Some Rollerball Pens

As a big, although relatively recent, fan of fountain pens one might reasonably wonder why I still buy and use rollerball pens. A good quality rollerball has a lot to like: good ink flow over a variety of papers, low maintenance, convenience over fountain pens. In general it is more convenient to carry a rollerball when out and about.

These are some of my favorite rollerball pens.

Lamy Safari

The Lamy Safari rollerball uses the same body and cap as the Safari fountain pen. The grip section is slightly different because unlike the fountain pen the rollerball can be used in any rotational orientation.

As with the fountain pen I like just about everything about the design of the Safari. It is constructed out of sturdy ABS plastic and, though its very lightweight, it looks like you could run it over with a tank and it would keep on writing.

The Safari looks great and works great. As it should — it costs nearly $30. But Lamy puts together one heck of a pen. This one will last a lifetime.

Lamy Tipo

The Tipo, like the Safari, is an excellent rollerball pen. The quality of the materials and construction is typical Lamy: superior.

The Tipo is not quite as comfortable to use as the Safari but it is more convenient. It's a retractable rather than a capped pen. The Tipo is also one of the least expensive of the Lamy pens, running about $10-12.

Bottom line: the Lamy Tipo is a really good everyday carry pen.

Pilot Precise V7 RT

The Pilot Precise is an excellent performing pen at a low price point. It is also one of the few pens I use that you can buy at a store like Walmart or Target.

There is a V5 0.5mm version as well as the V7 0.7mm one I have. The V7 puts down a good solid line without stalling or skipping. I haven't had a single problem with the performance of the Precise. The grip is comfortable and being a retractable it is a convenient carry pen.

The construction of the Precise, though, is basic and pretty cheap. The clip feels like it might rip right off if you pull it out of your shirt pocket too hard. But it does get the job done and you can't really expect fine engineering in a sub-$3 pen, right?

Wrong...

Pilot Hi-Tec-C

The Pilot Hi-Tec-C is a phenomenal pen. You are not going to find this one at Walmart. But, if you go online to an importer like JetPens you can get a Hi-Tec-C for less than a Precise. This pen puts most pens available in the US to shame.

I have three Hi-Tec-C's. I have a standard one in black at 0.5mm. And I have a black and a blue-black of the Maica version; both of those are 0.4mm. The Maica is sort of a high-end Hi-Tec-C. It has a more refined body with more character and a more comfortable grip section. And... Believe it or not the Maica sells for less than the standard Hi-Tec-C: $2.50 versus $3.

It is amazing to me that Pilot can make a pen of this quality for this price. There really isn't a rollerball at any price point that beats the performance of the Hi-Tec-C. This is a pen you can absolutely rely on.

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Comics

I have been putting off doing a post about the comics I read for a long time. I suppose I figured that most people wouldn't care either because they aren't 'comics people' or because they are comics people and I don't really like the comics most comics people like.

I'll start with my must-read comics.

My all-time favorite comic is Usagi Yojimbo. I have to get one thing out of the way before talking about Usagi; the main character, Miyamoto Usagi, is an anthropomorphized samurai rabbit — 'usagi' is the Japanese word for rabbit. Now, I know how that sounds but believe me it is an excellent comic. In my opinion it's one of the best written comics ever. The fact that the characters aren't human actually let's you identify with them as characters without some of the preconceived notions we give human characters. It works incredibly well.

In Usagi Miyamoto Usagi is a yojimbo (bodyguard for hire) wandering from village to village as a ronin (masterless samurai). Over the course of his adventures in feudal Japan we discover how he grew up and received his samurai training as well as how he became ronin.

The comic deals with themes such as honor and love and death. The author, Stan Sakai, gives life to the characters that you probably wouldn't expect from rabbits and rhinoceroses and pandas. He's been writing and drawing Usagi Yojimbo since the mid-1980's so there are many characters and overlapping story-lines in the world he has created for us. And he annotates references to previous issues and defines Japanese words to make it easy to read and follow the story arcs.

I started reading the trade paperbacks with book one and I'm currently on book sixteen. Book twenty-seven comes out in June so I have a way to go.

Honestly. Seriously. This is an excellent comic. Usagi Yojimbo is my desert island comic. I could live without all other comics as long as I have Usagi.

My second favorite comic book hero is The Batman. I don't really care for superheroes with supernatural powers. Batman is powered by money, ingenuity, muscles, and psychological damage. In general, I prefer the Batman movies and the old Adam West television series to comics because the comics have so many extra characters and weird story changes that just confuse me. But I started getting into Batman comics with the Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One graphic novels. I have also started reading the rebooted edition of Detective Comics which features Batman.

