A planner and a plan

/ Pete Denison / 3 Comments
Image courtesy Bunbougu

Sure, everyone has long moved on from planner season and even the “my year in review” posts are done and dusted, though I guess you cannot say this blog has ever really been at the cutting edge of anything. So here I am talking of my initial foray into planners. Better late than never, I guess. Surely having been into stationery all your life and written this blog for over ten years now, this can’t be an initiation into the world of planners. Can it? Well, ostensibly friends, the answer is yes.

Yes, there were the yearly, very cheap appointment diaries of many years ago, and the Filofax years (loved my brown leather Timberland cover) in between, however since becoming really invested in all things pen and stationery over the past decade, I had largely been a notebook only kind of person. At least until now. Honestly, this makes me both excited and a little nervous all at the same time.

Why now?

Well, it’s not been a great year to be honest, and during the tougher times the tendency for me is to turn inwards and embrace what brings a little joy. Something to turn your mind to when it needs an outlet. I don’t think anyone will be surprised when I say the very topic themes on this blog (pens, coffee, stationery and the like) are generally the things that help me do that.

Viewing a few planner videos on YouTube (and wow, dangerous as that is…), I began to see a slightly different angle on things. Maybe trying to develop my creative side a little? What began attempting a few basic drawings and sketches, morphed into accumulating a few stickers and templates. I also shifted gears a little from my fountain pens back towards a case full of gel pens. Needless to say, both my favourite Brisbane pen store, Pen and Ink, and online Japanese stationery site Bunbougu facilitated this transition nicely.

How it’s going

I’d have to say I’m fairly pleased so far. Sure, I’ve ultimately realised I’m not great with the drawing, nor am I overly creative, but let’s just call it a work-in-progress. An evolution if you will. Some days I give it a run, others are just words-only as they always were, and that’s more than okay.

If you can’t sketch… then stamp. The Everyday Explorers Currently Inked stamp set

The usual crew

Planner season or not, it’s always notebook season… in some form or another. So, at the current time, things are looking like this:

  1. Daily Journal: Black Leuchtturm1917 A5 Hardcover in dot grid (a left over from a second failed Bullet Journal experiment earlier in the year)
  2. Everyday Notebook: new addition outlined below
  3. Novel Writing Notebook: Montblanc #149 lined notebook (sounds grand, though when your last story was 2014’s NaNoWriMo and this is a follow-up — it has been a long time…)
  4. Pure Capture: a mix of 2. above and a Field Notes Pitch Black
  5. Travel Diary: again, that’s integrated with 2. above as well…
  6. 2024 Diary/Planner: the second new addition, further details below

New additions

Traveler’s Notebook – Olive Regular Size

I guess this is where things get a little more interesting — at least in terms of the purpose of this post. In the context of some of that list (numbers 2,4 and 5) above, it perhaps comes as no surprise I have delved into the world of the Traveler’s Notebook system. Having purchased an Olive Regular size Traveler’s Notebook cover in August before a 10-day trip away, it has now also become my everyday notebook of sorts as well. I’m still tinkering with various inserts and thinking about how I might “section off” various aspects of my writing life (travel, commonplace, general note-taking, writing etc) so I’ll say the TN lifestyle is also still a work in progress.

Notebooks and coffee – that theme thread is strong… the pen is a Caran d’Ache + Nespresso 849 ballpoint pen

Things seem to be working well at the moment though, and I have embraced various pockets, clips, and other accessories in my quest for something a little different to my typical standard notebooks of the past. Inserts are your standard dot grid, blank, and grid, though I’ll be adding a lined version soon. The slimmer, taller nature of the regular inserts seems to suit me fairly well, and a 0.5mm gel pen has turned out to be the tool of choice (currently a couple of Uniball Signo DX, however there are quite a few 0.7mm Pentel Energels’ that emerged from the second drawer when this all began).

Behold the results of sending your sister and niece all over Tokyo searching for additions…

The Olive leather on the Traveler’s cover is certainly something to behold, and is already showing a little lived-in wear which looks fantastic, and will no doubt become even better with age. I do have a matching Traveler’s Company pen loop attached, which is 50:50 both useful and annoying, though I think it will stay given its utility. I of course also could not go past Mal’s perfect monogramming for that personal touch — love it.

