[Pen/Pencil Review] Wonder Woman Pencil Bag
This is going to be running late, but I’m still working on getting all the weird eccentricities of rebuilding one’s computer and getting everything back up and running – this pen review will NOT be of a pen, but a pen case, well, bag. I’ve done the Nock Pen cases before, this one is a bit different. I picked up this lovely Wonder Woman pen holder at the Dallas Pen Show. I bought it for more than one reason. The main being it’s freaking Wonder Woman. The other reason is that it was made by an enterprising young entrepreneur.
I love Ryan Krusac’s pens. I’ve met him a couple of times over the years at the Dallas Pen Show – usually with Brandon Lee, who sadly couldn’t be with us this year because of a loss in his family. Ryan also couldn’t make it but his beautiful, beautiful (someday I hope to be able to afford one) pens did with his wife and one of his daughters – I don’t remember which daughter. But Ryan’s daughter hand made these lovely pen bags in comic book and other fabrics. I had to have the Wonder Woman one.
The bags are double layered cotton fabric. Mine is lined with yellow. There’s a slit in the top about 1/3 down one side of the bag, allowing for the top to be folded back. The bag is about 9.5†long fully extended. It’s about 7†long with top folded back. It has a 12†heavy cord (leather like or suede, not sure which) attached about an inch below the slit to let you tie the bag tight. It’s 4†across with nothing in it. It will comfortably hold about a dozen or so “regular†ballpoint or rollerball pens, six or so of the larger fountain or ergonomic pens.
I assume it’s washable since it is cotton fabric. It is soft and flexible, but lets you protect your pens in a bag or purse while being cute. You can probably only get these from Ms. Krusac at a pen show with Ryan. They ran $20, I think, but that’s a decent price for a hand-crafted pen holder from a young woman with an enterprising spirit. I’m all for encouraging THAT. If you’re interested, you might be able to find out more through Ryan’s website.
The numbers:
1. How does it work? – 1 – It works really well. It holds a bunch (technical term) standard pens or fewer bigger ones. They will squish together though.
2. Grip and feel – 1 – It’s a double-lined cotton bag, but it does feel durable and solid while being flexible. The pens work out well in them.
3. Material – 1 – The material is cotton. It’s washable but will likely stain and fray over time. But it is what is and it’s FUN.
4. Overall Design – 1 – It’s well-designed for what it is. They don’t overhype the case. It’s a good, versatile pen case.
5. Price Point – 0.5 – It’s not cheap, but has that Young Entrepreneur vibe, along with the great pop culture design. It might be harder to find than some, but worth it. It was, I believe, $20, but I think I’m going to get my $20 worth of use out of it before I kill it.
That’s 4.5 of 5 bronze pencils.
[Write the Story] A Tour Guide in the Florida Keys
Prompt: A Tour Guide in the Florida Keys
Words: revolver, headphones, doughnut, leopard, spaghetti, tiki hut, magma, magnetize, swampy, recital
Story
I adjusted the spaghetti strap on my tank and polished off my doughnut. My shift was about to start. With a sigh I shrugged into my jacket and buckled on my revolver. After tucking my headphones into my locker, I headed out to the tiki hut to welcome my first batch of tourists.
“Welcome to Leopard Key. I’m Ellie, your tour guide. Stay close as we head to the boat.†I swung into my recital as I herded the pasty Northerners to the airboat.
We zipped around the swampy island. I pointed out the alligators and birds along the way, as well as the vine overgrown ruins of huts and other buildings from the long-lost civilization that haunted the Key.
As I told my story, I saw shivers among my passengers. Leopard Key was an unsolved mystery built on a bed of cooled magma. No one knew where the people who built the huts went or what happened to them.
“But if you listen closely, you can hear their voices in the trees.â€
“Why do you wear a gun?â€
“To show you that the. Dry rocks had been magnetized.†I let the gun stick momentarily to a nearby stone. The I whipped it back. “And to protect us from ghost pirates.â€
I fired past the kid and everyone screamed.
But that was one less spirit to worry about.
Word Count: 228
Written: 9/13/18
[Pen/Pencil Review] Pentel EnerGel RTX Sprinkles
This week’s pen review goes back to Pentel and another version of the Ener-Gel. This one is a 0.7mm retractable pastel polka dot EnerGel. It was at the register, and I am a sucke4 for those. This one is just cute and happy.
I’ve been pleasantly surprised by this pen, I’ve mentioned my tendency for retractables on the work desk. This is one. This one is also part of the Recycology line – so, about 80% recycled materials go into making this pen. It’s a good size – 5.75″ retracted, and 6″ with the point out. The diameter is wide enough to be comfortable, but not overly wide and has some ergonomic cushioned on the barrel.
