The Visit

My former housemate who read the blog below reminded me of another memory around typewriters.

She and I ran a typing business to supplement our incomes. Prior to word processing, professors were loath to type their own work, and since we were surrounded by universities in walking distance,* there was no shortage for clients for our business named Worth Associates both as a shorter version of our street address Wigglesworth Street and a value statement.

We had rented an IBM Selectric and had invested in many of the golf balls to offer our clients a wide choice of type faces.

Then IBM came out with a new Selectric model and the rental company wanted us to switch. However, the new machine would require all new golf balls. We balked. They insisted and although we tried to stay nice, they were getting nasty.

I wrote the then IBM CEO Tom Watson. A few days later there was a knock at our door. I should add at this point we were in the process of rennovating a five-story brownstone (even if it was painted gray). The typewriter was in my bedroom on the third floor. The stairs were in half finished condition. However, the dining room to the right of the entrance hall was at least finished.

The men were dressed in business suits and had excellent posture. They handed up their business cards. They had been dispatched from the IBM headquarters in New York to solve our problem.

I do not know why they thought we were important enough to fly to Boston. My letter did not imply we were the huge client they obvioiusly had been expecting. A quick call to the IBM office and our problem was solved. In fact the rental IBM selectric had become ours.

As they left, the older turned to me and said, "Next time you have a problem, please don't write Watson, call us directly."

I promised. I can only guess what they muttered on their flight back to New York about a waste of time, etc.

Fortunately, my small Japanese chin Albert, waited until after they were gone to run downstairs with a treasure in his mouth (a used tampon). I'm not sure the VPs could have taken the final indignity.


*Schools in walking distance of our house...Northeastern, Mass College of Art, Harvard School of Medicine, Harvard School of Health, Harvard School of Dentistry, Wentworth, Northeastern, Simmons, Emmanuel, Berkeley School of Music, Museum School of Fine Arts, Boston University. In many ways it was like living on a huge campus.