Secretaries' Week?

My mother was a professional secretary, so I have a bit more understanding of the job as it used to be.  She often spoke of being an editor of the correspondence rather than a mere transcriber.
I also took high school courses in typing and shorthand.
fun fact:  The line down the middle of a steno pad was because the hand could pivot on the wrist to reach that far.  Moving the hand side to side was wasted time and effort.

friday bikecast

As you can see, i hooked up my scanner over the weekend and, as long as it doesn't get stuck asking for new cartridges it will work.

I've been gradually trying coffee-making devices (twentieth-century, of course) with the idea that eventually my Mr. Coffee will stop working and will need replacement.  With the same mindset as I went into typewriters, I'm looking for pots without their own heat sources.  Look for a post on that soon, but here's a teaser:

post-Bond post

Reviewing galleries, I'm pretty sure this Torpedo is from the early 60's, as is the watch.  Not sure how to tell an 18 from an "a" or "b" version yet however.

I enjoyed the film, but as I've heard elsewhere, "Skyfall" was better.  I liked, but am a bit conflicted about, the hodgepodge (or mashup, as the kids have it) they made of the Blofeld origin story.  I was glad of the references to the books but it was a bit of a "too-small-world" for my liking.  Obviously they can't use the original - he'd be over 90 years old.  I suspect it matters more to readers of the books than it would to the film-only fans.  I confess that I get a kick out of seeing the same phenomenon among Harry Potter fans.  At least it's something to relate to.

I keep saying, to the point that my wife and friends are probably tired of hearing it, that I'd like to see a "reboot" where they start producing period-piece or costume drama films in the manner of a Jane Austen treatment - or for a better example, as they did "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy" in 2011.  They could follow the whole story arc and have a nice long-running franchise.  They could address the societal differences from then to now in subtle ways if they get good enough direction and acting.  I'd also love to see how they would handle the effects (and I want to see his custom Bentley, as well as Felix's Studillac).  Another production for Fallow Fields, I suppose.

random items

There's a Remington Torpedo in script on shopgoodwill.com as of this writing.

In other news, I found something rarer than a working typewriter in the bins the other day.  An old-school Thermos bottle with an unbroken liner and the inner lid also.
I liked the color so for a buck fifty I went ahead and got it.

I'd never seen Polly Red Top before, I don't know how long they were made.  I did find an interesting blog showing vintage ads, which had this 1954 ad for the product - at least it gives me a snapshot on the era if not the actual decade in which this was made.  Some nice photography there as well.
http://jonwilliamson.com/

Crossed the finish line but still running

I reached 50,000 words last night, the first time I've ever finished early I believe. On the other hand, I still need to wrap up the storyline.  So I allowed myself a little time for a celebratory post before climbing that last hill.

This paper below was in the case.  I found it amusing.

This sheet was inside the case.

typewriter Sunday

First page of my zine, which was handed out to attendees.

room to spare

"The" Olivetti M44

Ruby in a basket

I sold the underwood 21 and the Safari

back in harness with new Tower Attaché

The National Bike Challenge is over (I did 1000 miles from April through September).  Getting out for a ride nearly every day meant that while I produced a few typecasts (still rolled in platens), I didn't make time for posting them often.  But today I have news to get me back into the habit.

Here's Rev. Munk's post, mentioned above. http://munk.org/typecast/2012/12/17/the-tower-saga-continues-typewriters-in-sears-catalogs-1947-to-1966/

heck of a deal!

From the listing:  "Typewriter has wear, dirt, scuffs, rust and scratches. Several of the keys are stuck and don't press down. May need cleaning, repairs and adjustments."

In this photo you can see I've flipped the typing/writing desk the correct way.