Episode 197: A Shocking Lack of Knowledge

Journalist Gabe Bullard joins us to talk about his new book, Against Convenience: Embracing Friction in an Age of Endless Ease. We dig into what we trade away for ease: the Starbucks app, robotaxis, New Release Tuesdays, memories apps, and AI's "sheen of fakery" — plus Wendell Berry's rules for adopting a new tool and Gabe's chat with our friend Caroline Weaver. We’re missing Tim today because his hotel wi-fi is not working. For this episode, we recorded video, available to Patreon subscribers! If you’re a patron, head over to see our faces and visual examples of many of the things we discuss. And if you’re not a patron, join us at any level and you can see this and other supplemental content at any time! Show Notes and Links Against Convenience: Embracing Friction in an Age of Endless Ease by Gabe Bullard Gabe Bullard 1A The Impossible Project Wendell Berry The Membership — Tim's Wendell Berry podcast “Why I Am Not Going to Buy a Computer” by Wendell Berry “Feminism, the Body, and the Machine” by Wendell Berry Dieter Rams' ten principles for good design Half-Told Tales by Arab Strap Don Hertzfeldt interview in Slate The Influencing Machine by Brooke Gladstone Can Gen Z's Nostalgia Save Chain Restaurants? (New York Times) Yikes! pencils The Tin Drum by Günter Grass AI Fruit Love Island Meta's Muse AI agent at Connect 2026 Google's "Dear Sydney" Gemini ad The Locavore Variety Store CW Pencil Enterprise Bookshop.org Underwood No. 6 typewriter Brother Charger 11 typewriter Olympia typewriters Hermes Baby typewriter Strikethru Lamy 2000 fountain pen Parker 51 fountain pen Fisher Space Pen Tombow AirPress ballpoint pen Eberhard Faber Mongol 482 Mongol Pencil — the new relaunch Sanford American Naturals Musgrave Pencil Company Blackwing Steinbeck's favorite pencils Blaisdell Calculator 600 Field Notes Original Kraft Louise Carmen leather notebook cover The reporter's notebook by Gabe Bullard (Nieman Reports) Bob Slate Stationer Stálogy Editor's Series 365Days Notebook Repair Café Rhodia No. 38 pad Rhodia No. 8 pad Alton Brown's Rhodia pad on Good Eats Roterfaden Taschenbegleiter Muji notebooks Ira Glass, This Is How I Work (Lifehacker) Delfonics Rollbahn notebooks David Sedaris's fake German notebooks from Japan (Literary Hub) Kurt Vonnegut's envelope story Erasable Patreon Erasable Podcast Discord invite Our Guest Gabe Bullard Website Your Hosts Johnny Gamber Pencil Revolution @pencilution Andy Welfle Woodclinched @awelfle Tim Wasem @TimWasem

The Pencil Primer returns with part three: the other end of the pencil. We trace the eraser from stale bread crumbs to Goodyear's vulcanized rubber to Hymen Lipman's well-timed patent sale, then get into ferrules — wartime plastic ones, the Blackwing's famous clip, and why American pencils wear erasers while Japanese and German ones mostly don't. But first: Andy falls down a Carter Family rabbit hole, Johnny finds a forest green ink and an all-black Musgrave Ceres, and Tim awaits Blackwing's new Telecaster pencil. Show Notes & Links Show notes Erasable episode 237: Pencil Primer, Part 1 Erasable episode 240: Pencil Primer, Part 2 Lost Weekend by Phoebe Bridgers Trio by Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, and Emmylou Harris Trio II The Johnny Cash Show The Carter Family Country Music: A Film by Ken Burns Birthplace of Country Music Museum Field Notes Explore America: Northern California Penco Bullet Ballpoint Pen Light The Gentlemen (series) The Gentlemen (film) Grantchester The Vicar of Dibley The Art of the Fold by Hedi Kyle and Ulla Warchol Asvine C80 Jacques Herbin Vert Forêt ink General's Cedar Pointe Paper Mate EarthWrite John & Paul: A Love Story in Songs by Ian Leslie Oasis: Don't Look Back in Anger Tires Pilot Metropolitan Pilot Plumix Diamine Aurora Borealis ink Nahvalur Nautilus Against Convenience by Gabe Bullard Enshittification by Cory Doctorow Musgrave Ceres 909 Midnight Musgrave America250 Ceres 909 Red, White, & Blue Set Justin Ostrander on YouTube Blackwing Volume 33 1/3 Tombow 2558 Mitsubishi 9852 Blackwing x Fender Butterscotch Blonde Telecaster pencils Blackwing x Fender Butterscotch Blonde Telecaster notebook Blackwing x Fender Stratocaster pencils Blackwing Volume 725 Edward Nairne Charles Goodyear Vulcanization Kneaded eraser Will It Blend? iPhone Hymen Lipman The brief and fascinating history of WWII-era pencil ferrules Bic Evolution Uni-ball Air Tombow Mono eraser Mitsubishi 9852EW Staedtler Noris Telephone pencils in action — pencils with a tip for dialing rotary phones Supreme Court gift shop gavel pencils Hemingway Home & Museum store Sprout plantable pencils Faber-Castell Perfect Pencil The Blackwing pencil: a history Eberhard Faber Mongol Mirado Golden Bear Richard Best Futura Venus Velvet Craft Design Technology pencils Camel pencils and the integrated eraser Itoya Helvetica pencil Erasable Patreon Erasable Podcast Discord invite Your Hosts Johnny Gamber Pencil Revolution @pencilution Andy Welfle Woodclinched @awelfle Tim Wasem @TimWasem

