If you've arrived here after reading How to punctuate a sentence, you might like reading one or more of the following posts:
And, but, for, nor, or, so, yet Is it okay to begin a sentence with a coordinating conjunction? (Of course it is.)
Commas and colons, chickens and caulk The ancient Greek origins of commas, colons, and periods
On handwriting and typing W.H. Auden's observations
Slow down and think Children's thoughts on writing with fountain pens
Writing and index cards Tools of the trade
Raymond Carver's index cards One writer's index cards, taped to the wall by his desk
comments: 5
In Germany children are taught to write with fountain pens - no biros at all for the first few years.
Yes, I have a couple of Pelikano Jr. pens made for young children. Further back, the Pelikan 120 was a more sophisticated "student" fountain pen (and a great pen). The 120 was made with an identifying number on its piston knob, so that teachers could figure out which pen belonged to which student and identify the owners of lost pens. Quite different from a world of disposable pens and pencils.
I remember when my daughter and son were younger how we sent them go off to school with Mongols and Dixon Ticonderogas and other well-made pencils. A very big deal each fall: what kind of pencils do you want? They each had a fountain pen by the age of seven or so. They're still pretty particular about their "supplies," though they gave up on the fountain pens (Lamy Safaris) years ago.
You left out the 'n' in fountain there Mr ;-)
Also, what happened to the rule about not putting commas before 'and'? Is this incorrect?
Just wondering ... you have a great blog btw, nice to discover it :-)
Seamus, you'll see in the comments on the Lifehack post that there's much debate about the comma before "and" with items in a series, the so-called Oxford comma. I've written a follow-up for Lifehack that says a bit more about it (it's not posted yet). As I see it: If you keep the comma in, some people will say it's unnecessary. If you leave it out, some people will say you've made a mistake. Either way, there'll be disagreement. I think it's better to keep it in.
Thanks for reading and commenting (and for catching the n).
As someone who is contemplating starting his own blog, I found your Lifehack article to be like a breath of fresh air. I see my own deficiency in this area and loved reading some good, old-fashioned, tips on the basics. Thank you very much indeed.
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