First comes the creativity…

You can say I’m very much enjoying the change so far.

Hobonichi Weeks 2024 Hardcover Planner

This one I’m a little less sure about. Not because I have any doubts about the planner itself, just what I’ll use it for. I have a few ideas, and they are mainly around the wellness/habit tracking type of area, and I’ve been noting down some ideas over the past month or so.

Then comes the structure…

I seem to have mostly settled on a combination of personal development/self-improvement/wellness journal/health/habit tracker. I lump them all together because I’d like it to be more than a simple tracker, yet terms like “wellness” though valid, give me Instagram snake oil/supplement seller — vibes. Whilst I realise that sweeping generalisation is unfair; I simply cannot comfortably call this anything ”wellness”, and it will be more than simply a healthy habits’ tracker.

So, in the interests of something meaningful and relevant to the task at hand, the working title which has meandered its way into my consciousness: my TG37 Journal. This is simply based upon the writing of James Clear on “tiny gains”, and the “1% better every day providing a 37-fold improvement at year end” theory. We’ll see how things go.

The tracking options are many

For my first foray into Hobonichi land, I went with a cover design by Japanese illustrator Hiroko Kubota, called Another night of falling star sparklers. I was looking for something a little unique and upon seeing a shared birth year with the cover designer, it seemed a pretty good fit.

Something a little unique for the cover design

I think the challenge here will be not overthinking things, though it has indeed been a while since I’ve entertained the structure of a dated planner in my analogue tools. Overall, I’d say I am fairly optimistic though.

Wrapping Up

It can be a little funny putting together a post like this, in that when summarised on a page, what feels like a significant change in reality, perhaps doesn’t sound as grandiose when outlined on a blog. Then again, it isn’t meant to be either. Our interests, plans, and realities take many forms, and how we document this is unique to each of us. Thankfully, we have as many options for tools as there are approaches to doing it.

I hope the finish to your 2023 is a good one, and 2024 is looking promising as well — however you intend to plan, log, track, or document your own journey.

Cups Runneth Over

/ Pete Denison / Leave a comment

There is always a periodic “refresh” in just about every hobby or passion you could turn your mind to. Every so often I think we rationalise to ourselves that the “things” are outdated or not functioning as they once did and we somehow need new ones.

The reality is more akin to the purchases being small enough to justify a reasonable cadence of replacement, but at the end of the day, satisfying the need for something new. Plain and simple, we want them. “New” is not necessarily essential to keep things ticking along, however will it bring significant enjoyment? Absolutely yes. Further, will it result in incremental improvement? Perhaps. Sometimes we’re just after new — sometimes better as well.

For your tech, it might be new apps. Your pens? Well, a new refill or ink never goes astray. Whatever you might be into, the “accessories” menu on any website is where you’ll find them. It might be an absolute necessity to “add to cart” to stumble over the line for free shipping, or conversely the: ”well if I’m going to pay shipping, I may as well throw in…”type of purchase.

Or it can be significantly more than that…

The humble cup

I cannot think of a more notable and deserving member of the accessories club than the coffee cup. No, I’m not talking about the myriad of takeaway style reusables out there, as important as they are for both the environment and our daily brew, but actual ceramic and glass. The OG’s if you will. Something you can actually wrap your hand around which will give you some warmth and love right back, rather than the apathy returned from an insulated reusable — or worse — a disposable takeaway cup.

One of the earliest “slow-living” enablers, rather than something you hastily fill, close and ram into your car’s cupholder.

Think about it: You. That early morning filter coffee or perfectly crafted cappuccino. Sunrise. A full-to-the-brim companion at your side. What could be better?

Depending on where they sit (atop an espresso machine, hanging on a hook, or sitting on a shelf), they are largely a decorative piece when not in use. The vibe might be one of blending in, or serving as somewhat of a statement piece, adding colour to your bar or kitchen.

As decorative as things may be, function is key. My earlier remark about the cup being the perfect accessory was probably a little flippant — for without careful consideration of material, shape, and design — we are simply left with all style and no substance. A red sports car isn’t just a red car…

You might say the humble coffee cup only has one job, and sure, you could say that, however holding liquid is merely the gateway into showcasing everything preceding that point in time. Long-held coffee wisdom tells us that once a coffee cherry is picked from the tree, we cannot improve on it — only do our best to stop the degradation of flavour and inherent characteristics that make it something special. A critical component of that final expression? The cup it is served in.

