Well, I’m back down to inbox zero again. I’ve been at inbox 2 for several months, mainly because of trouble-tickets I opened (and were quickly fixed) for stuff related to moving Kim’s email from Dreamhost (our web host) to Google Apps for Domains as part of her shutdown. They were mainly placeholders to remind me to do something technical as soon as Kim pulled the trigger to finalize shutting things down. Yeah, yeah, yeah–hardcore inbox zero folks will complain that they should have been moved out of there and put on a TODO list, but I’m sometimes lazy like that. At any rate, they’re gone now and I’m back to zero. It’s the little achievements in life, ya’ know?

In regards to my Remember the Milk query the other day, I think I’m just going to stick with a good ol’ pen and paper Hipster PDA. There’s just too much overhead with RTM for it to work for me.

Something I forgot to post a week or two ago: some Hipster PDA “hanging envelopes” that I made for work and released as a PDF. Basically, it is a thin envelope that you can stick to the wall (with something low-profile like tape or poster putty–thumbtacks may not work.) They’re great for TODO lists and such because about half of the frontmost card is visible.

More details and the PDF are at http://netninja.com/projects/hipsterpda/#envelopes

I am now officially over the Space Pen. See A Letter To My Pen for my list of gripes and complaints. The new pen, a Cross Ion, is great. It is a bit more chunky than I’d like, but it writes well and has a good visual indication of how much ink is left. Plus, both the pen and the ink cartridges come in a variety of colors. I have a silver/black one with black ink and a silver/red one with purple ink (so my writing can look like that of a 14 year old girl, of course!) Here it is in comparison to the space pen:

They are about the same length closed, both quite usable when open, with the Ion being more fat.

In unrelated photos, this Nerf gun is sitting on a shelf outside my office…

Dear Space Pen,

Although I love you dearly, I believe it is time for us to start seeing others. You have a beautiful body, which is what initially attracted me to you. Your compact, sleek form that elongates into a full-sized pen is absolutely amazing. As the initial lust for your form-factor is wearing off, I am coming to the realization that it is the stuff on the inside that really counts. This is, unfortunately, your ugly side. Even though you have a fancy pressurized-gas ink cartridge that can write upside-down, under water, through butter, or in zero gravity, at your heart you are truly just another ballpoint pen, with all of the baggage that goes along with that. I have very little need to be writing while dangling upside-down from a cliff or while snorkeling. I have every need to write in smooth, consistent, dark strokes. At this, you fail. Your ink comes out unevenly. Recently, you have taken to initially releasing large gobs of ink before being able to write. Not only are these drips of ink unsightly, they are sticky and stain hands, pockets, and other papers.

I have tried my best to make things work. I tried changing my writing style to better account for your uneven lines. I tried searching far and wide for a rollerball or gel ink cartridge that fits your body. I even investigated modifying ink cartridges for other pens to fit you. In the end, though, nothing worked and all I am left with is a beautiful pen and inkstained fingers.

Very soon, a Cross Ion telescoping pen will arrive.  I do not want you to be fearful or resentful.  I just want you to understand that the Cross will provide more of what I need.

Sincerely,

Brian