I’m not into fine point pens. I believe I said it when I originally reviewed this pen. However the line was so lovely and the color so brilliant I charged ahead and kept writing with it, until this past Friday.
The pen on the right fell apart when I depressed the clicker. I attempted to screw it back together to no avail. I moved on to the pen on the left which was writing fine momentarily until the tip broke and scratched the page so hard I thought it ripped.
I have never had two pens, back to back in the same sitting, break. So, the Pilot Precise and I are breaking up. The review is revised down to a ✍🏾.
Maybe it was a trend or something in the early seventies but there was this wave of interest in calligraphy and fountain pens. I might have begged my mom for a fountain pen to which she obliged, one with cartridges. Once those cartridges ran out, I was done with my fountain pen fascination and moved on to whatever fickle elementary school girls were into.
Having been writing non-stop and talking about pens just as much the last few years, I wanted something different. The memory of that fountain pen came to mind, so I started looking for a disposable set. The first set I found was the Zebra Fuente Fountain Pen set, assorted colors of course.
These pens could not have come in more disappointing packaging. A plastic baggie, really? This is not the packaging I saw in the photos when I ordered so I knew that these pens were going to janky but much to my surprise, they were not.
The barrel, cap and clip are made of translucent plastic reminiscent of gelatin. The pens are short and chunky much like the writer. The length of the pen however, is not a hinderance to writing.
On one side of the barrel is an ink level indicator, which could be handy or not. For those who plan ahead, an ink indicator could be useful for determining when to reorder. For others the indicator is for aesthetic purposes only.
The grip is a clear plastic so the ink flow to the nib is visible. The plastic grip for this pen works because it is, again, a thicker pen, so slippage is not a problem.
I thought that writing with the pen would be a scratchy affair but the experience was quite the opposite. The look of a fountain nib for me, adds to the visual experience of seeing words, symbols, or drawings on paper. The tip of the Zebra fountain rolls as smooth as any rollerball. The ink, at least so far has not come flying out in a blob-filled mess.
The Zebra Fuente Fountain Pen is a solid entry point for use as a daily writing instrument. Since it is disposable and relatively inexpensive, if you hate it, you can just pass it on to somebody who won’t. ✍🏾✍🏾✍🏾.5
There is no escaping the Pilot G-2 gel retractable. I have written with them for years in various jobs because it is the standard work pen. Yet for personal writing, I steered clear since I had choices when using my own hard-earned cash. I may have been missing out in my rebellion.
The Pilot G-2 easily meets the physical specs of my favored pens as it has a ridged rubber grip and a clicker that does not stick.
The G-2 also comes in a variety of colors, point sizes, and finishes so one is not limited to the black, red and blue fine point of the office. Although the metallic variety is likely only practical for making art.
For writers of letters, notes, and journals, the bold variety G-2 1.0 with its rich color performs well, providing a smooth clean line despite its point size.
Not just for the office, the G-2 is highly recommended. These pens are long-lasting, reliable and a make a great edition to your writing instrument collection ✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽✍🏽.
Full disclosure, I purchased these pens because I thought they were cute. As a writing instrument, the Pentel EnerGel Pearl Deluxe RTX Gel pen outperforms said cuteness.
Writing is a smooth experience with a super clean line emanating from a .7 mm stable needle tip.
In general, a narrow tipped pen is not desired because I write hard and loopy and think the tip will break. Breakage is not an issue with the EnerGel Pearl. The non-slip rubber grip absorbs some of that pressure as well.
One thing I noticed and it may not be as clear in the photo, is that the manufactured date on the ink chamber says 2019. The pen was purchased in 2021 and is still writing in 2022👍🏾.
The clicker does the job and the clip bends out and snaps back into place when clipped to a notebook or shirt pocket.
The ink color stays true regardless of the paper color. The paper on the left is a grayish blue while that on the right is white.
If there is one thing that precludes the Pentel EnerGel Pearl Deluxe RTX from receiving that perfect rating, it is that thing it does similar to white clothing. The grip yellows over time. Otherwise this pen is a go to and highly recommended for your writing needs ✍🏾✍🏾✍🏾✍🏾1/2.
