--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia, for…" description: "\"I was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia, for a while, about which the less said the better, and then I was in the Mediterranean, about which the more said..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88d/harry-mathews-19208_norfolk_i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for_1996045.jpg" --- # I was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia, for a while, about… ![“I was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia, for a while, about which the less said the better, and then I was in the Mediterranean, about which the more said the better.” quote by Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88d/harry-mathews-19208_norfolk_i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for_1996045.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88d/harry-mathews-19208_norfolk_i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for_1996045.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88d/harry-mathews-19208_norfolk_i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for_1996045.jpg) > “I was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia, for a while, about which the less said the better, and then I was in the Mediterranean, about which the more said the better.” [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Travel experiences vary: some are better when brief, others when extensive, reflecting personal preference. **In simple terms:** Short trips can be best; long trips can be best too. Key Takeaway Match travel length to what you seek. Themes travel preference subjectivity Mood contemplative neutral Type observational philosophical When to use this quote - vacations - business trips - family visits - exploration Key Concepts psychology of satisfaction experience design Questions to Reflect On - Do you prefer depth or breadth in experiences? - When does a short trip feel insufficient? A Different Perspective Not all trips fit this binary view. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Army](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/army/) [Mediterranean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mediterranean/) [Virginia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/virginia/) ## Related quotes > [Both my parents came from North Carolina, in Warren County. My mother had a feeling that there was greater culture in North Carolina than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-baker/both-my-parents-came-from-north-carolina-in-warren-county-my-mother/) [Ella Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-baker/) > [I was born in Norfolk, Virginia. I began school there, the first year of public school. When I was 7, the family shifted back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ella-baker/i-was-born-in-norfolk-virginia-i-began-school-there-the-first-year-of/) [Ella Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ella-baker/) > [“Christmas Eve, 1955, Benny Profane, wearing black levis, suede jacket, sneakers and big cowboy hat, happened to pass through Norfolk, Virginia. Given to sentimental…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pynchon/christmas-eve-1955-benny-profane-wearing-black-levis-suede-jacket/) [Thomas Pynchon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pynchon/) > [Norfolk is not on the way to anywhere, you don't stop off on the way somewhere else - it's an end in itself. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-orton/norfolk-is-not-on-the-way-to-anywhere-you-don-t-stop-off-on-the-way/) [Beth Orton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-orton/) > [A whispering and watery Norfolk sound Telling of all the moonlit reeds around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-betjeman/a-whispering-and-watery-norfolk-sound-telling-of-all-the-moonlit/) [John Betjeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-betjeman/) > [I have always been involved with radio, whether it was as an artist talking to radio about my own songs, or as a promotion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mc-serch/i-have-always-been-involved-with-radio-whether-it-was-as-an-artist/) MC Serch > [Embody's growth in the City of Norfolk demonstrates the strength of research and development, higher education resources, and talent the Hampton Roads region offers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-youngkin/embody-s-growth-in-the-city-of-norfolk-demonstrates-the-strength-of/) [Glenn Youngkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-youngkin/) > [I don't think about Norfolk as I write songs, sadly no! But things like 'High' is a song about watching the dawn come up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-blunt/i-don-t-think-about-norfolk-as-i-write-songs-sadly-no-but-things-like/) [James Blunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-blunt/) > [I'm very fond of Norfolk. My husband came from there and the kids love it. Devon is beautiful, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-blackman/i-m-very-fond-of-norfolk-my-husband-came-from-there-and-the-kids-love/) [Honor Blackman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-blackman/) > [The Norfolk landscape sends a shiver through my soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raffaella-barker/the-norfolk-landscape-sends-a-shiver-through-my-soul/) [Raffaella Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raffaella-barker/) > [There are few places in England where you can get so much wildness and desolation of sea and sandhills, wood, green marsh and grey…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-henry-hudson/there-are-few-places-in-england-where-you-can-get-so-much-wildness/) [William Henry Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-henry-hudson/) > [I was born on a pig farm in Norfolk. We grew up in the city called Norwich in Norfolk, then I moved to London…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-orton/i-was-born-on-a-pig-farm-in-norfolk-we-grew-up-in-the-city-called/) [Beth Orton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-orton/) > [If this were the time or the place to uphold a paradox, I am half inclined to state that Norfolk is one of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/if-this-were-the-time-or-the-place-to-uphold-a-paradox-i-am-half/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [Haldimand-Norfolk is a beautiful place with the most amazing, hard-working people. It would be an absolute honour to represent them and fight to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslyn-lewis/haldimand-norfolk-is-a-beautiful-place-with-the-most-amazing-hard/) [Leslyn Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslyn-lewis/) > [Because drug dealers shoot each other in London, Norfolk farmers can't have guns to defend their homes. I mean, no one wants a gun…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-clarkson/because-drug-dealers-shoot-each-other-in-london-norfolk-farmers-can-t/) [Jeremy Clarkson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-clarkson/) ## More by Harry Mathews > [My Life in CIA is the first time that I've ever written a story in my own name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/my-life-in-cia-is-the-first-time-that-i-ve-ever-written-a-story-in-my/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [My dream, I remember, when I went to boarding school, was to have a study all my own, a little nook someplace where nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/my-dream-i-remember-when-i-went-to-boarding-school-was-to-have-a/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [And then, when I left Princeton in the middle of my sophomore year, I went into the navy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/and-then-when-i-left-princeton-in-the-middle-of-my-sophomore-year-i/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [There are many things I’ve written that I didn’t really understand until a long time later.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/there-are-many-things-i-ve-written-that-i-didn-t-really-understand/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [My mother could never understand why I didn't write a thriller, which I've finally done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/my-mother-could-never-understand-why-i-didn-t-write-a-thriller-which/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [I'd been brought up on the Upper East Side in a WASP society, which was death on crutches.