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April 2014

 

Impatient Gardener

 

Hay Revision Part 1

 

Hay Revision Part 2

 

Hay Revision Part 3

 

Impatient Gardener (7 April 2014)

 


I recently started the task of reclaiming a piece of overgrown garden. It had been beautifully landscaped and planted with choice specimens many years ago, but the shrubs had been allowed to spread, lean and ramble, larger plants had smothered the smaller ones, of which only tiny scraps remained, and grass and invasive plants were everywhere. It seemed necessary to strip it out entirely, but a compromise plan was reached where the good clumps would remain and everything else would go. Despite this perfectly reasonable plan, impatience to see it all tidy and finished began to creep in. The large well-anchored* stumps and romping weeds added their voices to the general air of intimidation. But I am happy to say that* I have had such encounters before and I deafened my ears to their assertions that they were staying* put and could not be shifted without a mechanical digger, a flame-thrower or a crowd of body-builder friends armed with axes and crowbars.

* "anchored" This is identical to the outline for "angered"

* Omission phrase "happy (to) s(ay) that"

* "staying" Not using a diphone, as the "I" sound is included in the Dot Ing

 

Dandelion - invasive loveliness



I remembered* my own little gardening adage, that has seen me through many an arduous task without the necessity for unusual muscle-power, namely that as long as I can snip and saw the plants faster than they can grow, I will win every time - and over time. The doomed plants did not like to hear this, but cheers of support from the good plants, about to be released from their overcrowded existence, helped me to strengthen my resolve with the spade and pruning saw. My other weapon is to imagine that the ground was already clear, and ask myself whether I would put these sorry-looking plants in if they were not already there. The answer is always a definite no, they would not even be considered for a single minute. This always resolves the question for me, and overcomes any hesitation about ripping them out.

* "remembered"
Both present and past tenses would make sense here, so use the optional short dash through the last stroke, to signify past tense in a short form or contraction that has no other method to show the difference
 


Instant daffs

 


If you have ever watched a film where the hero is despatching his enemies in hand-to-hand fighting, you will notice that they appear in an almost endless stream, from different directions, but most conveniently one at a time, thanks to the script writers who ensure that he not only wins but that he does not have to share his victory with lesser players in the story. Spreading out the encounters is a good example to follow in the gardening battles. My plan was to isolate a single job, a single troublesome stump or clump, or one small area, and put every effort into dealing decisively with it. This means that at the end of the day there is something to show for the hard work, with a clear patch and the pile of prunings mounting up in a corner. Thoughts of impatience are held back once again and the next day starts with the encouraging view of yesterday's victory over the chaos.
 


Instant flower

 


The benefit of having to do it in stages is that ideas change as the scene clears, and plans for replanting are revised and improved. This quote made me smile - "The best time to plant a tree is ten years ago" - although with this current task, it is the weeds that have taken this advice and have aggressively ensconced themselves in all the best spots years ago. There is nothing better a gardener likes to do than to set all the lovely plants in their new homes and look forward to seeing them flourish, but there is also nothing worse than failing to prepare the ground and seeing things come up from fragments that should have been removed more thoroughly. From experience, I can now hear these little pieces of plant material talking - "I am going to sit here under the soil, and when you water and feed, I will use it to grow back up, and I will send my biggest roots straight under that huge rock where you can't dig them out!" This brave talk does not last long and the hapless fragments soon join their fellows on the pile.

 


Instant wildlife

 


The worst is now out of the way and the more pleasant parts are next, with the final mature result already being enjoyed in imagination. With just a little more patience, these mental pictures will become reality, and the overgrown mess will be just a memory. Any garden here will revert to tangled oak woodland, if allowed to have its own way. Expensive nursery plants can wear out their welcome, becoming woody and leggy, and crowding out their neighbours, or sometimes just providing too many places amongst their stems and roots for weeds to tuck themselves into. Comparing before and after photos will be an occasional indulgence but the most gratifying result is seeing what can be done with a logical plan and simple, continuous, piecemeal progress, and not with brute strength or expensive professional help and equipment.
 


