,' and that's the gateway to the rabbit hole I know some people get crazy about mechanical pencils and ballpoints as well, but that is a breed of people that really cares how it looks, and about the weight and material of the pen, and that sort of shamelessly takes on concerns far away from the practical points of the instrument.

    In short, the fountain pen's virtues are easy to think of, but they are not in proportion to its expense, particularly when you enter into a deep exploration of its possibilities. When I see artists with fountain pens, they usually just have one or two Lamy Safaris, they don't often dig into the madness of gold nibbed pens, multi coloured inks and the like. So to bring it back to the topic of a person who has fountain pens but is not a hobbiest, that is the first category I think of. The next category I think of is a person like myself who just had too much disposable income and started looking at nibs other than a basic fine or medium steel. I am unintentionally a hobbiest, because in the pursuit of an alternative writing instrument to the computer, I became more interested in the pens themselves, or at least equally interested in them. And yet having done that exploration, half my collection is meaningless, I am reluctant to reduce it, and I do not write particularly more than I did before. Fountain pens may be practical, but they're probably the least practical things I own! I struggle to come up with examples of things less useful than my pen collection lol.

    This is a very long answer and musing that surprisingly only address one of at least three answers to "Why fountain pen?", or more precisely "Why fountain pen today?"
    The other aspects of the fountain pen hobby has less to do with writing than just admiring the nuances of artifacts made from eras in the past. People in the hobby (yes, the same hobby) who like this aspect of the hobby tend to be called "the collector" and "the tinkerer".

    For example, I just thoroughly enjoyed Cliff Harrington presenting to the Dallas Pen Club last night the history of Wahl-Eversharp brand, and the myriads of their fountain pens. That presentation has nothing to do with writing, it has to do with the fascinating happenings in the past, the study of history, combined with the beautiful fountain pens. And that sure is part of this hobby. Why not?

    So I am always dismayed by what almost can be mistaken as "superiority complex" from people who extol the function of the fountain pen as the only definition that fits this hobby, while completely ignore the other aspect which is collecting just for the sake of curating beautiful or historical or both objects. Or tinkering (restoring, modifying, creating, reparing, etc.) with them.

    Let us be inclusive.

    Personally write, sketch, use the heck of my fountain pens, but at the same time I completely acknowledge, no, revel in the fact that tinkering with, and collecting beautiful, neat, interesting, historical instruments is a blast. And yes, I intend to do all the above until the day come that I no longer can do it.
    - Will
    Unique and restored vintage pens: Redeem Pens

  3. The Following 6 Users Say Thank You to penwash For This Useful Post:

    AzJon (June 16th, 2019), azkid (June 6th, 2019), Chuck Naill (September 21st, 2019), Deb (June 7th, 2019), silverlifter (June 6th, 2019), Zou (June 7th, 2019)

  4. #43
    Senior Member silverlifter's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
    Posts
    616
    Thanks
    359
    Thanked 772 Times in 355 Posts
    Rep Power
    6

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Quote Originally Posted by penwash View Post
    That presentation has nothing to do with writing, it has to do with the fascinating happenings in the past, the study of history, combined with the beautiful fountain pens. And that sure is part of this hobby. Why not?
    Indeed. To quote myself from another discussion board:

    "In addition to the other points about functionality, usability as well as aesthetics, for me history is an important factor. I prefer vintage because each pen has a connection back to a different time, and each connection is threaded through all of the lives of the people that carried and wrote with the pen. That is, as the ad says, priceless for me."
    Vintage. Cursive italic. Iron gall.

  5. #44
    Senior Member azkid's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2018
    Location
    Colorado, USA
    Posts
    2,016
    Thanks
    3,725
    Thanked 1,703 Times in 822 Posts
    Rep Power
    9

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Quote Originally Posted by Zou
    Sometimes we just end up spending a lot of time and money on things that are very inefficient at bringing us joy, because we are trying to invest in an idealized image of how we will perfect our real hobby, like writing, once we find our perfect tool, and we find ourselves spending way more time investing in this meta concern rather than the actual concern.
    I can understand that. Falling into that trap is a bit too easy and is very frustrating and disappointing in the end. As I have the curse of having dozens of hobbies, I have had the opportunities to observe this pattern in many comtexts. I have also noticed the experts in each hobby say or show that it isn't about the tools.