The barrel is white plastic base with a white textured grip and pretty sprinkle-like polka dots. The ink is basic black, which was slightly disappointing since I was hoping for the blue family. The Ener-Gel ink is a does dry quickly, but it is a gel based ink, so there’s a drying factor on slicker paper. The 0.7mm metal tip gives a decent line – it’s not as fine as I typically love, but it’s not broad and gloppy. It’s easily legible and quick drying. The barrel has a dark turquoise panel with enough transparency to see ink level. It’s also refillable. I probably will with a turquoise or blue.
The numbers:
1. How does it work? – 0.5 It’s decent. No frills. The ink is bold and the roller smooth. There can be some smearing, but it’s liquid ink. It happens, especially on slick paper. It does dry quickly, but needs drying time.
2. Grip and feel – 1 – It’s an inexpensive, plastic, no frills pen. It has a grip that’s pretty comfortable. The length and balance are good.
3. Material – 1 It’s recycled plastic, but it has a good mechanism and good ink. If you’re ecology conscious or just want to help keep plastic out of landfills, this is a good thing.
4. Overall Design – 1 -It’s a basic retractable liquid gel ink pen. It’s refillable or disposable. It is what it is.
5. Price Point – 0.5 – I got this at the Office Depot checkout. It lists on the Office Deport site for $3. I don’t think I paid that? I think it was $1.99 at the cash register. But it’s one of the more expensive ones
4.0 out of 5 Bronze Pencils
[Write the Story] Memory Editing Wreaks Havoc
Prompt: Memory Editing Wreaks Havoc
Words: Jupiter, chocolate, domestic, blossom, ladder, steam, extension, pine cone, sunrise, tide
Story
“Just relax. This will take about twenty minutes.â€
Deanna took a deep breath and tried to relax into the synthetic leather couch as the hood lowered over her head. Her scalp prickled as the electrodes took hold. She couldn’t stop the butterflies, but she’d come all the way to Jupiter for this procedure.
“If you’re ready. We’ll begin.â€
“Just tell me again…†Deanna began. “No. Don’t. Forget it. We’ve been through it a dozen times. I’m ready.â€
The next thing Deanna knew she was coming down the loft ladder of her cabin, sunrise casting delicate shadows on the domestic scene. A pine cone fell off the mantle as someone she should know collapsed on the floor.
The scene changed. Steam rose from the tide pools near the mountains. She reached for a single blossom that was no longer there. Then the flashes came faster. Sensory hallucinations like the smell and taste of chocolate. The feel of animal fur. Experiences. Feelings. Flashes. Extensions of her life flashed by and were gone.
Deanna came back to herself and recognized…nothing. A medical professional pressed her palm to a computer pad. She had no idea why.
“Ms. Masterson, how are you feeling.â€
Deanna realized the speaker was talking to her. “I’m sorry. What? Who are you…who am I?â€
“Not again.†The professional checked the pad. “Don’t let anyone know.â€
“Know What?â€
Word Count: 227
Written: 9/5/18
[Pen/Pencil Review] Enabler Edition
So, this started out to be a normal “Hey, I got a bunch of new stuff†blog. But as I was saving the file because puppies needed attention, everything went black with a no boot device message. But hey, I can struggle through on the iPad until we can figure it out.
This is not a typical review, it’s the “Yes, there really is such a thing as a pen show†blog with a bonus of having non-biological family in from South Korea who apparently have Office Depots with acres (exaggeration) of pens from Korea and Japan. They know they can bring a random selection.
I have so much new stuff to play with. I’m hoping now I have pretty, pretty tools maybe I can get my concentration back to use them properly to hit some deadlines I have coming up.
The Dallas Pen Show was awesome, if overwhelming. They are outgoing their space. But it always nice to be in a room with the Visconti lines and the other lines like Ryan Krusac that are SO FAR out of my price range that I rarely breathe around the table. Though if you look to the edge of the picture, there’s a Wonder Woman pouch…it’s a pen case made by Ryan Krusac’s daughter. MUST encourage such awesome entrepreneurial spirit.
We also got to meet up with George Fox from My Supply Room So Jimmy could pass along some pencils he collects and they talk about stuff through their blogs. Then we found out Brad Dowdy was there as well. Brad Dowdy runs The Pen Addict blog and Podcast and is the guy behind Nock pen cases. He’s the guy who showed me it was okay to blog about pens. It was so awesome to meet him in person. I fangirled just a little.
But now it’s time to walk the dogs, get some stuff done and enjoy the pens.
