He Redesigned the Pen

From their website:

 The story of the PenAgain™ stretches over 15 years in the making. The original design and idea surfaced in 1987 while the creator was still a young teenager.

One day Colin Roche found himself stuck in “Saturday School,” a long afternoon of study at the high school campus as punishment for showing up late to class just one too many times. Dread turned to boredom and boredom turned to daydreaming. And then he was given a short break for air…

The school parking lot was hosting a local flea market that day. Colin perused the goods on display for something to occupy his mind while sitting in Saturday School. He picked up a flexible toy pen. This pen would go from a silly looking robot to a long square shaped pen.

Back in the classroom, Colin fiddled with the toy and twisted the shape into a more comfortable way to write. Then, BAM! The idea hit him. Colin had his first vision of the new pen.

He ran home after he was released and pulled out his father’s soldering iron to make some adjustments. After spending the evening in the garage ruining his father’s tools, Colin emerged with the first working prototype of the “PenAgain™”.

Another afternoon, more than 10 years later, a phone call from a friend woke Colin from his slumber. Colin told his friend, “I just had a dream about the pen, again”. They both sat stunned in silence and realized the perfect name for the product had just passed between them.

Colin began pushing once again to make his dream come true. The PenAgain™ would become a reality.

Colin then teamed up with a former business partner from college, a star engineer for a high tech company in the Bay Area. The two began sketching solutions, and then they formed the Pacific Writing Instruments, Inc. .

With help from several interested partners, the Pacific Writing Instruments, Inc. developed the PenAgain™ and put it into production. Now the PenAgain™ is available to you. Though the journey has been a long one, we think you’ll find it well worth the wait.

WHY USE THE PenAgain™?
When you first use the PenAgain™, you’ll immediately notice how different it feels from other pens. This is a natural feeling because your hand is trying to unlearn a lifetime of poor writing habits. It’s not your fault.

Until now, pens have typically been designed with only two things in mind: money and manufacturability. But the PenAgain’s primary focus is comfort.

The human hand dictates the design. Even though it may feel strange, try to resist the urge to grip the pen with your fingers. Just let your hand relax, and let the weight of your hand hold the pen in place. You’ll feel tension of writing melt away.

The maker of PenAgain recently signed a deal to feature the pen in Wal-Mart stores.

(UPDATE:  I recently got my very own PenAgain.  In georgeous red.  At Wal-Mart.  It’s every bit as good as Colin promises.  And no, he didn’t pay me to say this.)

From Lemons, She Made LemonAid Crutches

 From her site, www.lemonaidcrutches.com, Laurie Johnson writes:

As with many innovative ideas, LemonAid Crutches™ came into existence through personal need. In August of 2002, I was in a small plane crash, which took the lives of my husband and young son. Although I survived, I was left with a severely broken leg (femur) and began a long journey of surgeries, disappointments and crutches.

Still on crutches a year after the crash, I needed some cheering up. My sister and I decided it was time to do something with my “ugly” crutches. We had them professionally painted and covered the pads with gorgeous designer fabrics, and voila! they made me smile.

During my second year on crutches, I perfected the designer crutch. Becoming my own guinea pig, I played with different colors, painting processes and fabric choices. LemonAid Crutches™ was born while I crutched around town and the idea instantly became a hit.

Burning Fat Turned This Youngster into a Weight Loss Teacher

Charles D’Angelo of Start to Lose:

“When I was 17 years old, I weighed a whopping 356 pounds, and I was miserable. My self-esteem was at an all-time low, I hated getting out of bed each day. I felt out of place, I felt awkward. I knew I had to make some changes in my life. Drastic changes. In just 15 months, I lost 120 pounds. No, that is not a typo. By eating sensibly, exercising, and letting nothing stand in my way, I now feel great, and I am loving life … can’t you tell?

“According to the National Institute of Health, more and more children today suffer from obesity and its related diseases. I could have easily continued to be one of those children. Today, I enjoy speaking to young people to share my inspirational story about how I lost weight.

(Charles being interviewed by Fox 2 News)

“It is my hope that more children, like me, will realize that a healthy lifestyle can make a world of difference and change their world. When I was 17, I made a decision that probably saved my life. It wasn’t an easy road, but I had the help of many close friends who helped me achieve my goal. Today, I am in college, I look slim and trim, and I have a new outlook on life. I did it … so can you!”