[tristor]

I love Jet Pens. I actually found my way into it from the pen side, rather than the pencil side, getting very into Japanese made inks and fountain pens (and nib replacements for non-Japanese fountain pens). My first entry into this world was a quaint little stationary store in Kansas City where I found and bought a pen specifically designed to fit in the spine of a checkbook (this dates me, I'm sure). After that I began to realize the world of pens was larger than cheap bics and the occasional logoed click pen given away for free at a conference.

Since that experience I've become a devoted fan of Zebra's line of pens, and I always carry an F-301 or F-402 in my pocket, have huge stacks of them in my pen drawer, and discovered the entire world of Japanese stationary. I now buy almost all of my stationary products from Japanese companies, except ironically mechanical pencils. My favorite mechanical pencil is the Rotring 800, which is made by a German company. For a fit of double-irony, they no longer manufacturer them in Germany and they are instead made in Japan under license by Holbein (who also makes amazing pencils for art use).

Between Jet Pens and Goulet Pens, I've spent a small fortune on stationary products over the years, but it creates a visceral experience that can't be replicated electronically (I've tried). My writing has improved, I take more notes, I write with more eloquence, and I've found using good stationary and writing well is so rare now that it becomes a nice symbolic touch that gets remembered.