I definitely prefer to write notes on paper. I prefer to write drafts on paper before I put words online as much as possible. I like the feel of pen or pencil on paper. I feel that my thoughts flow better, maybe even more gracefully when I put pen on paper. I do find the ritual of writing by hand to be soothing, a bit more relaxing.

Even this prompt, which I am now posting online, was written first on paper. In this case, I jotted down my initial ideas in my personal journal. For me, it's just the natural thing to do. I first develop and expand my ideas in paper, then I copy them, maybe with some minor editing, onto the online medium. That's what has worked for me for years. It still works for me today. It is an approach that allows me to reflect and think.

Plus, writing on paper let's me decide if I really want to publish online or not. It is a small precaution against publishing impulsively online. If it is a journal entry, it may stay in my journal. If it's just a rough draft written on loose paper, and I deem it not worthy of publication, it is very easy to destroy that rough draft and leave no evidence behind. You can't say the same thing about online publishing. In the online world, once it's published, it's pretty much permanent. So there's another advantage to paper: in a pinch, it can be destroyed,

And yet paper, as long as some care is taken, can be more permanent and accessible than electronic devices, All it takes is a loss of power, and no more electronic notes. With paper, as long as I have a candle, a working pen or pencil, and paper, I can still write, and I can choose whether to share what I write or not. This idea applies to books as well, but that is another note for another time.

To all the micromanages and bully coworkers I have to put up with, and I've put up with previously, a copy of Robert Sutton's Book The No Asshole Rule. I can only hope they might actually crack it open and learn a thing or two from reading it.

I do some pen collecting. I saw the question--do you collect pens, and how do you collect them--in a blog a while back. I gave it some thought, and I realized that I do collect pens. Now, I do not collect expensive or high end pens. Those are too expensive, and I do have to live on a librarian's salary.

I like pens that work for me. As I think about it, I collect two kinds of pens. I have a few nice pens that I use as my personal pens, signature pens. Then I have pens I use on a daily basis as my work pens. I use my work pens for more extensive writing, such as writing on my personal journal. Now, I may use one of my nice pens to write in my journal, usually when I am not at home, but overall, I use my daily use pens as my basic writing tool.

I have gradually built a small collection of the personal/signature pens. I keep those in my jewelry box, and I try to rotate their use. Currently, I am favoring my Waterman Harley Davidsons: one is a fountain pen, and the other one is a roller ball with a nice wolves scene on the barrel. The fountain was a lost and found unclaimed item in one of the libraries I used to work at; it was going to be discarded. I claimed it. It is a bit worn, but with new ink cartridges, it has been working well for me. In fact, I've used it to write in my journal a few times. It has become a favorite pen. The roller ball was a present from my better half a while back. I do have some nice ballpoints as well, but I do not use them as much.

As for my casual/daily writing, I tend to prefer gel pens or roller balls. Pilot G2's (like the ones in the photo), ones in different colors, are ones I do like. They have a nice point, thin, the ink is usually smooth, and the color variety is nice too.

So, that's a bit about the pens I collect and use.

A hat tip to the Goldspot Pens blog, which gave me the inspiration to write this. It was a nice bit of serendipity that Plinky had a prompt asking about stuff I collect too.

Ciaphas Cain is one of my favorite heroes, and reading a novel in this Warhammer 40K series is always a pleasure. This one is the fifth in the series, and so far, I am enjoying it.

I would spend an hour watching a special on cats. In fact, I already know what show I can put for the answer. I recently discovered Cats 101 on Animal Planet. I just found it neat how they tell you all sorts of facts about different cat breeds. The only catch is that it is mostly about specific breeds. In other words, nothing much about cats like mine which are pretty much mongrels adopted from the local shelter. But still, the show is very interesting.

The Dumbass Pseudo Parenting Award
This is the exact opposite of the "Real Parenting Award." If you are a sorry dumb ass whose only achievement was to breed (barely), and then you neglect your kids on a regular basis so that they become pretty much feral animals, you are eligible for a Dumb Ass Pseudo Parent Award. Because you just because you gave birth to them or knocked up some female who then gave birth to your spawn does not make you a parent. You may be eligible for this if you do things like this:

1. You allow your little spawn to run freely in the mall, supermarket or other public place where close supervision is needed. You get bonus points if your kid destroys merchandise, and a store manager has to actually come out and demand payment for your kid's destructive mayhem.
2. You leave your kids unsupervised at your home. "It was just a quick run to the Quicky Mart to get some smokes."
3. You willfully and intentionally neglect your kids.
4. Your kids never learn to take responsibility for themselves when they do something wrong? Why? Because you raise them with a false sense of entitlement where they grow up thinking they can do no wrong.

good manners and common decent behavior
Good manners seems to be something that is going the way of the dodo. And yet, it is always important to know how to behave in the company of other people. Treating others with respect and dignity is important, and it will likely get you further in life than behaving rudely. Also some basic manners in terms of what to do when visiting someone else's home, when you go out to a restaurant, whether it be the local fast food joint or the five star place, how to carry out a conversation politely, and all the other little details of having good manners.

Self-discipline
It is important to exercise self-discipline. This includes knowing that you can't always get what you want right away. So you work up to it. You may need to delay that instant gratification for a while in order to get a larger goal. And to get to the goal, you need to know how to focus and how to be disciplined in attaining that goal.

A good core set of values
Notice that I say values, as opposed to simply morals you may get from a religion. You can be a decent and moral person just fine without religion, or you can be very amoral with it. Below I also mention questioning everything, which goes with this.

Some values I would include on that list: honesty and fair dealing with others. If you give your word or you make a promise, you keep it. Your word is your bond. To expand further, you should be the type of person where a handshake and a promise is good enough. It may sound old fashioned, but it is important to be able to keep your word as well as having the reputation of keeping your word. This goes with being reliable and trustworthy.

I would also add not looking down on others because you think they may be beneath you. I think the best way to put it is how my father taught it to me. Just because someone is a plumber or a bricklayer, it does not mean that they have less value in society or that they are not smart or wise. Being educated (formally) does not automatically mean you are smarter or superior.

Treat others as you would be treated. The golden rule.

Embrace diversity. Racism and bigotry are the excuses of the ignorant and the coward.

Stand up for what is right. Do not rush to speak up, but when you do, make sure you are doing so for what is right.

Continue educating yourself and learning. Learning should be something you do throughout your life not only to keep up to date or well informed, but simply to expand your horizons. And along with this, keep an open mind and be willing to explore new ideas, even if those ideas and concepts may oppose your values. Do not be afraid of asking questions nor of having questions asked of you. And if needed, embrace change.

Be willing to explore new experiences. I suppose this goes along with being open minded.

Read.