    Invariably the poor tools get blamed, though. They never had anything to do with the core hobby except as an optional accessory.

    One may disparage old jeeps if they were really just interested in four wheeling not in constantly repairing the vehicle. That is where I am at now.

    My original interest, though, was landscape photography and I wanted a 4x4 to get into more remote places. That led to the Jeep. Which led to four wheeling and learning how to fix cars since it broke almost immediately.

    I was perfectly happy with all that, though. I even put aside the photography hobby for a long time.

    Now, after twenty years with an old, rusty Jeep, I found myself spending more time fixing and less time wheeling and it became increasingly frustrating.

    After the final straw of being stranded for a third time in six months, I bought a new Toyota 4Runner.

    What a relief. I no longer had to spend time on a hobby from which I had gained all I wanted years prior—a hobby that robbed me of time and money and energy that could be better spent on other interests.

    It was fun while it lasted, don't get me wrong, but sometimes we stick with a hobby long past the time we are done with it. We fail to see we are distracted from what we really want.

    Now I wheel and camp more with my daughter. And I'm selling the Jeep and parts (talk about taking up space!).

    And I've taken up photography again.

    I had forgotten how fun it was!

    I also had time to explore fountain pens, too.

  6. The Following User Says Thank You to azkid For This Useful Post:

    Zou (June 7th, 2019)

  7. #45
    Senior Member Jon Szanto's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    6,616
    Thanks
    7,795
    Thanked 11,039 Times in 4,010 Posts
    Rep Power
    22

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    NotFountainPenGeeks.com
    "When Men differ in Opinion, both Sides ought equally to have the Advantage of being heard by the Publick;
    and that when Truth and Error have fair Play, the former is always an overmatch for the latter."

    ~ Benjamin Franklin

  8. The Following User Says Thank You to Jon Szanto For This Useful Post:

    azkid (June 7th, 2019)

  9. #46
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Apr 2013
    Location
    SFO USA
    Posts
    1,375
    Thanks
    13
    Thanked 1,113 Times in 573 Posts
    Rep Power
    12

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Quote Originally Posted by Jon Szanto View Post
    NotFountainPenGeeks.com
    You are funny.

    BUT

    I suspect we are on a different frequency than most.

  10. The Following User Says Thank You to Farmboy For This Useful Post:

    Jon Szanto (June 7th, 2019)

  11. #47
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Feb 2019
    Posts
    256
    Thanks
    51
    Thanked 244 Times in 116 Posts
    Rep Power
    6

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    I find that that a nice pen, that is pleasant to use inspires me to write more.

    Writing is a hobby, which I spend an awful lot of time doing.

    Having a tool that is pleasant & comfortable to use is important. I spend more time writing, than I do talking about pens.

    At pen events, it's not hard to find writers and discuss writing as well.

    That said, I have an awful lot of "comfortable pens" to use. I see it as a mid-life crisis, that is cheaper than motorbikes.

  12. The Following User Says Thank You to Sandy For This Useful Post:

    Zou (June 7th, 2019)

  13. #48
    Senior Member ethernautrix's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    Land of Po
    Posts
    1,064
    Thanks
    1,661
    Thanked 1,282 Times in 556 Posts
    Rep Power
    13

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    First off, welcome, Zou... new member of this forum. Thank you for your contribution to the conversation.

    I agree that this pen thing takes up more room than a computer (or whatever electronic devices we use). I have a laptop, a notebook, a tablet, and a phone (can I even call it that? It's a computer. A tiny computer.), and a few external hard drives (back-ups) and some USB flashdrives (that seem to multiply like tribbles). All of that and all that all of that contains (thousands of files and photos, more likely millions) -- oh, and this peripheral Bluetooth keyboard --and the cables and plugs and chargers--ugh, all of this takes up a fraction of the physical space of my pens and pen-related paraphernalia, which includes at least a hundred notebooks, plus a box of notebooks that I haven't written in yet. (I have a shredder! I'm still working at my Notebook Lobotomy Project.).

