--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The act, when vacuuming, of running over…" description: "\"The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining it, then putting it back down to g..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eae/rich-hall-25075_chance_the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a_2160067.jpg" --- # The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string at least… ![“The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining it, then putting it back down to give the vacuum one more chance.” quote by Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eae/rich-hall-25075_chance_the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a_2160067.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eae/rich-hall-25075_chance_the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a_2160067.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eae/rich-hall-25075_chance_the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a_2160067.jpg) > “The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining it, then putting it back down to give the vacuum one more chance.” [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The repetitive, obsessive act of fixing a small problem repeatedly, illustrating human tendency toward compulsive behavior. **In simple terms:** People often repeat minor fixes obsessively. Key Takeaway Recognize and break the loop. Themes compulsion habit humor Mood self‑aware wry Type observational analytical When to use this quote - daily chores - software debugging - personal routines Key Concepts behavioral loops attention to detail psychological patterns Questions to Reflect On - Why do we keep revisiting minor issues? - When is it healthy to let go? A Different Perspective May be a symptom of anxiety or perfectionism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Humorous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humorous/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) ## Related quotes > [Happy Earth Day. I'm doing my part by vacuuming all of the dirt out of my car and putting it back on the ground…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/happy-earth-day-i-m-doing-my-part-by-vacuuming-all-of-the-dirt-out-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Not wanting to scare my dog is the perfect excuse for never vacuuming my house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/not-wanting-to-scare-my-dog-is-the-perfect-excuse-for-never-vacuuming/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I find vacuuming very therapeutic, but I hate ironing. I usually have no shirt on while ironing, because I'm ironing it, and I end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/i-find-vacuuming-very-therapeutic-but-i-hate-ironing-i-usually-have/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [The cleaning is something I use as a reward if I get some work done. I go into a very happy state of mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-carol-oates/the-cleaning-is-something-i-use-as-a-reward-if-i-get-some-work-done-i/) [Joyce Carol Oates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-carol-oates/) > [Vacuuming is great. I do the laundry. I love washing machines. I'm the maid in my house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-leary/vacuuming-is-great-i-do-the-laundry-i-love-washing-machines-i-m-the/) [Denis Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-leary/) > [I find vacuuming very therapeutic. I like the lines it makes on the carpet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-taylor/i-find-vacuuming-very-therapeutic-i-like-the-lines-it-makes-on-the/) [Christine Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-taylor/) > [“So does that mean you're neat and tidy, since you're a woman ?" I scrunched up my face. "Are you kidding ? I used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karina-halle/so-does-that-mean-you-re-neat-and-tidy-since-you-re-a-woman-i/) [Karina Halle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karina-halle/) > [I never mind scrubbing floors, vacuuming or bending and carrying stuff. Each time I do it I think, this is instead of going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-lumley/i-never-mind-scrubbing-floors-vacuuming-or-bending-and-carrying-stuff/) [Joanna Lumley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-lumley/) > [“My idea of vacuuming is borrowing someone's dog for the day and having them eat all the crap off the floor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karina-halle/my-idea-of-vacuuming-is-borrowing-someone-s-dog-for-the-day-and/) [Karina Halle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karina-halle/) > [Because a fellow has failed once or twice or a dozen times, you don't want to set him down as a failure till he's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/because-a-fellow-has-failed-once-or-twice-or-a-dozen-times-you-don-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I've skimmed through it a dozen times, the book glued to my side the past few days, like maybe the information will sink in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-darhower/i-ve-skimmed-through-it-a-dozen-times-the-book-glued-to-my-side-the/) [J.M. Darhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-darhower/) > [“I said no thank you a dozen times, and fuck off once.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/i-said-no-thank-you-a-dozen-times-and-fuck-off-once/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [Every man, through fear, mugs his aspirations a dozen times a day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-man-through-fear-mugs-his-aspirations-a-dozen-times-a-day/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If your life depended on coming up with a tally, if you could straighten its numbers into a flexible line around the moon and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-goldbarth/if-your-life-depended-on-coming-up-with-a-tally-if-you-could/) [Albert Goldbarth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-goldbarth/) > [I often visited a particular plant four or five miles distant, half a dozen times within a fortnight, that I might know exactly when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/i-often-visited-a-particular-plant-four-or-five-miles-distant-half-a/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) ## More by Rich Hall > [Women say they want a man who knows what a woman's worth. That's a pimp.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/women-say-they-want-a-man-who-knows-what-a-woman-s-worth-that-s-a-pimp/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [The combination of popcorn, soda, and melted chocolate which covers the floors of movie theaters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/the-combination-of-popcorn-soda-and-melted-chocolate-which-covers-the/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [When you go to work, if your name is on the building, you're rich. If your name is on your desk, you're middle class.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/when-you-go-to-work-if-your-name-is-on-the-building-you-re-rich-if/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [A person who combs his hair over his bald spot, hoping no one will notice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/a-person-who-combs-his-hair-over-his-bald-spot-hoping-no-one-will/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [Manhandling the open here spout on a milk carton so badly that one has to resort to using the illegal side.