Typewriter

This is a chapter from my fifth book called Freedom

It is 410pm on an ordinary Tuesday afternoon. I have done enough research and made enough notes that I could write my fifth chapter in this book. The idea for this chapter came when scrolling through facebook and stumbling upon a post with a typewriter. I want to get a typewriter. Seriously. I want to get a typewriter. If you have a writer in your life, a typewriter would make the perfect gift. It would also be a great story to tell. Next thing you know, your writer friend is sending typewritten letters to friends around the world. I read that some young people are buying old typewriters as a creative escape from the distractions of computers and the internet. And just like that I have found a new interest. I even joined an "Antique Typewriter Collectors" group on facebook. Guess who called Jen Mar Machines in Trinidad to find out if they still sell typewriters? It was me and sadly they do not. The world of typewriters is fascinating. I even learnt that Taylor Swift sang about the typewriter in her new song. There are even typewriter festivals.

It is amazing the world we can encounter and the things we can learn if we just explore. That is why I am enjoying writing this book. In a modern world a typewriter must be a freeing experience. Tom Robbins said, "At the typewriter you find out who you are." My mom had a typewriter. She went to Johnson's Commercial and then Stenotype College. She passed Advanced typing, Shorthand and English. When I was younger my mom borrowed a typewriter. That is my only memory of playing with a typewriter. I am sure I was fascinated by it. Luckily for her and whomever she borrowed it from, I did not take it apart to discover its inner workings. I was that kind of child. In Saint Mary's College during my time there they did the transcripts and testimonials using typewriters. I want to feel like the writers of the past. I want to be transported to a bygone era. I want to feel of a simpler time. The freedom to reminisce. The freedom to be sentimental. The freedom to appreciate the olden days. I want to hear the clickety clackety clack of the typewriter. I want to feel the toughness of the keys. The slowness of each laborious press. The carefulness of not wanting to make a mistake. Maybe then I would have a better appreciation for the convenience of the smartphone.

I read that the first typewriter was invented in 1808 by Italian Pellegrino Turri to help his blind friend write letters. The brands of typewriters that my mom remembers from her days are Royal, Remington and Adler. She says Adler was the nice one. The keys were soft. I went on Amazon to price a typewriter. I found one described as a vintage and antique Maplefield. The cost is 200 US dollars. The seller describes this typewriter as functional nostalgia - Combining an old-world charm with modern functionality, our vintage typewriter offers a stylish alternative to digital writing tools, making it ideal for creative minds, journaling, and collectors alike. Seems like there is a day for everything. There is even a National Typewriter Day. There are artists who use the typewriter to create art.

My newly found interest in typewriters meant I was searching Google for typewriter facts. "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" is an English-language pangram – a sentence that contains all the letters of the alphabet. These are used to test typewriters. There are different colors of typewriter inks. There are 43 keys on a typewriter. Mark Twain purchased a Remington and became the first author to submit a typewritten book manuscript (according to him). Most early typewriters had a bell to warn typists that they were nearing the end of the paper. There is a Boston Typewriter Orchestra who make musical contributions with, you guessed it, typewriters. The versatility of the typewriter is wowing me. Early typewriters did not have a one key. You had to type a lowercase l. I saw an old ad online that went like, "Enjoy new Typing Freedom with the Underwood Rhythm Touch". What may seem bothersome by today's standards was freedom back in the day.