--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He got up. The Kitchen Korner, sensing…" description: "\"“He got up. The Kitchen Korner, sensing him, woke. The fridge door slid aside. A single ancient leaf of lettuce sagged blackly through the plastic rods..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/615/william-gibson-642_fridge_he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him_1201942.jpg" --- # He got up. The Kitchen Korner, sensing him, woke. The… ![“He got up. The Kitchen Korner, sensing him, woke. The fridge door slid aside. A single ancient leaf of lettuce sagged blackly through the plastic rods of one white shelf. A half-empty bottle of Evian on another. He held his cupped hands hands above the lettuce, willing himself to feel something…” quote by William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/615/william-gibson-642_fridge_he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him_1201942.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/615/william-gibson-642_fridge_he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him_1201942.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/615/william-gibson-642_fridge_he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him_1201942.jpg) > ““He got up. The Kitchen Korner, sensing him, woke. The fridge door slid aside. A single ancient leaf of lettuce sagged blackly through the plastic rods of one white shelf. A half-empty bottle of Evian on another. He held his cupped hands hands above the lettuce, willing himself to feel something radiating from its decay, some subtle life force, orgones, particles of an energy unknown to science. Alison Shires was going to kill herself. He knew he'd seen it. Seen it somehow in the incidental data she generated in her mild-mannered passage through the world of things. "Hey there," the fridge said. "You've left me open." Laney said nothing. "Well, do you 'want' the door open, partner? You know it interferes with the automatic 'de'-frost..." "Be quiet. " His hands felt better. Cooler. He stood there until his hands were quite cold, then withdrew them and pressed the tips of his fingers against his temples, the fridge taking this opportunity to close itself without further comment.”” [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A surreal scene where a kitchen appliance speaks, reflecting a protagonist’s struggle with grief and the search for meaning in mundane objects. **In simple terms:** Even ordinary things can speak to us in grief. Key Takeaway Find meaning in everyday moments. Themes grief surrealism technology Mood somber introspective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - mental health coping - creative writing - art therapy Key Concepts existentialism psychology Questions to Reflect On - What does the fridge symbolize for you? - How can mundane objects help process loss? A Different Perspective The fantastical may distract from real emotional work. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fridge/) [Fridge Door](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fridge-door-3023145/) [Fridge Said](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fridge-said-1465828/) [Hey Fridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hey-fridge-3608861/) [Woke Fridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/woke-fridge-752640/) ## Related quotes > [“Somehow our civilization believes opening the fridge door is the solution to everything”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vidur-moudgil/somehow-our-civilization-believes-opening-the-fridge-door-is-the/) [Vidur Moudgil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vidur-moudgil/) > [“Well now, look at this, they keep winter in a box. That’s clever,” she congratulated me. Then she shut the fridge door...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-m-greeley/well-now-look-at-this-they-keep-winter-in-a-box-that-s-clever-she/) [Andrew M. Greeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-m-greeley/) > [Woke up with this on my fridge omg my niece is in love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meee/woke-up-with-this-on-my-fridge-omg-my-niece-is-in-love/) [Meee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meee/) > [“If you knew how to cook, maybe I would eat,” Jace muttered. Isabelle froze, her spoon poised dangerously. “What did you say?” Jace edged…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/if-you-knew-how-to-cook-maybe-i-would-eat-jace-muttered-isabelle/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [My friend said: heh, ive just put my laundry in the fridge. Sometimes I think I'm retarded.;P I said: Oh I do that all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liza/my-friend-said-heh-ive-just-put-my-laundry-in-the-fridge-sometimes-i/) [Liza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liza/) > [“Before I left, I just wanted to say . . . thank you.” It came out a little strangled. I thought about it for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-chance/before-i-left-i-just-wanted-to-say-thank-you-it-came-out-a-little/) [Karen Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-chance/) > [“It meant that the silently waged conflict between himself and his cleaning lady had escalated to a new and more frightening level. It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/it-meant-that-the-silently-waged-conflict-between-himself-and-his/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [He turned slowly like a fridge door opening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/he-turned-slowly-like-a-fridge-door-opening/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [I have a sense of urgency, of time. I am a woman and am always running between work, doctors' appointments, school meetings, filling up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/segolene-royal/i-have-a-sense-of-urgency-of-time-i-am-a-woman-and-am-always-running/) [Segolene Royal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/segolene-royal/) > [“It was a brave old world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-a-rayner/it-was-a-brave-old-world/) [Mark A. Rayner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-a-rayner/) > [During an early performance of 'Spamalot,' I left my regal gloves in the fridge to cool down and didn't remember them until I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjeev-bhaskar/during-an-early-performance-of-spamalot-i-left-my-regal-gloves-in-the/) [Sanjeev Bhaskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjeev-bhaskar/) > [Open the fridge and put My heart on a plate. I'm just as you left me, and I taste even better leftover.