A surprising writing friend

We’ve all been there, right? The drawer at home that is so chock full of pens, pencils and other assorted detritus that it’s difficult to open, never mind find what you’re looking for?

When we renovated our study at home, one of the key things to accomplish was sort through the drawers in the old desk that was being replaced. I have to be honest: I was shocked at some of the stuff I found. Nothing scandalous, just a mountain of unused pens, sticky notes, and other pieces of stationery that had accumulated over the years.

That’s too passive. That I had accumulate over the years.

I committed to buying no more pens or stationery until at least a sizeable chunk of that drawer’s contents had been used up. This meant using pens I wasn’t familiar with and writing on post-it notes that I didn’t like. Oh the horror! But I tell you know, it’s thrown up a few welcome surprises.

One in particular: I’ve fallen in love with some ballpoint pens I picked up in Tokyo about fives years ago. I got them in one of the many Daiso outlets, the Japanese equivalent of a UK ‘pound store’, but with infinitely more useful stock. I even remember where I bought them – the Daiso store on Takeshita Street in Harajuku. Takeshita Street (pictured above) is constantly rammed, especially on a Sunday. The local Daiso was therefore especially busy and I left with a heft bag of goods.

These particular pens came in a set of five for 100 yen and I had the vague intention of giving them to someone as a small gift. Somehow they made it into the desk and were never gifted. I’m delighted. On reflection, I think I can blame Daiso for the state of my accumulated stationery. With prices so low, I flung things into my basket without a second thought.

For pens that were so cheap, they write beautifully. I’m now sad that once they’re gone, they’re gone. While we’re booked to visit Tokyo again in April 2021, it’s highly doubtful we’ll be able to go. What with the global pandemic and all.

And such is life. I didn’t remember the pens existed a while ago and now I’m already missing them. Time to focus on enjoying them while they last. Each time I pick one up, it’s a lovely reminder of our time in Tokyo. That’s the important thing.

(Photo by Laurentiu Morariu on Unsplash)