From the very wonderful Reanimation Library. For a bigger image, click here.

I think my mother wrote shorthand. I remember her scrawling, at a breathless pace, what appeared to be unintelligible marks on stenographers paper. It was gibberish then, and it is gibberish now. But stunning in its economy and gesture. These two pages are a perfect example of Pitman Shorthand, popular in the UK, and second only to Gregg Shorthand in the US. Gregg Shorthand is far less compelling, and even a little boring, because of the uniform thickness of the line. For more information on the Pitman method, go here. Images from here.

Photo taken by my husband. Those are paws (and a little bit of a tail) sticking out. I see this image, and all I want to do is crawl under the covers.

I went to art school with Scott Kelley. We lost touch a long time ago but, today, in my search for rope, I accidentally came across his obsessive paintings of these warp lines, which are traditionally heavy ropes used for anchoring, towing or mooring a boat. In this case, the warp is called pot warp, and it is specifically the line used by lobstermen to secure their traps. Scott does, after all, live in Maine. For more go here. And Scott, sorry for the crop here and there. Just wanted to get up closer to the detail.

Just a short burst of office supply nirvana. I am reliably predictable in my affinity for this sort of ephemera. From, once again, the gimlet-eyed folks over at Present & Correct.

100 Words for Snow by Phil James, for Mendosa. As seen on the ever-edifying blog at Present & Correct. Personally, I am hoping for tlalman and tlanip, so I can set up a snow pop-up shop and add to my savings. Please note, Mr. James’ list is, I believe, mostly a work of satire.

I really really like this little critter. Put him to work sharpening your pencils. Designed by Rodrigo Torres Kastor for Alessi. Not available yet. But soon. Soon. Makes a nice companion to his other design: a bird in the form of a paper clip holder. Oops…via designboom!