Pencils are sorta has-beens. I am not sure whether they are used in the early primary grades or not. I have some here at home, but they are not sharpened (I do have a sharpener). I believe that 'mechanical' pencils are fine for those who need to use them. I use ink when completing crosswords - it's a positive mental attitude with that!

I question the cited stat, but I don't think the world's limited supply of essential resources will be exhausted because of less than 100% pencil use. If the companies that make them were to stop and shift to other products, I think few would notice them missing.

'Twas just a rough guess - but would you prefer 97%? Or 85%? Gotta be over 75%!

Actually, much of the graphite goes into the pot of the pencil sharpener - only a small portion goes on to the paper.

I like to be able to erase my mistakes.

And where can I find a refill for ball point pen?

o j

LOL joyful, one phrase that pops into my head with increasing frequency is "Future generations just ain't gonna thank us for that."

My grandson is in fourth grade and has a box of pencils he uses at school.

On the supply list #2 pencil with sharpener required.

What brand does he like? Ticonderoga.

Yes, kids in the primary grades still use pencils. Unfortunately, they are not made as well as they used to be and are eaten up by the sharpener quickly.

There are quality pencils out there, but most people won't pay $2.45 per pencil unless they enjoy writing letters or a lot of notes.

Hemingway used pencils to write novels.

Yeah, but look, it was Hemingway -- drunken bully and general nut case. (No wonder, given his childhood.)

I use pencils every day to write down notes, lists, reminders. I like a nice sharp point too. There are a lot of bad pencils out there which don't sharpen well. You can waste a lot with that first sharpening in an electric machine. I think Ticonderoga is one of the better ones.

Of course students still use pencils in school!

I still like to send my mistakes to the "disappearing" pile.

o j

83.75 percent of "statistics" cited on the internet are either wholly fictitious, imaginary, BS, or some combination of all three.

Didn't get mine from the enternet, E J F.

(They might qualify as "BS").

And ... are you sure about the "... .75 " of that percentage quote ... if we might be wiling to grant you the "83."?

o j

My intentional and entirely made-up percentage was intended to be gently sarcastic in response to your similarly made-up percentage.

Depends on the pen you use but any office supply store or discount department store carries refills for pens. They're generally as expensive as buying cheap pens but they're available.