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/i-d-been-brought-up-on-the-upper-east-side-in-a-wasp-society-which/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [My idea was to go to Vienna to study conducting and perhaps play in an orchestra first, so I thought before I got to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/my-idea-was-to-go-to-vienna-to-study-conducting-and-perhaps-play-in/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [Well, the great thing for me about poetry is that in good poems the dislocation of words, that is to say, the distance between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/well-the-great-thing-for-me-about-poetry-is-that-in-good-poems-the/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [Well, I had this little notion - I started writing when I was eleven, writing poetry. I was passionately addicted to it; it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/well-i-had-this-little-notion-i-started-writing-when-i-was-eleven/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [“She was disgusted with herself...and the disgust permanently cured her of suicide. Her piddling life did not deserve dramatic remedies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/she-was-disgusted-with-herself-and-the-disgust-permanently-cured-her/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [I also had this mistaken dream, fantasy really - perhaps because I'm good at languages - of being able in both Italy and France…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/i-also-had-this-mistaken-dream-fantasy-really-perhaps-because-i-m/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [I graduated in 1952 and went to Europe, with Niki and our first child Laura, who was then a year old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/i-graduated-in-1952-and-went-to-europe-with-niki-and-our-first-child/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [What I said about John was that he liberated me from my anxieties about writing in a correct, acceptable way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/what-i-said-about-john-was-that-he-liberated-me-from-my-anxieties/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [“Lewis, anything but dull, suffered from an excess of misguided cleverness: he could disparage himself brilliantly in a matter of seconds. He knew literature,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/lewis-anything-but-dull-suffered-from-an-excess-of-misguided/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) > [I thought Cheever was magnificent and that if I could write like him that would be the best I could do. And then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/i-thought-cheever-was-magnificent-and-that-if-i-could-write-like-him/) [Harry Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) [Explore all 33 Harry Mathews quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/) ## More Army quotes > [There are no more worlds to conquer!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/there-are-no-more-worlds-to-conquer/) [Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) > [Every army in the history of the world has always had some deserters, usually much greater than we have today, because once again every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hilferty/every-army-in-the-history-of-the-world-has-always-had-some-deserters/) [Bryan Hilferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-hilferty/) > [It is the rule in war, if our forces are ten to the enemy's one, to surround him; if five to one, to attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/it-is-the-rule-in-war-if-our-forces-are-ten-to-the-enemy-s-one-to/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [The surprise of an army is now next to an impossibility. ... Prearranged surprises are rare and difficult because in order to plan one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-henri-jomini/the-surprise-of-an-army-is-now-next-to-an-impossibility-prearranged/) [Antoine-Henri Jomini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-henri-jomini/) > [I just read an article about how young American males feel uncomfortable appearing naked in front of each other in locker rooms. That was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-ivory/i-just-read-an-article-about-how-young-american-males-feel/) [James Ivory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-ivory/) > [ I can't imagine that I would be asked that by the president-elect \[Donald Trump\], or then-president \[Barack Obama\]. But it's - I'm very clear.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mattis/i-can-t-imagine-that-i-would-be-asked-that-by-the-president-elect/) [James Mattis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mattis/) > [Holy shadows of the dead, I'm not to blame for your cruel and bitter fate, but the accursed rivalry which brought sister nations and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-the-great/holy-shadows-of-the-dead-i-m-not-to-blame-for-your-cruel-and-bitter/) [Alexander the Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-the-great/) > [“The most important lesson that came out of Vietnam for me was that Marines take care of Marines.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-clancy/the-most-important-lesson-that-came-out-of-vietnam-for-me-was-that/) [Tom Clancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-clancy/) > [One of our great allies at present is the Church itself. Do not misunderstand me. I do not mean the Church as we see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/one-of-our-great-allies-at-present-is-the-church-itself-do-not/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [I have real strong feelings about our troops and support them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-fichtner/i-have-real-strong-feelings-about-our-troops-and-support-them/) [William Fichtner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-fichtner/) > [Personally, I don't really have a set style or look. It's pretty much what I feel like wearing that day, from a floral-print dress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shay-mitchell/personally-i-don-t-really-have-a-set-style-or-look-it-s-pretty-much/) [Shay Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shay-mitchell/) > [Growing up with a parent in the army, I saw firsthand the challenges our service members face when transitioning to new jobs after time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharice-davids/growing-up-with-a-parent-in-the-army-i-saw-firsthand-the-challenges/) [Sharice Davids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharice-davids/) > [Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-prescott/don-t-fire-until-you-see-the-whites-of-their-eyes/) [William H. Prescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-prescott/) > [Thanks to all members of the military around the world for giving me the ultimate motivation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalya-neidhart/thanks-to-all-members-of-the-military-around-the-world-for-giving-me/) [Natalya Neidhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalya-neidhart/) [Browse all 3,919 Army quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/army/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia, for a while, about which the less said the better, and then I was in the Mediterranean, about which the more said the better.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Harry Mathews" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for-a-while-about-which-the-less/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Army" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for-a-while-about-which-the-less/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88d/harry-mathews-19208_norfolk_i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for_1996045.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88d/harry-mathews-19208_norfolk_i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for_1996045.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/88d/harry-mathews-19208_norfolk_i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for_1996045.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia, for a while, about which the less said the better, and then I was in…” — Harry Mathews", "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": "Harry Mathews", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-mathews/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for-a-while-about-which-the-less/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-mathews/i-was-stationed-in-norfolk-virginia-for-a-while-about-which-the-less/#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 } } ] } ```