I’m a big list-maker. A HUGE list-maker, especially at this time of year when there are cards to mail, letters to write, gifts to buy, extra errands to run, and all kinds of Christmas-related tasks to accomplish. There’s nothing more satisfying than checking off a box on one of the many to-do lists I cart around. (Well, MAYBE there are one or two other things—wink, wink, nudge, nudge!) I rarely venture out without a goal, a mission, a purpose.
But sometimes all of those checkboxes start bugging me and I just want to wander aimlessly. Like without a hundred things to do/see/accomplish. Like how I imagine other people live—with days full of whimsy and unplanned adventures.
What I realize when I finally get myself to do this— when I leave the list tucked away— is that cool things pop up. Cool pencil and pen-related things, it turns out. (I don’t think I’ll ever be able to completely turn off my “writing instrument radar.”) We hit a number of local craft shows throughout the year and have a great time wandering around and chatting with people making really interesting things— alpaca socks (the best!), soap, mustard, bowls, and brooms. You name it, someone’s making it.
Here are few of my serendipitous finds that are just too cool to not share.
Index card holder
This little block of wood with an embedded magnet and ball bearing is the perfect thing to hold up an index card (for, you know, more lists). Intended to be a recipe card holder, I almost walked away from the booth because I never use recipe cards anymore. Then the light dawned (I was having a slow day, I guess) and I plopped down $5.00 for this wonderfully simple way to prop up any old index card.
It’s turned out to be really handy, and for five bucks, you can’t go wrong.
Handmade Pens
I run into Bob and Virginia Lenhart a couple times a year, and almost always find something on their table of colorful and well-crafted kit pens to bring home. At the last show, I picked up The Spartan, the top pen in the photo, and swapped out the ballpoint refill for a Moleskine gel refill. Accented with #10 o-rings and gunmetal accents, the design is unique and fun to hold. The bottom pen, with its magnetic cap, is one that I use all the time, certainly as much as some brand name pens. The prices are right and it’s just fun using pens that are made by such nice local folk.
Old Pencils
On Saturday evening, we stopped at the open house of a local antique shop for punch and cookies and a look around. Amongst the costume jewelry, beer steins, china, coins, and Bullwinkle glasses (tempting!), I stumbled onto a few shoeboxes stuffed with loads of old pencils. PENCILS. Man, oh, man, did I start pawing through those. An older couple look on and chuckled and couldn’t imagine why anyone would want old pencils, but when I showed them the cool designs, the old time phone numbers (4-4475), and the awesome colors, they started coming around, and the woman admitted, “I DO like writing with pencils!”
I wound up picking out a couple of handfuls, despite dried up erasers and that basement smell. I couldn’t have been happier.
Who knew that all of these treasures lurked in the little shop I drive by all the time?
So though I am list-bound most of the time, these unexpected finds remind me that it’s fun to get out and see what the world tosses my way. Who knows what treasures lurk right in your town, your village, your neighborhood. Shop local and keep your eyes open for surprises. It’s as much fun as checking a box.
From the Pen Cup 