Nows and Forevers

I’ve never been one for fountain pens or bespoke keyboards, being a working writer and all. But I do hold one throwback habit.

This is my 1964 Galaxie II typewriter, one in a long line of Smith Corona machines in my family. I like Smith Corona because it was my dad’s typewriter of choice, it was based in Connecticut, and it has a “1” key. Done some of my better writing in my teens and 20s on a Smith Corona.

I’ll admit, you’ll have to pry my MacBook out of my cold, dead fingers. But every once in a while, and the last several weeks, I dug out one of the typewriters I have, and burst out writing.

There’s power in those keys.

The last couple of years it’s been a 1966 Olympia SM-7 I picked up for $36 at a Pittsburgh thrift shop just before the pandemic. A classic of German engineering, just about the BMW or Benz of typers. I also have a 1954 Royal Quiet De Luxe I bought for $20 from a guy in Beaver County.

This last time around, the Olympia and Royal fell short. And since this isn’t 1968, I don’t have a typewriter repair shop nearby.

But you know what never fails me? My trusty Smith Corona.