This series is dedicated to the dieing art of writing. From the post to use of stationary and pens. I do hope that this series brings something out something from the best of us.
For years now, atop of my grandfathers old desk lay an old typewriter. A Royal HH from the year 1954. It just sat there, in its place of rest untouched with a thin layer of dust gathering on it's black leather case.
Just a few short days ago I took this old typewriter off of the desk and brought it into my study. My desire to use it to writer letters had grown to the boiling point--I had to use it. So with an eager eye, I took off its case and glanced at the old keys. The typewriter itself was in great condition, a few keys bent from years of transit. I opened the inside to look at the condition of the individual hammers, the ink ribbon and all the components in between. Some rusted, others coated in a thick black dust.
Before even beginning the my first letter on the machine, I had to of course clean out the machine. Just a bit of de-dusting and some graphite powder, I was all set. This old typewriter that hadn't had a key pressed for years was beginning to come to life once more.
The first letter alone was a liberating experience, each keystroke carried more importance then any digital keystroke could ever produce. Each letter, solid, permanent, and unique. Writing on this machine had more importance. Each sentence, each word, had to be thought out. Older then a whiteout feature, each letter press required more thought then a keyboard.
I sat there putting words with true meaning onto paper. My paws moving vigorously, my fingers a bit sore after the first few pages from the hard pressing of the keys. Each letter an unique individual collaborating with its brothers to create a master piece. With every bell ring, a turn of the knob, and quickly pushing the reel back to the starting position. Each new paragraph with the press of the tab key caused the machine to jolt to one side with the force of the moving parts.
This machine at my fingertips of solid metal showed no sign of giving up, neither did I. As time passed, the faster I typed. This American made typewriter wanted to live once more, and this I did give it.
This 50's writer gave me an experience that I shall never forget.
As technology progresses, we as a civilization start to loose our values of language and writing. It in itself is a dieing art. We don't stop and think about what we write, it can be easily deleted; we don't bother to learn new vocabulary of writing style, nobody knows what they mean anymore; we don't learn grammer, who needs it or cares? Computer correct these problems for us. A sentence can easily be removed, so we throw it in anyway.
Typewriters are more then just a novelty item that hipsters seem to take up because they are
cool, they are machines that remind us of the old days. Those days when print was valued, a book wasn't something you bought and threw away, it was something that was cherished, kept, and built to last for a long while. Old writers shouldn't be considered something of a novelty, but a liberating tool for the best of us to implement. Giving us the same feel as a handwritten work, but clear and concise.
As we can send off e-mails only three sentences long, erase entire paragraphs without thinking twice, we can contact anyone in a blink of an eye, the ideas of creative writing in letters has died. More and more, the post office is seeing a large decline in anything aside from spam mail, bills, and parcels (most items bought online then personal gifts. Typewriters are something that more people should start to pick up. More durable then any computer, more personal then one too.
The next time you are browsing through your local antique shop or garage sale and you see one of these beauties, please pick on up if the price is right. It's time for us to start writing and communicating without having to rely on the internet and technology.
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