TXT spk grinds on the nerves a little when you have memories of sitting in classrooms with ink pots and using the next step up from the bird fearher quill. You might just remember those little wooden pen shafts and asking for a new nib - which you then pushed onto the end of the mini pit prop - and dipped it into the reconstituted powdered ink - mixed with water - in that little ceramic inkpot set into the hole at the right top of your desk.

The desk with the pre WW1 initials of former sufferers - the brooding presence of the Master with his ready to throw blackboard rubber and the banning of the newly introduced biro - it being considered decadent and a potential inducer of corruption as to the formation of writing - even to the extent of degrading the actual letters.

Funny how much of what was taught at school has turned out in the fullness of time to be absolute rot - makes you wonder what the old `Masters` would have made of the many ways in which to input text into a forum. You just know somehow in your heart of hearts - that they would have you sitting on a hardback chair typing with both hands in the upright missionary position with a Microsoft keyboard "SIT UP STRAIGHT OILRAG!"

An inducement via memory to lay an your back as an adult and tap away with whatever you want - even a biro - or perhaps it`s 2010 equivalent - a mobile phone.

If they were able to shout (and toss a blackboard rubber) from the grave - they would likely say the mobile phone and TXT spk is the old devil biro resurrected - but despite trying hard you can`t get it to corrupt the form of the actual letters. You can go one up from TXT spk - though and enter the subjective domain of tolerance (inc internet domains) over missed capital letters in mid sentence words. That means that you can type at speed on a phone qwerty keyboard.

Some of the Old Masters may be snorting right now on reading this - but perhaps only feebly as the youngest would now be around 120yrs.

Have we moved on? Or do we still reach out with withered hands for the psychological inkpot of youth and the little wooden shaft, pen and nib?

Freedom may seem at times an illusion - but it`s expressed best by a biro.

oilrag

Edited by HJ publisher on 21/04/2010 at 11:03