Month: April 2025

“I talk of dreams, which are the children of an idle brain, begot of nothing but vain fantasy; which is as thin of substance as the air, and more inconstant than the wind, who wooes even now the frozen bosom of the north, and, being anger’d, puffs away from thence, turning his face to the dew-dropping south.” – William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet 1.4

“Is love a tender thing? it is too rough, too rude, too boisterous; and it pricks like thorn.” – William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet 1.4

“One fire burn’s out another’s burning, one pain is lessen’d by another’s anguish, turn giddy, and be holp by backward turning; one desperate grief cures with another’s languish: take thou some new infection to thy eye, and the rank poison of the old will die.” – William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet 1.2

“Love is a smoke rais’d with the fume of sighs; being purg’d, a fire sparkling in lovers’ eyes; being vex’d, a sea nourish’d with lovers’ tears: what is it else? a madness most discreet, a choking gall, and a preserving sweet.” – William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet 1.1

“Sad hours seem long.” – William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet 1.1

“Most are busied when they’re most alone.” – William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet 1.1

“The bombers, both of the attacking and the diversionary force, came through with no losses and with a minimum of damage. Enemy opposition had been slight. Antiaircraft fire was observed at two places, but only two planes sustained damage, and that slight. Fighter opposition was negligible. Three Me-109’s attacked the formation, and several others put in a silent appearance. Of those attacking, one was claimed as damaged by fire from the B-17’s. The bomber crews received no injury at all from enemy action, the only casualties having occurred when, on the way home, one plane hit a pigeon and the shattered glass from the nose of the bomber slightly injured the bombardier and navigator.” – Arthur B. Ferguson, “Rouen-Sotteville No. 1, 17 August 1942” (from James Lea Cate and Wesley Frank Craven, The Army Air Forces in World War II, Vol. One, Plans and Early Operations)

“The advisability of getting its crews into the United Kingdom outweighed the desirability of more thorough training before departure. But this meant that crews arrived with little or no experience in high-altitude flying. Pilots and co-pilots had received little instruction in flying formations at any altitude, to say nothing of maintaining tight formations at the extreme altitudes planned for day bomber missions. Many of the radio operators could neither send nor receive the Morse code. Worse yet, the gunners proved to be almost completely unfamiliar with their equipment. Many of them had had little or no opportunity to shoot at aerial targets, and several had never operated a turret in the air. This deficiency was especially disturbing to the Eighth Air Force experts because they felt sure that the ability of the heavy bombers to destroy enemy targets by daylight without prohibitive loss would depend in large part on their ability to defend themselves against enemy fighters.” – Arthur B. Ferguson, “Rouen-Sotteville No. 1, 17 August 1942” (from James Lea Cate and Wesley Frank Craven, The Army Air Forces in World War II, Vol. One, Plans and Early Operations)

“I wasted time, and now doth time waste me.” – William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King Richard II 5.5

“They well deserve to have that know the strong’st and surest way to get.” – William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King Richard II 3.3

“Shall we play the wantons with our woes, and make some pretty match with shedding tears?” – William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King Richard II 3.3

“Men judge by the complexion of the sky the state and inclination of the day.” – William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King Richard II 3.2

“To fear the foe, since fear oppresseth strength, gives, in your weakness, strength unto your foe.” – William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King Richard II 3.2

“If you and the other guy are serving chocolate pies, and the other guy’s pie is actually made of poop, the solution is not to add poop to your own pie. You can try to warn everybody about that pie, but sometimes E. coli has to be its own teacher.” – Marcie Jones, “Democratic State Leaders Prepare The Resistance,” Wonkette, November 11, 2024

“Wise men ne’er sit and wail their woes, but presently prevent the ways to wail.” – William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King Richard II 3.2

“Let us sit upon the ground, and tell sad stories of the death of kings:—how some have been depos’d; some slain in war; some haunted by the ghosts they have depos’d; some poison’d by their wives; some sleeping kill’d; all murder’d:—for within the hollow crown that rounds the mortal temples of a king keeps Death his court.” – William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King Richard II 3.2

“That is not forgot which ne’er I did remember.” – William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King Richard II 2.3