Quotations Weblog

Welcome to the first of the Quotations in the News series, which will cover quotable items from recent news stories.

Just about everyone I talk to about Daylight Saving Time seems to agree that it’s an odd, archaic tradition that confuses everyone and makes little sense. Congress is apparently unaware of our opinion, because they just voted to extend Daylight Savings by another month. That should make it much less confusing.

I was worried that Congress might be out of touch with reality, but apparently they’ve put a great effort into in-depth analysis of the potential energy savings and the impact on our existing societal traditions and infrastructure, as evidenced by this unbelievable quote:

Also, they’re doing it For The Children. “Kids across the nation will soon rejoice,” because they’ll get another hour of daylight trick-or-treating, says Rep. Fred Upton. That’s odd, I thought the traditional time for trick-or-treating was “when it gets dark.”

At least I’m in good company. Here’s Canadian author Robertson Davies on Daylight Saving:

This has been said before. The first time I heard this concept it was from another quote by a famous author:

It’s not as concise and succinct as the Sir Henry Taylor quote, but much more vivid. Six pounds over a year can result in misery. Six pounds under a year and your life is bliss. The big question, however, is, “How do I live a degree below my means?”

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CNN (and Associated Press) reported recently on the 100 best movie quotes of all time as chosen by the American Film Institute. Not surprisingly, the list mostly included memorable lines and catchphrases, from “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.” (Gone with the Wind) to “Toto, I’ve got a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore” (The Wizard of Oz).

The entire list is available at the AFI’s web site, and if you’d like to see them in video form, a 3-hour TV special hosted by Pierce Brosnan will air on Bravo starting September 17th. This must be the most attention quotations have ever had on TV.

If you’re a quotation geek like me, you may have noticed that the top 100 list includes film names, and the AP article names many of the actors, but the screenwriters who actually wrote the lines aren’t mentioned. Fortunately, they’ve provided A list of the original 400 nominees in PDF form that lists actors, screenwriters, producers, and directors.

If you use Firefox as your browser, there’s an easy way to search for quotations. Click this button to add The Quotations Page as one of the search options in the toolbar:

After you click the button and answer OK to the confirmation dialog, you’ll find The Quotations Page in the drop-down list of search icons in the toolbar. Select it, type a keyword or name to search for, and press Enter to go straight to the search results.

Thanks to Alan Bramley for writing this plug-in. There are hundreds of other search plug-ins you might find useful at the mozdev.org search plugins page.

Life can be tricky. Just when I think I have something down pat, a different part of my life screams for my attention. Sometimes it feels like the whole world is against me. Sometimes it feels like the wind is always in my face, pushing me back and preventing my progress.

The most calming thing I can do in these situations is accept it. I imagine myself nodding at the problem. The wind is in my face. I can’t change that. All I can do is tack. Tacking is the method of sailing against the wind. If you notice the picture, it shows how a boat would sail into the wind. The course that the boat sails doesn’t lead directly to the mark, but every step it takes gets it closer to the goal.

There are times when you can’t move directly toward your goal. There might even be times when the only course of action might be so far to the left or right that it might feel like you’re not making any progress. Accept the situation, and keeping working toward your dreams. You’ll get there eventually.