Sunday, January 3, 2010
5:50 PM
Printing Sets
Printing Sets were a lot of fun and I owned more than one of them over the years. I don't know why being able to print things with a stamp was such a big thrill, but it was. Somehow seeing my name, etc. printed on a page with these "professional" (to a child's eye) looking letters was very exciting. And I really thought it was a big deal to print things on my school book covers with these. LOL Because of computer technology, kids can print anything, anywhere, anytime and can make it look store-bought professional but back during the years of my childhood, some of the most mundane and simple technological things were unavailable to us. Today, technology moves so quickly that my children see their fantasies realized almost as quickly as they can think them up. In most cases, taht's a very cool thing and I'm glad that they are getting to experience technological benefits that I didn't have. At the same time though, I DO sometimes feel sad about the fact that they will probably never know the experience of relying upon their imaginations and create the fun that carries them throughout the long, summer days of play. I wouldn't trade that which is available to us now in order to go back and live my childhood again but I sure do wish it were a Narnia of sorts, that we could visit from time to time. In sheer terms of simple, childhood joy, those really were THE days.
*Related: My dad moved his insurance office into our house (and into my room, grrrr) for a couple of years and that meant that all of his fun office supplies were always lying around. I especially loved using his real typewriter. Whenever my grandparents would visit, I would sit at my dad's desk punching keys as fast as I could which always really impressed my grandpa because he never paid enough attention to realize I wasn't really typing words. He would always make a really big deal of my typing skills because he, being a somewhat out-of-touch-with-technology-and-all-things-white-collar man, was easily fooled by my carefully created illusion. I was just playing make-believe but he always thought it was real. lol When I close my eyes, I can still hear the sound of his voice exclaiming "Gee Mahnee!". The first time he ever heard me play piano and sing, he responded the same way only that time, I wasn't faking it. I was really playing and singing and he found that so hard to wrap his brain around because in his limited country world, only professionals on t.v. could do things like that. He just couldn't believe that his own grandaughter could play songs on a piano and sing. The first and last time I played/sang for him, he sat on the couch beside my piano, grinning from ear to ear, saying, "Woo doggies! Terri! Is that you singing that song?" LOLOL You'd just have to know my grandparents to understand why he was actually having trouble believing his eyes and ears were not playing tricks on him. LOL I think of that moment every time I sit down to play or sing. He was a rare, rare individual and I loved him dearly.
I know what you're thinking. "What in the WORLD does this have to do with printing sets, which is the original subject of this post? Right? LOL Well, I'm getting there BUT, you must remember that the reason I am spending so much time searching for, posting, and writing about the toys, etc. from my childhood is because I cherish the memories they invoke. The stories you read here are just the tip of the iceberg. My brother and I were blessed with amazing memories and our brains pretty much recorded our entire childhood. What a wonderful gift that is. So as I wind my way through all of the those cherished memories, one thing will often lead to multiple seemingly unrelated other memories. Just try to roll with it.
Getting back on topic.... : )
My dad had professional stamps made for his insurance business and I was majorly fascinated by those stamps. He also had a neat little carousel on which the stamps were stored and I loved rotating that thing and selecting a new stamp to use. I could spend an hour or two at a time transferring my dad's info onto countless pieces of notebook paper and discarded envelopes. My dad was never crazy about the idea of me using up his ink but for the most part, he tolerated my fascination until it finally subsided. lol
*OCD note: The one thing I hated about using the stamp pad is that I almost always got ink on my hands and for as long as I have remembered, I have HATED getting even a tiny smudge of ink on my skin. I'm the same way today. Accidentally marking my finger or hand with an ink pen makes me crazy and when it happens, I literally feel miserable until I can thoroughly wipe it off. Usually I have to take a full shower before I really feel like it's gone. And that is just the tip of the OCD iceberg, my friends. Just the tip of the iceberg. lol
(the stamp pads that my dad always had were metal but I haven't yet found a pic of one of those)
My sweet Daddy sitting in my room when it was his office.