The One Jeweled Wonder

On day one of a trial, with a jury very much in the mix, I opted for a blue suit, brown shoes, and a gold watch. I do mostly criminal trials where “my jurors”, the ones that will agree with me, want to see symbols of success. I can’t drive a fancy car into the courtroom, so I can project success with a gold watch. A 1949 Bulova “His Excellency” was my weapon of choice.

However, this was a civil trial. There was not a lot of money at stake so both counsel opted to waive the jury and allow a judge to make the decision in the case. I was playing defense. With just a judge to impress, and one who knows me well enough to not be impressed by me, I opted for stainless steal. A black suit was up next and it is infernally hot here, so a bracelet was what was called for by the weatherman. I stripped three screws sizing a bracelet on a new watch last night so I opted for the trusty Mido Ocean Star. These vintage skin divers are positively dress watches by today’s standards.

Only watch people notice your watch. I could have gotten away with a Garmin or a Timex Expedition today for all anyone cared. However, people do notice a fountain pen. A fountain pen is an announcement that you want extra obstacles in your path, sort of like driving a stick shift. You can’t leave it uncapped or it will dry out. You can’t waive it around or be sloppy with it or you will be wearing ink. Do you post it when writing for longer stretches? (Apparently, posting, putting the cap on the back of the pen while writing as opposed to holding it in your other hand or setting it down, is an American thing.) Only my best pens are trial pens. Today, I tried a new (old) one.

I am normally a Waterman guy, but this is a Montblanc. (The nearest watch comparison is that Waterman is Omega, but Montblanc, is not Montblanc, but Rolex.) This is a now discontinued Boheme Rouge and that is a synthetic ruby in the cap. The same sort of jewel that makes mechanical watches wear out more slowly is used for decoration here. This pen is about fifteen years old, so not quite vintage, but it is new to me. It has a medium nib, and wrote very smoothly. It can take its rightful place with my Watermans as a trial pen. The ink is Waterman’s Absolute Brown. It used to be called Havana Brown, and before that Sepia. Same ink, they just change the name. I have used it in my professional life since 1996. You don’t have submit it to handwriting analysis to determine if I wrote something. Just look for a Waterman brown ink.

The same level of thought they many of us use to pick out a daily watch is similar to the process for a pen. I put my pens into a rotation that involves using one until I must re-ink. I then move to another and make sure that the previous one is cleaned. If we do this to too many parts of our lives it gets a little weird. My case today was an argument between two exotic bird dealers. Exotic bird owners are really collectors of birds. One is never enough. They can tell you this or that about a breed the same way that Seiko owners have gibberish strings of letters and numbers memorized. I prefer Seikophiles by a large margin.

It is odd to view Montblanc as an underdog (slight) in the watch space, when they are dominant in the pen space. If Richemont ever figures out how to use the Montblanc mojo to its fullest potential it will the most valuable brand in its portfolio. This one jeweled wonder rocked today.