Penmanship Practice – April 2024
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Progress Update
Hello everyone! I started learning Gregg Anniversary FM around 7 February and I’ve just finished assignment 21 today. My reading speed averages around 60 standard-wpm on the most recent assignment. What I’m wondering is whether I should go back over everything and reread all the assignments to build more speed/familiarity or if my time would…
An Iceberg
Richard Henry Dana, Jr. was an American lawyer and politician. As a young man, he enlisted as a merchant marine, where he sailed from Boston to South America. On the way back to California, he went around Cape Horn in the middle of the Antarctic winter, where he experienced storms and the beauty of icebergs….
Spring in Kentucky
James Lane Allen was an American writer. Born in Kentucky, his novels A Kentucky Cardinal and its continuation Aftermath tell the romantic journey of a young Kentucky naturalist, Adam Moss, with a society girl. In this selection from Chapters II and III of the former, he describes the spring season in that part of the…
Eyes
Here is an extract from the book The Conduct of Life, a collection of essays by Ralph Waldo Emerson, transcribed in Simplified Gregg by me for the blog. Attachment: eyes.pdf
Penmanship Practice – March 2024
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Writing Without Looking At The Page
After finishing the Gregg Anniversary Functional Method, I have been getting confident with writing shorthand within my notes, ensuring my proportions stay accurate. However, I still need to look at the outlines as I write otherwise the readability starts to diminish. Any drill or manuals that can help me improve my ability to write shorthand…
Real World Example of Literary Prose
I think this was written in the 1970s, but I’m not sure. The penmanship is mediocre, but it’s a good opportunity to practice reading shorthand written by other people of different skill levels. I’ve written the translation below, so don’t scroll down too far if you want to try translating it yourself first! (Some of…
A Glass of Cold Water
Paul Denton was a fictionalized account based on the life of John B. Denton, a pioneer Methodist preacher from Tennessee who went to Texas in 1837 and became a lawyer. In 1841 he went on to engage in Indian fighting; but unfortunately he was unsuccessful in this endeavor as he was the only Texas resident…
The Natural Bridge
The Natural Bridge is, as the name implies, a natural limestone arch within a gorge formed by Cedar Creek, a 12-mile tributary of the James River in Virginia. While it was once owned by Thomas Jefferson, it is now a state park located approximately 140 west of Richmond and about 200 miles southwest of Washington,…