“Never underestimate the human capacity for wishful thinking and willful blindness,' said Miles. Such as a whole society of people who became so wrapped up in avoiding death, they forgot to be alive?”

“Miles is... Miles; close to a force of nature, climbing up out of his own pages and escaping subordination to any opinion of mine.”

“The world is made by the people who show up for the job.”

“My dinner party,' Miles grated. 'It's just breaking up.' And sinking. All souls feared lost.”

“Not that I haven't leaped up into the blinding light of competence now and then. It's sustaining the altitude that defeats me.”

“Miles added it to his life's lessons list. Call it Rule 27B. Never make key tactical decisions while having electro-convulsive seizures.”

“Miles was…the thing is, he was afflicted with a severe birth injury. He grew up pretty much crippled, so he poured all his frustrated energy into his intellect. Since the Vorkosigan family motto might as well be, Anything worth achieving is worth overachieving, the effect was pretty frightening. And it worked for him, so he did it some more.”