Steve's Site

2011-04-01T11:14:00.000-07:00

http://www.life.com/gallery/42822/image/3240645#index/0

2010-06-03T11:51:00.000-07:00

Here's a link to an article in Wired Magazine about "The Last Generation of Typewriter Repairmen." I suppose I qualify.

http://www.wired.com/rawfile/2010/05/gallery-typewriters

2010-03-05T15:57:00.001-08:00

The geographical center of Boston is in Roxbury. Due north of the center we find the South End. This is not to be confused with South Boston which lies directly east of the South End. North of the South End is East Boston and southwest of East Boston is the North End. The bridge connecting Boston and Cambridge via Massachusetts Avenue is commonly know as the Harvard Bridge. When it was built, the state offered to name the bridge for the Cambridge school that could present the best claim for the honor. Harvard submitted an essay detailing its contributions to education in America, concluding that it deserved the honor of having a bridge leading into Cambridge named for the institution. MIT did a structural analysis of the bridge and found it so full of defects that they agreed that it should be named for Harvard.
This is all true information on Boston and the Surrounding areas:
There is no school on School Street, no court on Court Street,no dock on Dock Square, and no water on Water Street. Back Bay Boston streets are in alphabetical oddah: Arlington, Berkeley, Clarendon, Dartmouth, etc. So are South Boston streets: A, B, C,D, etc. If the streets are named after trees (e.g. Walnut,Chestnut, Cedar), you are on Beacon Hill. If they are named after poets, you are in Wellesley. Massachusetts Avenue is Mass Ave. Commonwealth Avenue is Comm Ave. South Boston is Southie. The South End is the South End. East Boston is Eastie. The North End is east of the former West End. The West End and Scully Square are no more; a guy named Rappaport got rid of them one night.
Roxbury is The Burree, Jamaica Plain is J.P.
How to say these Massachusetts city names correctly
(Say it wrong and be shunned).
Worcester : Wuhsta (or Wistah)
Gloucester : Glawsta
Leicester Lesta
Woburn: Woobun
Dedham : Dead-um
Revere: Re -vee-ah
Quincy: Quinzee
Tewksbury : Tooks berry
Leominster : Le-min-sta
Peabody: Pee-ba-dee
Waltham : Walth-ham
Chatham: Chaddum
Samoset: Sam-oh-set or Sum-aw-set, but nevah Summerset!
Definitions:
Frappes are made with ice cream; milk shakes are not.
If it is carbonated and flavored, it is tonic.
Soda means CLUB SODA.
Pop refers to DAD.
When we want Tonic WATER, we will ask for TONIC WATER.
The smallest beer is a pint.
Scrod is whatever they tell you it is, usually fish.
If you paid more than $7/pound, you got scrod.
It is not a water fountain; it is a bubblah.
It is not a trashcan; it is a barrel.
It is not a spucky, a hero, or a grinder; it is a sub.
It is not a shopping caht; it is a carriage.
It is not a purse; it is a pockabook.
They are not franks; they are haht dahgs; franks are money used in Switzahland. Police do not drive patrol units or black and whites; they drivea crewza.
If you take the bus, your on the looza crooza.
It is not a rubber band; it is an elastic.
It is not a traffic circle,it is a rotary.
"Going to the islands" means going to Martha's Vineyard or Nantucket.
The Sox = The Red Sox
The Cs = The Celtics
The Bs = The Bruins
The Pats =The Patriots
Things not to do:
Do not pahk your cah in Hahvid Yahd. They will tow it to Meffa(Medford ) or Summahville (Somerville) .
Do not sleep on the Common. ( Boston Common)
Do not wear orange in Southie on St. Patrick's Day.
Things you should know:
There are two State Houses, two City Halls, two courthouses, and two Hancock buildings (one is very old; one is relatively new).
The colored lights on top the old Hancock tell the weatha:
"Solid blue, clear view."
"Flashing blue, clouds due."
"Solid red, rain ahead."
"Flashing red, snow instead." (except in summer, flashing redmeans the Red Sox game was rained out!
Most people live here all their life and still do not know what the hell is going on with this one.
Route 128 South is I-95 south. It is also I-93 north.
The underground train is not a subway. It is the T, and it doesnot run all night (fah chrysakes, this ain't Noo Yawk).
Order the cold tea in China Town after 2:00 am; you will get a kettle full of beer. Bostonians: think that it is their God-given right to cut off someone in traffic. Bostonians: think that there are only 25 letters in the alphabet (no Rs, except in idear. Bostonians: think that three straight days of 90+ temperaturesis a heat wave. Bostonians: refer to six inches of snow as a dusting.
Bostonians: always bang a left as soon as the light turns green,and oncoming traffic always expects it.
Bostonians: believe that using your turn signal is a sign of weakness. Bostonians:.think that 63 degree ocean water is warm.
Bostonians: think Rhode Island accents are annoying.

2009-09-24T04:18:00.001-07:00

2009-09-24T04:17:00.000-07:00

2009-09-24T04:16:00.000-07:00

2009-09-24T04:13:00.001-07:00

Typewriter sculpture by Jeremy Mayer

1936 Royal Junior for Sale

2009-06-15T15:43:00.000-07:00

My son is on Jeopardy tonight!

