Three's a Charm

Post-Script: Of course, there's the possibility that this new typer will end up sitting in his closet along with the unused electric Hermes. But I'm hoping, because this one was a gift, that he'll take the time to try and get used to it. I tried to sell him on the idea that it not needing a power source was a positive feature, and mentioned the idea of a "trunk typer," a machine to keep in one's car, just for when the need arises, as one possible use.

There's a mental paradigm shift needed with owning a manual typewriter. They aren't exactly replacements for computers, in the same way that computers replaced typewriters, but can be used as a substitute for any other mode of writing, whether that be for specifically creating printed text or in substitution for handwritten note-taking. I encouraged him to place the Quiet-Riter in some prominent place, already loaded with paper, and use it as much as possible, whether that be for grocery and to-do lists or general thought capture. Making a typewriter part of one's domestic life is the best method for bonding with the machine, bringing value to one's life while bringing new life to an old machine. A win-win.

Post-Post-Script: I'm hoping the other two machines aren't feeling totally rejected. I might have to put them into circulation upon the typing desk as typecasting irons, sometime in the near future. Anthropomorphizing our inanimate accouterments is another way of making them seem like members of one's family.

Images via Sony A390, typecast via Olivetti Lettera 22.