--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Hardly anyone ever leaves. This is…" description: "\"Hardly anyone ever leaves. This is because Des Moines is the most powerful hypnotic known to man. Outside town there is a big sign that says, WELCOME T..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d18/bill-bryson-340_bigs_hardly-anyone-ever-leaves-this-is-becaus_1072526.jpg" --- # Hardly anyone ever leaves. This is because Des Moines is… ![“Hardly anyone ever leaves. This is because Des Moines is the most powerful hypnotic known to man. Outside town there is a big sign that says, WELCOME TO DES MOINES. THIS IS WHAT DEATH IS LIKE. There isn't really. I just made that up. But the place does get a grip on you.” quote by Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d18/bill-bryson-340_bigs_hardly-anyone-ever-leaves-this-is-becaus_1072526.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d18/bill-bryson-340_bigs_hardly-anyone-ever-leaves-this-is-becaus_1072526.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d18/bill-bryson-340_bigs_hardly-anyone-ever-leaves-this-is-becaus_1072526.jpg) > “Hardly anyone ever leaves. This is because Des Moines is the most powerful hypnotic known to man. Outside town there is a big sign that says, WELCOME TO DES MOINES. THIS IS WHAT DEATH IS LIKE. There isn't really. I just made that up. But the place does get a grip on you.” [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The city’s atmosphere feels oppressive, as if it exerts a hypnotic grip, though the claim is exaggerated. **In simple terms:** Des Moines feels oddly oppressive. Key Takeaway Recognize how environments affect mood. Themes place atmosphere psychology Mood observational humorous Type reflective satirical When to use this quote - moving to a new city - working remotely - travel planning - stress management Key Concepts urban studies environmental psychology Questions to Reflect On - How does your surroundings influence your mindset? - Can you reshape a place’s impact on you? A Different Perspective Personal experience may differ; not everyone feels the same effect. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Des moines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/des-moines/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) ## Related quotes > [I come Des Moines. Somebody had to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/i-come-des-moines-somebody-had-to/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [I come from Des Moines. Somebody had to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/i-come-from-des-moines-somebody-had-to/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [I grew up in Des Moines. My dad had a house full of books, things like P.G. Wodehouse books and 'Wuthering Heights' by Emily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/i-grew-up-in-des-moines-my-dad-had-a-house-full-of-books-things-like/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Much as I resented having to grow up in Des Moines, it gave me a real appreciation for every place in the world that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/much-as-i-resented-having-to-grow-up-in-des-moines-it-gave-me-a-real/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [I come from Des Moines. Someone had to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/i-come-from-des-moines-someone-had-to/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [When I was growing up I used to think that the best thing about coming from Des Moines was that it meant you didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/when-i-was-growing-up-i-used-to-think-that-the-best-thing-about/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Des Moines is like your typical American city; it's just these concentric circles of malls, built outward from the city.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/des-moines-is-like-your-typical-american-city-it-s-just-these/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Where I grew up, in Des Moines, Iowa, there is hardly any downtown economic activity now. Everybody shops in malls - you don't find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/where-i-grew-up-in-des-moines-iowa-there-is-hardly-any-downtown/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [We don't have a constant PR person or anything. That's why people say. 'Oh, you're still together?' Yeah. I'm in Des Moines with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-schneider/we-don-t-have-a-constant-pr-person-or-anything-that-s-why-people-say/) [Fred Schneider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-schneider/) > [I still live in Des Moines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-crahan/i-still-live-in-des-moines/) [Shawn Crahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-crahan/) > [You need to make a trip to Des Moines in August, because the Iowa State Fair really is a sight to see. The Iowa…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-johnson/you-need-to-make-a-trip-to-des-moines-in-august-because-the-iowa/) [Zach Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-johnson/) > [I love it. It's all good to me. Whether I'm performing in New York, L.A., Columbus or Des Moines, I give 110 percent every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-michaels/i-love-it-it-s-all-good-to-me-whether-i-m-performing-in-new-york-l-a/) [Bret Michaels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-michaels/) > [So I rushed past the pretty girls, and the prettiest girls in the world live in Des Moines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/so-i-rushed-past-the-pretty-girls-and-the-prettiest-girls-in-the/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I think that the Internet is going to effect the most profound change on the entertainment industries combined. And we're all gonna be tuning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/i-think-that-the-internet-is-going-to-effect-the-most-profound-change/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) > [If you want to be a comedian, go out. Do a week in Des Moines, Iowa. Try to make those people laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-swardson/if-you-want-to-be-a-comedian-go-out-do-a-week-in-des-moines-iowa-try/) [Nick Swardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-swardson/) ## More by Bill Bryson > [Most big companies don't like you very much, except hotels, airlines and Microsoft, which don't like you at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/most-big-companies-don-t-like-you-very-much-except-hotels-airlines/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“But Welsh spellings are as nothing compared with Irish Gaelic, a language in which spelling and pronunciation give the impression of having been devised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/but-welsh-spellings-are-as-nothing-compared-with-irish-gaelic-a/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“Pantaloons were often worn tight as paint and were not a great deal less revealing, particularly as they were worn without underwear. . .