For all of the reasons that I like Batman I should like Iron Man, too. And I do like the Iron Man movies. But the crazy plethora of Iron Man comics just confuses the hell out of me. To be fair, Batman isn't much better in that department but I can stick with the one, Detective Comics, and stay on top of things pretty well.

Those are the main comics I obsess over. Here are some of my other favorites.

Saga - This is my favorite new comic. They're releasing Saga in six-issue blocks and issue twelve came out last month. At its core Saga is a love story about a young couple that come from opposite sides of an interstellar war. Saga is hilarious and superbly written and has excellent art but it is very mature and definitely not safe for work/children/people without a healthy sense of humor.

47 Ronin - 47 Ronin is a five-issue series that tells the traditional, true story of forty-seven Japanese samurai who avenge the death of their lord and master who was wrongly executed. It's a fascinating story that has been retold many times in poetry, prose, and on film. This comic version features artwork by Stan Sakai, the author/artist behind Usagi Yojimbo.

Y: The Last Man - Written by Bryan K. Vaughan, who is also the author of Saga, as similar humor and mature themes as that comic. Y: The Last Man is funny and has great art and excellent writing. It follows the story of the last man left on Earth after an 'event' wipes all of the males off the planet.

I'll finish my list of comics with a rundown of comics I'm either casually reading or haven't gotten far enough into to say if I'll stay with them.

The Walking Dead - Zombies.

Sandman - Morpheus, the King of Dreams.

Lone Wolf and Cub - More samurai stuff.

And Finally...

I have a few words about digital versus paper comics. I actually prefer digital comics to paper copies. And it's for reasons that comic book purists would most likely hate me for.

First, the convenience of finding, buying, and reading right on my iPad — and all in a matter of seconds — is just plain awesome. I don't have to wait for Amazon to send the book to my house (two whole days!). And, even better, I don't have to go deal with people in person at a comics shop. You guys know I don't really like people.

Second, I actually get too distracted when reading an entire page of panels. I prefer seeing each panel by itself so I can focus on the artwork and lettering. I find it easier to follow the story that way.

It is also a plus that I can avoid junking up the house with a bunch of old comics sitting around. I have no desire to keep a comics collection organized. This is 2013. I just don't see much point in buying paper comics.

Two Better Fountain Pens

I wrote about two cheap fountain pens previously. Here are the next two fountain pens I bought. They're both from Lamy and they are both quite a nice upgrade over the cheap pens.

Lamy Safari

The Lamy Safari was the first fountain pen I bought after trying out the inexpensive Petit1 and Preppy pens. It was my first 'real' fountain pen. I have the standard Safari in blue with a black medium steel nib.

I love this pen.

The Safari is the mainstay of the Lamy lineup and like all Lamy pens it is built like a tank. A finely machined German tank. The body is molded out of high quality ABS plastic but it doesn't feel 'plasticky'. All of the parts fit together perfectly.

This pen writes smoothly and without skipping although, to be completely fair, I use high-end inks from Sailor and Pilot that are known for their great performance. The Safari is quite comfortable to write with. I do prefer to use it un-posted because the edge of the cap sits right where the pen rests on my hand. This is probably due to how I hold the pen — further back up the pen than most people would.

Bottom line, this is a great pen. I can see why it is so popular and some people have collections full of Safaris. I highly recommend the Safari for everyday writing for any pen enthusiast.

Lamy Nexx

The Nexx is an interesting pen. It is less expensive than the Safari but its just as well-built and comfortable to write with. If you want Lamy quality in a more affordable package the Nexx may be just right.

I have the Nexx with red cap and I've got a silver-colored fine nib on it.

The build quality of the Nexx, even though it is one of the least expensive of the Lamy fountain pens, is excellent. And for some the writing experience may be even more comfortable than with the Safari. The grip section is made of a softer, rubberized material that makes it better on the hands for extended writing sessions.

A big plus of owning multiple Lamy pens is that many of them use the same ink converter and take the standard Lamy replacement nibs. This gives them an amount of customizability. It's much less expense to swap out nibs for different writing experience than buying a whole new pen.

I do have two small quibbles with the Nexx. First, there is no ink window to see how much ink is left in the converter. Second, the cap, though attractive and functional when capped, does not post well. Because the barrel is triangular at the end and the cap is cylindrical there just isn't enough contact to keep the cap posted. I usually just write without the cap posted but that is a slight annoyance.

Despite those small problems the Lamy Nexx is a great pen. It makes an excellent and affordable addition to one's everyday carry.

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Disney World Must-See List

I have been to Disney World quite a few times but I never get tired of it. For me Disney World is a perfect combination of nostalgia from my childhood and excitement to see what's new. And now I get to see my daughter experience Disney for herself.