The opening act Austin Antoine, appropriately describes himself as a performance artist. Antoine sang, rapped including a freestyle, and performed the famous Kid n Play House Party dance sequence with his cousin who came out for a few numbers, all while providing his own musical accompaniment (by laptop). The performance was fun, Antoine was engaging, and the audience, self-included, seem to have enjoyed the performance. Antoine’s music is available on all streaming platforms.
I missed the second act due to an unfortunate hot flash incident🔥. From what I could gather, a presentation and video from/about a local charity supported by the headliners was shown. Having properly cooled off I resumed my seat and soon raucous applause and cheers began for the headliners, Moonchild.
I first heard the group on Twitch some time in 2020, so the group is new to me. Nevertheless what I heard and subsequently added to my collection was enough to make me want to see them live. Moonchild is comprised of Amber Navran, Andris Mattson and Max Bryk. They were also joined by Efa Etoroma, Jr. on drums for the Atlanta date.
The band is tight. The three principles are all multi-instrumentalists which I would say lean toward soul and jazz. The set list included:
Too Much to Ask
The Other Side
Cure
The List
Run Away
Tell Him
Love I Need
and more. Love I Need was a funky banger. The album version features Rapsody, the live performance briefly transitioned into Anita Baker’s Caught up in the Rapture which was a joyful sing-a-long before returning to the funk.
The audience sang along throughout the band’s performance and whenever Navran stretched out of her normal vocal style just the tiniest bit, the audience went bananas and started shouting SANG AMBER! Navran’s vocals have been written about plenty, all I could add is that I would love to see her stretch a bit beyond her signature sound beyond the teasers she displayed in the live performance.
Seeing Moonchild was an enjoyable experience. Anyone who likes a soulful, jazzy type sound is encouraged to attend this show when it comes to your city, if it is not already sold out.
For more information on the charitable organizations that Moonchild partners with, please see their website.
The show was on 3/27/2022. I have been sitting on this for two weeks because a conclusion just could not be reacheduntil now.
First I want to thank the parking gods and the cleaning staff of Buckhead Theater in Atlanta. The parking was easy and the theater Pristine. I had a seat in the balcony because my days of standing through a show appear to be over.
The opening act was Cory Henry and his band The Funk Apostles. If funk is in it, I’m here for it and Henry did not disappoint. He is a high energy keyboard master, vocalist, performer, minister of music. At times I heard Sly, Herbie and our beloved Prince. They seem to be his influences but his sound is his own, maybe a funk-jazz-gospel-rock??? I heard it all in his playing. The Funk Apostles band, instrumental and vocals were tight. Highlights were:
▻ Days – a bouncy, danceable groove, a bop ▻ Trade it All – this GOES, Henry’s solo was outstanding on this ▻ GawtDamn – he killed this, soulful, shout-worthy LAWD ▻ Alone – Henry described as the introverts anthem, was a jam with clearly inspired by early Prince.
I really enjoyed the performance and Henry and his band seemed to enjoy it as much as the audience. His music is streaming on all platforms, you need to see him live though, for real.
and now…
Tank is the technicolor dreamcoat. She is multi-faceted, vocalist, spoken word artist, playful all of the things, the Group plays all genres and do it well. However, I did not stay until the end because…
I am old.
As an old, Tank and the Bangas were a lot to take in, the colors , the baby-voiced, squealing thing Tank does was too much for me. The youngins LOVED it! Screaming, dancing, singing along, giving all the audience participation. My thoughts of the show, were the same as those when listening to the recorded music. This chile is TALENTED but wooooo it was too much for me.
To be clear, I was out of place, not the band, not the crowd. I liken the experience to the way my parents talked about hip-hop in the beginning. They thought it was loud, noisy, too-much going on. Later, they came around, my dad in fact is now a Snoop Fan.
Would I recommend this show? Absolutely, I enjoyed the reaction of the crowd, I enjoyed the vocals and the spoken word and the band, the baby-voiced squealing was a bit much for me. Oh, and the chicken wings the young ladies were eating next to me smelled and gave me a headache.
Would I go to see them again? Absolutely. A funny thing happened for me to arrive at this conclusion, the NCAA National Championship. I heard her before I saw her, singing the national anthem in all her glory and in New Orleans tradition. It was dope.
