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It may not look like it, but every post I write for this blog begins its life as ink on paper. There’s something in the act of pouring your thoughts out on actual paper, the scritch-scratch of my fountain pen and the romantic green ink that covers the page that serves as a lubricant for my mind. Even now, the cross-hatch of a correction I just made feels infinitely more satisfying than the down-pressing of the Delete key in a word processor.
Strangely enough, the fountain pen is making a stand against the onslaught of modern technology and social media. In Virginia, as in other states, there is a Pen expo every year that celebrates the fine art of penmanship, from calligraphy classes to pen-and-ink wholesales and merchandise. A Fountain Pen Network and its aficionados meet up to enjoy each others pen collections and to try out new pens, inks, and paper. Why would this be so? Is it the wish to rediscover the talents of ages-old tradition? Quaint nostalgia for a less complicated method of communication? An act to preserve what may be lost with increased industrialization and mechanization? Continue reading