I thought it might be fun – as she just got back from her second trip to Disney World, this time with her grandparents – to revisit my list of must-see Disney attractions.

Note: This is my list. Beatrix will have to write her own blog post with her must-see list someday.

The Magic Kingdom

Of the main four parks at Disney World, The Magic Kingdom is still my favorite. There are just so many things to do and each of the 'lands' has such a unique personality.

The Jungle Cruise – Yes, the animatronics are outdated and fake looking. Yes, the jokes are terrible and cheesy. But its still such a great ride. Truly a Disney classic.

Pirates of the Caribbean – Pirates has been my favorite ride at Disney World since I was a little kid. The pirates themselves are looking pretty dated now. And I suppose I am a purist but I really don't like that its all about Captain Jack Sparrow now. But nostalgia trumps. I still can't walk through Adventureland without setting sail with the Pirates.

Country Bear Jamboree – If I went into the Country Bear Jamboree today, with fresh, adult eyes, I would most likely see it for what it is: mechanical bears singing to hillbilly music. But it's impossible for me to see it without the many times I saw it as a child coloring my perspective and because of that I love it. And Beatrix loves it too wich makes it that much more enjoyable for me.

Frontierland Shootin' Arcade – I don't think there is any better way to spend $0.50 and five minutes than the Shootin' Arcade. Did you know that there used to be another shooting arcade in the enormous, original arcade in the Contemporary Hotel? My brother and I know that and we have mourned it's loss for about twenty years now.

The Haunted Mansion – It is true that I have many fond memories of the Haunted Mansion from when I was a kid but it also holds up remarkably well in its own right. It is funny, just a little bit scary, and they recently gave the queue a big refresh to keep things interesting.

TTA Peoplemover – I mean, c'mon. The Peoplemover is a classic. It's an excellent way to get off your feet and out of the sun for a while and it's almost always a walk-on. And if Space Mountain is closed for maintenance you can see the inside of the roller coaster ride with the lights on.

Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin – For a 'kids' ride the Spin is one hell of a lot of fun for adults. Shooting lasers? Defeating Zurg? Of course its a blast!

Special Mention – Main Street Electrical Parade – Of all of the Disney Parades this is by far my favorite. The music is fun, the floats are great, and it's at night so it isn't terribly hot. And when I was a kid I got to go on one of the behind-the-scenes tours and see the building where they store and prep the parade units. Pretty cool.

EPCOT: Future World & World Showcase

The focus of Epcot has always been more on the experience, and even learning things, over rides and entertainment. That was what Magic Kingdom was for. That's changed a bit recently but the layout of the pavilions and the emphasis on 'edutainment' shows that Epcot isn't simply a place to shove Mickey Mouse down your throat.

Soarin' – This is a new ride for Epcot and a new reason for people to visit the Land pavilion who wouldn't have before. The queue and the engineering of the ride itself are just as cool as the ride experience. You have got to ride this one but make sure you get a FastPass. It's a crazy long wait.

Living With the Land – Ok. I am definitely in the minority on this one but I really like it. It's a relaxing walk-on ride that falls more on the edu- side of edutainment. But you see a lot of cool stuff and may actually come away learning something. Also? Hydroponics.

Mission: SPACE – This is just a great ride. I have only done the 'rough' version and I don't think I would want to do the other one now. If you want to feel what it is like to go into space this is your chance. It's supercool.

Morocco – Morocco is one of my favorites due to the attention to detail given to everything in the pavilion. Everything from the tiles on the walls to the winding path through the market really makes you feel like you are in Marrakech proper. Also: this is the only pavilion paid for and still maintained by the country it is based on.

Japan – The Japan pavilion was one of my favorites when I was a kid. I loved the small department store. Now I enjoy it more for the atmosphere and the architecture.

China – The China pavilion is intriguing to me because there is so much more to it that it appears. The design and architecture is fascinating. You should definitely take extra time to explore China. I always discover something I haven't seen before.

Mexico – When I was young I truly adored the boat ride in the Mexico pavilion. Unlike some of my other favorites from childhood, however, this one just doesn't hold up even with it's recent refresh. I still love the pavilion as a whole, though. It's a great atmosphere with cool shops and the restaurant is fantastic. Adulthood, huh?

Special Mention – Illuminations – Fireworks, lasers, fire, music. It is perfect all around and a definite must-see. Grab a seat early at the cantina across from the Mexico pavilion for a great view and a great margarita.

Hollywood Studios

Hollywood Studios is the one park of the four that I could skip if I had to. But there are some gems there and there is a lot to explore and discover.

Toy Story Mania – This is a newer ride and although at first glance it seems very similar to the Space Ranger Spin in Tomorrowland it's quite different. Its more about games than just shooting targets and it does the spin part for you. But it is extremely popular so you really need to FastPass it.

