Obnoxiously difficult quotes

[Lurker]

There's been so much talk of hard quotes, and people's lists, maybe we can share some of ours.

Here's a starter set.

Alexander Pope: Fix'd like a plant on his peculiar spot, to draw nutrition, propagate, and rot.

Robert Orden: Time flies. It's up to you to be the navigator.

Dorothy Parker: They sicken of the calm that know the storm.

Unattributed: I am a Marxist...of the Groucho tendency.

Gilbert Chesterton: All slang is metaphor, and all metaphor is poetry.

Ernest Dimnet: All serious conversations gravitate towards philosophy.

John Ruskin: Life without industry is guilt. Industry without art is brutality.

[nyrhtak]

I gleaned jests at home from obsolete farces. - Samuel Johnson :mad:

[kat]

Unattributed:

"Rebuke with soft words and hard arguments."

[Lurker]

"Ten censure wrong, for one that writes amiss" - Alexander Pope

[Lily H]

Artemis Ward: Why is this thus? What is the reason for this thusness?

[pootie49]

Ben Franklin

Clearly spoken Mr. Fogg; you explain English by Greek.

Avg solve time: 371 secs, solve rate: 10.8 %

[w9wwj]

There's been so much talk of hard quotes, and people's lists, maybe we can share some of ours.

Here's a starter set.

Alexander Pope: Fix'd like a plant on his peculiar spot, to draw nutrition, propagate, and rot.

Robert Orden: Time flies. It's up to you to be the navigator.

Dorothy Parker: They sicken of the calm that know the storm.

Unattributed: I am a Marxist...of the Groucho tendency.

Gilbert Chesterton: All slang is metaphor, and all metaphor is poetry.

Ernest Dimnet: All serious conversations gravitate towards philosophy.

John Ruskin: Life without industry is guilt. Industry without art is brutality.
where is the fun, the challenge? I enjoy a puzzel that is an "Obnoxiously difficult quote" At 62 I like to think I can still reason them out; I may not
be a speed demon like some but in time I get them done

[puppywoo]

I can't list the obnoxiously difficult ones - I couldn't solve them.

[AmberRose]

I have discovered that some of the "easy" rated puzzles can be harder to solve than the "difficult" ones!

It takes me a lot of time to figure out where to start?:o

Which leads me into yet another newcomer question, is there a way to get the cursor to automatically go to the first letter of the puzzle, obviously positioning my mouse will do that -- but I am just wondering if there is a keyboard short-cut I can use?

Lurker, the tab doesn't work for my laptop. But I will check the other forum posts for helpful hints, thanks.

[Lurker]

I'm on a Mac, so some of my shortcuts are different. Try Tab.

As for where to start, there are lots of helpful hints in other threads. Try finding "the" or any contractions. The most frequent letter is E most of the time.

[LiveLoveLaugh]

you seem to have the knack of where to start

[justplayin]

This one threw me off by having three single letters:

"Whenever A annoys or injures B on the pretense of saving or improving X, A is a scoundrel."
— Henry Louis Mencken

Also, not long ago I had one with "o clock" with no apostrophe. I kept trying to make the single letter an "I" or an "a."

[Lurker]

Antipathy, dissimilarity of views, hate, contempt, can accompany true love.

- J. August Strindberg

[Lurker]

Pride that dines on vanity, sups on contempt. - Ben Franklin

Solve rate is 14.5%, which isn't terribly low.
Average solve time, 399 seconds. That is the highest average I've seen. Anyone find one higher?


PS: digirl has the record at 28 seconds.

[mark]

I get really frustrated with Alexander Pope's archaic, backward grammatical style. It's like Yoda smoked a fattie and decided to write some poetry. If quotations are worthy of the annals of time I think they should at least be grammatically sound. Forgive me if I have offended any Pope fans but this guy just isn't my cup of tea at all.

[kat]

I can't stand his quotes!:mad:

[mark]

good old Ben Franklin just whipped me good...

"Use no hurtful deceit - think innocently and justly and if you speak, speak accordingly."
— Benjamin Franklin

This one took me over 2000 seconds to solve. I just couldn't get a start on it. I was using Ts and Ps in those double letter spots and just couldn't figure it out...I finally got "innocently" and the rest fell together.

[mark]

"I am his Highness dog at Kew; pray tell me, sir, whose dog are you? "
— Alexander Pope

What the hell is this?!? I swear this guy should have been hung!

