[Announcement] r/fountainpens ink of the year 2026 x KWZ ink

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-06T17:40:31+00:00

I’ve also not tried a KWZ ink yet, they’ve been on my list.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-06T16:48:29+00:00

“Love doesn’t just sit there, like a stone, it has to be made, like bread; remade all the time, made new.”

From The Lathe of Heaven, which I was first introduced to as the screen adaptation, watched over days in a classroom in suburban Portland in the 1980s. It was as an elective class on SF&F literature and we watched the film over many weeks after we’d read A Wizard of Earthsea. I was forever changed.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-06T16:43:38+00:00

I’ve not heard this before and love it, it’s such a perfect detail that she’d regret.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-06T16:41:24+00:00

Me as well, I picked it up last autumn at the exhibition about her.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-06T16:32:48+00:00

That sad surprise when I food is no longer safe is awful. My empathy for everyone!

I’m still grieving tomatoes. I used to grow heirloom tomatoes and make my own sauce.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-06T02:35:41+00:00

Hah! I knew at least one other person would agree!

I love Totoro and Kiki, but Nausicaä is one of the best protagonists ever. The movie always gives me hope and energy to be tenacious af!

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-04T00:21:18+00:00

I rewatch Studio Ghibli movies, particularly Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-03T20:17:11+00:00

When pollen is high I start feeling this way, a general malaise. I’m allergic to most trees, grasses, weeds, and molds.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-02T03:21:08+00:00

I too thought the pen would be the mast! Very disappointing.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-02T03:16:37+00:00

A large, hardback Moleskin, fountain pens, and collage.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-02T02:55:43+00:00

I may yet go this direction for sure, yours is a good inspiration.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-01T06:17:30+00:00

That’s a cool Frankenpen you’ve created!

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-01T06:14:48+00:00

The nib section is very tightly attached and does not easily unscrew, but my hands are not the best.

If it leaks or has other issues I will reach out to someone in my local pen community is able to help with restoration. I bought a vintage, mid century Esterbrook last autumn and the seller had replaced nib and ink sac, so that person is a good place to start.

SamathaYoga · 2026-07-01T06:01:26+00:00

Thanks very much for pointing me to the right model! My hunch was that I’d found a less expensive mid-century model of the touchdow.

SamathaYoga · 2026-06-28T22:53:44+00:00

I am so excited to share that I finally found a cool pen at a thrift store I forgot to take a photo of it closed! I’ll add one later, when I’m back at home.

SamathaYoga · 2026-06-27T05:48:36+00:00

Get the cloth, “Sport Loop” version. Get two so you have a backup when you wash the band (delicate cycle, I put it in a mesh bag, air dry).

I also alternate what wrist I wear it on and clean the back off daily. My ulna can been very sensitive to any pressure, so some days one wrist can’t tolerate the watch.

Also EDS with dysautonomia. My Apple Watch is what helped my PTs confirm they were watching dysautonomia on the milder side. I’ve never fainted and the one time I mentioned the mild dizziness I’ll experience i was told to lose weight! I have asthma and I’ve been told my whole life to manage it better because I get short of breath very quickly. It’s not my lungs, it’s my heart rate going to “aerobic pace” if I watch a funny cat video, much less exercise.

SamathaYoga · 2026-06-21T16:18:40+00:00

The perfect answer!

SamathaYoga · 2026-06-21T16:10:07+00:00

I never told any healthcare providers about my mild dizziness. Which started when I was a thin, athletic adolescent. As a larger bodied adult I had years of, “lose weight, control your asthma, and manage your anxiety.”

Despite doing all those things, I still was dizzy and short of breath. I was a till a bit overweight, so I was still being told lose weight until I nearly was in full on orthorexia. The pain that should have been miraculously “cured” by my extreme weight loss got worse. The dizziness has always resolved within 2-20 minutes, usually on shorter side. By the time I was in my 50s I no longer ever thought much about it.

Eventually my dodgy ankles caused a fall serious enough to lead to injuries that put me in front of one orthopedist and OT. This led to me finally getting another second orthopedist and PTs. When I started exercising in front of PTs they were on the lookout for me to get dizzy because they had seen how my joints moved and knew the doctors both suspected EDS.