…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/pantaloons-were-often-worn-tight-as-paint-and-were-not-a-great-deal/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [If you go out on the Appalachian Trail, you have to bring so much more equipment - a tent, sleeping bag - but if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/if-you-go-out-on-the-appalachian-trail-you-have-to-bring-so-much-more/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“The dining table was a plain board called by that name. It was hung on the wall when not in use, and was perched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/the-dining-table-was-a-plain-board-called-by-that-name-it-was-hung-on/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“From almost nothing, France in four years built up an aircraft industry that employed nearly 200,000 people and produced some 70,000 planes. Britain built…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/from-almost-nothing-france-in-four-years-built-up-an-aircraft/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“Every twenty minutes on the Appalachian Trail, Katz and I walked farther than the average American walks in a week. For 93 percent of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/every-twenty-minutes-on-the-appalachian-trail-katz-and-i-walked/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“A diarist named George Templeton Strong recorded in the winter of 1866 that even with two furnaces alight and all the fireplaces blazing, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/a-diarist-named-george-templeton-strong-recorded-in-the-winter-of/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Tune your television to any channel it doesn't receive and about 1 percent of the dancing static you see is accounted for by this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/tune-your-television-to-any-channel-it-doesn-t-receive-and-about-1/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [As a rule of thumb, I would submit that if you need to call your floss provider, for any reason, you are probably not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/as-a-rule-of-thumb-i-would-submit-that-if-you-need-to-call-your-floss/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [Nobody gets excited about the future at all, ever. The future is something we find depressing and worrisome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/nobody-gets-excited-about-the-future-at-all-ever-the-future-is/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“What made this particularly interesting is that John Howard is by far the dullest man in Australia. Imagine a very committed funeral home director…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/what-made-this-particularly-interesting-is-that-john-howard-is-by-far/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [I would make a genuinely terrible guide. I can't remember things. I would get half way through telling a story or explaining something and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/i-would-make-a-genuinely-terrible-guide-i-can-t-remember-things-i/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [“In the mystifying world that was Victorian parenthood, obedience took precedence over all considerations of affection and happiness, and that odd, painful conviction remained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/in-the-mystifying-world-that-was-victorian-parenthood-obedience-took/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [If this book has a lesson, it is that we are awfully lucky to be here-and by 'we' I mean every living thing. To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/if-this-book-has-a-lesson-it-is-that-we-are-awfully-lucky-to-be-here/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) [Explore all 656 Bill Bryson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) ## More Bigs quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [It is said that history turns on small hinges. A human career, too, results from an accumulating series of decisions about large and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/it-is-said-that-history-turns-on-small-hinges-a-human-career-too/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [I'm a true believer in prayer, a big believer in prayer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-jackson/i-m-a-true-believer-in-prayer-a-big-believer-in-prayer/) [Janet Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-jackson/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [I'm a big fan of all the Boston guys that are acting - Matt Damon , Ben Affleck, Mark Wahlberg - they made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-wormald/i-m-a-big-fan-of-all-the-boston-guys-that-are-acting-matt-damon-ben/) [Kenny Wormald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-wormald/) > [The only regret I have in my career, is my managers wanted a big payday, and I wanted four or five more fights before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerry-cooney/the-only-regret-i-have-in-my-career-is-my-managers-wanted-a-big/) [Gerry Cooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerry-cooney/) > [It goes to show you how we in the press so often miss the big stories that are right under our noses. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/it-goes-to-show-you-how-we-in-the-press-so-often-miss-the-big-stories/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [Okay, so I'll admit I'm curious. Big deal. We both know what that leads to. Dead cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/okay-so-i-ll-admit-i-m-curious-big-deal-we-both-know-what-that-leads/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [I don't want this to be a distraction. This has been distracting enough. I'm not going to rehash this going forward. I'm sure other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jayson-werth/i-don-t-want-this-to-be-a-distraction-this-has-been-distracting/) [Jayson Werth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jayson-werth/) > [I didn't get how big it was until I went home, turned on the television and saw it on all the news, and later…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/i-didn-t-get-how-big-it-was-until-i-went-home-turned-on-the/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [It’s a small thing to help one animal, but to that one animal it’s a big thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-baur/it-s-a-small-thing-to-help-one-animal-but-to-that-one-animal-it-s-a/) [Gene Baur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-baur/) > [Since I was a little child, my nose - I think it's too big.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celine-dion/since-i-was-a-little-child-my-nose-i-think-it-s-too-big/) [Celine Dion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celine-dion/) > [People forget that there is a big difference between coercion and persuasion. The idea that evangelism is coercive is nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/people-forget-that-there-is-a-big-difference-between-coercion-and/) [Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/) > [I turn a lot of stuff down - big, big movies, the kind I wouldn't want to go to the cinema to see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-fox/i-turn-a-lot-of-stuff-down-big-big-movies-the-kind-i-wouldn-t-want-to/) [Matthew Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-fox/) > [I got in trouble my whole life for having a big mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-tyler/i-got-in-trouble-my-whole-life-for-having-a-big-mouth/) [Steven Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-tyler/) Browse all 15,539 Bigs quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Hardly anyone ever leaves. This is because Des Moines is the most powerful hypnotic known to man. 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