I think Harriet might actually recognize that she’s a lucky cat right now.
Portrait of cat, typewriter and sunbeam
9 thoughts on “Portrait of cat, typewriter and sunbeam”
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I think Harriet might actually recognize that she’s a lucky cat right now.
Comments are closed.
You have a frickin’ Groma Kolibri?
I hate you so much right now. (In an admiring way, of course.)
I am totally impressed that you recognize it and love that this is the first thing you noticed. It’s also an Icelandic Groma Kolibra for which I have case and the original instruction manual.
Icelandic? Does it have eth and thorn keys?
If you haven’t watched it yet, track down a copy of “The Lives of Others” (Das Leben der Anderen), a German movie about the East German surveillance state. A Groma Kolibri plays a pivotal role.
Flattest typewriter ever made…whenever one turns up on fleaBay, they command ludicrous prices, comparatively speaking. Last one I bid on, I had to bow out at $150.
EDITED TO ADD: Whoops…just read your original post about the Groma. You mentioned the movie, using almost the same wording. Yes, we seem to have been manufactured from similar molds.
The Lives of Others is a fantastic film, even without the typewriter. I haven’t priced them on ebay but I can only imagine. If I told you that we also had a Blickenderfer, what would you say?
And do you collect typewriters as well or limit yourself to drooling over specific models?
A Blick! I would say DHIATENSOR to that.
I have nine manuals, five of which are in restored and working condition. Two Olympias (SM9 and SM4), two Royals (a KHM and a DeLuxe Portable, both from 1935), and a Smith-Corona Galaxie Twelve. I just had the two Royals refurbished and cleaned at Cambridge Typewriter in Boston, one of the few typewriter repair shops left in the country.
I write first drafts longhand with a fountain pen, but I drag out one of the manuals every once in a while for short stories and such. I’m particularly fond of the Olympia SM9. (I understand Harlan Ellison uses one of those.)
There’s something appealing about the single-minded nature of a dedicated writing machine. I know I get a lot more done when I use a device that doesn’t also have the Intertubes on it.
We have eight although I’m afraid I only rarely use them. Underwood No. 5, Blickenderfer, Woodstock, Royal, Oliver, Underwood Portable, Groma Kolibra and a Smith-Corona. All are in working order since we found a typewriter repair shop here in town.
The one that got away, that I regret, was a folding Smith-Corona. We were getting ready to move to NYC and I just couldn’t justify it.
Whatever you do, stay off Craigslist. If you do go on Craigslist, never search for typewriters. My last four were purchased in one batch from a moving sale.
Whenever I see one locally advertised for a pittance, I can’t help myself, it seems. It’s like adopting unwanted puppies that you know will suffer a bad fate if you don’t give them a new home.
Too late. Rob actually just found a Woodstock that we’ll probably pick up to replace the one we have. It is the same model but in significantly better condition.
I loved the movie, too…I think it won the Academy Award for best foreign movie. I’m bidding on a Groma Kolibri that’s located in Australia, New South Wales. I live in Coastal Texas, so it will be a hefty postage charge should I win. I have two Olympia SF’s, plus an Orange and White Oly, flattish, made in Yugoslavia. I also love cats, although we don’t have any now.