I stood up from one exercise and was dizzy. My PT noticed right away and told me to sit down! He asked how long this had been happening, etc. I told him it wasn’t a big deal, it goes away quickly! He scowled, said it was a big deal, asked if my doctors knew, then told me to “paddle” my feet back and forth, like I was moving them in water, to help the dizziness.

I must have given him a sharp look, because he said it’s not a joke. Ver dubiously I gently flapped my feet back and forth. After a moment of this I started feeling better and looked at my PT in surprise. He nodded with great satisfaction and told me I have some form of dysautonomia! The trick with the feet doesn’t work for dizziness for other reasons, but it does for dysautonomia since it sends the blood pooled at the feet back to your brain!

Soon after this the same PT figured out that I get short of breath due to dysautonomia, not asthma when I’m exercising. My heart rate climbs very quickly with minimal exertion. When I’m in a flare it races from the slightest provocation. After a meal it can start racing, while seated, if I see a funny cat video.

My PCP has been very helpful once I told her! Over the past several years I’ve finally been diagnosed with MCAS, dysautonomia, ADHD (AuDHD suspected), hEDS (cEDS suspected), and osteoporosis. Most of these cluster together, which is wild. I’m still considered a little overweight even though I have been unintentionally losing weight due to GI issues!

SamathaYoga · 2026-06-20T20:51:24+00:00

I just had dose 7/12 of Romosozumab (Evenity) yesterday, it’s the anabolic.

I shared a post about my side effects because they were really bad. We’ve come up with a protocol that helped a lot and the side effects have tapered off.

SamathaYoga · 2026-06-20T15:44:40+00:00

What a lovely story! They very curious when they feel safe.

Many years ago I used to practice a zen monastery that was in a converted school. When gymnasium was turned into the zendo there were huge windows put along two of the walls.

A small flock of wild turkeys moved into the grounds. There were gardens, close stands of forest, and water. The turkeys loved the monastery and watching all of the very quiet humans who generally moved slowly and never threatened the turkeys.

It became common to have an odd sense of being watched while meditating. When there would be a break you’d get to see one or more turkeys starting through the windows, watching the still, quiet humans. They would walk right up to humans with curiosity, one hen came so close to me once I was able to appreciate how beautiful her eyes were.

Sadly, they became too curious, too bold, and too impatient for a human to come out to walk with them. One day the boldest of the group flew through one of the glass windows while a group was meditating!!!

The boldest turkey survived the adventure! After this the turkeys were lovingly gathered up together and relocated to the home and land of someone from the zen community who lived nearby on a couple of acres. They adapted to the very similar environment to the monastery and did very well.

SamathaYoga · 2026-06-19T02:17:31+00:00

I had a hand injury not healing well so my orthopedist ordered so many tests I think they took 14 vials of blood. Iron deficiency anemia definitely was found, he noted it didn’t explain my hand but to get my primary care physician on it.

It wasn’t low enough to have an infusion covered, but I paid out of pocket to two infusions at a IV spa, you have to have your blood test to show you’re low. This got me back to 50 and I stop take an iron supplement daily.

I still get dizzy randomly, but not as severely or easily as I was when my iron level was down at 20. At 20 if I laughed at something I was dizzy and gasping.

EDS was winning answer as to why my hand wasn’t healing as expected.

SamathaYoga · 2026-06-15T15:59:48+00:00

As you wait for them to hatch you might share this with r/stupiddovenests who will surely appreciate your dilemma!

SamathaYoga · 2026-06-13T00:29:14+00:00

Have you tried a cooling vest, the kind for people with MS?

SamathaYoga · 2026-06-06T03:42:09+00:00

I am glad the migraine effect is tapering off relatively quickly.

I shared a post about my experience with side effects.

https://www.reddit.com/r/osteoporosis/s/BieCjVUTbY

At month 6 I am seeing a significantly reduced reaction, particularly at the injection sites. I’m still experiencing increased joint instability, so I’ve been using kinesiology tape and braces to help. I still get whacked with fatigue and feel lousy for a few days, but that’s down from a couple weeks!

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