• Lamy Al-Star EF with Diamine Teal
• Lamy Al-Star EF with Pilot Iroshizuku Syo-ro
• Lamy Al-Star EF with Sailor Red-Brown
• Levenger True Writer with Diamine Golden Brown
• Pilot Socrates F with Diamine Kelly Green
• Pilot Namiki Falcon SF with Herbin Larmes de Cassis
• Platinum Pocket Pen F with Platinum Black cartridge
• Sailor 1911 F with Herbin Vert Empire
• Sailor Sapporo F with Noodler's Legal Lapis

My paper supply rarely changes consisting of HP Inkjet 24#, HP Laser Jet #32, Rhodia lined pads, Exacompta Black Block and an Apica 6A10 Notebook as a daily journal. My "To Do" list goes in a Notebound 7 in x 5 in spiral notebook. The size allows for plenty of notes but still easily fits in my handbag. These notebooks are available in markets, pharmacies and office supply chains but the paper is too inconsistent to recommend. Good stuff is good but the bad is useless for fountain pens demonstrating excessive feathering and bleed through. It's great for pencils or roller balls if you are willing to compromise.

Environnement

Vers un monde de rareté en 2025  Deux rapports, commandés par l'association des entrepreneurs français sensibles à l'environnement (EPE), explorent les pistes de nouvelles gestions pour les ressources naturelles et pour l'eau d'ici 2025. Lire les deux rapports : Les ressources naturelles à l'horizon 2020 L'Eau à l'horizon 2025

Air Liquide, Areva, Coca-Cola, Leclerc, Solvay, Rhodia, Renault, SNCF, Vinci, Veolia : toutes souhaitent savoir de quoi aura l'air le monde en 2025. L'association française des entreprises pour l'Environnement, dont elles font partie, avait mis en place courant 2006 une commission « Prospective environnementale ». Objectif : contribuer à la recherche de solutions durables dans cinq domaines; la gestion de l'eau, l'économie des ressources naturelles, la biodiversité, les ressources énergétiques et l'évolution des comportements de consommation. Mercredi 3 septembre,  les chercheurs et ingénieurs de la commission ont présenté leurs premiers travaux sur les ressources naturelles et sur l'eau.

 « Moins de 3% de l'eau dans le monde est douce, dont 2,5% immobilisée sous forme de glace : l'humanité ne peut compter que sur les 0,5% restants pour répondre à ses besoins» rappelle l'étude prospective. Aujourd'hui, l'eau prélevée a trois usages : 70% pour l'agriculture, essentiellement à des fins d'irrigation ; 22% pour la production d'énergie, que ce soit de l'hydroélectricité ou de l'électricité thermique ou nucléaire; 8% pour les usages domestiques.

D'ici 2025, la population mondiale devrait dépasser les 8 milliards de personnes : la même quantité de ressource doit être partagée entre une population toujours plus nombreuse. Du côté des activités humaines, l'industrie, davantage que l'agriculture, causera la majeure partie de l'augmentation de la consommation d'eau d'ici 2025, prédit le rapport.

Le Groupe d'experts Intergouvernemental sur l'Evolution du Climat (GIEC) estime le réchauffement climatique à l'horizon 2025 à +1,6°C par rapport à la période préindustrielle. En vue, une complète disparition des petits glaciers dans les Andes, menaçant l'approvisionnement en eau de 50 millions de personnes, voire une réduction potentielle de 20-30% de la ressource en eau dans les régions vulnérables (sud de l'Afrique, Méditerranée). « D'ici à 2025, le nombre de personnes vivant en-dessous du seuil de stress hydrique atteindra 3 milliards, contre « seulement » 700 millions aujourd'hui, le problème s'intensifiant en Afrique subsaharienne, en Chine et en Inde », prévoit le rapport.

Quelles technologies pour l'eau en 2025. Les auteurs passent en revue les nouveaux outils technologiques en cours de développement pour augmenter la quantité d'eau douce disponible sans nuire à d'autres utilisateurs - recyclage et filtration de l'eau, récupération et réutilisation des eaux de pluie, dessalement d'eau de mer -, ou réduire son utilisation - accroissement du rendement agricole, réduction de l'intensité hydrique de certains procédés industriels, et systèmes de détection des fuites dans les réseaux. Ils se penchent en particulier sur les applications industrielles de ces procédés.