    Having minimalist impulses and desiring to travel lightly, I know that I should give up the pens and notebooks and inks and carry the phone and the keyboard (or this tablet, for its more practically-sized screen). But I'm not willing to do that.

    Because I love how writing with a fountain pen feels, the tactility of the interplay between nib and ink and paper. It used to be how the ballpoint felt on paper, and felt-tips, and Pentel Ceramicrons... until I finally had the moolah to spend on (nicer) fountain pens. Plus the beauty of some of these fountain pens!

    (Laughing) I choose laptops based on how the keyboard feels. RAM? What? This, that, and other jargon, what? How's the keyboard feel? Will I enjoy writing on this keyboard?

    So there's that.

    As for perceiving a possible superiority complex..., not trying to pick a fight, but that's on the perceiver. I've read thousands of posts, years of posts, from others extolling the virtues of their ways of "fountain penning," and my reaction has been, "That's that person's way. Not mine. [Computer voice] That is not a problem." There is no conflict.

    Back in the rollicking "wild west" days of fpn, before the hammer of moderating came down hard (and when fpn was, in my reckoning, vastly more enjoyable), I'd watch people lose their shit over their opinions and think, This is why we can't have nice politics. If we can't give others a pass for enjoying their fountain pens in a way different from our way, how the hell are we ever going to solve important civic issues?

    I'm not going to suggest how others should like what they like or what I like. I enjoy the sharing. This is what I like, this is how I use this or that. I'm not looking for consensus. But if one other person groks me, YAY! And if someone expresses something I hadn't thought of, I appreciate it, even if I disagree.

    Yada yada yada ya....

    It's pens. We're all here cos we live pens (not gonna correct that typo!). We like pens. For myriad reasons. (I can't write "myraid" and not think of Heathers. Anyone else? Anyone? Bueller?)

    But you know what? You wanna fight over opinions?! Okay. Tell me again how much you love vintage and lever-fillers and think black is a boring color (not-color!). Bring it! Parker is the best brand, nyah nyah! You know what? I don't care. Parker is great. Black ink sucks. Lever-fillers are historically monumental. I'll be over here scribbling away with my Pilot 823 (PO) in Noodler's Black. Call me a dog. I looked. I don't have a tail. Life is good.


    P.S. I think Benu pens look ugly. I mean, er, Benu pens don't appeal to me. Glitter inks and shading inks... they're super cool! For those who love them. I enjoy your enthusiasm! Secretly (although, as of now, not-secretly, I think the Pilot 823 amber is tad blingy, but goddamn! I love the ink capacity and the PO nib. So I love my stupid a-tad-bit-blingy Pilot Custom 823 amber!)
    _____________
    To Miasto

  14. The Following 4 Users Say Thank You to ethernautrix For This Useful Post:

    azkid (June 7th, 2019), Deb (June 15th, 2019), fountainpagan (June 14th, 2019), Zou (June 7th, 2019)

  15. #49
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Feb 2019
    Posts
    256
    Thanks
    51
    Thanked 244 Times in 116 Posts
    Rep Power
    6

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    It's not fair! Pilot hasn't made the 823 available in the UK!

  16. #50
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Apr 2019
    Posts
    238
    Thanks
    45
    Thanked 97 Times in 71 Posts
    Rep Power
    5

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    There are options for travel; pens with a large ink capacity; a 30 ml bottle of ink should go far and not take up much space. There are even plastic bottles these days. Ink should be obtainable in most cities? Much the same for notebooks. For travel we like the thin ultrabooks or other lightweight alternative, but many of us have large stationary screens at home and in the office, extra loud speakers and external storage units,... In gathering argument's we don't have to add more to it than we actually do in real life, neither digital nor analog.
    Last edited by arrow; June 7th, 2019 at 07:55 AM.

