Ray Roewert, Steven Trujillo, Tim Young, Jeanny House, Mark Knight and Candace Myers
These biographies are shown in the order in which they were received. Use Previous and Next at the top and bottom of each page to move through them, or pick a name from the list of all biographies.
Ray
Roewert
Hi
gang. My name is Ray Roewert.
I currently
live in Clearwater Florida, where I have been since 1973.
Originally from Chicago, I am a Yankee in a strange land.
My first
fountain pen was a cheapo Parker that I bought on a whim
some time ago. Although I loved the way it wrote, I quickly
tired of it's tendency to leak at the most inopportune times,
and threw it away. About a year ago I was looking at a friend's
fountain pen and mentioned that I really like the way they
write and that I would love to have a nice one some day.
He offered to sell me a couple of his. For a nice price
I found myself the owner of a beautiful black Parker Sonnet,
and a Black Sheaffer Prelude. Since then I have acquired
another Sonnet, several more preludes, a host of Watermans
(Love those Hemispheres!), a gorgeous Diplomat, and several
others.
A few
months ago I decided to obtain a couple of vintage pens
to add to my collection. I got a nice deal on a pair of
mint Parker 21s, and a mint Parker 51. I was amazed at how
nice they wrote! Since then I've added several more 21s
and 51s to my stable, as well as a handful of Esterbrooks,
a Sheaffer Valient, and a Parker vacumatic. I am now a confirmed
junkie, and am a candidate for the pen addiction wing at
the Betty Ford clinic.
What
I really like about this hobby is the people. I used to
collect tobacco pipes, but really got tired of the snobbery
of the other collectors. I don't find this in pen people.
The warmth and camaraderie, and willingness to help is certainly
a hallmark of this hobby!
My next
goal is to learn how to repair and restore vintage pens
on my own. Especially vacumatics. Time to break down and
buy "Da Book" I guess... and a few tools!
Other than pens I love to read, listen to Jazz and Classical
music, and I spend a lot of time in Biblical studies.
Cheers!
Steven
Trujillo
I was
born in May, 1967. I joined the Pentrace snail list in March,
2001. I used fountain pens during the years 1982-1985, then
stopped. I blame the UniBall 0.5 mm ball pen.
Last
year, I was given an Aurora "Ipsilon" Metallic
fountain pen as a Christmas gift. That pen and a co-worker's
fountain-pen enthusiasm got me started again, using my old
pens and buying a few new ones. I wouldn't say I'm a serious
collector; I don't specialize in a brand, type, or era.
I just buy what I like and what I can afford. My two favorites
are a Shaeffer purse pen from the '50's and some kind of
Shaeffer (see? I don't even know enough terminology at this
point to describe it) from the '40's that are on (ahem)
"extended loan" from my mom and dad, respectively.
The other day I realized I am about as old now as my father
was when he got the Shaeffer; it's interesting to use an
artifact that ties me to him across 50-something years.
The purse pen carries the same significance and is also
simply lovely.
I grew
up in Santa Fe but now live in Albuquerque (New Mexico).
In between I lived in Indiana, Southern California, Southern
Arizona, and Central Texas. I'm a mechanical engineer who
does mostly experimental work, primarily in the areas of
fluid and heat flow. Outside work, I have more interests
than time. For fun I race cars (at the local/regional club
level). I collect things: music (LP's & CD's), USDA
Agriculture yearbooks, and Tom McGuane first editions. I
read books (favorites: Tom McGuane, Ivan Turgenev; my interest
in Richard Dawkins is waning) and watch movies (all sorts,
avoiding modern blockbuster types). I hike and camp and
bike, and have spent several hundred man-hours hunting the
wily trout. I cook, and plan our household meals to reflect
the regional cooking of the current locale for the Formula
1 auto racing circuit throughout the year (Typically 16-18
countries, shifting every two weeks. Results vary. Sometimes
ingredients are hard to track down in New Mexico [e.g.,
Malaysian], and sometimes it is difficult to strongly define
a national cuisine [e.g., "American food"]). I
carefully nest parentheses, brackets, and braces.
Thanks
for the opportunity to join this community.
Tim Young
Hi,
my name is Tim Young and I am 24 years old. I graduated
this past December from Campbell University with a BA in
History with a minor in Government. I hope to pursue a Master's
degree this fall. I have ambitions for a PhD in International
Relations but I'll have to gauge my burn out level when
the time comes for that.
I have
loved pens since my sister gave me a Cross Classic Century
pen and pencil set when I was in eighth grade. I am not
a collector; I choose to put my pens to work. My interest
varies from roller balls to the dreaded ballpoints - which
I must admit to using on occasion - though I prefer more
traditional or classic styled pens. I have only used cartridges
with my pens; one day I might take the time to use a converter
with "real" ink. My first fountain pen of any
value was a Waterman Hemisphere, which is now the only pen
I own with a medium nib; I prefer a fine nib - the best
for taking lecture notes.
I would
have to say that my favorite pens are my Cross Century Classic
fountain pen and a Parker 75. Both have matte finishes and
seem to be excellent performers so far. I can't leave out
my Parker Sonnet. I have the Sonnet (black lacquer) in all
three modes: fountain pen, roller ball and ballpoint. Parker's
Inflection is a nice fountain pen; I have it in black lacquer
(ok, I'm boring I should broaden my choice of colors).
In addition
to pens, I have a love of history - especially American
history. I am fascinated with World War II and the Cold
War. I admit that I am a news junkie; I keep abreast of
current events and politics daily. International Relations/Foreign
Policy is another keen interest of mine. I like to read
anything related to history, politics, or foreign policy,
but my interests are not at all limited to only those areas.
