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Erma Bombeck

44 quotes

Erma Bombeck (1927–1996) was an American humorist and columnist who found comedy in the everyday chaos of suburban domestic life. Her syndicated newspaper column reached millions of readers, and her bestselling books — including *The Grass Is Always Greener over the Septic Tank* — made her one of America's most beloved humor writers.

“Most women put off entertaining until the kids are grown.”

— Erma Bombeck

Women

All Quotes by Erma Bombeck

“Sometimes I can't figure designers out. It's as if they flunked human anatomy.”

— Erma Bombeck

Design

“Thanksgiving dinners take eighteen hours to prepare. They are consumed in twelve minutes. Half-times take twelve minutes. This is not coincidence.”

— Erma Bombeck

Thanksgiving

“Children make your life important.”

— Erma Bombeck

Life

“I take a very practical view of raising children. I put a sign in each of their rooms: 'Checkout Time is 18 years.'”

— Erma Bombeck

Time

“When humor goes, there goes civilization.”

— Erma Bombeck

Humor

“Don't confuse fame with success. Madonna is one Helen Keller is the other.”

— Erma Bombeck

Success

“When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me'.”

— Erma Bombeck

God

“It is not until you become a mother that your judgment slowly turns to compassion and understanding.”

— Erma Bombeck

Mom

“Guilt: the gift that keeps on giving.”

— Erma Bombeck

Funny

“For years my wedding ring has done its job. It has led me not into temptation. It has reminded my husband numerous times at parties that it's time to go home. It has been a source of relief to a dinner companion. It has been a status symbol in the maternity ward.”

— Erma Bombeck

Home

“It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else.”

— Erma Bombeck

Courage

“Being a child at home alone in the summer is a high-risk occupation. If you call your mother at work thirteen times an hour, she can hurt you.”

— Erma Bombeck

Alone

“All of us have moments in our lives that test our courage. Taking children into a house with a white carpet is one of them.”

— Erma Bombeck

Courage

“My kids always perceived the bathroom as a place where you wait it out until all the groceries are unloaded from the car.”

— Erma Bombeck

Car

“Who in their infinite wisdom decreed that Little League uniforms be white? Certainly not a mother.”

— Erma Bombeck

Mom

“I come from a family where gravy is considered a beverage.”

— Erma Bombeck

Family

“What's with you men? Would hair stop growing on your chest if you asked directions somewhere?”

— Erma Bombeck

Men

“Thanks to my mother, not a single cardboard box has found its way back into society. We receive gifts in boxes from stores that went out of business twenty years ago.”

— Erma Bombeck

Business

“Car designers are just going to have to come up with an automobile that outlasts the payments.”

— Erma Bombeck

Car

“It goes without saying that you should never have more children than you have car windows.”

— Erma Bombeck

Car