Good news - - found 1/2 price "Black Friday" deal on a Parker stainless steel ballpoint pen at Rymans (on-line)
Bad news - - had to go to town by bus (it takes an hour)
Good news - - bus was actually on time for once
Good news - - had a curry beef at a nearby restaurant. Delicious, as the chef knows me, and spices it up a bit.
Good news - - they had the pen I wanted. The one I wanted was on a secure shelf, so the assistant got me another one from under the counter
Good news - - bus to come home was already at bus stop
Bad news - - at home, discovered the pen was a gel pen, not a ballpoint
Good news - - shop said they would change it
Bad news - - this would entail another 2 hour bus journey tomorrow
Good news - - discovered the refill was compatible with ballpoint refills, and I already had a spare Parker refill. So decided to use the gel pen until it ran out, then put in my spare ballpoint refill
Bad news - - tried the gel pen, it would not work
Good news - - discovered a tiny, transparent cap on the end of the nib, removed this, it then worked
Good news - - OH said she would give it to me for Christmas if I didn't use it in the meantime