Saying Good-Bye to World Mail Panel Postal Surveys

Tags

leuchtturm, world mail panel

Back in March of 2014 I started processing postal surveys for World-Mail-Panel.com. I received letters from all over the world and recorded details about them on the website. I returned electronic transponders to their offices in Germany. I filled two Leuchtturm jottbooks (one small, one large) with the details and the stamps from all over the world.

The small purple jottbook that started it all.

In February of 2015 I finished the first notebook and moved into an A5 jottbook.

And then in November of 2015 they asked me to start sending letters as well as continuing to receive them. I agreed and a new notebook was needed.

Once again I turned to a Leuchtturm but an actual notebook this time, with the elastic closure and pocket in the back. However I quickly found that it wasn’t needed; for Letters Sent I only had to keep records for a week, whereas for the Letters Received I had to keep those for three months.

The really fun part was looking at all the stamps from around the world.

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And I made some money doing all this! They paid me around $15 Cdn per month to receive the letters and that increased to around $20 when I started sending letters. Since I joined I have redeemed just under $500 in gift certificates for Amazon and credits for my PayPal account. They also offer occasional bonuses based on participation.

All of this coming to an end soon. 😦 I notified them in April that I would be moving to a new province, and unfortunately they do not require surveys to be conducted in this demographic. I still receive the occasional letter but it has slowed down to a trickle. I am very close to having enough points to redeem $100 in gift certificates. I am sad because this was alot of fun and very interesting. If any of you are interested check them out at world-mail-panel.com.

Maybe someday they will need my services again, and I’ll be ready!

Journal Writing Wednesday: 5 pages

Tags

blue upon the plains of abraham, franklin christoph, good earth, model 20 translucent bronze, noodler's ahab, noodler's ink, raven black, wonder pens, world mail panel

What I’m currently using: the Paperblanks Blue Filigree journal, the Seven Seas Writer, and the Franklin Christoph Notebook.

Total pages written since this post (Mar 23): 5

Total pages to date since project inception (Dec 11/13): 1587

Total pages written in 2016: 144

So tonight I chose a pen to be my go-to pen for April. The ONLINE pen from last month was a bit of a disappointment. So the pen for April is my Noodler’s Ahab in King Philip Purple! I first wrote about it in this post and then again in this post after turning it into a bit of a “frankenpen”. Picture to come soon.

I will announce the pen for May on April 27.

This past Sunday I announced the winner of the Pharaoh Notes Giveaway. Heba15 you have until this coming Sunday to contact me! More giveaways to come so stay tuned.

I cashed in some World Mail Panel points and bought myself two Noodler’s inks from Wonder Pens: Blue Upon the Plains of Abraham and Raven Black. I bought my sister some Raven Black for Christmas and have been lusting after it ever since. Both of them are Canadian exclusives. Review coming soon.

Some points covered this week in my journals:

• Work has been busier and less frustrating this week, so that’s wonderful. I’ve also been busy at home and I find my journal writing suffers for it. Maybe this weekend I will take myself on a tea-date to Good Earth and write in my journal. Fingers crossed.
• I’ve been watching videos about the Franklin Christoph Model 20 Translucent Bronze fountain pen, available exclusively at Wonder Pens in Toronto. I’ve been wanting a Franklin Christoph pen for a while and this would be a good choice, as it makes for an amazing looking eyedropper pen, which I’ve been wanting to try. Must save my pennies.

Happy writing!

 

NaNoWriMo, World Mail Panel and Fountain Pen Day

Tags

fountain pen day, leuchtturm, nanowrimo, world mail panel

Today marks the beginning of NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month. I am doing it this year and hope to achieve the 50,000 words but I’m not putting immense pressure on myself to do so. Some writerly friends of mine and I are attending a few writing workshops next weekend and I’m really looking forward to that. We’ll see how it goes. Anyone else doing it this year?

I mentioned in this post that World Mail Panel have asked me to send envelopes as well as log envelopes received. My first batch arrived last week and I spent a couple of hours today getting myself organized.

Sorry about the glare.

I record the letters I receive in the purple Leuchtturm Jottbook and now I’m going to record the letters I send in a black Leuchtturm Notebook.

Each envelope should be sent on a set date and I wrote the first batch in my notebook. If I don’t manage to send the envelope on the specific day I need to tell them what day the envelope actually went out. It’s fun to see the destinations.

Every two weeks I will receive the envelopes for the next week. Currently I have envelopes ready for Week 46. I thought separate plastic pouches for each batch of envelopes would help me keep track. We’ll see how it works as I get through them. Should be fun! If you would like to join the team, go to this page and fill in your details. If they need someone in your area they will contact you. I get paid about $16 per month to receive envelopes and now with sending envelopes as well that amount will rise to $21. It adds up over time, believe me. Each month I am awarded a set amount of points and once I reach a certain amount I can redeem them for Amazon giftcards or Paypal deposits. I can also donate them to Doctors Without Borders. It’s a great program.

Don’t forget Fountain Pen Day is coming up soon: November 6. Anything special planned? Whatever you do enjoy your pens, whether you are a long time fountain pen lover or just discovering the hobby. More on that from me on the day. 🙂

Journal Writing Wednesday: 14 pages

Tags

ebay, portland, thanksgiving, world mail panel

What I’m currently using: the Paperblanks Blue Filigree journal, Winnable Executive Journal, the Believe In Yourself journal and the Seven Seas Writer.

Total pages written since this post (Oct 7): 14

Total pages to date since project inception (Dec 11/13): 1301

Total pages written in 2015: 461

Still using my Visconti Rembrandt with the Paradise Pen Vineyard Burgundy ink. It just makes me happy. 🙂 I will choose the pen for November on Oct 28.

Purchases: I reviewed my Franklin-Christoph purchases in this post and this Sunday I plan on discussing some of my recent ebay purchases.

Some points covered this week in my journals:

• Still writing about Portland. I printed out some photos and pasted them in, next to the relevant sections. It’s so great to relive the moments through my writing. 🙂
• One of my ebay purchases was a pen so I’ve been running it through its paces in my journal. Very happy with it. More info in Sunday’s post.
• Had an amazing Thanksgiving celebration with my niece’s extended family. Great food and conversation, with one of the most welcoming families I’ve ever met. Thank you Silvana, John and crew for a truly memorable holiday!
• I got an exciting email from World Mail Panel Surveys. They would like me to start sending envelopes in addition to receiving them, starting in November. Who could say no to another $5 a month? Woohoo!! But seriously it is such a fun enterprise, getting mail from all over the world. Why not send it all over the world as well?

Until next post, happy writing!

Journal Writing Wednesday: 65 pages (!)

Tags

calgary public library, franklin christoph, sharpie, wonder pens, world mail panel

What I’m currently using: the Paperblanks Blue Filigree journal, Winnable Executive Journal, the Believe In Yourself journal and the Seven Seas Writer. And for this week most of the pages were written in my Prayer Journal, the Paperblanks Ventaglio Rosso Midi.

Total pages written since this post (Sept 2): 65

Total pages to date since project inception (Dec 11/13): 1232

Total pages written in 2015: 392

Yes in the past two weeks I’ve written 65 pages in my journals. Most of those pages (56) were in my Prayer Journal, the only journal I had with me for a two day spiritual retreat. And it was a silent retreat at a monastery so I wrote those 56 pages over two days. Keep in mind the pages are smaller in the Rosso Midi: 7×5. And I covered a big bunch of them with thoughts and observations of a spiritual nature and other natures as well. Super personal so I will not be sharing. I can say it was a magical experience and I encourage all of you to try it if you can. You will be surprised, as I was, at what bubbles up when you have none of the distractions or responsibilities of your regular life. Amazing for journal writers.

I used three fountain pens: the Cadence (my pen for September), the TWSBI Eco and the Parker Urban in Blue. I will choose the October pen on September 30.

Purchases: I received a $100 reward from World Mail Panel Surveys and I have bought myself a couple of things, from Wonder Pens and Franklin-Christoph. Very excited. When they arrive I will share.

Some points covered this week in my journals:

• My company is still downsizing, so that makes for a sombre workplace. But I think people are better prepared for it now, as opposed to two months ago. And people (including me) have made a plan if the worst case scenario happens. The plan helps to manage the stress somehow.
• I wrote about my purchases at the Calgary Public Library and the Sharpies I picked up at Staples before writing this post.

Until next post, happy writing!

Journal Writing Wednesday: 7 pages

Tags

monthly pen, weddings, wonderpens, world mail panel

What I’m currently using: the Paperblanks Blue Filigree journal, Winnable Executive Journal and the Believe In Yourself journal

Total pages written since last JWW post (July 15): 7

Total pages to date since project inception (Dec 11/13): 1092

Total pages written in 2015: 252

Next week we say goodbye to the Manuscript pen and hello to the pen for August. I’ve really enjoyed using the Manuscript pen these last few weeks. But something new to look forward to is always nice!

Purchases: In a moment of weakness I made a purchase from Wonderpens. Review to come when it gets here. I think I will have enough points for a $100 voucher from the World Mail Panel Surveys next month, so then the guilt free spending spree can begin!

Some points covered this week in my journals:

• Who am I kidding? There’s only one point covered this past week: my niece’s wedding. It was a beautiful weekend with so many amazing moments, most of which are personal, and will not be shared here. But it was a time of celebration and also of reflection, as I was moved to tears many times during the weekend, as I reflected on the bride and her sister and their journey so far. I also reflected on my own journey, the highs and the lows. There will be more of this next week – I’m barely halfway through the wedding!

Until next post, happy writing!

Vintage Canadian Waterman Junior

Tags

14 ct gold nib, absolute brown, agatha christie, cadence, canada post, canadian waterman junior, fountain pen revolution, goodwriters pens, lamy al-star, lever filler, monteverde artista crystal demonstrator, monteverde paquito, pilot metropolitan leopard, royal mail, waterman, winnable executive journal, world mail panel

I stumbled across the Goodwriter’s site recently and purchased a Fountain Pen Revolution Guru pen, which is STILL in Customs in Vancouver, as I write this. About a week after I purchased the Guru I received enough points from World Mail Panel to redeem $100. So I purchased a Canadian Waterman Junior, also featured on the Goodwriter’s site, with a 14ct nib, made around 1934. I’ve been wanting a vintage pen for awhile, and I fell in love with this one on sight.

So I anxiously watched the mail for the next two weeks. The Royal Mail tracking system told me my packages were in Vancouver.  Then this past Wednesday I received notice that I had a package in my company’s mail room. When I went down I found this waiting for me.

My heart stopped. Damaged?? Oh no. I thought the delay was a big Customs bill!

But all was not as it seemed. I opened the plastic bag and retrieved the package from Goodwriters. It looked perfect; it was a sturdy paper cylinder with strong tape on both ends. It certainly did not appear damaged.

I shook the cylinder and did not hear any loose parts rattling round. So I carefully opened one end and took out the double thickness bubble wrap that encased the pen. Inside the bubble wrap was the Waterman. In pristine condition. Cue the singing angels. No idea what Canada Post was going on about with their Apology bag.

Deb, the wonderful woman behind Goodwriter’s, sent this lovely note, along with instructions for filling the pen. It is a lever filler, which I have never used before. I followed the steps she outlined, about three times, and the pen started writing immediately. Cue those angels again!

Here she is in all her glory. I think it is in remarkably good condition for being around 80 years old! The body is smooth with no visible dents or nicks. The chrome is bright but not overly shiny, like a new pen would be. The lever lifts very smoothly and snaps back into place easily. It’s certainly a new experience, that lever filling system. It’s weird not being able to get into the “guts” of the pen. But it works and Deb told me it shouldn’t need servicing for at least 10 years. It’s impossible to tell how much ink is left but that’s ok.

I now understand what the fuss about gold nibs is all about. The nib is smooth and I am so impressed with the writing. It is a smaller pen (just under 12 mm capped; just under 15 mm posted) and very light. The nib seems delicate and I know I have to get used to it; I feel like I might snap it off at any moment. It looks like a prop from an Agatha Christie movie, which is part of my delight with it.

And here’s the reason it’s called a Canadian Waterman Junior.

The Waterman company had a factory in Montreal roughly between 1905 and 1954. The nib says Made in the USA and both the barrel and cap say Made in Canada. Being a patriotic sort this really appealed to me.

Here’s the Waterman next to some modern pens.

From left to right: Monteverde Paquito; Waterman Junior; Monteverde Artista Crystal; Pilot Metropolitan; Cadence; Lamy Al-Star.

So let’s get to a writing sample.

It is a beautiful writer, very smooth and constant. I inked it with Waterman’s Absolute Brown which I got for Christmas. The notebook is my Winnable Executive.

So that’s my Canadian Waterman Junior. My first vintage pen, first gold nib. It probably won’t be my last.

World Mail Panel Journal Update

Tags

amazon, andrews + blaine ltd., doctors without borders, jottbook, leuchtturm, paypal, postage stamps, world mail panel

In my post of April 7, 2014 I discussed my involvement with World Mail Panel Postal Surveys. I am still processing surveys for them and I’ve had to start a new journal. So I thought I would share some pages from the old journal and introduce you to the new one.

Both the old and new journals are Leuchtturm Jottbooks in purple. The first one was a lined jottbook, approximately 5.8″ (15 cm) x 3.5″ (9 cm), and lasted from March 2014 to the first week of Jan 2015. The second one is grid, approximately 8.25″ (20.75 cm) x 5.75″ (14.5 cm) in size. Because of the bigger size I’m thinking the second one will last a good long time.

One of the great things about this program is, obviously, receiving mail from all over the world. And of course said mail have stamps from their countries of origin. I really enjoy the variety of stamps I’ve received so far and I started putting them into the journal, once the suggested retaining time for each survey has expired.

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Countries so far: USA, Sweden, United Arab Emirates, Japan, France, Hungary, China, Spain, Britain, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, and, most recently, South Africa and New Zealand. I was delighted to see on the New Zealand postal stamp: From Middle Earth New Zealand. 🙂

In the new journal I’m putting the stamps at the back, with the intention of working my way backward. Eventually I will meet the recording pages and have to start a new notebook.

These are the recording pages. As each retaining time expires I cross out the entry, stick the stamp in my journal if it’s new, and throw the survey out. As each survey comes in, I record info on their website and then I record the number, id code, when it was received, how long I have to keep it, the transponder number, and the date of the postmark in my journal. Since I don’t keep the stamp with the entry I should probably start recording the country of origin as well. Most of the surveys come from the US.

So far I’ve never been contacted about a past survey. And I am not required to record the info in a notebook but sometimes when a bunch of suveys come in I like to have a paper record so I can keep track of those I have entered on the website and those I have not. And if a transponder goes missing (which hasn’t happened with mine as far as I know) I will have a record of when I sent it back to them.

This is where I keep the envelopes for returning the transponders, and on the left is a transponder awaiting a mate for its return trip.

I keep each survey in this expanding folder from Andrews and Blaine. I attached tabs for each month.

World Mail Panel pays me $15 a month to process their surveys. There are a variety of gift cards to choose from (I like Amazon), or you can choose to have a payment made to your PayPal account (I’ve done that too). You can also donate the money to Doctors Without Borders. It’s fun, easy and quick. You can read more about the program and register if you like at this link.

One final note: World Mail Panel sends me return envelopes with the postage already attached. I had not seen a $5 Canadian stamp before – isn’t it cool?? The owls are cute too but I LOVE the moose! 🙂

 

Monteverde Prima in Green Swirl

Tags

bleu pervenche, goulet pens, ink treatment formula, jetpens, monteverde ink, monteverde prima, noodler's navy, private reserve, private reserve avacado, world mail panel

In the weeks leading up to my trip to Phoenix I placed an order with Goulet Pens (and also one with JetPens but that is for another post). I had enough credit with World Mail Panel to order the Monteverde Prima in Green Swirl, which is the third in my set of Monteverde Primas (click here for a post on the Turquoise Swirl, and here for the Purple Swirl). And for the months of November and December Goulet Pens is offering a free bottle of Monteverde Ink with a Monteverde pen purchase (or free cartridges if you purchase a Monteverde pen that only takes cartridges). And with my sister’s good grace she let me take advantage of super cheap shipping to her US address.

The box arrived before I did.

And of course there are always extra goodies in a package from the Goulets. Matt signed my invoice in Noodles’s Navy.

Now the background will change from my sister’s kitchen to my desk. There were a couple of Christmas presents from our father in the Goulet package so of course we haven’t opened them yet. I will share that after Christmas.

The opened box.

A close-up of the nib. I got this one in Medium, which is the same as the Turquoise. Look at that green cap!! LOVE the colour.

My first ever bottle of Monteverde ink. I ordered green to match the new pen. And because of the promotion, the ink was free.

I must say I was impressed with the packaging. I don’t know if Goulet put the bottle in a ziploc bag or if that’s how they come from Monteverde, but it’s a great idea. And the pamphlet shows you the other inks that are available and talks about how their ink contains ITF (Ink Treatment Formula), which apparently improves ink flow, extends cap-off time, lubricates the feed and improves ink drying time on paper. Neat.

This ink is more of a blue green, at least it looks that way in the bottle. Not sure it will match the barrel.

Yep not going to work in the green swirl. It’s a beautiful colour but is a bit too blue. It reminds me of the Bleu Pervenche ink I use in the turquoise swirl.

I looked through my Ink Journal and found the Private Reserve Avacado (sic) ink that would probably be a good match.

Oooh perfect.

Love this combination. I had a fair bit of problems with the Private Reserve ink however. My fingers are very, very green right now. There was some sort of skin on top of the ink that I had to dispose of first. Yuk. I have heard that skins can occur with Private Reserve ink but this is the first time it’s happened to me. Ultimately worth the aggravation because I really enjoy this combination.

And here are the three lovelies together. It’s interesting to see how the purple has white swirls, the green has black, and the turquoise has both. I’ve never noticed that before. There are five in the series, and the other two are Tiger Eye Swirl and Black Swirl. Tiger Eye is similar to the Green in that it has black swirls. And the Black Swirl is unique in that it is mostly black with a green swirl. I’m not a big fan of the Black Swirl but in another four months I will have enough credits with World Mail Panel to get the Tiger Eye. And then I think my Prima collection will be complete. I don’t see the point of getting the Black Swirl just to have the complete set, when I don’t really like it.

Until next time, happy writing!

Journal Writing Wednesday: 3 pages

Tags

goulet pens, j. herbin, jay sadow, jetpens, monteverde, monteverde prima, scottsdale pen and knife, world mail panel

What I’m currently using: the Paperblanks Blue Filigree journal, Winnable Leather Journal and the Believe In Yourself journal

Total pages written since last JWW post (Nov 19): 3

Total pages to date since project inception (Dec 11/13): 702

Total pages written in 2014: 647

Total number of notebooks/pens/ink bought since self-imposed spending freeze observation experiment (it’s not much of a freeze these days!) (Jan 1/14): 58

• 1 pen + 1 bottle of ink = 2 items in a gift set on Jan 14
  
• 1 bottle of KoninginneNach-Blauw from Akkerman on Feb 5
• 1 Visconti Rembrandt Calligraphy set in Red = 2 items (pen and ink bottle) from Goldspot on May 15
• 1 bottle of J. Herbin Bleu Pervenche from Goldspot on May 15
• 1 bottle of De Atramentis Heather Violet from Goldspot on May 15
• 5 pens, 4 notebooks, 3 tins of ink cartridges from Reid’s on June 14
• 1 Jinhao X450 from ebay; received on June 19
• 1 bottle of De Atramentis William Shakespeare ink from Goulet Pens; received on June 25
• 1 Winnable Leather Notebook on July 10
• 1 Wreck This Journal on Aug 2
• 2 ink samples from Private Reserve: Avacado (sic) and DC Supershow Blue from Wonderpens on Aug 31
• 2 Leuchtturm 1917 notebooks, grid and lined from Wonderpens on Aug 31
• 1 Kaweco Sport Ink Roller Demonstrator from Wonderpens on Aug 31
• 1 Leaf Binder from eBay
• 1 Alphabet Journal from Suzi Q
• 1 Dragonfly Journal, 1 Wooden Fountain Pen, and 1 Zebra V-301 Fountain pen in September
• 1 Pilot Metropolitan pen from Amazon on Nov 7 to celebrate Fountain Pen Day
• 1 limited edition purple Pilot Metropolitan in Leopard and 1 Leuchtturm 17 purple Jotbook on Nov 15 at Reid’s Stationers
• 1 Monteverde Prima in green from Goulet Pens on Nov 22
• 16 (gasp!) 10 ml bottles of J. Herbin ink in assorted colours from JetPens on Nov 22
• 1 Monteverde Artista Clear Demonstrator, 1 Pilot Plumix in purple, 2 Platinum Preppies in blue and green and 1 Rhodia leather notebook from Scottsdale Pen and Knife on Nov 25

Being on holiday I’ve written only 3 pages in my journal. So I haven’t had a chance to write about my purchases of late. But I wanted to share them so I’ve included them above. The bold is a reminder to me that I need to photograph and write blog posts about those items.

Yes I’ve taken advantage of my sister’s goodwill and used her US address for two orders to Goulet Pens and JetPens. I used the proceeds from my World Mail Panel efforts to finance the Monteverde Prima in green, and I also purchased two Christmas gifts for my sister and I, from our father. So more on that after Christmas. And I’ve wanted to complete my J. Herbin collection for some time now and with free shipping and a great sale I couldn’t resist getting 16 of the mini bottles of J. Herbin ink. Now there is only one colour I don’t have: Diabolo Menthe. Exciting stuff!

And yesterday my sister and I went to Scottsdale Pen and Knife and boy did we have fun! I bought 4 fountain pens and a notebook. The owner, Jay Sadow, spent a lot of time with us, answering questions and showing us beautiful pens and pencils, and just being wonderful.

All of these new purchases will get full blog posts once I’m home. Until then happy writing!