Let us for a moment reflect on that curious writing utensil which is the pencil. I'll get straight to the point (pun intended) and share that the pencil is an instrument of writ which I completely despise. Though there may be the occasional circumstance that necessitates the need of a pencil, this fact alone doesn't reflect in an equitable manner from which one could respectfully declare that the micro-wooden obelisk is the best of all writing tools. Likewise, the spork may come in handy in some given circumstance, but otherwise it is pretty much a useless particular to a person's silverware collection. However, I must say I have a lot more affection towards the spork than I do the pencil.
Surely, let us assume such a situation does arise demanding the need of non-inked writing. Even given this fact, one need not stock up on four-hundred of them in order to meet the demand, outside the classroom that is. The classrooms and schools throughout the globe are the most common places to find pencils and demand their use. This is understandable, for the pencil is usually accompanied by a small pink eraser opposite the end employed for writing. Due to it's ability to erase, we find that the pencil does appear to serve its place in the classroom as the spork may in the lunchroom. This is one possible attribute which can save the pencil from being discarded completely as a ridiculous, clutter-some, and environmentally wasteful product. However, I would suggest that we not only focus on new forms of energy and move away from fossil fuels, but we move away from pencils as well, which greedily utilize a valuable natural resource.
When we conceptualize a pencil, we always tend to add the eraser as a necessary attribute which distinguishes this classification and definition. This being the case, one is completely duped as to why it is that some pencils lack an eraser at all. Realize that because the eraser, or ability to erase written text provided by the lead enclosed in the center of the wooden shaft, is the only saving attribute of the pencil, to negate it in it's production is beyond absurd. You could always have a double-ended pencil of course, but this is essentially multiplying the ridiculousness of the whole conception of a pencil.
Not only is this archaic looking writing tool loathsome in these ways, also it apparently is masked in a clothing of simplicity, which may not be the case at all. In fact, there may be much secrecy in the nature of the pencil akin to certain Masonic rituals practiced in their believed locations of renown. When we see a pencil, it is generally going to be a number-two pencil. To me this suggests many other types which are hidden from the general public and this gives the pencil a menacing mystique in my mind suggesting that it cannot be trusted. Perhaps, in fact, it has been made as such to promote the governments influence and power over the people. This would explain why it is so demanded in classrooms across the nation, and perhaps the world.
When a student sits down readying himself for the GED, SAT or any other like test in terms of, "instruction," given in the answer form, he/she knows that a number-two pencil will be required to fill out the little circles (completely) which will indicate their answer. Thereby, the student looks down at the number-two pencil and has the subconscious thought planted in his/her head that he/she will never achieve excellence, but always come second. This devastates the mental capacity of the student and as such the individual will cease to be a threat to the, "man," or localized or federal government. The injustice committed by either will henceforth go largely ignored by the student as he/she proceeds from out of that era in their lives and moves on, though not by necessity forward. To fix this we only need to raise up, write up petitions, in pen or by the use of word processing, and gather signatures. If one who signs does so in pencil, it is already too late for them and we need move on.
Another problem with pencils is the pencil to sharpener ratio which has always plagued mankind from its invention. If pencils weren't a example or worthless trash enough, surely the sharpener, in addition to the pencil, adds to my arguments validity and soundness. It is very often the case that in the household, though many pencils may be present, there is scarcely a sharpener. One may have a whole drawer full of the yellow number-two's, but have not one sharpener in the house. If one does exist in the immediate temporal space of the household, it is often misplaced or lost, much like the cliche lost sock in the laundry. Thereby, the household is littered with the remnants of dulled or broken pencils, which will never fulfill their purposed purpose and again are only a means of wasting natural resources.
In the classroom a student scarcely has a sharpener of his own, though one may be supplied by the school or teacher for the whole classes use. In this case, the classroom is always disrupted by people getting up to sharpen their writing edifices and making a constant ruckus which disturbs others just as much as a certain particular student who thinks he is funny, has a big loud mouth, practices no self-control, respect or discipline might. It may also be the case that an electric sharpener isn't available and in these instances, one circa 1950 may be hanging on the wall with a turn crank utilized to sharpen the pencil. These latter examples are even more annoying, though not as much as the particular student, in that they don't have grease fittings or WD40 applied to them. Hence, when a student goes to sharpen his pencil, a terrible screeching and metallic wailing fills the classrooms firmament in a audible fashion alike to biting down on tinfoil, if one could hear such a sensation. Lastly, these sharpening devices are far from perfect, which is a money making scheme by the pencil making corporations. You can't put a pencil in a sharpener and get an exact point, or perfect point, every time despite our advanced technology. This is because those pencil creating powers that be want to waste your pencil so that you need buy more. It would be safe to assume that money exchanges hands between pencil and sharpener conglomerates.
