new blog address

For some random reason, I decided to port my blog over to Blogger.com. This might be a terrible idea that I'm gonna regret, so I kept my wordpress blog too.... just in case...

Any reason why or why not I should (or shouldn't) use blogger? thanks!!

Giveaway extended...

Since I only have *sigh* 10 entries... I'm extending the giveaway for another week. I'll pick the winners sometime in the afternoon (PST) on Wednesday, November 17th.

Please, please, please... tell your friends about this giveaway!!!

To enter the giveaway, you still have to post a comment on the original post, which can be found HERE.

 

SPREAD THE WORD!! :o)

Exaclair Madness Reviews

UPDATE: GIVEAWAY CLOSED!!!

Exaclair Madness!



Soo... recently I received quite a few goodies from Karen at Exaclair: a 2010 Quo Vadis Equology Sapa X planner, a Clairefontaine Basic, and a large Quo Vadis Habana. Instead of doing three individual reviews, I thought "why not do one BIG review?", complete with all the wonderful products Exaclair sent me (which I appropriately drafted on my Rhodia A4 pad, with a pen filled with J. Herbin Éclat de Saphir ink :o))

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375" caption="Quo Vadis Equology Sapa X"][/caption]

Our first test subject is the Equology Sapa X planner. The eco Sapa X is made from 85% recycled materials, and is refillable. It has a cool cover that's sort of rubbery with a bumby-ish texture, but not sticky (upon inquiry, I found it's made from latex).

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Logo and cover detail"][/caption]

The planner is in a one-week-per-two-pages format (weekly), which I like.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="weekly spread"][/caption]

Sadly it also has the little time stamps (which thankfully are easy to blot out), though it makes it all up with the plain (un-ruled) pages... Doodlers rejoice!

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="plain pages :)"][/caption]

Another handy little feature they added was the little section for notes at the bottom left side of the notebook, for every week,

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Notes detail"][/caption]

and two blank pages at the beginning of each month, again, for notes.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Notes spread"][/caption]

My only true gripe about this planner, is the paper. I know they tried hard, but the grey-ish 64g paper is definitely not fountain pen friendly.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Ink tests"][/caption]

Heavy show-through,  and feathering make this planner suitable for ballpoints, pencils (<3), and fine (0.5) point roller/gel pens.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="show-through :("][/caption]

Aside from the paper though, I would recommend this planner to anyone who wants a good, refillable , pocket-sized planer, that's eco-friendly. Any FP users though, from what I've read the Quo Vadis Scholar Planner has thicker paper, and will stand up to bleed though, THIS IS WHAT YOU'RE LOOKING FOR!

The Clairefontaine Basic, is what you would expect it to be: a very basic notebook. The cover is a somewhat laminated cardboard, and the notebook is cloth bound (great, since I despise spirals). The notebook measures 20.5 cm x 15 cm (about 6 x 8 ?), and comes in a variety of colors. The one Karen sent me is a pleasant green color,

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Clairefontaine Basic"][/caption]

with the spine being a darker shade (it might look a little worn since I'm using this for NaNoWriMo :) great notebook!!!).

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375" caption="spine detail (it's not as light as it appears in the picture!)."][/caption]

One slight thing that I noticed, (which personally, I don't mind... but you know how people are), was that the cover was slightly mis-aligned on the front (with the binding). The back cover was fine.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375" caption="the front cover is uneven. no biggie though!"][/caption]

What really makes this notebook special though, is the premium, smooth, extra-white 90 g/sm Clairefontaine paper "The best paper in the World for writing", a statement they have truly sold me on.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375" caption="Ink test "][/caption]

The colors show nicely. Blacks are black, blues are blue etc. Drying times were a bit slower, but it is to be expected with smoother, thicker papers.
Anyways, if you don't mind (or prefer) the very basic design (lack of strap and back pocket), but (and) still want the excellent paper (and considerably cheaper price tag, this notebook will be perfect for you. You can purchase them here (chill, I'm not affiliated with them in any way).

