My HP B9180 printer is on the way. It should be here Tuesday.

My Meopta Flexaret Va is also on the way back. Rick Oleson not only installed the focusing screen without charging extra but he cleaned up the mirror and cemented it back in place. Rick did get something for his troubles: another sketch for his Tech Notes.

He finally solved the mystery of removing the top. Most TLRs have the mirror assembly as part of the body. I think the late model Flexarets are unique in making the mirror assemble part of the top focussing screen assembly. Rick notes how to get loose screws out because two of the screws holding the top assembly had fallen inside. I think I may have been responsible for that. He even got the grid on the old screen right. The small rectangle in the middle of the old screen is for 35mm, which can be used in this camera with an adapter. The focusing screen Rick put on my Ricoh Diacord didn't improve the brightness significantly (I got it for the split image focusing) but the brightness increase should be noticable on the Flexaret. It has all the leather off but I will shoot it that way for the time being until I can measure it for a new set of leathers.

I also have a new portable word processor on the way that includes it's own printer and doesn't need electricity.

I've been looking at typewriters for some time and finally bought one. The Hermes 3000 is one of the finest portables ever made. (Brokeback Mountain was written on a Hermes 3000.) I had my eye on the early 1960s round top but then a late 1960s boxy version became available. It looked very clean and went for less than the round tops. I got it for $36. I actually have a use for it. I want to write letters. Certainly the fine computer I use could do the same but I want my letters to be more personal. I could hand write my letters but my handwriting becomes pretty illegible after about the second paragraph. The type on the typewritten page is put there by the touch of the typewriter user. And why not just send email? When I went through my mother's stuff when she moved into an assisted living home I found a stash of old letters. How many emails are saved? I want to start off writing letters to my grandkids. I think a letter arriving addressed to them would be a lot more special than an email viewed on a screen or printed out. I could include a Polaroid taken at the time of writing the letter. I would hope it would be something saved. I will report back on how this works out. I was inspired by a blog that is often typecast (blog entries done from scanned typewriter copy): Strikethru. I look forward to the sound of a typewriter, the clack of the keys and the ringing of the bell. You don't know what the bell is for? Get thee to a typewriter!