[bansaisequoia]

Actually, this quote didn't seem too bad to me, either. It's got an "I" in it, and I've actually heard of the Kew Gardens before. I think someone once showed me their boring vacation slides or something. Surfing the net, I also discovered that there's actually another Kew Gardens located in Queens, NYC. Small world.
http://asmaraanddira.files.wordpress.com/2009/09/kew-gardens-1.jpg
LONDON
http://www.transitblogger.com/pictures/KewGardensUnionTurnpike.jpg
NEW YORK

[mark]

As far as I'm concerned you can hang his damned dog too! And what's with the use of other languages in these quotes? In one quote the word for tomorrow was Spanish while every other word was English. Do these guys think they're being clever? It kept trying to make banana fit when I suddenly remembered an excerpt from one of my favorite cartoons - "Road to El Dorado" - when one of the characters ( I think it was Tulio ) said "row back to Spain like there's no mañana!" If it wasn't for my love of cartoons I think I'd still be going bananas over that one. Sheesh! :confused:

[impededredwood]

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[Lurker]

OK, finally found it. Here's the busyness quote, with only a 3.5% solve rate.

When we get too caught up in the busyness of the world we lose connection with one another - and ourselves. - Jack Kornfield

Remember, you've already used the I. There's another quote with this spelling somewhere. If anyone knows it, please post.

[LurkerSmurf]

Cold hopes swarm like worms within our living clay. - Percy Shelley

6.3% solve rate, 330 second average. Laura's record, 43 seconds.

[Angie]

I get really frustrated with Alexander Pope's archaic, backward grammatical style. It's like Yoda smoked a fattie and decided to write some poetry. If quotations are worthy of the annals of time I think they should at least be grammatically sound. Forgive me if I have offended any Pope fans but this guy just isn't my cup of tea at all.

"...Yoda smoked a fattie and wrote some poetry..." !! Thought I was going to wet myself!

[bansaisequoia]

http://recollectionbooks.com/siml/images/yoda-doobie.jpg:p

[Lurker]

Dios tarda pero no olvida - God delays but doesn't forget.

Partir, c'est mourir un peu. (To leave is to die a little.)

Both listed as Proverbs

[Lurker]

This one had four of us going last night for over an hour. Hurray to Pootie for finally cracking it!

"Know safety, no injury. No safety, know injury." Unattributed

[snappygranny]

I guess I am just "under-read" but henry fielding always gets me with this one...took me over 6 minutes!
:confused:
"Thwackum was for doing justice, and leaving mercy to Heaven. "
— Henry Fielding

Who is named Thwackum anyway!

[pootie49]

who goes aborrowing goes asorrowing

Now I remember that quote being first entered as...
He who goes a'borrowing goes a'sorrowing.

Emphasis on the '

Here is the earliest entry I could find for that quote...
He that goeth a borowynge goeth a sorowynge.
[1545 R. Taverner tr. Erasmus' Adages (ed. 2) 46V]

Later it was changed to include a- and also a', then finally the punctuation was removed.

My beef here is if it was originally entered on the site with the ' in it. Why remove it?
Its a killer quote and its much more recognizeable with the ' than without it.
Please put the ' back in. The avg solve time for that quote is 228 seconds.
I dislike that quote.

Thanks Admin.

[Lurker]

"The pearl is the queen of gems and the gem of queens." - Unattributed

4.9% solve rate, 283 second average.

Enjoy.

[Lily H]

I got really stuck on that one and had to ask for help in the chat box. It uses a lot of uncommon letters.

[kimmie]

"Socialism is Bolshevekism with a shave."

This one gave me such trouble! I have never worked so hard for 10 points! It took me FOREVER.

[Barnabas]

When I first noticed this thread, I had a few quotes in mind to add to it. But after having read the quotes that have been posted here, it was obvious that those I had in mind were child's play to the solvers who can work these out. How do you even begin:eek: to work some of these puzzles? I see now the reason for the 15 - 20% of puzzles that I fail to solve. Uff da.:o Ben Franklin's quotes consistently give me fits. But, not to sell myself short, I have noticed that I am often able to solve quotes that have only a 15% or so solve rate, and that does boost my confidence.

[Barnabas]

Here's one that I found difficult, but was ultimately able to solve (though a couple of months ago I'm sure I would have just given up on it). It's from Michaelangelo - "Trifles make perfection, but perfection is no trifle.

[maggiemouse]

Barnabas - Uff da vida! are you from MN or ND? The most difficult ones for me are ones I can't solve.

