It’s been on the platen for a long time, so we finally started our series of Type Bars at an assisted living residence in Boston. I am so glad we did. It looks like the beginning of something pretty awesome. After only a couple of meetings we are already building a following. And the stories are worth writing home about.
From history, to collecting, to politics, we have a lot to type. In the coming weeks we will do a series of letters for Operation Gratitude an organization that sends letters to members of the armed forces.
A couple of our guests are veterans, and think it would be a great idea. There is nothing quite like a hand-typed letter to express gratitude to our service women and men. Slow communication may give them something to hold on to.
We will also offer to type armed service letters at our upcoming book event. And we will have prompts and supplies on hand for many other kinds of letters too.
The Type Bar is hosting Richard Polt, author of The Typewriter Revolution on Saturday, March 19 from 11am – 1pm at the Barnes and Noble Prudential Center. (More info here.)
The Typewriter Revolution has been called by Booklist, “… a lively, lavishly illustrated history of this newly revered machine backed by a comprehensive user’s guide … A clever, illuminating, and irresistible book of typewriter appreciation and a call for ‘digital detox’ and ‘slow communication.” When asked about the typewriter and writing letters, Polt claims, “When people initially received type-written letters, they found them offensive.” “You would never have written somebody a love letter by typewriter, but now they’re considered romantic.” In their heyday, Polt explains, “typewriters were the embodiment of efficiency and impersonality and speed. And today they’re no longer efficient, so if you use them now they have a completely different meaning.”
Of course here at the Type Bar we completely agree.
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