So I was "That Guy" today at work

Today I had to leave my normal office and drive to the district office (an hour away) to attend an hours worth of "training".

I get there and sign in using my Vanishing Point; after I put the roster down, and the pen back in my pocket some guy I don't know asks "Can I borrow your pen?".

My response was "ummmm no" and he and a couple other people looked at me like I was an ogre to which I replied "I don't loan out $150.00 fountain pens." Some lady about my age handed him a stick pen from her purse and said "here you can use this pen, it was free" with a tone of condescension.


I figure it is perfectly acceptable for me to come off as an ogre if someone who probably has no idea of how to use a fountain pen asks to borrow mine.


Oh and when I said it was a fountain pen another guy my age started a conversation about fine writing instruments.

It's better to be That Guy that says, "No," then to be That Guy that says, "What happened was, I let this guy barrow my pen..."

I just straight up said, "No," to someone in a class that I had, and almost half of the room turned around to look at me. Luckily, I had a Preppy eyedropper on hand, so I explained why I didn't want her to use my nice pen and let her use the Preppy. She really liked it, so I brought her one to keep the next time we had class.

Better to be that guy than to be the guy with spung tines. I usually carry my parker jotter ball point pen to lend out in case someone asks to borrow a pen. Never really understood how people don't take their own pens to classes or trainings its like trying to fix something without tools

Claudel Xerxes said:

It's better to be That Guy that says, "No," then to be That Guy that says, "What happened was, I let this guy barrow my pen..."

I just straight up said, "No," to someone in a class that I had, and almost half of the room turned around to look at me. Luckily, I had a Preppy eyedropper on hand, so I explained why I didn't want her to use my nice pen and let her use the Preppy. She really liked it, so I brought her one to keep the next time we had class.

Click to expand...

oh you smooth devil, you!

I was with you on the "No.". Your follow up comment made you look pretty bad, I'm afraid.

The guy you didn't know was also "that guy", from a different perspective, "that guy" who never has a pen of his own because he figures he can always borrow one. That attitude irritates me.

I've caused offense not only by declining to lend any pen at all, but also by saying "sure", and taking a minute to dig a ballpoint out of the bottom of a bag, when I had one fountain pen in my hand and two more visible in a shirt pocket. But if people can't be bothered to bring their own pens, they're in no position to be choosy.

That was my attitude even before I started using fountain pens, when the nicest pens I had on me were likely to be a Parker Jotter and a Fisher Space Pen. It seems reasonable to me that I'm not obligated to be a pen caddy for the unprepared. Unfortunately, many people seem to regard pens as communal property, and by being reasonable, you'll run into some genuine incomprehension, even hostility.

it surprises me how entitled people feel to use someone elses pen when they ask. the best advice i ever received about carrying fountain pens everyday, is bring a ball point with you. i tend to carry a lot, i have a mechanical pencil, a ball point pen, my parker 51, one or two other fountain pens, knife, wallet, watch, and anything else i might need.

Good on Ya!

Those who don't bring pens are the same ones who'll keep the one they borrow. And later borrow another one because they've lost the first one they borrowed. Or maybe they PIFed it on.. That's a better perspective.

I was standing next to a drawing box one day at work with a pen tucked in my polo work shirt. A woman asked if I had a pen she could borrow. Sorry, No, I don't. She blinked but she didn't challenge me on it.

I only use cheap giveaways at work so it's not value but manners. When someone does borrow my pen, I hover and watch and ask for it back.

And my office is next to the vendor sign-in and shoplifting recording sheets... My pens kept disappearing from the coffee mug I keep them in... so I found all the dead pens I could and put them all in plain sight to borrow. I don't lose anymore pens.

I've been there and done that. I don't care if it upsets someone. I have said, "No, but what do you want written; I'll do it for you."

It probably wouldn't have worked in your situation, but if I'm around the same people frequently and one asked to borrow my pen, I give it to them. Several times I've had the pen handed back to me and the requestor has gone looking for a "real pen" (their words, not mine). A few other times the person has tried to write with it, usually with the pen held vertically and backwards. Those are the times I grab their wrist gently and then turn the pen in their hand and put it in a flatter position for writing. Sometimes the light bulb goes off and starts a conversation about what a smooth writer the pen is. I usually carry a Lamy Safari to class, so not a big deal if it gets dropped, and the replacement nibs are relatively cheap, although I've never had someone bend one. Maybe the only pen I won't lend out is my Rotring Newton with a Lava finish that someone either here or on a pen forum PIF'ed to me. The only holdup there is that I'm not sure how much the nib would cost if I did have to replace or repair it. I might change my tune if I carried more expensive or sentimental pens, but with the ubiquitous Safari, not really a big deal in my book. I figure I might make fountain pen converts, or they'll just stop asking me for a pen.

I think you got the best end of the deal here unprepared & entitled dude and know-it-all old lady, now don't wish to associate with you that's a win in my book

Speaking of letting people borrow fountain pens, I let my wife borrow my cheap one last night. She promptly wrote a couple things, left it lying out with the cap off till the ink dried, then tried to beat it into the paper to get it working again. I would probably have sprung tines if she hadn't said "I think your pen is almost out of ink...", and I got a dirty look for forcefully saying Stop! after the first hit.

Moral of the story being you can't even trust your wife with your pens, a stranger can pee up a rope.

I keep an extra stash of cheap pens around at work, when someone asks to borrow a pen , I just give them a cheapie.

You can buy a dozen feather pens for less than a buck each on amazon. Have those to hand out and people quit asking to borrow pens, or if they do, they make sure they give them right back.

Just say, Sure, if you know how to use a fountain pen.... Most folks would balk at this and say, nevermind.

TheVez2 said:

Just say,Sure, if you know how to use a fountain pen.... Most folks would balk at this and say, nevermind.

Click to expand...

this might actually work. Good advice

Every time someone has asked to borrow my pen, just a metropolitan, they take the cap off and then give it back saying "I don't know how to use that".

I keep a rollerball handy at all times. I had a coworker try to write nib upside down with my TWSBI and then say "It's broken..."

I dont see why loaning your pen out is a problem if it has a steel nib. Just tell them not to press too much and it should be okay.
I wouldnt take any expensive pens to university anyway.

SirChangalot said:

I dont see why loaning your pen out is a problem if it has a steel nib. Just tell them not to press too much and it should be okay.
I wouldnt take any expensive pens to university anyway.

Click to expand...

Steel nibs can still be mangled or destroyed by the unknowledgeable & some, myself included, don't choose which pens to carry based on price.

I carry a ballpoint (well, a gel) should the need arise that I need to lend something out or deal with absolute crap paper. Don't blame anyone for being "that guy" though if people don't see fit to carry their own writing implements.

While I'd never buy a pen for $150, I understand being particular and not wanting to loan out pens to random people because they NEVER GIVE THEM BACK. Or in the case of pilot/uniball pens, they tend to ruin them somehow.