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Writing Utensil -- Essential Gear

2009-10-11T22:08:00.005+02:00

I have found that all my writing utensils are woefully inadequate, and I'll tell you why.

My favorite four writing tools:

Staedtler Multi 4: This is a great writing tool: four different writing instruments. It came with black, red, and orange ("highlighter") ball point pens and a 0.5mm mechanical pencil installed; I've removed the red pen and replaced it with a stylus cannibalized from the 4-in-1 below. I really like the (not rubber) grip on the Staedtler, and having four different points is pretty awesome, even if I almost never use the orange pen (even though orange is my favorite color). How could they make it better? Well, a laser pointer (and flashlight) would be cool to have built in, but my main gripe is the cheap, loose feel of the tip selection. It's "gravity-based," according to the website, and that just seems to mean that it rattles like the Texas Giant.
Promotional 4-in -1: Lasers are cool, of course, but only when they work. This would have been a great pen if it had included a pencil; with a ballpoint pen, (now removed) stylus, (weak and now dead) laser pointer, and (very weak) flashlight all in one slim metal cylinder, what's not to love? The convenience of having all the tools in one was great, but once the laser died (less than two months after I got it free with my OpenMoko FreeRunner), the lack of a pencil made it less than cool.
A. T. Cross ATX Rolling-Ball Pen and Pencil: This matching set was one of the best gifts I received at high school graduation, until I lost the pen. However, I do have a few gripes... mostly that the pen and pencil were separate. And no stylus (or laser). And having a cap on the pen (rather than a retractable) means one more piece of which to keep track. Less importantly, the design of the tools was just a little too wide.
Pilot G2 05 Pen and G2 05 Pencil: These are like a cheap version of the ATX set above - a joy to use, well made and solid feeling; smooth flowing ink and extra-fine soft lead. The same criticisms apply - two separate instruments, and the rubber grip makes it them just slightly too wide. One note about the pencil - the eraser is awesome! Best design I've seen in a mechanical pencil. Big enough to be useful, doesn't fall out all the time....

I always preferred pencils (they're erasable! what's not to like?!) until I had Mr. Sam Wilds in sophomore and senior history in high school. His feeling was quite the opposite - and I quote,

Pencils are for communists.

During his courses, I found that I despise ball points. The ink comes out without any semblance of homogeneity, in lines marred by striations and inconsistencies. Since then, I've been a roller-ball or gel fan, although some applications (design drawings and map navigation primarily) demand the flexibility of pencil. Mr. Wilds required black or blue ink, but I could never figure out why someone would use blue ink anyway. My father-in-law uses it exclusively to prevent photocopies being passed off as his original work, but with the advent of the color copier (in 1973)....

So, what have we learned today? Here's what I'm looking for.

Must-have functions, all in one instrument:
- Pen (black roller ball or gel, extra fine point (0.5mm or better).
- Pencil with eraser (0.5mm or better, and please, make the eraser usable!).
Value-added functions (still all in the same instrument):
- Stylus.
- Laser pointer (bright enough to see in daylight and will last more than a few months).
Size: Thin enough to fit into a pencil slot in a padfolio or briefcase.
Pocket clip: Gotta be there, and gotta be strong enough to use (I'm looking at you, Pilot Precise V).
Grip: Take cues from the Staedtler Mutli-4 and lose the rubber. Texture the case instead.
Retractability: I hate pen caps.
Color: Black or steel/aluminum, and matte - no need to be blinded by the chrome finish of my pencil.

I've been through the two recent (I say recent as in the last several months) articles (and relevant comments) at Lifehacker about writing utensils, and very few people noted multifunction implements as highly valued. So, anyone who's got a multifunction they love, leave a comment and let me know. Also, I've been oogling the A. T. Cross Tech3 multifunction - anyone have one? Would you recommend it? Anyone know of a gel refill that will fit it?

Tiger- and Elephant-Resistant Laptop

2009-06-25T16:28:00.005+02:00

Wow. I own an aluminum MacBook, and it's pretty tough, but this Panasonic Toughbook is ridiculous. Wish I could pull the video over, but Forbes' website doesn't allow it, so you'll have to click through to see the ridiculousness.

I Want One

2009-06-18T01:12:00.000+02:00

Tesla Motors, which produces the all-electric Tesla Roadster, is one of my favorite companies to watch. I saw a review in Road and Track magazine that gives very good marks to the Roadster, and noticed something I'd missed - Tesla now makes a sedan! A quick look at the company's website shows the sedan does 0-60 in 5.6 seconds, seats seven, and goes 240 miles on a 45 minute charge. With gas averaging $2.548 a gallon nationally, the Tesla Model S sedan's starting price of $49,900 doesn't look so bad!

