When I planned the tenth anniversary celebration several weeks ago, we were still deep in the throes of COVID-19 and I wasn’t sure it was appropriate. Now, in the midst of protests and violence and still more pandemic, I’m still not sure it was the right thing to do. I was encouraged to do it though by friends, to bring some lightness and joy, so I went ahead with it despite my trepidation. I just wanted you to know that it wasn’t done in a vacuum.
With that said, I am at a loss for words this week other than to say: Black Lives Matter. This is not, and should not be, a new concept.
Our country has hit a tipping point and the anger and pain is visceral. I don’t have answers but I’m listening. My heart is open.
Black Lives Matter.
- A list of resources for supporting the Black Lives Matter movement (via It’s Nice That)
- Required Reading (via Hyperallergic)
- Ways To Help (via Black Lives Matter)
- Listening to Black Voices Amid Murder, Violence, Protest, and Pandemic (via Kottke.org)
- An Antiracist Reading List (via The New York Times)
- People Are Coming Together to Clean Up Their City Streets After Protests (via My Modern Met)
- From Minneapolis to Syria, Artists Are Honoring George Floyd Through Murals and Public Artworks (via Colossal)
- Video: Plot, Plan, Strategize, Organize & Mobilize – Killer Mike Speech in Atlanta (via YouTube)
Pens:
- Updating Prior Reviews: Platinum Curidas Feed Issues and the Diamine Music Set (via The Gentleman Stationer)
- First Impressions: Montblanc 149 Fountain Pen (via The Gentleman Stationer)
- The wonderful Flair felt tip pen / Boing Boing (via The Cramped)
- Well-Read Life™: Bring Your Own Pen—The New Normal, Again (via The Cramped)
- Noodler’s Triple Tail Flex Nib Fountain Pen: A Review (viaThe Pen Addict)
- Platinum in China (via Crónicas Estilográficas)
- Leonardo Messenger (via dapprman)
- Caran d’Ache Nespresso India Green (via Writing at Large)
- BENU Scepter – Prince Regents are you ready? (via Inked Happiness)
- Pineider Avatar UR Fountain Pen Review (via The Poor Penman)
Ink:
- Monteverde Raven Noir (via Mountain of Ink)
- Diamine Quartz Black (via Mountain of Ink)
- L’Artisan Pastellier Callifolio Swatch Tests – the greys and blue greys (via Nick Stewart FOUNTAIN PEN INK ART)
Pencils:
- ‘Palomino’ Blackwing Pencils – Standard Releases Guide (via Pencil Fodder)
- Pencil Review: Made-in-Mexico Dixon Ticonderoga (No. 1/B) (via Polar Pencil Pusher)
Art & Creativity:
- Kickstarter: Ceramic tools for painters & creators by Formal Dept. (via Kickstarter)
- That Which We Can Control (via Tin Can Knits)
- Clumsy lettering with personality (via Alphabettes)
- Day One : #30x30DirectWatercolor : False Starts are Normal! (via Citizen Sketcher)
- Fixing small things when the big things are broken (via Austin Kleon)
- Sketchbook Review: Stillman & Birn Square Format Softcover (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
- Virbrant Textured Hoop Art Is a Welcome Feast for the Eyes (via Brown Paper Bag)
- Quill vs Mop Watercolour Brushes (via Parka Blogs)
- Sketch Journal of an Ordinary Day (via Fueled by Clouds & Coffee)
Other Interesting Things:
- Kick Off Summer with FREE June 2020 Digital Wallpapers (via Think.Make.Share.)
- Olivetti’s 1954 Drive into the American Market – The Lettera 22 is ‘So Very Handsome Too’ (via oz.Typewriter)
- Six Vintage Things You Can Repurpose (via Atomic Redhead)
- 33 countries, 33 secrets to happiness (via Flow Magazine)
- Why soft skills are so important (in a digital world) (via Flow Magazine)
- Mother-Daughter Duo Graduates From Medical School Together (via My modern Met)
- The History of How Jigsaw Puzzles Became a Popular Pastime (via My modern Met)
- Watch Jennifer Lopez Crush Jimmy Fallon in TikTok Dance Challenge (via My modern Met)
- Covid 19 Edison Update (via Edison Pen Co)
- EDCC: My Everyday Covid-19 Carry (via From the Pen Cup) https://fromthepencup.wordpress.com/2020/05/30/edcc-my-everyday-covid-19-carry/
- Going Old-School (via Writing at Large) https://writingatlarge.com/2020/05/27/going-old-school/
ALL Lives Matter!! Stop DIVIDING US!
You are missing the point. If all lives matter, then BLACK LIVES MATTER. It is black people who are being targeted and, as with George Floyd, murdered.
For a better explanation, simply do a Google search.
(When I typed this reply, there weren’t any other responses. There may be a response ahead of me waiting for moderation. If so, I hope my response isn’t seen as piling on.)
David,
Yes, all lives matter, but our society too often treats black and brown lives as if they do NOT matter, as if they are disposable, negligible, invisible. To say "Black Lives Matter" is not an attempt to divide us. It's a cry to unite us, a reminder that too many of our citizens are still subject to biases and brutality in a way that white Americans are not, in a way to which none of us should be subject. It is this disparate set of standards that divides us, not the demand for equality.I applaud your recognition that all lives have value. But I also believe we need to acknowledge that we need to acknowledge that we aren't living up to that ideal.
Ruth
Thank you for the list of resources.
Ana, thank you for this.
Ana,
I, too, thank you for you message and the resources you have provided. I appreciate your trepidation and your admission of that concern. Cancelling the celebration would have been a legitimate choice, but so is going forward with it. We need recognition of successes and of community beside our awareness of injustice and social upheaval. We need hope as well as anger and sorrow. With luck, everyone who is awarded a writing instrument will use it to write a personal missive, a letter to the editor, a note to an elected official, a blog post, something that addresses the protests and supports the inequalities that permeate American life and warp our ideals.
Ruth
Are there any minority-owned stationery supply stores/sites? I would like to see either a section of Link Love for that or indicating on Link Love when a supply outlet is minority-owned, please.
Congrats on 10 years and here’s hoping for 10 more.
We are in the process of inking a deal with a new sponsor, Pen Boutique which is minority-owned. Woman-owner as well. One of my favorite minority-owned stationery shops is Greer Chicago, also woman-owned. Of course, Baum Kuchen in LA is owned by a Japanese couple. If I think of any others, I’ll be sure to make a note of it. You should be able to follow all of these on Instagram.
Ana,
That’s good to know. I recently discovered Greer while looking for Logical Prime notebooks. I didn’t know Pen Boutique was minority/woman owned. And I’ll check out Baum Kuchen.Thank you, Ana!
Ruth