β
If you do a good job for others, you heal yourself at the same time, because a dose of joy is a spiritual cure. It transcends all barriers.
β
β
Ed Sullivan
β
I can believe things that are true and things that aren't true and I can believe things where nobody knows if they're true or not.
I can believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny and the Beatles and Marilyn Monroe and Elvis and Mister Ed. Listen - I believe that people are perfectable, that knowledge is infinite, that the world is run by secret banking cartels and is visited by aliens on a regular basis, nice ones that look like wrinkled lemurs and bad ones who mutilate cattle and want our water and our women.
I believe that the future sucks and I believe that the future rocks and I believe that one day White Buffalo Woman is going to come back and kick everyone's ass. I believe that all men are just overgrown boys with deep problems communicating and that the decline in good sex in America is coincident with the decline in drive-in movie theaters from state to state.
I believe that all politicians are unprincipled crooks and I still believe that they are better than the alternative. I believe that California is going to sink into the sea when the big one comes, while Florida is going to dissolve into madness and alligators and toxic waste.
I believe that antibacterial soap is destroying our resistance to dirt and disease so that one day we'll all be wiped out by the common cold like martians in War of the Worlds.
I believe that the greatest poets of the last century were Edith Sitwell and Don Marquis, that jade is dried dragon sperm, and that thousands of years ago in a former life I was a one-armed Siberian shaman.
I believe that mankind's destiny lies in the stars. I believe that candy really did taste better when I was a kid, that it's aerodynamically impossible for a bumble bee to fly, that light is a wave and a particle, that there's a cat in a box somewhere who's alive and dead at the same time (although if they don't ever open the box to feed it it'll eventually just be two different kinds of dead), and that there are stars in the universe billions of years older than the universe itself.
I believe in a personal god who cares about me and worries and oversees everything I do. I believe in an impersonal god who set the universe in motion and went off to hang with her girlfriends and doesn't even know that I'm alive. I believe in an empty and godless universe of causal chaos, background noise, and sheer blind luck.
I believe that anyone who says sex is overrated just hasn't done it properly. I believe that anyone who claims to know what's going on will lie about the little things too.
I believe in absolute honesty and sensible social lies. I believe in a woman's right to choose, a baby's right to live, that while all human life is sacred there's nothing wrong with the death penalty if you can trust the legal system implicitly, and that no one but a moron would ever trust the legal system.
I believe that life is a game, that life is a cruel joke, and that life is what happens when you're alive and that you might as well lie back and enjoy it.
β
β
Neil Gaiman (American Gods (American Gods, #1))
β
Everything will be okay in the end. If it's not okay, then it's not the end.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
The best revenge is living well without you.
β
β
Joyce Carol Oates
β
God save us from religion.
β
β
David Eddings
β
Haven't you ever heard of the saying, "If you want to shoot the general, first shoot the horse!"?' --Lin
If you wanna shoot the general, then you should just SHOOT THE GENERAL!' --Ed
β
β
Hiromu Arakawa (Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 14 (Fullmetal Alchemist, #14))
β
If someone tells you to change yourself, tell them to go fuck themselves.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
I've fallen for your eyes, but they don't know me yet
β
β
Ed Sheeran (Ed Sheeran: + (TAB))
β
I'm telling you why we broke up, Ed. I'm writing this letter, the whole truth of why it happened. And the truth is that I goddamn loved you so much.
β
β
Daniel Handler (Why We Broke Up)
β
She craved a tall glass of the fresh-squeezed lemonade from the pitcher sheβd left chilling in the fridge. Two glasses served with a generous slice of pound cake with orange glaze icing sounded twice as nice.
β
β
Ed Lynskey (Fur the Win (Piper & Bill Robins #2))
β
It's too cold outside for angels to fly.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
She soon says, "You're my best friend, Ed."
You can kill a man with those words.
No gun.
No bullets.
Just words and a girl.
β
β
Markus Zusak (I Am the Messenger)
β
I donβt need anyone else to distract me from myself anymore,
like I always thought I would.
