Skip to main content

We Love Quotes


On Quotes
Making a quote is a combination of the economy of just the right words and subject.  “A stitch in time saves nine,” is a classic for brevity, accuracy, and memorability.  Another is, “You will never win if you don’t begin” by Helen Rowland.  From Confucius we are instructed, “Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” But is it really?  “To the victor go the spoils,” is so famous with so many variations, its original author has been forgotten*.

Often quotes have a vague tone allowing for multiple interpretations, at least one resonating with the reader. Many are optimistic while others are cautionary.  Some of the favorites are “end-of-the-day” types where it seems life is speaking to you from afar.

Below are a few variations on the same theme of the sweet life not being what it seemed. 
  • You believe you’ve found the sweet spot of living only to find it candy-coated misery.
  • Just when you’ve found the sweet spot, you discover it’s candy-coated misery.
  • Sweet spot or sugar-coated bitterness, the easy life is not assured.
  • It may taste sweet but sometimes bitterness may be just below.


Judging from their sheer number, quotes are a favorite medium of the people. They contain nuggets of wisdom is small containers – like diamonds and their value.

*Check out "Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings" by Gregory Y. Titelman.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Please Comment.

Popular posts from this blog

Behavioral Science and Problem-Solving

I.                                       I.                 Introduction.                Concerning our general behavior, it’s high about time we all had some understanding of how we operate on ourselves, and it is just as important how we are operated on by others. This is the wheelhouse of behavioral sciences. It is a vast subject. It touches our lives constantly. It’s influence is pervasive and can be so subtle we never notice it. Behavioral sciences profoundly affect our ability and success at problem-solving, from the elementary level to highly complex wicked problems. This is discussed in Section IV. We begin with the basics of behavioral sciences, Section II, and then through the lens of multiple categories and examples, Section III. II.     ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Where is AI (Artificial Intelligence) Going?

  How to view Artificial Intelligence (AI).  Imagine you go to the store to buy a TV, but all they have are 1950s models, black and white, circular screens, picture rolls, and picture imperfect, no remote. You’d say no thanks. Back in the day, they sold wildly. The TV was a must-have for everyone with $250 to spend* (about $3000 today). Compared to where AI is today, this is more or less where TVs were 70 years ago. In only a few decades AI will be advanced beyond comprehension, just like TVs today are from the 50s viewpoint. Just like we could not imagine where the video concept was going back then, we cannot really imagine where AI is going. Buckle up. But it will be spectacular.    *Back then minimum wage was $0.75/hr. Thus, a TV cost more than eight weeks' wages. ------------------------- 
Post a Comment
Read more

Fake News

If you've been following the news the last couple of days, you will note the flurry of copy devoted to fake news.  Both sides are blaming whatever has befallen them the consequence of fake news.  Let's look at this phenomenon a bit.    When I was a student years ago, a friend climbed some mountain in Peru.   A article was written in the local newspaper about the event.   In only three column inches, the newspaper made about six errors.   An easy article to write you say?   Just interview and reproduce.   Yet so many errors?   The question is this: was this fake news or bad reporting?   The idea here is that fake news comes in various flavors. Bad reporting – errors made by the author or editor Opinion presented as news     Deliberate creation of falsehoods to favor a point of view       The reporting of selected truths to favor a particular point of view Now we have the big social media ...
Post a Comment
Read more