  17. #51
    Senior Member ethernautrix's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    Land of Po
    Posts
    1,064
    Thanks
    1,661
    Thanked 1,282 Times in 556 Posts
    Rep Power
    13

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Quote Originally Posted by Sandy View Post
    It's not fair! Pilot hasn't made the 823 available in the UK!
    I'm in Poland. I ordered from Rakuten: Pen Gallery Housado (sp?). Then I ordered the 743 to get the PO nib.
    _____________
    To Miasto

  18. #52
    Senior Member penwash's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2015
    Location
    Dallas, as in the 80's TV Series
    Posts
    3,661
    Thanks
    3,363
    Thanked 6,701 Times in 1,971 Posts
    Rep Power
    14

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Quote Originally Posted by ethernautrix View Post
    As for perceiving a possible superiority complex..., not trying to pick a fight, but that's on the perceiver. I've read thousands of posts, years of posts, from others extolling the virtues of their ways of "fountain penning," and my reaction has been, "That's that person's way. Not mine. [Computer voice] That is not a problem." There is no conflict.

    But you know what? You wanna fight over opinions?! Okay. Tell me again how much you love vintage and lever-fillers and think black is a boring color (not-color!). Bring it! Parker is the best brand, nyah nyah! You know what? I don't care. Parker is great. Black ink sucks. Lever-fillers are historically monumental. I'll be over here scribbling away with my Pilot 823 (PO) in Noodler's Black. Call me a dog. I looked. I don't have a tail. Life is good.

    P.S. I think Benu pens look ugly. I mean, er, Benu pens don't appeal to me. Glitter inks and shading inks... they're super cool! For those who love them. I enjoy your enthusiasm! Secretly (although, as of now, not-secretly, I think the Pilot 823 amber is tad blingy, but goddamn! I love the ink capacity and the PO nib. So I love my stupid a-tad-bit-blingy Pilot Custom 823 amber!)
    I think that bolded bit up there is responding directly to my comment. So you are picking a fight with me

    Fine. I won't fight you over anything especially pens. We could be talking about the things that we agree on and have fun with that instead.

    So if you would listen to my reasoning, read on, mull over it, and agree or don't agree, I couldn't care less:

    1. I often hear (read) this sentiment: "What's the point of having a fountain pen if you're not writing with it".

    2. But I never hear this: "What's the point of fountain pen hobby if you're not collecting".

    That's my issue. People who don't care about collecting seems to think that if you're not writing with your fountain pens, you don't belong in the hobby.

    While people who collect fountain pens, don't seem to think that they have exclusivity in the hobby.

    Once again for the record, I belong to both camps. I use my fountain pen and I collect them, so I value both sides. But I have an issue when one side think that they are superior to the other.

    Why do I have an issue with that? Because it is the existence of both that makes this hobby cool and will prolong it enough to be handed to the next generation.

    Let me throw another reasoning here. If it were not for the collectors, we won't have pen shows, why? Because those who don't collect, don't have enough pens to show, let alone enough to do 17 pen shows (that's only in the US).

    So it's far from being a matter of opinion, it's a matter of recognizing that both sides are part of the same coin. And if that coin is to continue to be worth some value, then it's not good for one side to brow-beat the other.

    This is a message of reconciliation, not a message to divide as you perceive it to be.

    That's all.
    - Will
    Unique and restored vintage pens: Redeem Pens

  19. The Following 4 Users Say Thank You to penwash For This Useful Post:

    AzJon (June 16th, 2019), azkid (June 7th, 2019), catbert (June 7th, 2019), Zou (June 7th, 2019)

  20. #53
    Senior Member ethernautrix's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    Land of Po
    Posts
    1,064
    Thanks
    1,661
    Thanked 1,282 Times in 556 Posts
    Rep Power
    13

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Well, Will, I don't collect fountain pens, but I understand why others do. Some are more interested in the history of various brands, others want all the colors of a particular model, and so on. Whether I deign to agree (which is a preposterous position to take) or enjoy it or whatever is completely irrelevant to the collector. I'm not sure I could defend an argument against collecting as a hobby, and I wouldn't try, even though I have no interest in collecting--or even amassing a huge number of fountain pens. Even though I have owned hundreds (low hundreds and not at the same time).

    I love knowing that if I became interested in the history of (brand or filling mechanisms or whatnot), I could ask and search and find those answers amongst the experts.