β
β
Charlotte Eriksson (You're Doing Just Fine)
β
I've looked at the world for quite a few years now and I've found that if I don't laugh, I'll probably end up crying."
- Prince Kheldar of Drasnia
β
β
David Eddings (Demon Lord of Karanda (The Malloreon, #3))
β
Be nice to everyone, always smile, and appreciate things because it could all be gone tomorrow.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
What didn't kill me, it didn't make me stronger at all.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
The whole art of government consists in the art of being honest.
β
β
Thomas Jefferson (A Summary View of the Rights of British America. Reprinted from the Original Ed (Burt Franklin Research and Source Works Series, 833. American))
β
Success is the best revenge for anything.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
Failure isnβt a necessary evil. In fact, it isnβt evil at all. It is a necessary consequence of doing something new.
β
β
Ed Catmull (Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration)
β
Pain is only relevant if it still hurts.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
Take a shower, wash off the day. Drink a glass of water. Make the room dark. Lie down and close your eyes.
Notice the silence. Notice your heart. Still beating. Still fighting. You made it, after all. You made it, another day. And you can make it one more.
Youβre doing just fine.
β
β
Charlotte Eriksson (You're Doing Just Fine)
β
...only in the surrender of the light could the darkness prevail.
β
β
David Eddings (King of the Murgos (The Malloreon, #2))
β
Be a true Heart, not a follower.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
If I ever have any back-up dancers, I want the penguins from Madagascar.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
You are not your idea, and if you identify too closely with your ideas, you will take offense when they are challenged.
β
β
Ed Catmull (Creativity, Inc.: an inspiring look at how creativity can - and should - be harnessed for business success by the founder of Pixar)
β
If you give a good idea to a mediocre team, they will screw it up. If you give a mediocre idea to a brilliant team, they will either fix it or throw it away and come up with something better.
β
β
Ed Catmull (Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration)
β
Friends are those rare people who ask how we are, and then wait to hear the answer.
β
β
Ed Cunningham
β
It's so trendy, almost bleeding to death. All the cool girls are doing it.
β
β
Francine Pascal (Fearless (Fearless, #1))
β
All a woman actually wants is to feel special.
β
β
Matt Dunn (The Ex-Boyfriend's Handbook (Ed & Dan, #1))
β
The worst things in life come free to us
β
β
Ed Sheeran (Ed Sheeran: + (TAB))
β
When love is involved no sacrifice is too great.
β
β
David Eddings
β
Donβt wait for things to be perfect before you share them with others. Show early and show often. Itβll be pretty when we get there, but it wonβt be pretty along the way.
β
β
Ed Catmull (Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration)
β
Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory.
β
β
Ed Viesturs (No Shortcuts to the Top: Climbing the World's 14 Highest Peaks)
β
Consistency is the defense of a small mind
β
β
David Eddings (Seeress of Kell (The Malloreon, #5))
β
I thought you said you were the one in charge!" Ce'Nedra exclaimed.
I lied." Silk said. "It's a vice I have.
β
β
David Eddings (Queen of Sorcery (The Belgariad #2))
β
Riza: Without his Alchemy he's just...
Jean: A little brat who swears a lot
Maes: An arrogant pipsqueak
Roy: Useless. Just useless
Alphonse: Sorry big brother, I don't know how to add to that...
Ed *starts to cry*: YOU'RE ALL PICKING ON ME!!!
β
β
Hiromu Arakawa (Fullmetal Alchemist, Vol. 2 (Fullmetal Alchemist, #2))
β
Nothing that ever happens is so unimportant that it doesn't change things.
β
β
David Eddings (Polgara the Sorceress (Malloreon))
β
The old man was peering intently at the shelves. 'I'll have to admit that he's a very competent scholar.'
Isn't he just a librarian?' Garion asked, 'somebody who looks after books?'
That's where all the rest of scholarship starts, Garion. All the books in the world won't help you if they're just piled up in a heap.