Knife -- Essential Gear

2009-05-26T21:07:00.002+02:00

A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned my $200 knife. A lot of frugal people might think that's an exorbitant purchase, considering that pocketknives may be had for $3.95 and up on Google. I'll wager very, very few knives that cheap have blades made of steel as good as the S30V in my Benchmade 943SBK.

The point is that a knife is, beyond doubt, essential gear. The convenience of having a knife close to hand makes everyday life quicker in hundreds of tiny ways. Aside from the everyday - opening letters and packages, crafts projects, etc. - a simple bladed tool increases survival possibilities in all kinds of situations. Art of Manliness has a post on the subject, and while it's largely tongue-in-cheek about the uses of a knife, it does give a good overview about the basic types of knives and agree with me that every man should carry one.

Your knife requirements may vary depending on what you do. I want a knife that is as light and thin as possible, so that it doesn't create bulk in my pockets and weigh down my pants. I want a knife that has good hard steel that will take and hold an edge. I'm not interested in multi-tools for daily carry and have no need of a quill knife or fishing knife, so a single blade suits me just fine. I do need one blade to be a clean edge and one partially serrated for cutting rope or twine, but a "combo" type blade can cover both those needs at once. For ease of carry, a pocket clip is a great addition as well.

Some people advocate switchblades; they're also called automatics or assisted openers. The legality of those types of folding knives is a nightmare, and I can't think of any reason to build extra complexity (read: more stuff that can break) into the simplest and most elegant tool I own. Lastly, I need an ambidextrous, one-hand open and close lock. I've been cut too many times when friction-hold knives or inferior lock designs collapsed under the slightest pressure; I no longer trust knives without good locks. The AXIS mechanism on my knife locks the blade into both the closed and open positions, so it's great.

I own several knives. One cost me $5 and has a plastic handle, a crappy liner lock, and a stamped, low quality blade. One was a gift from my father; it's a Case penknife with three blades, two at one end and one at the other - a great knife, but pretty thick around, no pocket clip, and no lock. A couple are multi-tools; great for camping but too heavy for daily carry. So I carry my jackknife and it hasn't let me down yet. If you don't carry a knife, I'd say you should consider it. It doesn't have to be fancy, it doesn't have to be expensive; it's just too useful a thing to go without.

A Wedding Present

2009-05-23T04:00:00.003+02:00

So, I am now the proud owner of my very first firearm: the Springfield Armory XD Sub-Compact 9mm.
It was a gift from my lovely fiancée, who also bought me a SuperTuck concealed carry holster from CrossBreed. She received from me the XD Service Model 9mm, as well as an "adorable" (her word, and I agree) dress she'd picked out at Caché. We've been thinking about buying pistols since last May (before we were engaged) and we finally had the money in our "Goal" account to do it. So we did.

There's a lot of training and reflection that needs to happen before purchasing a firearm. For one thing, you have to be able to overcome the psychological impacts of carrying a weapon. Personally, I like a quote from Robert A. Heinlein's Tunnel in the Sky on the subject:

"I know how good a gun feels. It makes you bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, 3 meters tall and covered with hair. You're ready for anything and kind of hoping you'll find it. Which is exactly what is dangerous about it—because you aren't anything of the sort. You are a feeble, hairless embryo, remarkably easy to kill."

Aside from instant susceptibility to hubris, there's also the idea that one might actually want to know how to use the weapon, and I don't mean just shooting; cleaning and maintenance must be understood as well. If you're not reasonably familiar with whatever type of firearm you intend to purchase, you should go find some friends who are and go shooting or hunting with them a few times, borrowing their guns and accepting whatever training and advice they give you, before you decide what to buy yourself, or even if you do want to buy. It happened that one of my friends had a Springfield XD that both my fiancée and I thought fit our hands pretty well, so that's what we went with. Other people recommended Kel-Tec, Taurus, and Smith & Wesson products, but the XD just felt right.

Last thing (actually, probably the first thing) is the legal concerns of owning, transporting, and/or carrying a weapon, concealed or not. My current state of residence allows concealed carry and I've had a permit for some time; the law varies widely by state. If you're about to purchase a gun, make sure you know what the law is and make sure you follow it.

