I had a funny feeling as I saw the house disappear, as though I had written a poem and it was very good and I had lost it and would never remember it again.

There was a sad fellow over on a bar stool talking to the bartender, who was polishing a glass and listening with that plastic smile people wear when they are trying not to scream.

Your rat tail is all the fashion now. I prefer a bushy plume, carried straight up. You are Siamese and your ancestors lived in trees. Mine lived in palaces. It has been suggested to me that I am a bit of a snob. How true! I prefer to be.

The coffee shop smell was strong enough to build a garage on.

I hung up. It was a good start, but it didn’t go far enough. I ought to have locked the door and hidden under the desk.

You're broke, eh?" I been shaking two nickels together for a month, trying to get them to mate.

You can always tell a detective on TV. He never takes his hat off.