How I got started?
Back in 1989, my wife first gave me a very
expensive pen. It was the Montblanc classique 163 roller ball pen. It cost
her about US$130 to get that as a birthday gift for me. It was a big deal
considering that I have been using the normal Papermate Kilometrico and
BIC ball pens that cost about US$0.20. In those days, it was somehow a
sign of an achievement in Singapore to carry a Montblanc pen. Everywhere
you go, you would see the White Star Snow cap prominently protruding out
of the pocket.
After using it for just over 6 months, I
accidentally dropped the pen and broke the cap. I brought it back to
Montblanc service centre and was told that I have to pay US$30 for the
cap! I wouldn’t want to pay US$30 for the cap! I mean the plastic cap!
Worst, they are re-using the clip and I have to pay US$30 for the plastic
cap!! I remembered I told them that it was like a day light robbery !
Obviously I left the store and proceeded to 7-Eleven store to buy a glue
to glue the cap and reuse it again. Somehow the feeling wasn’t as good
as before because the glue along the crack can be seen miles away.
Everyone would know immediately that I was carrying a cracked Montblanc.
It was very disheartening and I stopped carrying it and later it
disappeared till today. I don’t have the slightest idea where I have put
it or rather where I have lost it. So it was back to Papermate Kilometrico
once again.
In 1995, I noticed that one of my customers was
using a very special pen with a snake clip. Yes! It was Montblanc! I can
see the white snow cap from a distant away. You can’t possibly miss the
logo! Throughout the conversation, I was only concentrating on the snake
clip and was not interested in the conversation at all. I was like yeah
here and yeah there. Deep inside me, I was telling myself that I must own
this pen. The problem with me was that couldn’t bring myself to ask the
customer to show it to me. It was the first meeting with the customer. I
was pretty sure that he knew I was looking at the pen. It was only one
year later that he admitted that he was showing off the pen to me. I call
him the %$#@ teaser. But he is my good friend now.
So whenever I travel, I would end up in Montblanc
boutiques and check for the snake pen. Unfortunately, none understood me.
For a moment, I thought I must be day dreaming seeing the snake clip pen.
I gave up the thoughts of owning one until in 1997 I noticed a Dragon
clip! I was very confused!! Was it the snake clip or a dragon clip that I
have een the last time. Nobody could answer me. Suddenly it came to me
that I could actually surf in the net to search for pens! To be frank, all
these while it has never crossed my mind of searching pens in the
Internet.
Reached home at about dinner time and immediately
I fired my notebook computer until 7.00 a.m. the next day. Within that 8-9
hours of surfing, I managed to bookmark easily 15-20 pen shops mostly in
USA. I was late for work naturally the next day but surprisingly I was
still very energetic and continue surfing the web till 5.00 p.m. After
that, discovered that the snake and dragon pen were actually Agatha
Christie and Imperial Dragon respectively.
That night….armed with a credit card…I
"attacked" the pen shops in USA and bought the Agatha Christie,
Imperial dragon, Voltaire and some vintage fountain pens. I wasn’t
myself considering that I am quite a scrooge. It was like a voice telling
me that I have to buy and buy and buy. That night I went to bed US$3000
poorer.
The best part of the buying was that I didn’t
even know what I am getting. All I care was that I should have the pens.
Fine, Medium or Broad nib? Inked or dipped ? Box? Papers? and etc. I
didn’t even ask for all these. It did not cross my mind that I should
know these. So finally the pens arrived 7 days later via Fedex, UPS, TNT,
EMS and DHL. Both the Agatha and Imperial Dragon were inked as I can see
the liquid ink through the transparent window. It didn’t bother me
because I didn’t know!
It was only months later that when I found that
there was a shop in Singapore that actually sells Fine Writing Instrument!
The shop owner told me that I should pay for a new set instead of the
inked pens. Ironically, I am been traveling around the world and asking
for Snake and Dragon pens when I can actually get it from a store about 30
km away from my home!
Today I have pens…many pens….really many pens
that I literally spent all my saving into pens! Of course, once in a while
I have to spend some money on my other business….that is my Electrical
and Mechanical business…
To all my pen friends, this was exactly how I
have started with pen collection…..
Tay
19 June 1998
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