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January 2006: Two for the Show

Extra Fine Points Index  ]


BY DON FLUCKINGER • So, we did it again. Richard has another grandkid. Name’s Susanna Rose, and she came into the world at 3:56 AM, December 30, 2005, earning her the nickname “Mommy and Daddy’s Little Tax Deduction” among the nurses at the hospital.

As you can see, there’s no actual need for using fountain pens over more utilitarian sticks you can pick out of the cup-o-ballpoints in the kitchen. But once you start using them, you’ll understand. Extra Fine Points

This column’s for her. Just in case Dad gets — as they say — hit by a bus or something, it’s important to explain why there are so many of these weird pens and matching pencils lying around my office in the flocked cases with trays and drawers. Get it down on paper (er, pixels) for her sake now, while I’m thinking about it.

See, Susanna, if you’ve been poking around your grandfather’s Web site you’ll see that we’ve both tried to explain why we are so enamored of fountain pens in 600 different ways through the articles we write. In short, it boils down to:

As you can see in my explanations, there’s no actual need for using fountain pens over more utilitarian sticks you can pick out of the cup-o-ballpoints in the kitchen. But once you start using them, you’ll understand: The nibs making the variegated lines, the delicious ritual of filling the things with inks of whatever hue you fancy that day, the sparkle of silver, gold, platinum, and palladium in their caps, barrels, and nibs. It makes the time we spend writing time well spent.

Really, you won’t be able to get enough of fountain pens, once you understand. And, hanging around this house, that likely will occur sooner than later. I wish you a happy and healthy pen-collecting life. And no, neither you nor your brother Patrick can have my striped Duofolds, so don’t even think about asking.


Freelance writer Don Fluckinger lives in Nashua, New Hampshire, and is the son-in-law of Richard Binder. His articles have been published in Antiques Roadshow Insider, The Boston Globe, and on the Biddersedge.com collectibles Web site. Please note: Any opinions stated in this column are Don’s alone and do not necessarily reflect those of Richard Binder or this Web site. Don Fluckinger
© 2006 Don Fluckinger Contact Us | About Us | Privacy Policy
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