--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: On a waiter’s check pad,” said…" description: "\"“On a waiter’s check pad,” said Slartibartfast, “reality and unreality collide on such a fundamental level that each becomes the other and anything is ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e88/douglas-adams-122_reality_on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartf_2137179.png" --- # On a waiter’s check pad,” said Slartibartfast, “reality… ![“On a waiter’s check pad,” said Slartibartfast, “reality and unreality collide on such a fundamental level that each becomes the other and anything is possible, within certain parameters.” quote by Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e88/douglas-adams-122_reality_on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartf_2137179.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e88/douglas-adams-122_reality_on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartf_2137179.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e88/douglas-adams-122_reality_on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartf_2137179.png) > ““On a waiter’s check pad,” said Slartibartfast, “reality and unreality collide on such a fundamental level that each becomes the other and anything is possible, within certain parameters.”” [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reality and imagination intertwine, making all possibilities exist within limits. **In simple terms:** Reality and imagination mix, allowing possibilities. Key Takeaway Embrace flexibility within constraints. Themes imagination possibility limits creativity philosophy Mood playful thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - writing - problem solving - design brainstorming - artistic creation Key Concepts metaphysics finite vs infinite creative thought Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance imagination with practical limits? - When have constraints sparked creativity? A Different Perspective Limits still restrict what can be achieved. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Unreality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unreality/) ## Related quotes > [Man is the measure of all things, of the reality of those which are, and of the unreality of those which are not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/protagoras/man-is-the-measure-of-all-things-of-the-reality-of-those-which-are/) [Protagoras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/protagoras/) > [What I look for is neither reality nor unreality but the subconscious, the instinctive mystery of the human race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amedeo-modigliani/what-i-look-for-is-neither-reality-nor-unreality-but-the-subconscious/) [Amedeo Modigliani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amedeo-modigliani/) > [I sat at the foot of a huge tree, a statue of the night, and tried to make an inventory of all I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/i-sat-at-the-foot-of-a-huge-tree-a-statue-of-the-night-and-tried-to-2/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [“Melancholy is an escape not from reality, but unreality of the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raheel-farooq/melancholy-is-an-escape-not-from-reality-but-unreality-of-the-world/) [Raheel Farooq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raheel-farooq/) > [What happens to the wide-eyed observer when the window between reality and unreality breaks and the glass begins to fly?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/what-happens-to-the-wide-eyed-observer-when-the-window-between/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [It's the real thing but theres little difference between reality and unreality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-d-dangoor/it-s-the-real-thing-but-theres-little-difference-between-reality-and/) [Robert D Dangoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-d-dangoor/) > [The difference between reality and unreality is that reality has so little to recommend it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allan-sherman/the-difference-between-reality-and-unreality-is-that-reality-has-so/) [Allan Sherman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allan-sherman/) > [Reality and unreality have no clear distinction in our present circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grant-morrison/reality-and-unreality-have-no-clear-distinction-in-our-present/) [Grant Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grant-morrison/) > [What has reality shows got to do with reality? It is beyond unreality; there is nothing real about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morley-safer/what-has-reality-shows-got-to-do-with-reality-it-is-beyond-unreality/) [Morley Safer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morley-safer/) > [“It is the case that, albeit to a lesser extent, all fictions make their readers live "the impossible", taking them out of themselves, breaking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/it-is-the-case-that-albeit-to-a-lesser-extent-all-fictions-make-their/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) > [Why do photographers photograph? To make unreality visible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-jay/why-do-photographers-photograph-to-make-unreality-visible/) [Bill Jay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-jay/) > [“Created visions of experiencing unreality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vicdo/created-visions-of-experiencing-unreality/) VicDo > [Yes, there was an element of abstraction and unreality in misfortune. But when an abstraction starts to kill you, you have to get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/yes-there-was-an-element-of-abstraction-and-unreality-in-misfortune/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [It was so emotional to step onto the Millennium Falcon set because that was the play set we all had when we were kids.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rian-johnson/it-was-so-emotional-to-step-onto-the-millennium-falcon-set-because/) [Rian Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rian-johnson/) > [I was too tired to think. I merely felt the town as a unique unreality. What was it? I knew -- the moon's picture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-was-too-tired-to-think-i-merely-felt-the-town-as-a-unique-unreality/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Douglas Adams > [2,000 years ago one man got nailed to a tree for saying how great it would be if everyone was nice to each other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/2-000-years-ago-one-man-got-nailed-to-a-tree-for-saying-how-great-it/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [What a wonderfully exciting cough,' said the little man, quite startled by it, 'do you mind if I join you?' And with that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/what-a-wonderfully-exciting-cough-said-the-little-man-quite-startled/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [The technology involved in making anything invisible is so infinitely complex that nine hundred and ninety-nine billion, nine hundred and ninety-nine million, nine hundred…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-technology-involved-in-making-anything-invisible-is-so-infinitely/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [One is never alone with a rubber duck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/one-is-never-alone-with-a-rubber-duck/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [This must be Thursday. I never could get the hang of Thursdays.