Studio Backlot Tour – I like seeing the behind-the-scenes, how'd-they-do-it stuff from the movies. This one could be pretty boring if you don't care about that stuff but they've got Catastrophe Canyon back there, too.

Great Movie Ride – This was one of the original rides when the park opened as Disney/MGM Studios and it shows. The animatronics are pretty hokey – see especially Tarzan swinging by on his 'vine' – but it is a cool look at a small selection of great films.

Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular – Do you like Indiana Jones? Yes. Do you like stunts? Yes. Do you like pyrotechnics and crashing cars? Yes, of course. Then the Stunt Spectacular is the show for you. Go see it. You won't be disappointed.

Star Tours – Star Tours has recently been updated to show more of the stuff from the Star Wars prequels. But, unlike how they shoehorned Captain Jack into Pirates this one actually doesn't bother me. It's still an excellent ride. You can FastPass it but if you go in the evening it is almost a walk-on.

Muppet Vision 3D – In my opinion a good indicator of whether someone is a decent American is whether or not they like the Muppets. I love the Muppets. And this 3D show is typical Muppet fare with typical Muppet humor. A definite must-see.

Special Mention – Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater – Large cheeseburger, fries, chocolate milkshake. All while sitting in a car-shaped booth and watching sci-fi and monster movie trailers on the big screen. It is just about the perfect meal. You will want to make reservations.

Animal Kingdom

In terms of atmosphere and attention to detail Animal Kingdom is the best of the four parks. And since opening it has grown considerably and is worthy of spending at least an entire day there.

Kilimanjaro Safari's – This is just a great ride. Think Jurassic Park but with actual, real animals and not getting eaten. You will definitely want to FastPass this one. It is very popular.

Pagani Forest Exploration Trail, Maharajah Jungle Trek – I put these together because they are pretty similar. But you should do both of them. Highlights include gorillas, tigers, and enormous bats a la Temple of Doom.

Special Mention – Festival of the Lion King – I was kind of skeptical of this show before I saw it but it is really good. They combine live actors and puppetry and it is very well done. You will have to wait in a pretty big crowd for a while to get it but its worth it.

While you're there...

Since you're at Disney World already you should take an hour or two and hop on the Monorail and check out the big hotels – the Contemporary, the Polynesian, and the Grand Floridian. If money were no object we would stay at the Polynesian every time we go to Disney.

There it is. My list of must-see, must-do Disney World attractions. These are permanently on my Disney checklist.

Two Cheap Fountain Pens

Pilot Petit1

The Pilot Petit1 is one of the least expensive pens I own. It is a brand-name fountain pen but it is available for less than $4. The Petit1 is part of a series from Pilot that includes a felt-tip – what pilot calls a 'sign pen' – called the Petit2 and a brush pen, the Petit 3. Each one is available in eight colors with body accents to match.

The Petit1 is definitely petite. It is too small to be usable without the cap posted. Once posted it fits the hand fine. When capped the pen fits in a pocket easily. It is a straightforward design that is neither terribly attractive nor is it ugly or distracting. The silver-colored nib complements the design.

The pen uses Pilot ink cartridges so it is easily refillable. And the cartridges are not expensive. The ink itself – I have the black – is fairly dark and dries quickly.

The performance of the Petit1 is much better than one has a right to expect from a $4 pen. Ink flow from the fine nib is smooth and quick to start without skipping. If it came in a medium or broad nib it might be perfect. Regardless, it is an excellent pen. I definitely recommend this as a cheap carry pen or for fountain pen beginners.

Platinum Preppy

When I first tried the Platinum Preppy on high-quality Rhodia paper, I hated it. It was scratchy, noisy, and the ink was not nearly dark or saturated enough. It was terrible. Then I tried it on some cheap notebook paper because, hey, it's a cheap pen, right?

That completely changed my opinion of the Preppy. With its medium nib and black, good-flowing ink it performs really well on crappy, more absorbent paper. To be sure, though, it is still a cheap pen and it shows. It is mostly clear plastic, not unlike the Petit1. The Preppy still has an audible drag across the page. And the cartridge is sealed with a metal ball that, once the seal is broken, rattles around in the cartridge.

It does have a nice size and can be used comfortably with or without posting the cap. When capped the pen is unremarkable and might be mistaken for any number of clear-bodied ballpoints.

Given it's performance on regular, cheap paper and how quickly it starts writing if kept capped when not in use I give the Preppy a recommend but only as an inexpensive and utilitarian carry pen. Personally, I would only take the Preppy over the Petit1 if you truly can't use the Petit1's fine nib.

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