Not only does it keep me busy but it is quite rewarding, personally. However, this is has put some of my projects such as the arms installation of my PG Strike on hold.

Movie Update
Today I got the chance to watch District 9 for the second time. During the initial moments a thought occurred to both myself and my cousin – could the Prawns have been humans a while back? It seems like far too much of a coincidence that Wikus perfectly under went metamorphosis into a Prawn and that the human DNA could be re-written into that of a Prawn so easily. But that is just a thought.

Inky Thoughts
With 2010 right around the corner, and not many pages left in my Moleskine 12 month Notebook diary left, I’ve been giving its successor some thought.

This is the Panoramic diary from Moleskine, a new product for 2010 in a soft flexible cover.

I’ve put this on reserve as well as one in the older format in case I am not impressed in person. However, the new format seems like it would be more productive and I can easily organise my actual “notes” into another dedicated ’skine.

Along the same topic, I have drastically restructured operation of my fountain pen collection. Both my Father’s Parker Duofold Centennial and the Waterman Edson have been flushed and put away in the top layer of the pen box. Right now, six FPs are in the top layer: Mozart FP in Gold, 146 in Plat, CdA Leman, Pelikan M1000, Parker Duofold, and the Edson.

In my display cabinet I have the Montblanc ink well back on display (no longer in use, per say) along with the Leonardo sketch pen and Mozart mechanical pencil in Platinum trim. I found I was wasting more ink the long run with the ink well and that over a long period the ink would be dehydrated. It is far more fresher straight out of the bottle.

Another interesting point is that I’ve discovered that modern bottles of Montblanc ink have a sticker right underneath them with the expiry date; all of mine have a 2013 date of expiration and should be well depleted by then.

I also ended up flushing the 149 with the OBB nib and refilled it with MB blue-black. The double-broad nib is unique enough to give inks a different tone, as it spreads the ink over a larger surface area. For example, MB racing green appears to be a far more khaki like olive-green rather than the deep black-green it normally appears to be when written with the 149 B or M nibs.

I also found this great image on flickr, from a fellow TFPN member.

I am completely loving the blue-black in my OBB and look forward to many more months of writing with it.

Family
One of my Uncles was gifted a grand piano by my Aunt for his Birthday, just yesterday, and I am really looking forward to witnessing him play. It is really quite a splendid gift for someone with a special touch.

It current sits on my desk, in the left-hand pen stand as it is essentially my ‘go-to’ pen. Not only is it comfortable to write with for many hours, but it is also a great signature nib if one needs it to be.

A close up of the wonderful bold nib is shown below,