61Quotes from ‘Rockets, Communists, and the Dewey Decimal System’
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102. Rockets, Communists, and the Dewey Decimal System
November 2, 2017When Sheldon learns his mother is worried about his lack of friends, Sheldon turns to a self-help book to try make new acquaintances.
Quote from George Jr.
Georgie: So, Vietnam, like in Rambo.
Tam: Yes.
Georgie: That's a cool movie.
Tam: Yes.
Georgie: Are you in it?
Tam: No.
Quote from Sheldon
Tam: Is that any good?
Sheldon: I'm afraid not. I failed to make a single friend.
Tam: That sucks. I have a tough time making friends, too.
Sheldon: The worst part is, it was important to my mom.
Tam: My parents pressure me about making friends all the time.
Sheldon: So you understand what I'm going through.
Quote from Sheldon
Sheldon: Greetings from stall number one. As much as I detest that odd-smelling cigarette, I do applaud your rule-breaking bravado. My name is Sheldon. What's yours?
Quote from Sheldon
Ms. Hutchins: Hey there, Sheldon. What can I get for you today? Chemistry? Quantum mechanics? Astronomy?
Sheldon: No, nothing fun today. I need to learn how to make a friend.
Quote from Sheldon
Tam: So we came to Medford and opened up a convenience store. My parents work 16 hours a day, seven days a week for very little money. [silence]
Sheldon: Well, that was depressing.
Quote from Sheldon
Ms. Hutchins: Aw, honey, you having a hard time adjusting to high school?
Sheldon: I'm having a hard time adjusting to Earth.
Quote from Sheldon
Sheldon: Go Wolves.
Lisa May: What?
Sheldon: You're a cheerleader, and by saying "Go Wolves," I'm initiating a conversation about something that interests you.
Lisa May: Oh, are you one of those special ed kids?
Sheldon: My mom says I'm special. Would you like to be friends?
Lisa May: I don't think so.
Sheldon: Are you sure? What if I told you I admired your boldly-applied makeup?
Quote from Mary
Mary: All right, Tam. I decided I was gonna make you a real Texas dinner. Barbecued chicken and brisket.
Tam: Thank you.
Mary: Well, I figured you were probably tired of stuff wiggling around on your plate.
Quote from Ms. MacElroy
Ms. MacElroy: Yes, that's my signature. Why do you ask?
Sheldon: I'm seeking people who want to make friends.
Ms. MacElroy: I wasn't interested in friends. I took out that book to help me become school principal.
Sheldon: Did it work?
Ms. MacElroy: Are we sitting in the principal's office?
Sheldon: No.
Ms. MacElroy: And you know why? Because Victoria MacElroy is not a man!
Sheldon: So to be clear, you're not interested in making friends?
Ms. MacElroy: What I'm interested in is in living long enough to see women no longer treated like second-class citizens.
Sheldon: Well if your goal is a long life, that chili cheeseburger is a step in the wrong direction.
Ms. MacElroy: Food is all I have. You gonna watch me eat? Get out of here.
Quote from Mary
George: What?
Mary: These gentlemen are with the FBI. They want to talk to Sheldon.
George: What? Y-You fellas must have made a mistake. Sheldon's nine.
FBI Agent #2: Well, someone living at this address recently called a mining operation in Canada and tried to buy uranium.
Mary: Okay, maybe it's not a mistake.
Quote from George Jr.
Tam: We were forced to live in a refugee camp, where the only thing we had to eat were pigeons and rats.
Georgie: Ha! That's a job for hot sauce.
Quote from Sheldon
Sheldon: Well, good luck on your quest to find a friend.
Tam: You, too.
Sheldon: (Leaves the library, comes back a moment later) If you haven't found one yet, I have good news.
Quote from Sheldon
Sheldon: Oh, I read that book. It's excellent.
Tam: Are you into rocketry?