Minimum requirements

Now, of course brewing coffee at home will require a few things in addition to your basic consumables. The brewing equipment itself runs the gamut of the entire complexity and expense continuum, from a simple plastic brewer through to an expensive espresso machine. Often, though not always, a cup collection tends to be relatively proportional to that up-sloping curve.

Because as you can imagine, to even function as a human, I absolutely require the following to cater for the various beverages made on my espresso machine:

  • your typical 3oz (90ml) demitasse espresso cups and saucers in both traditional shape and branding, contrasted by some with a modern twist (100ml)
  • 5oz (148ml) cappuccino cups to hold the best type of morning beverage (traditional cappuccino) in the best sized cup;
  • standard 8.5oz (250ml) for those who choose ”mug” when offered the choice
The notNeutral Lino 5oz cappuccino cup (L), with perhaps the best designed handle I’ve used to date, and some of the ACME Roman range.

Anything larger than that for a milk-based drink, and we have no business writing a blog about coffee in any way shape or form. In this house, a 12oz beverage will only be achieved through two sixes, or hey, I’ll throw in a bonus ounce with an eight and a five.

The exception here? Filter coffee, where the diner mug or larger sized cup really comes into its own. For those, yes — we go large. Otherwise, stay classy people.

Fun, frivolity and function. A sample of my filter mugs: the Five Senses Tools of the Craft tin mug, Cat & Cloud original Kickstarter diner mug, and a Blue Bottle gift brought home by my travelling children.

Recent (and most welcome) additions

Long held desires recently fulfilled. The notNeutral Pico range in 6 and 8oz sizes, along with the fabulous emerald Vero Cortado glass.

…to fill in the gaps above. Yes, if you look closely there are a couple there:

  • a 4.0 to 4.5oz (120 – 133ml) cortado glasses, which fills very nicely the gaping 0.5 to 1.0 oz hole between my espresso and cappuccino cups
  • a deftly placed 6.0 to 6.5 oz (180 – 200ml) modern cappuccino cup for when 8oz is too much yet 5oz not enough

Well Peter, perhaps for those situations above you could just use a 5oz and 8oz respectively and not quite fill them? You are kidding, aren’t you?

By the way, you’ll find some of my favourite cups shown above, here:

notNeutral

ACME

Beautiful utility

Really the whole story. Things of beauty, serving a function superbly. A joy to (be)hold. Within the realms of modern, unique, vintage, retro or timeless, with a bit of searching and perhaps luck, you really can get anything that takes your fancy.

Could you use an old jam jar for the same purpose? Well, yes you could. If that purpose was simply to hold liquid, however, I’d argue that isn’t really the purpose at all. For me, beautifully made cups and glasses add to the entire experience of making and consuming coffee at home.

It’s not only how they look on the table in front of me, but also on the cup warming tray atop the espresso machine. It’s the weight, texture, and size as I pick them up to begin brewing. It’s the design aimed at maximising the sensory experience and retaining the heat, body, clarity, and texture of whatever I have just brewed or poured into the cup. Ultimately, it’s what I look at, what draws me in, and what I wrap my hand around at the table.

In the same way many hands have gone into producing, processing and roasting the coffee that now sits in the cup, if I’ve “bought well”, then many hands and design decisions have also gone into manufacturing the cup that particular coffee now fills. There is nothing quite like a beautiful, functional, well-designed piece of drink ware, and it’s something I will not stop putting considerable thought and attention to.

In closing, I do hope your preferred cup is full, and may it bring as much enjoyment and warmth to your soul as the coffee you have carefully placed in its care.

It’s October 1 — Happy International Coffee Day!

Bandwidth, time, and motivation

/ Pete Denison / Leave a comment
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

There are times you feel things butting up against your limits. Tasks, pressures, big and small projects, life events. Margin all but gone, yet somehow things seem to roll along — though I sometimes wonder if I’m just confusing that with the simple march of time, which of course never quits.