I was introduced to Bandcamp fortunately for my ears and unfortunately for my pocket by a fellow music lover I met through DJ Spinna’s Twitch stream. Upon landing at Bandcamp I selected genres of interest and received in my recommendations The Colman Brothers self-titled debut album released in 2011.
Hailing from the UK, brothers Mat on trombone and Andrew trumpet/flugelhorn create a rhythmic, horn-infused danceable latin-jazz release. The album opens with Mr. D. G., a swinging tune that gives visions of the dance floor and is followed by Another Brother which begins at a furious pace that does not let up. Towards the middle of the album the Brothers slow things down with a surprising remix of a song called She Who Dares, sounding very hip-hop, which reminded me of KRS One’s MCs Act Like They Don’t Know. Also featured on the album is Mat and Andrew’s sister, Sara Colman as the vocalist on on Some Other Wonder. Her performance is smooth and smoky and gives the visual of Ms. Colman blessing the mic of a jazz club.
The Colman Brothers came out blazing on their debut release. Aside from a remix album of their own and appearances on compilations from their label, I was unable to locate any additional recorded work from the Brothers, which is a shame. This album was too good for our ears not be graced with additional music. Hopefully soon, we will hear more from them. 💿💿💿💿💿
I think what I heard Wednesday night was joy. That joy leapt off the stage and into all of us in attendance at the Abstractions tour stop at City Winery Atlanta, February 9, 2022.
I had a seat in front of the stage and saw up close the interplay between these talented musicians, Zo!, Deborah Bond and Tall Black Guy, accompanied by some really tight musicians from Atlanta on bass and drums.
Zo! was musical director, pianist and emcee and played each role with ease and a virtuosity. Tall Black Guy put in work! I don’t know what all those things were called that he was playing but, he brought in music, effects, sly commentary and kept the music moving. Last but not least was Ms. Deborah Bond. She is a petite fleur with a big voice who can sang sang! She sang songs that Phonte, Carmen, Joi, Darien etc. etc., were featured on in Zo!’s discography as well as selections from TBG’s Remixes and Tings Vol. 1. and others, beautifully. She is a fire dancer as well!
All selections were outstanding and I particularly enjoyed Hold My Hand, Connected, I Know You, I Live You For Sure, and a Go-Go style Prototype by Outkast. This show is the best I’ve seen in the pandemic era, and one of the most enjoyable, fun shows I have been to in years. The key word again is joy. These musicians bring a joyful noise and clearly enjoy playing together.
If Abstractions comes to your city, DO NOT MISS IT!
I had to go there because it was highly rated in some review that was based on some reviews that were on that gigantic online retailer’s site. Where I went was to the Pilot Acroball 1.0 mm medium ballpoint pen.
The package said incredible smooth ✅, vivid ink colors ✅ striking good looks and an effortless writing experience? Let’s not get carried away.
The grip on this is outstanding. Made of textured, curved rubber it was comfortable on the achiest of arthritic hand days.
The clicker is the clickiest, i.e. the thrust mechanism seems solid and unlikely to fail for before the ink runs out.
Then pen is nice-looking with a colored gel like barrel that lets you see its parts
The question as always with the ballpoint pen is does it pass the blob test?
Blue on the far right should be an indication.
From here it looks nice. On further inspection…
This Pilot Acroball performs well in short bursts of writing like that above. For journal writing, the pen becomes more blobalicious, not so much so that I wouldn’t recommend it though. Rating 3.5🖊 of 5.
If you’re a Pilot Acroball user, let me know know your experience in the comments.
I’m starting to feel a way about these ballpoint pens. The latest entry is the Zebra Z Grip Plus 1.0 ballpoint.
The clicker is nice, sturdy and doesn’t give indication that it will fail any time soon. The grip is really nice, a soft ridged-rubber with nice placement. One day, when not ashy, I’ll put a hand in there to demo.
This pen is a little light in the fanny for my taste. Big Mama likes a pen with a little heft to it. This felt fragile but appears to be a solidly built plastic barrel.
And the writing of it all???? It’s okay, the flow is fairly smooth but as noted in the photo, there are some skips. The ink blobs I guess are a thing with ballpoint 1.0s a fine tip may yield different results.
Overall the Z Grip is serviceable for jotting down notes and journal writing, not so much if the written product is to be distributed. Rating: 3 of 5
Not An Expert 