A Tour Of My Plumber's Bag

2009-05-19T20:26:00.006+02:00

The Simple Dollar had an article a few weeks back where Trent explained each item in his messenger bag (and Lifehacker has several such articles), so here's my response. Trent wrote about the frugality behind each item in his bag; my bag is about convenience and readiness. I think that a man should be able to respond to his situation when necessary; part of that readiness is knowledge, and part of it is tools and equipment. It would be ridiculous to carry around enough gear to respond to every situation, but a minimal amount of gear can account for most of the likely situations I encounter.

On My Person:

Folding Knife - Benchmade 943SBK. Everyone should have a knife on their person at all times - it's just too useful and essential to do without. My knife has a one-handed, ambidextrous lock and the blade is made of high-quality steel.
Watch - Citizen Corso. I believe in being on time, out of courtesy to the people who are waiting on you. Not that I always make it, but I at least know when I need to apologize for tardiness or even call ahead and let people know. My watch never needs a battery and has a titanium case and band.
Hero Bracelet - Emily Perez. This needs no explanation. She was my friend.
Sunglasses - Oakleys with polarized, ASNI Z87.1-2003 lenses and plastic sport frames; probably overkill, but I don't mess around with protecting my eyes.
Wallet: All-Ett Original. I have enough back problems without an inch-thick leather trifold to sit on. So I found something better, and it's lasted me four years, just as long as any other wallet I've owned. I'm going to buy a new one pretty soon.
- Employee ID
- Driver's License
- Concealed Carry Permit
- Credit Card
- Shopping Cards - I use shopping discount cards on groceries, books, office supplies, sports equipment, pet supplies....
Verse Pack - The Topical Memory System. Gives me something to do when I'm waiting around with nothing to do. It's surprising how easy it is to memorize God's Word when you make a conscious effort to have it with you.

The Bag Itself:
I wrote a post several months ago in the belief that I had gotten beyond my messenger bag. Turns out I didn't. The flexibility and simplicity of the bag I carry was beyond what the Camelbak Transformer could offer me, despite the incredible performance features of that bag. I'm certainly going to keep the Camelbak around, as it's indispensable for camping and biking. It's just not what I carry every day.

I have an Urban Plumber's Bag from a defunct company called Bohemian Traders. It was a high-school graduation gift from my father, the best man I know, and it's been in probably twenty states plus Mexico, Canada, and the Dominican Republic. It's survived umpteen airline flights, falling in a vat of wet cement, dirt and dust, wear and tear... and it's still great.

In The Bag:
I use my bag to carry whatever I need for whatever I'm doing at the moment, anything from sheet music and A/V equipment to Linux CDs. The list here is just what is generally always there.

Bible: NASB Slimline Reference. I wish the references were more helpful - I really wish I had an iPhone/Kindle/Tablet that could contain every possible set of biblical reference materials and indices, plus several different translations and whatever originals are available. Until I acquire such a piece of equipment, leatherbound pages will have to do.
- Marking Pencils: Crayola Twistables. Rather than use highlighters on the thin pages of a Bible, I use colored pencils since they don't bleed through. I highlight based on the SPECK system.
- Pen: Pilot G2 (black). While I don't generally write in my Bible, a pen is always handy to have around. I carry my colored pencils and pen in a holder I made of duct tape that slides around the Bible.
Notebook: Modofly. While this particular one was a little expensive, it was a gift, and it meets all my criteria and is unique and stylish to boot. I carry a pen (black Pilot G2 again) on the notebook as well.
Water bottle: Nalgene 32oz. wide-mouth. I always keep water near; I drink a ton of it and I hardly ever drink anything else.
Laptop: MacBook running Fedora 10. Yes, it still has a minimal OS X partition, but only to keep the EFI bootloader updated. I don't always have it with me, but a majority of the time.
- Laptop power adapter
Keys: I generally keep my keys in my bag, because they're too bulky to keep in my pockets. I use a tiny carabiner to hold each different category of keys together.
- Car keys
- House keys
- Utility items: USB storage key, LED key, and Benchmade mini-sharpener.
Jacket: Packable GoreTex rain jacket. I don't always carry it; just when it looks like rain. It packs down to be smaller than my water bottle, which is fantastic, and it's waterproof and breathable.
Book: Whatever I'm reading at the moment.

What do you think? What do I have that's extra? What am I missing?

iPhone is now a Kindle

2009-01-08T04:11:00.005+01:00

We are rapidly approaching the point where your phone is your computer.

