Category Archives: Thing-a-Majigs

For the old-timey things we talk about

A Study Into Coming Out / My Reflection of a Pandemic Senior

Posted on by under Literature, Moden Literature, Thing-a-Majigs

For my independent reading book, I chose This is How it Always is by Laurie Frankel. Because of this, the voice I decided to amplify was the trans voice. My voices project is called A Study Into Coming Out, which focuses on how both remaining in the closet and coming out of it can influence both the person in the closet and the people outside of it.

Link to project here

One of the most influential ideas to come out of this, for me at least, is the idea of coming out multiple times. In movies, there’s a big build-up to this one momentous occasion, where it’s told once; then judgment day is upon them. However, my research shows that just isn’t the case. Sure, there’s the first time to their friends or the time they tell their parents that are really nerve-racking, but there’s also the thousands of times when they tell strangers. Every time they meet a new person, they have to come out. In the words of Simon Spier, “Why is straight the default?”(Allbertali). Another influential idea that I discovered was the idea of existing outside the binary. About half of my sources have to do with characters or people who come out as non-binary. It’s exactly what it says: outside the binary. People are right in that gender is a spectrum, but then some people don’t even exist on that spectrum. They hover above or around it. But just because they don’t exist on the gender spectrum we know doesn’t make them any less valid. There’s a whole world out there of demi-boys, agender people, non-binary people, genderfluid people, and genderqueer people that I didn’t even start to scratch the surface on. There’s so much left to learn.

What I hope people take away from my project is that there may be a million reasons why someone comes out or doesn’t. I also want them to know that their reaction and support(or lack thereof) makes a noticeable impact. Every person within the voices project was supported by someone in their life; that’s how they were able to grow and feel comfortable. When a person comes out to you, they may want you to be that person. On the flip side, if a person doesn’t come out to a larger group, even if you think it may help them, there may be other reasons. Above all, though, it is not your choice. Coming out is something so extremely personal to the LGBT+. By coming out, this person is choosing to announce that they are a marginalized identity, they may be attacked, but they will be themselves. That, to choose to open themselves up to discrimination, is an incredibly brave choice. It’s also one you can’t make for them. Even if you think you are helping someone, or for whatever reason you may have to do it, outing someone is extremely detrimental. All these stories prove it. So, whatever you take away from this collection, at least take away the idea that it isn’t your choice, it’s theirs.

Moving on from the project, I believe the most important thing I learned about myself at Naperville North is that it’s ok to fail. People say it all the time, but no one really wants to fail. However, North pushed and pulled at me in ways I had never been pushed or pulled. It forced me to grow. Sometimes, I couldn’t reach the benchmark. But that’s ok because I knew what I needed to work toward and that I could work harder toward it. Through Naperville North, I was able to discover that failure is not an absolute negative. It is neutral. Only what we decide to feel about failure can make us hate it or appreciate it.

Some advice I would give the class under us is to not be a senior in a global pandemic(seriously, it sucks). Besides that, something you can control would be the effort you put in. Trust me, I know that once you find out where you’re going to school, the last thing you want to complete is some busy work in classes, or write yet another essay. But do it. Even if it’s the worst thing you’ve written because you can’t be bothered, turn in something. Yes, it’s important for your grade, but it’s also important for you. It gives you a sense of finality, of “At least I turned in something”. As every senior has, I’ve been hit by senioritis. However, I kept chugging along, even if it was at the pace of a snail. I urge you to do the same.

It’s time: This is why you should use fountain pens.

Posted on by under Fountain Pens, Thing-a-Majigs

For those of you who have known me since eighth grade, you knew this was coming. Some people collect cards, and others collect snowglobes. For me, it’s the eloquent fountain pen. Now, I’m about 70% sure an image of Thomas Jefferson writing the constitution popped into your head. (And you are correct; he used a Boston safety pen to write it) However, this instrument is not a relic, it’s just as relevant today as it was 200 years ago.

This here is a diagram of how a fountain pen works. Have you ever had a pen explode in your bag, dousing everything in black or red? This is the same concept, except it’s controlled, and it will not douse your bag(most likely). in most pens, there is an ink reservoir. Some are known as bladder converters, while others are a piston.

Bladder converter on a pilot metro

Piston Converter on a Lamy Safari

Personally, I am in the realm of thought that pistons are superior. They are easier to fill. This “feeds” into the feed(see what I did there?) and distributes the ink in a controlled fashion to the nib. Because of this, less pressure is needed to remove the ink from the pen, so long writing sessions become easy-peasy lemon-squeezy, helping to knock out whatever you may need to write.

Another important aspect of the build of the pen is the country in which is it manufactured. Some pens, like Lamy, Pelikan, and MontBlanc are german which means their nibs will write broader, or thicker. On the other hand, Japanese pens, like Pilot, Platinum, and Sailor have finer lines. Personally, I use extra-fine nibs, even on Japanese pens. I love that crisp, thin line that showcases your handwriting. If you prefer a thicker line or want to fully showcase the properties of your ink, using a larger nib or a German pen may be the way to go. So now you know how the pen works. This is where the fun part begins.

The absolute best part of using fountain pens is ink. Remember in middle school, when everyone would have giant packs of Papermate flair pens because there were so many colors? Fountain pen ink comes in thousands of colors. If you want to see for yourself, check out https://www.mountainofink.com/, where there are reviews for nearly every ink on the planet. Inks can have also sorts of properties. Whether they have glitter, change color, or have really good shading, there is something for everyone. One brand, Noodler’s, has a line of bulletproof ink. Even an ink removing laser developed by MIT can’t remove it. (Yep, they tried!) Some simply have an amazing history behind them.