Sheldon: I started with water propulsion, worked my way up to solid fuel, then went back to water after I set our garage on fire.
Quote from Ms. Ingram
Sheldon: Are you by any chance Evelyn Ingram?
Ms. Ingram: Yes.
Sheldon: The same Evelyn Ingram who checked out this book?
Ms. Ingram: And why is that your business?
Sheldon: I just assumed you were looking to make a friend.
Ms. Ingram: Oh, well, that was a long time ago. I had just gotten out of a very difficult relationship.
Sheldon: With a friend?
Ms. Ingram: Friend. Ha! I gave that man three years of my life and my innocence.
Sheldon: I don't know what that means.
Ms. Ingram: It means men are lying dogs only interested in one thing-
Sheldon: Well, that's not the dictionary definition.
Ms. Ingram: Mm-hmm. Always starts the same. A quick glance across the room, a casual hand on the shoulder, lunch at Stuckey's. [LAUGHS] Oh, yeah, it's all romance and flowers in the beginning
Quote from Adult Sheldon
Adult Sheldon: When you're three foot ten and in high school, getting from point "A" to point "B" can be a harrowing experience. But it's worth it when point "B" is the library. Home to the original information superhighway, the Dewey Decimal System.
Quote from Adult Sheldon
Adult Sheldon: Jean-Paul Sartre said, "Hell is other people." That's humorous because it's true.
Quote from Sheldon
Sheldon: Hello, George.
George: What?
Sheldon: I do admire your thick head of hair George.
George: Thanks. What's going on?
Sheldon: Well, I'm practicing the principles in this book.
George: Why?
Sheldon: Well, I know Mom is concerned that I don't have any friends, so I'm determined to remedy the situation.
George: Oh.
Sheldon: George.
George: Well, good for you.
Sheldon: Do you feel complimented when I say your name, George? The book says you should. George.
George: I suppose. Kind of overdoing it a little, Sheldon.
Sheldon: Well, thank you for your criticism. It also says I should praise any improvements that you've made.
George: Okay.
Sheldon: I'll get back to you. George.
Quote from George Jr.
Tam: So, for many years, my mother and my sisters and I were very poor and very often didn't have much to eat. Then, when he was released-
Georgie: What'd they teach him at the reeducation camp?
Tam: How to be a communist.
Georgie: Cool, like in Rambo.
Quote from George Sr.
George: So, uh Tam. What kind of name is that?
Tam: Vietnamese, sir.
George: Sure. You know, I spent a little time over there. Army. Your mom's name isn't Kim-Lee, is it?
Tam: No, sir.
George: Good. I mean, you know, it's a small country.
Quote from Sheldon
Missy: 95, 96, 97. 99, 100.
Sheldon: You missed 11 numbers.
Missy: I don't need to be good at math. I have beautiful hair.
Sheldon: That's the saddest thing I've ever heard.
Quote from Sheldon
Tam: I don't understand why it didn't launch.
Sheldon: Me, neither. Evil Nazi scientists did it 50 years ago. How hard could it be?
Quote from Sheldon
Mary: So how's it going?
Sheldon: Well, the principles in the book didn't work for me at all. Although Dad does like being called George over and over again, so you might give that a try.
Quote from Sheldon
Sheldon: (to George Sr.) Why would you think you knew his mom?
Quote from Ms. Hutchins
Ms. Hutchins: Try this. It's been around a while, but it's still quite popular. Unlike me, who's just been around a while.
Quote from Sheldon
Sheldon: My mother asked me to ask you if you'd like to join us for dinner.
Tam: Why?
Sheldon: I was hoping you'd know.
Quote from Sheldon
Mary: Hey, here's an idea. Why don't you invite your new buddy over for dinner?
Sheldon: Why?
Quote from Sheldon
Sheldon: Mom, what do you know about the drug Prozac?
Mary: Not much. Supposed to make people happier. Why?
Sheldon: I was just thinking some of my teachers might benefit from it.