β
β
David Eddings (King of the Murgos (The Malloreon, #2))
β
It's ok to be not ok.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
What was that?" Belgarath asked, coming back around the corner.
"Brill," Silk replied blandly, pulling his Murgo robe back on.
"Again?" Belgarath demanded with exasperation. "What was he doing this time?"
"Trying to fly, last time I saw him." Silk smirked.
The old man looked puzzled.
"He wasn't doing it very well," Silk added.
Belgarath shrugged. "Maybe it'll come to him in time."
"He doesn't really have all that much time." Silk glanced out over the edge.
"From far below - terribly far below - there came a faint, muffled crash; then, after several seconds, another. "Does bouncing count?" Silk asked.
Belgarath made a wry face. "Not really."
"Then I'd say he didn't learn in time." Silk said blithely.
β
β
David Eddings (Magician's Gambit (The Belgariad #3))
β
It's one of the advantages of being a woman. I get to do all sorts of unfair things, and you have to accept them because you're too polite not to.
--Polgara
β
β
David Eddings (Seeress of Kell (The Malloreon, #5))
β
We're all entitled to a little stupidity now and then.
--Beldin
β
β
David Eddings (Seeress of Kell (The Malloreon, #5))
β
They say I'm up and coming like I'm fucking in an elevator.
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
There's a special quality to the loneliness of dusk, a melancholy more brooding even than the night's.
β
β
Ed Gorman (Everybody's Somebody's Fool (Sam McCain, #5))
β
A girl meets a boy, Ed, and everything changes, or so she says.
β
β
Daniel Handler (Why We Broke Up)
β
Is it my birthday again? Already? Where does the time go?"
"Behind us --or in front. It depends on which way you are looking.
β
β
David Eddings (Belgarath the Sorcerer)
β
If you arenβt experiencing failure, then you are making a far worse mistake: You are being driven by the desire to avoid it.
β
β
Ed Catmull (Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration)
β
From Chapter 1:
Isabel went into the kitchen. Their butterball of a beagle wagged his tail and peered up at her with his soulful brown eyes. He was eager to get his reward for looking cute as a button, and he knew she was a pushover.
β
β
Ed Lynskey (To Dye For (An Isabel and Alma Trumbo Cozy Mystery Book 11))
β
As soon as somebody falls in love, all the wits seem to dribble out of the bottom of his head.
β
β
David Eddings (Castle of Wizardry (The Belgariad #4))
β
Its a perfectly good face, Sparhawk."
"It covers the front of my head. What else can you expect from a face?
β
β
David Eddings (The Diamond Throne (The Elenium, #1))
β
He slowed down a bit more. "Gaia, how do you know these things?" She shrugged. "I'm smart." "And modest, too." "Modesty is a waste of time," she pronounced. "I'll keep that in mind.
β
β
Francine Pascal (Fearless (Fearless, #1))
β
Getting the right people and the right chemistry is more important than getting the right idea.
β
β
Ed Catmull (Creativity, Inc.: an inspiring look at how creativity can - and should - be harnessed for business success by the founder of Pixar)
β
Ed?" Ritchie says later. We're still standing in the water. "There's only one thing I want."
"What's that, Ritchie?"
His answer is simple.
"To want.
β
β
Markus Zusak (I Am the Messenger)
β
It's too cold outside
For angels to fly
An angel will die
Covered in white
Closed eye
And hoping for a better life
This time, we'll fade out tonight
Straight down the line
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
Will you never grow up?"
"I doubt it, and I certainly hope not.
β
β
David Eddings (Seeress of Kell (The Malloreon, #5))
β
My full name's Ed Kennedy. I'm nineteen. I'm an underage cab driver. I'm typical of many of the young men you see in this suburban outpost of the city -- not a whole lot of prospects or possibility. That aside, I read more books than I should, and I'm decidedly crap at sex and doing my taxes. Nice to meet you.
β
β
Markus Zusak (I Am the Messenger)
β
If you are on social media, and you are not learning, not laughing, not being inspired or not networking, then you are using it wrong.
