“If counting is thinking, then the longest I’ve ever thought about any one subject continuously for is 127, 983 seconds. I might have also been in love, though I was too distracted to notice.”

“My marriage to Kincaid is a bit more complicated than I thought. There are certain things we don’t agreeon, and—”“You wish to change his mind about something,” Gregor finished.“How did you know?”“I’ve noticed that women often have a desire to change men, even the ones they love.”“I’ve noticed that, too.” Dougal frowned.”

“I’ve noticed that women often have a desire to change men, even the ones they love.”“I’ve noticed that, too.” Dougal frowned. “Which is odd, when you think about it. Because if you didn’tlike the way a man is, why would you attach yourself to him to begin with?”

“I am an uncle, though this is not a new feeling for me, as I’ve been one before. I’ve also been 2 through 32, and I turn 33 in March.”

“I’ve been drunk for about a week now, and I thought it might sober me up to sit in a library.”

“Does any woman ever count the grains of her harvest and say: Good enough? Or does one always think of what more one might have laid in, had the labor been harder, the ambition more vast, the choices more sage?”