My Paean to the Ballpoint Pen, Part 4

       My pen, when I got it, was somewhat of a marvel.  Aluminum it was, I'm sure.  Very light, and, oh, maybe not more than four inches in length, perhaps five or six.  It had its own built-in cap for the point, not like any I've seen since.  It protracted out over the point to protect it when not in use and retracted to reveal the point when you were ready to write.  The cap could be moved back and forth with the same hand one wrote with (with a little effort) and couldn't be lost because it was attached to the pen.

       The silvery aluminum barrel had an array of ridges up and down its length which made it firm to hold but somewhat hard on the fingers after writing for awhile.  It also wrote rather faintly, a pale blue that was legible if one adjusted one's eyes to it.  Oh yes, it "skipped" a little compared to dip pens...tiny gaps in the ink flow that you could make out...but obviously a small penalty to pay for so many advantages.