--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first ten million years were the…" description: "\"The first ten million years were the worst,\" said Marvin, \"and the second ten million years, they were the worst too. The third ten million years I did..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/959/douglas-adams-122_decline_the-first-ten-million-years-were-the-wor_3068110.png" --- # The first ten million years were the worst," said Marvin… ![“The first ten million years were the worst," said Marvin, "and the second ten million years, they were the worst too. The third ten million years I didn't enjoy at all. After that I went into a bit of a decline.” quote by Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/959/douglas-adams-122_decline_the-first-ten-million-years-were-the-wor_3068110.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/959/douglas-adams-122_decline_the-first-ten-million-years-were-the-wor_3068110.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/959/douglas-adams-122_decline_the-first-ten-million-years-were-the-wor_3068110.png) > “The first ten million years were the worst," said Marvin, "and the second ten million years, they were the worst too. The third ten million years I didn't enjoy at all. After that I went into a bit of a decline.” [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. Humorously depicts an eternally bleak existence across vast time spans. **In simple terms:** Life feels perpetually disappointing. Key Takeaway Accept imperfection, find humor. Themes existentialism humor longevity Mood witty dark Type satirical philosophical When to use this quote - long-term projects - career spans - historical analysis Key Concepts satire philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How do you find meaning in endless cycles? - Can humor change perception of hardship? 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It's got pips…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/life-is-like-a-grapefruit-well-it-s-sort-of-orangy-yellow-and-dimpled/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [God's Final Message to His Creation: 'We apologize for the inconvenience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/god-s-final-message-to-his-creation-we-apologize-for-the-inconvenience/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Space is big. Really big. You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/space-is-big-really-big-you-just-won-t-believe-how-vastly-hugely-mind/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Marvin trudged on down the corridor, still moaning. "...and then of course I've got this terrible pain in all the diodes down my left…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/marvin-trudged-on-down-the-corridor-still-moaning-and-then-of-course/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“It comes from a very ancient democracy, you see..." "You mean, it comes from a world of lizards?" "No," said Ford, who by this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/it-comes-from-a-very-ancient-democracy-you-see-you-mean-it-comes-from/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“Time is the worst place, so to speak, to get lost in, as Arthur Dent could testify, having been lost in both time and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/time-is-the-worst-place-so-to-speak-to-get-lost-in-as-arthur-dent/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“One of the major difficulties Trillian experienced in her relationship with Zaphod was learning to distinguish between him pretending to be stupid just to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/one-of-the-major-difficulties-trillian-experienced-in-her/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“Having solved all the major mathematical, physical, chemical, biological, sociological, philosophical, etymological, meteorological and psychological problems of the Universe except for his own, three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/having-solved-all-the-major-mathematical-physical-chemical-biological/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [The History of every major Galactic Civilization tends to pass through three distinct and recognizable phases, those of Survival, Inquiry and Sophistication, otherwise known…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/the-history-of-every-major-galactic-civilization-tends-to-pass/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy What to do if you find yourself stuck with no hope of rescue, apart from Don't Panic. Consider yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/hitchhikers-guide-to-the-galaxy-what-to-do-if-you-find-yourself-stuck/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [What's up?" "I don't know," said Marvin, "I've never been there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/what-s-up-i-don-t-know-said-marvin-i-ve-never-been-there/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Would you like me to go and stick my head in a bucket of water?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/would-you-like-me-to-go-and-stick-my-head-in-a-bucket-of-water/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Pardon me for breathing, which I never do any way so I don’t know why I bother to say it, oh God, I’m so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/pardon-me-for-breathing-which-i-never-do-any-way-so-i-don-t-know-why/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the western spiral arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow pizza.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/far-out-in-the-uncharted-backwaters-of-the-unfashionable-end-of-the-3/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) ## 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 Decline quotes > [Among the many factors that make a return to halcyon days of the first decades of the postwar era virtually impossible is the decline…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-gilpin/among-the-many-factors-that-make-a-return-to-halcyon-days-of-the/) [Robert Gilpin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-gilpin/) > [When a man imagines, even after years of striving, that he has attained perfection, his decline begins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-martin/when-a-man-imagines-even-after-years-of-striving-that-he-has-attained/) Theodore Martin > [Low levels of vitamin D in the population as a whole suggest that most people need to take a vitamin D supplement. This may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-weil/low-levels-of-vitamin-d-in-the-population-as-a-whole-suggest-that/) [Andrew Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-weil/) > [The challenge is either to build an economy that is sustainable or to stay with our unsustainable economy until it declines. It is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-r-brown/the-challenge-is-either-to-build-an-economy-that-is-sustainable-or-to/) [Lester R. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-r-brown/) > [In my humble opinion, the PC as we have known it is in a continuous decline and being relegated to a utility device for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hector-ruiz/in-my-humble-opinion-the-pc-as-we-have-known-it-is-in-a-continuous/) [Hector Ruiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hector-ruiz/) > [“There is a great deal of ruin in a nation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/there-is-a-great-deal-of-ruin-in-a-nation/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [I think the rise of quantitative econometrics and a highly mathematical approach to risk management was the obverse of a decline in interest in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niall-ferguson/i-think-the-rise-of-quantitative-econometrics-and-a-highly/) [Niall Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niall-ferguson/) > [To my way of thinking, the American family started to decline when parents began to communicate with their children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/to-my-way-of-thinking-the-american-family-started-to-decline-when/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [Deflation means a slowdown of income growth. Markets shrink, new capital investment and employment also taper off, so wages decline. That is what's happening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hudson/deflation-means-a-slowdown-of-income-growth-markets-shrink-new/) [Michael Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hudson/) > [Prominent exploration experts have recently predicted that total world production of liquid oil will peak by about the end of this decade-or a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amory-lovins/prominent-exploration-experts-have-recently-predicted-that-total/) [Amory Lovins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amory-lovins/) > [In the 1970s, British food was beginning to get good, whereas in France it was just starting its long, sad decline. 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