I am also an avid movie watcher/critic (aren't we all?).
I like to run and play tennis. I have done many 5 and 10
K's.
Jeanny
rhymes with Penny. Oddly enough, most people don't know this.
My life has been scarred by a constant stream of mispronunciation
if people see my name first or misspelling if they hear it
first. We all have our burdens to bear <heavy martyred
sigh with a big grin>.
I grew
up in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and though I have moved far
from there, I still have cheddar in my veins and Green Bay
Packer paraphenalia in my house. Our family took time out
for travel and experience, so I got to live with a Mexican
family for three weeks when I was 11. We lived in London
for a year when I was 13, I lived with a family in Madrid
the summer I turned 16, and was thoroughly infected by the
travel bug. I would do much more of it if I had the time
and the money.
After
college, I bounced around a bit, looking for the career
that was right for me. I tried politics, charity, and education
and finally found the call that was right for me and ended
up combining all three. I was ordained to ministry in the
United Church of Christ in 1987. Since then, I've served
churches in suburban Detroit, Janesville (Need I name the
state? A true pen-o-phile will know!), and now, Rock Springs,
Wyoming (www.firstrock.org).
I bought
my first fountain pen in April, 1999. Since then, I've bought
more, sold some, made mistakes on ebay, and learned to appreciate
this strange and wonderful online pen community.
If I'm
not playing with pens, I might be reading mysteries, especially
Dennis Lehane, Robert Crais, S.J. Rozan, Harlan Coben, Lise
McClendon, Katy Munger, Steve Hamilton, William Kent Krueger
and a few others. I might also be watching West Wing or
NYPD Blue, surfing the web, or indulging a new interest
-- learning a little about NASCAR. (I can't help it; a friend
has infected me with the NASCAR virus. I have no idea why.)
I make
an eastward trek each year to attend a theological colloquy
on Cape Cod and to visit fountain pen mecca -- Fountain
Pen Hospital in New York. Other than that, vacations tend
to be opportunities to get together with siblings and niblings,
mostly around holidays.
Mark Knight (MarkK)
I have
a small but growing collection of pens and live in the suburbs
of Boston with my wife and two sons. I am a consultant with
a "big 5" company and love my work. We moved to
the USA from England (temporarily at first) over six years
ago and have since made Boston our home after over three
and a half years living in Florida (Go Gators!).
I have
always liked using a nice pen at work rather than a disposable
pen from the stationary supply. I often misplaced cheap
pens so bought myself a Parker rollerball. Not wanting to
lose my pen, I always made sure I knew where it was. It
was a good solution since I got to use a pen I liked and
I always had a pen with me when I needed one. After a few
years I would eventually lose my pen and have to start the
search for a new pen that spoke to me in some way.
A few
years ago I bought a titanium Cross Townsend but found that
I kept getting some annoying niggles with it. I eventually
bought a Waterman Carene but then fixed the problems with
the Cross. This left me with a dilemma since I now had two
pens but only needed one to write with, so I decided to
rotate the pens. This was the thin end of the wedge. Since
I was now committed to pen rotation there was no reason
not to buy other pens - and so it started . . . . . I now
have a mixture of contemporary and vintage pens and enjoy
using all of them. I am not a pen collector, just someone
who likes using different pens and reading about pens .
. . . . OK, maybe I am a collector. My favorite pen is my
Marlen XXI.
Hello
everyone! My name is Candace Myers and I am from Grove City
(a.k.a. GroveTucky), Ohio. I will turn the "Big 3-0"
in August, an event that depresses me as my parents are
still thirty in my mind . I live with my D.H., a 3 year
old daughter, an 8 year old son, a pug, an elderly and neurotic
cat, and two step-daughters (part-time) ages 12 and 10.
I graduated from Capital University in 1996 with a Bachelor's
of Science in Nursing after deciding I didn't want to wait
tables forever (little did I know that I would still clean
houses and cook at work LOL). Yes, I did go by Candy for
ages, but I figured the ponytail, little white jumper, and
the fact that I looked 16 were too much in nursing clinicals
("Hi! My name is Candy and I'll be your student nurse
today!" Add the perky lilt to your voice and you'll
see what I mean). For some reason, I decided to specialize
in psychiatric nursing-- when my family objected, I told
them it was a good way to expand my dating pool. When I
did meet my DH at work (no, he wasn't a patient), they took
delight in informing everyone that we met at the mental
health center.
My first
fountain pen was a Conklin Crescent filler. I had read my
great-grandma's diaries from 1917-1919 and adored her penmanship.
I went off to find a pen that would give my writing charachter
(having been a pen fanatic since middle-school). I now own
several pens, Parker, Retro-51, Waterman, Pelikan, Namiki,Cross,
and two lifetimes. Most are vintage. My latest pen (thank
you Uncle Sam) is an Aiken Lambert with a flex nib. I rotate
pens frequently (with 50-70 pages of documentation a week,
I can rotate lots LOL), my only gripe is having to use black
ink ALL THE TIME!! I adore the Blue Suede Private Reserve
ink, but seldom get to use color-- maybe now I can! Hopefully,
between baseball, toilet-training, paperwork, and general
duties, I can write some letters!
Jeanny
rhymes with Penny. Oddly enough, most people don't know this.
My life has been scarred by a constant stream of mispronunciation
if people see my name first or misspelling if they hear it
first. We all have our burdens to bear <heavy martyred
sigh with a big grin>.