Ron Swanson explains to Leslie why he tried to have her fired four times, when she first started working at the parks department.

Leslie Knope:

“I don’t understand, why’d you try to get me fired?”

Ron Swanson:

“For the first year you worked here, you drove me nuts. I would say no to something you wanted to do and you’d ignore me or go over my head and do it anyway. You were insubordinate, stubborn, a pain in my ass and worst of all bubbly.”

Leslie Knope:

“I was a dedicated public servant.”

Ron Swanson:

“Right, that was the worst thing you were. Point is I ended up withdrawing all four requests to have you fired, because ultimately I’d rather work with a person of conviction than a wishy washy kiss ass.”

Leslie Knope:

“Well I had conviction because I knew what I believed in, but I don’t know with this new job. I just feel like I’ve lost my bearings.”

Ron Swanson:

“No you haven’t. You may have wandered into unknown terrain, but you’re still you.”

Leslie Knope:

“You gonna pull out some embarrassing photo of me from high school?”

Ron Swanson:

“Take this compass, all great adventurers need one.”