About WIST
WIST is my collection of quotations I find meaningful, moving, amusing (intended or not), well-phrased, and/or to which I just say I “Wish I’d Said That.”
I’ve been collecting quotes, aphorisms, maxims, and sig lines since junior high (which is more years ago than I care to relate). I read books of quotations for fun. I dog-ear pages in books I’m reading so that I can come back later and copy particularly good turns of phrase. And, more recently, I quickly jot quotes I see down on my PDA so I can have a record of them.
When I first put together a quotations collection (a hard-copy effort, given as a Christmas gift to people who didn’t mind something that was cheap if it had the personal touch), I called the collection “WIST” for “Wish I’d Said That.”
That name is important because … well, it’s not altogether true. This is not just a collection of quotations whose sentiments I agree with (though that’s true for a lot of stuff here). In some cases there are ideas that I disagree with, firmly; in those cases, though, I’ve included the quote either because I admire the way it’s phrased, or else I thought it was so absurd, it made me smile just to read it.
But me repeat that in big, bold lettering, so that people don’t miss it:
Just because I quote it here doesn’t mean I agree with it.In other words, don’t e-mail me a complaint just because I quoted someone saying something you object to.
Now, the fact is, I do agree with most of what I quote here. Hopefully it will become pretty obvious when I don’t (or, again, when it isn’t a matter of agreement, but just enjoying a particular expression of thought). And, of course, there are some quotations where I agree with them sometimes, disagree with them other times.
So if I don’t always wish I’d said something, why not change the name? Tradition, I suppose, plus it’s a handy catch phrase.
If you have any comments, corrections, or suggestions, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
WIST is my personal and ever-growing collection of quotations. Please feel free to browse. More info and contact information is available under "About WIST."
Hi! I recently found your site and it’s great. Thank you!
I’m a very fan of quotes myself. I do the same as you, leaving dog-ear pages in most of the books I read.
I do -as one of my freelance works- the selection of quotes for this site: www.educared.org.ar/comunidades/tamtam/
You can see it here: www.educared.org.ar/comunidades/tamtam/?cat=90 but it’s in Spanish, and I’m thinking of doing a special site for them, so I can put in their original language, sometime, or quotes that are not meaningfull for young people (this site if for children and young people). I’ll keep you post it if I do it!
And please, sorry for my English. It’s not as good as I would like!