The last notebook I'm going to review here is the Quo Vadis Habana.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Quo Vadis Habana"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="without the... whatchamacallit "][/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375" caption="details details details..."][/caption]

This large, 15 cm x 25 cm (6" x 9") notebook is bound in black leather. There are 80 sheets (160 pages) of the premium Clairefontaine paper (same as in the Basic, except the lines in this notebook are grey, vs the Basic's purple). The notebook has a great feel to it, though I wish it had more pages since these will go by quickly considering the wide-ish rule.
The notebook has a black elastic strap, and a polyester bookmark that looks as though it might fray :( (would recommend heat sealing it),

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="looks like it might fray... :("][/caption]

and a pocket in the back.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Back pocket "][/caption]

Also, incase you didn't get it already, this is not a pocket sized notebook, they do make an A6 version, though the paper is different (64g). Another thing that would get on my nerves about this notebook is that the corners overlap, a lot. And for some reason the front cover doesn't overlap as much as the back cover.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="uneven covers :("][/caption]

Just beware that the corners might crush if you have it in your bag a lot. More features: covers bend back all the way around,

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="flexy :)"][/caption]

it spreads flat,

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="spreads flat (sorry for the bad quality pic...)"][/caption]

and it's pretty thin (good and bad thing, as mentioned above).
Anyways, I would definitely recommend this notebook to anyone that writes. Really. It's just that great. I really love the extra-white paper, some people might not, I do. Just a personal preference (though if you prefer ivory paper, check out the Rhodia Webnotebook). You can purchase these notebooks here

Now here comes the cool part... I'm going to be giving away a Quo Vadis Habana... to 1 lucky winner. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post saying whatever you want (entries are limited to 1 per person), and I'll come around on the November 18th (next Wednesday) and pick a winner (using a random number generator). The winner will be posted on the 18th.

UPDATE: GIVEAWAY CLOSED :(

Good Luck,

SirCram

Giveaway and update

Just wanted to let you know that @_ghost_world is giving away a 2010 Rhodia planner, you can enter HERE, but hurry! it closes on Oct. 14!! Also, I'm trying to finish my Rhodia Webnotebook review, it should be done today, or tomorrow (I hope!).

anyways,

Best!

Sircram

Moleskine GTD

Somehow, a pocket ruled Moleskine made its way to my room. I don't know how, I don't know why, but it did.
Anyways, I decided to take a shot at creating my own complete Moleskine GTD system based on the hyalineskies GTD System,  the Circle, GIL's Student Planner Hack and a little bit of my own creativity..

I don't want to re-iterate everything I already wrote on my flickr, click on the pictures to see the notes etc.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="The front cover of my 'hacked' Moleskine GTD system."][/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="post-it flags on the inside cover to mark pages etc. Project flag in case I have a project that I want to quickly find. I rarely have any big projects, which is why I didn't put this on the outside of the notebook/"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="Number the odd pages (for quick reference when an item is delegated to a different section)."][/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="The main tabs: ToDo Soon Maybe/Later Notes"][/caption]



[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375" caption="How I use the tabs: ToDo (can be used for simple items or as an inbox ((you can change it to inbox if you want.)) As an inbox, you want it to have the most pages since this is where you put everything, before it gets delegated to the other sections. Since this section will have the most items , I made mine about 95 pages long) Soon (used for things that aren't immediate ((scheduling appointments etc. and things happening in the near future)). Since I don't have many things that would fit this category, it's only about 30 pages long). Maybe/Later (things I'm putting off, or that don't require immediate attention. Only about 30 pages long.) Notes (where I just put down random notes, things that don't necessarily need to go in the ToDo or Inbox section ((book lists, movie lists, email lists, twitter drafts, doodling, you name it!))"][/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375" caption="This system is pretty self explanatory. I kind of tweaked it, you can find the original idea here font.is/?p=790 Very easy system to take care of little items, to planning bigger projects."][/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="375" caption="Some of the things I added: Contexts (from David Allen's GTD): Create a border/column about 1.5 cm in from the side of the page (you can use a thin sharpie so that it bleeds through, and you only have to do it every other page) where you put Contexts (@mac, @car, @cell, @work etc). You can add as may as you want per action/project, just try to keep it broad and simple, so you can easily scan through your items to see what you have to do! Due Dates are pretty self explanatory."][/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="500" caption="I like to keep a secret $20, some index cards and a couple spare metro tickets, nice to have in case of emergency."][/caption]

That's all! Happy productivity!!

