The Beginning

I started this blog as a journal of putting myself first. Life got in the way and, while I did achieve some of my goals that year (2016), I was not able to keep up my blog/journal about it. Like many others, I want to share my story to help other people through their journey. But also to find kindred spirits.

For now, this blog is a hodge-podge of things that don't fit with other blogs I've had plans for. We'll see how it grows as time goes on.

Shorthand

I have always been fascinated by shorthand. And there are so many systems available to learn today, but resources are not often available for aiding in practice. For example, the advice of many of the systems and today's websites recommend reading well-written material in your system of choice. Unfortunately, the only resources available that are written in shorthand are written in Gregg Shorthand. While I think very highly of Gregg, especially since it's been around for over 100 years, it doesn't suit my purposes.

I have longed to write my journals and notes in a simple phonetic system that looks nice and will be as easy to decipher next year (or longer) as is was to write it today.

This is my only purpose is wanting to master a shorthand system. I don't take meeting notes (I type fast enough that I could easily do that on a Chromebook). I don't record court proceedings or medical chart notes. I just want something that adds a feeling of privacy to my notes and journals.

Maybe I'm a little conceited, but I imagine that 100 years from now, someone will find my boxes of journals and wonder what life was like "way back then." I also write for my kids, and their children. I like to believe that, no matter what changes the world undergoes, we are still human and we still struggle with the same things - self-value, self-esteem, and self-discipline.

Speedwriting Shorthand

I first learned Speedwriting Shorthand in high school, and have come back to it many times since then. It is an alphabetic system that has seen several versions over the years, and is very quick to learn (one of the reasons I keep coming back to it). The first rule is to write what you hear. The second, is to omit the medial vowels - all of them.

The biggest flaw, in my case, is that because my goal does not include transcribing it right away, by the time I come back to the notes to read them, the context has been lost and I struggle in re-inserting the vowels. I don't have time for that.

Some may argue that I simply haven't mastered the system. That may be the case, but it causes frustration, nonetheless. Especially since there are no materials out there to practice reading it, besides the materials in the text. I still plan to finish the text and create reading materials for others who might be interested, since the books are still available.

Gregg Shorthand

I have never learned Gregg Shorthand, but I have a manual, and have downloaded many PDF files of other versions of the system. While I have no doubts that Gregg is a wonderful shorthand system, I have doubts that it is what I need. I feel like it's using a cannon in a rifle competition. The benefit is the many valuable resources online today for reading material to learn to recognize the symbols.

Still, much of my writing is not business oriented, and does include many foreign words. I simply want a system I can sound out phonetically. If you are interested in learning Gregg Shorthand, there are a lot of resources online, and several active groups that offer reading materials.

My Solution

I went back to the drawing board and started looking on Google Books for any shorthand manuals. There were quite a few, but this one (The Art of Writing Short-Hand by Thomas Towndrow, 1837) seemed the simplest and looks like exactly what I'm looking for. I hope to post my progress here, as well as reading materials for others who might be interested.