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/manhandling-the-open-here-spout-on-a-milk-carton-so-badly-that-one/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [The part of the envelope that tells a person where to place the stamp when they can't quite figure it out for themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/the-part-of-the-envelope-that-tells-a-person-where-to-place-the-stamp/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [Possessing the ability to turn the bathtub faucet on and off with your toes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/possessing-the-ability-to-turn-the-bathtub-faucet-on-and-off-with/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [Foxes are rats in expensive coats. What are foxes associated with? Evil, wily, conniving, duplicitous, Fox News - worst news service on the planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/foxes-are-rats-in-expensive-coats-what-are-foxes-associated-with-evil/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [Having to wander through a maze of ropes at an airport or bank even when you are the only person in line.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/having-to-wander-through-a-maze-of-ropes-at-an-airport-or-bank-even/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [A hotel mini bar allows you to see what a can of Pepsi will cost in twenty years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/a-hotel-mini-bar-allows-you-to-see-what-a-can-of-pepsi-will-cost-in/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [“Not many musicians can get 10000 people to show up and help pay his back taxes, and when farmers are going broke and transatlantic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/not-many-musicians-can-get-10000-people-to-show-up-and-help-pay-his/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [In Montana, a policeman will pull you over because he is lonely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/in-montana-a-policeman-will-pull-you-over-because-he-is-lonely/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [Ignisecond, n.: The overlapping moment of time when the hand is locking the car door even as the brain is saying, "my keys are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/ignisecond-n-the-overlapping-moment-of-time-when-the-hand-is-locking/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [“Good things come to those who wait, but shit pretty much shows up right away, doesn't it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/good-things-come-to-those-who-wait-but-shit-pretty-much-shows-up/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) > [The slime that accumulates on the underside of a soap bar when it sits in the dish too long.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/the-slime-that-accumulates-on-the-underside-of-a-soap-bar-when-it/) [Rich Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) [Explore all 23 Rich Hall quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/) ## More Chance quotes > [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/) [Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/) > [I understand it's promotion, but no one ever gave me a chance. No one ever thought I'd be the champ, and look where I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stipe-miocic/i-understand-it-s-promotion-but-no-one-ever-gave-me-a-chance-no-one/) [Stipe Miocic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stipe-miocic/) > [I might, by chance, write something just as shoddy; But then I wouldn't show it to everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/i-might-by-chance-write-something-just-as-shoddy-but-then-i-wouldn-t/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/) [Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I have heard that if you pull a bent breath through the second hole of a harmonica tuned to the key of Georgia while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-wakefield/i-have-heard-that-if-you-pull-a-bent-breath-through-the-second-hole/) [Buddy Wakefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-wakefield/) > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [Love changes people, for better or for worse. You could look at it as a chance for you to change. The best kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-changes-people-for-better-or-for-worse-you-could-look-at-it-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“It's not who, it's when”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-taubas/it-s-not-who-it-s-when/) Alejandro Taubas > [Childhood is Last Chance Gulch for happiness. After that, you know too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/childhood-is-last-chance-gulch-for-happiness-after-that-you-know-too/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [I thought my first few jobs would just be off, off, off, off, off broadway. And by chance and how the world works, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-dorfman/i-thought-my-first-few-jobs-would-just-be-off-off-off-off-off/) [Tommy Dorfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-dorfman/) > [If you’re worrying about the past, you’ve got a good chance of screwing up the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-a-tullman/if-you-re-worrying-about-the-past-you-ve-got-a-good-chance-of/) [Howard A. Tullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-a-tullman/) > [To be successful, one must take chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-stargell/to-be-successful-one-must-take-chances/) [Willie Stargell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-stargell/) [Browse all 12,460 Chance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up, examining it, then putting it back down to give the vacuum one more chance.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rich Hall" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a-string-at-least-a-dozen/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Chance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a-string-at-least-a-dozen/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eae/rich-hall-25075_chance_the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a_2160067.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eae/rich-hall-25075_chance_the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a_2160067.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eae/rich-hall-25075_chance_the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a_2160067.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The act, when vacuuming, of running over a string at least a dozen times, reaching over and picking it up…” — Rich Hall", "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": "Rich Hall", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-hall/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The act, when vacuuming, of running...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a-string-at-least-a-dozen/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-hall/the-act-when-vacuuming-of-running-over-a-string-at-least-a-dozen/#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 } } ] } ```