--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The following day I abandoned my…" description: "\"“The following day I abandoned my pointless searching and planted myself in one of the open air-cafés where I drank coffee and tried to find inspiratio..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/patrick-rothfuss-145_humor_the-following-day-i-abandoned-my-pointle_1457008.jpg" --- # The following day I abandoned my pointless searching and… ![“The following day I abandoned my pointless searching and planted myself in one of the open air-cafés where I drank coffee and tried to find inspiration for the song I owed the Maer. Ten hours I spent there, and the only act of creation I accomplished was to magically transform nearly a gallon of…” quote by Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/patrick-rothfuss-145_humor_the-following-day-i-abandoned-my-pointle_1457008.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/patrick-rothfuss-145_humor_the-following-day-i-abandoned-my-pointle_1457008.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/396/patrick-rothfuss-145_humor_the-following-day-i-abandoned-my-pointle_1457008.jpg) > ““The following day I abandoned my pointless searching and planted myself in one of the open air-cafés where I drank coffee and tried to find inspiration for the song I owed the Maer. Ten hours I spent there, and the only act of creation I accomplished was to magically transform nearly a gallon of coffee into marvelous, aromatic piss.”” [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative work can be thwarted by mundane routines, turning effort into absurd results. **In simple terms:** Mundane tasks can sabotage creativity. Key Takeaway Find environments that truly inspire you. Themes creativity routine inspiration Mood frustrated reflective Type literary humorous When to use this quote - writing - coffee shops - artist retreats Key Concepts artist absurdity process Questions to Reflect On - How can you design a space that fuels genuine inspiration? - What habits turn work into distraction? A Different Perspective Creative output may still feel futile despite effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Coffee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coffee/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Inspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiration/) ## Related quotes > [The only thing I plan to accomplish at work today is to turn a gallon of coffee into a gallon of piss.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-thing-i-plan-to-accomplish-at-work-today-is-to-turn-a-gallon/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We drank our coffee the Russian way. That is to say we had vodka before it and vodka afterwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-sington/we-drank-our-coffee-the-russian-way-that-is-to-say-we-had-vodka/) [Philip Sington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-sington/) > [And went on in sunlight, into the Hofgarten, And drank coffee, and talked for an hour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/and-went-on-in-sunlight-into-the-hofgarten-and-drank-coffee-and/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [“Before you came to live with us, our lives were as always, and we were happy. We worked, we ate, and then we slept.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-murphy/before-you-came-to-live-with-us-our-lives-were-as-always-and-we-were/) Robert Murphy > [“Rebus drank his coffee and felt his head spin. He was feeling like the detective in a cheap thriller, and wished that he could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-rankin/rebus-drank-his-coffee-and-felt-his-head-spin-he-was-feeling-like-the/) [Ian Rankin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-rankin/) > [I drank coffee and read old books and waited for the year to end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brautigan/i-drank-coffee-and-read-old-books-and-waited-for-the-year-to-end/) [Richard Brautigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brautigan/) > [“Sarah indulged in a few more of these bleak thoughts, but just the fact that she could indulge in them while lying in her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-lee-smith/sarah-indulged-in-a-few-more-of-these-bleak-thoughts-but-just-the/) [R. Lee Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-lee-smith/) > [We shot 'Delusion' in the middle of the desert and outside of Las Vegas where they did those underground nuclear bomb testings. So I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rubin/we-shot-delusion-in-the-middle-of-the-desert-and-outside-of-las-vegas/) Jennifer Rubin > [“Somebody comin'," he said softly. "Five or six, maybe." His words were spoken over an empty fire, for each of us vanished ghostlike into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-l-amour/somebody-comin-he-said-softly-five-or-six-maybe-his-words-were-spoken/) [Louis L'Amour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-l-amour/) > [So somebody told me that if I wasn't a coffee drinker yet, by the end of college I'd have to be, because a math…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danica-mckellar/so-somebody-told-me-that-if-i-wasn-t-a-coffee-drinker-yet-by-the-end/) [Danica McKellar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danica-mckellar/) > [“I’m 32 years old and I’m tired. It’s because I haven’t drank enough coffee. If I had, I’d probably only be 29.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-m-32-years-old-and-i-m-tired-it-s-because-i-haven-t-drank-enough/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [But Shakespeare never drank coffee. Nor did Julius Caesar, or Socrates. Alexander the Great conquered half the world without even a café latte to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-forsyth/but-shakespeare-never-drank-coffee-nor-did-julius-caesar-or-socrates/) [Mark Forsyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-forsyth/) > [To crank myself up I stood on a jack and ran myself up. I tightened myself like a bolt. I inserted myself in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-dillard/to-crank-myself-up-i-stood-on-a-jack-and-ran-myself-up-i-tightened/) [Annie Dillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-dillard/) > [“I ate in the silence and drank my coffee and looked occasionally at Susan’s picture on my desk. Let us be true to one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-b-parker/i-ate-in-the-silence-and-drank-my-coffee-and-looked-occasionally-at/) [Robert B. Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-b-parker/) > [“We drank coffee. We talked. She loved Charles Dickens, whom she read in Norwegian. Years after she was dead, I wrote a dissertation on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siri-hustvedt/we-drank-coffee-we-talked-she-loved-charles-dickens-whom-she-read-in/) [Siri Hustvedt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siri-hustvedt/) ## More by Patrick Rothfuss > [Each woman is like an instrument, waiting to be learned, loved, and finely played, to have at last her own true music made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/each-woman-is-like-an-instrument-waiting-to-be-learned-loved-and/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Prefiero tocar canciones que divierten a mis amigos que complacer a quienes me juzgan basándose solo en habladurías" - Kvothe”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/prefiero-tocar-canciones-que-divierten-a-mis-amigos-que-complacer-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“Wilem snorted."That doesn't sound suspicious at all," he said. "And you wonder why people talk about you." "I don't wonder why they talk," I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/wilem-snorted-that-doesn-t-sound-suspicious-at-all-he-said-and-you/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“The point isn't to win the game. The point is to play a beautiful game. (paraphrased)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/the-point-isn-t-to-win-the-game-the-point-is-to-play-a-beautiful-game/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I was nervous about writing Slow Regard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/i-was-nervous-about-writing-slow-regard/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I am no poet. I do not love words for the sake of words. I love words for what they can accomplish. Similarly, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/i-am-no-poet-i-do-not-love-words-for-the-sake-of-words-i-love-words/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [“There is something deeply satisfying in shaping something with your hands. Proper artificing is like a song made solid. It is an act of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/there-is-something-deeply-satisfying-in-shaping-something-with-your/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [He had a bright, reckless tenor that was always wandering off, looking for notes in the wrong places.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/he-had-a-bright-reckless-tenor-that-was-always-wandering-off-looking/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I smiled,"Deoch, my heart is made of stronger stuff than glass. When she strikes she'll find it strong as iron-bound brass, or gold and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/i-smiled-deoch-my-heart-is-made-of-stronger-stuff-than-glass-when-she/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I have a blog where I keep in touch with my fans. I write about things that are important to me. Sometimes on there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/i-have-a-blog-where-i-keep-in-touch-with-my-fans-i-write-about-things/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [Soft fantasy worlds have a much looser cause-and-effect relationship. Alchemists can turn lead into gold and nobody wonders about how it will impact the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/soft-fantasy-worlds-have-a-much-looser-cause-and-effect-relationship/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [But how awful would that be? How terrible to live surrounded by the stark, sharp, hollowness of things that simply were enough?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/but-how-awful-would-that-be-how-terrible-to-live-surrounded-by-the/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [ Here's the thing: Authors live or die by recommendations. \[That's one of the reason I review so many books on Goodreads.\] Giving books you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/here-s-the-thing-authors-live-or-die-by-recommendations-that-s-one-of/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I was pretty poor for a long time. Not \*poor\* poor. But college student poor. I lived for most of my adult life living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/i-was-pretty-poor-for-a-long-time-not-poor-poor-but-college-student/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) [Explore all 895 Patrick Rothfuss quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) ## More Coffee quotes > [I would drink gallons of coffee a day. Even now, off caffeine, I talk faster than anyone you've ever met. I finally recognized that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-englander/i-would-drink-gallons-of-coffee-a-day-even-now-off-caffeine-i-talk/) [Nathan Englander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-englander/) > [I had developed a relationship with one of the anti-abortion sidewalk counselors who stood in front of my facility. We talked regularly through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-johnson/i-had-developed-a-relationship-with-one-of-the-anti-abortion-sidewalk/) [Abby Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-johnson/) > [Academically, I was never that interested. I skipped classes. My biggest dream was to have a coffee shop, but I had no idea how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-espinosa/academically-i-was-never-that-interested-i-skipped-classes-my-biggest/) [Daniel Espinosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-espinosa/) > [I like to sit down, relax, have a cup of coffee on the terrace and read a book. I like to travel the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-vos/i-like-to-sit-down-relax-have-a-cup-of-coffee-on-the-terrace-and-read/) [Marianne Vos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-vos/) > [White Coffee Really Helps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anwar-saicha/white-coffee-really-helps/) [Anwar Saicha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anwar-saicha/) > [“The whole purpose of places like Starbucks is for people with no decision-making ability whatsoever to make six decisions just to buy one cup…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/the-whole-purpose-of-places-like-starbucks-is-for-people-with-no/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [If you think of people as making decisions actively, every time we think about the cup of coffee, we say, "How much will I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-ariely/if-you-think-of-people-as-making-decisions-actively-every-time-we/) [Dan Ariely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-ariely/) > [Coffee and tobacco are complete repose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/coffee-and-tobacco-are-complete-repose/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Life is like coffee, the darker it gets, the more it energizes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ankita-singhal/life-is-like-coffee-the-darker-it-gets-the-more-it-energizes/) [Ankita Singhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ankita-singhal/) > [I spend a lot of time loathing the sentences that I put down on the page. Once I'm past that phase, it doesn't really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-link/i-spend-a-lot-of-time-loathing-the-sentences-that-i-put-down-on-the/) [Kelly Link](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-link/) > [If Japanese tea 'stands,' it acquires a coarse bitterness and an unwholesome astringency. Milk and sugar are not used.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabella-bird/if-japanese-tea-stands-it-acquires-a-coarse-bitterness-and-an/) [Isabella Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabella-bird/) > [...it isn't foolish or wicked to enjoy. Wickedness is hurting people on purpose. I love what you are and who you are and how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-macdonald/it-isn-t-foolish-or-wicked-to-enjoy-wickedness-is-hurting-people-on/) [John D. 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