In my freshman year of high school, Typing I was a required class, though I would have taken it regardless. Finished out the semester at 70 wpm. On something similar to this:
One had to hit those keys with a serious amount of force to get the job done, yet not too close together, lest the type bars jam. While I enjoyed typing, my fingers often got stuck between the keys, or were too short to reach all rows easily and speedily. In this class, the fellows were in their element, and here, definitely earned higher grades for speed and accuracy than their smaller handed classmate!
Later, in an office job, I used an upgraded version, that looked similar to this:
A daisy wheel replaced the type bars. It was fun to rattle off a whole paragraph at top speed, then turn to another project or visitor, and let the typewriter - word processor, as they were called by then - buzz away seemingly on its own. And the saving grace of this one? Correction tape. That, coupled with the memory, made correcting mistakes so much more timely than the days when one mistake doomed a typist to redoing an entire page.
I had my own personal typewriter when I married the Trucker. Seldom used it, and without regular practice, the wpm coming from my fingers lessened considerably. It became a plaything for the children, and eventually was sent to ReUzit in the interest of saving closet space in the small house our home lived in.
But several years ago, computer and associated printer notwithstanding, I thought a typewriter would be nice to have available again. Seemed faster and easier than learning how to set up the computer and printer for certain functions, especially for just what needed done at home.
A friend who worked at a local ReUzit connected me with this serviceable Smith Corona. Just right for those few times when a typewriter came in handy. Extra ribbons were included, and best of all, a memory, and correction tape!
While doing a recent filing system upgrade, however, the plastic knob on the carriage broke. Sigh. The job could still be finished by using the "return" key, but was tedious.
The Trucker noticed when he returned home. He said he would think about it. The likelihood of this small difficulty being shuffled to the back of his mind and never reappearing was high, or so I thought. But the current project was finished, and my Smith Corona retired to the office closet.
Fast forward through the next west coast run, and the Trucker was home again. He visited our local a-little-bit-of-everything store, and returned home with some options, unbeknownst to his erstwhile Passenger.
But none of these were quite right, apparently. Then, while I was out on some errands today, he checked his collection of accessories in the garage/shop. Upon my return, the Smith Corona was on the table, a new knob in place, and ready for service.
Fits perfectly. Does the job just right. Who woulda thunk? And what a fun memory will surface every time a typewriter is needed in the future! This man continues to surprise me. On second thought, why should I be surprised? Never underestimate the Trucker!
