eclectica

"The odd thing about people who had many books was how they always wanted more."

Sat, 24 Dec 2011 20:29:00 -0600

“The odd thing about people who had many books was how they always wanted more.”

- Patricia A. McKillip in The Bell at Sealey Head (2008).

Quality service

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 17:14:55 -0500

At the dry cleaners, retrieving a full-size quilted bedspread.

Staff person: Do you want me to carry this out for you?
Me: No, thanks. I walked here.
Staff person: How far away do you live?
Me: [I name an intersection 4 blocks away.]
Staff person: Do you want a ride home?

After I declined, he then very nicely refolded the bedspread into a compact bundle which was much easier to carry home. Aww.

apartmentfullofbooks: A wonderful video for Word as Image.

Wed, 26 Oct 2011 21:18:24 -0500

apartmentfullofbooks:

A wonderful video for Word as Image.

"It seems as if the day was not wholly profane in which we have given heed to some natural object."

Wed, 31 Aug 2011 22:31:15 -0500

“It seems as if the day was not wholly profane in which we have given heed to some natural object.”

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Buying books would be a good thing if one could also buy the time to read them in: but as a rule the..."

Mon, 13 Jun 2011 20:29:14 -0500

“Buying books would be a good thing if one could also buy the time to read them in: but as a rule the purchase of books is mistaken for the appropriation of their contents.”

- Arthur Schopenhauer
(via amgamble)

"On the other hand, there is a great beauty in being at ease with solitude and aloneness. People do..."

Mon, 02 May 2011 22:20:30 -0500

“On the other hand, there is a great beauty in being at ease with solitude and aloneness. People do many stupid things to keep themselves from being lonely, and someone who rarely has to contend with that problem has freed up a lot of time to work, learn, and simply be.”

- Raven Kaldera in Moon Phase Astrology: The Lunar Key to Your Destiny (2011)

In the bookstore

Sun, 03 Apr 2011 10:00:07 -0500

Man: Honey, why do all these books by Jane Austen have the same picture of a woman on them?

[long pause]

Man: Hey, is this what Jane Austen looked like?

Verities

Sun, 27 Mar 2011 09:56:28 -0500

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that an e-book reader app must come with a free copy of Pride and Prejudice.

I’ve just learned that the first sentence of Pride and Prejudice (“It is a truth...

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 20:41:32 -0500

I’ve just learned that the first sentence of Pride and Prejudice (“It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife”) is the second-most highlighted passage in Kindle ebooks. I agree that it’s a sentence worth remembering. But I hope people aren’t highlighting it because it’s hard for them to find the first sentence of a book.

Photo

Mon, 21 Feb 2011 12:05:19 -0600

"For my part, I feel that Darwin’s is a glorious vision. I love the notion that we are..."

Fri, 28 Jan 2011 22:35:00 -0600

“For my part, I feel that Darwin’s is a glorious vision. I love the notion that we are literally related to all other creatures: that apes are our sisters, and mushrooms are our cousins, and oak trees and monkey puzzles are our distant uncles and aunts. Conservation, on such a view, becomes a family affair.”

- Colin Tudge in The Tree: A Natural History of What Trees Are, How They Live, and Why They Matter (2006)

phoebeinthesky: “We need to make books cool again. If you go...

Sat, 22 Jan 2011 19:55:49 -0600

phoebeinthesky:

“We need to make books cool again. If you go home with somebody and they don’t have books, don’t fuck them.” — John Waters

Literary aging

Mon, 17 Jan 2011 16:02:31 -0600

I realized recently that I’ve been reading the Marcus Didius Falco mysteries by Lindsey Davis for literally half my life. I’m aging roughly seven years for each year that Falco ages. It’s like being on the wrong end of dog years.

"Writing is done alone. People do not talk about the things they do alone."

Sun, 16 Jan 2011 19:48:00 -0600

“Writing is done alone. People do not talk about the things they do alone.”

- Anneli Rufus in Party of One: The Loners’ Manifesto (2003)

"Even if I would prefer not to think that sexuality contaminates experiences, I have to admit that..."

Fri, 04 Jun 2010 22:02:04 -0500

“Even if I would prefer not to think that sexuality contaminates experiences, I have to admit that ambivalence about sexuality does just that.”

- Laura Miller in The Magician’s Book: A Skeptic’s Adventures in Narnia (2008)

"Reality is for people who lack imagination."

Sat, 13 Feb 2010 13:27:48 -0600

“Reality is for people who lack imagination.”

- Fortune cookie

Massive Earthquake Reveals Entire Island Civilization Called 'Haiti'

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 18:51:00 -0600

Massive Earthquake Reveals Entire Island Civilization Called 'Haiti':

The Onion, of course.

"He who decides a case without hearing the other side… Though he decide justly, cannot be..."

Mon, 04 Jan 2010 22:11:53 -0600

“He who decides a case without hearing the other side…
Though he decide justly, cannot be considered just.”

- Seneca (ca. 4 BCE - 65 CE)

Geometry

Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:19:28 -0600

As a rule, the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. One exception is if you are trying to cut through the center of the Mall of America.

"If you’re going through hell, keep going."

Wed, 30 Dec 2009 22:10:07 -0600

“If you’re going through hell, keep going.”

- Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965)