1,837. Progress; Waste "It is common to overlook what is near, by keeping the eye fixed upon something remote. In the same manner, present opportunities are neglected, and attainable good is slighted, by minds busied in extensive ranges, and intent upon future advantages. Life, however short, is made still shorter by waste of time; and its progress towards happiness, though naturally slow, is yet retarded by unnecessary labour." Johnson: Idler #91 (January 12, 1760) Link 1,838. The Grass Is Always Greener...; Language; Waste "To make the way to learning either less short or less smooth, is certainly absurd; yet this is the apparent effect of the prejudice which seems to prevail among us in favour of foreign authors, and of the contempt of our native literature, which this excursive curiosity must necessarily produce. Every man is more speedily instructed by his own language than by any other; before we search the rest of the world for teachers, let us try whether we may not spare our trouble by finding them at home." Johnson: Idler #91 (January 12, 1760) Link