β
β
Germany Kent
β
The only reason there's such a thing as a morning in the first place is to keep night and afternoon from bumping into each other.
-Kheldar
β
β
David Eddings (King of the Murgos (The Malloreon, #2))
β
My Lord, I find thy face apelike and thy form misshapen. Thy beard, moreover, is an offense against decency, resembling more closely the scabrous fir which doth decorate the hinder portion of a mongrel dog than a proper adornement for a human face. Is it possible that thy mother, seized by some wild lechery, did dally at some time past with a randy goat? -Mandorallen
β
β
David Eddings
β
I cant tell you the key to succsess, but the key to faliure is trying to please everyone.
β
β
Ed-Sheeran
β
Take it back, Ed. Take it all back.
β
β
Daniel Handler (Why We Broke Up)
β
Any time there's something so ridiculously dangerous that no rational human being would try it, they send for me.' --Garion
β
β
David Eddings (King of the Murgos (The Malloreon, #2))
β
A crowded society is a restrictive society; an overcrowded society becomes an authoritarian, repressive and murderous society.
β
β
Edward Abbey (Postcards from Ed: Dispatches and Salvos from an American Iconoclast)
β
Ed, it was everything, those nights on the phone, everything we said until late became later and then later and very late and finally to go to bed with my ear warm and worn and red from holding the phone close close close so as not to miss a word of what it was, because who cared how tired I was in the humdrum slave drive of our days without each other. Iβd ruin any day, all my days, for those long nights with you, and I did. But thatβs why right there it was doomed. We couldnβt only have the magic nights buzzing through the wires. We had to have the days, too, the bright impatient days spoiling everything with their unavoidable schedules, their mandatory times that donβt overlap, their loyal friends who donβt get along, the unforgiven travesties torn from the wall no matter what promises are uttered past midnight, and that's why we broke up.
β
β
Daniel Handler (Why We Broke Up)
β
Ah yes, the head is full of books. The hard part is to force them down through the bloodstream and out through the fingers.
β
β
Edward Abbey (Postcards from Ed: Dispatches and Salvos from an American Iconoclast)
β
When guns are outlawed, only the Government will have guns. The Government - and a few outlaws. If that happens, you can count me among the outlaws.
β
β
Edward Abbey (Postcards from Ed: Dispatches and Salvos from an American Iconoclast)
β
Keep working. Keep trying. Keep believing. You still might not make it, but at least you gave it your best shot. If you donβt have calluses on your soul, this isnβt for you. Take up knitting instead.
β
β
David Eddings
β
You know who Mr. Darcy is?"
"I exist, therefore I know who Mr. Darcy is.
β
β
Cath Crowley (Graffiti Moon)
β
As nightfall does not come at once, neither does oppression. In both instances, there is a twilight when everything remains seemingly unchanged. And it is in such twilight that we all must be most aware of change in the air β however slight β lest we become unwitting victims of the darkness.
β
β
William O. Douglas (The Douglas letters: Selections from the private papers of Justice William O. Douglas)
β
Isn't it easier to forgive than to hate?
-Eriond
β
β
David Eddings (Sorceress of Darshiva (The Malloreon, #4))
β
If love what you can't have, then you have to love what you've got
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
Isabel and Alma Trumbo are the sisters who reside in the brick rambler on Church Street. They are a bit, uh, different and unorthodox. Borderline eccentric, some of the townies say, especially Alma.β
βWhat do the borderline eccentric sisters Isabel and Alma know about solving a murder case?β
Dwight gave it a momentβs reflection. βThey could probably write a book about it.
β
β
Ed Lynskey (Fowl Play)
β
Quote taken from Chapter 1 of The Corpse Wore Gingham:
"You love to figure out things as much as I do,β Piper said.
βLike what?β Bill asked.
βYou fix broken stuff,β Piper replied.
βRepairing a broken toaster or steam iron is far different than unraveling a murder mystery," Bill said.
