Pen Posse Gossip Edition

[lsmith42]

Alexander wanted a Pen Posse so we shall have one. Some interesting pen gossip to discuss on Sunday. It will be entertaining.

 

Sunday, 06 April, 2014, 1:00p

 

Peter's Cafe

10 El Camino Real

Millbrae, CA 94030

[FarmBoy]

You should see what the Geeks are saying about this.

 

Oh my.

[lsmith42]

They act like they know more than they really do!

[FarmBoy]

They act like they know more than they really do!

Yeah I heard it was actually the Painted Lady and not a Parker. Good stuff no matter what. Well Let's just call it stuff , it doesn't need to be good. Edited April 3, 2014 by FarmBoy

[Lou Erickson]

Yay! Pen Posse on a weekend I'm not buried in other things!

[bleair]

Christina and I are in.. our first pen posse since our wedding and vacation. Yay.

[EclecticCollector]

Hello all, I'm new to the forums and was pointed this way as someone in the SF Bay Area. Do I just camp this forum to find out about the next meetup?

[FarmBoy]

Hello all, I'm new to the forums and was pointed this way as someone in the SF Bay Area. Do I just camp this forum to find out about the next meetup?

Camping is not allowed. Just loiter like the rest of us.

 

Alternatively we could just pick a date that works for you and call a meeting. A typical date that will work for you is a Sunday at 1:00 pm at Peters Cafe in Millbrae.

 

We need a theme. What is it that is needed, nib flossing?

[Jerome Tarshis]

As one who looks at pictures, I'd say one obvious theme is why so many modern milkshakes come with straws that don't flex easily. A related theme is the question of why drinking-straw manufacturers aren't participating here on FPN, where they could get suggestions they don't know they need.

Edited April 17, 2014 by Jerome Tarshis

[EclecticCollector]

You guys are a strange bunch.

[FarmBoy]

You guys are a strange bunch.

That might be an understatement.

 

Next Sunday the 27th is technically open. I'm havering an urge to do nib experiments with a new type of floss.

[Jerome Tarshis]

@FarmBoy Is that the new radioactive floss I read about? I've forgotten whether it's supposed to be uranium or plutonium. The radioactivity kills microorganisms between the tines, so you can dip the nib without worrying about contaminating your ink. But I'm not a chemist.

[Lou Erickson]

I thought the next one was May 3rd, at Flax. They're having some kind of sale, to lure us out from under our rocks.

 

I still don't know if I'll make it.

[FarmBoy]

I thought the next one was May 3rd, at Flax. They're having some kind of sale, to lure us out from under our rocks.

 

I still don't know if I'll make it.

So lets have another next weekend on Sunday at Peters at 1PM. I'll try to get something started on the various boards.

[EclecticCollector]

I thought the next one was May 3rd, at Flax.

From what I've heard, Flax is supposed to be fairly overpriced with limited selection. Are their sales that great?

 

So lets have another next weekend on Sunday at Peters at 1PM. I'll try to get something started on the various boards.

I maybe probably can make this. I'm not sure whether to be happy or scared...

[Jerome Tarshis]

It is good to listen to all opinions. You may not get good advice from everyone, but listening can teach you whose advice to trust and whose to mistrust. That is a far more important life skill than learning to buy cheap.

 

Flax is a bricks and mortar store. Broadly, no bricks and mortar store is going to be a bargain paradise compared with individual offerings from Web retailers. Something similar is true of bookshops. That explains why so many independent bookshops got killed by Borders and Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com.

 

Flax isn't a bargain paradise. It charges MSRP or nearly MSRP for much of its stock, and in ordinary times gives discounts on some items. In New York that would also be true of Art Brown's, much mourned, and Fountain Pen Hospital. It is in general true of B & M shops that sell fountain pens in the great cities of the world.

 

The idea that Flax has a limited stock strikes me as especially noteworthy. It has by far the broadest stock of any pen retailer in San Francisco, and it isn't even a dedicated pen shop. If Bittner's in Carmel has a broader stock, as I imagine it does, that is because it is a specialized shop away from the center of a large city. I doubt that very many FPNers regard Bittner's as a bargain paradise. A shop that might have what you want and sell it to you on the spot, yes. A source of high-end stuff.

 

What Flax does have to offer is knowledgeable service. And an air of amenity. It is an art-supplies shop with an atmosphere that is more than a cut above the degraded supermarket shopping most art students experience. Amenity may or may not be worth what it costs you. It may not cost you very much at all.

[FarmBoy]

I posit Peters Cafe has better air than does Flax until digestion starts. Fortunately we don't always stay that long.

[EclecticCollector]

Jerome, I probably should have qualified my statement re: Flax as being expensive "even for a B&M shop" but that's not important, your point is well taken. I am no stranger to paying a premium for service and stock on hand. I've been to Bittner's and you are correct on all counts, but interestingly I've always gotten great deals from FPH (I'm originally from the east coast) as they have the volume to support lower margins.

[FarmBoy]

Sunday the 27th is game on.