ou might remember me mentioning this, how I got interested in this book, only to find out that I already had it on the stacks. Amusing story HERE!
So Jon Winokur wrote this 1987, a book which look on the art of being a curmudgeon and what societal role we play (I use the “we” form here – is there any doubt that I’m not a get-off-my-lawn curmudgeon). Of course, the Okay Boomer crowd sees it this way. To them, they are superior to us, what with their ability to speed and tailgate (with their parent’s insurance close at hand), their ability to play through Angry Birds (whatever that is) and their spiffy tattoos. Sure, you young guys know it all.
As an old woman notes in a movie when Earth is facing destruction: People are always saying: “The children. Pity the children”. I’m tired of the children. They haven’t lived, given birth, watched their friends die. I have invested 80 years in this life. The children don’t know what they’re missing.
Very true.
So the book. Yes, Author Jon Winokur has assembled a very enjoyable read, a collection of famous curmudgeon definitions (by letter, for easy access and use). He also details the lives of famous curmudgeons, including interviews if that person was available (i.e. not dead). Very humorous. I can see how James Garner enjoyed it following surgery.
So, a couple to leave you with.
Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I’m not sure about the former. – Albert Einstein
A great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging their prejudices. -William James
Religion is the fashionable substitute for belief. -Oscar Wilde
Is sex dirty? Only if it’s done right. -Woody Allen
Self-respect: the secure feeling that no one, not yet, is suspicious. -H.L Mencken
He who can, does. He who cannot, teaches. -George Bernard Shaw
Television: chewing gum for the eyes. -Frank Lloyd Wright
So, if any of those made you chuckle, consider picking this up. Great book!