Bob Wertz

Oct 13, 2024 ∞

Got the email that my latest journal article was accepted for publication. I’ll soon have one more entry on my Google Scholar profile.

Oct 13, 2024 ∞

I bought my first Retro 51 pen at Origami Ink in Asheville, an amazing pen shop that was destroyed in the Hurricane Helene flooding. So when I saw that Retro 51 was offering a special edition to support Origami Ink, it was an instant purchase. Amazing pen. Cool design. Great cause.

Oct 10, 2024 ∞

Many years ago, I was having coffee with a successful designer. We were discussing career challenges and he just offhandedly commented “I just don’t love design any more. In fact, I’m thinking about winding down my business.” I was still a pretty young and ambitious designer and left the meeting stunned. How could a successful designer get to this point?

Fast forward to about six months ago. My oldest is in college and took a digital art class… basically the first design class. She did really well and thought about changing her major to graphic design, but she didn’t. “I don’t want to do what you do.” In fact, all of my kids are incredibly artistic, and none of them want to be designers. I shared this observation to my wife, who matter of factly commented “You don’t love design. You haven’t for a long time. They’ve watched you. Why would they be excited about it?”

Yesterday, I was in a work meeting and I found myself far more interested in data and far less interested in creative execution. I was thinking about all the different ways I could study a problem and understand it better.

I’ve been in graduate school for what seems like an eternity.¹ I went back to school to get a Master’s degree and fell in love with research. Specifically research surrounding design and visual communication. Mostly quantitative analysis. I’ve written journal articles and conference presentations. I finished my MA and rolled right into Ph.D. work. Grad school is literally what I choose to do in my “spare” time. It’s a grind and sometimes, it’s overwhelming, but I love it.

There are still aspects of design that I enjoy. I love creating typefaces and working on personal projects. Many of the things that made me a successful designer — asking questions, identifying problems and crafting creative solutions — are the same skills that I use as a researcher. Career wise, I’m still a creative director and designer, but the passion for the craft isn’t there like it used to be. I just don’t love design anymore.

I’m at peace with this revelation, but it’s a strangely emotional moment when you realize that the career you’ve built over the last 27+ years no longer fits you.

Bob Wertz is a type designer, Ph.D. student and researcher living in Columbia, South Carolina. He’s been blogging since 2008.

I’ve been a part-time grad student for six years at this point. ↩︎

Oct 6, 2024 ∞

Then: 10.6.24

Posts in the “Then” category were originally shared on my “Now” page.

This week provided confirmation of how bad Hurricane Helene devastated the people and places that we love in Asheville. We’ve heard from all of our friends and they are fine, but the destruction is almost incomprehensible. Asheville is a 2 hour drive from our house, and we make day trips up there all the time. Many of the stores, restaurants and spots we visit are quite simply gone. Lutheridge — a camp very special to my family — is okay, but with a lot of damage. The pen store in Biltmore Village is destroyed. So is the little bakery next door with the amazing Ginger cookies and the restaurant across the street with the pea salad that my wife loves. It’s hard to process all the loss.

Feels

Off balance. Last week was a dance of improvisation. School schedules were changing and shifting, normal rhythms interrupted. But still thankful that our family and house are fine.
Busy weekend. Ryan had his first lacrosse game of the season and it went well. Jill had her homecoming dance. We’ll be at the coffee shop later to work on homework.
Where has this year gone? How is it already October?

Health

Still doing pretty well with my diet. Still on track for my goals. Giving myself a year to get healthy was a good plan, but it’s hard to stay motivated over such a long span of time.

Projects

Didn’t really make much progress on projects this week.
Got a revise and resubmit with minor changes this week. Excited to see this work get published.

Entertainment

Didn’t watch any college football this weekend. Which means I missed my Gamecocks struggling against Ole Miss. And Vandy’s shocking upset against Alabama.
Looking forward to F1 being back next week.

Oct 1, 2024 ∞

Just found out that my favorite pen store in Asheville, Origami Ink, was completely destroyed in the flood. I assumed that was the case because they were located in Biltmore Village, but the owners posted an update today confirming the sad news. Such nice people. I’m devastated for them.