β
β
Ed Lynskey (The Corpse Wore Gingham (Piper & Bill Robins, #1))
β
But itβs December now, and the sky is bright, and itβs clear to me. Iβm telling you why we broke up, Ed. Iβm writing it in this letter, the whole truth of why it happened. And the truth is that I goddamn loved you so much.
β
β
Daniel Handler (Why We Broke Up)
β
Quote taken from Chapter 1:
"The police should be in it, not us. Weβre out of here.β Bill did an about-face to retrace their route to the door.
Piper whipped out a hand and snagged him by the shirttail. Her tone returned to crisp and decisive. βSlow down, Roadrunner. Iβm not ready to leave. Weβve got work to do.β
Incredulous, he stared gape-mouthed at her. βYou'd better explain,β he said.
She wiggled her nose. βIβm growing nosier by the second about the circumstances surrounding Annaβs murder.
β
β
Ed Lynskey (The Corpse Wore Gingham (Piper & Bill Robins, #1))
β
Diabolical forces are formidable. These forces are eternal, and they exist today. The fairy tale is true. The devil exists. God exists. And for us, as people, our very destiny hinges upon which one we elect to follow.
β
β
Ed Warren
β
Do you know why hurricanes have names instead of numbers? To keep the killing personal. No one cares about a bunch of people killed by a number. '200 Dead as Number Three Slams Ashore' is not nearly as interesting a headline as 'Charlie kills 200.' Death is much more satisfying and entertaining if you personalize it.
Me, I'm still waitin' for Hurricane Ed. Old Ed wouldn't hurt ya, would he? Sounds kinda friendly. 'Hell no, we ain't evacuatin'. Ed's comin'!
β
β
George Carlin (Brain Droppings)
β
L'inferno dei viventi non Γ¨ qualcosa che sarΓ ; se ce n'Γ¨ uno, Γ¨ quello che Γ¨ giΓ qui, l'inferno che abitiamo tutti i giorni, che formiamo stando insieme. Due modi ci sono per non soffrirne. Il primo riesce facile a molti: accettare l'inferno e diventarne parte fino al punto di non vederlo piΓΉ. Il secondo Γ¨ rischioso ed esige attenzione e apprendimento continui: cercare e saper riconoscere chi e cosa, in mezzo all'inferno, non Γ¨ inferno, e farlo durare, e dargli spazio.
β
β
Italo Calvino (Invisible Cities)
β
Hope turned sly. βWhat if the slice of apple pie is served a la mode?β
Smiling, Peggy Sue regarded her tall, brunette, and blue-eyed friend. βIs the slice of apple pie served a la mode with three scoops of homemade vanilla ice cream piled on top of it?
β
β
Lyn Key (Nozy Cat 1 (Hope Jones Cozy Mystery #1))
β
I didn't particularly feel like being arrested, so I argued with the soldiers a bit. Several of them died during the argument - those things happen once in a while. Unfortunately, one of the casualties was Taur Urgas' oldest son. The king of the Murgos took it personally. He's very narrow-minded sometimes. - Silk
β
β
David Eddings
β
And they say
She's in the class A Team
Stuck in her daydream
Been that way since eighteen, but lately,
Her face seems
Slowly sinking, wasting
Crumbling like pastries
And they scream
The worst things in life come free to us
Cos we're just under the upperhand
Go mad for a couple grams
And she don't want to go outside tonight
And in a pipe she flies to the Motherland
Or sells love to another man
It's too cold outside
For angels to fly
Angels to fly
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
Give me love like her
'Cause lately I've been waking up alone
Paint splattered teardrops on my shirt
Told you I'd let you go
And that I'll fight my corner
Maybe tonight I'll call you
After my blood turns into alcohol
No I just wanna hold you
Give a little time to me or burn this out
We'll play hide and seek to turn this around
All I want is the taste that your lips allow
My, my, my, my oh give me love
β
β
Ed Sheeran
β
Do you know what Ed Gein said about women?"
[...]
