2025 Baltimore Pen Show

[carola]

23 minutes ago, inkstainedruth said:

@Misfit and @Ashram -- Thanks to you both.  

I was able to go on Reddit via my gmail account last night, but couldn't figure out how to PM the person who posted.  Although I did say that I'd be happy to ID at least some of the pens (I don't remember now what all was in that case, but they were all ones I'd brought to have worked on).  Of course I was also NOT amused by the person who said, "Oh that's MINE!"  And then said, "Just kidding...."  I also had trouble figuring out how to even log out of Reddit and sent THEM a message only to get some auto-response email going "Oh we no longer support those..." and had some links to what they have transitioned to....  Sigh.

I honestly thought that I had somehow NOT gotten to the show with that case -- that it had had gotten lifted by the guy who was supposed to have fixed the plumbing in my hotel room (and when I got back from dinner the people at the desk told me he might be still there, only there was NO evidence he'd done ANYTHING to fix the running tub spigot).  It never occurred to me that I'd lost it AT the show (in spite of several people going, "What's in the basket?" and were guessing a baby/puppy/cat...; I have found that a basket is more convenient than, say, a backpack.

Now hoping that the Snorkel I had gotten repaired at the show ALSO turns up.  I had a bit of a panic when I couldn't find another Snorkel (but that turned up in the "swag bag") and the Parker 75 that ended up needing a replacement nib assembly (but that pen had fallen down behind my chair in the living room when I got home Sunday night).

Ruth Morrission aka inkstainedruth

 

The one question I had, when reading this, was why a repair guy for the plumbing at the hotel would pinch a case of pens that are in need of repairs?

[carola]

On 2/9/2025 at 4:55 PM, whichwatch said:

I'll have two tables there with 50+ Nakayas, 15+ King of Pens including several Japan-only Limited Editions, Tohma, Namiki, Pilot, Taccia, Montblanc Writers Editions, and more, along with 1/2 table of special markdowns.

 

Hope many of you will stop by and say hello.

 

You don´t happen to have one of these for sale? The orange one?

https://www.nakaya.org/en/products/search/?s_keyword=honkataji&s_products_type=467

[inkstainedruth]

7 minutes ago, carola said:

 

The one question I had, when reading this, was why a repair guy for the plumbing at the hotel would pinch a case of pens that are in need of repairs?

Well that's a good question.  But when I couldn't find the case, that was my first thought, since the guy was supposedly in my room while I was at the kabob place next door to the hotel getting takeout.  I was maybe only gone from my room for 20 minutes, and when I got back to the hotel the people at the desk told me that  he might still be up there, but there was no evidence that that he'd even been there (the tub faucet was still running).  And when I also had trouble with the WiFi flaking out on me, I got moved to a different room and didn't think beyond that.  It wasn't until I was at the show on Friday morning that I realized that one case was missing.  And given some of the really negative reviews of the hotel (some quite recent), that that's where my thoughts went.   

Fortunately the case turned up, and I just got a call from the person whose table the case got sent to, and he's going to see about getting the pens repaired (although the spare Estie nib did NOT turn up).

But it was SUCH a relief to know that the case HADN'T been stolen (plus, I didn't want to falsely accuse anyone).

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Misfit]

1 hour ago, inkstainedruth said:

Fortunately the case turned up

Was it the one on Reddit?

[Ashram]

3 hours ago, Misfit said:

Was it the one on Reddit?

Yes

[Misfit]

Hurray! I helped @inkstainedruth get her pen case back. Such serendipity!

[inkstainedruth]

Thank you to you both!  I was able to ID the pens that should have been in the case (although the spare Esterbrook nib unit that I'd brought along in case the nib that was on the blue mackerel SJ was toast, seems to have gone walkabout...).

And of course I ALSO somehow got out of the show on Sunday without a pen I had JUST finished paying for the repairs on -- AT the same table where the case was found, at that -- and forgot to tell that to the person who has the case now (and who is going to see about doing repairs for the pens that were in the case -- although, admittedly, I suspect that the Forest Green 51 Aero will just need a good flushing out -- those pens are pretty rugged).

And of course I was totally fried when I got home from Baltimore, and still sort of braindead nearly a week later -- discovered yesterday that a bill that should have gone out in the mail got stuck behind some other bills that aren't due nearly as soon.  But at least I was able to get it to the post office before noon, so hopefully it will get postmarked today.  And when I told my husband about it he said he'll call (it's the cellphone bill, ironically) to let them know it's in the mail.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

 

edited for typos