No Pencil Primer this time (part three is coming, promise) — instead, a Fresh Points extravaganza to say bye-bye to summer. Blackwing goes big with a Mickey and Friends collection and the gorgeous Frida Kahlo Volume 143, Andy's wristwatch rabbit hole deepens into designing the perfect podcaster's watch, Johnny hand-binds his kids' planners and stocks up on pastel Musgrave Ceres, and Tim shows off Sharpie Harpy art and a compendium of delightfully weird writing prompts. Plus: Hobonichi szn is upon us, the SF Pen Show, Ian Schon's new dip nib, and a tall stack of books. Patreon subscribers at any level can watch the video version. Show Notes St. Denis Medical — season 1 on Netflix, season 2 on Peacock Against Convenience by Gabe Bullard — out September 15 from Hanover Square Press; preorder it! (More at gabebullard.com) Tom's Studio refillable fineliner pen Paper Mate InkJoy multi-pen — surprisingly good company swag The Land and Its People by David Sedaris — recorded live at his readings Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt — the octopus book, now a Netflix movie three six five: prompts, acts, divinations by Lucy Ives (Siglio Press) — Tim's beautiful, backordered book of writing exercises (three ribbons!) Field Notes: Is a River Alive? — Tim's favorite Field Notes ever, with art by Stanley Donwood for Robert Macfarlane's book Uni-ball Air Micro — Tim's pocket pen Musgrave Ceres — America 250 blue for Johnny, pastels by the gross for back to school Levenger True Writer in Sea Glass with Levenger Empyrean bottled ink ("navy blue and teal had a very beautiful baby") Hamilton Khaki Field Murph — the Interstellar watch, plus Andy's musings on military field watch dials and podcaster's-watch design Hobonichi Techo season — Weeks, Cousin, and the V&A collabs; see Yoseka Stationery's big walkthrough video San Francisco Pen Show — this weekend, bring your elbows Schon DSGN — Ian Schon's new $68 titanium dip nib, debuting at the show Blackwing x Disney Mickey and Friends collection — soft graphite, $40 a dozen Blackwing Volume 143 — the Frida Kahlo edition: saturated florals, pink metallic ferrule, teal eraser, and the best QC in years Blackwing One-Step sharpener — a big responsibility, bud Sharpie Harpy — Em Varian's Sharpie art on Etsy (you can even license a tattoo) Leuchtturm1917 — Tim's new default notebook gift for normal people Pencil Revolution Press — Johnny's handmade planners and '90s diskette journals Musgrave Test Scoring 100 — now with that sweet new ferrule Musgrave Tennessee Red pencils and the Songbird edition — remembering Dolly Parton Support the show and get video episodes: patreon.com/erasable