It usually happens that one side be not sharpened or tilled of the wooden enclosure, while the other will. Thereby, one needs to develop strategies in order to perfectly sharpen a particular pencil. Including manual rotating, applied pressure, incline, leaning, and all variations of deviation on both the X and Y axes (the plural of axis, not the tree cutting instrument). If these means aren’t available, then we employ things like knives to get an edge on the pencil. While it may work to a degree in creating a point, the overall shape is abstract and reminiscent of Richard Dreyfuss’ clay model mountains in Spielberg’s, “Close Encounters of The Third Kind,” and doesn’t last long, though pencils aren’t made to last to begin with.
There is no way to escape the necessary inclusion of the sharpener when one considers the pencil. Thus, it is really a compound conception which we need to recognize. The need of a sharpener is an implication of my next point which is that pencils break. It is not an infrequent occurrence that when one is done sharpening their pencil that the very tip may break off. Though still looking useable, when applied to paper, it displays not a singular, sharp, and linear line, but a dual line which one will immediately find displeasing and try and fix, usually without the sharpener. We employ the scuffing method, where we try and scuff the dual tip off to mold into a singular which we can use. This is hardly successful and the surfaces on which this method is tried is scarcely appropriate. Examples include walls, desks and chairs. Therefore, most often we resort to square one, and are back at the sharpener to try once again.
So, both the conceptual particulars of the pencil and the sharpener applied as a whole give me further evidence of my rationality of my distaste for pencils. Speaking of distaste, this perfect transition leads me to my next point, the unsanitary nature of pencils. One need only look at a person deep in thought, destined to be number two, to understand. Often, we find such people lost in thought to be doing all sorts of things with pencils. These include, but aren't limited to, chewing on the pencil, putting the eraser in their ear, chewing on the eraser, or scratching with it. It's often you find pencils with teeth marks in them, making the tool look more like an orthodontist's mold, than anything else. Therefore, to borrow a pencil is like asking to lick the inside of someone's hat. It's foul and gross.
Pencil companies have tried to impress us with various statistics and claims of reusable resources in their production, but we see right through their claims. One example is how one with a pencil can draw a strait line for a whole mile before running out. Or something like that. Yeah, great. What kind of a surface? Flat surface? Asphalt? Furthermore, what number of pencil? How long? Is there a standard length woth pencils? So as you can see we aren't given this information. Thus, it is kind of useless unless all particulars of the example are known. I am not impressed. Guess what? I can take a ten gallon jug, put a hole in it, and with a small drip carry it farther than a mile. So what? Absurd. They’ve tried to embrace technology by giving us the, “mechanical pencil,” a device that breaks the lead more often due to its brittle nature. This is to such a degree, that its not uncommon to see these mechanical pencils with many lead fragments within the containing cylinder. In this state it is more prone to jammin than Bob Marley was.
Methods of lead extraction are utilized here in an effort to load the pencil's, "cartridge." One includes a slight shake or vibration in both a horizontal and vertical fashion. The cruelty of this device is made evident in the fact that if one's pencil is loaded with a lead segment of too short a length, than the mechanical pencil will cease to perform the task for which they tell us it was designed. We find when we put this lead to paper, it retreats back into the recesses of the cartridge, and in effort to be restored to somewhat functional use, needs to be manually removed. A couple clicks will reveal the end of the lead outside the cartridge and an individual must pull on the lead to fix the heinous device, as well as shake in another larger lead segment. This is quite ingenious for those devious scoundrel designers who made the mechanical pencil, made it so the shaking method of loading the cartridge, is a necessary part of the mechanics, but also is directly responsible for the fragmentation of the leads within the cylinder. The lead, once removed, then has no use other than to be committed to the refuse receptacle. This is wasting precious materials which are saturating or polluting our landfills, oceans, wetlands, and homes. The deception of the pencil is, in short, a danger for us all.
It will take a lot more to pull the wool over my eyes. In addition friends, likewise I hope it will for you.