Quote from Mary
Mary: Okay, let's say grace. Now, Tam, when I say "Jesus," feel free to say the word "Buddha" in your head.
Tam: I'm actually Catholic.
Mary: Oh! Well, that's too bad.
Quote from Adult Sheldon
Adult Sheldon: My mother never understood that I actually enjoyed being alone.
Solitude allowed me to think about important things, like the effect of gravitational forces as you approach an event horizon, as opposed to less important things, like how many grapes my brother can fit in his mouth.
Quote from George Sr.
Tam: Finally, we were allowed to come to United States and start over in Galveston. My father saved money and bought his own shrimp boat.
Mary: There's a happy ending. Huh? See, kids? When the going gets tough, America provides.
Tam: It did. Until the Ku Klux Klan burned our boat and chased us away.
George: You gonna put a good spin on that one?
Quote from Tam
Sheldon: I also tried to get some uranium and build an atomic engine, but that stuff's hard to find.
Tam: Probably for the best.
Quote from Mary
Mary: I'm gonna keep him company.
George: Hey, hey, hey, Mary. Mary, think this through. Right now the kids are just ignoring Sheldon. What happens if he's sitting with his mommy?
Mary: They could mistake me for a senior. ... Well, I look younger than you.
Quote from Sheldon
Sheldon: That's brilliant. Mm. Now, how is it that you can't count?
Quote from Sheldon
Mary: But if the book's not working-
Sheldon: It isn't. But I realized if I find the other people who checked out the book, they'd be looking for friends, too.
Mary: That's really smart.
Sheldon: Missy thought of it.
Mary: You're kidding.
Sheldon: I'm as surprised as you are.
Quote from Sheldon
Sheldon: Hello, gentlemen. Did you watch any sports programs over the weekend? That's what I like about Or perhaps did some kissing with girls? Can you hear me?
Quote from George Sr.
Mary: Look at him. Breaks my heart.
George: Poor little guy, all alone.
Mary: I don't see why - his brother can't sit with him.
George: Come on, Mary. When you were in high school, would you have lunch with a nine-year-old?
Mary: Yes, I would've.
George: Well, there's something wrong with you.
Quote from Mary
Mary: So your father tells me you've been reading a new book?
Sheldon: I am. It's about how to make friends.
Mary: Is that something you're interested in?
Sheldon: Not really, but Missy told me it makes you sad that I don't have any.
Mary: Oh. I got to sew that girl's mouth shut.
Quote from Adult Sheldon
Adult Sheldon: The list proved to be a double-edged sword. It turns out self-help books written in 1936 were only of interest to adults. Emotionally troubled adults.
Quote from Adult Sheldon
Adult Sheldon: Two years later, Mr. Givens became the high school principal, which might be why Ms.
MacElroy became morbidly obese.
Quote from Adult Sheldon
Sheldon: Hello, Billy Sparks.
Billy Sparks: Hey, Sheldon.
Sheldon: I am genuinely interested in you and would like to encourage you to talk about yourself. Billy Sparks.
Billy Sparks: Thank you. [long silence]
Sheldon: You have the floor.
Billy Sparks: Thank you.
Adult Sheldon: Looking back, I would've had better luck making friends with the chickens.
Quote from Missy
Missy: Didn't you already read that book?
Sheldon: I'm reading it again.
Missy: How come?
Sheldon: I clearly missed something. I couldn't find one person who wanted to be my friend.
Missy: Did you look at the card inside?
Sheldon: Why? That's just other people who checked out the book.
Missy: It's a list of losers like you who can't find a friend.
Sheldon: So?
Missy: So they're desperate, and you have their names.
Quote from Adult Sheldon
Sheldon: Principle one. Don't criticize, condemn or complain.
Adult Sheldon: The three sharpest arrows in my quiver. Thus began the greatest challenge of my young life.
Quote from Mary
Mary: Can I help you?