The Pencil Primer returns with part two: the case of yonder pencil. We trace the wood itself — from Conté's badass eyepatch to eastern red cedar, California incense cedar, and the creeping basswood era — plus why pencils are yellow (blame a Siberian graphite strike and some questionable 19th-century marketing) and why triangular pencils are weird. But first, the summer releases: Blackwing's birding-themed Volume 458 and Field Notes' melty, paleta-inspired Paletas edition get the full review. Next time: ferrules and erasers. Patreon subscribers at any level can watch the video version. For this episode, we recorded video, available to Patreon subscribers! If you’re a patron, head over to see our faces and visual examples of many of the things we discuss. And if you’re not a patron, join us at any level and you can see this and other supplemental content at any time! Show Notes & Links Blackwing Volume 458 — a tribute to birding: Clark's Grebe, Mallard, Green Jay, and Black Rail gradients (Behind the Design) How Blackwing Pencils Are Made — the making-of video we kept mentioning (also on YouTube) Field Notes Paletas — nine popsicle notebooks inspired by Paletería Los Magos in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood Field Notes: The Founding Documents Outshine popsicles — the official popsicle-flavor icebreaker Nahvalur Original Plus — new sparkly colors (plus mystery jewel-tone demonstrators spotted at the NYC stationery festival) Pilot Iroshizuku Fuyu-gaki ink — Andy's persimmon-orange favorite Stationery Day recaps from Brad Dowdy and friends Musgrave Tennessee Red — eastern red cedar, clear lacquer, glorious smell Musgrave Single Barrel 106 — named for Erasable episode 106 with Henry Hulan of Musgrave Pencils Past and Present — the YouTube channel reviewing the Single Barrel 106 (and lots of vintage pencils) ForestChoice — the FSC-certified incense cedar standard-bearer General's Cedar Pointe — naked cedar, as God intended Koh-i-Noor Hardtmuth — where the yellow pencil (and its complicated marketing history) began Caran d'Ache Swiss Wood 348 — reportedly discontinued; pour one out (Pen Addict review; Well-Appointed Desk review) Dixon Tri-Conderoga — Andy's triangular gateway pencil Ticonderoga Laddie — the bigger, soft-triangle one Faber-Castell Grip 2001 — triangular, six design awards, formerly bubbly grip dots

The whole gang is back together to catch up. Andy recaps his Field Notes–filled wedding, starts a new job, and falls down a serious wristwatch rabbit hole — from Bluetooth-modded Casio F-91Ws to a Draplin x Timex Scout. Johnny's loving a $30 Asvine piston-filler, a possibly haunted Cedar Pointe, and a Rhodia Goalbook in Peacock, while Tim is deep in World Cup fever and cheap-but-good Pen+Gear black pencils. Plus: Blackwing's 250 drop, Nahvalur's Fireworks Nautilus, and a locked-in promise that next episode is a Pencil Primer all about wood. For this episode, we recorded video, available to Patreon subscribers! If you’re a patron, head over to see our faces and visual examples of many of the things we discuss. And if you’re not a patron, join us at any level and you can see this and other supplemental content at any time! Show Notes & Links Murchie's Tea (Victoria, BC) — Scottish breakfast blend ForestChoice #2 pencil — still $5 a pack at Pencils.com Field Notes Explore America: Northern California — Golden Gate National Recreation Area edition (with Big Sur and Muir Woods) Range Leather notebook cover Bound to Be Beautiful by Bari Zaki — from Bari Zaki Studio in Chicago No Man's Sky Asvine P90 piston-fill fountain pen (~$30) Organics Studio Walt Whitman Leaves of Grass ink General's Cedar Pointe #1 Baron Fig x Caroline Weaver Archer pencil Rhodia Goalbook in Peacock James Corden's live after-match World Cup show on Tubi The Art of Simple Living by Shunmyo Masuno Replica J. Thoreau & Son pencil from The Shop at Walden Pond Moleskine Cahier XL notebook — $9.99 at Walmart Casio F-91W and the Ollee Watch Bluetooth mod (~$60) Casio Vintage series — calculator, world-time, and the Alien wrist-communicator lookalike Timex Weekender, Timex Expedition, and a Draplin Design Co. x Timex Scout Fitbit Air ($99) — strap-only tracker people pair with analog watches Paper & Pencil (Chicago) custom Stationery Day Field Notes — including a stamp-collecting edition Delfonics Rollbahn Micro — the impossibly tiny new size, found at Maido The Blackwing 250 Collection — red, white, and blue pencils, plus the 250-box with a gold one (only 50 sets) Musgrave America250 Cedar Box Set — 2 dozen red, white, and blue Ceres pencils Field Notes: The Founding Documents Nahvalur Nautilus Fireworks limited edition Pen+Gear round black #2 pencils — back-to-school find at Walmart Panini World Cup sticker album — $2 packs, 450+ stickers