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Chronodex July - December 2013 Weekly Diary Free Download Released

Chronodex friends here you go!  The July to December 2013 version is released, feel free to download and plan ahead your visual scheduling for the rest of the year.

Here are some of the places you can interact with other Chronodex users:

1. Chronodex
2. Chronodex Facebook Page
3. Chronodex Flickr Group
4. The Fountain Pen Network thread about Chronodex
5. Lifehacker's cover of Chronodex

Yes Chronodex is kind of weird, it looks a bit too complicated, it is not like any other traditional scheduling tools, but it is inspirational and free style.  I made it so as to break the rules of scheduling, most diaries/schedule books have rigid grids and timeline which limit the available space for you to write notes related to your schedule, you can use any space on the paper to link your time specific entries thus free from the traditional constraints.

Look at our beautiful cross harbour tunnel, it is a 'grid', it is 'rigid' but it works in mass transportation because it provides a system and create order.  It is dull too, especially in times of traffic jam and rainy days.  What you have to dissect is that there is a difference between mass order and personal creativity.  Chronodex is for your personal creativity in what seems to be a rigid time system, it is for you to exploit/explore the space nobody ever made constraints of.

I've also made Chronodex a free download to share in 2011 when my father was too old and too sick lying on bed struggling, questioning himself feeling useless.  We had no way to help, prayers from all of you mysteriously helped somehow IMHO, but the thing is, I wanted to prove that everything is connected, he was not and never useless, if people appreciate Chronodex, it was because of him I existed and being educated by him into a person with inquisitive mind.  He should be proud of himself, even though there was no way I could convey this to him during his deterioriation.  Today on the Star Ferry lower deck, I saw a grandfather holding his grandson's T-shirt looking over the harbour an European tall ship cruising by, the light tug, the togetherness and a sense of exploration made me sob inside, recalling my own exploration with Dad and his brief time with my own kid.

Tonight, Mom told me her encounter with Dad on his 140th day of passing which happens to be my little brother's birthday.  A cicada was standing weakly on the floor where Dad used to stay often, she picked it up with both hands and prayed the Great Compassion Mantra (大悲咒), bringing it to the window seam and left it there.  Minutes later, it flew away energetically full of life.  The scene reminds us of the Chao Shao-an (趙少昂)'s painting which my Dad loved so much and had been on our living room wall for the longest time, AND it is Lychee season now.  Can you see all the connections and emotions?

The stuffs we hold dear of, always leave impressions for people close and around us, these things are proves of our existence painted over with emotions and mysterious connections.

So this coming week, like the last, I will be out of my home town heading Shanghai for a week of intensive preparation of a new store launch.  Love the travel, hate the separation, enjoying everything in between.

Meanwhile, Traveler's Notebook fans in Hong Kong had a great time in the Star Ferry ride, after-party and small meet-ups.  I hope to do it more often, feel free to drop by our Facebook group.  Now, follow me for a 15 seconds tranquil journey across the lovely Victoria Harbour.

 

What's in the 1st Official TRAVELER'S notebook Hong Kong Gathering 2013

We spent 8 months in preparation to launch the Star Edition TRAVELER's notebook, it was unbelievable how the project sucked away my time from normal work, but it was super rewarding.  Tomorrow will be the day when we can get on the "Shinning Star" ferry to enjoy a sunny day of the 1st Official TRAVELER'S notebook Hong Kong Gathering!

Nearly a 100 fans, friends and staff will go onboard.  Participants will receive a pack of Star Edition cookie made freshly by Aunt Stella (all natural ingredients mixed in small bowl before baking) and a set of event only stickers kindly created by Designphil.  Our Korean TN friend won't be able to come but he made an interesting pin/badge for each of the participants too!

There will be 3 corners on the ferry in addition to the beautiful open deck on two sides where TN friends can enjoy a great harour view.  Customization corner will feature loads of scrap materials, masking tapes, event only rubber stamps and beads.  I will bring along my Kingsley leather hot stamp machine for an event only emboss for participants too.  Rubber stamp crafting corner will have demonstration of how to use a typical eraser and carving knife to make your own rubber stamp.  Presentation corner will feature slides of old Hong Kong and a collector will share the stories he found from these old Star Ferry postcards and tickets.

(photo credit: mimuthings workshop)

We've also made a huge event poster at the lower deck where TN friends can take photo in front of the ferry wheel to play coxwain.

Who will be there in this historic event?  THE Designphil TRAVELER'S notebook project owner Iijima san and designer Hashimoto san, brining along 7 Japanese TN fans flying HK just to be on the ferry.  Alan Cheung the crazy collector who can talk hours and hours of old Hong Kong and Star Ferry.  Shizue Takehara san who is an art exhibition organizer and rubber stamp fanatic, she helped to arrange Hong Kong artist and rubber stamp carving teacher Fion Wong onboard to give TN fans a glimpse of how easy it is to bring creativity into your TN life.

In addition to Japanese TN fans, we will have two French magazine editors from Pinholet, also fans of TN, coming onboard looking at the content of my bag and reporting this event.  They are here in Hong Kong to gather materials for their magazine issue specifically about Hong Kong sub-culture, featuring Michael Wolf pictures, HK Honey, Shanghai Street Studios, So Soap, Kacey Wong's work and Tom Grundy's explorations (remember his attempt of citizen's arrest on Tony Blair in Hong Kong).

Stationery freaks in Asia have probably noticed a new dream store in Taiwan called TOOLS to LIVEBY (禮拜文房具) by now.  Guess what, founder and owner Karen Yang has flown to HK just for this too!  To my delight my dear TN friend "Fishball" is also flying here to join us.  Finally, digital scrapbooking and installation artist Lie Fhung from Indonesia whom happens to be the 008 TRAVELER'S notebook Professional User couldn't resist the temptation to come as well.

Can you imagine?  We are all connected through TN.  I wish my UK friend Colin Edwards could come, we are connected through TN and my blog and he used to travel to Hong Kong in his youth.  Now do I sound like this is my Tuesday-with-Morris type of funeral which everybody I hold dear of can attend?  It does.

Lastly, before I start to pack my bag for the ferry ride, I would like to express my dismay of being unable to write on Scription as much as I would like to.  My job has the most rewarding things one could get from a job ever, but at the same time as an employee in business (oh this blog is personal BTW), the under manpower and workload is killing the whole team and drained my energy.  Like this Conklin fountain pen, the beauty and aura it emanates can't be measured by numbers, frequencies, profit or a paycheck, you will never pick this pen up if that's all you look for, you will not put this in your store if that's all you look for.  I fall for beauty and aura.

Hiring Stationery Assistant Buyer x2 + Merchandiser

Recent lack of post = crazy projects going on + lack of manpowers.

A recent batch of 65 resumes I received, none of them mentioned a single word about "stationery" or why they'd like to join us, they were probably blasting their resumes everywhere.  Is it that hard to find a bunch of good candidates?  Yes it is.  We are two Assistant Buyers and one Merchandiser short in Stationery department (a Singapore friend said this sounds much better: "We are short of two asisstant buyers and one merchandiser in stationary department", a British friend said "We would probably say something like this: We have vacancies in our stationery department for two assistant buyers and a merchandiser."), please if you happen to know anybody willing to give it a try, please forward to them.

BTW, is there a "Fountain Pen Cleaning Day" and "Camera Cleaning Day" at all?  I'm working on the next half of the year Chronodex.

Somehow I miss Hardford where I made a brief stop a few years ago because of KOLO.  In 1868, Mark Twain wrote before he died, "Of all the beautiful towns it has been my fortune to see this is the chief."