Alan Bennett? Maggie Smith? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Sports contests are often highly competitive, but one does not expect to find bitter rivalry and ambition in a genteel craft. Here are two versions of a statement that highlights this incongruity: (1) If you think squash is a competitive activity try flower arrangement. (2) If …
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Quote Origin: When Hopes Seem Hardly Worth Having, Just Mount a Bicycle and Go For a Good Spin Down the Road
Arthur Conan Doyle? Sherlock Holmes? Diane Ackerman? Jeremy Withers? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, was a bicycle enthusiast. He suggested that taking a spin down the road on a bicycle would dispel feelings of discouragement and unhappiness. I do not know the precise phrasing Conan Doyle used. …
Quote Origin: I’d Rather Have a Free Bottle in Front of Me Than a Prefrontal Lobotomy
Tom Waits? Steve Allen? John Prine? Dorothy Parker? Fred Allen? Carlton W. Berenda? Herb Caen? Lew London? Joshua Baer? Dr. Rock? Randy Hanzlick? Graffito? Question for Quote Investigator: The following wordplay is popular with drinking enthusiasts. Here are two versions: (1) I’d rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy. (2) …
Quote Origin: Do What You Can, With What You’ve Got, Where You Are
Theodore Roosevelt? George Washington Carver? Bill Widener? William H. Maxwell? Frederick James Eugene Woodbridge? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: There are psychological barriers to accomplishing a major task. Dreaming about obtaining more resources or reaching a superior starting position leads to procrastination. Instead, you must do what you can with what you have, and you …
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Quote Origin: The Middle of the Road is Where the White Line Is—and That’s the Worst Place To Drive
Robert Frost? Margaret Thatcher? Dwight D. Eisenhower? Aneurin Bevan? Franklin P. Jones? I. P. Reynolds? Eric Nicol? John M. Ashbrook? William Penn Patrick? Sydney Harris? Alan Craig Loughrige? Jim Hightower? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Social relationships and political decisions often entail compromise. Yet, these intermediary policies, i.e., middle-of-the-road positions, frequently engender hostility. Here is a …
Quote Origin: Every Time I See an Adult on a Bicycle, I No Longer Despair for the Future of the Human Race
H. G. Wells? Robert Silverman? Diane Ackerman? Carie Dann? Heathcote Williams? Ali Smith? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Apparently, the famous science fiction author H. G. Wells was a bicycle enthusiast. Here are three versions of a remark that has been credited to him: Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no …
Quote Origin: Consistency Is the Last Refuge of the Unimaginative
Oscar Wilde? James McNeill Whistler? Ralph Waldo Emerson? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Being consistent is important in life. Yet, additional knowledge and experience motivates new thoughts and behaviors. The following adage criticizes the straitjacket of excessive consistency: Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative. The famous Irish wit Oscar Wilde has received credit …
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Quote Origin: During My Life I Have Often Had To Eat My Own Words, and I Have Found Them a Wholesome Diet
Winston Churchill? Isabel Vernon? Walter Monckton? John W. Wheeler-Bennett? Katherine Ramsay? Earl of Swinton? Lord Normanbrook? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: According to legend a prominent political figure was planning to reverse a long-held policy, and a colleague disapproved while warning, “You would be required to eat your own words.” The figure replied, “I have …
Quote Origin: If They Don’t Give You a Seat at the Table, Bring in a Folding Chair
Shirley Chisholm? Donna Brazile? Barbara Lee? Giovanni Piccolino? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: A politician who advocated for inclusive decision-making used the following metaphorical expression to encourage activists to demand representation: If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring in a folding chair. This saying has been attributed to U.S. Congress member …
Quote Origin: You Did What You Knew How To Do, and When You Knew Better, You Did Better
Maya Angelou? Oprah Winfrey? Phil McGraw? Gary Zukav? Ernest Rogers? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Life requires a complicated incremental process of learning. Agonizing mistakes are inevitable. Here are two versions of a heartfelt response to setbacks: (1) You did what you knew how to do, and when you knew better, you did better. (2) …