Sircram

p.s. leave comments on how this worked out for you!!

Win Free Stuff (and help me win free stuff)

Love/Hate relationship with my Moleskine, but only love with my Hero 329 :o)

Recently, I became a bit of a Moleskine addict, and as I've been looking through various sites ('Skine Art), and somehow, I fell on some interesting pen/notebook sites, some that you should check out: The Pen Addict, Future Nostalgic, Potentially Percipicacious, Good Pens, An Inkophile's Blog, and Notebook Stories to name a few. Anyways, since lately I've been having issues with bleed through and feathering with my fountain pen, in my moleskine, I posted a tweet on my account (@ecram), asking if anyone knew of a great, affordable, moleskine friendly fountain pen. Of course, @futurenostalgic, always ready to help, responded with a link to his glowing review of the Hero 329. The Hero 329 is a Chinese-made fountain pen, with an extra Fine hooded nib, and an aerometric filling method. But wait, it gets even better, the pen is available at HisNibs, for only $15!!! I almost immediately purchased it. Though I should have listened to @futurenostalgic, and purchased his recommended Aurora Black ink, instead I went with convenience, over quality, and bought the only ink my local stationery store carries, Private Reserve Velvet Black.

This pen/ink combination is OK, but there's still a lot of bleed/show through. Aside from that, when I'm not writing in my Moleskine (or when I come across pages that are actually good quality paper. More on that later.), I use my Hero 329, it's a great pen. Puts down a nice, smooth, wet line, and fares better than some of the pens I have that cost three times that!

Anyways, onto my grippes with Moleskine, more specifically Moleskine paper, even more specifically; Moleskine's shitty paper.

Since I got my Moleskine, one of the many things I enjoyed about it, was its smooth, creamy, ivory-colored FOUNTAIN PEN FRIENDLY paper. But... I guess the wonderful... smooth... creamy... ivory-colored... FOUNTAIN PEN FRIENDLY paper, was there by mistake, since as I continued writing in my trusty notebook, the paper quickly quickly degraded, and my words started to feather, and bleed through. I mean, it's SO bad, that even my Pilot G2 (THE G2!!) bleeds through, A LOT, when it used to not (bleed through).

So, if any of you pen/notebook fanatics/enthusiasts/addicts, could please give me some advice on an inexpensive, pocket sized notebook, with FP friendly paper, that's available in US (locally in San Diego, California, would be even better!), it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Eric (@ecram)

What's in my backpack

[caption id="attachment_57" align="aligncenter" width="500" caption="What I always have with me."][/caption]

I decided to do a "What's in your bag" photo... and well it's pretty self-explanatory. Click HERE to see it on flickr with all of its notes glory. These things are usually with me in my discreet bright orange Jansport bag.

Pearl Jam

So, I was talking to my friend recently and he had me listen to a song by a band he assumed I knew. Sadly I didn't (I was promptly ridiculed at my ignorance in good music), the band was Pearl Jam. So I went home... all dejected and saddened at the fact that it would be a while before I would be able to download anything new.
After a few days of waiting, I ventured into the land of iTunes... and downloaded it.
To tell you the truth, I wasn't really impressed when I first listened to the album, but after a couple of 'listens', I realized how awesome this music really is.
Many of the songs are classics, but it's hard to talk to you about it without you reading it...
Here's my (I think) favorite song!

Moleskine notebooks

As you know (I hope), I went to France recently, and while I was there, I got a Moleskine for me, my girlfriend and my other friend (though I found out that you can get them in the U.S now...). I got the large 'cahier' (which is a stupid name since it means 'notebook' in french!) and I love it!

