The best pen I've ever used, even better than a simple trusty Bic Clic Stic, is a Skilcraft medium black rubberized retractable ballpoint pen.  It's simple and cheap, but writes like a BMW drives (it took me a while to come up with a praise-filled statement for a pen).  Skilcraft makes all kinds of office products, from pens and paper to calendars and clocks.  The most interesting thing about the company is that their products are made by the National Industries for the Blind.  NIB is a non-profit organization that provides jobs for blind people.  These people produce products and offer services that are largely geared towards use by the federal government.  The Javits-Wagner-O'Day (JWOD) Act of 1971 mandated that "all Federal agencies purchase specified supplies and services from nonprofit agencies employing blind persons or others with severe disabilities".  So Post Offices, the president, and military bases all use Skilcraft products.  Weird, huh? #products