Typing 101

It all began many years ago – first period of my freshman year of high school. Typing 101. Now for those of you from the younger generation following along, let me explain what a typewriter is. It’s a box with a keyboard…kind of like a computer keyboard…only different. And instead of a screen you put blank paper into it and press really hard on the keys. And you didn’t need a printer to print what you just typed, and if you made a mistake…there was a white paint in a bottle you used to cover up the mistake on the paper. Crazy, I know. Well, during this class we learned many things, one of which was you were to never look at your fingers while typing. Also, you always (and I cannot stress this enough) ALWAYS put 2 spaces after each period before starting the next sentence.

This was how I learned to type. Now, none of my kids have taken a typing class…they’ve taken computer classes where they learn the ins and outs of a computer but not how to actually type on the keyboard.  Instead, they hunt and peck, and after about an hour of typing one page, they beg me to type the rest of their paper so they don’t have to stay up all night to type it themselves. I’m sorry…what happened to Typing 101?

But I digress.

Thanks to this typing class some (mumble) years ago, I’m able to type out my thoughts at breakneck speed. I still pound the keys of the laptop keyboard as if I’m punching the keys on a typewriter. I have had to teach myself that it is no longer acceptable to place 2 spaces after each period. But this class…this simple high school course…has ultimately given me the ability to do what I do. Write.

So, I’d like to publicly thank my typing teacher, Mrs. Syrkel, for giving me the tools to type quickly and effectively. Thanks.