Learning to write was a big deal to me as a kid. My mother had flowery, almost calligraphy-like writing. Cursive only, she couldn’t print. When she needed flash cards for her classes, I’d print them because her students couldn’t read her pretty handwriting.
Second grade – here we go! A letter a day – upper and lower case. I had printing down, but this cursive was something else. I traced the outlines, but something happened when I went free range. No one could read my handwriting. Add to that the parochial school I attended has some really mean nuns. This is 1969 – they were encouraged to be mean. It wasn’t bad enough I had terrible handwriting – now God hated me!
I got a typewriter during 5th grade. I had asked Santa specifically He came through!
Even though I had to hunt & peck with two fingers of each hand, I was thrilled. My mother gave me erasable typing paper – I was ready to go!
In high school, I took a typing class. Didn’t do so well, so kept my 4-finger method through college. I finally learned to type properly in 1983 – used all my fingers and learned to use the number pad too.
This intro is long, but I wanted my readers to understand how much I hate my handwriting. I still kept notes in journals & notebooks because that’s all that was available. Then came Digital Paper and eNotes!
Three years of work notebooks. Image: author
You see what I'm dealing with here? Image: author
I was nervous at first. I’d been typing for decades – I liked it. I even got accustomed to virtual keyboards on tablets and smartphones. Didn’t like them, but what could I do? Oh, I got a keyboard for my iPad Air – of course!
My first eNote was a Sony. It was a good start for me. Still hated my handwriting.
Graduated to a reMarkable last year. So many templates! So many nib sizes! I found the medium nib, like a marker, works for me.
A new era in notetaking! Image: author
What else do I love about my eNote:
So much storage! I use to fill two journals/notebooks a year. Then I didn’t have access to my notes from the older books. Boo!
All my files - and I can search for them! No flipping endless pages. Image: author
Cloud account – depending on the eNote – I can email files straight from the unit. And back them up on my laptop. I can download forms for signature from my laptop to the eNote and sign them. How’s that for sustainability? No printing and scanning.
More functions are introduced all the time – the Rakuten kobo Elipsa has OCR – which translates my scribble into text. reMarkable is releasing that function soon. The Amazon Scribe is a newcomer – keep an eye on it!
Standard notes and list templates - and some fun choices! Image: author
All the eNotes share low power usage and decent time between charges. They are all saving our eyesight with reflective displays. They all have gigs of memory. In the year I’ve had the remarkable, I’ve used less than half a gig. It’s insane!
I’m making peace with my handwriting – I don’t think God hates me. I still prefer typing, and I carry my eNote everywhere. I keep a list of ideas, a punch list, a file for each of my projects and recurring meeting notes. I can’t wait to see what comes next.
My cursive is looking a little like Mom's. Hmm. Image: author
Are you Paper or eNote? Have you tried an eNote? How would your life change without paper?
Leave Comment