Back
in
the
Mad
Men
days,
the
only
thing
that
might
interrupt
the
corporate
blandness
of
a
workspace
might
be
a
photo
of
your
family
or
maybe
a
coffee
cup
with
a
funny
saying.
But
nowadays,
especially
if
we’re
working
at
home,
we
can
have
some
pretty
interesting,
weird,
or
just
plain
nice-looking
items
on
our
desks.
We
asked
the
folks
here
at
The
Verge
what
they
have
on
their
desks
or
in
their
offices
that
they
keep
just
for
the
hell
of
it
—
because
they
like
it,
because
it
means
something
special,
or
just
because.
Here
are
some
of
the
answers
we
got.
A
looping
gif
of
our
late
cat
Pouncey
on
my
keyboard’s
LCD
Antonio
G.
Di
Benedetto,
commerce
/
deals
writer
The
LCD
on
the
keyboard
can
show
data
—
or
lovely
GIFs.GIF:
Antonio
G.
Di
Benedetto
/
The
Verge
One
year
ago,
my
wife
and
I
were
forced
to
say
goodbye
to
one
of
our
two
beloved
cats,
Pouncey.
She
was
a
caring
companion
of
over
11
years
that
my
wife
adopted
as
a
kitten
shortly
before
we
started
dating,
making
her
a
fixture
in
our
relationship.
That
made
it
all
the
more
traumatic
when
our
farewell,
due
to
her
deteriorating
health,
was
more
sudden
than
expected.
But
in
addition
to
all
the
photos
and
videos
we
have
to
remind
us
of
our
bestest
girl
(apologies
to
our
eight-month-old
daughter),
I’m
given
a
heart-warming
reminder
of
Pouncey
every
time
I
sit
down
at
my
desk.
When
I
got
my
Meletrix
Zoom75
mechanical
keyboard
from
a
long-awaited
group
buy
preorder
last
year,
I
opted
for
the
built-in
LCD
add-on
because
—
well,
why
not?
And,
maybe
unsurprisingly,
once
I
built
my
board
with
that
little
screen
inside
it,
I
wondered,
“Okay,
what
do
I
do
with
this
thing?”
So,
I
left
it
displaying
something
boring
like
battery
level.
After
Pouncey’s
passing,
I
reconsidered
the
looping
GIF
feature
and
decided
to
put
a
cute
clip
of
our
girl
on
there.
The
GIF
was
just
a
burst
of
images
from
a
random
day,
and
if
you
look
closely,
you
can
see
her
eyes
adorably
widen
once
she
notices
me
taking
her
picture.
We
now
refer
to
it
as
The
Pouncey
Keyboard,
and
while
it’s
bittersweet
to
see
her
nuzzling
on
my
desk
but
unable
to
feel
her
soft
fur
or
hear
her
gentle
purrs,
I
love
seeing
“our
Pouncey-girl”
every
day.
The
Legend
of
Zelda
Heart
Container
Icon
Light
Sean
Hollister,
senior
editor
The
Legend
of
Zelda
heart
container
is
sitting
on
the
speaker.Photo:
Sean
Hollister
/
The
Verge
Whenever
I’m
feeling
a
little
worn
out,
I’ve
got
an
extra
life
sitting
on
my
desk.
My
family
bought
me
this
Legend
of
Zelda
heart
container
one
year
ago,
so
it
encapsulates
their
love,
too!
(Less
significant
if
you
buy
it
for
yourself,
so
I’d
recommend
gifting
it
instead.)
It
glows
when
you
press
the
front
button,
and
that’s
it.
Two
AA
batteries
won’t
power
it
for
months
on
end,
so
turn
it
off
when
you’re
feeling
cheerful
again!
You
can
also
import
a
Tears
of
the
Kingdom
version
based
on
the
newer
game.
Command
spring
wall
clips
Allison
Johnson,
reviewer
These
clips
let
you
exhibit
family
art
without
damaging
the
walls.Photo:
Allison
Johnson
/
The
Verge
I
get
cold
feet
about
putting
nails
in
the
wall
in
my
office
(which,
incidentally,
is
also
my
bedroom).
So,
I
end
up
with
a
pile
of
little
things
I
kind
of
want
to
put
on
the
wall
but
can’t
commit
to,
like
something
my
kid
drew
or
the
mess
of
tech
event
badges
in
my
desk
drawer.
But
recently,
I’ve
been
on
a
command
strip
kick,
putting
up
little
hooks
and
clips
around
the
house,
and
I
started
using
them
to
decorate
the
wall
behind
my
desk.
The
clothespin-type
clips
are
perfect;
I
can
swap
in
a
new
piece
of
cute
kid
artwork
whenever
I
want,
and
I
don’t
have
to
commit
to
their
placement.
