Credit: Dixon Ticonderoga
Low tech, cheap, affordable (same thing), not affected by heat, gravity, or dampness--perfect tool for recording anything.
What would life be without pencils? I don't know. As a lifelong learner and an educator, pencils are the mainstay of my being and have been since I have memory. My love for technology has not replaced a love of pencils.
Someone came to my home and after several hours asked why I had so many pencil holders/cups. It was such an astounding question that I was pressed for a coherent answer that would not be insulting to the person. "I write things down."
I have pencils in four rooms, whole cups of them--beside my chair, in the kitchen, in the sewing room, and in the room beside me that used to be called the computer room. Yes, there are pens, a pair of child's scissors, a retractable mirror, and nail files in the pencil cups, yet they remain pencil cups.
Did you know that when you buy Dixon pencils you are buying the #2 pencil supplied by testers? Did you know I have 300+ new-in-the-pack pencils that I bought for less than a penny each? I share them with people/children that might need a pack. And, I send them off to my grandchildren who must eat them!
Did you know that Henry David Thoreau's father owned a pencil factory, and that, contrary to common perceptions of his lack of effort, Thoreau worked there? Read about Thoreau's Pencils. If you are into reading or studying Thoreau, you now have a new bit of knowledge to share. I took a course in Thoreau in grad school, but knew this from my own studies.
Despite predictions that technology will wipe out low tech pencils, pencil sales are up. Life's Little Mysteries inspired me to bring you this information.
Your turn
Do you love pencils? Do you have a relationship with pencils? Funny? Sad? Share your story. Here is your chance to tell that weird pencil story that fits in with nothing else in your life. Get stabbed by one?