2009-05-19T06:11:00.000-07:00

Here's a link to some amazing typewriter sculptures

2009-05-19T06:07:00.000-07:00

http://www.oddee.com/item_96673.aspx

Typewriter resources

2009-05-01T04:49:00.000-07:00

FROM THE PORTABLE TYPEWRITER FORUM

Operational help (tips, buying ribbons and manuals): http://willdavis. bravehost. com/

Basic typewriter operation:http://www.geocitie s.com/wbd641/ OnlineManual. html

Portable typewriter research/reference:http://www.geocitie s.com/wbd641/ PortablesIndex. html

Will's Internet Typewriter Links:http://www.geocitie s.com/wbd641/ links.html

ETCetera, a quarterly collectors' magazine:http://staff. xu.edu/~polt/ typewriters/ etc.html

These links will go a long way toward answering many questions.
(Will Davis, owner/moderator, The Portable Typewriter Forum)

(no relation)

2009-04-09T04:53:00.000-07:00

As you can see, I'm still having trouble maintaining my blog but my intentions are good.

2009-04-09T04:47:00.001-07:00

Typing Trivia
4/2/2009 7:10:36 AM

The words ‘’stewardesses” and “reverberated” are the longest words typed with only the left hand.

The longest words that can be typed using only the right hand in proper typing form are ”lollipop” and “monopoly”.

The only ten-letter word that you can spell with the top row of letters is “typewriter.”

“Skepticisms” is the longest word that alternates hands when typing.

No words can be made from the bottom row, due to lack of vowels.

The longest word that can be typed without a true vowel is "rhythm."

The longest word that can be made without typing the same letter twice is "uncopyrightable.” (Yes, it is a word meaning “ineligible for copyright.”)

A personal observation.

2009-02-13T14:10:00.001-08:00

I guess I'm not too good at blogging. I'll need to add some content. Stay tuned...

Happy new year.

2009-01-04T07:57:00.000-08:00

As someone once told me: "The years are like plane crashes. Any one you can walk away from is a good one." I hope the next year is better than the last one. I believe our new president will help the American people unite in a way that is critical for facing the challenges ahead. Let's hope so. In the mean time I guess we have to keep up the struggle.

2008-12-22T08:51:00.000-08:00

It's beginning to look a lot like...

Now to finish shoveling the roof off.

Swinger follow up

2008-09-23T13:16:00.000-07:00

The Royal Swinger has been sold to Stephen King's son who is planning on giving it to his father. I think it's a fine gift since it combines two of Stephen King's main interests, writing and music. In case you didn't realize it, Stephen King is in the rock and roll group The Rockbottom Remainders along with fellow writers Dave Barry, Amy Tan, Matt Groening, Scott Turow, Roy Blount Jr., and Ridley Pearson. Their motto is "Three chords and an attitude."

2008-05-30T13:33:00.001-07:00

Here is a closeup of the label inside proudly proclaiming that it is capable of receiving the entire AM band. The radio works fine. I guess it was the forerunner of the boom boxes of the 70s and 80s.

2008-05-30T13:31:00.000-07:00

It has a 7-transistor radio built into the carrying case.

Featured typewriter: A real Swinger from 1969

2008-05-30T13:26:00.000-07:00

This is a Royal Swinger portable from 1969. It is a relatively colorful, (red, white, and blue,) manual portable typewriter with an interesting added feature.

I should mention...

2008-05-16T14:27:00.000-07:00

In addition to fixing various computer and office equipment, I carry a wide variety of print cartridges for inkjet printers, laser printers, typewriters, and copiers in addition to paper for general office use as well as cash register and calculator rolls. Products supported include HP, Lexmark, Canon, Brother, Copystar, Sharp, Toshiba, and Smith Corona. With gasoline prices being as high as they are, ($3.75/gallon in Wolfeboro today,) that I am the only source for these products within a half-hour drive from town.

Mandolins

2008-05-05T13:58:00.000-07:00

I have been playing guitar for many years and relatively recently was bitten by the mandolin bug. I like all kinds of music but here in New Hampshire the opportunity to play with others is usually confined to traditional Contra Dance music which generally consists of Irish, British, Scottish, and French Canadian fiddle tunes played by acoustic instruments such as fiddles of course, guitars, mandolins, banjos, penny whistles,button accordians, sometimes Uilleann Pipes; and lately in the group with which I play : a piccolo and a cello. I currently play an Eastman MD-605 A-style mandolin but hope someday to own a Gibson F4 (shown.) Hope springs eternal.

My first web post

2008-05-05T13:39:00.000-07:00

I'm a total rookie at web design so I decided to learn by starting with a blog. So far, so good. I am hoping that eventually I will be able to design a functioning web site for my business which is primarily repairing computers, laser printers, inkjet printers, and copiers. I have a special interest as well in repairing and restoring to working condition typewriters of all ages. I like to keep the old beauties running. Here is an interesting early typewriter called a Mignon model 4. It has the original "point and click" user interface in that the user points to the letter desired and then the typing button, (the middle one,) is depressed. This rotates the printhead to the correct position and prints the letter on the paper. The other two keys are the spacebar and backspace. The German company AEG produced these from 1903 through 1933. The model 4 that I have dates to the late 20s I believe.