Going From Pencil to Pen Back to Pencil

I guess I can say I've now gone full circle. I've made the decision to go back to using a pencil on a daily basis.

Yup, 54 years old and I'm now working with an old-fashioned #2 pencil that I have to sharpen several times a day.

Why I decided to go back to a pencil, I really don't know. Maybe it's because there have gotten to be way too many pen choices - fine point, ballpoint, felt-tip, rollerball.

And have you seen the price of some of the fancier pens? I can't justify spending that much money on something I'm eventually going to lose - and I know I will.

Perhaps there's also an "innocence" about using a pencil. It brings back memories of grade school and learning how to write my letters on that off-white, wide-margin paper.

The wooden pencil just seems to "feel better". Am I okay using a mechanical pencil? Yes, but I still prefer the old #2 yellow pencil we used in grade school.

Plus, being OCD, it absolutely drives me crazy when my writing doesn't "look good." For some reason, my "pencil penmanship" always looks better than my "pen penmanship."

Have I been able to completely do away with the pen? No, unfortunately. All legal papers still need to be signed in ink. Maybe someday that'll change; doubt it though.

That's why I still carry around an old-fashioned Bic pen (blue) in my briefcase. Plus, the plastic top makes for a great inside ear-itcher.

So, here's to the pencil. One of the simplest and most efficient writing utensils ever known to man - or at least to this OCD suffering goof in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

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