Closely Observed Trains

Famous quotes containing the words closely, observed and/or trains:

    It had been cold since December. Snow fell, first,
    At New Year and, from then until April, lay
    On everything. Now it had melted, leaving
    The gray grass like a pallet, closely pressed;
    And dirt. The wind blew in the empty place.
    Wallace Stevens (1879–1955)

    We travellers are in very hard circumstances. If we say nothing but what has been said before us, we are dull and have observed nothing. If we tell anything new, we are laughed at as fabulous and romantic.
    Mary Wortley, Lady Montagu (1689–1762)

    To write weekly, to write daily, to write shortly, to write for busy people catching trains in the morning or for tired people coming home in the evening, is a heartbreaking task for men who know good writing from bad. They do it, but instinctively draw out of harm’s way anything precious that might be damaged by contact with the public, or anything sharp that might irritate its skin.
    Virginia Woolf (1882–1941)