Here's your future:
The 5x optical zoom, 10-megapixel digital camera is built in.
Video playback (which means audio, duh) is built in.
Instant messaging is built in.
Internet browsing is built in.
Mobile gaming is built in.
"eBooks" are built-in.
Video capture is built in.
Video conferencing is built in.
Once you pair your earpiece with the phone, it automatically, and wirelessly, connects whenever it is turned on.
When you set your phone down on your desk, it will automatically, and wirelessly, start charging.
Once you pair your external keyboard, mouse/trackball, display, and speaker system with the phone, they will automatically, and wirelessly, connect whenever you set your phone down on your desk.
Once you pair your car to your phone, keyless entry, remote ignition, and other "car key fob button" functionality will be right there in your phone.

Some is (almost) already there; I put links in for everything I knew about. If something else on this list is already available, let me know! Anything else you need in your phone?

Essential Gear

2008-12-02T23:15:00.004+01:00

What is "essential gear"? Trent Hamm at The Simple Dollar wrote earlier this month about the Suitcase Test. The premise, as he states it, is "If you had to fit all of your belongings in a suitcase and walk away, what would you pack?" From a personal finance standpoint, this leads to getting rid of a lot of stuff - anything that doesn't fit in the suitcase - and only buying new things if they fit. I think that a suitcase for your whole life is a little extreme, but I am certainly on board with the underlying idea: there are a few things in life that you need. Things that are essential to survival, either in the wilderness, the post-apocalyptic urban jungle, or mundane life today. These things are essential gear, things that a real man should always keep close to hand. As the Boy Scout motto states, "Be Prepared."

So, my basic needs as a human being are air, water, food, protection from the elements, and communication with others. Assuming I'm on planet Earth and not kidnapped and released at the bottom of the ocean without a scuba tank (both pretty decent assumptions, since I'm not a millionaire with space-travel hobbies or a high potential ransom), I'll have air, so that's one down. Water isn't much trickier; in day-to-day life I have a faucet, but it's always nice to have it close in either a bottle or a pack, especially when I'm out of the house. Food I generally assume I can buy, but a knife in my pocket prepares me for the possibility of being stuck in the wilderness. Protection from the elements means shelter and clothes. Easy enough; I tend to consider a waterproof jacket in this category as well; depending on your climate, you'll need other items as well, like sunglasses, parkas and boots, or sunblock and chapstick. Last necessity is communication. While I could certainly survive without it, I put a cellphone in this category at the very least.

With basic needs out of the way, what else do I need? My job requires me to have internet access; everything comes down via email. To get by day-to-day, I could use public computers, though I'd have very little control over it, so I generally assume a laptop to be essential. A wallet is another necessity, since the aforementioned water, food, cellphone service, and internet access must be paid for somehow, and credit cards means having an ID. My watch? I don't suppose there's any real reason to have it, but it sure is convenient. Maybe a watch isn't essential.

How about a vehicle? Depends on where you live. In New York City, I never needed one, but in suburban or rural Texas there are basically no taxis and subways are nonexistent. My memory isn't perfect, and my job is hard to stay on top of without notes, not to mention my personal life, so I consider a notebook to be essential. Some people might not need one, others might use their computers or cellphones for the same purpose. Assuming a notebook, then I also need a pen; the notebook won't be much use without it. And don't forget about some way to carry all this necessary stuff when I leave the house.

Notebooks!

2008-12-01T05:23:00.006+01:00

In my first post about notebooks, I mentioned a green Army-issue notebook that is roughly the size of a moleskine, 5.5" by 8" and 92 pages. I couldn't find them online at the time, but now I have: the Federal Supply Service item 7530-00-222-3521. Price? $2.33 each, shipping included. Moleskine notebooks run $9.60 and up.

Add a piece of duct tape and you've got a pen holder - wrap it sticky side out around a pen to form the holder, place that against the spine of the notebook, and wrap another piece of duct tape around the whole notebook cover (sticky side down) to hold it in place. Too easy, and it makes a nice contrasting stripe around the cover!

This Post Written From A Mac

2008-11-23T22:06:00.006+01:00

Yes, yes, I have fallen to Steve Jobs' evil empire... I bought a MacBook. It's the lower-end of the two new aluminum 13" laptops. And it's a thing of beauty. The one thing I regret about it is that my local PX didn't have any with the backlit keyboard available.

So small, so light... battery life of four to five hours... Bluetooth... Energy Star qualified... there's no way I could have gotten all the features of my new MacBook from another retailer. After my abysmal experience with the T-6330U, I was ready to pay well for a new laptop, and pay I did... $1,299. But the hardware is so beautiful.