"'When I see a pretty girl walking down the street I think two things. One part of me wants to take her out and talk to her and be real nice and sweet and treat her right.'" I stop finish my J&B in one swallow.
"What does the other part of him think?" Hamlin asks tentatively.
"What her head would look like on a stick
β
β
Bret Easton Ellis (American Psycho)
β
The one thing ... that is truly ugly is the climate of hate and intimidation, created by a noisy few, which makes the decent majority reluctant to air in public their views on anything controversial. ... Where all pretend to be thinking alike, it's likely that no one is thinking at all.
β
β
Edward Abbey (Postcards from Ed: Dispatches and Salvos from an American Iconoclast)
β
And the truth is that I'm not, Ed, is what I wanted to tell you. I'm not arty like everyone says who doesn't know me, I don't paint, I can't draw, I play no instrument, I can't sing. I'm not in plays, I wanted to say, I don't write poems. I can't dance except tipsy at dances. I'm not athletic, I'm not a goth or a cheerleader, I'm not treasurer or co-captain. I'm not gay and out and proud, I'm not that kid from Sri Lanka, not a triplet, a prep, a drunk, a genius, a hippie, a Christian, a slut, not even one of those super-Jewish girls with a yarmulke gang wishing everyone a happy Sukkoth. I'm not anything, this is what I realized ... I like movies, everyone knows I do -- I love them -- but I will never be in charge of one because my ideas are stupid and wrong in my head. There's nothing different about that, nothing fascinating, interesting, worth looking at.
β
β
Daniel Handler (Why We Broke Up)
β
But there's a world beyond what we can see and touch, and that world lives by its own laws. What may be impossible in this very ordinary world is very possible there, and sometimes the boundaries between the two worlds disappear, and then who can say what is possible and impossible?
β
β
David Eddings (Pawn of Prophecy (The Belgariad, #1))
β
Quote is taken from Chapter 1:
A decade ago when Isabelβs husband Max had died, theyβd moved in together and merged their possessions. Neither sister brought any fussy teapots, canaries, sachets, or doilies, but lots of other stuff had to either stay or go. Looking at the lime green armchair gave Alma the willies. Her suggestion to slipcover it in a more subdued color had garnered Isabelβs frosty stare, and Alma had dropped the matter.
β
β
Ed Lynskey (Quiet Anchorage (Isabel & Alma Trumbo, #1))
β
We're living in momentous times, Garion. The events of a thousand years and more have all focused on these very days. The world, I'm told, is like that. Centuries pass when nothing happens, and then in a few short years events of such tremendous importance take place that the world is never the same again."
I think that if I had my choice, I'd prefer one of those quiet centuries," Garion said glumly.
Oh, no," Silk said, his lips drawing back in a ferretlike grin. "Now's the time to be alive - to see it all happen, to be a part of it. That makes the blood race, and each breath is an adventure.
β
β
David Eddings (Pawn of Prophecy (The Belgariad, #1))
β
I escaped onto the wall, a painted ghost trapped in a jar. I stood back to look at it and I knew the sad thing wasn't that the ghost was running out of air. the sad thing was that he had enough air in that small space to last him a lifetime. What were you thinking, little ghost? Letting yourself get trapped like that?
β
β
Cath Crowley (Graffiti Moon)
β
The point is, the brain talks to itself, and by talking to itself changes its perceptions. To make a new version of the not-entirely-false model, imagine the first interpreter as a foreign correspondent, reporting from the world. The world in this case means everything out- or inside our bodies, including serotonin levels in the brain. The second interpreter is a news analyst, who writes op-ed pieces. They read each other's work. One needs data, the other needs an overview; they influence each other. They get dialogues going.
INTERPRETER ONE: Pain in the left foot, back of heel.
INTERPRETER TWO: I believe that's because the shoe is too tight.
INTERPRETER ONE: Checked that. Took off the shoe. Foot still hurts.
INTERPRETER TWO: Did you look at it?
INTERPRETER ONE: Looking. It's red.
INTERPRETER TWO: No blood?
