My Collection of Pens - Part One of a Trilogy of Two

Memories. Whether we realise it or not, we are always creating them. Many of us - if not all of us - intend to remember them. Often a photo camera is used. Sometimes a video camera. A traditional one, or one of those modern ones that come with our phone by default. Artefacts also serve as a memories. Often, they play a role in our past - and perhaps also our current - experiences.

Some of us - like I - believe that memories are saved somewhere in our brain for them to either stay there or not. Many of them become hidden from our consciousness. Those who don't are the memories that matter. The others are of lesser importance. However, I think, I may have to reassess my thoughts about those hidden memories and their importance, or better said, their lesser importance.

Creating this HIVE Collectors post, I was taken on a massive ride through memory lane. Who knew that something as simple as a pen can unlock such an amount of memories? I've seen many past and forgotten places and situations in front of my eyes - vividly. I've heard many past people chatting and conversing - inside my head (with a lot of echo 😆). I almost smelled past scents. Be careful Edje! Before you know it, you'll be overwhelmed with too much of the past! 😮 One thing I learned in my weeks of collecting my pens from many places in and (some) outside my home: It brought me back to the past that caused quite some pleasure. That in itself is a good thing! Perhaps many of those unlocked memories are of more importance than I ever thought. As I said, I may have to reassess my previous beliefs.

As you'll notice, many of the pens I own were neatly stuck in a pot, a pretty large one from a pen's point of view. But still, I had 10s of other spots where pens hid themselves. It was quite a journey to find them. All I could find, I somehow managed to put on digital film.

Although I was planning to limit the number of photographs, in the end I ended up with too many of them. Obviously, I couldn't make a selection to downsize the whole thing. Hence, I present you all the ones I took, making this post more of a recording for myself than anyone else.

I start with one of my flagship pens! A glass dipping pen aka fountain pen. Not one of those that has ink onboard. Nope, it needs an ink pot and needs dipping. I bought this one myself, a few decades ago. I wanted a unique gift for a special person in my life. I knew she loved writing. So I got her such a pen. I fell so much in love with it, I bought one for myself as well. Until today, I am not sure she ever used it. I remember trying to write a few words before it became a display item. Tucked away in the back of a large and deep drawer, I found the ink. I shall take it to the test. Again. Not now, but soon.

Many of my pens, pencils and markers are sitting side by side, cramped up, in this little metal bucket I once received with a plant in it. Dust all over, since I rarely touched any of what is in this bucket, except the big ass red pencil. Later, down below, more about this one.

The bucket received a jacket quite a few years ago. A prototype. Created from old jeans. For a project I was trying to turn into a little company a long time ago. Well. Long? Everything is darn relative. I think, this was about 7 years ago, could be 8. The company never saw the light of day. Though we had a little success. Laptop sleeves made from old banners. We offered them during one of the past Amsterdam Dance Events. Many were sold. Some I still have somewhere stored. We also had bottle holders made from old tshirts we sold at one of the biggest Techno festivals in my country, DGTL. Though I still like the idea of recycled usable objects, we also discovered that such needs tons of work and time. Both I didn't had much of available. Great learning process. But not for us - I - to execute as a business. One of the reasons the pen bucket jacket never progressed into a - small - series.

A better view of the jacket to the left. To the right are all the pens and pencils I collected from various spots, including but not limited to bags, laptop holders, desk drawers, kitchen drawers, and one from behind the clothing cupboard.

Many Bics ballpoints and Pilot fineliners in my possession. I think all of them are from the offices I worked at in the past three decades. At least the Bics and Pilot ones. Some of the fineliners to the right in the still image to the left are either received from colleagues and friends or at tradeshows and from customers when visiting them. I am pretty sure I didn't buy any of these. Also, I was darn sure most of these pens aren't possible to operate anymore. And you know what? Indeed. Testing many of them resulted in no ink on paper. Though, a very few started releasing ink again, after heating them with my hands. More about this, in another future post (hint: handwriting community). All those that stayed in RIP status are now inside the big ass bin I have in the kitchen. And from there they are already moved to the even large container bins we have in our street outside my apartment. Perhaps they are already in some garbage processing factory of which we have quite a few around my city of residence.

This wooden pen is dear to me. I received this one back in 1997 when two good friends married. Him I befriended back in 1988. Her a year later, in 1989. Both I met for the first time when they took up a room in a kinda student home. Wasn't a real student home, but that is a story on its own. Perhaps I will dedicated a (future) post on this. I was witness / best man for him for the wedding. The first time in a series of best-man roles I took up throughout the years. I still remember both of them telling me: "Whenever this isn't working out, we know who will need to pay the alimony, to both of us." Luckily for me, they are still happily married.