Tyrian Purple, for example, is one that really piqued my interest. For those of you who don’t know, Roman senators had purple robes because they were a status symbol. The dye used for them was harvested off the Phoenician coast and was extremely expensive. This ink is a recreation of that specific color. Even more interesting is that this dye doesn’t fade. Instead, it gets brighter as time goes on.

This ink, called Dark Matter, has an even more interesting story. The owner of this brand ended up getting his hands on a bottle of ink from Los Alamos, which was where the Manhattan Project took place. I own this bottle, and the color itself is really nice. While it is black, it writes like a very dark green, which adds a bit of flair to my words.

Lamy Safari(left) and Pilot Metropolitan(right)

If you have learned more than you ever wanted to know about fountain pens and wish to leave, this is your chance. However, on the slim possibility you want to get involved in this hobby, I have some great suggestions for you to start with.  The two pens I showcased earlier, the pilot metropolitan and the Lamy Safari are both dubbed the best starter pens. Personally, I prefer the nib on the pilot, but as said earlier, it all comes down to preference.

If you like the idea of the pen but don’t want to deal with the hassle of ink, try a cartridge. It’s like a disposable converter with minimal mess. However, if you want to dive right in, I highly recommend Noodler’s Dark matter for black ink, and Pilot Iroshizuko in shin-kai for blue ink. While not my favorite, Pilot Iroshizuko in kon-peki is also a fan favorite. If you want a little spice to your writing, J. Herbin’s Emerald of Chivor is a fan favorite with both color-changing and glitter properties.

For those of you out there who like to write, this may be one of the best decisions you ever make. It was for me, trust me. If you have any questions, go to these sites:

JetPens: https://www.jetpens.com/blog/the-beginners-guide-to-fountain-pens/pt/927

GouletPens: https://www.gouletpens.com/pages/fountain-pen-101

Write On!

Asha Rajagopal

The Lost Art of Letter Writting

Posted on by under Writing

A woman sits down at her desk, dips her pen into the inkwell, and traces out a letter. To a friend, to a lover, or somewhere in between, the world may never know. She seals the letter with wax, the blood-red color pooling before being molded by a stamp. what’s left is an imprint of the night sky, ready to send to its recipient.

A letter always seemed to me like immortality because it is the mind alone without corporeal friend. -Emily Dickenson

While the scene above seems straight out of the 1800s, it’s actually something I do on a regular basis. Whether communicating with people in Massachusetts or Naperville, having a pen pal is inexplicable magic that I treasure. Letters themselves have had the joy sucked out of them; bills, companies hounding after you to buy their product. It’s become a feed-off of the internet. But when I look through the pile and see that decorated envelope addressed to me, it sets my heart aflame. It reignites that need to connect, to maintain, to keep. Letters used to be a way to connect, to talk. Now, they are fading into time, losing themselves to digital alternatives. Texting, email, and phone calls are the letters of our time, conveniently at our fingertip. a few keystrokes and I can talk to someone halfway across the world. so why write a letter? What’s the point when everything is so convenient?

A letter written to me by a friend.

That’s the point. It’s inconvenient. You have to take time out of your day to write a person back, to address the envelope, and to make it pretty(or not). The simple act of inconveniencing yourself shows the other person that you care about them. You went to the trouble of creating this tangible thing. You went to the trouble to tell this person, regardless of what’s written, that you care about them. It doesn’t have to be romantic, it just shows commitment to the relationship that texting and email never can. Who would want a letter, you may ask? Write to your grandmother. I can almost guarantee you’ll get a response; I’m sure she has collections of them written from old friends, stored away in her closet. Write to your friend in college. Everyone is currently in their dorms, packed like sardines. Some connection to the outside world away from their computer would be a welcome reprieve.

“Life is bearable when you have someone to write, and someone who writes you back. Even if it’s just one person.”
― Eunjin Jang

If you don’t have anyone to write a letter to, then don’t write to them. Write to yourself. I myself have written what I deem “rage letters.” I write about my anger, anxiety, and sadness, and decorate the envelope. After that, what do you do? Well that’s up to you. you could save them in your closet(though that didn’t seem to work out too well for Lara Jean in To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, or maybe it did). If you want to protect your emotions a bit better, burn them. Holding a letter as it goes up in flames, you feel as if your emotions travel with the smoke, dissipating into thin air. Or tie them up and hide them in your room. hide them under your bed, or tuck it behind a chair. Finding them later in life, and laughing about how absurd you were.

“I have nothing to tell you, save that it is to you that I tell this nothing” – Roland Barthes

So now, if you want to write a letter, you may be confused on where to start. In order to actually get your notes down, you could either type out a letter or handwrite it. Now, I’m not going to delude myself into thinking that you all love handwriting things as much as I do. But I do think handwriting here is better. It’s more personal. it you’re going to the length to write a letter, you might as well go the whole way. Either way, you need to put it into the envelope, and then address it. Addressing a letter isn’t very hard. While it seems difficult to remember, know that the Mail system won’t automatically reject your letter because of a typo. Anyway, here is how to address a letter:

First Line : Name

Second Line: Address

Third Line: City, State + Zip code

That’s it! All you have left is to stick on a stamp, throw it into your mailbox, put up the flag, and wait for a response back. And when you get the response, you feel that pure, unaltered joy your recipient received.

Citations:

Hall, Alena. “9 Reasons Not To Abandon The Art Of The Handwritten Letter.” HuffPost, HuffPost, 7 Dec. 2017, www.huffpost.com/entry/benefits-of-writing-letters-and-postcards_n_6425540.

“Therapeutic benefits of writing letters” Therapeutic Benefits of Writing Letters, www.piedmont.org/living-better/therapeutic-benefits-of-writing-letters.

Skip to toolbar