[Write the Story] The Main Character Thwarts Traditional Gender Roles
Prompt: The Main Character Thwarts Traditional Gender Roles
Words: woman, bestseller, buttress, goldfish, barnyard, walkway, crop, winter, driveway, steer
Story
Lou crept along the buttress walkway shivering in the frigid winter night air. Somewhere below a steer bawled in a barnyard. No use getting caught now. Soon the crops would be in, and she would be sent away to marry someone twice her age. All for the sake of her family’s honor. She’d soon be no more than a decorative goldfish.
“Psst, Lou! Over here!”
Lou started at the sound but relaxed when she saw the shadow form into the solid bearing of Glenda, the woman who raised her on behalf of her parents. The nurse hunched over and cast furtive glances, afraid to be discovered.
“I brought food, clothes, and a small purse.”
Lou hugged Glenda tight. “Thank you! Only you have ever understood.” She quickly traded her shift and dress for trousers and sturdy boots. She would cut her hair when she had a chance, but for now it padded the wool cap. She hefted the pack and kissed Glenda’s cheek then went over the wall to see her fortune – wherever that led. It was her life now whether as Louise or Louis, it was her choice.
Benjamin hit save after the “the end”, sure this was going to be his bestseller. He had to get to the mailbox at the end of the driveway to meet the mailman. He had to get the contracts out. The next Benita Gamez book would be hitting the shelves soon.
Word Count: 239
Written: 9/4/18
[Pen/Pencil Review] Blue Bell Creameries Luxe Rollerball
This week’s pen is one I picked up on our road trip earlier this month, and the closest one to hand following FenCon. It’s a nice rollerball I picked up from the Blue Bell Creameries. Because ice cream and pens. It was made for me.
This is a nicer souvenir pen. The brand on the cap rim says Luxe with the Blue Bell name and logo engraved in white on the cap. The cap and post are chrome with a royal blue lacquer body. The cap posts with some wobble. It’s not the most secure posting, but it does post. It does make the pen long though. The pen is 5.5″ long capped and just over 6.5″ with the cap posted, making it a bit top heavy.
The grip is black and chrome with almost no ergonomics and a serviceable ink refill. The ink is black in a 0.7mm point – probably…maybe a 0.5mm. It’s refillable, so it can last a pretty long time. The ink is serviceable is a little scratchy, but fine. It’s a good diameter and pretty to look at.
It wasn’t even all that expensive. It was $7.50 in the gift shop. The kicker is that you have to go to the Blue Bell Creamery gift shop – either in person or their online gift shop.
Let’s see the numbers…
1. How does it work? – 0.5 – It’s fine. The refill isn’t the best in the world and the cap doesn’t post as securely as I would like.
2. Grip and feel – 1 – It’s a pretty souvenir pen with a typical and classic grip but without much in the ergonomics.
3. Material – 1 – It’s a good pen. Metal with lacquer accents.
4. Overall Design – 1 – It’s a good pen that will last a good long time with the ability to be refilled.
5. Price Point – 0.5 – It’s a little on the expensive side at $7.50 and only available in the gift shop or through Blue Bell online. But it is refillable.
That’s 4.0 bronze pencils out of 5.
[Write the Story] Adult Friends on Vacation in the Tropics
Prompt: Adult Friends on Vacation in the Tropics
Words: scuba diver, champagne, invasion, archway, hoard, strawberry, penguin, autumnal, cease, mist
Story
Philip stood under the archway to the veranda and inhaled deeply. The morning must would burn off quickly, leaving autumnal warmth behind.
“Are you coming, Phil? The scuba diver boat won’t wait forever.”
Philip took one last deep breath and joined his friends heading to the dock. It never ceased to amaze him how his pack of college buddies had not only come up with this idea to come to the equatorial islands at this particular day, and then followed through. He was more surprised that some of his buddies brought their wives and girlfriends. They treated this like some strawberry champagne vacation. When it was anything but.
Philip stared out across the water through industrial grade binoculars. At first he saw nothing but what he expected Waves. Sharks. Dolphins and whales. It was glorious but disappointing. Then a movement caught his attention. There it was. Black and white specks growing larger and larger.
A herd of penguins flowed in their direction on massive ice floes surprisingly not melting. The penguins were angry. Within minutes the sound of muttering and chattering grew louder and more angry. The party atmosphere on the boat died down as his friends stared at the impending confrontation.
The prophesies were real. The penguin invasion had begun.
Word Count: 211
Written: 9/3/18
[Pen/Pencil Review] ARGGGHHHH FenCon Week
It’s FenCon Week.
That should tell you EVERYTHING. And, alas nothing. I had grand plans to get a blog post done today. Day Job meeting got in the way — and threw everything off. Then the giant TO DO list reared up and some tech stuff is frustrating me… so RERUN week. Whoops.