I got the squared one, and I use it all the time: as a journal to write down my thoughts, notes and reminders, and I'm even using it now to draft this article. Thought they are quite expensive ($12 each for the small notebook), its quality justifies the price, the tight binding, and especially the smooth, rich creamy paper (no perverted jokes intended!), that's a pleasure (again... no perv jokes needed) to write on with my pen (plastic Reynolds fountain pen for everyday use, or a nice marbled green Waterman at home). Then there's that special something about sitting down at home, taking out my fountain pen and just writing whatever comes to mind.

My Moleskine (and Reynolds fountain pen of course) have now become essential things that I carry around with me, along with my iPod Touch, awesome sony earbuds (thanks Julia!), my book and my cell phone (Samsung Eternity on AT&T). I have to have them around with me and I write in it daily.

Well I hope this article has prompted you to go out and get a Moleskine, and make the (partial) digital to analog switch (I admit I can't live without my iPod Touch). There are many hacks out there to improve productivity which I'm sure you can find.

--Mr. Sir

Parkour (free running)

Three years ago, I was watching the movie Casino Royale, amazed by the opening chase seen. I looked up the stuntman who played that part (he's French, of course) and found that he's not the only one. In fact if you look up 'free running' or 'parkour' on YouTube, you get a plethora of results. Anyways, the reason I'm writing this is because I'm going to teach myself to free run, and NOT get seriously injured.
So yeah. I just felt I should tell you all that incase you find me in a hospital!

Cheers,

Mr. Sir

Vacation pictures

Hey readers,

I came back from France a while ago and I uploaded a small portion of my pictures to my Picasa Web Album using Picasa 3 for Mac.
You can see these photos at www.picasaweb.google.com/eric.b.cramer

Awesome!!

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Break the monotony!!!"][/caption]

Hey guys, I found this picture while aimlessly surfing the web. Hope you like it!

France at last!!

Hey Readers!

We arrived in Paris from San Diego yesterday afternoon after sever wonderful flights, including an 11 hour flight from Los Angeles to London (eek!!)! After having been awake for more than 24 hours, we settled in with my dad's uncle and aunt's house (that makes them my great-aunt and uncle?), and had a delicious dinner courtesy of my (great) aunt. I went to bed at around 9 p.m since I was so dead tired, except, I woke up at 4 am!! I haven't been able to fall back asleep, so I've been up since 4 am (it's 7:41 am local time)

We haven't taken any pictures yet, well because we simply haven't had the time! But I'll make sure to post some good ones this time!! The others will probably go to my Picasa profile. I'll post a link to that if I want to...

Till next time!!

Mr. Sir

Vacation

Hey readers,

Right now I'm posting this from my iPod Touch using the wifi at the airport.
I'm going on vacation to France to visit friends and family (in case you didn't know I speak fluent French). I'm going to try to post some pictures since my dad finally agreed to let me bring my laptop.

Talk to you later!

Mr. Sir

Update...

Hey guys, I'm posting this with the new WordPress app for the iPhone and iPod touch. It's really cool, especially with the larger horizontal keyboard. Now I have no excuse to not keep up with my blog. Also I'm sorry that I didn't post the link for the pictures, I just got too caught up in things (though if you're reading this, I probably sent the link to you already.

Anyways,

Ciao for now!

Mr. Sir

Snowboarding!!!

Today I ditched school to go snowboarding. It was a lot if fun since I'm a pretty good snowboarder. I'll post the link to the pictures I took. There aren't that many, but whatever.

Snowboarding

Hey!

I just found out that I'm going snowboarding on Sunday! Some of my friends (Julia and Sarina) might be coming too. It's going to be awesome! Were going to Mountain High, about 2 hours North East (I think).

Ciao!

Mr. Sir

Another Book Reccomendation

I just started a new series called Peter and the Starcatchers. I think it's the prequel to Peter Pan, anyways, I think it's an excellent trilogy that is defineitly a VERY good read.

La Jolla Classic Car Show

Hey all, I just went to the Car show thingy in La Jolla, San Diego. You can check out the pics that I took at http://picasaweb.google.com/eric.b.cramer/ClassicCarShow?feat=directlink