KEYBOARD HACK

 

 

 

Anyone with a feline of any size, shape or age has most certainly experienced the unexpected loss of data due to the ‘paw print of disappearing info’!

 

Whether it’s a 4 week old kitten or a 4 year old adult, they all gravitate to the keyboard without exception!

 

How many times have I found myself typing away at something important when a momentary distraction makes me turn away. When I look back I am faced with a blank page! Where did it go, all my hard work? Erased by a kitten scrambling across my keyboard chasing a sibling!

 

How often has a sentence or even paragraph disappeared with the pitter patter of tiny feet fleeing over the keyboard or simply an adult paw strategically placed on “Delete”! Or a feline wanting to say hello face to face while you’re working and casually sits on the keyboard to do so.  Poof!  Material gone in less than 6 purrs!

 

Upon proofreading a piece I often come across “Kittenese” in the middle of  zzeeeeggl”’..// a sentence!  What in the world!  How did that get in there!

 

Then, of course, in order to insure being as close as possible to us while we work our cat will assuredly nap on the keyboard.

Try as we might to scold them it never happens. They are simply too cute or endearing to yell at. No. Instead one patiently tries to reconstruct the lost words, sentences and paragraph while the feline is temporarily relocated to the lap.

 

Having three cats of my own and having fostered countless felines for the East Texas SPCA over the last several years my keyboard bloopers have been infinite.

However, I have FINALLY, come up with a solution that actually works! Cats do not like to touch anything sticky. With this in mind I have applied strips of packing tape, with the sticky side up, to the bottom of three sides of my keyboard. Voila! No more paws or pitter patter of tiny feet and no more lost data! The moment they touch the tape they pull back their paw. One touch, two touch and there is no third touch. Now they all walk, run or scamper AROUND the keyboard and nevermore across it! So simple yet a great of ease of mind.

 

No longer do I have to put the keyboard out of reach when I must leave and no more will I find blank pages or “Kittenese” intermingled in my work.

 

There is one slightly sort of annoying setback. It is sticky which means that anything will stick to it. You drop a piece of paper on it and yup, it sticks! Pencil – same thing!  You happen to stretch your arm out, you guessed it. Stuck. The cat will sit too close and his tail will accidentally wop on the tape and you end up with a row of fur on it. But with time, you, as well as your cats, will learn to avoid the immediate sides of your keyboard.

I usually change out the strips of tape every 10 days or so, depending on what may have inadvertently stuck to it during that time. It’s a small price to pay for peace of mind.

 

Besides tape, self-adhesive shelving paper can also be used upside down.

 

Send me pictures and quips about your own cats and their keyboard antics and I’ll happily share them in a Nina Mia blog!

 

Happy felineless typing!

 

 

KEYBOARD HUMOR

 

 

 

 

The End