I still remember "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" from typing class. Funny what sticks with you.

Jan, I remember that phrase also...now that you wrote it but what was it...was it that that was one of the phrases we had to type. Sort of a way to get us to use our fingers all over the keyboard? Beth, we are lucky in that our son is a computer geek and he is amazing with playing games and beating the programs. But when it comes to typing he does what his dad and brother does...uses two fingers. LOL.

The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog is a sentence which uses each and every letter in the alphabet, so was one of those exercises thought to be good for getting our fingers all over the querty keyboard. I was so rebellious by that point, and a total feminist, that I worked harder at avoiding learning how to type than it would have taken to just learn the stupid skill! And now, with computers so pervasive in our lives, I really wish I had learned touch typing, instead of still hunting and pecking with 3 fingers! LOL lois

I know this is a very very old post, but I decided to comment anyway because it's kind of a big thing for me.

I can type over 60 wpm but when it comes to writing, if I don't want what I wrote to be a mystery to me a few days later, I have to write very slow compared to most other people. Most people seem to be capable at writing at a speed I like to call "faster than I thought humanly possible", because the capability to move that fast, aside from typing, is COMPLETELY beyond me.

I've even observed that people with one hand tend to be faster and more dexterous than me.

I also have to stop more frequently to shake my hand out and let the muscles fully relax, because they just get locked into this constantly tense mode. I guess kind of like paradoxical myotonia? I don't write cursive for this reason.

I used to stay at school very late to study in empty classrooms because I was able to write on the board much faster than on paper, but the janitorial staff kicked me out. I always felt a bit nervous until the doors locked anyway.

So I just have to deal with the consequences of being a sloth in a world of squirrels.

Type of Myotonia: Becker Myotonia

I have terrible writing and the harder I try to write well the more my hand cramps. Keyboards were revolutionary for me and I hardly ever do anything by hand any more.

I've never tried some of the modified writing instruments that are used for arthritis and other conditions. I don't know if it's the pinching that does it or the pressure. I can write easier with something like a speedball pen. What's interesting is that I can play my bodhran (Irish drum) for a long time without tiring and you hold the tipper just like a pencil, only loosely.

Jan

Type of Myotonia: Thomsen's MC

Country: US