Work Undone
What the reason of the any laboriously drags into a heap, the wind of accident will collect in one breath. –Friedrich von Schiller
Pithy Words
On an office poster: “One day I shall burst my buds of calm and blossom fully into hysteria.”
Free, Indeed!
The warranty on a new color TV set had no sooner run out than the set started having trouble. The lady of the house called the company and they sent a man to fix it. When he found that the warranty had expired, he tried to talk her into signing a contract for repair insurance.
The woman was told that, if she signed it, there would be no charge for the present call. The lady, however, didn’t want to commit herself yet; she hadn’t studied the plan and its cost closely enough. She said she wanted to think it over.
The repairman sighed with resignation and said, “Well, ma’am, if you want free service, don’t forget, you have to pay for it.”
Reading or Thinking
A man bought a new gadget—unassembled, of course—and after reading and rereading the instructions, couldn’t figure out how it went together. Finally, he sought the help of an old handyman who was working in the backyard. The old fellow picked up the pieces, studied them, then began assembling the gadget. In a short time, he had it all put together. “That’s amazing,” said the man. “And you did it without even looking at the instructions!” “Fact is,” said the old man, “I can’t read, and when a fellow can’t read, he’s got to think.”
Problem Solving
A woman in Terre Haute, Indiana, called the police station to report a skunk in her cellar. The police told the woman to make a trail of bread crumbs from the basement to the yard and to wait for the skunk to follow it outside. A little later, the woman called back and said, “I did what you told me. Now, I’ve got two skunks in my cellar!”