After a nice time at Miami, and couple necessary weeks recovering from that by working at ze hospital, i find myself with growing anticipation for an upcoming pen show, this time the Washington DC "Super" show. Probably my 7th visit to the show with the highest table count.

Those of you who've not yet attended a pen show? Well, nothing like it for immersion learning regarding pens and pendom. Many of your fellow collectors and dealers attend. Down time in evenings is great way to experience the culture of the pen community.

This show runs Thursday am (eaaaarly trading) through Sunday evening.

Website http://pencentral.com/

I plan to be there for the duration with couple-few-hundred pens in tow. Not doing pen photography this time, as i'm still digging out from under a couple thousand images that need editing.

One can attend for one of the public days, or for nominal fee be an early trader and hang for the whole shebang.

Hope to see many listmembers there

regards

david isaacson
www.vacumania.com

I'll be there with Aunt Rebecca! Yay! We'll be there Thursday to Sunday.

Look forward to seeing David, Rebecca and Elaine and many more others. Come learn more about Pelikan lore at my seminar and stop by the PENguin table and say hello, even if you ain't gonna go for a bird.

I'll be there with my better half!

Barbara and I will be there. Current plans are to arrive on Wednesday and do a little touristing, then do the show Thursday through Sunday. On Monday one of our clients will be giving us a personally guided tour of the Hubble Space Telescope's ground control center. I realize that for some people that would be a real yawner, but for me it's a wicked cool way to spend a morning.



[Hubble photo courtesy of Starry Night and Mac OS X]

Yes, again I'll have a table with some pen goodies and will have the stamp/pen petition for folks to read and sign. Don't know which room--big or side. Hope to see and meet other FPN'ers.

When will I get to go to a pen show!? Man, I wish 1) I weren't so far away, and 2) my dad wouldn't mind driving. I was hoping I could have gone to the Raleigh show, but we couldn't make it. I agree with David that it would be a great way to become immersed in the pen collecting community (and a nice way to meet some of my FPN friends in person.) One day....

Evan

PS I think that I won't be able to make the Raleigh show next year: I might be in Costa Rica instead...

Friend of mine from back in school days worked on the optics. Enjoy your trip. I'm jealous :-)

d

I'll be there trying to sell enough copies of my new Mabie in America book to pay for them The best news is that, as of today, it looks like anywhere from 2 to 5 of John Mabie's great great grandchildren will also be there

Save me a book, David.

-d

This will be my first pen show. A question for the seasoned veterans:

I may be able to go on Friday, in which case I will need to register as a "Weekend Trader," but I am not sure yet if I will be able to show up on Friday. Do I need to register now by mail (and pay the $45), or can I register at the door when (and if) I arrive?

Pre-registration is preferred, but if you're not sure of your plans, paying at the door is fine.

Sad to say, due to one of my colleague is out sick, I would have to miss it this year. No way around it, can't hire a locum for my kind of work. So, you all have fun now, and may you buy and sell lots of pens :-)

Kev

Aw, Kevin. Won't be the same without ya, mate.

What will be your next show?

I will drink a glass of wine in your honor :-)

david

Hi David,

I am bummed out as well. I am looking into the possibility of NY/NJ show. So, hopefully see you then.

Best,

Kev

I won't have a table this year... if I can make it, I will only be there for a while on Saturday..... if things on the homefront are going as they are supposed to....

You live too close to not go!!!!

I've been mulling this over for a while, and I can't hold it in any longer. I've come to the conclusion that an English speaker wrote that so-called Latin, and I can't stand it any longer. It's grammatically flawed, and it's also not idiomatic -- no Roman would ever have said or written that. Here's a grammatically correct version that's idiomatic (phrased in the style of Julius Caesar):

CATAPVLTIS INTERDICTIS FACINORA CATAPVLTAS PROPRIE HABEBVNT

Classical Latin has no letter U; the letter V is both a vowel (U) and a consonant (W, not V, there is no V sound in classical Latin).

CATAPVLTIS INTERDICTIS is a grammatical form called an ablative absolute, meaning literally, "catapults having been outlawed." (The ablative absolute was one of Caesar's favorite stylistic devices.) FACINORA is a neuter noun that, when used in the plural as it is here, is a collective term for criminals in the general sense. PROPRIE means "exclusively" or "characteristically." It's located near HABEBVNT because it's an adverb, and if it were near INTERDICTIS it could be interpreted grammatically to be modifying INTERDICTIS. Caesar was noted for both the brevity and the clarity of his writing. (He was also looked down upon for it, because he eschewed the flowery phrasings common to the great orators of his time.)

There. I've done it. It's over.

Sorry Richard,
I failed Latin in Parochial School.... BIG TIME....

I'll be there Friday to Sunday. We will have a table this year. Looking forward to seeing the FPN family.

I'll be the newb there on saturday. You will easily spot me by myself...I'll be the guy looking like and then because I can't buy everything I really want.

My real question to the pen show vets is this (dumb newb question coming): is this show all about purchasing or will there be any trading as well?

Trading? Purchasing? I'm going for breakfast, lunch and dinner...that's the best part of the show!!

And I thought the best part was the shmoozing at my table while I hack on nibs. I enjoyed chatting with you at Long Island, and I still love the artwork!

Since i'm driving to this one, perhaps will bring a Show-n-Tell case for the evening shmooze fest.

What to bring what to bring?

Maybe a case full of clean jade?

d

Aww Richard, I'm blushing! Thank you so much for the very sweet compliment!

I loved seeing you at the Long Island show and you can bet that I will be around to say hi at this one!!

You are coming to the New Jersey one, yes?

Wish I could go

Does anyone knows if Bexley pens Company is going to be at the show?

Being a resident of DC, I will definitely be there.

I'm very sad that Kevin won't be there. He's always got a great table and is lots of fun after hours.

Glad to hear that David I and Richard B will be there.

If there are any happy hour or dinner gatherings planned for Thursday, Friday or Saturday nights, please let me know.

Hi Charlie,
I wish I knew too....I wonder who is arranging things this year??? Does anyone know?

Alas, alack, and well-a-day... I will not be at the DC pen show, unless some strange miracle changes the status of my office, my apartment, and my bank account for the better, which is highly unlikely. I shall think of all of you, and plan for the NY/NJ show. (Richard, I have a beloved Sonnet for you to play with the nib.)

(Restructuring in the office -- again. I swear, this year, I'm asking for my business cards to just have my title, not my division, because my division title has changed three times in the last three years. My boss isn't even sure what our title is, and no one's sure what the hierarchy is, or who's responsible for anything. I've been there for almost ten years -- longer than anyone else in the division -- and am the institutional memory, so it falls on me to track all the deadlines and find people who can do the work. ARGH!)

*ahem*

So, have a grand time, everyone.

It would be insane to look into one-day round trip bus fares, right?

Right?

The show- within grounds of what is legal is pretty much whatever you want it to be. Buying and selling is a big part of it, but most of those who buy and sell will consider trades, though usually with a bit of wholesale-retail spread on the deal. Hanging around for seminars can be educational and dinner with fellow pen collectors and dealers generally is fun.

regards

david

It is still hazy, but If I go, I can only go Thursday and Friday

We will see.

I wish I could go but it looks like I will have to wait for Nj/NYC show to be my 1st

Unfortunately, I too will have to pass on this years show. First I have been far too busy at my day job to manufacture any new pens, or even restore the vintage pens I waiting on my workbench. So no table this year. I did plan on being a visitor and just wandering and schmoozing (the best part of the show anyway), BUT, family duties required that I used extensive amounts of my available vacation time and $$ during most of July.