Le juste prix de l'eau potable. Les prix de l'eau potable ont augmenté en moyenne de 8% dans le monde au cours de l'année 2007, constate le rapport, et cette tendance devrait se poursuivre dans la plupart des pays dans les années à venir.

Les matières premières

« Les démographes estiment que la population mondiale va croître linéairement jusqu'à atteindre 9 milliards d'individus en 2050. En parallèle, les économistes fondent nombre de leurs modèles sur une multiplication par quatre du PIB mondial à l'horizon 2050 » précisent les auteurs. Pour faire face à la rareté des matières premières, les entreprises doivent intégrer dans leurs stratégies de court, moyen et long terme l'éco-conception de leurs produits et services, favoriser le recyclage, valoriser les matières en fin de vie et surtout privilégier l'éco-fonctionnalité. Quatre pistes explorées de façon pratique et appliquée à l'industrie dans le rapport. A.L.

Introduction

I recently came across a discussion on the Fountain Pen Network concerning a new, custom Noodler's Ink made for our friends Murtaza et al at Sleuth & Statesman, i.e., Blue Upon The Plains of Abraham (BUPA).  As you can see from the above picture of the label, the artwork is very detailed and draws on (no pun intended) the historical significance of this location, namely, the Battle of the Plains of Abraham (BOPA).  In fact, those of you who are more historically and/or artistically inclined may notice that the label is an artistic reproduction of A View of the Taking of Quebec, seen below:

[caption id="attachment_124" align="aligncenter" width="460" caption="A view of the taking of Quebec, 13th September 1759. (Library of the Canadian Department of National Defence)."][/caption]

A couple of nits about the label itself.  Obviously the Canadian flag is not historically correct.  I also must admit that I am confused by the meaning of the phrase "American Canadian Ink for Canada".  I guess I could speculate a bit about that and maybe even rant; however, I have decided to let "sleeping dogs lie" in this instance rather than risk sparking a nationalist uproar.

History

Before I get to the ink itself, I think it would be interesting to review the history of the BOPA.  After all, it was only the most significant battle in Canadian history!  The actual Plains of Abraham (POA) was a large, flat piece of farmland on high cliffs to the west of Quebec City (and derive their name from a previous owner, Martin Abraham).  The BOPA was a battle fought between the French and English in 1759.  In less than an hour, the British troops led by Major-General Thomas Wolfe defeated the French forces commanded by Lieutenant-General le Marquis de Montcalm.  The French army retreated to Montreal and within a year had surrendered New France (Quebec). A few years later, France transferred its North American possessions to England.  Needless to say, had the French been successful in the BOPA, this blog might very well be written in French!

The Ink

Now, to the real reasons for you reading this blog entry - what is the story on the ink.

Cost and Availability

As I noted previously Noodler's mixed up a limited number of bottles of this bulletproof ink for Sleuth & Statesman (S&S) in Toronto.  Unless you live in or around Toronto or plan to visit in the near future, you will have to email or call and have them ship the number of bottles that you require.  The cost of each bottle is around Cdn $25, including taxes, and shipping is extra (which will depend on the number of bottles and method selected).  Expensive, yes, but understandable in the circumstances - how else could S&S offer their customers a unique ink while recovering their costs and a small profit, if any, on such a small "batch" of ink (I thought that I read somewhere it was 50 bottles or so).

Performance of the ink

From what I have read, the ink has a strong magenta undertone that takes on varying and differing degrees of prominence.  It apparently can be so temperamental as to reflect those different undertones while using the same pen at different times!  Someone even referred to it as the Canadian "Baystate Blue" - not necessarily a particularly positive comment (to some people) but inaccurate, at least to the extent that the BUPA ink is labelled as being pH neutral - the Baystate line of inks are not.  On the other hand, it can very a very nice blue when the dyes stay mixed!

At our pen club meeting on Saturday morning, I test dipped the bottle with a Q-tip - the line that it laid down showed a variety of colours with a heavy magenta undertone; however, I did not see that special blue that I was expecting.  Perhaps it was because the ink was not as shaken up as it might have been (and that I can remain objective in my test dips and writing samples).