INTERPRETER ONE: Nope.
INTERPRETER TWO: Forget about it.
INTERPRETER ONE: Okay.
Mental illness seems to be a communication problem between interpreters one and two.
An exemplary piece of confusion.
INTERPRETER ONE: There's a tiger in the corner.
INTERPRETER TWO: No, that's not a tiger- that's a bureau.
INTERPRETER ONE: It's a tiger, it's a tiger!
INTERPRETER TWO: Don't be ridiculous. Let's go look at it.
Then all the dendrites and neurons and serotonin levels and interpreters collect themselves and trot over to the corner.
If you are not crazy, the second interpreter's assertion, that this is a bureau, will be acceptable to the first interpreter. If you are crazy, the first interpreter's viewpoint, the tiger theory, will prevail.
The trouble here is that the first interpreter actually sees a tiger. The messages sent between neurons are incorrect somehow. The chemicals triggered are the wrong chemicals, or the impulses are going to the wrong connections. Apparently, this happens often, but the second interpreter jumps in to straighten things out.
β
β
Susanna Kaysen (Girl, Interrupted)
β
Being tender and open is beautiful. As a woman, I feel continually shhhβed. Too sensitive. Too mushy. Too wishy washy. Blah blah. Donβt let someone steal your tenderness. Donβt allow the coldness and fear of others to tarnish your perfectly vulnerable beating heart. Nothing is more powerful than allowing yourself to truly be affected by things.
β
β
Zooey Deschanel
β
Could you penetrate this palace, Prince Kheldar?" King Anheg challenged.
"I already have, your Majesty," Silk said modestly, "a dozen times or more."
Anheg looked at Rhodar with one raised eyebrow.
Rhodar coughed slightly. "It was some time ago, Anheg. Nothing serious. I was just curious about something, that's all."
"All you had to do was ask," Anheg said in a slightly injured tone.
"I didn't want to bother you," Rhodar said with a shrug. "Besides, it's more fun to do it the other way.
β
β
David Eddings (Pawn of Prophecy (The Belgariad, #1))
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The ugliest thing in America is greed, the lust for power and domination, the lunatic ideology of perpetual Growth - with a capital G. 'Progress' in our nation has for too long been confused with 'Growth'; I see the two as different, almost incompatible, since progress means, or should mean, change for the better - toward social justice, a livable and open world, equal opportunity and affirmative action for all forms of life. And I mean all forms, not merely the human. The grizzly, the wolf, the rattlesnake, the condor, the coyote, the crocodile, whatever, each and every species has as much right to be here as we do.
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Edward Abbey (Postcards from Ed: Dispatches and Salvos from an American Iconoclast)
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When you know that something's going to happen, you'll start trying to see signs of its approach in just about everything. Always try to remember that most of the things that happen in this world aren't signs. They happen because they happen, and their only real significance lies in normal cause and effect. You'll drive yourself crazy if you start trying to pry the meaning out of every gust of wind or rain squall. I'm not denying that there might actually be a few signs that you won't want to miss. Knowing the difference is the tricky part.
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David Eddings (Belgarath the Sorcerer)
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Have you ever noticed that? We base our assessment of the intelligence of others almost entirely on how closely their thinking matches our own. I'm sure that there are people out there who violently disagree with me on most things, and I'm broad-minded enough to conceded that they might possibly not be completely idiots, but I much prefer the company of people who agree with me.
You might want to think about that.
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David Eddings (Belgarath the Sorcerer)
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Exaggerating?" Silk sounded shocked. "You don't mean to say that horses can actually lie, do you?
Hettar shrugged. "Of course. They lie all the time. They're very good at it."
For a moment Silk looked outraged at the thought, and then he suddenly laughed. "Somehow that restores my faith in the order of the universe," he declared.
Wolf looked pained. "Silk," he said pointedly, "you're a very evil man. Did you know that?"
"One does one's best," Silk replied mockingly.