This is the Pelikan Garnet Edelstein Ink from 2015
A few weeks ago, I wrote about my awesome Conklin Duragraph Fountain Pen from Pen Chalet – which is still awesome. However, what’s not as praiseworthy was the Pelikan Edelstein Ink Cartridges.
Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE the Garnet color. It’s a super deep red – kind of like a blood red that works for a certain element. Since I write a “Death” character, I was enjoying the color – especially when I started critiquing some short stories/novel excerpts for a science fiction convention.
These are, theoretically, an international standard “long” cartridge. I have bought Pelikan long (or giant) cartridges before and love them because of the length of time to enjoy the ink. The first cartridge was fine, maybe a little tight in the Duragraph barrel, but fine… until it was close to time to change the ink. The next cartridge seemed to seat in the nib, but was tighter going in. When I tried to check it, the nib came free and the pierced cartridge stayed stuck in the barrel.
This is a problem. Because I tried to work with this, hoping with the nib back in place, everything would be fine. It was not. The cartridge would never reseat, stayed stuck in the barrel, then leaked around the nib – making it look like I cut the crap out of my finger (I did mention BLOOD RED, right?). I tried my best to seal the cartridge with wax and save it, these are not cheap.
I was away from home, so when I got back, I attempted another pen barrel with the half cartridge of ink that was left. This time I picked my Padrino demonstrator (so I could see the ink levels without removing the ink). The cartridge didn’t fit. There are stops near the bottom of both barrels, this cartridge was a few millimeters too long and a few millimeters to wide to fit comfortably in the barrel.
I looked online for another long/giant manufacturer. Colorado Pens makes a long refill that’s smaller than this one by a hair. A visual inspection (I know it’s not scientific) made the Edelstein look just a touch bigger than even the other Pelikan giant cartridges I have.
Fortunately, I do have a Pelikan barrel that I can use this gorgeous ink in, because I’m not risking it in another pen brand – even though Pelikan hasn’t said their ink is proprietary. This ink is too lovely and too expensive to waste, even if the barrel I have really isn’t worthy of it. It’s a “junior”/Beginner barrel, and this ink deserves the Duragraph, too bad it doesn’t work with the cartridges. Maybe I’ll break down and get a bottle and use the converter, but that’s expensive, too.
Grading:
1. How does it write? – 1 – This is a rich and amazing ink. It looks fantastic on the page and flowed really well through the nib.
2. Grip and feel – 1 – TECHNICALLY this should be “Not Applicable” but there is sometimes a feel to ink – if not a grip – This ink FEELS good you write with it. Even, rich, smooth.
3. Material – 0.5 – Yeah, bleck. The plastic cartridge is a shade too long and wide to fit in traditional barrels, even though it had a standard neck to meet the nib. It should be better.
4. Overall Design – 0.5 – Yeah, bleck. The plastic cartridge is a shade too long and wide to fit in traditional barrels, even though it had a standard neck to meet the nib. It should be better.
5. Price Point – 0 – Pelikan is proud of Edelstein. In some ways, it’s worth it (gorgeous, but pricy). The cartridges are $7.95 on JetPens.com – for SIX cartridges. That’s what? $1.25 – $1.50 a cartridge. The bottles? $26.50. These are not for the faint of heart, no matter how gorgeous.
Overall – 3 Bronze Pencils out of 5.
[Write the Story] The Early Days of the Zombie Apocalypse
Prompt: The Early Days of the Zombie Apocalypse
Words: motherboard, buffalo, Eiffel Tower, raven, motorcycle, envelope, tulip, moon, reflect, sycamore
Story
Kirk checked the address on the envelope before knocking the kickstand down and securing his motorcycle. He shook the sweat from raven hair as he tucked the helmet under his arm. He took off at a jog, moving from shadow to shadow, trying to remain, at best, unnoticed.
His destination lay across an open space. No cover. He’d be as noticeable as a buffalo at the Eiffel Tower if he weren’t careful. As it was, he risked notice just by being here…
“Oh…MOTHER…board!” Kirk caught himself from curing in the Samuel L. Jackson style. Someone…something moved in the shadows. He ducked behind a sycamore tree to wait. The shadow shambled into the square, dragging something with it.
The moon reflected off the glass building, illuminating the figure. The zombies made it all the way to the center of the city. Kirk had no way of knowing if his intel was still good, but he couldn’t turn back now.
Sickening slurps and crunches punctuated the night. The zombie dragged its dinner to darker shadows, perhaps not to share. Kirk used it to his advantage and dashed across the square. He ducked down the stairs and pounded on a door.
“Password?”
“Tulip.”
Hands dragged him inside and slammed the door.
“I bring medical supplies.”
But Kirk was too late.
Word Count: 217
Written: 8/21/18