PS: Thanks to Bill M for sending me a replacement knob for my Royal!
PPS: This is what a Noiseless (not Remington/Underwood Noiseless) Portable looks like, for those who aren't familiar with it. Mine isn't working terribly well, unfortunately.
I'm glad the Royal got some well-deserved adoration. I flew to Maine & back a few weeks ago with my Groma Kolibri and it didn't get even a raised eyebrow from the screeners at La Guardia or Portland. Nor did it didn't get any props at the place I was staying, as they had a sweet L.C. Smith machine that Edna St. Vincent Millay had supposedly used -- https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-A4gR92qXACQ/S-4TwKt_ZQI/AAAAAAAAdoM/u-uDXRo9fBI/s720/PICT0044.JPG -- in the lobby. The Groma's awfully cute, but I guess it doesn't quite have what it takes to be featured in the centerfold.
I wouldn't have ever imagined you could still use a typewriter on a plane, after all this post-9/11 paranoia. I've discovered Tolkien over the holidays and I'm just reading the "Hobbit" (in german) but in the BBC-Book documentary Rob posted they also mentioned SSTLS - Is it a good read?
Great post. I'm glad to see more of the typosphere at least bringing their irons along. I love the "that's cool!" reactioins. TSA screeners were good to me as well. I was asked if I was a writer and enjoyed saying my novel was not yet published. It's a very delicate question whether to type on the plane. last time I couldn't because I was on redeyes both ways.
Bravo! All of us could really compare notes- from our respective corners of the world- and find we're getting a lot of consistently positive reactions. I type in coffeehouses, library atriums, on Amtrak trains, and ferry boats. People love the sound as well as the look of typewriters. And- just about everyone has a typewriter story (after just about everyone asks me where I find ribbons)!
I'm glad the Royal got some well-deserved adoration. I flew to Maine & back a few weeks ago with my Groma Kolibri and it didn't get even a raised eyebrow from the screeners at La Guardia or Portland. Nor did it didn't get any props at the place I was staying, as they had a sweet L.C. Smith machine that Edna St. Vincent Millay had supposedly used -- https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-A4gR92qXACQ/S-4TwKt_ZQI/AAAAAAAAdoM/u-uDXRo9fBI/s720/PICT0044.JPG -- in the lobby. The Groma's awfully cute, but I guess it doesn't quite have what it takes to be featured in the centerfold.
ReplyDeletern, I'm surprised the Kolibri didn't get more love. Usually people find them adorable.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't have ever imagined you could still use a typewriter on a plane, after all this post-9/11 paranoia.
ReplyDeleteI've discovered Tolkien over the holidays and I'm just reading the "Hobbit" (in german) but in the BBC-Book documentary Rob posted they also mentioned SSTLS - Is it a good read?
SSTLS is very clever and I did enjoy it. I felt, though, that it could have been cut by 50% -- satire needs to be swift (and Swiftian).
ReplyDeleteYou write:
ReplyDelete"All we can do is open little bubbles, whether private or public, where a few of us reestablish contact for a few moments with mechanism and flesh."
Beautifully put!
A very Happy New Year to you.
Glad you had a nice trip. Good to see you could still carry a typewriter on board.
ReplyDeleteDuder (duder?), you heard how scarce lithium is these days? Must keep those bubbles inflated. Love The Noiseless, the definite article says it all.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I'm glad to see more of the typosphere at least bringing their irons along. I love the "that's cool!" reactioins. TSA screeners were good to me as well. I was asked if I was a writer and enjoyed saying my novel was not yet published. It's a very delicate question whether to type on the plane. last time I couldn't because I was on redeyes both ways.
ReplyDeleteBravo!
ReplyDeleteAll of us could really compare notes- from our respective corners of the world- and find we're getting a lot of consistently positive reactions. I type in coffeehouses, library atriums, on Amtrak trains, and ferry boats. People love the sound as well as the look of typewriters. And- just about everyone has a typewriter story (after just about everyone asks me where I find ribbons)!
I've had only positive reactions so far from typing in public. Thanks for sharing your airport typing experiences with us!
ReplyDeleteI love Haruki Murakami! Have you read The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle?
I haven't read it, Crystal -- thanks for the recommendation.
ReplyDelete