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David Eddings (Queen of Sorcery (The Belgariad #2))
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I believe the best managers acknowledge and make room for what they do not knowβnot just because humility is a virtue but because until one adopts that mindset, the most striking breakthroughs cannot occur. I believe that managers must loosen the controls, not tighten them. They must accept risk; they must trust the people they work with and strive to clear the path for them; and always, they must pay attention to and engage with anything that creates fear. Moreover, successful leaders embrace the reality that their models may be wrong or incomplete. Only when we admit what we donβt know can we ever hope to learn it.
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Ed Catmull (Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration)
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The tinkle of wind chimes announcing the return of our fairy guests made us both look up. Our chance to be alone was going to be shorter than either of us had hoped.
I sighed and brushed an errant dragon scale from Eadricβs tunic. βSomeday when we have lots of time, remind me to tell you what you mean to me.β
Eadric tilted my head back so he could gaze into my eyes. βI can tell you what you mean to me with just one word.β
Let me guess,β I said, smiling up at him. βMaybe I make you happy because you no longer have to enter kissing contests to find the best kisser? Do I bring excitement into your life because I can wisk you away to exotic lands on my magic carpet? Or do you find me delightful because I can conjure food whenever youβre hungry?β
No, thatβs not. . . Wait, what was that last one?β
I laughed and shook my head. βNever mind. So tell me in one word, what do I mean to you?β
Thatβs easy,β said Eadric. βEverything!
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E.D. Baker (No Place for Magic (The Tales of the Frog Princess, #4))
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Every culture has its southerners -- people who work as little as they can, preferring to dance, drink, sing brawl, kill their unfaithful spouses; who have livelier gestures, more lustrous eyes, more colorful garments, more fancifully decorated vehicles, a wonderful sense of rhythm, and charm, charm, charm; unambitious, no, lazy, ignorant, superstitious, uninhibited people, never on time, conspicuously poorer (how could it be otherwise, say the northerners); who for all their poverty and squalor lead enviable lives -- envied, that is, by work-driven, sensually inhibted, less corruptly governed northerners. We are superior to them, say the northerners, clearly superior. We do not shirk our duties or tell lies as a matter of course, we work hard, we are punctual, we keep reliable accounts. But they have more fun than we do ... They caution[ed] themselves as people do who know they are part of a superior culture: we mustn't let ourselves go, mustn't descend to the level of the ... jungle, street, bush, bog, hills, outback (take your pick). For if you start dancing on tables, fanning yourself, feeling sleepy when you pick up a book, developing a sense of rhythm, making love whenever you feel like it -- then you know. The south has got you.
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Susan Sontag (The Volcano Lover)
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No parent should have to bury a child ... No mother should have to bury a son. Mothers are not meant to bury sons. It is not in the natural order of things.
I buried my son. In a potter's field. In a field of Blood. In empty, acrid silence. There was no funeral. There were no mourners. His friends all absent. His father dead. His sisters refusing to attend. I discovered his body alone, I dug his grave alone, I placed him in a hole, and covered him with dirt and rock alone. I was not able to finish burying him before sundown, and I'm not sure if that affected his fate ...
I begrudge God none of this. I do not curse him or bemoan my lot. And though my heart keeps beating only to keep breaking--I do not question why.
I remember the morning my son was born as if it was yesterday. The moment the midwife placed him in my arms, I was infused with a love beyond all measure and understanding. I remember holding my son, and looking over at my own mother and saying, "Now I understand why the sun comes up at day and the stars come out at night. I understand why rain falls gently. Now I understand you, Mother" ...
I loved my son every day of his life, and I will love him ferociously long after I've stopped breathing. I am a simple woman. I am not bright or learn-ed. I do not read. I do not write. My opinions are not solicited. My voice is not important ... On the day of my son's birth I was infused with a love beyond all measure and understanding ... The world tells me that God is in Heaven and that my son is in Hell. I tell the world the one true thing I know: If my son is in Hell, then there is no Heaven--because if my son sits in Hell, there is no God.
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Stephen Adly Guirgis (The Last Days of Judas Iscariot)