A long shot. Do you know this quote that might not be a quote.
October 18, 2010 11:00 PM Subscribe
Where is this quote from? Is it from anywhere?
"it pretended to be invisible when in fact it was only thin and brutal."
I sent myself this sentence in an email in November 2009. The title of the email is "fence." I have no idea where I got it from--there is a chance I made it up, because I am a writer of stories and poems and I often email myself phrases I think of throughout the day. However, the fact that I named it "fence" makes me think I was reading something and liked a quote. I have no idea what "fence" is--it's not the magazine Fence, as I hadn't read it for three or four years before I sent this email to myself. I've googled, and nothing. I wasn't reading much fiction or poetry at the time, but I doubt it was from articles on urban transportation. I have never heard a person say something and then emailed myself what he or she said, so that is definitely not what happened. I also was not reading anyone's unpublished writing at the time.
Does anyone recognize this quote? If it's not from anywhere but my own cryptic-self-emailing head, I want to use it in my own writing. However, I just have this suspicion that it's from someplace else.
"it pretended to be invisible when in fact it was only thin and brutal."
I sent myself this sentence in an email in November 2009. The title of the email is "fence." I have no idea where I got it from--there is a chance I made it up, because I am a writer of stories and poems and I often email myself phrases I think of throughout the day. However, the fact that I named it "fence" makes me think I was reading something and liked a quote. I have no idea what "fence" is--it's not the magazine Fence, as I hadn't read it for three or four years before I sent this email to myself. I've googled, and nothing. I wasn't reading much fiction or poetry at the time, but I doubt it was from articles on urban transportation. I have never heard a person say something and then emailed myself what he or she said, so that is definitely not what happened. I also was not reading anyone's unpublished writing at the time.
Does anyone recognize this quote? If it's not from anywhere but my own cryptic-self-emailing head, I want to use it in my own writing. However, I just have this suspicion that it's from someplace else.
The next line appears to be "Alexander's pattern language made it possible to understand these things." And it looks like it might be on page 252?
posted by redsparkler at 11:24 PM on October 18, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by redsparkler at 11:24 PM on October 18, 2010 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Page 52 of The geography of nowhere: the rise and decline of America's man-made landscape By James Howard Kunstler
posted by abirdandaman at 11:33 PM on October 18, 2010
posted by abirdandaman at 11:33 PM on October 18, 2010
Credit to redsparkler - just saying the page is 52 rather than 252 :)
posted by abirdandaman at 11:36 PM on October 18, 2010
posted by abirdandaman at 11:36 PM on October 18, 2010
Ah, yes, abirdandaman, but note that the pages on either side of that "page 52" link are 251 and 256. I think there's some weird thing going on with the numbering system, and it appears that pattern language is getting discussed circa the 250's.
posted by redsparkler at 11:53 PM on October 18, 2010
posted by redsparkler at 11:53 PM on October 18, 2010
Kunstler's website. And his rather good takedown of suburban architecture at TED.
posted by Happy Dave at 4:20 AM on October 19, 2010
posted by Happy Dave at 4:20 AM on October 19, 2010
Response by poster: YOU GUYS ARE SO AWESOME! thank you!
posted by millipede at 7:51 AM on October 19, 2010
posted by millipede at 7:51 AM on October 19, 2010
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posted by redsparkler at 11:15 PM on October 18, 2010 [1 favorite]