Dubner invites you to write a new six-word motto for the US.
Some fun ones in the comments include:
- Still Using Fahrenheit, Feet, and Gallons.
- Hubris: it’s not just for Greeks!
- One Nation, Over Weight, Over Budget.
- Our worst critics prefer to stay.
- The world’s scapegoat except in emergencies.
- America: Our poor own big screen TV’s.
- No Lobbyist, No lawyer, no service.
- We’re mostly corn. Check the label.
Need inspiration? Check out Six-Word Memoirs by Writers Famous and Obscure:
From small sagas of bittersweet romance (“Found true love, married someone else”) to proud achievements and stinging regrets (“After Harvard, had baby with crackhead”), these terse true tales relate the diversity of human experience in tasty bite-sized pieces. From authors Jonathan Lethem and Richard Ford to comedians Stephen Colbert and Amy Sedaris, to ordinary folks around the world, everyone has a six-word story to tell.
Can you sum up your life so far in six words?
Erik Peterson
on 08 Feb 08“Succeeded, despite best efforts to fail.”
Evan
on 08 Feb 08Nothing really all that summable yet.
Eamon
on 08 Feb 08You can’t say he didn’t try.
Tim Barkow
on 08 Feb 08Wow! I never thought I’d made the 37signals blog! I’m one of the founders of SMITH magazine, Not Quite What I Was Planning is our first book. Thanks so much for the link!
[shameless plug] We’re collecting six-word memoirs on our site, and fully expect to do a book two (fingers crossed). So drop on by if you like and share your six-word memoir with us. Six-Word Memoirs.
Blair
on 08 Feb 08“Jack of all trades, mastered none” “Started strong, squandered opportunity, fell behind” “Lost it all out of spite”
I could go on and on. Wait, that is exactly six words. What the heck is going on? I think I should stop now. No, really, this isn’t funny anymore. Oh, for the love of…
J
on 08 Feb 08Physics is hard. Programming pays better.
SH
on 08 Feb 08“She just would not. Stop. Talking.”
Etienne Segonzac
on 08 Feb 08“I have found my own way”
Ryan
on 08 Feb 08I change careers every other year.
John
on 08 Feb 08A designer. Not an artist, Dammit.
or
Shouldn’t have been such a curmudgeon. (are contractions legal?)
or
He doesn’t care what you think.
Charles Martin
on 08 Feb 08“Work in progress. Watch this space.”
Mike
on 08 Feb 08I can’t bank on potential forever.
Chris Vincent
on 08 Feb 08“Drums plus programming equals carpal tunnel.”
Charles Martin
on 08 Feb 08“Best laid plans of mice and”
Micheal
on 08 Feb 08“Ruby on Rails changed my life.”
Jake A. Smith
on 08 Feb 08Classic: Problem exists between chair and keyboard.
Vista: Would you like to continue Windows?
Tim Case
on 08 Feb 08Dropped acid, woke up in Brazil.
Nate
on 08 Feb 08Wow, 4 posts already before noon on a Friday from you guys. That seems historic, and I love it! Keep blogging on Fridays!
Joe
on 08 Feb 08forging intelligence, instigating wars, torturing people
Jon Buda
on 08 Feb 08I love the simplicity and the restraint of the whole six word story idea. You can really fantastic thoughts out in a mere six words.
Coincidentally, the day before I read this post, I launched insixwords.com to allow people to get their six word thoughts out to the world.
Proudly built with Ruby on Rails!
Peter Cooper
on 08 Feb 08This reminds me of the BarCamp “three word introductions” rule! 3 words is hard, 6 words.. a little easier :) My own.. “Successfully introverted, loud mouthed polyglot technografter.” I guess that could be a description OR a memoir!
Jamie Tibbetts
on 08 Feb 08Haven’t achieved much, but still trying
Joga Luce
on 08 Feb 08zzz. hunh? zzzZzZzz. ow! what the?!
more to learn, less to sleep
“america eats its young”, induce vomiting!
back to work. I mean it.
Jesse Bilsten
on 08 Feb 08“One media to rule them all.” “Dyslexia when is you words reverse.” “Hezbollian Suiciders Nuculear Strategery Mission Accomplished”
Icelander
on 08 Feb 08Still lazy after all these years
Joe Casabona
on 08 Feb 08I swear I’ll do it tomorrow.
Always busy but pretty successful student.
FredS
on 08 Feb 08Get A BRAIN! Morans Go USA
Jeremy Raines
on 08 Feb 08Glad someone is doing hard math
Phonebook
on 08 Feb 08I’m not lonely; I’m just alone.
lucky
on 08 Feb 08lucky bastard, just fun and love
oscar7g
on 08 Feb 08No. I won’t change the font.
riki
on 09 Feb 08The best and worst of everything.
Bryan
on 09 Feb 08Can you make the logo bigger?
Dhrmil
on 09 Feb 08dont stop believing
chrisco
on 09 Feb 08For the new U.S. motto contest:
Where did we go so wrong? How to turn love into hate. bush plus dick equals screwed [bad]. george bush, Abu Ghraib, and Gitmo. george bush, our nightmade is yours. God told him to do it.
matt
on 09 Feb 08Still haven’t figured it all out.
Russ
on 09 Feb 08No. No. No! Well, okay, maybe.
Marlyse Comte
on 10 Feb 08From my point of view counting combined words (contractions) as in “isn’t” just as one word is not 100% correct because… well, “isn’t” is actually “is not” and thus basically not one word, even though technically you could argue it is.
I’m here, so I am.
some guy
on 10 Feb 08Java sucks. Hm, what about Ruby?
Steve R.
on 10 Feb 08Not an idiot, despite the evidence.
Tom G
on 11 Feb 08Still The Land Of The Free
Frank Gilroy
on 11 Feb 08I actually made it into the book, page 132.
Lazy Programmer, Ugly Runner, NASCAR Dad.”
Web Design
on 11 Feb 08tough but beautiful
The Hype
on 11 Feb 08An engineer who should be writing.
john
on 11 Feb 08“Dreaming my life away accounts for nothing”
wait, thats 7, dang it, gotta get my head out of the clouds.
Fred
on 11 Feb 08Goal: Do right, work hard, die happy.
Reality: Blunder about, trying things, growing older.
Reda
on 12 Feb 08We Hypnotize, You Buy, We Rule
This discussion is closed.