We can read in the NZ Herald about a family that is trying to go rubbish free for a year. They are keeping track of every little plastic thingy that comes on a loaf of bread to the thin layer of 
plastic the butcher snuck in to their meat order last week.
Trying to be ethical, environmentally friendly and economical with the resources we have is a challenge. So many things we do not even think of!
What of using a ballpoint pen.
It's not surprising to hear that in 2005 bic sold its one hundred billionth pen, when you consider just how many of their pens you might have owned, borrowed or even stolen.
What then happens to all of those ball point pens? They end up with all those disposable diapers and their respective contents contaminating all they come in to contact with!
While the only solution I know to the baby situation is cloth diapers or early-onset potty training, there is a solution for the ballpoint pen pile up.
Fountain pens: sheer elegance, an attitude of writing that many of us have never known. While
there are many ways of refilling older pens: levers or capillary action, etc. new pens often take cartridges which could end up in the same landfill/dump as that other stuff.
This is where the converter comes in.
A converter allows a cartridge pen to fill from bottled ink so the owner can take advantages of the many colours available. I even mix the colours a bit and just this week I even discovered fragrant ink! Who knew?
Michael Covington reckons fountain pens are most economical too.
plastic the butcher snuck in to their meat order last week.Trying to be ethical, environmentally friendly and economical with the resources we have is a challenge. So many things we do not even think of!
What of using a ballpoint pen.
It's not surprising to hear that in 2005 bic sold its one hundred billionth pen, when you consider just how many of their pens you might have owned, borrowed or even stolen.
What then happens to all of those ball point pens? They end up with all those disposable diapers and their respective contents contaminating all they come in to contact with!
While the only solution I know to the baby situation is cloth diapers or early-onset potty training, there is a solution for the ballpoint pen pile up.
Fountain pens: sheer elegance, an attitude of writing that many of us have never known. While
there are many ways of refilling older pens: levers or capillary action, etc. new pens often take cartridges which could end up in the same landfill/dump as that other stuff.This is where the converter comes in.
A converter allows a cartridge pen to fill from bottled ink so the owner can take advantages of the many colours available. I even mix the colours a bit and just this week I even discovered fragrant ink! Who knew?
Michael Covington reckons fountain pens are most economical too.
Fountain pens need not be expensive, compared to other usable pens. (I exclude disposable ballpoints that require super-hard pressure and produce ugly writing.)A cheap but serviceable rollerball or ballpoint pen costs at least $2, and you're likely to lose it or have it wander away within a month or two. That means that in two years, you'll spend perhaps $25 on pens. That same $25 will buy you a quite usable fountain pen and enough ink for several years.
Even a high-end fountain pen, allowing $200 for pen, ink, and possible repairs, is cheaper over its useful life (20 to 40 years) than cheap ballpoints. After all, $200 spread over 20 years comes to 19 cents per week.
So along with my love for writing implements with class, I find that fountain pens are also environmentally friendly and economical. What a package!
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