589 Current Pen Situation

So, I have a confession to make today, I have an issue. What is that you ask, well I will tell you. It is a pen issue or should I say a pen addiction. Those of you who know me will know I like to purchase pens and stationery in general. I am not sure why I find it so interesting or enjoy looking at stationery, but I take comfort in knowing I am not the only one. At least stationery can’t go out of date. I have an ever-growing collection of stationery pens. At this point, I don’t think I am going to live long enough to use the pens I have purchased. However, do you need a pen? I got you. Dear person who inherits my pens, please use them nicely and you are welcome. If you don’t want them, donate them to a local school or something, please.

I didn’t intend to collect stationery; it just sort of happened. It started when I had to make a creative portfolio; I spent my lunch breaks looking in stationery shops picking up anything I thought I could use to build my portfolio and anything I liked really. As a result, three years later, I am still trying to use up the stationery I bought for this portfolio. Some have been useful, and I wish I had bought more of them, and others have just sat collecting dust, but I do plan on using them at some point, or I will find a home for them. Anyone watching who is also a lover of stationery will understand my obsession. They served their purpose, I did well on my portfolio, but I must deal with the leftovers.

My most recent splash on pens is because I was on the hunt for the best pen for me. You might be thinking “what do you mean, the best pen for you?”. Well, if you haven’t guessed I write quite a bit at home and I also write at my job. As I result, I am currently waiting for an appointment about my wrists. They get incredibly sore, ache and swell up. So far, we believe it to be RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury). This is just pain caused by repetitive movement.

I am hoping it isn’t this because it isn’t much you can do other than cut down the movement or learn a new way of completing tasks, so you don’t experience the pain. To make my life easier, I am trying to find a pen that aggravates my wrists the least. I have used pens which I struggled to write with and gave up a couple of sentences in. I am looking for a pen that glides across the page with as little effort as possible (requires the least amount of pressure to place ink on the page) so a good colour payoff, comfortable to hold and lasts longer than two minutes.

This has required lots of research and testing, as a result, I have ended up with about 1000 pens, okay so that could be an exaggeration, I would guess about 100 – 150 roughly, I am not going to sit and count. I have been giving as many away as I can. If you need a pen, please let me know. I would rather they get used instead of collecting dust. But this is very important, ask me, don’t just take a pen because you know how many I have. This is one of my pet peeves is when people take it without asking or telling you they have taken it.

No matter what pen I use, if I am writing a lot, I generally feel pain in the following days depending on the pen. Sometimes I literally can’t move my hand at all for a couple of days. The only activity I can relate to the pain is when I have been writing a lot. I have been experiencing pain for a few years now, I remember sitting in my exams and thinking that my hand was hurting and since then it has just gotten worse and worse. I have now learnt how to look after my wrist when they are sore, and I know when enough is enough (but it doesn’t usually stop me because I need to get the job done, I can’t just stop, if I stopped every time my wrist started to hurt, I would get nothing done.

I am constantly looking for ways to avoid or lessen the pain as my quest to find the perfect pen for me continues. There are certain tasks I have learnt new ways of doing to help reduce the pain, one being hoovering, opening bottles, carrying things, putting my hair up etc. There have been times when I can’t pick up my drink (tea) in the morning, or a bottle to pour myself a drink, I struggle to open my makeup or the toothpaste, get the shampoo out of the bottle etc. I lay the bottle on the edge of the bath and use my elbow with my hand to catch the shampoo or conditioner or hold it between my shoulder and my ear like you would a phone and shrug to squeeze the bottle. I did try to ignore it for a while and just do things differently but it getting to be a reoccurring issue and affecting my life.

Considering my wrist and hand struggles I try to be as light-handed as possible when I am writing which means my writing often looks scruffy and unfinished, particularly if the pen is running out of there isn’t a good colour payoff. I think I have found a perfect pen, I am still testing it out, once the one I am using has run out I am going to use a different one and see if I notice a difference and then I can confirm if my new favourite pen does make a difference, or I am just imagining it.

It doesn’t help that my brain works quicker than I can write so I often try to keep up and miss words out. This is easier if the pen is easy to write with, smoothly gliding across the page, not looking spars and unclear if you don’t apply pressure to get a solid colour. If there are gaps in the ink, it just won’t get used by me.

You might be thinking, does this long-winded essay have a point? Yes, I am sharing my love for stationery among a current issue that I am experiencing. I am hoping that once I have found the pen that works best, I can share it with you all and help someone who is experiencing the same.

So, who shares my obsession with stationery? If you don’t, just lie to make me feel better about buying too many pens. It isn’t an issue; it is just a current situation that I have. If you are struggling with the same issue, stay tuned and I will let you know which pen the best for me is. As a little disclaimer, I do want to address the fact that I know there are much bigger issues going on in the world and this is pathetic in comparison but there is not much I can do to help those issues. However, it could potentially help at least one person experiencing the same pain, this could make a little bit of a difference.