[wvwoman]

hit the = key.

[sarahk809]

"when no one is" took me forever!

[Barnabas]

Barnabas - Uff da vida! are you from MN or ND? The most difficult ones for me are ones I can't solve.

I'm from Minnesota. Grew up in northern Iowa. Went south to Texas for some of my college, and then returned to the area I had grown up in. Pretty much a lifer here.:eek:

[Barnabas]

If you stand straight, do not fear crooked shadows. - I think it was a Chinese proverb. And I don't know if it would qualify as obnoxiously difficult, but it wasn't a gimme either.

[thresa]

"Weep for the lives your wishes never led" W.H. Auden

"EACH BIRD MUST SING WITH HIS OWN THROAT" Henrik Ibsen

"LARGE LEGISLATIVE BODIES RESOLVE THEMSELVES INTO COTERIES" (I think this one was Unattributed, but I did not make note at the time)

[gryhnd51]

cogito ergo spud, I think therfore I yam. Graffito
Gonzo leaps like a giraffe and grabs it. Jerry Coleman
Weeping bride, laughing wife, laughing bride, weeping wife. German proverb
dios tarda pero no olvida-god delays but doesn't forget. proverb
He that winna be ruled by the rudder maun be ruled by the rock. proverb
Veni, vidi, velcro. I came, I saw, I stuck around. anonymous
No pain, no palm; no thorns, no throne; no gall, no glory, no cross, no crown. wm penn

and last but not least:

sow much, reap much; sow little, reap little. proverb

[pootie49]

"Ethelberta breathed a sort of exclamation, not right out, but stealthily,
like a parson's damn." ~Thomas Hardy

and imho

"Know safety, no injury. No safety, know injury." ~Author Unknown
(hardest quote ever)

**nb...
OMG Beth, the sow reap quote. Holy cowfish...first month trying for a hundred percent,
many moons ago...I got that one. I was baffled. Time was ticking by.
I was pretty new back then, I pm'd Laura...I was in tears LOL LOL. Srsly.
she sent me the solve to it and said oh yes that one stumps everyone.
Now when I get it I still take forever to solve it. But not almost two hours.
I have to say the sow reap is on par with the no safety quote.
thanks for the memory. LOL. grrr. cryin in cryptograms. LOL.

[Barnabas]

This is where I thank Pootie for reminding me that the thread is called "obnoxiously difficult quotes" and that I should leave the postings here to the truly gifted solvers.:D So often I tell myself not to go swimmin' in them there waters, only to finding myself jumping in the pool just moments later :rolleyes: :p ;)

[montyb]

Four thousand volumes of metaphysics will not teach us what the soul is. ~ Voltaire

Weeping bride, laughing wife, laughing bride, weeping wife. ~ "Joe" proverb

[Lurker]

Ooh, I got the weeping bride yesterday. Took for-ev-er!

[montyb]

No pain, no palm; no thorns, no throne; no gall, no glory; no cross, no crown. ~ William Penn

[cleofish]

"France was a long despotism tempered by epigrams." Thomas Carlyle

Really hard! Or is it just me? :o

[montyb]

It is not just you, cleofish. Quotes with proper names of persons or places throw me every time. I'm especially bad at recognizing "England", to the chagrin of a few of my in-laws. :o

[Barnabas]

"France was a long despotism tempered by epigrams." Thomas Carlyle

Really hard! Or is it just me? :o

Have you seen the pained expression on Carlyle's face in the photo they use of him on this site? I think this quote certainly explains a lot. Maybe he had just finished saying this quote when that picture was taken.:eek: :D

[cleofish]

Have you seen the pained expression on Carlyle's face in the photo they use of him on this site? I think this quote certainly explains a lot. Maybe he had just finished saying this quote when that picture was taken.:eek: :D

I've just seen it on another of his quotes and I see exactly what you mean. :D

It is not just you, cleofish. Quotes with proper names of persons or places throw me every time. I'm especially bad at recognizing "England", to the chagrin of a few of my in-laws.

Names are difficult. I am English but England and English can still catch me out. I've learned to recognise America, but that comes up quite often. France just looks too much like a normal word. :confused:

[mikehallbackhoe]

cogito ergo spud, I think therfore I yam. Graffito
Gonzo leaps like a giraffe and grabs it. Jerry Coleman
Weeping bride, laughing wife, laughing bride, weeping wife. German proverb
dios tarda pero no olvida-god delays but doesn't forget. proverb
He that winna be ruled by the rudder maun be ruled by the rock. proverb
Veni, vidi, velcro. I came, I saw, I stuck around. anonymous
No pain, no palm; no thorns, no throne; no gall, no glory, no cross, no crown. wm penn

and last but not least:

sow much, reap much; sow little, reap little. proverb
I just got that veni, vidi, velcro puzzle. it took me 8 minutes !

