Greg

Thank you for your concern.  I have been [and continue to be] in Australia.
Proprietary brands sometimes don't make the trip across the Pacific, or are
released under a different name.  The permanent markers in the pen jar on my
desk are...[pause for thinking music while I rummage]...German, Japanese,
Japanese, European, Japanese.  Sorry, US trade dominance of my life doesn't
extend to permanent markers just yet.

But enough of this guff, I agree that relying on writing with ink on bags is
highly risky.  Collections I have looked at that have had any amount of
handling show lots of abrasions.  The ease of writing with a marker on a bag
also seems, to me at least, to discourage good penmanship, even for people
whose writing is otherwise acceptable for labels.  A preferred option here
is the small aluminium foil plant tags that can be scribed with a pen.  The
scribing remains legible long after any ink colour goes.  I have also used
pre-printed tyvek tags.  The printing is designed for plant nursery use and
is ephemeral and rapidly fades but information written with a fine permanent
marker seems to survive as well and the base is less prone to abrasion,
mould, bugs etc than even good qaulity archival paper.

Denis
----- Original Message -----
From: "Greg Johnson" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Sunday, September 14, 2003 7:25 PM
Subject: Re: Sharpies and bags


> I'm sorry to not reply off-list, but my computer doesn't show your email
> address. You have never heard of Sharpies? Were have you been? I used them
> years before entering the field of archaeology, and it seemed that
everyone
> I knew was familiar with them.
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Denis Gojak" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Saturday, September 13, 2003 7:43 PM
> Subject: Re: Sharpies and bags
>
>
> > 'We all use Sharpies and 4-mil plastic bags, I'm sure..'
> >
> > Sharpies?
> >
> > Please explain [and another reminder that those of us who use acronyms
> > should remember they don't travel well and some explanation helps others
> > follow the topic].
> >
> > Cheers
> >
> > Denis
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "Ned Heite" <[log in to unmask]>
> > To: <[log in to unmask]>
> > Sent: Sunday, September 14, 2003 12:33 AM
> > Subject: Sharpies and bags
> >
> >
> > > We all use Sharpies and 4-mil plastic bags, I'm sure. Caveat emptor
> > > on these items, however.
> > >
> > > There are some Chinese Sharpie ripoffs on the market that look
> > > stunningly like the genuine Sanford products. I bought a bunch of
> > > them for a quarter apiece, and discovered the difference when I got
> > > home. I called Sanford's customer service, and they asked me to
> > > return the fakes; they will replace them with the genuine article.
> > > These fake Sharpies probably don't have the permanence that we have
> > > come to expect for the real thing, so it is inadvisable to use them
> > > for permanent marking.
> > >
> > > If you got ripped off by these items, call Sanford.
> > >
> > > I bought a shipment of 4-mil plastic bags from Quill (best price and
> > > great service) but discovered that they would not close. I called
> > > Quill, and they were most cooperative. They sent a complete
> > > replacement order.  So if you've just bought 4-mill bags, check them
> > > out; there are some real dogs on the market.
> > >
> > > Don't you just love this Pacific Rim business?
> > >
> > >
> > > --
> > > +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> > >
> > > Ned Heite and Baby the Land Rover
> > > [log in to unmask]
> > > Heite Consulting, archaeologists and historians
> > >
> > > +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> > >
> >
>
>