Sandy Supposes....

A Pen, A Ball Point Pen, My Scribbles Need A Pen

         Although I scribble and scrawl with a pen, specifically a ball point pen, I never stopped to consider its origin. In my limited understanding of this I thought it magically appeared on store shelves after being harvested from some sort of manufacturing haven. Like money, I knew on an instinctive level that pens did not grow on trees. They were plentiful. They were affordable. When one pen gave up the ghost I tossed it without a second thought and quickly replaced it. I've never known a time without a pen. Pens accompany me daily tucked into a knapsack, or a purse, or a pocket, or a desk drawer, or a car's console.

          Without a pen I'd be lost. When inspiration comes calling I must be prepared to commit its message to paper. Sometimes, I employ a pen to create lists. On the occasions I decide to treat others with snail mail, I compose letters with the aid of a pen. What else could I use to complete a crossword? Pens are without a doubt my favourite writing tool.

         It is only fitting then that today is National Ball Point Pen Day. Well, also on this date back in 1943, the ball point pen was officially patented. Of course, it was a revolutionary alternative to the humble pencil and the fountain pen. Did someone holler eureka at the concept of a pen that contained ink and did not require a constant dip into a messy supply? Finally, writers need not wait an eternity for their script to dry. With the clumsy method of old no spontaneous notes could be left about. All missives had to be carefully planned. Blotches, spills and smears were former bothers. Writers bore telltale stains.

         Left-handers must have wept with joy at the advent of this writing marvel. No longer did they risk losing their trains of thought or miss transcribing an important point waiting for ink to dry before their awkwardness smudged their efforts. Viva quick-drying ink!

         Imagine stuffing a bottle of ink and a quill into your pocket. The new pen introduced itself as portable. It did not require re-sharpening which also caused a pencil to shrink and eventually whittle away. Ink proved more permanent than pencil renderings which could fade, or be erased.

         My pens are humble and affordable Bics. Of course, I am not referring to the other infamous Bic immortalized in ads with the tag line "flick my Bic." That contraption permitted smokers to light their cigarettes. Now, I do not write with Bic's For Her pens, or lady pens either. What was this company thinking introducing a gender-bias writing tool? Who conceived of this? How had women survived handling other pens since the 40's? Did someone honestly believe regular pens to be too heavy, uncomfortable, unwieldy for women? Had any female been disfigured, maimed, or permanently injured by her use of the original Bic?

         I prefer the sensible workhorse of a pen. It needn't be fancy or sparkle in a glimmery rainbow colour. Sure, there are times when a retractable pen feels like a luxury. No one enjoys misplacing a cap, or discovering scribbles across their white leather wallet. My pens are shaped as a slim cylinder, but some exist that are hexagonal to prevent them from escaping rolling. Mind blown! I just put up with pens that disappear and wobble under furniture.

         I will bemoan the fact that pens must be held somewhat upright for ink to be dispensed. They dislike writing on anything but a flat, level surface. They also do not appreciate cold temperatures and when exposed they balk. Some finicky pens prefer clean, dry paper.

         Mind blown encore! Ingenuity and a generous research budget has reincarnated the ball point pen in the form of a tungsten carbide gas-charged marvel dubbed the Fisher Space Pen. It boasts a shelf life of one-hundred years and was patented in 1965. Why have I not heard of this? It's a super writing tool that will work in zero gravity, a vacuum and extreme temperatures. Wonder of wonders it also works under water, at any angle, and on wet, or greasy paper. The creators marketed their pen to NASA which had failed to develop a similar product. The only reliable writing implement in space had been the pencil.

         Another ingenious reinvention of the pen originates with a Swiss company and their Caran d'Ache 825 Wood Chip Pen. This pen is sourced from 60% renewable materials created and collected from this company's manufacture of coloured pencils. The hexagonal body is composed of wood chips and wood cellulose. Wow!

         I celebrated this momentous occasion with a couple of my current pens. I took them on an excursion to the local laundromat where I utilized their specialist skills to solve a crossword and record a few of my flashes of brilliance. They never faltered. They did not run dry. My pens are dependable allies. Not one of them is aware of the super pens that exist out in the world. They plod along with me.