I finally got to see the old Wash?ington Hand Press that I restored while working at the KU Printing Ser?vice many years ago.
My name and the date that I finished the project were still visible under the platten, which I painted in the same gold paint that I used for the raised letters on the top of the press.
However, the years and the oil have obliterated some of the letters. I wasn?t able to read the complete date and the first two letters of my first name.
I met Elspeth Healey, who graciously showed us around the Spencer Research Library, which sits across the road from the Campanile and right behind Strong Hall for those familiar with the KU campus.
Down in the lower levels of the library, behind locked doors, was the printing equipment, which included several other smaller hand presses, proof presses, hand-feed printing presses and type cabinets with accompanying spacing materials in both lead and wood (called furniture).
From time to time, students are brought there to do printing projects using the old technology and get to experience first hand how early printing was done.
It was a tedious process because only one sheet of paper could be printed at a time.The forms would need to be re-inked each time a single page was printed.
The name of the place is the ?Hole and Corner Press.?
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I had experience with two large corporations this past week, and all I could do was shake my head and cuss after they were finished with me and I with them. I only have space for one example.
We returned from Kansas City Wednesday night to find out our DSL Internet from Century Link was not working.
By the looks of it, I thought our modem had gone on the fritz. The only good thing is that you can call them any time of the day or night and be abused.
The guy I spoke with must have been from Mars as he thought I could drive to LaJunta, Colo., or Omaha, Neb., or Cameron, Mo., and pick one up.
Found out the next day they had made changes at the local office; many people were without Internet.
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Hearing loss isn?t always a bad thing. For example, we have had chirping crickets in our garage and I am told they chirp the loudest at night.
Luckily for me, I do not hear them. They must be just the right frequency that my ringing ears can?t hear at all.
If you wish to share your comments or ideas, my e-mail address is joel@
hillsborofreepress.com.
