History

Before Laptop Computers, This Movable Typewriter Was All The Rage

/ Ally Bean / 15 Comments

[A bit of background: Cheri at Naples Girl Blog went on a trip to Cuba a few weeks ago.  Since then she has been writing about what she saw and including photos in her posts.  When I read her post, Hemingway and Cuba,  I knew that it was a sign for me to write the following.  You see, Hemingway had a typewriter just like the one that I inherited from my Dad’s side of the family.  Kind of cool, eh?]

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My grandfather was a shoe salesman who travelled around a three state region.  This is a photograph of his Corona typewriter that he used for work.

This particular model of typewriter folds shut making it portable.  It was referred to by Corona as The Personal Writing Machine.  Over a 30 year period of time, 700,000 of this model were made.

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I did some research online and found a copy of the original instruction manual: How To Use CORONA, The Personal Writing Machine.  The last page of the manual says the following… which seems as applicable to today’s portable technology as it did back in 1920 when this manual was written.

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I like this little typewriter.  It’s a fun example of something practical + quirky from the past– favored by Hemingway, used by traveling businessmen.  And I think that it’s kind of cute– in a WALL•E sort of way.

The Moon Is Always Up There, You Know?

/ Ally Bean / 14 Comments

I took these photos mid-morning Sunday when most of the sky was so blue that the moon was visible.  We rarely have super clear days like that around here.

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Occasionally some wispy clouds floated through the sky across the moon reminding me that this photo-op was going to be a short one.

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 I couldn’t help but think about Neil Armstrong as I snapped these photos.  Imagine walking on something so far away from & different from the Earth?  He never considered himself to be a hero.  He thought he was just part of a team that made amazing things happen.

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So with a nod to the past & a hope for the future, I’ll wink at the moon when I see it… in honor of Neil Armstrong.

[The National Memorial Service for Neil Armstrong is today.  Details here.] 

This & That

/ Ally Bean / 13 Comments

{september – monday – morning}

√  Saturday afternoon we spent driving around the city, going grocery store to grocery store, looking for one particular ingredient.  We both had a hankering for Thai curried chicken & vegetables– which, logically enough, requires Thai green curry paste.  It’s such a basic ingredient for Thai cooking, yet it turned out to be almost impossible to get.

Eventually we found it in grocery store #6.  You’d think that we would have been annoyed by this whim turned bona fide expotition, but the day was so pretty outside that wandering around the city together was interesting.  I forget how large this area is– and that what seems normal to one person is something unique & fascinating to another person.

Sometimes searching for the treasure is all that I need to be happy.

√  Over the weekend we planted some flowers in colors that we’ve not used before.  Out front by the sidewalk leading up to the front door we planted true blue pansies.  And by the side of the house where we’ll see them when we drive up to the garage we planted some coral-colored roses.

Once upon a time our garden had a tightly controlled color scheme, but those days are long gone.  Now we have a confetti garden;  that is, flowers of various colors growing wherever they will grow.  It’s not what I initially envisioned, but that’s okay.  I like to see flowers around the outside the house and if multi-color is what works, it works.

Go Team Eclectic.

√  We were outside doing yard work yesterday morning.  The weather was cool & clear so the sky was blue.  We heard the plane before we saw it–  and when we saw it we both stopped doing what we were doing.  Overhead, flying at a low altitude, was a B-17.  Just moseying along in a straight line going somewhere.  Over our subdivision on a Sunday morning.  In 2012.

Kind of cool to see it.  Definitely unexpected.

√  Zen-Den went camping [cabining?] by a lake in Canada over Labor Day weekend with some friends.  He does this every few years & always comes back with tales to tell.  This year, besides his stories of middle-aged boys’ antics, he brought back a new radio station for us to listen to: CBC Radio2 [Eastern].  It’s good.

I won’t try to explain it to you because playlists & music appreciation are topics that I leave to those who care deeply about being surrounded by music.  Me?  I just like to hear something that doesn’t set my teeth on edge in the background.  And this new-to-us station pleases me– enough so that it’s giving Radio Paradise a bit of competition.

‘Tis music that doth soothe the suburban beast.  😉