Well, it's time to say hello to other stylophiles and officially join this community. I have been an avid pen collector (of primarily new and LE pens) for about 5 years. There was a slight itch when my wife bought me a Pelikan 600 series rollerball, but the itch turned into a major case of the hives when a pen collector friend from Ann Arbor gave me an OMAS rollerball for my 50th birthday. And now, there's no hope for me. I am totally devoted to this hobby.
I am a forensic psychiatrist, practicing in Manhattan, Connecticut and, sometimes, in other parts of the country. I am constantly interviewing people, in or out of prison, during custody battles, lawsuits, you name it - any time psychiatry and the law interface. All my interviews are done with a fountain pen, and, as I did with my clothes when I was in elementary school, I get my pen and chosen ink ready for the next day, the night before.
I grew up in Brooklyn, New York, lived on Long Island and now live in a 300+ year-old home in Western Connecticut. I commute to Manhattan only twice a week, and work for Child Protective Services in Connecticut on the other days. I absolutely love my work, - especially the fascinating cases as well as the challenge of communicating psychiatric terminology in the courtroom, certainly "foreign territory" to most physicians.
My other passion, for some inexplicable reason, is Ireland. I have been there 4 times and a fifth comes up early in 2001. I now have friends and colleagues there and have travelled all over. I can't explain this deep and abiding love for the country, being a wiseguy Jewish kid from Brooklyn - unless you believe in past lives. And as a respected physician and court appointed expert, I'm not about to espouse THAT belief! So I don't understand this love for Ireland and its people, but I just give in to it, as I do with my pens.
And in that department, I love OMAS and Aurora pens especially. I have a few Watermans (Carenes, and Edson and the Serenite) and recently have come to appreciate the feel and quality of the ST Duponts. I read all the pen books and the histories of the great companies. And I hang out at the Fountain Pen Hospital too much. The best part of this hobby - aside from the many pleasures of the pens themselves - is that I have met so many wonderful people - cyberspacially as well as in person. And I am so enriched because of that. So, let's talk.
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