A Big Risk For The One And Only Type Ball by Gwen

8/7/2019 A Big Risk For The One And Only Type Ball by Gwen

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A Big Risk For The One And Only Type Ball

By Gwen

Part One

A Clumsy Accident

Type, type, type, type, boing, type, type, type, type, boing. "Oh no!" screamed

Grandma Zsa-Zsa, "Oh no," she said in a much more sad voice sounding like that

Grandma Zsa-Zsa was on the verge of tears.

Stanley came rushing in, "What, what happened?" he asked tiredly.

"My stupid type ball in my stupid typewriter rusted and I don't have a spare!" said a

frustrated Grandma Zsa-Zsa,"That typewriter was my grandmothers and then it was

my mothers and now it is mine!" said Grandma Zsa-Zsa, you could see she was

coughing back her tears. "If only I had an extra type ball," she sighed. Grandma Zsa-

Zsa did not believe in computers, but Stanley tried to change that because he got

Grandma Zsa-Zsa a really cool MacBook Pro.

"Grandma,"said Stanley, "I got you a really special gift that I think you will like." He

said.

"Is it a new type ball for my typewriter?" asked Grandma Zsa-Zsa hopefully.

“Well no Grandma, it is not a type ball for your typewriter,” said Stanley, “By the

way what is a type ball?” asked Stanley, knowing that his up tight grandmother was



going to make some speech about how dumb he is for not knowing what a type ball

was.

“Are you crazy!” said Grandma Zsa-Zsa. “It’s this posh invention that was invented

by a man called Christopher Latham Sholes,” she said with a glisten of admiration in

her eyes. “Chrissy was such a handsome young fellow.” said Grandma. She was now

fiddling with her bracelet, her face was looking so happy she was probably

daydreaming.

"Grandma, Grandma," said Stanley slowly. "Are you okay?" He asked.

"Oh yes, I am absolutely positively fine," She said, now looking so much more

awake. "Anyway, a type ball is a metal ball with letters and numbers carved in it and

when you push a button it spins and then presses against the paper, and mine rusted,"

she said, crying. Then she threw her type ball on the ground. Stanley picked it up and

put it in his jeans pocket.

"So, do you want to see your present now?" asked Stanley, trying to change the

subject.

"Okay," said Grandma Zsa-Zsa sniffling.

"Ta-Da." Stanley said, taking a big risk.

"What is that?" Grandma Zsa-Zsa asked. In her head she was still daydreaming about

Christopher Latham Sholes.

"This is an awesome MacBook Pro! That was invented by Christopher Latham

Sholes.” He lied. “Chrissy likes it so much more than a stinking old typewriter and



that stinking old, what is it called again, oh yeah type ball." Stanley said so out of

breath he would drink anything in this whole world.

"You are a liar!" shouted, Grandma Zsa-Zsa. Liar, liar, liar, liar!

"Oh grandma why do you think that?" he asked, knowing that she was up to

something.

"Oh, I think that because Christopher Latham Sholes died in 1890 and oh well it is

2011. Honestly do you learn in school." she said.

"Well, no, ahhh yes, I do learn in school." Stanley said really embarrassed.

"Liar, liar, liar, Liar." said Grandma again.

Stanley went to his room so embarrassed that he was about to cry. "Why does

Grandma never appreciate what I give her and do for her," he whispered to himself.

That night Stanley went down stairs for dinner. Grandma made his favorite meal

because she wanted to apologies for being angry with him that afternoon and she did

really like her new MacBook Pro. That night they had shake and bake chicken with

noodles and corn, for dessert they had home made vanilla and chocolate swirl cake.

After their amazing dinner they watched the first Harry Potter and then went to bed.

Grandma Zsa-Zsa couldn't go to sleep she was thinking of her beloved typewriter.

"Maybe I should try out the new thing that Stanley gave me." she whispered to

herself. Grandma Zsa-Zsa didn't even know what a MacBook Pro was.



In the morning Grandma Zsa-Zsa was making a pot of tea, she made English

Breakfast which was her favorite. Grandma Zsa-Zsa popped two english muffins in

the toaster one for her and one for her dear grandson Stanley.

Stanley was the paper boy. It was a Sunday and he could not wait until he could teach

his grandmother how to use the awesome MacBook Pro. He went home and… "Oh

no!"

I’m sorry Stanley said Grandma Zsa Zsa, I didn’t know. It was an accident.

30 minutes earlier.

Grandma Zsa Zsa was at home making tea when she decided she wanted to check out

her new laptop. She pressed the button on the right hand side of the computer and it

turned on. She loved the sound of the connection to the internet. Grandma now

decided that she loved it much more than that ruddy old typewriter. Sadly that did

not happen. What actually occurred was …

Grandma Zsa Zsa was making a pot of tea. She heard the whistle of the tea kettle.

She poured the hot water into a large mug and then added her favorite tea bag,

English Breakfast. Grandma then brought her mug over to the computer and then

pressed the button that she thought looked the most important on the right hand side

of the computer. She heard the blissful squeaking sound of the computer. The screen



saver popped up with wonderful pinks and purples, her favorite colors. Wow, she

said. Grandma then picked up her mug to take a sip of tea. But then, the mug slipped

and every drop of boiling liquid flooded the keyboard of her MacBook Pro.

At that moment, Stanley walked in. He saw the major damage that his Grandmother

had inflicted on her new computer. ”What have you done!” He shouted.

“It was an accident,” she said. He was tired of listening to all of her apologies. He

angrily said goodbye to his Grandma. He left the house with no jacket in the freezing

cold. Stanley was so angry at his Grandmother that he wanted to explode. He

wanted to run and keep on running just like Forrest Gump. He wanted to get as far

away as possible from that old pink house where his clumsy Grandmother lived.

Four hours later.

It started to snow. Stanley was sitting outside on the curb freezing cold. What he

wanted more than anything was to be sitting by the fire having a cup of hot cocoa

with Grandma Zsa Zsa. He also fancied a slice of Grandma’s vanilla chocolate swirl

cake that she baked last night.

Meanwhile, Grandma Zsa Zsa was sitting in her big old pink armchair watching soap

operas and finishing every bite of her cake.



Stanley wanted to apologize so badly for the way he behaved that afternoon. But

then thought ‘No, I don’t want to apologize… She ruined an expensive computer that

I bought for her.’ Stanley did want to somehow fix the situation. He was trying to

think of something he could get Grandma Zsa Zsa that she really wanted. The only

thing that popped into his head was something they don’t even make anymore. A

type ball.

Part Two

The Adventure at the Museum

Stanley took the train to New York. His parents lived there. He wanted to go

back home to stay at his apartment with his parents. He was just at his grandmothers

visiting for Christmas break. Stanley then arrived in Grand Central Station, (he loved

it there). He got off the train and many people were pushing and shoving as usual. He

then saw a little second hand shop which was in Grand Central Station,which had a

winter coat that looked about his size. He stepped in and saw many things that were

second hand and wondered if they had a type ball. Stanley asked the shopkeeper if

the shop had a type ball, but sadly no. Stanley was sure that the shopkeeper didn’t

even know what a type ball was. The shopkeeper asked if he needed anything else.

Then the shopkeeper noticed that Stanley had no coat on and she said that she would

give him the one he wanted for free because it was freezing outside. Stanley thanked

the shopkeeper and then left with his warm winter coat on.



Half an hour later.

Stanley was walking along the streets and then he saw a flier it said that it was the

opening of the Christopher Latham Sholes exhibition in the Metropolitan Museum of

Art. It also said it had portraits of him and some old pieces that belonged to the

typewriter!

“Bingo!” shouted Stanley. Ten to fifteen people probably heard him.

Stanley ran to the museum, he knew where it was. He had been there many times

when he was a little boy.

Stanley finally got there out of breath. Stanley went to the members entrance,

showed the lady at the counter his membership card and then got the pin. The

Metropolitan Museum of Art is a public museum but his mother worked there on

Tuesdays and was a member, so he could go on private tours and presentations.

Stanley walked in the magnificent great hall and then sat on one of the benches. He

had to make a plan to somehow get the type ball, but how? All exhibitions are always

fully protected by security. Stanley thought and thought and thought. What to do,

what to do, what to do? Stanley then thought of something in his mind. He would go

in the bathroom and then stand on the toilet seat until the museum was shut down. He

thought some more and then realized that he didn’t even know if the exhibition had a

type ball. Stanley saw a big poster which said, ‘Christopher Latham Sholes



Exhibition.’ He followed it and then found himself in a huge room with many

portraits of Sholes. Stanley walked around a bit and then saw a gold looking ball. He

read the little description of it, and there it was, the very first type ball. The problem

was that it was covered with a glass case and if you broke it a loud alarm would go

off. All the security guards would know where it was and then straight to jail for

Stanley.

“Oh wow.” Said Stanley in his head. He then remembered the secret passage that his

mother had showed him. It was really just a hallway with a lot of closets and…

A really cool room where every glass case is labeled and then you find which case

you want and pull a lever and the item goes down like a little elevator then you go to

the basement and collect it. Stanley had a plan.

Night came and Stanley was in the bathroom standing on the toilet so none of the

guards could see his feet. He heard the last warning about the museum closing and he

waited. Someone came in the bathroom, it was a guard. Stanley was really scared.

Luckily the guard didn’t open the door. About ten minutes later Stanley came out of

the bathroom. He crept down to the Egyptian exhibition and smashed the case of one

of those old crowns from Egypt and that big alarm went off, RING, RING, RING. All

of the guards came rushing in, but Stanley was already in the secret passage. (He got

in from his card.) Stanley was running down the hall, he got to a closet and took an

electric screw driver and undid the sides of the password pad of the room. He looked



at a big screen with all the cameras and saw all the guards still at the Egyptian crown.

He just did that because he didn’t want any of the guards at the Sholes exhibition.

Stanley then found a camera facing the type ball. He then pulled a lever and saw it go

down with the glass case with no damage done. Stanley went down the steps and saw

it down on that mini elevator. He picked it up. He felt a little lump in his jean pocket

that he never felt before. He pulled the thing out and it was his grandma’s old type

ball that he picked up yesterday afternoon. He put that one in the glass case and went

up the steps with the new type ball. He pulled the lever back up so grandma’s old

type ball went up in that mini elevator. Stanley screwed the password pad back on, so

no one would know that anyone broke in. Stanley found an extra guard jacket and put

it on. He crept out of the museum and took the train home to grandmas.

Happy Grandma

In the morning Grandma Zsa-Zsa was so happy to see Stanley. Then Stanley

handed the type ball to Grandma Zsa-Zsa. She looked at the ball which had the

signature of Christopher Latham Sholes engraved on it. He winked at her. “Happy

Grandma?” asked Stanley with a smile.

A Big Risk For The One And Only Type Ball by Gwen

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