Tasks are completed, projects roll out, and seemingly with not too much choice about it, you just carry on with the rest. In times like these, you begin to think about what sets those limits. Are they arbitrary? Chosen by me? Imposed by others or circumstance? I suspect it is largely down to the choices we make in many respects — perhaps with a touch of playing the hand you are dealt thrown in. If I subscribe to the choices scenario (and I do), then I must also believe there are ways to manage things and regain some of that margin along with it.

I’ll say straight off the bat, that is a question to which I have no answer. This is most definitely not a post outlining how to win at task management, calendar time-blocking or life in general. Whatever productivity abacus you might use to count, plan, manage, track and organise will not be explained, assisted, or made more effective by any of what follows. Struggles are real, and mine are no different. Every so often you sit down and think about what is at the heart of these struggles, and eventually after much writing, mind mapping and handwringing, come up with not much at all. This was one of those times, though I cannot help but think that writing this out loud at least takes things one step closer to understanding a little more about what might be at play here.

Writing posts for this blog is done largely for myself, and by that I don’t mean as the reader but the writer. I’ve always considered it to be “writing out loud”, in that whilst it better be readable, make sense and be factually correct, it’s also a means of talking through something with yourself (a public journal of sorts). While I find this incredibly helpful, it is you the reader who must suffer through it all — so thank you for that. An added bonus is (hopefully) realising when you are saying something utterly ridiculous, though I admit that can be harder to determine than it sounds.

My point being that writing things out loud generally produces a somewhat more analytical and considered thought process, and often provides me with some pretty good answers. Unfortunately, this is perhaps not one of those times.

The title, by the way, could have really been anything. Confidence, procrastination, knowledge, will, resilience — any of those, and you’ll find them all on the mind map I tapped out before commencing the post. Settling on the above came about simply because at the time of writing, the main question I was wrestling with was whether I have the capacity, enough time, or even the motivation to carry on with some plans I’d made a few months ago.

The answer is probably yes, further moderated by eventually— though I have a bit of thinking to do between now and then, and that’s okay.

Margin

If, as Richard Swenson writes in his book Margin, we define it as follows:

Margin is the space between our load and our limits. It is the amount allowed beyond that which is needed. It is something held in reserve for contingencies or unanticipated situations.

…then in times like these you begin to question exactly what sets those limits, and whether there is anything pushing at these limits that has no business being there in the first place. It’s the chronic stress (bad) vs acute stress (dealt with by our “reserve”) health scenario all over again.

Perhaps said limits are arbitrary, somehow chosen by me, or perhaps imposed by circumstance. I cannot help but think what’s closer to reality is the choices I make dictate how close I get to those limits, rather than setting the boundary fence itself. Though I guess if we look at the definition above, it’s up to me to set an arbitrary boundary (load) inside the outer fence (limit).

Perspective

Planning? Tracking? Task management? The ability to sit and think about what to tackle next. What an enviable position to be in, and many don’t enjoy the same agency in leading their day-to-day lives. I somehow think being in such a privileged position lends itself to wasting some of that opportunity through taking for granted what you actually have to work with.

Poor me. Sitting here in angst, sweating over what to either put on — or complete off — my task management list. Here I should confirm this is not a thinly veiled swipe at all the productivity enthusiasts out there, but a genuine self-reflection on where I currently sit with this. It’s definitely me. All me.

Intention

If it goes on a list you’ll do it, right? Right? Sure I will, eyeing off the items added a couple of years ago to just “fix up a little” around the house yet remain to this day undone. At times I think the advice to rename your “reminders” to “inbox” should instead suggest renaming it to “Someday/Maybe”. That’s it. Everything goes in a “might do” list until (if ever) it’s actually done.

Why is that? Sure there are captured items that are so captured because that is the entirety of where my brain has gotten to at that particular time, yet there are just as many — if not more — that are captured with good intent, yet overrun by the “I don’t really want to do that” vibe. Sure, some things don’t need doing, yet the ones that truly gnaw at you are the must-do items with the “don’t want to” tag subconsciously applied.

Systems and processes certainly help, yet they cannot begin, grind through, and finish off the task for you. There are a few other factors at play here.

