Blogs - 2017 - March 2 Gemstones 6 Misspellings 4 · containing the most valuable items that need extra security. The most alluring was the Aurora Pyramid of Hope, a collection of

Images & Text © Beryl L Pratt www.long-live-pitmans-shorthand-reading.org.uk

2017 March p1 A of 18Blog Archive Pitman’s New Era Shorthand


2017 March p1 B of 18Blog Archive Pitman’s New Era Shorthand

2 Gemstones

6 Misspellings 4

10 Perfect For The Job

16 Flowery Language

PDF Date: 26 April2020

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Blogs - 2017 - March

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Gemstones

I have rows of gems* on the bookshelvesin front of me above my computer. Theyare like gold dust to me, but they are notmade of gold nor are they particularly rareor expensive. They are a girl’s best friendbut they are not diamonds*. Some aresplendidly coloured but most of them arequite dull and uninteresting looking on theoutside. They are all my shorthand books,old and modern, my treasures that enableme to take various shorthand journeys forwhatever I want to know. Most of them aresecond hand, as I wasn’t around in theeighteen hundreds or early twentiethcentury to buy them new! I still have some

of the books I learned from in the nineteenseventies, which were bought new, apocket dictionary, a phrasing book and thebig red dictionary. This last one has nowbeen retired off, having fallen into severalfragments, finished off by its extensive usein the early years of the websites. Areplacement has now taken its place, asthere is no let-up in searching for andchecking on correct outlines.

* "gem" "diamond" Always insert thetriphone in "diamond" as these could besimilar when hastily written

Gemstones

A week ago we visited the Natural HistoryMuseum in central London where we sawmany real gemstones. We wanted to seesome historical wildlife paintings that wereon a time limited display. Having seenthose, we had a mind to revisit thedinosaurs nearby but the place seemed tobe filling up rapidly with crowds of schoolchildren on their school trips, so instead wewent upstairs to the minerals department.It was quite a contrast there, we had it to

ourselves most of the time, empty andquiet, with row upon row of flat glass casescontaining every mineral in existence, in alltheir varied forms. We had to bemethodical about viewing it all, so wedecided to go up one side and down theother. In the end we managed to see abouta third of it and decided to save the rest foranother day rather than cram in a tour ofall the cases.





Gemstones

As we came through the doorway,immediately in the centre is a very largedeep blue topaz, the Ostro Stone, weighingabout 2 kilograms, which has been treatedto give it a deeper colour. It is about thesize of my hand, and gleams and shinesunder its spotlights. We turned right andstarted with the vertical cases against theend wall. What a surprise, a truly*enormous natural nugget* of gold, at leasttwo feet high. I mused on how the decisionwas made to either keep it as it is, a rarefind, or to actually use the gold. Then Iread the caption, it was a model, and theoriginal had been melted down. The realnugget was called the Welcome Stranger,found in Australia in 1859, weighing 71.4kilograms and it would be worth aroundhalf a million pounds today. The Greek poetPindar* (5th century BC) described gold as

a mythological personage "Gold is the child ofZeus, neither moth nor rust devours it but themind of man is devoured." Unfortunately* itcan also devour the landscape and its health,with certain mining techniques that consumevast quantities of rock to gain small amountsof gold, or the methods that use mercury orcyanide to release the gold from the ore,especially harmful if unregulated.

* "truly" Helpful to insert the first vowel, asthis could look similar to "utterly"

* "nugget" Note that "ingot" is written withfull N+G+T strokes, to differentiate

* "Pindar" This is the dictionary outline, but Iwould prefer to write with all full strokes(P+N+D+Ar), so that the second vowel can beshown, otherwise this could equally be "Pinder"or "Pinter"

* "Unfortunately" Optional contraction

Gemstones

There were many examples of polishedgemstones, displayed alongside samples oftheir original state, dull rocks looking greyand lumpen, with no hint of what lay insideto the casual and ignorant observer. I wasof course on the hunt for beryls of all types,and found every variation from small cutgems to enormous murky lookingcrystalline structures. My shorthanddictionary defines it as a kind of inferioremerald. In its pure form it is colourlessand the colours come from impurities in themineral. I was interested to discover that inthe 13th century the first eyeglasses were

made of beryl or rock crystal, before theyhad the knowledge to make lenses of glass,hence the German word for them "Brille".The word means a sea-green blue colour,and the mineral is related to theaquamarine. To prevent myself being aninferior green version, I only need to runround the block and then I become a veryrare and expensive red beryl. As theelement beryllium, I am happy to aim forstrong and lightweight but keen to avoidbeing steely grey and toxic. It might alsobe a disadvantage for me to be transparentto X-rays.