Don't get me wrong; the software is nice too, but I'm not a huge fan - at the moment - of the OS X look and feel. At some point in the near future there will be a Fedora-On-A-Mac experiment. However, I can say that I've never had a computer that was this easy and this painless to set up before. Did I mention that the keyboard is a joy to use and the machine is virtually silent?

Yes, yes, they have me. I bought a Mac today.

Here's how to run Fedora 10 on an aluminum MacBook, or how to run Ubuntu 9.04.

A New Era... (Or Laptop) [EDITED]

2008-11-22T19:59:00.004+01:00

Well, my old Dell finally bit the dust. HDD just couldn't keep up any more. So I bought a new one... and then I returned it. DO NOT BUY a Gateway T-6330U. They do not work. During normal usage, the T-6330U freezes every 5 to 8 minutes. Normal use. Freezes. Don't buy it.

Beauty in a Laptop

2008-11-21T00:58:00.005+01:00

After my recent (and sporadically continuing) laptop woes, I was reading through the Uncrate blog and found the Voodoo Envy133. Good grief this thing is pretty. While the technical specifications fail my wishlist expectations, it's still a tempting buy. The big killer, which also rules out the new Samsung X360 line, is the lack of an optical drive. I can live with only 2GB of ram and a 1.8 GHz processor (current laptop has 1.5GB and runs at 1.7 GHz); the 64GB SSD more than meets my requirements. But the look is fantastic. You should go check it out. Try building one with the "Sunset" color... amazing.

Please, people who make laptops, make them look like this.

Laptop -- Essential Gear

2008-11-19T02:59:00.010+01:00

I'm traveling away from home each week this month, and my laptop harddrive failed last night.

Horror.

Although all my data was backed up on an external (aside from the presentation I'd just started), it all became useless. Thankfully, it magically rebooted six hours later, but not until I had seriously considered a new laptop. Having done the consideration, I figured it was time to post 'em. So here's my wish laptop.

-> 13.3" display - I want small and portable, after owning a 17" behemoth for the past four years.
-> Long battery life; aforementioned behemoth gets less than two hours while watching video from Hulu, maybe four if I have the drive bay battery in.
-> Plenty (3 or 4GB) of ram.
-> 2.0 GHz processor, prefer faster.
-> Easy to use docking station.
-> SSD storage drive... I don't need space, but I'd like to not worry about moving parts in a HDD. 32 GB is plenty.
-> USB ports, 802.11a/b/g, and Bluetooth. Duh.
-> Linux (Fedora) compatible.
-> Oh, yeah, no weird colors... brushed aluminum preferred, black or gray will work.

I can get all this for somewhere in the neighborhood of $1500 at the moment. Too much.

Sunglasses -- Essential Gear

2008-11-17T04:46:00.008+01:00

I demand a lot from my sunglasses, just like all my other gear. AR 670-1 states that sunglasses must not be "trendy, or have lenses or frames with initials, designs, or other adornments." The lenses must also not be "extreme or trendy colors, which include but are not limited to, red, yellow, blue, purple, bright green, or orange," but rather "traditional gray, brown, or dark green shades." Since my sunglasses have to go with everything I wear, brown is out... can't wear those with a black suit or jacket. As an avid shooter and future second amendment participant, I want sunglasses to be rated at ANSI Z87.1-2003 high impact standards or better. Lastly, I want polarized lenses, but I also want to be able to swap the lenses out any time I want.

Oh, did I mention that I want them as light as possible (weightless would be ideal), comfortable, and in a style that my girlfriend will approve? Apparently the 80's are over... goodbye, aviators and shields.

And I'm on a budget. (Yes, this is an important detail.)

After considering multiple options, I chose the Oakley Fives 3.0. Few of the others were even offered with polarized lenses; those that were, like the Revision Sawfly, were mostly shield-style wraparounds. My second choice was likely the Revision Hellfly (not polarized, unfortunately), but a $35 difference in price favored the Oakleys, and their styling was already better. Uvex does offer a few polarized pairs, but they are wire frames - not as light as plastic ones. I did consider Wiley-X, DeWALT, and ESS options as well, but the Oakleys won out.

The reason I've posted all this is because I got my Fives a week ago, I lost them Saturday evening, and I miss them so much I've already ordered another pair. I ordered my first pair of Fives because my Bolle pair started falling apart. Do you know how hard those little screws are to get back in?! The Bolles were a gift, and a very nice one at that - polarized, even - but not ballistic and I was just too hard on them. I demand a lot from my sunglasses - just like all my other gear.

