Last week, after all of us had finished opening our Christmas presents, Steve walked over and handed me a piece of paper, a piece of paper that could only mean one thing: a scavenger hunt was about to be afoot.
Which puzzled me, rather.
I couldn’t remember asking for anything that was scavenger hunt-worthy.
But who am I to argue with such an invitation? I entered merrily into the mystery and after traipsing upstairs and down, outdoors and in, I was finally led to the door of this hall closet.
I hesitated briefly before opening the door. Whatever could it be? What could I have asked for in my jewelry/scarves/books wish list that could possibly bring me to this door?
I opened it and peeked in.
And saw this.
A box. A brown box. A brown box of a fairly normal looking size.
However, the normally sized brown box was so heavy I had to get Steve to carry it into the living room for me. What could it possibly be so medium-ish but so exceedingly heavy?
I was about to find out.
I ripped . . .
and tore.
And when I was done, I discovered something that made me smile . . .
really, really big.
Just what was the Mystery Gift?
It was this!
A typewriter!
An antique typewriter!
An Underwood antique typewriter!
And just why did Steve happen to get a typewriter for me?
Well, I actually wrote here about the day I saw this very typewriter in a Goodwill store earlier this year.
At dinner that night, I raved on and on about it, but then added that I could never bring myself to pay the $60 asking price.
Well, do you know what my wonderful husband did that evening? He got up from the table, secretly called the Goodwill, and asked them to hold the typewriter. He then drove an hour round trip, purchased the typewriter and hid it in the attic in preparation for The Grand Presentation.
A memory-laden, antique typewriter.
A middle-aged, thoughtful husband.
Together they made my Christmas wonderful.
Now it is just entering it as a new comment and not a reply-crazy
Having trouble getting the comment box to enter my name or email. Will try this again.
I am not sure why it the comment post would not let me post my name or email. Patti
Patti, I’m so sorry you’re having trouble with this; is this the first time or has it been a recurring thing? What browser or you using? Mac or PC? Thanks so much for being patient and trying it again! 🙂
The typewriter story and photos were great!
Thanks, Fred! I hope yo’re recovering well from your surgery.
Reminds me of the Royal my Dad purchased from a pawn shop in Richmond, VA, for me when I was in the 10th grade and taking typing. That was a loooonnnnng time ago.
Ann, funny how you still remember that typewriter (even the brand it was) all these years later. 🙂
That is an awesome typewriter and gift. What fun. I remember my mom taking a typewriter similar to that to a store to get credit to use toward a portable typewriter for my brother to take to college. Oh how I would love to have it now. I heard Ray Bradbury speak a few years ago. He talked about going to the library to use the old black typewriters to write his short stories. He rented time on the computer for 10 cents an hour!
Anonymous, that is so interesting to hear about Bradbury renting time to write! Maybe if I had to rent writing time, I’d be a more efficient writer!:-)
Oh that is so sweet!
Jessica, yes, it really was sweet!
Love it!!!!
Anon, I loved it, too!
How neat! 🙂
Kristi, I totally agree!
Wow – such thoughtfulness and such love – to drive so far away to get your heart’s desire. He deserves a double hug I think and a double scoop of whatever ice cream he loves. What a guy!
Sharyn, yep, I think hugs and ice cream are pretty good reward for any good deed!
I am glad that Steve has the good sense to visit a Goodwill and can have a happy wife as the outcome. Happy for all involved. Ruth
Ruth, yes, he has discovered the joy of Goodwill, as well!
Inquiring minds (me!) want to know…where are you going to display this? Steve get a A+ on this gift!
CeCe, that’s a great question. The first thing we’ll have to do is find a small, tall wooden stand strong enough to hold a 40 pound typewriter. Then I’m thinking we’ll put it between the two bookcases in our dining room.
Perfect! Kudos to Steve and Merry Christmas to you all.
Susan, yep, me getting an old typewriter would be the equivalent of you getting an old camera. Definitely a smile-producer.
What! No mention of Curtis Jenny?
Steve
Steve, just so my readers know what you’re talking about I’ll explan:
One of the scavenger hunt clues said simply, “Jenny.” Unfortunately, I was not able to make the connection to what it was talking about without some really strong hints.
Turns out the note was referring to the Curtis Jenny model airplane on top of our TV armoire. And he thought I would remember the name of that airplane after he had just mentioned it once or twice in passing. Nope. No remembering here!