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/this-must-be-thursday-i-never-could-get-the-hang-of-thursdays/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [There are some oddities in the perspective with which we see the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/there-are-some-oddities-in-the-perspective-with-which-we-see-the-world/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“Eight hours West sat a man alone on a beach mourning an inexplicable loss. He could only think of his loss in little packets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/eight-hours-west-sat-a-man-alone-on-a-beach-mourning-an-inexplicable/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“The Universe, the whole infinite Universe. The infinite suns, the infinite distances between them, and yourself an invisible dot on an invisible dot, infinitely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-universe-the-whole-infinite-universe-the-infinite-suns-the/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [People always make this totally artificial distinction between what is commercial and what is good. They quote that maxim "Nobody ever lost money underestimating…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/people-always-make-this-totally-artificial-distinction-between-what/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/any-man-who-can-hitch-the-length-and-breadth-of-the-galaxy-rough-it/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [ Does God know he \[exists\]?" "Of course he does. Otherwise, you could not have asked the question, and I could not have answered. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/does-god-know-he-exists-of-course-he-does-otherwise-you-could-not/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“When we told our guide that we didn't want to go to all the tourist places he took us instead to the places where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/when-we-told-our-guide-that-we-didn-t-want-to-go-to-all-the-tourist/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“But Douglas was a genius, because he saw the world differently, and more importantly, he could communicate the world he saw.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/but-douglas-was-a-genius-because-he-saw-the-world-differently-and/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“The bits which did mean anything were often so wonderfully buried that no one could ever spot them slipping past in the avalanche of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-bits-which-did-mean-anything-were-often-so-wonderfully-buried/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [You come to me for advice, but you can't cope with anything you don't recognize. Hmmm. So we'll have to tell you something you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/you-come-to-me-for-advice-but-you-can-t-cope-with-anything-you-don-t/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) [Explore all 1,168 Douglas Adams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) ## More Reality quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. I can give you nothing that has not already its being within yourself.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/only-within-yourself-exists-the-other-reality-for-which-you-long-i/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [In the Green Zone in Iraq you have your radio, you have your food, you have your own electricity, your own toilets. Everything is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-colla/in-the-green-zone-in-iraq-you-have-your-radio-you-have-your-food-you/) [Elliott Colla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-colla/) > [Check out the albums, ... Check out the live performances. That's the reality of it all. Music is such an energizing thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mayall/check-out-the-albums-check-out-the-live-performances-that-s-the/) [John Mayall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mayall/) > [To an ever greater extent out experience is governed by pictures, pictures in newspapers and magazines, on television and in the cinema. Next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-crimp/to-an-ever-greater-extent-out-experience-is-governed-by-pictures/) [Douglas Crimp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-crimp/) > [Sometimes it's just enough for me to have the idea. I don't need to see it through to the end. When it actually happens,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/sometimes-it-s-just-enough-for-me-to-have-the-idea-i-don-t-need-to/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [“Our failure to understand another being's inner reality doesn't make that reality any less real, or any less valuable to that being. (p.255)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/our-failure-to-understand-another-being-s-inner-reality-doesn-t-make/) [Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/) > [“The universe is not punishing you or blessing you. The universe is simply responding to the vibrational attitude that you are emitting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-hicks/the-universe-is-not-punishing-you-or-blessing-you-the-universe-is/) [Abraham Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-hicks/) > [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [Here's the reality. The image of a white Jesus has been used to justify enslavement, conquest, colonialism, the genocide of indigenous peoples. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/here-s-the-reality-the-image-of-a-white-jesus-has-been-used-to/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [The word 'mundane' has come to mean 'boring' and 'dull', and it really shouldn't - it should mean the opposite. Because it comes from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-word-mundane-has-come-to-mean-boring-and-dull-and-it-really/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“To engage in dialogue is to serve others via whatever is real inside you; to engage in debate is to ultimately serve the illusions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oli-anderson/to-engage-in-dialogue-is-to-serve-others-via-whatever-is-real-inside/) [Oli Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oli-anderson/) > [I started out dancing on a reality TV show, but always with the intention of making my way over to film. I transitioned into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-hough/i-started-out-dancing-on-a-reality-tv-show-but-always-with-the/) [Julianne Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-hough/) > [Today is a reality, tomorrow's a promise, and yesterday's history!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-blanks/today-is-a-reality-tomorrow-s-a-promise-and-yesterday-s-history/) [Billy Blanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-blanks/) > [With every product, the delta between the brand and the reality determines its power over the minds of consumers, and with Trump, that delta…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-wilson/with-every-product-the-delta-between-the-brand-and-the-reality/) [Rick Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-wilson/) > [Being under-recruited coming out of Highland, I've carried that with me. I keep pushing forward, keep working hard every day, keep my head on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-daniels/being-under-recruited-coming-out-of-highland-i-ve-carried-that-with/) [Mike Daniels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-daniels/) [Browse all 19,710 Reality quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“On a waiter’s check pad,” said Slartibartfast, “reality and unreality collide on such a fundamental level that each becomes the other and anything is possible, within certain parameters.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Douglas Adams" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartfast-reality-and-unreality/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Reality" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartfast-reality-and-unreality/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e88/douglas-adams-122_reality_on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartf_2137179.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e88/douglas-adams-122_reality_on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartf_2137179.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e88/douglas-adams-122_reality_on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartf_2137179.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“On a waiter’s check pad,” said Slartibartfast, “reality and unreality collide on such a fundamental level…” — Douglas Adams", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Douglas Adams", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“On a waiter’s check pad,” said...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartfast-reality-and-unreality/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/on-a-waiter-s-check-pad-said-slartibartfast-reality-and-unreality/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```