    I find the so-called divide artificial and the chest-thumping about who's right puzzling. Right about what? We all have a weirdly deep interest in pens. Some collect, some have no interest in collecting, and here we all are. I just don't see the need for conflict.

    If one "side" wants respect or acknowledgement or approbation from the other... I just keep coming back to "It's PENS. We all like our PENS."

    You are right, though, that it's the collectors who started the pen shows, and many thanks to them for that!

    In penraderie,
    Lisa
    (Smiley implied)
    _____________
    To Miasto

  21. The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to ethernautrix For This Useful Post:

    fountainpagan (June 14th, 2019), penwash (June 14th, 2019), Zou (June 7th, 2019)

  22. #54
    Member
    Join Date
    Jun 2019
    Posts
    47
    Thanks
    19
    Thanked 34 Times in 16 Posts
    Rep Power
    0

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Penwash, it's completely fair that you and others get joy out of the historical, collecting, and material aspects of fountain pens. I am not at all saying what other people should or should not like. I read a lot of Classical Japanese literature (court diaries and so forth) because I enjoy hearing about a time and lifestyle so different from my own. I love the idea of something someone wrote 1000 years ago coming to me and connecting me to these people who lived so long ago. These books take up space on my shelf, but I feel happy to have them there. Partly because they remind me of the time I enjoyed spending with them, and contemplating them, partly because like most people, part of affirming my identity is having these things. The pen is so beautifully representative of an intellectual and industrious tradition, and I can see how collecting them is paying honour to that tradition. I can also see how people get interested in the evolution of manufacturing as seen through the lens of fountain pens, and I have liked Pelahale's videos on this subject. There are any number of reasons people can like pens, you are completely right and I don't dispute that. I don't feel superior at all, I'm expressing that for me there were missteps in how I explored fountain pens, owing a lot to the disposable income I mentioned, but rather more to impulsive purchases made to try to cheer myself up in the face of surgery, and then subsequent chronic pain, which led to me doing things a little out of character for how I actually think of pens. I'm sure that for many people, the leak that breaks the dam on spending a lot of money on luxury purchases for themselves is some personally difficult events. And yet there are people who just love having things, preserving them, sharing them, etc.

    I get completely that this is a heated topic, and a certain amount of defensiveness may be involved for all parties, but that's why it's interesting and easy for me to babble on and on about. You have my good will, I'm glad you enjoy multiple aspects of this hobby.
    Last edited by Zou; June 7th, 2019 at 10:58 AM.

  23. The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Zou For This Useful Post:

    azkid (June 7th, 2019), penwash (June 14th, 2019)

  24. #55
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Apr 2018
    Location
    GB
    Posts
    436
    Thanks
    219
    Thanked 383 Times in 169 Posts
    Rep Power
    6

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    My fountain pen doesn't constantly track everything I do, and sell that data to the highest bidder. I can write whatever I want, without people across the globe claiming that I have offended some demographic that they may or may not be a part of. However, it's crap at answering questions that I don't know the answer to.

    As to the wider topic, my not wanting to collect, own old stuff, or constantly buy and try new stuff, HAS seemed to get some folks' knickers in a twist. (despite the earlier suggestion that collectors don't mind non-collectors). I've had numerous people tell me I am - not may be - I AM missing out if I don't buy old pens. That I'm only satisfied with what I own because I haven't bought X, Y or Z. That's not unique to this place though. If I only owned one bow, an archery forum would view me with the same disdain, especially if that bow was cheap, and I used generic arrows, no matter how much I liked shooting them. Is someone not a serious musician, if they only have one guitar? How about only one piano?

    I've seen the same on gardening forums, car forums, and other topics too. There are those who aren't happy unless the postman has something new for them every month. Those who need to catch them all, and who are ahead of the curve in all the latest trends. Then there's the others round the fringes, satisfied with simpler tastes, or doing things different ways. The ones who for some ungodly reason, when a newbie asks whether they should buy X or Y, doesn't answer with buy both, or even, heaven forbid, suggest something cheaper and simpler than both. For some shoes are a "hobby". For others it's hats or bags. Within those arenas there'll be the catch all's, the specialist collectors, and the more minimal enthusiasts too. None ever quite understanding the mindset of the other.

