The Value of a Pen

With the passing economic dooms, my company has limited the purchase of non-essentials, including but not limited to: pens.

As one would expect with basic economic laws, with this reduction of supply the value of the pen has gone up dramatically. Co-worker Shaun joked about having a stock pile at his desk and charging fellow employees for them… really, not that bad of an idea. Yesterday, I foolishly left work with a pen in my shirt pocket and this morning I found myself without a writing tool. I headed upstairs to talk to our administrative assistant.

Mike D: “Karen! Do you happen to have any pens?”
Karen: “I might have one or two really cheap pens under my desk here…”

She reached under the desk and pulled out a whole box of pens.

Mike D: “Whoa.”
Karen: “Don’t get excited. They’re really cheap pens.”
Mike D: “A cheap pen is better than no pen!”

It was an Office Max pen and the moment I laid pen to paper the tip jammed backwards through the pen and the conical tip support piece split down the middle. Weak.

It turns out that a cheap pen is not necessarily better than no pen.

8 thoughts on “The Value of a Pen

  • 6/26/2009 at 10:34 am
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    In high school I wrote a letter to the Bic pen company, praising how much I like their Round Stic pens in a really deranged manner. I also included a lengthy list of words that I write with their pens.

    They responded by sending me several packs of Round Stics for free!!

    I’m sure they thought I was a mental patient.

    Reply
  • 6/26/2009 at 10:37 am
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    Firstly, that’s hilarious. Did you say “The following list of words was written with your pens” and then just write a bunch of random words?

    Secondly, after the Office Max pen debacle, I got my hands on a BIC GripRoller. It is excellent. Bic is good.

    Reply
  • 6/26/2009 at 10:49 am
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    Yes, it was exactly like that. “Please see the attached list of words that I write with your pens.”

    Mosquito
    Zanzibar
    Stroganoff
    Manilla
    Oyster

    Reply
  • 6/26/2009 at 1:24 pm
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    I wrote a deranged love poem to Ricola cough drops once and got a big box of free cough drops in return, so I highly recommend this tactic.

    Reply
  • 6/26/2009 at 5:07 pm
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    I’m a fan of the Zebra Saransa gel pens. that is a luscious writing experience, let me tell you!

    Reply
  • 6/26/2009 at 11:49 pm
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    1. Schenkster – I thought you were a mental patient – seriously people, look back on Ryan’s contributions to this website: I mean, electrical tape facial hair? Industrial-strength sewing machine, Meowstro, Geometric Center of Massachusetts, line-item letter to Bic pens? Suddenly I’m not the wierdest person on this website.
    2. While Ryan’s anecdote is less than convincing, having read Sarah’s input, suddenly I’m inspired to write letters in an attempt to obtain free stuff. I’ll start with Honda motorcycles (dear Honda: I love you; give me a free ’09 CBR600RR! Love, Sander).
    3. Forget bikes and cars…does anybody have Laetiita Casta’s home address?

    Reply

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