Sep 29, 2024 ∞

It’s funny to see how a post shows up when crossposting. In Micro.Blog, it’s a link with some tiny thumbnails. In Bluesky, a link with all four images. In Threads, a link with a preview, but the featured image is my Micro.Blog fish avatar.

Post appearance in Micro.Blog Post appearance in Bluesky Post appearance in Threads

Sep 29, 2024 ∞

Parker 25B: My first vintage fountain pen

My dad texted me one afternoon that he’d found some fountain pens at a local auction and asked if I wanted to bid on them. He’s shared links in the past and I’ve never seen anything that looked interesting. From the look of the pictures, most of the listings looked well worn. But one of the pens was actually in the original packaging — a Parker 25B. It was impossible to tell what condition the pen was in, but I decided to take a shot on it. Dad placed a $7 bid. And won.¹

When I got the pen, it was in great shape. The package contained two dried up ink cartridges and a squeeze converter.² The pen had been used — there was dried up black ink in the feed — but I was able to clean it up fairly easily. I inserted a modern Parker black “Quink” cartridge³ and the pen started writing immediately.

The Parker 25 was an entry level metal pen that the company introduced in 1975 and sold until the late 1990s. My new acquisition was a Parker 25B, a matte black version that was only sold between 1979 and 1983. The body of the pen is a little bit thinner than many of my favorite pens with a stepped down section at the back that allows the cap to be securely posted while writing. Apparently the matte black finish can be easily damaged, but the surface of this pen looks like it’s barely been used.

The nib section is simple and beautiful, with no markings to indicate what thickness it is. The 25B was only available in a fine or medium nib, and this one writes like a medium nib.

The Parker 25 was designed to look modern and that’s how Parker marketed the pen. In one ad, they referred to the pen as “Space Age Design.” One major shift from traditional Parker pens was the clip design — squared off with a Parker badge on it instead of the traditional Parker arrow.

The pen is stamped “Made in England,” but I don’t know what year this pen was manufactured in. Many Parkers have year codes etched into them, but I can’t find one on my 25B. Given that it was only manufactured between 1979 and 1983, I know the pen is between 41-45 years old.

Bidding on this pen was a gamble because we couldn’t inspect it in person. I’ve been intimidated by vintage pens, worried that I’d overpay or get something that doesn’t work. My dad loves these kinds of auctions and has been looking for pens for several years. This is the first I felt good about. If you are interested in picking up a vintage pen like this, my best advice is to be patient and know what you are looking for.

My Parker 25B writes beautifully and fits my preference for modernist fountain pen designs. I haven’t decided if I’m going to add it to my daily carry yet, or just use it at home. But I’m thrilled that I have it in my collection and look forward to using it.

Bob Wertz is a creative director, type designer, Ph.D. student and researcher living in Columbia, South Carolina. He’s been blogging since 2008.

Dad has found some some great stuff over the years, like 100-year-old litho stones and a tiny Hamilton Type case. ↩︎
The squeeze converter didn’t work well, so I ordered a twist converter from JetPens that should fit it. ↩︎
One benefit of the Parker brand is that cartridges are available everywhere. I picked up the ink cartridges at an Office Max near my office. ↩︎

Sep 29, 2024 ∞

In general, I avoid Twitter and Facebook. But Twitter is still useful for live sports. And Facebook is useful for checking on people after natural disasters.

Sep 29, 2024 ∞

Really enjoyed The Armageddon Protocol by Dan Moren. 📚

Sep 29, 2024 ∞

Then: 9.29.24

Posts in the “Then” category were originally shared on my “Now” page.

Hurricane Helene hit us in Columbia, South Carolina this week. Early Friday morning, we lost power with 60+ mph wind gusts. Trees down everywhere. In Columbia, we weren’t prepared for a storm of this magnitude. We got power back 12 hours later, but many people in the area are still without power.

As bad as it was here, it was much, much worse two hours north in Asheville. Western North Carolina is devastated. Asheville is in many ways a second home and it’s heartbreaking to see the devastation and flooding.