A Certain Type

I send out a lot of notes and cards, so for Mother’s Day/my birthday, I asked for a manual typewriter. Buds was so thrilled I actually wanted something, he jumped right into researching the best options and found a fantastic local choice.

He found a 1960’s Olympia SM9 which is revered by writers. I tried it out in the shop and it moves great, so home it came.

We’ve named her “Agatha,” and right now she’s parked on the dining room table where everyone can enjoy my “clack, clack, clack.” It’s bringing me a lot of joy.

Quirks include the apostrophe being above the “8” button, and a “¢” symbol where the apostrophe is on a modern keyboard. So if you get a letter from me that reads “here¢s” or “there¢s” you’ll understand what is going on. It also has “1/2” and “3/4” buttons which are fun, but seldom used.

The slower rhythm of writing this way is so soothing. My brain has to slow down to accommodate the relaxed pace since the keys jam up if rushed.

It came in a travel case, but it weighs ~25# when in the case, so it won’t be traveling with us very often.

Come visit. You can clack, clack, clack on Agatha for yourself.