Bandwidth

Whilst we might also consider this one as capacity, the big ticket item here being thoughts, and maybe they are one and the same, though I’ve always considered capacity more in physical terms. Bandwidth, though? Well, when that maxes out it has generally filled with thoughts — many of them less than eloquently organised as stressful times or situations mount up.

It’s such an arbitrary construct though isn’t it. As I write this in my usual time slot approaching dawn, there really isn’t anything pulling at me—just thoughts, which I guess is precisely my point. Even in quiet times, we are each alone with our thoughts, particularly in the cold light of day as I write this post.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

I must admit, there are not too many times when overwhelm hits me and there just seems to be too much going on. Good management? Hardly. I think a lot of the time it’s more good luck than the former. Perhaps having less going on socially frees up some time (yes, you guessed it — not really a people person…), though some might say that’s undoubtedly the opposite of what helps through times like these. Maybe, maybe not. It’s just how I’ve always “rolled” so to speak.

Sure, there are many ways to tackle things such as maxed out bandwidth. Learn to say “no” they say. Protect time for yourself they say. All noble endeavours (and successful strategies) indeed, however often easier said than done. I’d also question based on experience whether hitting the productivity app and system trail is ever really the answer.

If I just tweaked my “system” a little…

Time

Is there really time without time management? Or should that simply be time outgoings, given it’s something we constantly spend. Time is not really the enemy here, is it? Merely our use or prioritisation of where we are spending it.

I guess this is usually why you end up down the next great productivity system racket because surely that last book you read or the new update to that app will do the trick. Perhaps it’s back to weighing up digital vs analogue (yet again). No doubt, most of us would likely admit to falling into one (or both) of two traps. Either looking for more time (there isn’t any unfortunately — ha… wow how about that) or spending too much of it managing the “system” itself.

Yep, guilty Your Honour.

Add to that a certain amount of overwhelm and by association — resistance to do anything at all. Call it what you will: analysis by paralysis, too much to even know where to start… Any of those will perhaps be about right.

Is it simply about knowing yourself and understanding where you typically waste time? Procrastination to the front of the queue here if you please. Perhaps it’s pushing so hard for so long but maybe in the wrong direction? I’ve often said in many situations there is no right or wrong answer, simply the one you choose. Should I question that logic a little more? On most occasions, there probably is a “right-er” answer — perhaps it’s a sliding scale rather than a zero or one.

Motivation

Resilience. Will. Grit. Determination. Or in the dying words of Sean Connery’s Jim Malone in The Untouchables: “what are you prepared to do…” In some ways, therein lies the kicker. It’s doing — not planning to do. Could you go through this life without a “trusted system”, simply moving forward and tackling things as they come? Sure, though I’m guessing there might be a few things you’d miss along the way. Yet, conversely — is that the simpler life?

More broadly speaking though, I just wonder if the perfect “trusted system” really helps with a fundamental question such as “why is it all so hard”. Can’t make it any worse surely — unless we come back to more energy being required to manage the system.

Sure, I’ve read numerous books about habit formation, decision fatigue, and removing the need to rely on willpower alone. There is one major assumption here, the existence of a certain level of motivation to push forward regardless. I’m not sure if you can truly habit-form, decision-remove, and negate the need for willpower to reach a state akin to forever coasting downhill like a kid on a bike — and make meaningful and lasting progress. Perhaps I’m wrong, and the only thing I’m akin to is an old man shouting at the sky…

Wrapping things up

One of my force multipliers in action – photo by Antoni Shkraba on Pexels.com

As I mentioned in an overly long introduction above, this was always a post asking countless questions without really providing any answers. So this conclusion will, of course, be acknowledging loose ends rather than tying them up — it’s just the way it is at the moment.

If you’ve made it this far along my stream of consciousness rant, I thank you. If any of it sounds familiar, I stand with you. There sure is a lot to slog through on a day-to-day basis. Find your force multipliers — you know, those things that fit under the heading ”here lies the good”. Those things you add that somehow subtract from all the noise. Get out of your own head for a while and enjoy something else.

Life is strangely both a very long and very short journey to be looking the wrong way most of the time.