I hope you are getting on well with your own cultivation endeavours, planting tiny seeds in the shape of dots, dashes, circles and lines, both straight and curved. They will grow up into miniature words, expand into phrases and sentences, and eventually cover entire passages, all in the shade of a giant blossoming Shorthand Tree. You have faithfully watered them with your time and attention, and rigorously weeded out the faulty, shaky and unreliable marks before they gain a foothold. Old bits of stringy invasive longhand have been removed and maybe relocated elsewhere for occasional decorative use. Fortunately you do not need to wait for time and seasons to pass, as gardeners have to, before enjoying the delicious fruits of success. The final agreeable, pleasant and useful outcome will exactly match the effort that has been put in, rather than the even passage of time since the venture was started.
 


Unlike fruits and flowers in the garden, you can keep the results forever, as they will never fade, get lost, damaged, broken or disappear, and, as long as cultivation and development continue, they will grow bigger and better as time passes. However, regular weeding and trimming to shape will be necessary to reach and maintain maximum efficiency. Compared to the initial effort, this is a sedate and pleasant job, definitely not a hardship if done regularly and willingly, and well worth doing in order to* preserve what you have worked so hard to achieve so far. (1049 words)

 

* Omission phrase "in ord(er to)"

 


Shorthand perfection in box hedging at Stockwood Park, Luton

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Hay Revision Part 1 (18 April 2014)

 

 


There is a slight difference between Straw and Hay




This three-part article revises stroke and dot Hay. Where there are several ways to write a sound, I find that these require extra practice on the variations to ensure a quick response during writing. Once you know all the commonest Hay words, you need not stop to think of theory, which indeed one should never have to do when writing shorthand. The Hay methods are only used for the spoken sound and not where the longhand H is silent, as in "honour, ghost, eight, rhyme" or where it modifies another letter to produce a different sound, as in "this, photo, cheap, shop, ohm". I have used a selection of the commoner words from the main website Theory 12 Hay page, and you should refer to that page for further examples. Practising in real sentences is of greater benefit than constantly re-reading theory. You will need to know the outlines instantly during writing, without reference to theory rules. It also helps you get down a new outline quickly by basing it on one you already know. I do hope that, after the event, you are looking up and practising such hurried outlines so that the correct one is added to your memory bank.
 


UPWARD HAY - We are very happy with the results and hope that the way ahead is now clear. We think what happened is that he met the head waiter at the hotel. The children were hopping over the heap of leaves under the hedge on the heath. It was his habit to spend the weekend indulging in his hobbies. Everything in the plans hangs on his hypothesis being correct. Mr Hobbs has mended the hinge on the hatch. The hyena was seen eating the honey. It was a huge problem when the airplane was hijacked, which caused* havoc on its journey to Hawaii. The hub of the wheel was very heavy. It was a hazy morning and turned out to be the hottest day of the year. He made a hash of the job and he could not hide the result or hush up his failure. The hotel staff put all my shirts on hangers for me. The aircraft was kept in the big hangar* with the heavy doors.

* "caused"
Special outline, see www.long-live-pitmans-shorthand.org.uk/distinguishing-outlines-2-rule.htm "cost caused"

* This is the dictionary outline, for the pronunciation "hang-gar". If you don't wish to follow this pronunciation, then use the outline "hanger" above. You cannot double the Ing, as that would be "hanker"



The story is about a hero who saves the community from the hairy monster that was harassing the villagers. The book praised these acts of heroism by Sir Harold. Harry was in a great hurry this morning. We saw a flock of herons* on the horizon. They were flying towards their heronry. The clouds formed a horizontal line across the sky. The meal was quite horrid and we hurried through it as rapidly as possible. It was not known how much food they had hoarded. The cowboys herded the cattle to the other side of the ranch* to shelter from the hurricane. We were horrified at the horrible treatment they received. In summer the Victorian hearth was filled with flowers. Their favourites were hardy perennials in happy bright colours.

* "herons" Insert vowels, as the outline is the same as "hunters"

* "ranch" Keep it clearly in first position, to prevent it looking like "range" which has a similar meaning

 



We called our rabbit Mr Hopper for obvious reasons. The farmer* filled the seed hopper before driving it through the field. The squirrels were hibernating until the weather became hotter. A header is the top part of a letter or report containing the title and other information. A header also means the action of a footballer intercepting the ball with his head. The book was written in Hebrew and in Hebraic writing. The hydrogen cylinders were lifted up on the hydraulic jack and taken to the hydroelectric installation. The farmer employed a hedger to repair his boundary hedges. A hacker is someone who uses his skills on the computer to gain information or control illegally. The hiker took a shortcut over the field and met a huge heifer face to face* . He hovered over the nail with the hammer to make sure it was in the right position.

* "farmer" See https://www.long-live-pitmans-shorthand.org.uk/distinguishing-outlines-2-rule.htm "former farmer"

* Omission phrase "face (to) face"

 


My friend Heather has a very good sense of humour. We hungered and thirsted and we were very glad that someone had brought the food hamper. He was happily reading an article all about the Hubble telescope. He soon got into the habit of reading as he could only hobble after the accident to his foot. The poor villagers were found huddling together in their hovels. The bystanders heckled the speaker. In animals, the hackles are the hairs or feathers on the back of the neck. The shoppers often haggle with the market traders. I like to wear a big hat on a hot day to provide shade against the heat. The competition for first place* was hotly contested. The volcano was positioned over a hotspot on the earth's crust. That country is a hotspot for war and violence. The height of the huts was about two metres. He was full of hate and always made hateful remarks. We do not need the heating on during a heat wave. The hunter* felt that the colour of the jacket would hinder his activities.

* Omission phrase "for first p(l)ace"

* "hunter" Insert vowel, as the outline is the same as "heron"

 


Henry showed me the brown hen and all the other hens in the enclosure. I shall hone my skills and hence remove every hindrance to my future success. He was hunting for his hats but his brother gave no hint as to where they were. Half of the staff went on the course which amounted to about a hundred people. We have halved the time it takes to do the job. In the field we saw many hives full of honey. The animal broke its hoof in its haste to escape. The bank hosted a press conference to discuss the facts of the heist. We hesitate* to recommend this hostel as it has a history of hazardous conditions. The management were very hostile to any suggestions for correcting these hazards. We enjoyed the hustle and bustle of city life. Mr Hoskins planted the seeds in their husks, and raised lots* of hazel trees for the woodland.

* "hesitate" Insert the vowel after the T, and the first vowel in "hasted" (which has the opposite meaning) to provide a distinction

* "lots" and "masses" Always insert the vowel in these, as they are similar in shape and meaning



It was a misty morning and there was a haze over the mountains. I got out the hose to water the garden. The gardener sharpened his hoes in order to* remove the weeds. A woodman is someone who hews wood which means to cut down trees. I admired the hues and brilliant colours of the flowers around the house. The housewife took a great interest in the improvements in the housing conditions. Her husband worked at the hospital during the week and at the hospice on Saturdays. The kettle began to hiss with the steam. We called our pet snake Hissing Harry because he always hissed when we passed his cage. (1098 words)

 

* Omission phrase "in ord(er to)"

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Hay Revision Part 2 (18 April 2014)

 



DOWNWARD HAY is used when standing alone and in derivatives, and also before simple Kay and Gay, where it makes a better join. // The bird flew high, the plane flew higher and the jet flew the highest. We were highly impressed by Her Highness the Duchess. We travelled along the highways and byways of the countryside, which was a great change from our high-pressured jobs in the city. The red berry of the may tree or hawthorn is called a haw. The fields of hay had been mown and were full of haystacks. He wishes to be addressed as Mr Howe and not as "hey you!". Hugh and his brothers were having a heyday playing in the park. The hue of the flower was a dark blue. To hew wood means to cut it, usually with an axe. The person doing the hewing is called a hewer. We have taken on two hoers and they will be hoeing the garden all morning. "Ha!* Found you!" he shouted gleefully. "Aha!* That's* the answer" I cried.

* "Ha" "Aha" Both need their vowels, in order to distinguish

* "that’s" Always insert the vowels in outlines for apostrophied words, which are written in full and do not use short forms

 



A carpenter uses a hacksaw but a hack is also a slang term for a mediocre artist or reporter. The hackney carriage is an old-fashioned vehicle, named after the type of horse that drew it. Hackneyed refers to a term that has become overused in writing and speech. Mr Hawkins went on a hike. He got his coat off the hook and met up with his friend Hugo Higgins. The menu item of boiled haggis turned out to be a hoax. It caused* quite a hiccup in the canteen staff's day. It had been quite a hectic and cold day and the tired workers sat hugging their* coffee mugs. A hexagon is a six-sided two-dimensional shape, and can be seen in the cells of a beehive. We went round the garden as part of the Heritage Horticulture* guided tour. There is a strict hierarchy amongst the horticultural* staff. A person can be a heritor, and goods and belongings are heritable items.

* "caused" See https://www.long-live-pitmans-shorthand.org.uk/distinguishing-outlines-2-rule.htm "cost caused"

* "hugging their" Doubling to represent "their"

* "horticulture/al" Both of these can have full outline or optional contraction, both are given here as examples

 



MEDIAL HAY - The stroke is used in the direction that gives the best outline. // Cohabit* means to live together in the same dwelling. There was mayhem at the Limehouse Theatre when Mr Abraham presented his comedy act. Annihilate means to annul, utterly destroy or defeat. The outline retains the Hay stroke as some people do still pronounce the sound, instead of annihilating it. The invading army suffered total annihilation. Anhydrous means waterless or with the water removed. The man used a billhook to prune the trees in the hedge. I had to look up Lahore on the map to see where it was. A lahar is a wet landslide from a volcano.

* "cohabit" The circle of all these medial downward Hays is written clockwise, as it would be if standing alone



I could* see the lighthouse very clearly from the farmhouse window. The table was made of polished mahogany. His coat was made of mohair and his shoes of cowhide, but their prices were now sky-high. He presented a coherent and cohesive argument in favour of the proposals. The other person was however incoherent due to excessive drinking. Mr Mayhew has just returned from a visit to Omaha. When you have the know-how you do not have to do the job just anyhow. He said he would nohow and in no way be willing to take on another assignment.

* "Could" is generally not phrased, to avoid being misread as "can", similarly know/note, may/might. "Could not" can be phrased, as it is different from "cannot" and "can't"
 


He has not been behaving very well at all. He must learn to behave* properly* or his behaviour will cause him to fall behind with his school work. He may end up beholding the face of the magistrate who will uphold the rule of law and not withhold punishment due. It would be a good idea if we withheld permission so that this unwise activity does not gain a foothold. To abhor means to greatly dislike or detest. We abhorred his behaviour, as it was causing too much upheaval and in fact
* was prohibited by law. The heavy drinker went into rehab which is short for rehabilitation, that is to say* learning new habits* and behaviours. An adhesive is something that adheres or sticks to another substance. He wrote a book on prehistory including the lives of the prehistoric animals. Dehydration means depriving of or removing water from, and in people can lead to serious health issues. Some foods can be dehydrated to lengthen their storage time. We have just returned from our visit to Idaho in the United States of America*.

* "to behave" Based on the short form phrase "to be"

 

* "properly" Insert the first vowel, and the diphone in "appropriate", as these are similar in outline and meaning

* Omission phrases "in (f)act" "that is (to) say" "U(nited) S(tate)s (of Ameri)ca"

 

* "habits" Insert the first vowel in this and in "hobbies" as they are similar in outline and meaning


We had to rehang the doors in the old house, mend the overhanging gutters and overhaul the heating system. He said that he had overhauled it last year, so we did not need to be overhauling it again. We overheard about the unhopeful alliance between the two parties. His behaviour became unhinged during the overheated discussion. You can preheat the meal but try not to overheat it. There are some foods that you should never reheat due to the possibility of increased amounts of bacteria. It is not a good idea to rehash or rehearse the problems. He attended the rehearsals at the clubhouse. We overheard that part of the warehouse was to be used as a gatehouse. They overheard that they were soon to be rehoused nearby and that the houses no longer had outhouses in the garden. My warning went unheeded and so the unhygienic conditions were not corrected.



The large circle can sometimes do duty for two small circles rather than two S sounds. This is taking a small liberty with the general phonetic basis in order to* secure a clear and easy outline. // This old nag is never going to be a racehorse. I like to dry my clothes on a clotheshorse in the sun outside to make them fresher. These parcels must be sent post-haste to the customer, which means as quickly and hastily as possible. The heap of dust and the dusty rubbish were thrown on the dust-heap* at the end of the garden. A doss-house is a rough place where someone might sleep for the night and the verb describing this is to doss. (999 words)

 

* Omission phrase "in ord(er to)"

 

* "dust-heap" Omits the T

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Hay Revision Part 3 (18 April 2014)

 


TICK HAY is a shortening of Downward Hay and is always pronounced first. It is used before Em, Upward Ell and Ar, which can be remembered by the word "HoMeLieR". // Ham is a meat product but the word also means an unskilled actor or one who overacts*. A hammock was strung between the trees which were situated on a small hummock, or mound*, in the field. He paid homage to the man for saving the boy's pet hamster which had escaped from his home. The hem of the garment was too short and the person who hemmed it cut off too much material. A humble person is someone who has a great deal of humility. Humility is related to the word humus and comes from the Latin for ground. This country has a very humid climate and the humidity is just too much for me. The victim died from a haemorrhage and the case turned into one of homicide.

* "overacts" Compare this with "overcomes" which has the K underneath.

 

* "mound" This is the same as the outline for "mount", so if differentiation is needed, the only recourse is to write it with all full strokes
 


They visited all the countries in the northern hemisphere and are now turning their attention to the southern hemisphere. The human* race can act in ways that are humane and also inhumane. Road humps were installed to slow down the traffic. A raised area of ground in the landscape is called a hummock, which is the same as a hillock or knoll. The police captured quite a haul of illegal hempseed. The hemp plant fibres were made into hempen ropes. Humbug means something that is deceptive or worthless, and also means a mint flavoured boiled sugar sweet, often made in brown and white stripes.

* "human" See https://www.long-live-pitmans-shorthand.org.uk/distinguishing-outlines-2-rule.htm "human humane" The outlines "inhuman" and "inhumane" rely on inserting a vowel to distinguish them
 


The haulage company employed Hayley and Helen Halliday to cover for the staff who were on holiday. The Old Hall was situated in a hollow on the other side of the* hill. The workers had hauled large rocks from the quarry in order to* build the hall which did little for their health. A healthy diet will help you remain whole and healed. We are wholly* in agreement with this proposal which will get us out of the hole in which we find ourselves. The wholesale business* in this part of town has come to a complete halt. The hull of the boat was damaged by the giant hailstones that fell during the hailstorm*. The holder of the post had the staff under his heel, so unfortunately* he became the butt of some hilarious jokes. The child howled when he hurt his heel as he ran up the hill. We do hope it will soon heal and that he will be as whole, hale* and hearty* as before.

* Omission phrases "on the oth(er) side of the" "in ord(er to)"

* "wholly" Two L strokes are used for ease of reading

* "wholesale business" You could also intersect "Bs" for this word

* "hailstorm" Unusual use of Stee loop to gain a convenient outline

 

* "unfortunately" Optional contraction

* "whole" and "hale" have same meaning, so both should have vowels signs here

* "hearty" Special outline, to distinguish from "hardy" (Hay+Ray+Dee)

 



Were you here when we heard the news? I hear that they are going to hire extra staff at the hair salon. The hearers could hardly believe their ears. The mayor said, "I hereby open this Harvest Festival celebration." Herbert lived on the other side of the* harbour, and grew and sold herbs for a living. He played the harp in his spare time.* When they heard the news their hearts were saddened. It was very hard for them to hear such harsh news. His words were harsher* than ever. He spoke very harshly* to them. They would prefer to hear that harmony had prevailed and no-one had been hurt. The car driver sounded his horn which made a very high and harsh sound. The player was not able to hurl the ball very far. The rider was hurled from the horse. The speaker's throat was very hoarse after giving the long speech and became hoarser during the afternoon.

* Omission phrase "on the oth(er) side of the"

 

* "spare time" Halving for the T of "time"

* "harshly" "Sher" is always down, "Shel" is always up

 



DOT HAY is only used medially and always before a stroke, never after. It is used when the other methods are not convenient. The medial H sound is lightly sounded and often omitted altogether and this means that you can omit the dot in the same way as you do the vowel signs without losing the readability of the outlines. // A letterhead is the paper a company uses for their correspondence. The figurehead of the ship was painted in black and gold. The bulkhead of the ship had been damaged in the storm. He is a kind-hearted* man with a warm-hearted* wife and light-hearted* children. We walked among the hills, uphill in the morning and downhill in the afternoon. We travelled over all the foothills in the area. A hog is an old word for pig, a hedgehog is related to the shrew and porcupine, and a groundhog is a rodent related to squirrels. A roadhog is someone who hogs the road and obstructs other drivers.

* "-hearted" These outlines make it clear that the Hay Dot is the outer one


This household consists of six people, one of whom owns the freehold of the property, with the remainder being leaseholders. The report informed the shareholders of the results of the meeting. A porthole is a circular window on the side of a ship. The armhole of the coat was too small to be comfortable. The manhole cover was missing and posed a great danger to pedestrians. The potholes in the road were being repaired by the council workmen. The people in this neighbourhood earn their livelihood at the local factory. The likelihood is that some falsehoods have been put forward as facts. On reaching adulthood the brothers had to leave the neighbourhood to find work.
 



A hobbyhorse* is a toy for pretend riding games and also means a favourite* or pet project. The rocking-horse was a valuable antique. Drayhorses were used to pull heavy carts. The museum showed examples of prehistoric fishhooks and boat-hooks. The duke's shield had a greyhound and a sparrow-hawk on a gold background. A nighthawk is a North American bird and also someone who stays up all night. A newshawk is a modern slang word for an energetic, enthusiastic and possibly aggressive reporter. The old almshouse* had been renovated into a smart new boarding-house. The huge glasshouse was heated by a small boiler-house at one end. The greenhouse was set up next to the wooden storehouse. He worked at the clearing-house and lived in a penthouse.

* "hobbyhorse" The dot vowel goes immediately after the B and cannot be moved forward to the next stroke, because the Hay comes between

 

* "favourite" Note that "favoured" has a left VR stroke

 

* "almshouse" The longhand L is silent

 



The initial curl is used where the meaning is "in"* but this is changed for a stroke if it becomes medial. // Do not inhale the fumes from the fire. Inhalation of the gases can cause damage to the lungs. The patient had to use an inhaler every day. The holiday house was inhabited in summer but left uninhabited during the winter months. They had many inhibitions but when on holiday they seemed to be completely uninhibited. The brothers were hoping to inherit the house but their father had disinherited them. // When it is a negative the stroke En is always used. The conditions on the island were inhospitable. The atmosphere in the house was inharmonious. (1111 words)

* "in" Need to insert the vowel in this short form, as the context does not help

 

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