Tea would arrive, the cakes squatting on cushions of cream, toast in a melting shawl of butter, cups agleam and a faint wisp of steam rising from the… - Gerald Durrell

At length the Turk turned to Larry:

'You write, I believe?' he said with complete lack of interest.

Larry's eyes glittered. Mother, seeing the danger signs, rushed in quickly before he could reply.

'Yes, yes' she smiled, 'he writes away, day after day. Always tapping at the typewriter'

'I always feel that I could write superbly if I tried' remarked the Turk.

'Really?' said Mother. 'Yes, well, it's a gift I suppose, like so many things.'

'He swims well' remarked Margo, 'and he goes out terribly far'

'I have no fear' said the Turk modestly. 'I am a superb swimmer, so I have no fear. When I ride the horse, I have no fear, for I ride superbly. I can sail the boat magnificently in the typhoon without fear'

He sipped his tea delicately, regarding our awestruck faces with approval.

'You see' he went on, in case we had missed the point, 'you see, I am not a fearful man.

The main herd of camels, consisting of six females, was led and ruled by Big Bill, a huge animal with overstuffed humps like a French arm-chair, great plus-fours of curls on his legs, and an expression of such sneering superiority that you longed for him to trip over something and fall down. He would stand towering over you, his belly rumbling, squeaking his long, greeny-yellow teeth together and staring at you with a disbelieving disgust as though you were a child murderer or something similarly obscene.

But throughout my life I have rarely if ever achieved what I wanted by tackling it in a logical fashion.