    Whatever the topic, there's always the overwhelmingly popular route, several contrasting niche routes, and whatever route you happen to choose for yourself, there'll always be someone "helpful" there to tell you you're doing it wrong.

  25. The Following User Says Thank You to Wuddus For This Useful Post:

    Morgaine (June 7th, 2019)

  26. #56
    Senior Member Jon Szanto's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Posts
    6,616
    Thanks
    7,795
    Thanked 11,039 Times in 4,010 Posts
    Rep Power
    22

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    To each their own.
    "When Men differ in Opinion, both Sides ought equally to have the Advantage of being heard by the Publick;
    and that when Truth and Error have fair Play, the former is always an overmatch for the latter."

    ~ Benjamin Franklin

  27. The Following User Says Thank You to Jon Szanto For This Useful Post:

    pajaro (June 8th, 2019)

  28. #57
    Senior Member pajaro's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2012
    Location
    Tecumseh, MI
    Posts
    1,373
    Thanks
    561
    Thanked 614 Times in 411 Posts
    Rep Power
    13

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Ultimately, who cares? Interest waxes and wanes over time. At this point in time I am shedding stuff, and not in sheds.

  29. #58
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Posts
    1,735
    Thanks
    139
    Thanked 608 Times in 444 Posts
    Rep Power
    12

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    Quote Originally Posted by Jon Szanto View Post
    To each their own.
    3 pages.
    56 posts.
    4 words sum it up.

  30. The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to kazoolaw For This Useful Post:

    AzJon (June 16th, 2019), carlos.q (June 9th, 2019), Jon Szanto (June 8th, 2019)

  31. #59
    Senior Member Scrawler's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    Canada
    Posts
    1,263
    Thanks
    1,818
    Thanked 1,254 Times in 562 Posts
    Rep Power
    13

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    I am a hobbyist. In truth fountain pens are of no real use to me at all in my normal life. The sole exception in the past was to be able to write to my mother in a script she understood. The fountain pen is what humanity needed since the Sumerians started to stick a reed in wet clay tablets. It took a long time for materials and invention to enable the fountain pen for all, but when it did the ability to share ideas exploded. The fountain pen is a pivotal instrument, in 100 years it has been used to render itself obsolete. It directly transcribes inner thoughts into the real world where they can be shared with others. There is a sense of personal connection between me and the words I have written, which is absent in other forms of communication. That is a personal sense and satisfies only me. It has nothing to do with the pen's utility as an instrument of communications. I recognize the fountain pen's place in the hierarchy of invention and progress, and believe that place is so important that they should be preserved. I can, however, safely say that my researches, pen restoration and usage for the past many years is purely for my own satisfaction and therefor a hobby.

  32. The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to Scrawler For This Useful Post:

    azkid (June 14th, 2019), pajaro (June 14th, 2019), Wuddus (June 15th, 2019)

  33. #60
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Apr 2019
    Posts
    238
    Thanks
    45
    Thanked 97 Times in 71 Posts
    Rep Power
    5

    Default Re: Not a Hobbyist

    I have to add; a pen for me is a necessity; I take out a book, pen and paper and read from a book written by an author knowledgeable on the field I'm intersted. It makes all the difference. Tablets, keyboards, lcd screens, etc are just not the same. Books, pen and paper are work, but also a very welcomed break from the electronic appliances.

    The hobbyist factor, dip nibs, caligraphy, flex nib writing, are a part of it. However, it is aimed for a purpose, it gives me something worth while in the long run. It's a type of excersize I don't get on either a computer, physical excercise in general, playstation. I'm sort of using a fine tuned connection between mind, hand and fingers. It all has a function and an aim in the larger sceem of tings.
    Last edited by arrow; June 14th, 2019 at 12:21 PM.

  34. The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to arrow For This Useful Post:

    azkid (June 14th, 2019), fountainpagan (June 14th, 2019), Sailor Kenshin (June 14th, 2019)

Tags for this Thread

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •