This transcript was generated from an audio file by AI, and may contain inaccuracies.
Transcript
Henry, say Happy birthday, Mr. Thoreau.
Happy birthday.
Hello, and welcome to episode 120 of the erasable podcast. I'm 10B Tim coming to you in full summer mode. And I am joined by my favorite drinks of water, Andy the Drew and Johnny the Johnny. John.
Hello.
Did you just call me a potty?
Yeah, I did. I think technically you did.
I know. Crap.
What did I do? Johnny the John. So, in lieu of our usual topic, this week, we're going to stick to fresh points because there's been a ton of limited releases coming out from Write notepads and field notes and Baron, Fig and Moleskine. But before we start making those points fresh, let's check in with our tools of the trade. And let's start with Johnny.
Johnny the John.
Johnny the John.
So I think I talked about Jamestown before, and we finally finished it. Have you guys checked that out yet on pbs?
Not yet.
Not yet.
Intent.
Yeah, it's a cool show. And they. So they wrapped it up after three seasons, and apparently it was a surprise that they were doing that. So I was afraid it was gonna be one of those situations where, you know, a show goes on for a few seasons and gets canceled, and you're like, oh, crap, mid story. But they knew it was gonna be the last season and wrote it accordingly. So that's satisfying. And we haven't really been watching anything. As we were out of town, we were watching a lot of Bob's Burgers in the hotel, because, kids, it's a good hotel show. Yeah. So I listened to a lot of music that is on the darker side. So when our friend Eric in Scotland recommended an album called Sucker Punch by a Norwegian pop singer called Sigrid, we were listening to that on the train. That's, like, pretty enjoyable and lighthearted, sort of bouncy, but some of the other things that Spotify thinks you'll like if you like that. But also, you know, death metal, you might not like. So just stick to that. And my last thing is I reading a book that I've been meaning to read called American A Love Story, which is sort of like. It's a, like, early midlife memoir by a philosophy professor named John Kag, who I think teaches at UMass Lowell, about rediscovering philosophy and life through the American philosophers like William James, which was my big specialty in grad school. So. And a lot of it takes place in Boston, where I just left. So it's a very, very good book. He's a really good writer. He just wrote a book that Came out called Hiking with Nietzsche that I just ordered, which sounds really interesting. Yeah, that's my short list. And I'm writing with a Blackwing 1001 that I found on the dining room table. And I know isn't mine, but everybody here says that it's not theirs. So now it is mine.
Now it is yours.
Yeah. Like sweetest. You know, put a new eraser on it.
Good to go.
And I'm writing in book one of the right notepads 4th of July series, which we'll talk about a little later.
Nice. Nice.
Drew.
Drew.
Sup?
Sup? Sup?
I, you know, at some point in my life, I was like, you know, my name is Andrew. I definitely don't feel like a Drew. Am I an Andy or am I an Andrew? And I definitely felt like an Andy. So that's. Andy is a very conscious choice to continue.
Do you wear a visor ever? Yeah.
Right.
Do you wear a visor ever? No.
A visor?
Yeah.
No.
There's a kid I went to high school with who went by Drew, and he always was wearing a visor. And so I just kind of associate Drew's with visors.
Drew's with visors.
Yeah. Yeah.
If I ever start, I'll know what to do. I have been reading. It just came out. Neal Stephenson, who's a pretty prolific sci fi author, speculative fiction author. He wrote a book recently called Fall or Dodge in Hell. And I just missed. He was in San Francisco and he was doing a book signing at Borderland Books not that long ago, which is kind of a well known sci fi bookstore we have here. And I missed it, but. Oh well. But I downloaded the ebook version of Fallen Dodge in Hell to read on the plane. I took vacation and went to Indiana to visit my family. And so on the way there and on the way back, it's been. It was about 10 hours in the air.
Ish.
And I'm only 35% of the way through the book because if ever you've read a Neal Stephenson book, you know how freaking long they are. He's kind of like Frank Herbert in that he just like writes and writes and writes and spends whole chapters on some fake economy and like some alien civilization or something. He did that here. It's kind of about a near future where we're approaching the singularity with like billionaires uploading their consciousness into. Into the cloud and just kind of some of the cultural things that result from that. So it's really good. It's a very well written book. Neil Stevenson's Always, like, talented, but it's definitely not short, like, like simply spoken. So reading that. Reading or watching? I'm about halfway and a little over halfway through two thirds of the way through Stranger Things Season 3, which is so fantastic. Tim finished it. Maybe he can talk about a little bit more.
Yeah, it's. It's the best season by far.
Oh, high praise.
Yeah, I. I really appreciate that. You know, like, it's been a year and a half since the last episode, the last season, and all the kids have, like, definitely grown up a lot more. They're like, you know, teens or preteens rather than just children. And I'm glad that they sort of, like, they don't. They're not trying to like, pretend that they're still all kids. They're just like, you know, following them along, following along with them in the. In the show. So it's so good. So it's exactly the sort of, like, it's. It's a lot darker, but exactly the sort of thing I would have loved to have watched, like, when I was that age.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's. And I was thinking about last night that they kind of. With them aging and getting older and, like, where they are in school, they're kind of setting themselves up perfectly for doing the, like, five episodes in a movie sort of thing, which I really. I really hope that's what happens.
Oh, a Stranger Things movie would be so good. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm a huge Stranger Things fan. A lot of. I see a lot of criticism just saying, like, it's a. It's. It's very much, like, leans on nostalgia and, like, the feeling that, like, it kind of evokes, which. Which, honestly, like, this is. This isn't.
Which is why 40 million people have watched it.
Right?
Yeah.
Because they love it. Yeah.
And it's. I mean, it's certainly nostalgic, but I don't think it's nostalgic for nostalgia's sake. I think that there's, like, a really great, like, ethos that they're capturing and, like, the way, like, the, like, it serves the plot right, like, and the character development, it's not just nostalgia for. It's not like people releasing, like, belt buckles and watches that look like Super Nintendo's or something. Like, it's very.
Yeah. They're not like the outfits and stuff that they're, like, wearing. They're not, like, necessarily attractive versions of. It's just like. Yeah, so that's what we used to wear. That's the haircut we used to have.
And it's what we thinking.
All of those kids are like, probably. Like the characters are probably 10 years older than I am. Like, this season takes place in 1985, and I was 2 years old in 1985.
Yeah. Yeah.
But, like, I think they're all about your age, Johnny. Like, ish.
Right? Like, you're.
How old were you in 1985?
Five or six.
Okay. So I guess they're a little older than you even too. But, like, it still feels like the late. The late 80s and early 90s to me. Like, like, like small town Indiana was just like Hawkins.
Yeah. Oh, yeah.
So anyhow, and then I'm writing with a Baron Fig confidant, and I'm actually using one of the Baron Fig archers, the one that looks like a school pencil. Like the yellow and green school pencil.
Ooh, nice.
Which I think is my favorite Archer Edition.
Yeah.
How about you, Tim?
Sweet. I. Along with Stranger Things, which I think we've said what we need to say on that, but I just been thinking about it all the time, and I watched it in, like three days. James. My wife is traveling, and so each evening I've watched like three episodes and I'm ready to start it again. I'm ready to start over, I think maybe even certain episodes. And now that I said that thing about the. Making the movie at the end. Yeah, the last episode was like a movie. I mean, it was like an hour and 20 minutes long or something. So, I mean, so they might just do that like the last. If they. If they. They could do five episodes and then just. Or five seasons. And then the last episode of that fifth season could just be like two hours long or something like that would be incredibly awesome. So along with that, I've also been watching and reading Longmire. Have you guys ever watched Longmire?
Yeah.
Or heard of it. So it's a. It was based on a novel called the Cold Dish is where it started, this series, which he had. Which Craig Johnson had intended to write as a standalone novel, but it turned into this series, like 15 books that he's written so far. But the premise was that he wanted to write a sort of crime novel with a. Or the sheriff kind of thing, but he wanted to do it in the least populated town of the least populated county of the least populated state, which was in Wyoming. And so it's this guy, Walt Longmire, who's just got kind of. His life's just sort of a, you know, a mess, and he's. You liking that bone, Theo Jeez, I'm so loud.
Sorry.
But he. So. Yeah, so he's. I'm reading the first book and that's what that first episode was based on. So it's a great show and Jane and I are really enjoying that. It's like a sort of modern Western feel to it. But he's. It's. It's based in today, but it kind of feels like a Western. But they're dealing with modern issues and stuff like that. Good characters. And then I'm reading Dumbing Us down, rereading Dumbing Us down, which is a book by John Taylor Gatto, who was this famous, like, voice in education who was a teacher for 30 years in New York State. And he won the Teacher of the Year award and then like within a couple months quit, like, really publicly with an op ed in like, the Wall Street Journal saying why he was quitting because he had just lost all faith in the. The education system. And so he is just kind of a fiery voice of just like, why our education system is just complete garbage. And you know, why what certain private schools have that our public school system doesn't allow to exist? Because they're basically just training us all to be good factory workers. But it's called the Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. And he has another book called the Weapons of Mass Instruction. That's a good title, which is a really good one too. And so he's just really a good thing for me to read at the beginning of the year just to make sure that I. I'm not just, like, falling into the traps that he describes that make school feel useless to kids. So I'm really, really enjoying that. And it's also. It's a good book for just, I mean, parents to read. I mean, if anybody's just like, interested in just like, that idea because it helps you kind of like navigate thinking about your kids or your family members in schooling just to like, make sure that they're not sort of falling prey to a system that was. Yeah. Designed in England to make good factory workers who would just do whatever you say.
Yeah.
So, yeah, it's really inspiring and cool. I like him a lot. And he actually passed away last year, which was really sad. But this is. It's nice to. To reread this now. And I am riding with. I've got a black wing. The 1917. Is that what it's called? The canvas? The anniversary. So I've got a stub of. I can't tell because I can't see the whole thing. But it's in. I got a stub of that in my timber twist that I've been carrying around the last few days. And I am using one of the new field notes. I've got the, of course, the Great Smoky Mountains national park edition. Oh, that's a beautiful one, which is really, really beautiful. It is awesome. And so. And I'm using. I'm actually carrying it in this old leather case. Like, it's just one of those, like, simple, you know, leather covers that has, like, a thin leather cover that has a rubber band that just kind of goes across the binding and down the middle because it is so hot that these are. And these are too beautiful to sweat through. So, like, in my pockets, I was like, I gotta put a buffer in there because these are too awesome. So, yeah, I just got mine today. So I just. I. Actually, it was perfect timing because I just finished one of the. What are the open road one or whatever. I just finished one of those today and then started one of these that
I think my favorite. Well, we can talk about this later, but, yeah. Do you want to know something tragic? I lost my timber twist. And. Oh, yeah, they're not making. He's not making anymore. John Fontaine is. He's, like, closed up.
Like, in general or just a timber
twist reopen in general. Like, I.
We.
I don't think we talked about in the show. We talked about it in the group a little bit, but he's just been so busy with work, and he's hasn't been able to, like, you know, get back making more twists. So I don't think you can buy any. Any twists, timber or otherwise, from him right now.
Yeah, exactly.
Oh, my God. Yeah. There aren't any products in this collection.
Yeah. Hold on.
Hold on to what you got. Henry's obsessed with mine, and he always kind of, like, drops those, like, kid hints of like. Yeah, it'd be really cool to have one of these. I think I kind of want to get. And so. And I'd be like, yeah, well, maybe you save up for one. I said that the other day, and it's like, oh, no.
Oh, man.
Did you show them how you did the voice for the timber twist?
No, I don't think you. That would even make sense to him. You just feel like, what? Okay, whatever. Whatever.
Yeah, yeah.
So that's really a bummer.
Gosh.
These are, like, one of the coolest things out there in this world, like, in this, like, stationary world. I think the.
Yeah.
Timber twist is, like, one of my prized items that I carry around.
I Have a feeling.
Sorry.
I always want to get a clip. Sorry. You go.
I have a feeling that mine is, like in a jacket or a coat somewhere that I just haven't worn for like a year or so, but just need to get down and look for it. Yeah, yeah. How about.
What are you going to say? I was. I always wanted to get a clip. I just, like, never pulled the trigger. Well, maybe it'll be one of those things you'll forget and, like, pull out a bag you haven't used in a long time. Like, what's this? Oh, my God.
Yeah.
Like, the best thing ever.
They tell you guys a story about when Henry did that with me, where I was. I lost my favorite, one of those Keras Customs pens. It's like the. It's called the edk. It's like the shorter kind of pocket pen that they sell. And I lost it for like six months. And just Henry just like, walked into the room one day holding it, and I was like. And I had that moment. I was like, oh, my gosh, Henry, you found a good job.
Good job. I can't believe you found that.
And I was like, where did you. Where did you find it? And he was just like, I don't know. I was like, no, but where did you find it? And he literally just like, I don't. I don't know. I don't know where I found it.
I've had it for a long time. This is my pen.
Yeah, me too. He's like, I don't know.
I don't remember.
I just was back there somewhere and just found it today. I was like, oh, my gosh, that's amazing. Seriously, I don't think I had seen it in five, six months. It was a long time. That was nice. All right, well, shall we get on with the abundance of fresh points of. Of meaty, fresh points that we have or meaty
minor plant based meal meat replacement? These are fresh, fresh, impossible points.
The burger. Like the impossible burger or whatever. Yeah, yeah.
So, I mean, as an aside, I don't know if anyone's tried them. Like, oh, yeah, don't look for the meaty flavor. But they taste so freaking good. Like, who cares what they taste like?
Serve those at the Adobe cafeteria. They're really good.
Oh, my God.
But are they. Do you think they're any healthier than. I mean, besides just, like, eating meat, you know? But, like, are they any healthier than just, like a hamburger?
It's. It's. Yeah, it's supposed to be a lot more of the like, polyunsaturated fats, like avocados and that kind of stuff they say. But I. I don't know.
All right, cool.
And most of the ones that you buy commercially are just, like, soy, and a lot of folks that are sensitive to soy can't touch them.
It's, like, too much, I'll tell you. I'm sure. I don't know what your experience has been, Johnny, but, like, for me, it's. It tastes very much like it, but, like, I think the thing that kind of gives it away is, like, it uses a lot of, like, coconut oil, and so it has a little bit of that, like, coconut oil feel and taste, which I honestly think is funny because I like coconut oil.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, me too.
I had at one of my favorite restaurants, their special one time was the Crusty Burger. It was an impossible burger with a brioche with, like, pickles and some kind of sauce and curly fries, which they don't usually make on the side. I was like, oh, my God. Oh, yeah. I almost asked for, like, two to go, but I don't want to be that guy. So I just got back from Boston and I got to go to a muji store for the first time, which kind of blew my mind by the first time, second time, and third time, because I was there for a week. I didn't buy too much. I was a good boy. But you can buy a lot of the stuff on their website or Amazon. So I just wanted to check out, like, you know, do I like these pens? Like, holy crap. Yes. These pens are amazing. But they had a crank pencil sharpener there, which was really cool looking. That I did not buy. But it wasn't very expensive. So looking back, I don't know why I didn't buy it, because it was,
you know, sensory overload for you, probably.
Yeah. And they had, like, all those essential oils going. So I walk in there and I'm like, oh. And I, you know, just had a lot of coffee.
Oh, yeah.
Figure
that sensory overload thing is real.
I was.
I was telling Johnny beforehand that when I went to Singapore with Michael Metz, we went into. They have, like, a flagship size Muji there that has, like, a cafe, and this is really huge. And he walked in and just, like, was not. Not able to articulate words. We spent, like, two and a half hours there. Well, he just, like, looked at everything. It was really funny.
Yeah.
Yeah. I. I got to meet up with Les and Dade from rsvp, so I've got to hang out with all three Hosts of RSVP in the last couple weeks, which is super awesome.
Yeah.
So jealous.
So, yeah, we got to hang out for, like, quite a while, which was cool. We got to have some good lunch at a place near Harbor Square called Darwin's that has a sandwich called the Walden Pond, which is vegetarian and so delicious. And visit some cool shops, including Bob Slate, where I asked about the gold masterpiece, and the lady smiled and said she tried to order it and she doesn't know if it's ever going to come. But I knew. I like that she knew what I was talking about.
Yeah, I can't imagine that a sandwich, if I can revisit that, a sandwich named after, like, a stoic would taste very good.
Oh, it was like, it was, you know, one of those tomato basil mozzarella style sandwiches, but it was just like is.
It's like, gives you the proper amount of nutrition and it doesn't, like, overstimulate your senses. And it's a very sensible sandwich.
Yeah, well, Walden Pond is sort of like party ground.
You don't even notice.
Yeah, people go there for, like, picnics, and they used to have an amusement park there. So it has. It's tomato, basil and mozzarella, but in place of basil, it's pesto. And they even put a little vinaigrette in there too. And you can pick your bread. So delicious. Get it on ciabatta. I might have had it several times while I was in town because I'm a hog and I really like sandwiches. But yeah, we got to like, what did they have about Slate that was interesting? We bought these yellowed pencils that were from Staedtler, and it wasn't until I left that I realized they were extruded. But not like, heavy, awesome. Wopex extruded. Like extruded. And so that. That sucked. And at Bobsleigh, they sell singles of black wings for $3, including limited editions, which they're not supposed to do. But, like, you know, that's cool with me. But they charge $36 now for their volumes.
Maybe we should, like, bleep that part out. Like. Yeah, so they don't get called out on it.
But they. They had eight elevens. Like, I asked them, like, so you have all these volume four still. Do you have eight elevens left? She's like. She smiled at me and goes, yes. And I'm like, where are they? She said, you have to ask for them and you can only get one. Like, so you're hiding them. You can only buy one and you Drag the price up. That just doesn't seem like a very good business practice, especially a few months later.
Bleeping it out. Yeah, Yeah.
I mean, I mean, I love Bob's plate. I bought one of those little kum jar sharpeners that I had my eye on until I realized it's a short point and it's also very small. So it's cute, more than useful. But you know, it was only eight bucks. But yeah, I mean, you know, bobsleigh's bobslate. It's cool. They have a lot of cool stuff. They have La Pen flexible point pens now, which is pretty awesome. And they had two new colors, a navy blue and this like really dark magenta. So that was cool. I might have picked up like several of those. And my last fresh point is the right notepads. July 4th, special edition. Yay. Did you guys get a pack of those? No.
They look beautiful though.
Yeah. So they released a special edition with sort of vintage white looking covers featuring the Declaration of Independence. And the belly band is blue. And they're sewn, they said, by hand. But it was a sewing machine. But Chris sewed each one individually on a sewing machine with red thread.
Yeah.
So like they're. They're completely gorgeous. Like, lined up. They look so good. It's their really nice paper. And they made 243 of them. So like when they came and I read it and I ordered a pack and I was thinking outline of Frank, I'm like, why the hell is it 243? It's like, because that's the age of our country. Whoops.
But I appreciate the, like, aesthetic and the execution of this, I think.
Right.
No pass. Did a really good job with that.
Yeah. And being. Being like an old east coast city with a proud, like, fu heritage to the British. We like, we like fourth of, like. I'd love to see them do a really good Fort McHenry edition. That's kind of like, you know, king or something. That would be really cool because, like, I bought a mug there one time and I refused to ever drink tea in it. And Frankie's like, why? I'm like, it's from Fort McHenry. We don't drink tea out of this mug.
To see you don't hold the grudge.
Yeah. It's like a big middle finger to our oppressors. Even though, you know, we kind of started that war, which they don't teach us in school.
Did you.
Did you guys listen to revisionist history? The.
I listen to it every day.
Every Day in my own head.
It's Malcolm Gladwell's podcast, and his last episode on his Fourth of July episode was kind of like. It's kind of like what you're celebrating is not what you think you're celebrating. And he goes in and tells the story of the Boston Tea Party.
Yeah.
And how it was actually, like, smugglers trying to, like, raise the prices on their own tea. There's just this crazy story. I think you'd like it. You should listen to it. Yeah. It's a really good podcast, but they're.
I mean, they went fast. I got a lot of messages. Like, did you get any extras? No, I got one. I don't want to be that. Be that guy. That. But, you know, 20 of them.
Although, you know, did Chris, like, number them? Did he put, like.
Oh, no, not numbered. But it's. This is not their summer release. Their anniversary is next month. It's just, like. So the cool thing about them, since they make their own stuff, is they can be like, hey, let's make a Keats edition for, like, just the hell of it. We'll just do 500.
Yeah.
And, like, they just whip them up when they have time, which is cool. I mean, not that a lot of thought doesn't go into them. Yeah, that's. Those are all my fresh points.
Nice.
Well, my first one is something I'm going to, like, declare here specifically to hold myself accountable to it, because at the. By the time this airs, I should have it up. But we should. We should be holding Pre orders for Plumbago 6, which is exciting.
Yay.
Yay.
As we talked about before, this is the Travel and nature edition, and we have a lot of really interesting things, really good visual submissions this time around. Like, you know, we've. We've skewed pretty heavily toward essay and memoir and, like, like, written things, which is great, and I think something that sets us apart from a lot of other zines out there. But we definitely have some really interesting visual stuff, visual media in there. And the COVID is. I don't know. Do you all know Diane Wright, the graphite artist who's in our group?
Yeah.
She let me generously let me use one of her kind of, like, travel sketches on the COVID and.
Oh, that's awesome.
Still trying to figure out how to, like, make it really gel with, like. Because I need to put, like, you know, words in there as well instead of just the sketch. But we're still trying to figure that out. So the, like, thumbnail for the COVID is. Is placeholder. It's not the final thing, but yeah, go over to Plumbago XYZ and please, please pre order your editions. If you want it, you'll save a couple bucks and it gives us some extra revenue to get it printed and to, you know, get things distributed. So yay. Should be a really good addition. And, and, and also I'll have more details about, like, the stuff that'll be in it just to, like, tempt you as we, as we go on, get close to actually shipping it. Second thing I'll mention is one of. I think. I think this might be my favorite Squire so far. Baron Fig just released a new Squire pen and it is the editor and it is a red barrel pen with proof, like, proof marks on the, like on the barrel, you know, like different, different copy editing proof marks. And the ink is red, which is really fun. They haven't done a different colored ink since the experiment, which was, you know, gangbusters.
Yeah, mine comes today.
Oh, really?
All right. Just trapped it up for delivery.
If Johnny's just like, be right back. And just drops the mic like. Yeah, yeah, I.
It's.
They. They just announced it like a few days ago. And so I, like, none of us have ours in hand yet. I don't think anybody has theirs in hand yet.
Mine comes tomorrow.
Yeah, but I'm really looking forward to seeing what kind of red this. This refill has.
The.
It looks really great on the mocks. But yeah, something. I wish this happened when we were doing our kind of first round of edits on our book because this.
Did you get one of those field notes, red pens at Valentine's Day? Oh, yeah.
Yep, I got one of those.
They were shipping those out with subs this time.
Go around.
Yeah, they're really pretty.
That's good to know. Yeah, I like those a lot. But what I really like about like, like, I like Rollerball red ink just because, like, you don't have to press too hard to get, like, really bright scarlet red coming out. So, yeah, I'm looking forward to seeing maybe next episode we'll have more of a review. But I mean, if it's like, there are other squires. It's really well balanced and it writes really smoothly. This isn't a pen podcast, but I really don't mind talking about Squires here because they're so nice. Cool. That's it for my fresh points. How about you, Tim?
I was gonna. First thing I wanted to talk about is what people probably want to hear about the most or what they assumed we're Gonna spend most of our time on. But Field Notes. I was gonna talk about two new additions that came to our attention. Of course we're gonna talk about the national parks. I'll do that. Second, First I was gonna bring up the Wilco Field Notes collaboration. So I've talked about Wilco before, one of my favorite bands. And they do this festival called Solid Sound up in Massachusetts. Or is it Massachusetts? I've never been there, so. Or is it New Hampshire? I don't know. It's up in the, up in the Northeast. And they always have like special events going on, like all these different musicians and artists and things. And then they have. We usually have a special merch that they, they sell there. And being a Chicago, a good Chicago band, they collaborated with Field Notes and made a really awesome six pack edition. It like comes in a box. So it's like, it's not just a little three packs that they threw together. You know, it's. It's a. It's the real deal. It comes in a box kind of. Which sounds a lot to like the, The. Was it National Crops? Didn't that one come in a box? Or what's the one that came in National Crops?
And Workshop Companion.
And Workshop Companion.
Yeah. Workshop had like the slip box.
Yeah.
So it's. And so there are six. Which corresponds with the band members, like the number of people in the band. So every member of the band got their own addition and a different designer designed each of them inspired by. And I think. And I guess Draplin did Jeff Tweedy's.
Yeah.
So the lead singer. So they look incredible. And I think so I'm getting most of this information. I'm gonna put a link in the show Notes. I really love. I've talked about it before, but I really love Take Note podcast. And they, they did like a special kind of breaking news episode. Well, well, Adam was at Solid Sound because he was there. So I love.
Adam just broke the news and like hell broke loose in the field.
Can you get me a pack? Can you get me a pack?
Oh man. I was one of them.
He spent like, he spent like 600 on field notes specifically because like to. To do orders for people who got in ahead of time.
Yeah, yeah, I tried. I was like, come on, please, dude. Obsessed with Wilco. But. But he made the point, the excellent point where he's. He said this is too beautiful, too well done and too intricate to just be available at this one festival once. So. And he, he said in the tweet when he said that I Believe was like retweeted or liked by Field Notes or something. So hopefully that is a hint that these will be available at some point through Wilco's website.
Yeah, I can't imagine they just printed, like, such a custom edition just for solid sound, which I had never heard of.
Yeah, I wouldn't think so. And with six different designers working like, yeah, Lance, to do this and I don't know, we'll see. I really hope. Because I'd hate to. I'd. I would be sick to my stomach if I missed out on these ones because they're. It's just like another one of those my worlds collide kind of moments from like two things that I was like when John Steinbeck pencil came out. And it's kind of like that two things that I absolutely love coming together. So I'll put a link to their episode because they talk about a lot and do, you know, describe it and talk about other awesome Wilco stuff. So, yeah, it was like on this is Adam on the scene talking about Field Notes collaboration. I really wish he was, like, recording it as walking through the festival and being like, yeah, I'm here and just describing what's around him. There are people surrounding the table. Um, yeah. And so the other edition that just came in, I just got mine today. Now, Johnny, you have yours, and Andy, yours are coming tomorrow.
You said they should be. I'm at work, but they should be coming today.
Oh, today.
Okay, sweet.
So the newest addition, which is really special is the national parks, which you probably heard about by now, but if not, this is kind of a long time coming. I think this is an addition that I always kind of. People even talked about at some point, like, where we.
I feel like every summer since I started, like, following people talking about Field notes, which was the summer of, like, America, the beautiful people have been wanting. Ooh, do a National Parks edition.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. And man, do they do it right. So they did. It is a graph paper. And they went above and beyond and did three different packs. So for subscribers, you ended up getting three packs sent to you, which is really, really freaking cool. So they did a separate edition for Yosemite, Zion, Acadia, Grand Canyon, Joshua Tree, Mount Rainier, Rocky Mountain, Great Smoky Mountains, and Yellowstone. All nine of those got their own edition.
And it's a collaboration with the 59 Parks guys.
Right?
Like the.
Yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Artists of the 59 Parks print series. And they. Yeah, they just kind of went all out on this one, which is really, really amazing. I was trying to look at the. There I had something about. Yeah, the. They used the. Is that the covers are printed on a variety of colored 100 pound cover stocks using a custom 5 color process that started with underprinting white ink. This allowed us to incorporate the color of the paper into the artwork. So you can see that kind of like depth when you see the covers that the. It almost. It seems like it's not printed on there. Like this is just what the paper always looked like, you know, so that's. It's really. You can really see it on the Grand Canyon one. I feel like when. Because that's like that cover is basically 20. It looks like 25 different shades of like tan, you know, but. But then you look on the other side and you can see the base color and it's really awesome. That's how they do the. The field notes logo on the front is just the color of the paper.
What's your favorite? What's your favorite cover?
Gosh, it is. It is like really impossible to pick. I mean, the ones. I feel like this is one of those editions that I'll just like a different one every time I pick up one. But I think if I had to pick one, I would probably go with the Zion national park book. It's where he's. There's like a guy or woman walking through. I don't know what you even call that. Like a crevice, like a break in the rocks where there's like a pathway of water going through the rocks.
Yeah, yeah.
Oh, yeah, that one's great.
That's probably my favorite. But the. And the Yosemite one is pretty breathtaking. With the stars.
Oh yeah, the stars. That's an interesting one because I don't know if I've ever seen them do that thing where they put the field notes logo at the bottom. And they did that with both the Rocky Mountains and with Yosemite.
Yeah.
And I did not even notice that. Yeah. Like, didn't even process that.
Yeah. And they did it with Joshua Teach. Joshua Tree as well.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
How about you, Johnny? What's your favorite?
Oh, man, I don't know. I really like the Mount Rainier because I like bears.
Yeah.
So that probably. And I really, really like the Rocky Mountain with the stag on the front. That's really cool. Yeah, it's very, you know, grabbing.
Yeah, the. The same. I'm doing it now where I'm all of a sudden like. Yeah, I like that one too. And I like that one too. I love buffaloes and so I love that the Yellowstone one with the buffaloes on it. Speaking of bears, the Great Smoky Mountain one has the two bears on the front of that one as well.
Yeah. So you haven't. You mean you haven't gotten yours yet, but what from web pictures is your favorite?
Man, I like the Rainier ones, but just because of the, like, the colors of the flowers and the.
Yeah.
The mountain background. I also really like just. Just looking at the pictures. I like the Acadia one just because it reminds me of those like 19, like 20s, 30s, like tourism posters.
Yeah.
Which I'm a big fan of.
It's kind of got a Mad Men sort of ad copy feel to add.
I have a feeling that when I see the Yosemite one in person, like, that starry sky is going to be like, really amazing. So. Yeah, it's hard to pick now, but it's. Yeah, I'm liking all of these one.
Another cool little detail is that on the inside one thing they change that when you open up the front cover, there's a box that. For. To get the official national park passport stamp in that, like there's like a big section for. It's like when you go to the parks, you can get. I guess they have some sort of a passport that you can get where you stamp all the parks that you've been to.
Yeah.
So that's just kind of cool. So they've got that there so you can get it stamped when you actually go to the parks, I think. I think that was a neat detail.
And Johnny, not to put you on the spot, but you had, you maybe had some like, you know, words of criticism about this, didn't you? Are you willing to.
Yeah. Yeah. So I love this edition. And like, I was trying to think of the last time they put out one where I was like, oh, my God, I love this. It was probably campfire just, you know, had, you know, that had a field notes vibe. But I like, I still like field notes, but I've noticed that I use them less because they're becoming objects and not notebooks. And like, at first it was just collectors doing that. Like, you know, oh, I can make some money off this. I'm going to buy a ton of these and, you know, get suckers later. But now the way field notes, the way they sell, like the old editions at their HQ for market price.
Yeah.
And the way that, I don't know, like, they can't really think people are going to use all these damn notebooks.
Yeah.
Like, they know that most of these aren't getting used anymore, and they're printing more and more, which is cool because, you know, they're a business and making money is what they want to do. But, like, I feel like they don't make field notes anymore. They make pocket art.
Yeah.
That you could use as a notebook. And if you want to.
I was thinking about that, and I. I totally see what you're saying. Like, like, even so, the first. Probably for many people, but for me, the first edition that was just like, wow, this is beautiful. Was America the Beautiful, but somehow it still felt usable. Like, it still felt like it was a utility because it was very much in tribute to, like, the, you know, those old halftone pocket notebooks. But. But this one, because, like, it's an artist collaboration, and it, like, you know, is limited edition in this very, like, you know, they're just so gorgeous. I totally see that here. Like, this. This feels. It feels hard to use it. Like, I had that resistance.
And they're like, their quality control is getting a little bad. Like, every time I get notebooks, it looks like they really need to change the blades and their cutters. And, you know, our friends that write notepads have showed me what they use, and they're like, yeah, the blades are dull. That's why that's happening. I'm like, but that's just sloppy. You're increasing the prices, and the.
The.
The quality is going down. And I. I like the designs, but, like, like I said, they're just not the same anymore, which is not necessarily a bad thing. But, yeah, I'm sure I'm finding a
much broader appeal now.
Yeah, I'm finding myself less interested in using them. And then I look, I compare them to, like, right. Notepads, where sometimes their design is, like, really careful, but they've always been that way. They've always been, like a beefy notebook that is gorgeous, but also really understated. And, like, talking to Chris and Moses, like, they are horrified at the idea that people would stash these notebooks away. They don't even make that many. They're like, no, please break these. Some bitches open and use them. And now the stuff they used to wrap them, now you can't really seal anymore, so you can't really say they're sealed. You always could have opened them, which I don't think is an accident, because it's a little harder to use that stuff.
Response? You have 30 seconds.
Thank you. Thank you to the moderator and thank you to the people of the good state of you.
Soy Americano
Tim Wasem. Yeah. So I. Yeah, I kind of. I've gone the opposite direction where I. I've talked about this before, but where I've used more and more field notes. But, like, the way I feel about it is almost like the. This. The form of it, especially with this one, it's like, it's. It's still like the humble form. It's the same exact inside that they've always had. You know, it's the same simple little notebook that is meant. Is designed, had always been, even before field notes, to be this, like, utilitarian thing. But when you have a business like that and you have people that are sort of that talented, just when they're in my head, it's like it became so popular that it let them finally kind of do what they had always wanted to do before then. Hi, Henry.
Well, it's his namesake's birthday today, which we forgot to mention.
Oh, really?
Pencil hero Henry David Thoreau would be 202 today if he was a zombie.
Oh, Henry. Say Happy birthday, Mr. Throw.
Happy birthday.
Henry came down, and this is actually an appropriate interruption because he came down to get help with the new Hot Wheels thing he got, which is called the pencil pusher.
What?
Yeah, it is a trailer. It's like a trailer that has a sort of supercharged school bus in the back of it, and you can. And it comes with, like, a ruler and a crayon sharpener and a little, like, pencil holder kind of in it. So. Yeah.
Oh, my God. My handmaid would lose it for this. Where.
Where'd you go? Oh, there you are. All right, take it upstairs. So, yeah, I. I just feel like that with. I mean, the prices have gone up on it. I was just saying that, like, I feel like the. The resources they've got from it have let them do kind of what they always would have done. So I feel like maybe things would have started like this at the beginning if they just had the. The means to do it. Does that make sense?
Yeah.
Yeah.
I mean, I don't mean to be like, you know, super down on field notes. Like, I. I have. I have a subscription. I probably always will. I really like them, but they've just changed so much. I don't know how I feel about it yet.
Yeah.
And, like, I don't. I don't want to jump in, you know, be an old fuddy duddy and be like, well, it's different now. It sucks. Because, you know, being different doesn't mean it sucks. I mean, it could be awesome. They changed their paper, and every time they change it, it's better.
Yeah.
So, you know, not all change is bad, but, you know, they. They started out making those, you know, the crappy pens and the crappy pencils, and they were cheap, and they were throwing in one all the time. And now, like, they've really crept up in price, and they also sell that, like, you know, 120 or $180 pen full of vintage wood just seems really unfield notes that I agree with. Like, what the hell is anyone going to do with this?
Now that. That I totally agree with.
I mean, even the space pen was pushing it. Like, it was cool because they're made in America and they're really good in your pocket, but also they're expensive compared to, like, Field notes.
And I think this really kind of illustrates the difference between Draplin and Field Notes. Like, you know, Draplin is a designer who often uses field notes as sort of, like, his designs and to kind of carry his utilitarian, like, philosophy forth. And Field notes is a business that's trying to sell notebooks, and often they, like, overlap really well. But I think that. That a lot of that illustrates kind of the. The difference.
Right.
Like, it's. It's no longer just a manifestation of Draplin's designs. It's like a collaboration with other artists. And it's like, you know, you know, notebook and expensive pens, you know, things like that. So. Yeah.
Yeah. I mean, they're so pretty. But I think this is the addition where I'm finally like, wow, they're not what they used to be.
Yeah.
And maybe they'll shock me in the fall edition will be just, like, you know, some brown notebooks, as they used to do for. Because I've been. I mean, I felt I have all the colors back to Packet of Sunshine. They're just like, hey, it's spring. Let's make some yellow notebooks. Like, oh, awesome. Now, like, I don't know. They're getting wackier and wackier.
Yeah.
And, like, that's cool once in a while, but it's, like, all the time. Like, what kind of crazy thing are they going to put? Like, then it's got to be exhausting for them. And we, like.
And also see, I'm like, on the. I'm on the total opposite spectrum. I'm like, this has to be totally exciting for them. I bet they're just like, we can do whatever we want.
Want.
Like, we can go nuts. We can just like, Yeah.
I mean, they've done It a lot. So I knew they weren't going to do it. But I'm. I'm disappointed that none of our stationary friends have touched the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. Like, this is low hanging fruit. Like when no one touched Thoreau's 200th birthday. Like the guy who made notebooks and pencils, like, right. Notepads did a short edition and no one else like pretended it existed. Yeah. Like that would have been an easy black wing we would have bought because I would have bought them all quick.
I want to see a NASA collaboration where they like, they. I'm sure they use little notebooks like, you know, in like some kind of little notebooks on like in space.
Right? Like, yeah, that'd be cool. I wonder how they would bind them because I guess staples would be tricky.
Yeah. Yeah. I don't know.
That would be awesome. All right. Yeah. In conclusion, I don't hate field notes, I swear. Yeah, I really, really, like, I love this edition. I'm going to use the crap out of them and fill them up and bust them up, but I'm not going to buy four sets of them.
Do we seriously just have a whole bunch of fresh points just about paper and not about pencils?
Yeah.
And a pen even.
We talked about notebooks and a pen. Yeah, fair enough.
Welcome to the pen addict.
Hey, you got to write on something.
Yeah, true.
It's hard to write on your arm with a pencil.
Yeah.
I mean, unless you like want a really, really, really, really deep cut. Get your tetanus shot and like, let's
do it if you want to do that. That's true. But yeah, that is funny. Hey, also, we, we didn't mention, and this would make this really quick, but there's also a moleskin that just came out that we all kind of have a interest in, which is the new Bob Dylan. They have three new Bob Dylan notebooks that they just came out with, which. You guys saw those?
Yeah, yeah.
I mean, they make cool stuff.
Yeah, they're kind of. Actually, these ones are. There's three of them and like two of them I'm not interested in at all. They're these like sort of his whole face on them. I don't like those. One of them is like his face in like 1963. Like the young Bob Dylan.
Bob Dylan's face isn't something that we want to put on the front of a notebook.
It takes me a while to get through a notebook. I'm not like wanting to look. I'm gaze into his Eyes every time. And then there's one that's like him and it's like 68 or 69 when he's got the sunglasses on. That one's a little cooler, but they're also like green and like violet colored. But there is one where it's like a. A picture of him from behind.
Yeah, that one's my favorite.
Yeah, he's playing guitar. Playing guitar. And then there's a. I'm gonna try to find the. The lyric that's on there. It's. Yes. My guard stood hard when abstract threats too noble to neglect deceived me into thinking I had something to protect good and bad. I define these clear. No doubt somehow. But I was so much older then. I'm younger than that now, so. So that's. It has that over the top and that one's really sharp. It's like two tone, like black and white where it's just like him and relief kind of. So that one. I am tempted. Yeah.
They do a good job with their stuff. I wish they would do pocket size limited edition books, though. I tend to use those more.
Are these available only in. In the UK or.
Oh, no, you can get them.
Oh no, here it is. Here it is. That Lincoln show notes is the. The UK one.
Yeah, I just noticed. So.
Whoops.
They're also. They're also. Yeah. Not. They're more expensive than the moleskins usually are.
Right.
Because of the collector's box maybe.
Yeah. Came with a box, which.
But most of them wind up going for sale on their website later because, like, they make so many damn special editions. They're like. And you know, they're expensive. I don't think people collect closets of them for, you know, posterity.
Yeah.
Yeah. I still prefer the black ones.
Yeah.
So yet another notebook.
Yeah.
Cool. All right, well. So is that it?
Yeah. We could wish our pencil hero an extra happy birthday today.
Yes.
Yay. Happy birthday. Hi, dt, Go take a walk.
Yeah, I, I.
My kids and I took a walk today to honor Mr. Thoreau. But we did drink coffee.
Take a walk and eat a sandwich, guys.
There you go. Get yourself a throw sandwich. So actually it's just bread with air in the middle.
There's a sandwich there called the Walden. It has meat. And I was like, this can't be. And then look over in the Walden pond is a different sandwich.
I'm like, okay, just tip over the. Tip over the table. How dare you, sir?
I'm gonna climb the counter like you're sons of bitches.
Pull them over the counter, like. All right, well, I think we're ready to wrap things up, you guys. Anything else you wanted to bring up? Cool.
I think that's it. Yeah.
Well, thank you so much for listening to episode 120 of the erasable podcast. You can find us online. You can find the show notes for this episode online at episode Erasable Night.
Sorry, sorry.
I. I tried to lead away.
Theo's biting my hand right now. You can find the show notes for this episode@erasable US120, and you can find us on Facebook at facebook.com erasablepodcast and join our group at facebook.com groups erasable. We are on Twitter and Instagram. Raceablepodcast. And Andy, where can people find you on the Internet?
I am@andy, WTF? You can find the blog that I never update but is now ad free@woodclinch.com
or.
Or find me on Twitter and Instagram as wellfli.
How about you, Johnny?
You can find me on the Internet@pencilrevolution.com and on social media at pencilution. And I promise I'm not, like, planning some sort of I hate you field notes thing because, like,
Expose coming out on Pencil Revolution, but they're so pretty.
I'll race anybody to fill them all up.
And I believe you'd win that race. Absolutely.
Nah, Larry. Larry beat me. All right.
And you can find me on the Internet @TimWassom on Twitter and TimothyWassom on Instagram. Thanks again for listening to episode 120 and we'll talk to you soon. Do you like our podcast?
Most people like our podcast, but if you like our podcast, David will turn it off.