A Journalling Streak – holding on a little too tightly

/ Pete Denison / Leave a comment

The same morning I read Mary’s account on From the Pen Cup of reaching the milestone of seven years of Morning Pages (well-deserved applause all round), I ended my own daily journalling streak which stood at 1308 consecutive days. A tip of the hat in either direction, perhaps. Congratulations Mary, I wish you many more years, Morning Pages, and words to come.

Myself? Well, I’m guessing it will largely be the same, and while 1308 days is no seven year run, I’m fairly content with my consistency, particularly given there were a few decent consecutive-day streaks (albeit lower in number) before that. If so, why the celebratory “I missed a day” post? It certainly isn’t to decry the act of journalling, and whether it’s a page a day in the Muji A6 notebooks I’ve used these past couple of years, or the mind map I’ve just dumped into a new MindNode document for this post, both have the same effect: thoughts are out (page, screen, blog…) and better for it.

Given the subtext of this post might read: a post related to journalling but not really a post about journalling, forgive me for the confusion. What I’m railing against a little here is becoming too wrapped up in my “streak” for its own sake — or the sake of my “system”. That said, I suspect this journalling example is simply bearing the brunt of a certain level of frustration with my other systems, habits, and routines as they relate to output when sitting at my desk. As the commonly used quote attributed to Peter Drucker states” ”if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.” Well, to that I’d counter: “if you can measure it, you can certainly obsess over it” – attribute that one to me…

Journalling is the first thing I do every morning and something I certainly see continuing indefinitely, as I find it a great way to ease into the day. Some days I write about everything, others it’s nothing at all. There are days I’ve Googled and rewritten song lyrics for goodness’ sake, and yes, there have been some significant life events mentioned in those pages as well. As you’d expect, there are (brief) tales of challenging and emotional times, however the last sentence of every entry begins with two letters enclosed in a box: GF (grateful for…). Whatever follows in that final line or two is a simple reminder of the good. Of course, this again runs the gamut: overcoming struggles, life events, a great cappuccino, or just how good the nib is on my Pilot Custom 823. The big and the small — it’s all there.

I guess that is where I’m coming from with my thinking on this — hastily scrawling a date and “nothing to see here” (or similar) on days when I’d missed the morning routine (usually when away from home), just doesn’t feel quite right. Of course, it’s not wrong either — if it had a purpose other than to simply fill in the circle on my Streaks app.

In many ways, the streak needed to be broken simply to put my mind at ease and confirm it could be broken without the earth somehow falling off its axis. It didn’t by the way, with the new streak now sitting at 7 days. I do feel quite ridiculous in saying some sort of weight had been lifted, when after missing the morning routine that day, I made a conscious decision to leave it that way as I walked past the journal sitting on my desk that same night. Be real and end it…

I started a daily journalling habit a good few years ago because I thought I should, though I’ll keep going for any number of great reasons. I never have to decide what the first task or activity is in my day; it is a perfect chance to work through a rotation of fountain pens; it gives the coffee machine time to warm up; and I do feel as though I’ve missed something on the few occasions I haven’t done it.

Now though? Well, I’ll happily continue this helpful and calming daily ritual without the overhead of a 1300+ daily streak to maintain. It is indeed ok to “break the chain” Jerry.

So today, I am indeed grateful for: ending a streak, but continuing one of the more valuable habits I’ve managed to form.

Gain, Fail, or Shine – A Less Ultra Black Montblanc M

/ Pete Denison / Leave a comment

The Ultra Black finish. My Montblanc M ballpoint. Certainly a love at first sight situation when I first came across it in a display case a few years ago. Admittedly I was not entirely sure what the “ultra” really was at the time. A finish? A colour? The mostest or blackest of blacks? In any event, it was different to the standard shiny black “precious resin” of the Montblanc line.

While Montblanc describes it as ”black precious sandblasted resin”, it’s probably fair to call this one “matte black” if we’re trying to provide some context or perspective. While I do enjoy the lustrous deep black shine that is the standard precious resin finish, something a little different is always nice to have, particularly when it’s not at Montblanc’s Great Characters or Writers Edition prices.

So why the post? Well, really only to mention a change I’ve seen in that Ultra Black finish over time. You see, my Ultra Black M ballpoint, when compared with the standard precious resin of the M fountain pen I own — is decidedly less Ultra than it used to be.

