Sayings from my part of the world

[Jowen]

[AibreanShowers]

Love the one about the mantlepiece, Elibet

[James A. Ritchie]

It may be strictly regional, but one of my favorite sayings is, "The law of clever business versus the the law of unintended consequences means that square eggs would be very convenient to stack, and wouldn't roll away when you placed one on the counter, but we'd never get any because all the chickens would go on strike."

[Jowen]

[James A. Ritchie]

[Jowen]

And, good advice for people expecting hens to lay square eggs, "Don't count your chickens before they are hatched."

[TerryRodgers]

My favorite saying is part of a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson.

A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...

This quote was said to me by a very good friend when I worked for a software company a dozen years ago. He was referring to management of which I was part of. It was a startup comany, growing fast, and I was trying to go in one direction, which I believe was the correct one. Management wanted me to go in another, which was to lie to customers about the company's capabilities. I wanted to build out an environment that they envisioned on paper but were unwilling to give me the money or manpower. So, they continued to tell customers one thing thinking nothing would ever come of it. The company eventually sold, and I kept my principles after we parted on mutual grounds. I've since built out that legacy with another company that I've worked for 12 years.

[The Cormorant]

[James A. Ritchie]

My favorite quote really doesn't fall into this category, but it comes from Thoreau. "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation."

I've always been determined not to be in this mass of men.

[MookyMcD]

James, that is one of my favorite lines of all time.

On the bread to the baker, there is another one, similar in wording but completely different in meaning: He could sell snow to an Eskimo. Meaning the person can convince anyone to do anything.