Cross Pens

I have two cross pens that, once upon a time, I held in high regard. They cost me only twenty dollars each, but they had a good feel for writing and the ink flowed freely. After replacing the cartridge however, they are given to skipping and freezing up. These refills are marked as being official replacements and I never fathomed that they would fail me. But fail me they have, one too many times it seems.

There is nothing more frustrating than having your free slow of ideas interrupted by a uncooperative writing instrument. These things are tools and as such should perform to the top of their ability every time they are used. If the fault lies with whoever is in charge of making the refill cartridges then they should be made aware of their lapse in skill.

Each time I became frustrated with their lack of performance I reached for a cheap pen costing less than one dollar that have never failed me. Now I question the sanity of purchasing any pen above the one dollar price range. I do enjoy the heft of a slightly larger pen and the smooth even uninterrupted flow of ink onto the writing surface is somewhat sensuous. Its just that Cross no longer satisfies me so I have moved on to another. Farewell Cross, I will miss thee but not your treachery and betrayal.

Experiment to get me to write everyday

 

I recently stumbled upon a site (I find a lot of interesting websites through using Stumble Upon) called 750words and decided to open an account. The idea for the site is to get you in the habit of writing everyday until it, hopefully, becomes a habit.

 

Write anything you want. Write at any time you want. No one will be looking over your shoulder. No one will critique what you write. The idea is to just do it. It’s amazing how your words will just begin to flow. The free-flow of thought is oh so liberating. You really should do yourself a favor and try it.

One thing I really enjoy about this free-form flow of words is that having a goal of reaching, in this case, 750 words, is that ideas that have been floating around in my head can now come out and be expounded on. Keeping them inside or jotting down reference notes on them has met with limited success. My desk and ‘idea board’, hanging above my desk, become populated with lists that really just tend to be ignored. I have always been one of those people that can remember things better if I write them down, so I do, a lot. And so, list making has become a way of life. This has, unfortunately, added to my propensity for collecting things.

From the author:

I've used the exercise as a great way to think out loud without having to worry about half-formed ideas, random tangents, private stuff, and all the other things in our heads that we often filter out before ever voicing them or writing about them. It's a daily brain dump. Over time, I've found that it's also very helpful as a tool to get thoughts going that have become stuck, or to help get to the bottom of a rotten mood.

It’s all true. Just try it. Let me know what you think.