Description: The ensō is an ancient symbol of enlightenment, strength, elegance, the universe, and "mu". Here in the land of Blombos cave, site of the earliest offices of the Ministry of Calligraphy (or at least the ink testing department) it is also a symbol of moo - something you say to cows when driving by - and it is a homophone for "en so", which is an Afrikaans phrase used as a boast, as in "And so, that's how it's done!" or as in "en so en so en so" which is like "ensovoorts" / "and so on and on and on". "En so?" can also mean "So what?"
Description: The ensō is an ancient symbol of enlightenment, strength, elegance, the universe, and "mu". Here in the land of Blombos cave, site of the earliest offices of the Ministry of Calligraphy (or at least the ink testing department) it is also a symbol of moo - something you say to cows when driving by - and it is a homophone for "en so", which is an Afrikaans phrase used as a boast, as in "And so, that's how it's done!" or as in "en so en so en so" which is like "ensovoorts" / "and so on and on and on". "En so?" can also mean "So what?"
Description: The ensō is an ancient symbol of enlightenment, strength, elegance, the universe, and "mu". Here in the land of Blombos cave, site of the earliest offices of the Ministry of Calligraphy (or at least the ink testing department) it is also a symbol of moo - something you say to cows when driving by - and it is a homophone for "en so", which is an Afrikaans phrase used as a boast, as in "And so, that's how it's done!" or as in "en so en so en so" which is like "ensovoorts" / "and so on and on and on". "En so?" can also mean "So what?"
Description: The Ministry confesses that the administration of the affairs of calligraphy can be messy. Everything is connected, so it can be a mess. Sometimes we wish it wasn't! What administration can cope with such entanglement? Yet, it can be beautiful, and with a little administrational flair the best in any calligraphic movement can be teased out, even during a pandemic ... like the Black plague of 1374. Scribes saw their hands rot even as they penned their last lines of calligraphic beauty. (This administration knows this because the Director General once had to do a hand stand-in for a historical documentary set in that time and his hand was made up all diseased, but enough about that.)
Description: The Ministry of Calligraphy promulgates many laws governing the practice of calligraphy. However, there is no law enforcement, and the first law of its constitution is to love your pen. Moreover, subsection 1(f) of this law stipulates that the pen loves whimsy. Calligraphy is indeed a strict discipline but ... well, how shall we put this? There is a plaque strategically sited on the wall above the Director General's desk and it says this: "All work and no play makes Bob a dull boy." Years ago a previous director crossed out "Bob" and "boy" and added an interlinear gloss of "Whitney" and "girl" but he doesn't mind. He likes it just like it is.
Description: The Ministry of Calligraphy promulgates many laws governing the practice of calligraphy. However, there is no law enforcement, and the first law of its constitution is to love your pen. Moreover, subsection 1(f) of this law stipulates that the pen loves whimsy. Calligraphy is indeed a strict discipline but ... well, how shall we put this? There is a plaque strategically sited on the wall above the Director General's desk and it says this: "All work and no play makes Bob a dull boy." Years ago a previous director crossed out "Bob" and "boy" and added an interlinear gloss of "Whitney" and "girl" but he doesn't mind. He likes it just like it is.
Description: Feeling Gatvol? No idea what any of this means? The Ministry of Calligraphy invites you to submit a complaint. Kindly apply for an appointment at the Service Desk. At an appointment you will be provided with Complaint Form MC047 and given submission guidance by our agents. Kindly submit the form in triplicate. The agent will check your kerning and, if acceptable, forward it to the Philology Department for plagiarism checks after which Surveillance will cross-check it with what we already know about your complaint. Finally, the complaint will be considered by the Complaints Desk and if no one else has ever complained about that before, it will be dismissed. Otherwise please expect a call from the Legal Department.
Description: Are your letters all wonky? Does your pen run astray? Did your nose drip on your work? Well, the Afrikaans Desk at the Ministry of Calligraphy wishes to encourage all calligraphers to vasbyt,* persevere, to stay steadfast, to hold on tight. Practice makes perfect but vasbyt gives it character. *pronounced "fussbait" but has nothing to do with fishing.
Description: Section 10(a) of the Ministry of Calligraphy's mandate stipulates that it may mark a form as wrong in terms of the rules that govern good form. However, if the form is nonetheless acceptably pleasing to the eye or quite cool or even really hot or, in extreme cases, downright sick then the administration is permitted to designate it as such with the application of this label.