That’ll
come
in
handy
if
I
want
to
rearrange
my
office
—
er,
bedroom
—
and
I’ve
never
had
a
problem
taking
them
off
the
wall
damage-free.
TWSBI
Eco
fountain
pen
Adi
Robertson,
senior
tech
&
policy
editor
This
fountain
pen
is
attractive,
comfortable,
and
reasonably
priced.Photo:
Adi
Robertson
/
The
Verge
I
keep
a
paper
planner
and
notepad(s)
for
tracking
stories
and
meetings,
and
the
TWSBI
Eco
(in
creme
rose
gold
with
burgundy
Noodler’s
ink)
is
my
favorite
writing
implement
for
all
of
them.
It’s
a
reasonably
priced
fountain
pen
that’s
attractive,
not
hard
to
fill,
and
feels
good
to
fidget
with.
Link
amiibo
for
The
Legend
of
Zelda:
Tears
of
the
Kingdom
The
Link
amiibo
is
not
only
magical,
but
inspiring.Photo:
Jay
Peters
/
The
Verge
I’m
not
really
one
for
desk
trinkets,
but
I
love
this
Link
amiibo
for
The
Legend
of
Zelda:
Tears
of
the
Kingdom.
I
get
inspired
by
the
way
Link
seems
to
be
using
his
Ultrahand
powers
to
craft
a
better
world
around
him.
If
he
can
do
it,
maybe
I
can,
too
—
though
I
might
have
to
make
things
happen
without
a
magical
arm.
Kirby
pencil
case
Kylie
Robison,
senior
AI
reporter
My
tiny
Moleskine
notebook
keeps
track
of
my
whole
life
—
I
go
through
about
two
a
year.
That’s
where
I
keep
my
weekly
and
monthly
calendars,
along
with
any
source
/
general
meeting
notes.
I
use
micron
pens
because
they’re
simply
the
best,
and
I
keep
them
in
a
Kirby
pencil
case
that
I’ve
even
shown
off
in
Verge
videos
(see
above).
I
just
recently
redid
my
entire
home
office,
and
part
of
that
was
lots
of
decor,
my
favorite
being
an
LED
Majora’s
Mask.
Dorothy
Parker
finger
puppet
Barbara
Krasnoff,
reviews
editor
Dorothy
Parker
finger
pupperPhoto
by
Amelia
Holowaty
Krales
/
The
Verge
I
love
Dorothy
Parker,
both
for
her
writing
and
for
her
acrid
personality.
I
once
even
bought
a
bottle
of
gin
because
it
was
named
after
her
(and,
to
tell
you
the
truth,
it
wasn’t
half
bad).
So,
when
I
spotted
her
among
a
plethora
of
famous
people
finger
puppets
at
a
book
fair
a
few
years
ago,
I
simply
had
to
buy
it.
The
Parker
puppet
has
a
small
magnet
on
the
back
of
its
head,
so
it
can
easily
hang
on
any
metal
surface.
In
fact,
I
brought
it
with
me
when
I
started
working
at
The
Verge,
and
when
I
accidentally
left
it
in
the
office
during
lockdown
in
2020,
I
was
bereft.
Luckily,
Dorothy
hung
in
there
throughout
the
pandemic,
and
she’s
now
back
in
my
home
office,
grinning
sardonically
at
me.
Cute
desk
note
holder
Victoria
Song,
senior
reviewer
This
cat-shaped
desk
holder
can
hold
notes
that
are
motivational
or
just
plain
fun.Photo:
Victoria
Song
/
The
Verge
A
while
back,
a
friend
gave
me
this
adorable
cat-shaped
desk
note
holder
as
a
souvenir
from
Beijing.
At
first,
I
didn’t
know
what
to
do
with
it.
Then,
I
started
putting
motivational
notes
into
it,
and
surprisingly,
that
worked.
After
a
while,
I
started
printing
or
writing
out
the
occasional
meme.
(Why,
yes,
I
did
write
the
entirety
of
Vice
President
Kamala
Harris’
coconut
tree
speech
on
a
Post-It
one
week.)
When
I’m
really
in
need
of
strength,
I
stick
on
a
photocard
of
my
favorite
K-pop
singer.
This
only
really
holds
one
note
at
a
time,
which
helps
keep
me
creative
week-to-week.
Most
importantly,
it
reminds
me
to
take
breaks
and
laugh
at
myself
whenever
I
get
too
self-serious.
I
don’t
know
where
to
get
this
exact
desk
note
holder,
but
you
can
find
a
bunch
of
fun
ones
on
Amazon
and
Etsy.
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