How I Feel about Office Supplies.

I've not worked in about four years, but office supplies are still important to me. Is it a writer thing? I know one does have to self-identify as a writer to obsess over pens and pencils.

In my first office as a full-time English professor, I barely personalized my space at all. I had a roommate, and I didn't want to be rude. But my boss was ordering pastel file folders, colorful sticky notes, and Precise VS RT pens in my favorite colors: purple and green.

I moved to a different office, and I decided to give some life to it. My roommate was a dude, but I didn't worry about that. I bought purple hanging folders, purple and aqua Poppin pens, matching stapler and tape dispenser, white desk organizers, and white metal pen cup and bookends. I even had a tiny chandelier (for a locker) under my hutch light. Everyone seemed amazed at the transformation, which surprised me.

I kept paperclips in a glitter snowflake votive holder. Silver paperclips were fine, but Target had purple and aqua--more fun for me and probably for my students. I brought crayons, especially glitter ones, to color through a withdrawn student's record to my grade book. It was much more cheerful than the depressing bblack-pen-crossing-out-my-retention method.

I got into sticky page flags when I started teaching literature. And I remembered a highlighter like a crayon that my mom used in her Bible. It never bled through, and it dried immediately. I recommended these gel highlighters to my students. Sharpie has them, but I like the slim build and the color choices of gel highlighters that are actual for Bible study. I've bought them for myself, for Josh, for Mom, and for Bruce.

I had some pretty page flags from Papaya Art (unfortunately, Papaya no longer sells the sticky flags), but I went wild over Girl of All Work's literary character flags. I have almost all the current sets, which include Jane Eyre, Anne of Green Gables, and The Little Mermaid. I gave a couple of sets to Mom, who is much more of a reader than I am.

I'm all about special-effects pens, mostly glitter and metallic. I like to know how good all the brands are. Technology has clearly advanced; Gelly Rolls used to be my only way to go. But Pentel and Uni-Ball are catching up. I keep my pens in a series of pouches and mugs, some of which I've divided by color. I drain pens rather quickly. I pick a color and pen for each day.

When I left my job due to my illness, I took home everything I had bought. The desk organizers now hold makeup in my bathroom. The hanging folders hold a great many documents about Oliver and me. I bought those pens in pink and turquoise. I also have an emerald-shaped sticky note dispenser.

Office supplies, even tiny ones, can reshape the feel of a day. 

For more on office and writing supplies, go here and here.