The first thing that I did on Sunday (after shaking the bottle a number of times) was create an ink swatch on Maruman grid paper with a Q-tip with ink from the bottle and then from the inside of the cap.  The results were much better than the first swab on Saturday, however, there is even a noticeable difference in these swipes.  When the ink is blue, it is a very, very nice blue; otherwise, I am not sure what to call it.

I then filled an old warhorse that I have, a Sheaffer Fashion fountain pen with a broad nib.  You can see the handwriting samples on first the Maruman and then the Whitelines paper.  In each case, the pen started skipping and then stopped after writing with it for a few minutes. When I chose to stop writing, capped the pen, and then tried to write with it again (less than five minutes later), the pen would not start - I had to pump the aerometric filler in order to restart the flow.  In my past experience with this Sheaffer pen, it has been a wet writer with a generous flow (I used it with Baystate Blue on a number of occasions without difficulty).  This ink felt very dry when writing on both paper samples, in fact, you could really hear the nib on the paper.  I could even tell that it was going to skip and stop, it was just a question of when.  The other thing I noticed on the Whitelines paper, was that the writing seemed to have a slight aura of magenta.

After leaving my desk and thinking about this for a bit, I thought it might be useful to try out this ink on some different paper (Rhodia reverse book this time) and using two glass dipping pens that I have.  What a disaster, as you can see below.  I tried both glass dipping pens with the same incredibly poor result - the ink either splatted off the pen or nothing, I could not write anything decipherable with it.  And there was clearly ink on the glass nib but it seemed to have dried almost instantly so that it was not able to flow from the glass nib to the paper.

Conclusion

This ink is incredibly temperamental - either the colour is not right or the colour is right but the pen is skipping and stopping.  I am going to have to decide if (and that's a very big IF) it makes sense to invest some time trying the BUPA in different pens and on different paper to see whether there is a magical combination that works.

I applaud S&S for making the effort to provide their customers with a unique ink but it appears to me that something went wrong here.  I would love to see the test results for this ink and if they are positive, I would love to find out what I (and others) are doing wrong.  It should not be that hard, I mean, we are talking about fountain pen ink after all, not the formula for the fountain of youth.  I cannot believe that Noodler's would put their name on ink that I can't figure out how to get work in a fountain pen.

The site has moved to a new domain, although links remain in place. Because of this, and because Rhodia has come with a new notebook, they (blackcover) run a contest to win the Rhodia product.  More details at the blackcover site.

I.

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My Apica 6A10 journal is a fixture so I won't list it except to note the date I start a new one. I keep a variety of Post-Its plus two small Rhodia blocs with grid paper for quick notes on my desk at all times.

• True Writer in green marble with F nib loaded with Diamine Kelly Green
• Lamy Al-star in periwinkle with EF nib loaded with Diamine Teal
• Sailor 1911 in black/rhodium with F nib loaded with J. Herbin Vert Empire
• Lamy Safari in charcoal with EF nib loaded with Platinum Black stashed in a leather pen case

I am not only a bibliophile but I am addicted to paper! And I am NOT THE ONLY ONE!

I love paper products (notebooks, journals, stationery, notepads, sketchbooks,patterned paper, scrapbook paper, watercolour paper, handmade paper etc...) and pens! If money was not an issue, I'll be stocking up on Rhodias, Moleskines, Paperblanks and all the pretty journals I could find!

So far, I have only tried Paperblanks and Moleskines among the power three. But I know there are a lot of journals/diaries/notebooks out there which I haven't tried. Etsy also offers a lot of exquisite, funky and really colorful handmade journals...yum!

I also LOVE pens, did you know that the most expensive pen is the "Limited Edition Mystery Masterpiece, a joint creation between Mont blanc and Van Cleef & Arpels" and according to the site it sold for ...hold your breath...$730,000! To quote from the article:

Each pen has 840 diamonds and more than 20 carats of gemstones set in a Van Cleef & Arpels patented "Mystery Setting" that conceals the stone settings. A groove is made on the culet, the bottom facet of the stone, which is then slid onto the threads of the lattice design so that the stones can be held in place side by side without any visible support. There are three variations, set either with rubies, sapphires or emeralds, and accented by diamonds. The three variations of these marvelous pens are limited to three releases each for a total of nine. The unique work took over a year and a half to create by skilled artisans.

So I checked out the Mont Blanc site...it made my mouth water! From the BOHÈME collection, I like the BOHÈME JE T'AIME STERLING SILVER, it has a heart-shaped sapphire stone!

I also like the Montblanc Marlene Dietrich Commemoration Edition ...super classy!

I really don't know how much these cost, but if I have the chance - I will definitely buy one!

Some girls love make-up/clothes...I like those too, but my paper and pen addiction supersedes the love for clothes and make-up!

And the search for the perfect notebook and pen continues...

Também contamos com mais de 30 Artigos de diversos temas: Branding, Tecnologia, Planejamento estratégico entre outros.

A participação de vocês leitores é de fundamental importância para mantermos o nível das publicações.

ThiagoMiguel - Administrador

Essas inovações vêm se juntar às soluções lançadas recentemente, tais como aplicações de sílicas para reforço de borracha e EVA, aplicações de intermediários químicos em poliuretano para calçados, a tecnologia Rhodiaeco para curtimento de couro, além da nova versão do Solsys – um software sofisticado para ajudar na escolha do melhor sistema de solventes.

Desenvolvidos nos laboratórios da Rhodia no Brasil, que atuam em rede com os centros de pesquisa da empresa em todo o mundo, essas novidades reforçam a participação da empresa no setor. Em média, por ano, 8% do faturamento da empresa no País são obtidos com vendas de produtos e soluções que entram na fabricação de couro, componentes e calçados.

Valorização da cadeia produtiva - “Temos um ‘pipeline’ de novas soluções bem variado para o segmento. Anualmente, há pelos menos duas dezenas de projetos nas diferentes fases de desenvolvimento, desde a etapa inicial de prospecção da idéia original até quando a solução é comercializada”, explica Antonio Sergio Luvizeto, diretor da Rhodia Intermediários América Latina e coordenador do projeto Footwear Technology.

Segundo ele, a estratégia de desenvolvimento de novas soluções da Rhodia tem em vista a valorização da indústria de calçados do Brasil, o terceiro maior produtor mundial. Esta indústria passa no momento por uma fase de recuperação, tanto no mercado interno quanto em exportações, oferecendo produtos de maior valor, que incorporam tecnologias e inovações para atender aos desejos dos consumidores.

“Todos nós queremos um calçado que alie características e atributos importantes, tais como conforto, qualidade, design e custos adequados”, acrescenta Luvizeto. A relação da empresa com o segmento coureiro-calçadista - observa – inclui a participação em exposições e feiras do porte da Fimec, que reúne os mais importantes produtores do setor e conta com a participação de profissionais de todo o mundo.

REFERÊNCIA:
PORTAL FATOR BRASIL. Tecnologia e inovação fazem Rhodia ampliar participação no setor calçadista nacional. Dispoível em: <http://www.revistafator.com.br>. Acesso em: 03 Mai 2008

Para concorrer, os candidatos devem possuir inglês intermediário e ter conclusão de curso prevista entre dezembro de 2008 e dezembro de 2009.

Os interessados devem enviar currículos até 29 de fevereiro para o e-mail rhodia@grupofoco.com.br.

I find that I remember things better when I write them down. I have a crazy (and busy) life, and I feel the need to compartmentalize it. That's why I have seven active notebooks.

It probably would have been ideal if I centralized things, but a very sentimental journal entry about someone doesn't look good beside a list of to-dos, including "pick up the laundry" and "send money."

I go crazy having to look for my notes on e-mail campaigns (which I'm working on at the office) and find them beside a list of stories I have gathered but haven't written yet (five done of twenty-plus), or worse, some resolutions like, "I will never . . ."

Seven notebooks. Yes. Allow me to count them:

1. Moleskine Plain Reporter - initially this was where I started a novel in progress (two pages and counting). If you happen to steal it, you'll get an inkling of what bothers me. This is stuff that never goes into my personal blog. Now you know. (And yes, I name names there. Eek. I learned a lesson from a friend who recovered a journal from 10 years back and came upon initials, and a decade later she doesn't remember any of them!)

2. Moleskine Lined Journal - my very first. There are a few leaves that I need to finish, but I'm thinking of retiring this as it's more than a year old and has gone traveling with me. Its binding is falling apart, and I am afraid my grandchildren won't get to read it. This one started out as a journal, but more interestingly, like my reporter, it also contains notes on my very first interviews (I can't decipher my scrawl anymore) and books I read.

3. Rhodia Uni-Blank (above photo). I love its paper! This contains a lot of interview notes too (I know, I have this habit of randomly picking one notebook and running off) as well as stuff from work. No journal entries, thankfully. I'm planning to retire this one soon as these are not available locally. I won't get another one ever. That's for certain.

4. Moleskine cahiers ( plain and squared) given by two different people. One has four blank pages left and contains my weekly editorial lineup for this arts and culture blog (I take it seriously, yes), as well as a list of people I wanted to do a profile on. It's a long list that's part of a greater list and I've done only three stories so far. I also listed a lot of addresses and numbers here, in addition to possible stories I can do.

My other squared cahier acts more like a to-do list. Someone gave it to me for Christmas, but I gave away the two (it comes in a set of three) others to people who have been wanting a Moleskine but never got the chance. I only wish the last few pages weren't detachable because I write from both ends, and flipping through the pages wears them off easily.

5. Ayala Museum notebook. Its cover is "Mother and Child" by National Artist for Visual Arts Ang Kiukok from 1983. I started using this around 2005, but in the process of moving from one home to another, I completely lost it. Half of it is still blank. It's a home directory: you know, whom to call to buy gas, or which box number I stored the pair of glass plates. I need to write everything down as I am so forgetful.

6. My Little Brown Notebook, which I got for Christmas. It's not in the picture because I decided I will be using it solely for notes at my day job. It's anything but little (in fact, it's huge and bulky!) and is very handy as it contains a food directory for, like empanada or lechon.

I still have a couple of blank notebooks around, and am I excited to start them off (there's this sexy feeling I get when I'm starting a new one), but I want to make sure I use up all these seven other stuff before I do.

Para los que estén algo perdidos les daré algunos datos: La empresa Rhodia fue adquirida en Julio de 2007 por un grupo de empresas de origen indio y sede central en el Reino Unido, y además de cambiar su nombre por el de "Nilefós Química", se trajo bajo el brazo un programa de inversiones de 5 años. No sólo aseguró los puestos de trabajo de su plantilla, sino que además la aumentó en un 6%. El producto de esta empresa es el Tripolifosfato Sódico y la materia prima que usa para obtenerlo es el Ácido Fosfórico. Nilefós es una empresa muy importante en el Polo, ya que es consumidora de productos de otras empresas del mismo, y a la vez, proveedor de otras. Para que nos entendamos, tal y como ha dicho el presidente de AIQB: "es una ficha intermedia en el dominó que dejaría a Fertiberia sin su mejor cliente", y además a Atlantic Cooper sin su mayor proveedor.

Ayer lunes, la compañía Nilefós presentó ante la Delegación de Empleo de la Junta de Andalucía un expediente de extinción del contrato de sus 200 trabajadores (ojo, no de regulación de empleo), con lo que supone el cerrojazo a su actividad en el polo químico onubense. Las razones de dicho cierre fueron explicadas por la empresa en un escueto comunicado en el que destaca las grandes pérdidas que está teniendo la factoría, debido entre otras cosas al aumento de precio de las materias primas y por lo tanto, el aumento de los costes de producción que dice que "no puede ser soportado por la compañía o sus clientes". No en vano, el precio del ácido fosfórico ha aumentado en los últimos meses un 200%. Además, el comunicado también resalta que "la prohibición de fosfatos en Europa, incrementan esta incertidumbre, ya que la actividad tendría que diversificarse en otros productos, cuya fabricación requiere inversiones sustanciales que la compañía entiende que, con el panorama industrial en Huelva, no se considera esta ubicación como lugar preferente de inversión".

Pero no sólo son 200 trabajadores directos, indirectos podrían suponer unos 500, ya que son varias las empresas que dependen de una forma u otra de Nilefós Química. Hemos hecho referencia a Fertiberia como proveedor y a Atlantic Cooper como cliente, pero es posible que también se vean afectadas otras empresas con las que está relacionada Nilefós, como es el caso de Foret o Ercros.

Yo particularmente ya avisé de lo próximas que teníamos estas situaciones, y con vuestro permiso me voy a citar a mi mismo en un comentario que hice en el artículo ¿Respeto?: "Tenemos que darnos cuenta, de que la vida del polo de desarrollo de Huelva está llegando a su fin, entre otras cosas porque las empresas prefieren irse a países donde las leyes medioambientales no son tan estrictas y la mano de obra sea más barata. Los onubenses estamos en el momento de elegir la Huelva del futuro, la de nuestros nietos. Estamos en la obligación de buscar otra fuente de desarrollo para Huelva. No sé cual será el camino más adecuado, pero no parece mala vía la Industria Agroalimentaria, o la Investigación y Desarrollo (I+D). Me gustaría ver en Huelva un parque tecnológico o de investigación como el que tienen Málaga o Granada. ¿O por qué no vivir de la Universidad?, podríamos ser en el futuro una Universidad de prestigio. El turismo es complicado por diversas razones, aunque no debería tampoco de ser olvidado ya que cada vez se viaja más e ignorarlo sería un error. Ahora están muy de moda las palabras "Desarrollo Sostenible", no deberíamos de ignorarlas."

Me reafirmo en mis palabras, máxime con noticias como la de hoy. Estamos dejando pasar el tiempo y no se hace nada por preparar el futuro de la ciudad. Allí tenemos ese inmenso Parque Huelva Empresarial, vacío, sin nadie ¿quién está bloqueándolo?. Me parece lamentable el pasotismo que tienen los políticos sean de partido que sean. Únicamente velan por sus intereses y parece que les da igual que ahora 200 trabajadores se queden en la calle. Creo que tenemos que hacer como Tarzán: "no soltar una liana hasta que no hayamos agarrado la siguiente". La liana de la industria se está rompiendo, hemos de ser inteligentes y agarrar una nueva, pero sin soltar la de la industria hasta que estemos bien seguros.

Desde este humilde blog expreso mi solidaridad y ánimo a esos trabajadores que se van a quedar en la calle por culpa de una empresa que sólo vela por sus intereses ya que no nos "considera como lugar preferente de inversión". Ahora son ellos, pero quizás les siga Fertiberia o cualquier otra, empresas que se irán a cualquier país africano en el que no tengan que cumplir estrictas medidas medioambientales, pero los que se van a quedar con el paro, las enfermedades y con el vertedero industrial, somos nosotros.

Por último reseñar otra noticia relacionada del día, que dice que "la contaminación atmosférica provoca 16.000 muertes al año en España". El artículo que he leído señala a Andalucía como la tercera región en contaminación tras País Vasco y Cataluña. Y repite los datos que ya hemos señalado en otra ocasión del triángulo de mortalidad por cáncer.

Sr. Rubio.

Fuentes: Odiel Información, www.huelvainformacion.es, Viva Huelva

Fotografía: www.huelvainformacion.es

And orange.

So I promised I'd report back after some heavy use of the new Classic Rhodia Stapled 3 X 4 3/4 notebooks. I've been using Rhodia's orange pocket notebook, pictured here, for about 2 weeks straight now. I can safely say that after a solid fortnight in my pocket, this little Rhodia is not only a convenience but also a workhorse. It travels in my front pants pocket with my Blackberry, and it currently shows no signs of wear other than some creasing near the top staple (these notebooks are bound with two stables along the spine).

The distinctive orange color helps me keep track of where I left my notebook laying around. The small pocket size isn't noticeable until you need it, like I did the other day when I was wandering around in Ikea. It beats the bulk of a pocket Moleskine by a mile. The plastic cover holds up well even in sweaty basketball shorts in the middle of a Texas heatwave. That's something I can't say for my grubby (kinda dampened) Moleskine cahier.

I still use pocket Moleskines for journaling and poetry. I think I would be willing to switch to Rhodia entirely if I could get my hands on a svelte Rhodia ePure notebook, a promising soft cover replacement for my Moleskine journals.

I've heard of the French Rhodia but have never seen one in the flesh, er, paper. So I was naturally curious about it. A friend in New York sent me one recently, and it came a day after my birthday, so I'd like to think of it as a birthday present.

I've been using a Moleskine for some time now, so my notebook preferences are hammered down.

My only reservation about the Rhodia is that it reminds me so much of school days with its very utilitarian look and orange cover. The version I got is not lined, and I just find it hard to write on blank paper. This will certainly be difficult.

But as in sex and everything else, the first time is always lousy. Maybe the second time, there will be redemption.

So there, between a no-nonsense French and a sleek Italian, what do you choose? I think, as in a pie, the test is in the eating, er, writing.

I'm a longtime Moleskine devotee, and I haven't ever found any brand of notebook that's as useful for jotting notes on the go. However, when I saw this new type of Rhodia classic stapled notebook on Rhodia Drive, I new I had to give them a try. Rhodia has eliminated two of my biggest problems with the Moleskine Cahier - the lack of durability in the paper cover (something that wouldn't have been an issue if they hadn't discontinued the Volant line) and the size of the pocket version.

The covers on the Moleskine cahiers are fine if you're simply storing them in a briefcase or a bag. However, if you keep the cahier in a pants pocket or change bags a lot, the cover wears out extremely fast, especially if you don't fill it fast enough to need a new one quickly. Rhodia solved this problem by adopting a thin plastic-coated cover for their smallest pocket notebook.

Also, the size of the cahiers is continually an issue for me because I prefer to carry them in my pants pockets, and the Moleskine cahier is just slightly too large to fit comfortably when seated. The Rhodia stapled pocket notebook measures 3 X 4 3/4 inches, making it an even more compact solution than a hipster PDA. This is the absolute perfect size for carrying around in a front pants pocket.

Are there any cons to the Rhodia version of the cahier? None of the pages are perforated, so they're not as convenient for tearing out notes. I'm not sure how much of an issue this will be for me since I don't think I've ever torn out a note from my Moleskine cahiers the entire time I've been using them. Of course the Rhodia pads also lack the back pocket, but the cahier's back pocket (really just a flap) was so flimsy that using it practically destroyed it anyway.

All in all, it looks like this version of the classic Rhodia stapled pad (available in black or classic Rhodia orange) is a big improvement on the Moleskine cahier for on the go notetaking. I'll report back after a few weeks of test-driving. You can see more photos of the Rhodia pad compared to various Moleskines, or you can snag your own from Ship the Web here.

" MOLESKINE IS THE LEGENDARY NOTEBOOK,
USED BY EUROPEAN ARTISTS AND THINKERS
FOR THE PAST TWO CENTURIES.

THIS SILENT AND DISCREET KEEPER OF AN EXTRAORDINARY TRADITION, WHICH
HAS BEEN MISSING FOR YEARS, HAS BEEN
REPRODUCED BY THE ITALIAN COMPANY MODO
& MODO SINCE 1998. WITH ITS VARIOUS
DIFFERENT PAGE STYLES IT ACCOMPANIES
THE CREATIVE PROFESSIONS AND HAS BECOME
A SYMBOL OF CONTEMPORARY NOMADISM.

MOLESKINE IS A FAMILY OF NOTEBOOKS
FOR DIFFERENT FUNCTIONS, ACCORDING
WITH A FREE MINDSTYLE, BOTH BASIC
AND EMOTIONAL."

There was even an exhibit in London this past October on Moleskines! Check out some of the 70+ Moleskines by international artists, designers, architects, illustrators, and writers - You HAVE to click the link and at least scroll through the images. It's amazing to see how much inspiration has been recorded in those black leather books!

Rhodia's take:

"Rhodia Classic Note Pads - the orange pads with a cult following! These economical pads are a favorite of artists, designers, architects and people who like to use graph paper for notes, sketching and hand drafting."

VS.

:: Rhodia is new to me, yet an obvious competitor to Moleskine. I came across blogs and blogs reviewing all sorts of writing pads - journalismania!

So what will it be for you?

[I would personally go for the pocket-sized Moleskines.]