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecily-von-ziegesar/open-the-fridge-and-put-my-heart-on-a-plate-i-m-just-as-you-left-me/) [Cecily von Ziegesar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecily-von-ziegesar/) > [If I really like the smell of something - a piece of tar or my goddaughter's plastic doll - I put a tiny piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mika/if-i-really-like-the-smell-of-something-a-piece-of-tar-or-my/) [Mika](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mika/) > [If you think of the ice caps as the fridge of our planet, if your fridge at home died, the food you eat would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orlando-bloom/if-you-think-of-the-ice-caps-as-the-fridge-of-our-planet-if-your/) [Orlando Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orlando-bloom/) > [“They were ticking off items on a to-do list that was magnet-attached to the fridge. There were nineteen items on the list. They'd crossed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pavone/they-were-ticking-off-items-on-a-to-do-list-that-was-magnet-attached/) [Chris Pavone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pavone/) ## More by William Gibson > [“We have no idea, now, of who or what the inhabitants of our future might be. In that sense, we have no future. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/we-have-no-idea-now-of-who-or-what-the-inhabitants-of-our-future/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [For me, the melancholy of the late XXth Century is walking late at night by the Mont Blanc pen store and seeing these things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/for-me-the-melancholy-of-the-late-xxth-century-is-walking-late-at/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [“No," said Blackwell, "she won't, because that would be a violation of the very personal terms I will have established in our conversation. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/no-said-blackwell-she-won-t-because-that-would-be-a-violation-of-the/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [“Music was strange that way though; there were people into any damned thing, it seemed like, and if you got enough of them together…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/music-was-strange-that-way-though-there-were-people-into-any-damned/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [When I start writing a new imaginary future, I have no idea what it is. The characters arrive first. They help me figure out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/when-i-start-writing-a-new-imaginary-future-i-have-no-idea-what-it-is/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [Hollis thought he looked like William Burroughs, minus the bohemian substrate (or perhaps the methadone). Like someone who'd be invited quail shooting with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/hollis-thought-he-looked-like-william-burroughs-minus-the-bohemian/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [Fiction is an illusion wrought with many small, conventionally symbolic marks, triggering visions in the minds of others](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/fiction-is-an-illusion-wrought-with-many-small-conventionally/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [The experience of celebrity is gradually being democratized.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/the-experience-of-celebrity-is-gradually-being-democratized/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [I don't generate a storyline and then fill it out in the course of writing. The story actually generates in the course of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/i-don-t-generate-a-storyline-and-then-fill-it-out-in-the-course-of/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [“What happened to your arm?" she asked me one night in the Gentleman Loser, the three of us drinking at a small table in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/what-happened-to-your-arm-she-asked-me-one-night-in-the-gentleman/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [“In Heathrow a vast chunk of memory detached itself from a blank bowl of airport sky and fell on him. He vomited into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/in-heathrow-a-vast-chunk-of-memory-detached-itself-from-a-blank-bowl/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [And, for an instant, she stared directly into those soft blue eyes and knew, with an instinctive mammalian certainty, that the exceedingly rich were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/and-for-an-instant-she-stared-directly-into-those-soft-blue-eyes-and/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [ \[When\] Johnny Mnemonic was coming out and I realized that all the kids that worked in 7-11 knew more - or thought they knew… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/when-johnny-mnemonic-was-coming-out-and-i-realized-that-all-the-kids/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [“Andrea maintained that men like Alain lied so constantly, so passionately, that some basic distinction had been lost. They were artists in their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/andrea-maintained-that-men-like-alain-lied-so-constantly-so/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) > [“Because he had a good agent, he had a good contract. Because he had a good contract, he was in Singapore an hour after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/because-he-had-a-good-agent-he-had-a-good-contract-because-he-had-a/) [William Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) [Explore all 430 William Gibson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/) ## More Fridge quotes > [“They were ticking off items on a to-do list that was magnet-attached to the fridge. There were nineteen items on the list. They'd crossed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pavone/they-were-ticking-off-items-on-a-to-do-list-that-was-magnet-attached/) [Chris Pavone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pavone/) > [If you think of the ice caps as the fridge of our planet, if your fridge at home died, the food you eat would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orlando-bloom/if-you-think-of-the-ice-caps-as-the-fridge-of-our-planet-if-your/) [Orlando Bloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orlando-bloom/) > [If I really like the smell of something - a piece of tar or my goddaughter's plastic doll - I put a tiny piece…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mika/if-i-really-like-the-smell-of-something-a-piece-of-tar-or-my/) [Mika](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mika/) > [Open the fridge and put My heart on a plate. I'm just as you left me, and I taste even better leftover.