In Context:

"'Is it so nice as all that?' asked the Mole shyly, as though he was
quite prepared to believe it as he leant back in his seat and
surveyed the cushions, the oars, the rowlocks, and all the
fascinating fittings, and felt the boat sway lightly under him.
'Nice? It's the only thing ,' said the Water Rat solemnly, as he
leant forward for his stroke. 'Believe me, my young friend, there is
nothing--absolutely nothing--half so much doing as messing about in
boats. Simply messing,' he went on dreamily: 'messing--about--in
boats; messing-----'
'Look ahead, Rat!' cied the Mole suddenly.
It was too late. The boat struck the bank full tilt. The
dreamer, the joyous oarsman, lay on his back at the bottom of the
boat with his heels in the air.
'---about in boats---or with boats,' the Rat went on composedly,
picking himself up with a pleasant laugh. 'In or out of 'em, it
doesn't matter. Nothing seems really to matter, that's the charm of
it. Whether you get away, or whether you don't; whether you arrive
at your destination or whether you reach somewhere else, or whether
you never get anywhere at all, you're always busy, and you never do
anything in particular; and when you've done it there's always
something else to do, and you can do it if you'd like, but you'd much
better not'..."

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame