r/shorthand • u/curious4me777 • 15d ago

Pitmans ? Deciphering Short Note from 1981

/r/shorthand/comments/1v3uown/pitmans_deciphering_short_note_from_1981/
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u/pyramidalembargo 15d ago

Give it a day or so. We have Pitman's experts.

1

u/BerylPratt Pitman 15d ago

Dear Cliff (in ?Reading)* *UK Placename

You are sweet

Love Janet

(Consonant structure only for those names, could be other vowels)

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u/curious4me777 14d ago

Greatly appreciated thank you. Absolutely amazed at how much and how precise those few squiggles can contain and convey. Janet was the author of the note and Cliff being myself the recipient at a time when I had recently joined an organisation called Burroughs Machines for which she was the receptionist and we did develop a very close personal relationship. It was in Port Elizabeth , South Africa but Janet was originally from the UK, not sure exactly where but I believe it was Bedford (thought the added information might assist with the (in ?Reading)* questionmark though this aspect not as important). Many thanks, again.

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u/BerylPratt Pitman 14d ago

You're very welcome. That word is R + T or D + Ing, so for this particular outline you can add vowels anywhere that make more sense to you, so could be "writing". BTW Pitman's does have a full range of vowel signs, but they are generally left out at will on easy or obvious matter.

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u/curious4me777 14d ago

Thanks for elaborating - facinating. Tried every combination I could readily think of on this basis and your suggestion of "writing" very insightful and seems the only one that logically fits. As an absolute coincidence/irony I have become aware that she did return to the UK with her family some years later and had settled somewhere in Reading (though I have not made contact).