I’ll say up front it doesn’t really bother me, however knowing we are all somewhat different in our tolerance for these sorts of things, thought I’d put down a few words outlining what I’ve seen.

The Pens

I’ve written before of my experience with the Montblanc M Ultra Black ballpoint, and it remains close to the the top of my all time favourite and most used pens (perhaps explaining what follows). When it comes to its fountain pen sibling, well I have to say my fondness for the M design lineage continues. I’ve had the M fountain pen for a shorter period of time (though also a good while now), so its long term position in the “inked” pen pot is still being assessed, though to date it has demonstrated quite a strong showing.

My workhorse Montblanc M ballpoint

After all, fountain pens aren’t necessarily the universal truth compared with a ballpoint are they. With nib placement, angle, and balance, there is a reasonable combination of “getting it right” required before you end up with a decent writing experience. Compare that with the uncap-and-dash world of the ballpoint. In my experience so far, the M fountain pen deserves some kudos, at least in this medium nib version I have in my hand.

So, the pens? All good there — love them. The real question being have they lost some of their “shine” given what follows below. Maybe, maybe not — again, it depends on your perspective I guess.

On Shade

Now, onto matters of shade, hue, finish, or at least the “Ultra” of the equation here. To be honest, had I not had both pens out side by side recently I might not have noticed anything different…

Having the M’s tucked away next to each other in a Nock Co Lookout pen case, it was easy to distinguish between the two by the cap finishes peeking out the top. One, a shiny, lustrous piano black in precious resin. The other, a decidedly matte version of well… black. The point being, its a simple task to tell them apart. Funny thing was, after using both, I accidentally recapped them incorrectly as the barrels looked pretty much the same. Upon comparing a little closer, I was somewhat surprised to see that for all intents and purposes the barrel finishes carried essentially the same sort of gloss finish.

The all gloss standard “precious resin” on the left, the Ultra Black on the right – well the cap at least…

Confused yet? Well I feel as though I’m writing my way around in circles here so I wouldn’t blame you. Where I’d usually refer you to a picture that speaks a thousand words, here I’ve found it incredibly difficult to capture what is clearly visible to the naked eye. In any event, the upshot here is that after a few years heavy use, the barrel of my Ultra Black ballpoint, pretty well matches the barrel of the decidedly non-Ultra Black fountain pen.

Now strictly speaking there is somewhat of a gradient here. That is, the cap remains the truest version of Ultra Black, not having the constant buffing of my hand wrapped around it, unlike the now-glossier barrel does. Another step along the continuum is the actual precious resin of the fountain pen finish. I guess if we liken it to interior house paint, we’d be talking matte (the Ultra Black cap); semi-gloss (the Ultra Black barrel) and gloss (the standard black precious resin). I’ve gotta say though, those barrels are pretty close.

An unordered gradient of sorts – the standard precious resin pen and cap on left; the Ultra Black yet semi-gloss body far right, and Ultra Black cap centre right

Call it patina, shine, wear and tear, or whatever you like, I simply thought it worth putting down in a post should this sort of thing worry you. Of course it may not be a concern at all. It isn’t to me, however I cannot say for certain that would have always been the case. Perhaps it’s age (as in mine), experience, or something else, but I have this underlying feeling I may not have been overly happy early in my pen journey to notice the removal of the Ultra aspect of my Ultra Black pen simply through the friction of use. I guess this may be somewhat moderated by the fact it didn’t come with any premium addition to the price when I bought it (other then the brand premium of course…), although that is perhaps not entirely the point.

The truest form of Ultra Black remains in the cap – on the right here of course.

Signing off

There are times I feel I”ve written a “What??? Who cares about that???” type of post, and this is one of them. But let’s face it, we all write thousands of words about pens and it simply becomes the nature of a blog at times. There will be those posts that are probably irrelevant to many, yet interesting or useful to some. Hopefully this one finds a place.

One final point in the hypothetical and mostly irrelevant (to me at least) bucket: If I wanted to sell this pen, could I really do so as an Ultra Black model? Perhaps not, though technically that is indeed the model you’d be buying. Again, an interesting question, though as I say, decidedly hypothetical given it is certainly not going anywhere.

So there you have it, the Ultra Black Montblanc M that becomes decidedly non-Ultra Black over time. Make of that what you will.