Here are the kinds of students.
There is the kind of student who brings pencils. And not only brings pencils, but as a tween is responsible enough to hang onto a pencil for more than part of one class. In fact, this type of student may even require an ERASER TOPPER because the original eraser ran out. This is how long some students kept pencils, that they were accessorizing them with little doodads like eraser hats and triangular grips or even those little foam leg warmer things that provided some sort of cushion.
Then there were students who were average. Pencils come and go. But they always had some sort of writing tool. It was never an issue.
Then there was Pete.
Pete was like a Casanova of pencils. Love them and leave them. The comparison falls apart when you realize that by “leave” I mean that pencils were left on the floor of a chemistry classroom. And that by “love” I mean they were used poorly and to no one’s satisfaction.
It was mystifying to me that someone might actually use a pencil from start to finish. That this was even possible. Sure, I’d used pencil stubs. Because that’s what was loaned to me. Why would you loan me a full pencil? Please, loan me your worst. I understand. I’m desperate. I’d taken tests in golf pencil. Is that a #2? How the hell should I know. This was from the PuttPutt.
Um, thanks to Anant who I must have bummed 50 pencils from over a year or so. And really, the quality of those pencils did not start to decline until WAY past the point that it was appropriate to give me shitty pencils.