[Lurker]

"I know by my own pot how the others boil." - Proverb

Success rate 11.2%
Average Time 463 seconds
Record 46 seconds by pajarito7

And the bottom end of the bell curve is 2,315 seconds.

You're welcome

[Carrot]

Unattributed - "Before you advise anyone Be yourself! reassess his character."

[Carrot]

"Here's to you, as good as you are, And here's to me, as bad as I am. But as good as you are, and as bad as I am, I am as good as you are, as bad as I am." ~ Scottish Proverb

[Carrot]

Unattributed ~ "It is not how big you are, it's how big you play."

LOL...staring at puzzle....then....in walks my NFL BIG hubby : ) talking about last night's controversial call at Seattle Seahawks game......puzzle solved! God I LOVE him!!!!!!!!

[thresa]

"Cats conspire to keep us at arm's length." — Frank Perkins

I am glad I was playing in non-competitive mode for this one, because I needed hints.

[iltquilt]

"False enchantment can last a lifetime." W. H. Auden

Maybe this one is not so difficult for some, but I certainly set a slowest time record on it.

:D

[Carrot]

Jon Stewart - “The country's twenty-four hour political pundit perpetual panic conflictinator did not cause our problems but its existence makes solving them that much harder."

[gryhnd51]

"url's are the 800 numbers of the 1990's." by Chris Clark

[gryhnd51]

"If pedestrians obstacle your path, tootle horn melodiously." Japanese directions for English-speaking drivers

I personally LOVE this one, despite its difficulty.

[chopstix]

Hello -

The following is what I think it should have been, but even after trying ALL of the "letters remaining" for the one letter left over, nothing worked! So I just gave up and never found out what it should have said!

If you know, please post!

"Safety _eans first aid to the uninsured." - Unattributed

The _ is for the missing letter.

No, "m" did not work :(

I believe the "letters remaining" were: b c g h j k l m p q v w x y z

Also, all of the letters in the quote are repeated at least once except the missing letter and the "h" in the, and the "o" in to.

Thanks!

[Carrot]

. Safety means first aid to the uninjured.

[chopstix]

Aaaaah!!!!!! Thank you!

[Lurker]

I don't know if this one has been mentioned yet, but I've never seen such stats.

"People who rely most on God rely least on themselves." -Lemuel K. Washburn

2.2% success rate
Average time 651 seconds
Record time 11 seconds (bansaisequoia)

[wvwoman]

lurker, is it perhaps a newer one? that might explain the stats; 'people' is an easy word to spot, so i can't imagine...

[WineChick]

"I have no name: I am but two days old. What shall I call thee? I happy am, Joy is my name. Sweet joy befall thee! "

"I happy am"???? William Blake, please speak English!!! :eek:

Give me Spanish translated quotes anyday...at least I speak Spanish, not British!

[montyb]

"Spare your breath to cool your porridge."
— Miguel de Cervantes

[contrary]

"Stay is a charming word in a friend's vocabulary."

Throw out everything you know about letter frequency. Success rate 12.1 and average time 197 seconds.

[montyb]

Thanks are justly due for boons unbought. ~~ Ovid

[montyb]

"Profits are an opinion, cash is a fact." Uattributed (whom else?)

[gryhnd51]

"Popularity? It's glory's small change" quote by Victor Hugo

[nanrich]

"Snowmen fall from heaven... unassembled." - Unattributed.

[gryhnd51]

Hedges between keep friendships green. Proverb

Clever father, clever daughter; clever mother, clever son. Proverb

Sow much, reap much; sow little, reap little. Proverb

Weeping bride, laughting wife; laughing bride, weeping wife. Proverb

He that winna be ruled by the rudder maun be ruled by the rock. Proverb

Do good, reap good; do evil, reap evil. CHinese proverb

Man who waits for roast duck to fly into mouth must wait very, very long time. Chinese Proverb

[montyb]

"Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work." Just as true today as his five elements of nature; earth, air, fire, water, and quintessence. :confused:

[contrary]

"At high tide fish eat ants; at low tide ants eat fish. " - Thai Proverb