Gemstones

At the far end of the hall is The Vault, astrengthened secure circular roomcontaining the most valuable items thatneed extra security. The most alluring wasthe Aurora Pyramid of Hope, a collection of296 small diamonds in every availablecolour, collected over a 25 year period, anddisplayed in a triangle formation. Thelighting changes from normal to ultra-violet,to bring out the changing colours. If youare going to collect every colour of diamond,then it makes sense not to aim for the bigones! We also saw some meteorites of Marsrock, and a small vial containing a smudgeof white powder, which is a tiny quantity of

microscopic diamonds obtained frommeteorites. Three very dull rocks suddenlybecame rather interesting when I saw alarge clear diamond sticking out of each ofthem. This is another type of rarity, in thatthe original find has been left intact and thegem not removed. Some larger diamondswere displayed at the other end of the hall,large, clear, and cut into various facetedshapes. I should have realised that theywere replicas before I read the labels, andthat such a collection of whoppers wouldnot be lying around in ordinary museumcases.

Gemstones

The study of minerals is called mineralogy*and the persons are mineralogists and theydo mineralogical work. The ores are minedby miners or mineworkers, who may spendtheir life in the mining industry, extracting*coal and metallic and other ores. The wordore is related to the word earth. Study ofrocks in general is geology, and geologicalactivities are carried on by geologists. Thescience of gems and precious stones iscalled gemmology. The most well-knowngems are as follows: amethyst,aquamarine, citrine, diamond, emerald,garnet, jade, jasper, marcasite (anothername for iron pyrite), onyx, opal, quartz,ruby, sapphire, topaz, tourmaline, tiger’seye, turquoise, zircon. Note that granitehas a different outline from garnet, and

that silver and sulphur should have theirvowels written in. Amber is tree resin fromancient forests that became fossilizedthrough polymerisation. Jet is the fossilisedwood of certain trees. Coral and pearl arefrom animal origins. Some gems can beartificially created by growing them ascrystals, or treating natural ones toproduce different colours.

* "mineralogy" The second version shownis an optional contraction

* "extracting" Insert the middle vowel, andthe second or third vowel in "extricating",as these have the same outline and similarmeaning





Gemstones

As a child I was entranced by jewellery, notto wear but to just possess and admire. Idid not actually collect it but I would oftenfind a few bits of broken jewellery atjumble sales. I was given a few coins and Ihad to pay the person myself, this was inthe hopes that they would only charge apenny or two, which they invariably did. Ijust wanted to look at the stones and silver

coloured settings, so it was irrelevant ifthey were broken. Sometimes I wonder if areal diamond or gold setting ever passedthrough my hands, without any of us beingaware of it. As time went by, I came to theconclusion that you could not really doanything with these items, or even realdiamonds for that matter, other than gazeat them, and so interest waned.

Gemstones

My attention turned to my own version oftreasure, this being colourful flowers, whichseemed more precious as they would soondisappear and never stayed with us. WhenI moved to a house with my own garden, Ibecame more patient and only had to waitfor them to return the next year. They arealways fresh and perfect, with a widerrange of colours than the diamondcollection mentioned earlier, and everyonecan have their own at little cost. Maybe Ishould be growing a rose called WhiteDiamond, Silver Shadow, Golden Showers,Ruby Celebration or Eye Of The Tiger. Or

perhaps Little Gem lettuce would becheaper and easier, and instead ofadmiring it I could have it on the dinnerplate: one gemstone eating another. (1422words)

Reminder of pairs to be differentiated:

gem/diamondgarnet/granitenugget/ingotsilver/sulphurextract/extricatetruly/utterly





Misspellings 4

Here are some more commonly misspelled*words. Converting speech to shorthand alltakes place in the logical and orderly worldof hearing groups of meaningful sounds(phonemes) and representing them insequence along the lines of the notepad.Typing out your notes is rather different,your perfect world where sign and soundmatch is replaced by converting eachoutline to a learned spelling, quite oftenmore of a visual clue to the word, than anexact representation of its sounds. When

looking up outlines in the shorthanddictionary, it pays to be diligent with thespellings as well, so that both skillsprogress together. When the spell checkshows up the red underlines, it is time topractise typing the correct versions, andeven plain old keyboarding errors benefitfrom this, in order to* retrain the fingers.

* "misspelled" Note that "misspelt" usesupward halved normal L

Misspellings 4

It can be rather difficult to fit all thesewords into practice sentences, so I haveasked the effusive but reliable Mr Speller tocontribute some pages from his inimitablediary, where one never knows quite whathe is going to get up to next, but we are

nevertheless glad that he takes the time torecord almost everything that he does. Heclearly works for a publisher of Englishdictionaries and has swallowed more than afew in his time.





Misspellings 4

Dear Diary, This fine weather has been acracking start to the month of March, asduring FEBRUARY we had A LOT of ARCTICweather with CHANGEABLE conditions andADVICE from the weather BUREAU to takeprecautions to ADDRESS the problems itwas causing. Fortunately myACCOMMODATION remained at anACCEPTABLE temperature and thepostman* could still deliver my

CORRESPONDENCE on his BICYCLE despitethe snow. APPARENTLY there had beensome AGGRESSION between NEIGHBOURSin the icy conditions but I hear they havebeen ACQUITTED by the court and weDEFINITELY won’t be seeing a repeat ofthat or anything like it OCCURRING again.

* "postman" Omits the lightly sounded T

Misspellings 4

Last week* I met up with COLONEL* Smithwho is well-known in the world ofCOLLECTIBLES for his interest inACQUIRING carved plum stone KERNELS.He has written a book on ATHEISM andanother on the SCIENCE of growingBROCCOLI and also contributes a regularCOLUMN in a local magazine. The last onewas a HUMOROUS account of the antics ofthe BELLWETHER and other sheep on his

farm and their PERSEVERANCE in the faceof a very PERSISTENT and FIERY sheep dogcalled KETCHUP who HARASSES themduring their ODYSSEYS over the hills andHEIGHTS of the area.

* Omission phrase "las(t w)eek"

* "Colonel" Written as pronounced, ignoringthe first L of the longhand





Misspellings 4

Work at the office has been going well andthere is much CAMARADERIE amongst myCOLLEAGUES. The CONSENSUS is that weare a COMMITTED team, DEFINITELY worthmore than our MEDIOCRE wages, and thatit would be DISASTROUS for the companyif we were to RECOMMEND that the staffnever EXCEEDED their duties and refusedextra MISCELLANEOUS projects that take*up their lunch breaks. However, after ouralmost SACRILEGIOUS remarks on beingpaid a positively MEDIEVAL wage, we wereEXHILARATED to discover that our hardwork and DISCIPLINE, carried out* soSINCERELY and without PREJUDICE, hasMYSTERIOUSLY come under theJUDGEMENT of the chief accountant. Heordered an IMMEDIATE pay rise for all

PERSONNEL which will bring an end to ourfinancial EMBARRASSMENT and gives usconfidence that BASICALLY everythingwould now be ALL RIGHT in our personallives.

* "take" Insert the vowel, because as thisis a narrative "took" could also make sense,but generally this common word would notneed a vowel written in

* "carried out" Halving to represent the Tof "out"

* "judgement" Preferred British spelling,although "judgment" is preferred in USA orfor British legal documents

Misspellings 4

On WEDNESDAY I had dinner at theMILLENNIUM Restaurant with SERGEANTJones, the uncle of my DECEASED aunt,who died from eating a DISEASED fruit. Hewas a PROFESSOR of MATHEMATICS, whichin England is known as MATHS* for shortand in the United States* as MATH*. Heeventually became PRINCIPAL of thecollege. He had a FASCINATION withweight training and had invented a DEVICEto improve the DUMBBELL and otherEQUIPMENT. However one day heMISGAUGED the weights, DECEIVEDhimself over his strength and hurt his back,and so began a DESCENT into DISASTERfilled circumstances. Over our coffee and a

delicious RASPBERRY and PUMPKIN pie, IADVISED him to take the ADVICE of hisdoctor and resume his former career in theJEWELLERY trade and in future be moreJEALOUS to take SPECIAL care of his health.Finally we RECEIVED* the restaurantRECEIPT and we concluded our FRIENDLYafternoon LIAISON.

* Omission phrases "we (re)ceived""(U)n(ited) S(tate)s"

* "maths, math" Always insert the vowel,so these are not mistaken for thecontractions "mathematics" and

"mathematical/ly"





Misspellings 4

I was pleased to RECEIVE a letter from aPLAYWRIGHT* friend of mine, who haswritten a book on the PRINCIPLES of stageproduction, with a guide toPRONUNCIATION, RHYTHM and the comicuse of RHYME. For those who feel theyPREFER this type of career, he has includeda QUESTIONNAIRE* at the back to givethem a THOROUGH understanding of thetrade. He said that THEY’RE* not going toget far unless THEIR enquiries arePRECEDED by a CONSCIENTIOUS study ofthe subject. He said that BUILDING YOURlibrary of information is the only way toPROCEED if YOU’RE* interested in thisPROFESSION. He states IT’S not rocketSCIENCE or NUCLEAR physics, andinforming oneself* is the best way* toINOCULATE* oneself* against ITSdisappointments.

* "playwright" The "wright" is related to"work/wrought" and means aworker/maker/builder, avoid themisspelling using "-write"

* "questionnaire" Note the outline for"questioner" omits the circle vowel

* "they're" "you're" Apostrophied phrasesalways have the vowel written in

* Omission phrases "wu(n)self" "bes(t)way"

* "inoculate" Strictly speaking it is thehalved L that should be resting on the line,but it is more sensible to let the N sit onthe line rather than lowering it slightly, as itbegins the outline

Misspellings 4

Recently the firm’s medical ADVISER* andhealth COUNSELLOR* both advised me totake a break, and this was endorsed byCOUNCILLOR* Brown. So the end of themonth saw me CEASE from my labours inthe office and SEIZE the opportunity totake a SIZEABLE chunk of my holidayentitlement on my YACHT on the high seas.It was quite NECESSARY after all my hardwork and UNNECESSARY to stay in theoffice. Mr Green will be AVAILABLE to standin for me, and I will have a whole monthentirely UNAVAILABLE to answer emails. Ihave decided to LOOSE the bonds ofbusiness life and LOSE myself in thepleasures of sea, sun, sand and SANDALS.I BELIEVE I can manage without emails butcannot GUARANTEE that I will notACCIDENTALLY view one or two* on thephone. I will sail to FOREIGN shores andspend my LEISURE hours on the beaches. I

hope* to OCCASIONALLY write more in mydiary whenever there is an OCCURRENCE ofsomething NOTICEABLE, a habit* which ishighly RECOMMENDED. (1015 words)

* "adviser" This is the correct spelling,although the (formerly) erroneous "advisor"is gaining ground

* "counsellor" is a person who givescounsel/advice

* "councillor" is someone who is a memberof a council/administrative group

* Omission phrases "one (or) two" "I(h)ope"

* "habit" "hobby" Helpful to insert the firstvowel, as these are similar in outline andmeaning





Perfect For The Job

Mr Perfect has decided to apply for a newjob to further his career. He is convincedthat using the right terminology will helphim stand out from all the other candidatesand jobseekers, and get him on theinterview shortlist. He has of course studiedshorthand to add to his impressive array oftalents and has used his vocabulary list forthis particular subject to flesh out hisapplication letter and snag his dream job.Here is the job advert* to which he isreplying, which appears to have been

written by someone with a similar list ofjargon, buzzwords and clichés that aredoing the rounds at the moment*, and Iam sure Mr Perfect will fit into thisenvironment perfectly.

* "advert" Helpful to insert the first vowel,as this full outline is similar to thecontraction for "advertise/d/ment"

* Omission phrase "at (the) moment"

Perfect For The Job

We are a very successful tech* start-upcompany, with a wide range of activitiesand a top notch market position. Ourexciting and inspirational managementteam have established a prestigious andinfluential business which is set to become*the prominent* leader in its field in a shortspace of time*. Our resounding successmeans that we are now looking to increaseour staffing levels in our InformationTechnology and Computing department andwe are seeking a highly qualified,committed and confident individual to joinour brilliant team of busy, imaginative andforward thinking Technical Engineers.

* "tech" It is possible to use this firstsyllable in an omission phrase e.g.

"tech(nical) college", so always write theverbal shortening "tech" on its own, not ina phrase

* "to become" Based on the short formphrase "to be"

* "prominent" See www.long-live-pitmans-shorthand.org.uk/distinguishing-outlines-2-rule.htm "prominent permanent pre-eminent"

* Omission phrase "short space (of) time"

https://www.long-live-pitmans-shorthand.org.uk/distinguishing-outlines-2-rule.htm







Perfect For The Job

You will be working in a fun, vibrant andbuzzy* environment, ably led by a go-getting* high-flying operations manager.You will need to be an incredibly* dynamic,outgoing, passionate* and energisedperson with impressive qualifications andexperience, able to work in a fast-pacedrole with ever-changing priorities anddeadlines, which is not for the faint-hearted.You will be an integral member of a superfriendly team, under an ultra-demandingyet inspirational team leader. You will bepart of a close-knit group of individuals, inan exceptionally* creative environment,producing innovative ideas from their richpool of talent and experience.

* "buzzy" Insert vowel, so it is not misreadas "busy"

* "go-getting" Uses the short form "go" sono vowel needed there

* "incredibly" "exceptionally" Insert the lastvowel, as "incredible" "exceptional" couldalso make sense here

* "passionate" Compare with the outline for"patient" P+Upward Ish+Nt

Perfect For The Job

This post will start as part-time, with a viewto becoming* full-time, or we mayconsider* a short or long-term* contractfor the right person. We have a gradedsalary band, with plenty of opportunity torise to the top and enjoy the due rewardsof super-efficiency* and solid achievement.Our new offices are ultra-smart and super-funky, as befits the professionalism of ourslick and goal-driven organisation. The jobbase location has excellent transport linksto both the city and the exclusive andprosperous commuter* belt on theoutskirts of this vibrant and happeninglocation.

* "to becoming" Based on the short formphrase "to be"

* Omission phrase "may (con)sider"

* "long-term" Keep the Ing proper length,to prevent misreading as "longer"

* "super-efficiency" In this sentence"efficient" could also make sense, so itwould be helpful to insert a dot vowel atthe end, although this is not strict theory

* "commuter" Keep the dot and vowel clear,as "outer" would make sense in this context





Perfect For The Job

The key benefits and perks includeprovision of a company car, generouspension scheme, flexible holidayentitlement, and bonuses for superiorperformance and target achievements. Ourhuman* resources staff can give advice oncareer enhancement programmes andmentoring, child day-care options andchoices in flexible working programmes.

Package details will vary subject tonegotiation. Apply now for this fantasticopportunity for self-advancement in thepioneering and cutting-edge world ofcomputer development.

* "human" Special outline, above the lineto accord with the last vowel, and "humane"is written on the line

Perfect For The Job

Dear Sirs, I would like to apply for the postof Technical Engineer in your city office. Iam confident that I have the necessaryqualities to fulfil the role requirements. Iam a highly trained and extremelydisciplined individual, who is genuinelypassionate about this industry. I haveexcellent computing and numerical skills,

and I am a super-user of database andspreadsheet programmes, computertroubleshooting and programminglanguages. I am degree educated inadvanced computer science but alsocommercially savvy, having gainedconsiderable experience in organisationaland communication skills.





Perfect For The Job

My main strength is my problem solvingability. I am a solutions driven person andpositively thrive in a dynamic, lively andenergetic situation. I can assure you I willhit the ground running, and I have anhonest and frank muck-in attitude. I alwaysstrive for perfection to the best of myability* and have a strong sense ofinitiative, as well as being an excellentcommunicator. I am a super switched-onteam player and totally driven to achievethe highest quality of work and output. Iam well able to multi-task with rapidlychanging priorities. I am not fazed by lastminute* changes and always have acontingency plan up my sleeve so that I amalways on top of the game. I am bright,sharp, dedicated*, capable, ambitious andadaptable*. I aim to facilitate every aspect

of the work for my fellow technicians,colleagues and superiors.

* Omission phrase "bes(t of) my ability"Using the B stroke for the suffix "-ability"as the whole word

* Omission phrase "las(t) minute" Keep theT straight, so it does not look like "lastmonth"

* "dedicated" "educated" Helpful to insert avowel, as these are similar and could bothmake sense in this context

* "adaptable" Always insert the vowel afterthe D in "adopt" and "adapt" andderivatives

Perfect For The Job

I have a gritty determination to provideoutstanding performance, acute attentionto detail, and critical appraisal of mycompleted assignments. I am sure I willstand out in your estimation as a one in amillion person of the highest calibre, withproven 5-star skills, and will certainly liveup to your requirement for that special

someone who has the X Factor. I am not aone-trick hotshot but a person of provenintelligence who can work under pressure,able to handle anything and anticipateneeds ahead of time. I will be a credible,honest, enthusiastic and articulate memberof your team of technically competent andtalented people.





Perfect For The Job

I have a strong academic record andadvanced computing technology skills. Ihave gained nationally* recognisedqualifications for this post and have arecord of proven experience in the field. Ihave worked in varied, busy anddemanding roles, adhering to the higheststandards and ensuring that everythingflows seamlessly. I have a solid backgroundof keeping up with an intense diary ofcommitments, working to tight deadlines,juggling priorities, and rising to thechallenge of the role responsibilities*. Ibelieve I am the ideal candidate for this

challenging, meaty and rewarding post,which I would perform with supremeefficiency. I attach my CV for your perusalwhich lists my qualifications and workexperiences, and people willing to givecharacter references. Yours most sincerely,Mr I B Perfect

* "nationally" Insert the last vowel, as"national" would also make sense

* "responsibilities" The contraction is onlyused for the singular

Perfect For The Job

Mr Perfect’s sister is not so high flying, andbeing more of a slow but reliable anddependable plodder, she has come to theconclusion* that a reasonably sedate andcalm administrative* role would suit hertemperament much better than herbrother’s more ambitious ideals. She hasdecided to post her details on a CV websiteand see if there is a good response* ratefrom prospective employers. It wouldappear that her brother has been helpingher to compose her write-up, using all the

words and phrases that he felt were notquite suitable for his own application.

* Omission phrase "come (to thecon)clusion"

* "administrative" Omits the R

* "response" Always insert the secondvowel, so that it is never misread as

"responsibility"





Perfect For The Job

I am seeking an administrative* post whereI can use my extensive experience in theday-to-day running of an office situation. Ihave a flexible attitude to work and canwork on my own initiative, and I aim to bea true right hand support to my immediatesuperior. I have the capacity to performwell under pressure, and although Iunderstand the stresses and strains thiscan bring to the environment, I amextremely well organised and able toimplement the best ideas and methods toprioritise my workload. I am always able toachieve a flawless presentation of the work

required in such circumstances. I am calmand approachable, with bags of commonsense, a good humoured* and can-do* attitude, and excellent interpersonalskills.

* "administrative" Omits the R

* "can-do" Using both short forms

* "humoured" The M is not thickened, thatwould be a halved "Imper/Imber" strokee.g. "hampered"

Perfect For The Job

I have a good grasp of both governmentaland commercial environments, and can bea complete lynch-pin in my area ofresponsibility. My communication skills aresecond to none, enabling me to achieve therequired business and commercialobjectives. I am able to provide highlypolished presentations, both in writing, andat meetings, events and conferences, withan emphasis on meticulous* and well-presented facts and figures*, and otherrelevant information. I have maturity andgravitas, an impeccable andimmaculate* dress sense, and a helpful andfriendly telephone manner. I will provide anextremely warm, personable* and helpfulapproach, and liaise articulately andintelligently with staff, clients and

customers. I know how to deal withsensitive and confidential information in adiscreet and totally respectful manner, andmy loyalty and discretion will beunquestionable.

* "meticulous" "immaculate" These couldlook similar if not neatly written, and theirmeanings are close as well

* Omission phrase "fac(t)s (and) figures".If this sentence had been "facts, figuresand other relevant information" then youwould not use the phrase.

* "personable" Insert the dash vowel, as itis similar in outline and meaning to

"presentable"





Perfect For The Job

I have previously worked at a recruitmentagency* and an out-placement organisation.I supervised the creation of a resettlementprogramme, running employability and lifeskills courses, and this has given me theexperience to deal with people at all levels.If you require a well-presented, well-rounded, resilient, exceptionally competentand confident person, with an outstandinglymature attitude, to provide traditionaladministrative and secretarial support andbackup, I have the requisite* qualities and

skills to accomplish this for you, as anintegral part of your team, thuscontributing to the smooth and super-efficient running and ultimate success ofyour organisation. (1415 words)

* "agency" Note that "agent" uses hook N

* "requisite" Insert the last vowel, as it issimilar in outline and meaning to

"requested"

Flowery Language

I like a good idiom. It provides animaginative and visual element tootherwise dull writing. It has limited use inbusiness writing but it is an important partof how people speak in normal daily life,and, when spoken, some shorthand writersomewhere may have to write it down andread it back, without being floored by anunusual or figurative use of words. Being agardener as well as a shorthand devotee, Ihave decided to grasp the nettle andindulge in a few botanical figures ofspeech*. After all, a tree is known by itsfruit and budding shorthand writers* who

decide to turn over a new leaf, turf out thelonghand, weed out their mistakes and putdown roots into their chosen subject, willsoon get to the top of their tree.

* "floored" i.e. brought to the floor. Not tobe confused with "flawed" which meanshaving a flaw/defect/fault. The outline for

"flawed" has no R in it = FL + D.

* "Figures of speech" Only use the omissionphrase for the singular "figure (of) speech"

* Omission phrase "short(hand) writers"





Flowery Language

They do not allow themselves to become* awallflower, but instead they blossom outand let their success spread like weeds,and end up being the pick of the bunch andthe cream of the crop. They made adecision to go out on a limb, at firstworking against the grain, with the olddeep-rooted longhand trying to lead themup the garden path, but the new way ofwriting took root and eventually they feel

they are out of the woods. You may hearthrough the grapevine that the seeds ofdoubt that were sown were found to be notworth a straw. After their study they hit thehay, sleep like a log and rise in the morningas fresh as a daisy.

* "to become" Based on the short formphrase "to be"

Flowery Language

However, with all the theory learning, theymight not see the wood for the trees, but ifthey refuse to let the grass grow undertheir feet, they will find that it all becomesas easy as falling off a log. It may not beall roses, and friends may say that they arewandering up the primrose path orbarking* up the wrong tree. But flourishingshorthand students* will not beat about thebush, they will nip in the bud all suchnonsense from those who seem to have gothold of the wrong end of the stick. They will

not really care a fig for such comments andwill not tolerate such thorns in the flesh,although they will continue to hold out theolive branch to these men of straw, whoare really just reeds shaken by the wind.

* "barking" Not tree bark, but refers todogs barking at a tree in which their quarryis hiding

* Omission phrase "shorthand s(t)udents"





Flowery Language

The best shorthand students* are not lily-livered or shrinking violets and no-onecould call them a clod when it comes togetting down all the flowery speech. Theirshorthand is in the bloom of youth and withpractice it has become as easy as shelling*peas. Even if they are a late bloomer, it willbe many decades before they run to seed,get put out to grass and start pushing upthe daisies. On the contrary* they are ontheir way to reaping a rich harvest. Theyhave finally found out that not only is the

grass greener on the other side*, but theyare now in clover and what seemed like abed of thorns has turned into a bed ofroses. (655 words)

* Omission phrase "shorthand s(t)udents""on (the con)trary" "on the oth(er) side"

* "shelling" Compare with the noun"shilling" which uses the upward Shel stroke

Flowery Language

Nevertheless, one must not* rest on one’slaurels, or one may find oneself* clutchingat straws in a test, shaking like a leaf, andwell and truly up a gum tree. An exam isnot the place to be rooted to the spot andmaking a mistake* that turns out to be thelast straw. It is best to avoid* a big stickpolicy and instead choose the morepleasant route of taking a leaf out of theinstructor’s book, leafing through thedictionary and the notepad, instead of justexclaiming Whoops A Daisy and kicking

problems into the long grass. After all, it’s ajungle out there in the job market andemployers are looking for more than justthe common or garden variety of worker.

* "must not" "mistake" These omit the T

* "oneself" Omits the N

* "avoid" and "evade" Always insert thesecond vowel, as these are similar inoutline and meaning

Documents

Blogs - 2017 - March 2 Gemstones 6 Misspellings 4 · containing the most valuable items that need extra security. The most alluring was the Aurora Pyramid of Hope, a collection of