Tracing Quotations
Frank Crane? Douglas MacArthur? Watterson Lowe? Ann Landers? Jay B. Nash? L. F. Phelan? Samuel Ullman? Dear Quote Investigator: According to a popular essay about youth the primary cause of aging is the desertion of one’s ideals. Also, years may wrinkle the skin, but losing enthusiasm wrinkles the soul. This essay has been attributed to …
Continue reading “Years Wrinkle the Skin, But To Give Up Enthusiasm Wrinkles the Soul”
Letter Recipient: Miles Poindexter? Frank Crane? John Phillips? Hugh Ironpants Johnson? Dear Quote Investigator: Would you please explore the provenance of a story called “The Bedbug Letter” about a revelatory customer relations blunder? Quote Investigator: The earliest evidence known to QI appeared on June 12, 1913 in multiple newspapers such as “The Duluth Herald” of …
Abraham Lincoln? Frank Crane? Orison Swett Marden? Dale Carnegie? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: On twitter recently there was an exchange about a deeply insightful quotation credited to Abraham Lincoln: Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be. I love this saying, and it helps me to reflect constructively on …
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Kenneth Holmes? Frank Crane? Hugh Barrett Dobbs? Sister Mary Xavier? Sybil F. Partridge? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: There is an inspirational essay called “Just for Today” that I have seen on many websites. It consists of a series of suggestions or guidelines. There are many versions, but one common example begins with the following statements: …
Continue reading “Just for Today, I Will Try to Live Through This Day Only”