Around the same time I met my dear and perhaps the oldest friends I have today, I got myself these Rotring pens. In my first Uni year I had to make an electrical planning / design for a makeup house. I was presented with the NEN1010, a document consisting of a gazillion pages describing all the rules around electrical design in buildings and whatnot. The design itself was the test to determine if I could read well and understand what I was reading. Though, drawing was allowed with a pencil, I wanted to use the defacto standard for such drawings, ink. So I decided I had to get the quality pens professionals use. I wonder if they are still usable today, after not using them for like 3.5 decades. They must have dried up in the tip. A task for later to discover and to solve, although I have no use for these pens right now, at least nothing to draw, like electrical or building designs.

Earlier in life, must have been end of primary school, or perhaps the start of secondary school, my parents gave me this technical drafting set. It includes drawing instruments like compasses and dividers for geometry, engineering, or architectural use. One of the top instruments has two needles, no pencil tip like the one below. At some stage in secondary school I remember very vividly I played around with this on other kids (teenagers') legs. While in class, teacher trying to teach us, I - we, a school mate and I - started this 'game' to prick eachother in the upper legs. Not sure why we started this. I guess, we were bored. One time we went a bit overboard. Running after eachother through the classroom while we were supposed to finish a test, in complete silence. This resulted in one of the few times I was removed from class and sent to the director of the school. While others usually had to do some job like cleaning the school floor and/or terrace, I was sent home with the statement: "Edje, don't do this again." I still don't know why I wasn't punished, but no questions asked. I was happy with a free afternoon.

A set, normal pen, a reloadable pencil and a fountain pen I received as a gift from my parents when in transition between primary and secondary school. A set I used very very often.

In primary school, I used another fountain pen (deep dark red one with a metal cap), but I wasn't able to locate it. Perhaps my mom still has it somewhere since much of my childhood stuff is in her basement and storage rooms. Next time I see her, I will ask.

Even earlier in my life, must have been before I got to primary school, I received this pen. A special one I used back in the days quite often. To scribble whatever I was able to scribble. My first characters, my first words. Big for my small hands and fingers, that's for sure. But such an amazing pen. The reason for being amazing? The little cruise boat in the top of the pen. It floats. Depending on how the pen is held it travels from left to right, or the other way around. I think I used to have 1 or 2 more of such pens. Last few weeks, I was only able to locate this one though.

Of all the pencils I own, these two I used the most, by far! While one (the upper one) has pencil container in the upper part of the pencil, with multiple tiny charcoal rods, the other has just one larger rod, lesser of a fine liner to the other one. I used to draw a lot when I was in primary school. Both pencils I used for this. From time to time, my mother says: "I wish I had 'forced' you to go to some art classes or even a school!" She is still convinced I could've excelled in creation of art. Not sure if that is true. I am more a beta type of person. But yes, back in the days I used to draw a lot. On paper. But also painted cartoons on walls and whatnot. I even did some oil painting stuff for which I was given a kids set with some quality oil paint tubes.

Like the pencils above, this pen had to go through a lot! Written kilometers of text with it. Perhaps up to 10s, maybe 100s of kilometers of text. Mostly in secondary school but I believe also in college and in my Uni years and perhaps even in my first office jobs. It used to have a clip so I could stick it in my breast pockets of tshirts and jackets. At some point in time that fell of. I tried all sort of things to get it connected again, but nothing stuck well enough. I guess, I like the pen in all aspects. Even without the clip, I continued using the pen daily.

Am not 100% sure anymore, but I think I got these pens when I first visited Egypt. This was back in 1997 when I was in between two jobs. Left a US registered company for a job in mobile telecommunication. I can't remember anymore if I bought these pens to keep, or was meant as gifts to others. When latter, somehow that didn't worked out. I still LOVE the designs. Though I wonder if they are very comfortable writing with them. I don't recollect using them too often.

More of these refillable pencils. All taken from the office admin cabinets. None I bought myself, or received from others. I guess, I drew stuff at the office as well. Doodles and whatnot 😆

Now we're getting to a selection of pens (to the right) and pencils (to the left) from hotels and airliners. Mostly from hotel rooms I suspect, not from the front desk or reception. I used to travel the world quite extensively, for several of my employers. Great GREAT times! Sometimes I would nick a pen to serve as a souvenir.

=== END of Part One of a Trilogy of Two ===

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