A few years ago, as I was heading into the office for the first day of class, I decided I needed a nice pen. Not sure why, but on that morning I decided it was time to have a writing instrument in my pocket.

Of course, I didn’t really know what made a pen an instrument – I’d always had cheap pens, sometimes ones that looked good but didn’t write particularly well.

Stopping in an office supply shop, I looked around and just about died … who the heck would pay $200 for a pen? That seemed insane. So, I went a little above my normal range and picked up a Pilot Dr. Grip. It looked fancy but was reasonably priced.

I used it for several semesters, enough to wear the plastic down around the clip pretty well. Late last year, the ink cartridge ran dry, so I bought another.

Except, I bought the wrong ones. Being annoyed, I went to the office supply place again and grabbed the other cartridge set and also looked – longingly, I admit – at the fancier pens. There was one that stood out, that seemed to have a nice heft to it but was still sort of expensive. I mean, really, I do 98 percent of my writing with a keyboard. Even I can’t read my writing sometimes – what the heck do I need a nice pen for?

Well, you know what happens next … I walked out of the store with just my $3 refills to find I’d bought the wrong refills again.

It was a sign, right? Two trips, two wrong refills – time to buy a real pen. So, I did – I spent about $16 on a nice Parker IM roller ball. (I spent way too much time on this decision, so you know – ask me about roller ball and ball point pens as there is a difference.)

The pen has graced my pocket since the beginning of the spring semester. I love the feel of it, love the way it lays down ink. Writing is special with this pen.

Of course, I still had that trusty, ink-less Pilot in my desk drawer. On a whim, I searched Amazon.com and found the right refills (easier to do when you can spin open the pen and check). With Amazon Prime’s free shipping, it cost me $1.49.

I put in the new cartridge and wrote a few lines … then put it back in my desk and took the Parker out of my pocket. My writing is better in neither content nor clarity, but I sure like writing a lot more now.

Does make me wonder what those $200 pens are like …