In later years the only regret Yates would allow himself to express publicly was over "the desolate wastes of time" that had diminished his productiv… - Richard Yates

Late in the afternoon the company cooks brought food up to the village for the first hot meal they'd had since Belgium - salmon patties, dehydrated potatoes, and canned fruit salad - and most of the men seemed in high spirits as they sat or squatted over their mess kits in the street. "What kind of catshit is this?" "Salmon-patty catshit, that's what kind."

She too was a divorced mother, though her former husband had vanished long ago and was referred to only as "that bastard" or "that cowardly son of a bitch".

That had the sound of a good exit line, so she went quickly into her room and slammed the door.