Backpack -- Essential Gear

2008-11-15T01:07:00.006+01:00

Guys, let's face it. Women got the better deal whenever it was decided that they could carry stuff around in bags during the day, and we couldn't. There are plenty of blog entries on the net defending the murse, but this isn't one of them. I am proposing something completely (sort of) different.

Backpacks.

Yes, that's what I carry. I do have an "Urban Plumber's Bag" from the now-defunct Bohemian Traders, and it gets a lot of compliments. It also draws a lot of attention as a murse. However, I recently bought a CamelBak Transformer. It's a great bag for a lot of reasons. First, I'm a big fan of hydration packs in general. Not having to take the backpack off and dig through it to find my Nalgene bottle when I'm on the go is a great deal. Plus, the Transformer is modular. The basic pack is just a camelback sleeve with shoulder straps, two small zipper pockets, and a single open flap pocket. However, it comes with two other pockets that clip on whenever I need them.

The smaller, front zipper pocket is just the right size to hold extras of all my pocket necessities -- chapstick, pocketknife, and mints, plus a lighter and some 550 cord. The larger zipper pocket is halfway hidden behind the open flap, and I think that it will serve well for concealed carry once I get my hands on a pistol. The two clip-on/clip-off extra storage pockets are great; my Bible and notebook both fit in the larger of the two, which has a small front section for pens/pencils/small items. The very front clip-on storage pocket holds a wide-mouth Nalgene bottle or notebook computer accessories.

This brings me to the one failing of the Transformer: there's no pocket large enough for a computer. However, the open flap is plenty large enough to hold my current behemoth, a 17-incher, and should be perfect for carrying around whatever my next buy turns out to be (nothing larger than 13.3", surely). With the addition of any one of the laptop sleeves available, my backpack should be ready to go -- and no more man-purse.

Notebook -- Essential Gear

2008-11-13T02:43:00.004+01:00

"I write down everything I want to remember. That way, instead of spending a lot of time trying to remember what it is I wrote down, I spend the time looking for the paper I wrote it down on." --Beryl Pfizer

One essential piece of gear for anyone who needs to remember anything is a notebook. I have one with me, either hand carried or in my gear bag, ninety percent of the time. Bible study and sermon notes, shopping lists, to-do lists, and things to remember are all in the same place; as long as the notebook is long enough, everything current is there.

As far as the notebook itself goes, anything that fits in my pocket is too small for me; I used a leather "padfolio" for many years, but that's just a little too much. Right now I'm using a swag notebook from MILCOM 2006; it's a spiral with cardboard front and back covers. Normally I'd shy away from spirals, but the binding wire is stiff enough that it's kept its shape despite plenty of abuse. I usually keep a pen inside the wire for quick jotting. Waiting in the wings for the day I fill this notebook are two others. The first is a laser-etched Moleskine from Modofly. I'm excited about this one; lots of people rave about their Moleskines. It'll be able to carry a pen, even though it's not a spiral, and there are plenty of mods out there. The second notebook waiting in the wings is an Army issue "greenbook" (I can't seem to find one online, but it's roughly similar to this, but smaller - about the size of a Moleskine). It's a hardback notebook with lined pages; the cover is green canvas, which is great for modding a pen holder and other options in.

I think the optimum size for a notebook is about 8.5x5.5 inches (fold a sheet of letter size paper in half), with about 200 pages. That size fits in most bags and is easy to handle, but still holds plenty to make it worthwhile. The MILCOM spiral I'm using right now is about 10x7 inches, and it's a little bigger than I'd like. Aside from size, I need a place to carry a pen, and I'd really like to see waterproof paper... like Rite-In-The-Rain's products. Six or eight months from now, I may try their Tactical Field Book; it's no Moleskine but the price isn't either.

Pistol

2008-11-12T05:15:00.003+01:00

Here's what I want. A good quality weapon that I can use to maintain proficiency shooting on a target range once a month or so, with ammunition in a caliber useful for personal defense that also won't break the bank on those monthly range outings.

My pick: the Springfield Armory XD 9832HCSP06. A .40 S&W caliber pistol, small enough for concealed carry, but the right size (with a magazine extension) to practice shooting as if it were a Beretta 92. Yes, I realize that there are plenty of other weapons on the market which meet those conditions, but having fired the XD .40 and .45 service models, I really like the XD. It fits my hand, feels like a natural extension of my arm, and fires as smoothly as anything else I've used. The 9832HCSP06 also has Trijicon Night Sights built in from the start, always a good thing.