Ballard Street by Jerry Van Amerongen for March 11, 2023

It is a dark blot on future prospects

Well, Stu, now you know why you should never pull up on that little lever while the pen is in your pocket.

Not even a pocket protector would have saved him from that.

I have an inkling that will be an indelible memory.

Good thing this happened on a Friday evening. If it happened on a Monday morning, Stu would have just given up on the whole week!

The splash pattern seems to indicate an explosion or a targeted hit (at point blank range) as opposed to an accidental leak or misfire?

Can crime scene investigators show that this was not self-inflicted?

Did his pen have a lithium battery?

hang on there – we’ve all been thru this – it’s ok – take it easy

This is what happens when you buy stuff at the Ballard 20 cent Store and 1 Hour Cleaners….wait a minute, hmmm.

Also a loss of ink in his fountain pen.

BUT, he has irrefutable evidence that it is, in fact, a fountain pen.

A scene from Pulp Fiction 2 – Writers Bane

Oh G*D! I’ve been there. Love the feel of a good pen but gotta be careful.

Stu, the pen goes in the pocket; the inkwell stays on the desk.

Perhaps it was the pen that lost confidence in Stu…

I had a fountain pen do that once in my purse.

That’s quite the spatter pattern. Space pen was a little over pressure.

In his case, a pocket protector would have not been sufficient …..aaaaakk

As a collector and lover of fine fountain pens both vintage and modern I have had this happen to me on more than one occasion.

“This pen will self-destruct in 5 seconds…”

“Making me write bad poetry is more than I can stand. I’m inking it all…”

I’ve had certain pens leak ink onto my hands while writing, and I suspect it’s because my hands are so warm that it causes the air inside to expand and push the ink out too fast. Plastic body pens never seem to do this to me, but metal ones do.

Always a sad day when that happens.

Good morning Balladeers.

You are old when you can remember how a fountain pen could literally ruin your day. :)

The fountain pen conspiracy theorists have succeeded once again in deflecting suspicion from the Anderson’s next door and their paint ball obsession.

Catastrophic ‘pocket protector’ failure!

Stu, I know you and other fountain pen users are fiercely loyal to your writing instruments of choice. However, in your case, maybe it’s time to switch to ballpoint (although, to be honest, I’ve had my share of problems with those in the past).

Did he stab himself with it?

Good evening Ballardears