Blog

For a very long time, I’ve favored sensible gun regulations, but not outright bans. Let’s make sure we prevent senseless tragedies, but still protect the rights of responsible gun owners. “Keep gun out of the hands of bad guys, but in the hands of good guys,” to risk dangerously oversimplifying the message. I mean, I get it! Aside from some freak accidents, guns don’t kill people, people with guns kills people.

This is primarily directed toward my conservative friends and family, but of course anyone is welcome to read it. I don’t believe that voting Republican automatically makes you a racist. I do believe that you can be conservative and also be compassionate. I don’t believe that you can hate the sin and love the sinner, but I do believe that you believe it, and intent counts for a lot these days.

2020 is certainly one for the history books. I can’t remember a time in my life when every one of the over seven billion members of our species seemed to be this stressed out for this long all at the same time. These are undoubtedly the “interesting times” referred to in the perpetually misattributed curse. So consider this your friendly reminder to breathe. It’s one of the great ironies of life that the less time you think you have to relax, the more important it is to make time to relax.

This is not ok. I am not ok. I say this fully aware that as an able-bodied, neurotypical, cisgendered, heterosexual, gender-conforming, middle-class, middle-aged, white male who was lucky enough to be born into a strong, stable, supportive family, and who has an MBA from a prestigious school and an executive position in a field that has blissfully remained unaffected by the global pandemic, I am as privileged as it is possible to be without being a member of the 1%.

Silver City Chronicles combines the feel of the wild-west with traditional fantasy elements, high-energy action, and a tinge of dark horror. It takes place in and around a fictional town known as Silver City, which can be easily placed in a historical west that never was, or in any fantasy world where gunpowder and steam power exist. Players take on the roles of traditional western archetypes such as wranglers, gunslingers, priests, and gamblers.

APica Premium CD Blank Notebook Plain, lined, or graph 96 sheets Bright white  Stitched binding, lays flat Squared corners Card stock cover Over the past 9 months, I’ve been using an Apica Premium CD Notebook as my daily journal. I still love my Traveler’s Notebook, but it’s now dedicated to my writing journal and sketchbook. I didn’t want to stuff a third insert into the TN, so I bought a lined Apica from Goulet Pens.

Noodler’s 54th Massachusetts blue-black ink has become one of my favorites. It is conservative enough to be useful in any situation – business or personal – but is still a lovely diversion from a standard blue or black. It flows easily – it is wet, smooth, and easy to write with. It dries in a reasonable amount of time, and I find the color pleasant and easy to read. It also appears to have a touch of chartreuse to it that blue and black inks don’t typically possess.

Diamine Ancient Copper Diamine Ancient Copper is one of an elite group of inks that seems to be universally respected. It is artistically interesting – in broad nibs it shades dramatically. It is easy to read, providing sufficient contrast on white and cream colored paper without being hard on the eyes. It is also a very lovely color that one does not often see in ink formulated for fountain pens. Acrylics, oils, metallic markers, yes - but not fountain pen ink.

The folks at Pen Boutique were kind enough to send me a sample of the brown, twelve-pen, Yak Leather pen case to review. It’s a new brand to them, and to me, so I thought it was worth taking a look. The case arrived in a nondescript cardboard box lightly wrapped in tissue paper - enough packaging to keep it safe, but nothing special - and without any accompanying information. It was just the case and a silica gel packet, if I recall correctly, which is unfortunate, because I can’t find any other information on the brand online - so I don’t know if this is actual yak leather or not.

I realize I’m about a decade late to the party, but I’ve been frequenting indie coffee shops lately, and become enamored of the presentation of my cappuccino. Phoenix Coffee on Lee Rd Juma on Chagrin