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecily-von-ziegesar/open-the-fridge-and-put-my-heart-on-a-plate-i-m-just-as-you-left-me/) [Cecily von Ziegesar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecily-von-ziegesar/) > [During an early performance of 'Spamalot,' I left my regal gloves in the fridge to cool down and didn't remember them until I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjeev-bhaskar/during-an-early-performance-of-spamalot-i-left-my-regal-gloves-in-the/) [Sanjeev Bhaskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjeev-bhaskar/) > [“It was a brave old world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-a-rayner/it-was-a-brave-old-world/) [Mark A. Rayner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-a-rayner/) > [I have a sense of urgency, of time. I am a woman and am always running between work, doctors' appointments, school meetings, filling up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/segolene-royal/i-have-a-sense-of-urgency-of-time-i-am-a-woman-and-am-always-running/) [Segolene Royal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/segolene-royal/) > [I know what it's like not to have food in the fridge or money to buy more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalia-vodianova/i-know-what-it-s-like-not-to-have-food-in-the-fridge-or-money-to-buy/) [Natalia Vodianova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalia-vodianova/) > [If you looked in my fridge, you'd see maybe 12 different mustards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-fieri/if-you-looked-in-my-fridge-you-d-see-maybe-12-different-mustards/) [Guy Fieri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-fieri/) > [... I stare into the fridge. Like a mirrored image of myself. Cold and empty, and the lights come on only when you open…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hallgr-mur-helgason/i-stare-into-the-fridge-like-a-mirrored-image-of-myself-cold-and/) [Hallgrimur Helgason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hallgr-mur-helgason/) > [When I'm doing kitchen planning as well as bathroom design, I try to walk through the day with the homeowner. If we're talking about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candice-olson/when-i-m-doing-kitchen-planning-as-well-as-bathroom-design-i-try-to/) [Candice Olson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candice-olson/) > [A fridge is basically just a big, cold box with a few shelves in it, right? Well, that's true, but where you store food…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-kenji-lopez-alt/a-fridge-is-basically-just-a-big-cold-box-with-a-few-shelves-in-it/) [J. Kenji Lopez-Alt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-kenji-lopez-alt/) > [A wise saying is something you keep picking up off the floor in front of your fridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-breault/a-wise-saying-is-something-you-keep-picking-up-off-the-floor-in-front/) [Robert Breault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-breault/) > [Well, Im bored again. Time to open the fridge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/well-im-bored-again-time-to-open-the-fridge/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“A kitchen is not quite a kitchen without something stuck to the fridge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-m-golland/a-kitchen-is-not-quite-a-kitchen-without-something-stuck-to-the-fridge/) [K.M. Golland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-m-golland/) [Browse all 131 Fridge quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fridge/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“He got up. The Kitchen Korner, sensing him, woke. The fridge door slid aside. A single ancient leaf of lettuce sagged blackly through the plastic rods of one white shelf. A half-empty bottle of Evian on another. He held his cupped hands hands above the lettuce, willing himself to feel something radiating from its decay, some subtle life force, orgones, particles of an energy unknown to science. Alison Shires was going to kill herself. He knew he'd seen it. Seen it somehow in the incidental data she generated in her mild-mannered passage through the world of things. \"Hey there,\" the fridge said. \"You've left me open.\" Laney said nothing. \"Well, do you 'want' the door open, partner? You know it interferes with the automatic 'de'-frost...\" \"Be quiet. \" His hands felt better. Cooler. He stood there until his hands were quite cold, then withdrew them and pressed the tips of his fingers against his temples, the fridge taking this opportunity to close itself without further comment.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Gibson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him-woke-the-fridge-door-slid/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Fridge" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him-woke-the-fridge-door-slid/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/615/william-gibson-642_fridge_he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him_1201942.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/615/william-gibson-642_fridge_he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him_1201942.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/615/william-gibson-642_fridge_he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him_1201942.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“He got up. The Kitchen Korner, sensing him, woke. The fridge door slid aside. A single ancient leaf of…” — William Gibson", "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": "William Gibson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-gibson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“He got up. The Kitchen Korner,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him-woke-the-fridge-door-slid/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-gibson/he-got-up-the-kitchen-korner-sensing-him-woke-the-fridge-door-slid/#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 } } ] } ```