The meaning of dust

According to an early twentieth-century British clerk, dust and other "matter out of place" on the walls and ceilings of an office had once suggested "solidity, respectability, and age." However, where dust had previously been seen as evidence of a firm's long-term existence, such that clients "breathed an air of financial stability," in the modern office, the concern was that through dust and dirt people breathed in something much less desirable; this was especially problematic for those people who were expected to work efficiently in an office.

Craig Robertson, The Filing Cabinet: A Vertical History of Information (St. Paul, MN: Univ. of Minnesota Press, 2021), p.82

Lots of authors thank their families, but who thanks their optician?

In a book that is about the infrastructure critical to paperwork, to how paper works, I want to thank the people and institutions that provided specific infrastructural support for the writing of this book: . . . the staff at Eye Q in Harvard Square, who convinced me to get another set of progressive lenses specifically designed so I could look at a screen for hours on end without getting headaches; . . .

Craig Robertson, The Filing Cabinet: A Vertical History of Information (St. Paul, MN: Univ. of Minnesota Press, 2021), p. 263

Persevering with the trumpet (or perhaps other hard tasks)

In order to sustain the desire to persevere, first the student must believe that making good music is important, that it makes the world a better place. This notion may seem unrealistic, but all people need to feel that their work makes a difference, that if they were not here some component, however small, would be missing and, more important, would be missed.

Keith Johnson, The Art of Trumpet Playing (Ames, Iowa: The Iowa State University Press, 1981), p. 11