Quotes & anectdotes from the wise, the foolish, the courageous & the drunk

Erma Bombeck Writer

  • Gender: Female
  • Citizenship: United States
  • Born: Feb 21, 1927
  • Died: Apr 22, 1996

Erma Louise Bombeck was an American humorist who achieved great popularity for her newspaper column that described suburban home life from the mid-1960s until the late 1990s. Bombeck also published 15 books, most of which became bestsellers. From 1965 to 1996, Erma Bombeck wrote over 4,000 newspaper columns, using broad and sometimes eloquent humor, chronicling the ordinary life of a midwestern suburban housewife. By the 1970s, her columns were read twice-weekly by 30 million readers of the 900 newspapers in the U.S. and Canada.

All of us have moments in our lives that test our courage. Taking children into a house with a white carpet is one of them. courage

Getting out of the hospital is a lot like resigning from a book club. You're not out of it until the computer says you're out of it. medical

When humor goes, there goes civilization. humor

A friend never defends a husband who gets his wife an electric skillet for her birthday. birthday

I come from a family where gravy is considered a beverage. family & food

There is a thin line that separates laughter and pain, comedy and tragedy, humor and hurt. humor

Children make your life important. life

I've exercised with women so thin that buzzards followed them to their cars. women

I take a very practical view of raising children. I put a sign in each of their rooms: 'Checkout Time is 18 years.' time

Never go to a doctor whose office plants have died. medical

Onion rings in the car cushions do not improve with time. cars & time

Never lend your car to anyone to whom you have given birth. cars & parenting

There's nothing sadder in this world than to awake Christmas morning and not be a child. Christmas & morning

Never have more children than you have car windows. cars & being funny

God created man, but I could do better. God

Guilt: the gift that keeps on giving. being funny

It is not until you become a mother that your judgment slowly turns to compassion and understanding. motherhood

Dreams have only one owner at a time. That's why dreamers are lonely. dreams & time

Car designers are just going to have to come up with an automobile that outlasts the payments. cars

It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else. courage & dreams

Don't confuse fame with success. Madonna is one Helen Keller is the other. success

Never go to your high school reunion pregnant or they will think that is all you have done since you graduated. graduation

Never order food in excess of your body weight. food

If a man watches three football games in a row, he should be declared legally dead. sports

It goes without saying that you should never have more children than you have car windows. cars

My kids always perceived the bathroom as a place where you wait it out until all the groceries are unloaded from the car. cars

Like religion, politics, and family planning, cereal is not a topic to be brought up in public. It's too controversial. family, food, politics & religion

Marriage has no guarantees. If that's what you're looking for, go live with a car battery. cars & marriage

Most women put off entertaining until the kids are grown. women

Who in their infinite wisdom decreed that Little League uniforms be white? Certainly not a mother. motherhood & wisdom

Sometimes I can't figure designers out. It's as if they flunked human anatomy. design

What's with you men? Would hair stop growing on your chest if you asked directions somewhere? men

A friend doesn't go on a diet because you are fat. diets & being funny

St. Patrick's Day March 17, 2025

There is no language like the Irish for soothing and quieting. 3 quotes from John Millington Synge

3 quotes from John Millington Synge

Being Irish, he had an abiding sense of tragedy, which sustained him through temporary periods of joy. 28 quotes from William Butler Yeats

28 quotes from William Butler Yeats

Geographically, Ireland is a medium-sized rural island that is slowly but steadily being consumed by sheep. 27 more wisdom & wit from Dave Barry

27 more wisdom & wit from Dave Barry

We have always found the Irish a bit odd. They refuse to be English. 74 views from Winston Churchill

74 views from Winston Churchill