Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Typing Fingers Making Music

My childhood was alive with the sound of my Mom's typewriter.  She can type like nobody's business and used her talent to be gainfully employed, to type my step-dad's seminary papers, to help each of her girls turn in typo free essays.

I can remember begging to be allowed to type, and when I sat down at the little typewriter desk, it was a long painful process to write a few sentences.  My Mom didn't have to look at the keys and peck out her ideas.  Her fingers flew over the keys as her eyes focused on the handwritten rough drafts.  It was a super awesome talent, and I longed to have it for my own.

Tonight as I sat at our computer, my fingers know where to move to find each key to spell out my daughter's carefully worded essay.  I am thankful for my 9th grade keyboarding class.  But I am even more thankful for my Mom's inspiration!

Now if I can only piece out what the line that looks like "phone fiddlers and pasty skinned address" really is.  My family does not have the best handwriting, but by golly, both of my kids can type!

11 comments:

  1. My mom did this for me too. I remember it being a cozy feeling, where we were a team and the end product always made me feel so proud.

    I remember the sounds too, the tapping, the hum of the computer. Good thoughts.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know my A essays were because my Mom was an awesome critic. Her red pencil marks were welcome!

      Delete
  2. I used a typewriter from the mid-sixties, all the way through my graduation from SJSU in 1982, and then from the first two years of my teaching career, before I got my first Apple. I guess you might consider me to be one of the more mature of your followers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's funny how much my kids love typewriters! As a youngster, I'd have dropped ours in the thrift store bin in an instant if I'd had a computer. My kids have a computer, but there is still a typewriter upstairs....

      Delete
  3. Wow, I think Mark is more mature than me! haha. However, that being said, some of my jobs required the use of a typewriter AND carbon paper. yuk.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Carbon paper? Yikes! I do remember a primitive copier at one of our churches....and Saturdays spent cranking it over and folding the resulting bulletins....good times!

      Delete
  4. I took a typing class in high school. We had electric typewriters, which was the coolest thing! I'm so grateful for that class. I'm not as fast as my mom (who also typed for a living), but I'm adept enough.
    My son, who has autism, struggles with handwriting. He was given a keyboard at school to do his assignments on. Handwriting is becoming sort of passe.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. After Kindergarten, our son's teacher told us not to stress out over the fact that he couldn't hold a pencil right and that his handwriting was a disaster. Get him a keyboard, and he'd do just fine. She was right.

      Delete
  5. My mother has beautiful cursive. She can write so neatly and beautifully. I on the other hand, don't. But typing is something I do better than anyone in my family, (until Victor gets a bit older). I had typing classes in elementary, and boy am I grateful for them. At least now I can read my own writing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My Mom does too, but mine is a hodgepodge of cursive and printing. It's terrible! My kids can type faster than me, but I love sitting down with their rough drafts and reading their thoughts on subjects.

      Delete
  6. I loved this and I'm quite curious as to what "phone fiddlers and pasty skinned address" turned out to be! I was just talking to my daughter the other day about how much handwriting skills have degenerated now that everyone is so reliant on computers for writing and communication. :)

    ReplyDelete