FBI Agent #1: Sorry to bother you, ma'am. FBI. We're looking for a Sheldon Lee Cooper.
Mary: George!
George: I'm on the can.
Mary: Now!
Quote from Ms. Ingram
Sheldon: Excuse me, Ms. Ingram?
Ms. Ingram: Sheldon, it's recess. Go outside, see what it's like.
Quote from Mary
Tam: When he was released, we escaped on a small boat and spent many weeks at sea dodging Cambodian pirates until we reached Thailand.
Mary: Oh, that's supposed to be a beautiful country. Lovely beaches.
Tam: I wouldn't know.
Quote from Tam
Mary: So, Tam, tell us about your family. What brings y'all to Texas?
Tam: Well, after the American War-
George: You mean the Vietnam War.
Tam: We call it the American War.
George: Hmm.
Tam: Anyway, after the war, my father was sent to a reeducation camp because he fought on the wrong side.
George: You mean our side.
Tam: I was trying to be nice.
Quote from Mary
Mary: Thank you, God, for this food, and bless the hands that prepared it. And thank you so much for Sheldon's new friend.
Quote from Sheldon
Mary: Baby, you don't have to go to any trouble for me.
Sheldon: But I like doing things for you. You're a nice lady.
Quote from Missy
Mary: Something wrong?
Missy: How come math is easy for Sheldon and hard for me?
Mary: I don't know, honey, but you have your own gifts.
Missy: Like what?
Mary: Well, like you have very pretty hair.
Missy: True.
Quote from Missy
Mary: Georgie. Would you do me a little tiny favor?
Georgie: Like what?
Mary: Tomorrow at lunch, would you mind sitting with your brother?
Missy: Don't do it, Georgie.
Mary: You stay out of this.
Missy: I ate with him in second grade. It really hurt my social life.
Quote from Missy
Missy: Can I eat in front of the TV?
Mary: No, you can eat in front of Sheldon's friend.
Missy: Aw, fudge.
Mary: I know what "fudge" means, and you are right on the edge, young lady.
Quote from Mary
Mary: He's here! Everybody, stay calm! Just a normal day, just a normal dinner.
Quote from Ms. Ingram
Ms. Ingram: You're like, "I'm here because I care. And by the way, your phone could make calls, too." Then tries to turn this whole thing around like it's all about you being needy, and you're like, "Yes, I have needs! That's what makes me human!"
Quote from Mary
Sheldon: Okay. It was just something I was hoping to do with my new friend.
Mary: Hang on. Uh, yes. It's fine. Ban is lifted.
George: Mary.
Mary: It's for his friend. He's got a friend. Besides, those could have been rats. Their bodies were so badly burned.
Quote from George Sr.
Mary: What's up, sweetie?
Sheldon: I was wondering when I could continue my rocketry hobby.
George: Uh, Sheldon, we've been through this. You can build them. You just can't launch them.
Sheldon: But launching them is the fun part.
George: Tell that to the family of squirrels who died in the fire.
Quote from Mary
Mary: He made a friend! He did it! Our little boy has got a friend.
George: Who is it?
Mary: Who cares? It's a human being. It's a warm body.
Quote from Missy
Missy: Nice going. You're making Mom a nervous wreck.
Sheldon: What did I do?
Missy: You don't have any friends, and she is beside herself.
Sheldon: But I'm fine without friends.
Missy: I don't know what to tell you, Sheldon. She said it's your fault. I'm going to watch ALF.
Quote from Mr. Givens
Mr. Givens: Everybody told me, "Hubert, don't date someone from work." But did I listen? No. Let me tell you something. She likes to say I stole her innocence? Well, what about my innocence? I was never the same after we broke up.
Quote from Mr. Givens
Mr. Givens: I had the brains, I had the charm, and I don't like to brag, but I was pretty easy on the eyes back then. That woman got herself one heck of a package. But some people don't want to be satisfied.