My grandmother flew only once in her life, and that was the day she and

her new husband ascended into the skies of Victorian London in the wicker basket of a hot-air balloon. They were soon to emigrate to Canada, and the aerial ride was meant to be a last view of their beloved England.
Alan Bradley

Write every day; never give up; it's supposed to be difficult; try to find some pleasure and reward in the act of writing, because you can't look for praise from editors, readers, or critics. In other words, tips that are much easier to give than to take.
J. R. Moehringer

A government that can at pleasure accuse, shoot, and hang men, as traitors, for the one general offence of refusing to surrender themselves and their property unreservedly to its arbitrary will, can practice any and all special and particular oppressions it pleases.
Lysander Spooner

There's this old saying that, if you aren't particularly gifted in natural sciences, if you don't want to become a teacher or pastor or doctor, and don't know what else to do, then you become a lawyer. But I've never regretted it.
Bernhard Schlink

Nobody was listening when I learned how to play music. But there's something about being on stage, talking to the audience, looking at them and smiling, that's always been difficult for me. I'm a lot more comfortable now, but there are still moments of awkwardness.
Norah Jones

A true community is not just about being geographically close to someone or part of the same social web network. It's about feeling connected and responsible for what happens. Humanity is our ultimate community, and everyone plays a crucial role.
Yehuda Berg

I had an awful first quarter but I picked it up. To all you single guys out there, it's not how you start the date, it's how you finish it sir. A lot of people can, you know, start the date with flowers and candy, but if you don't finish the date - you know what I mean?
Shaquille O'Neal

Gemeoss

This battle for 'common-sense' gun control laws pits emotion and passion against logic and reason.

All too often in such a contest, logic loses. So, expect more meaningless, if not harmful, 'gun control' legislation. Good news - if you're a crook. Larry Elder I drive a lot. Just for pleasure. Sometimes I'll get in the Cadillac and drive around the city or the country, kind of trying to get lost basically. Y'know, just see where roads lead. Frank Black You and I will meet again, When we're least expecting it, One day in some far off place, I will recognize your face, I won't say goodbye my friend, For you and I will meet again. Tom Petty We must dare to think 'unthinkable' thoughts. We must learn to explore all the options and possibilities that confront us in a complex and rapidly changing world. J. William Fulbright Nothing contributes so much to tranquilize the mind as a steady purpose - a point on which the soul may fix its intellectual eye. Mary Shelley Never make friends with people who are above or below you in status. Such fr...

We hope and we've made clear that the forces need to come out. It needs

to be full and complete withdrawal. Our position is it needs to be done as soon as possible so that the elections can be free, fair and free of outside influence. Stephen Hadley Parks said, he's guilty and that's the end of the story. Tommy Bond We know that the nature of genius is to provide idiots with ideas twenty years later. Louis Aragon Welcome to the Salvation Army. I've never been associated with an offense so nice about giving the ball away. Hayden Fry I am certain of nothing but the holiness of the heart's affections, and the truth of imagination. John Keats Russia has gone through eight years of continuing economic pain. Jeffrey Sachs It's nice to get a response from the artists that I cover. Joe Cocker

If you're poor, you don't often live near a good school. If it's a competitive

public school program, our kids are not prepared to enter those programs. Sonia Sotomayor I'm a middle-class, middle-brow novelist. And that's it. It amuses me. Anita Brookner I have always had a very natural connection to the water, and that connection stems from the ocean itself. Aaron Peirsol I got married at a very young age, and of course, for all the wrong reasons, and ended up divorced and lost everything. It was a very difficult time in my life. Willie Aames We have 11 great potato flavors, and customers have been clamoring for tortilla. For over a year, we worked to develop the four flavors of tortilla popchips: chili limon, nacho cheese, ranch and salsa. They're made with traditional stoneground masa, are gluten-free, and have less than half the fat of other chips. Keith Belling I never won anything by myself. I was always strong because of help that gave me extra strength to win. Dan Gable There's a toxicity within gaming culture, and also i...

If you don't have a father, you don't miss it, because you don't know what

it is. It was really only when I married Wyatt Cooper that I understood what it was like to have a father, because he was just an extraordinary father. Gloria Vanderbilt I try to eat healthy. But sometimes, though, I eat cheeseburgers. That's good for the soul. I make sure to balance everything out. I drink tons of water. Gal Gadot After one has been in prison, it is the small things that one appreciates: being able to take a walk whenever one wants, going into a shop and buying a newspaper, speaking or choosing to remain silent. The simple act of being able to control one's person. Nelson Mandela I was well into middle age when one of my children, then in the second grade, was found to be dyslexic. I had never known the name for it, but I recognized immediately that the symptoms were also mine. Philip Schultz A presidential candidate's great desire is to be seen as pragmatic, and they hope their maneuvering and shifting will be seen in pursuit of some higher pu...

If Lincoln is among history's truly great men, he didn't achieve that stature until his

final three years. This was when his long-held antipathy to slavery cohered into a dedicated hostility that gave larger purpose to the Civil War and also confirmed the logic of Lincoln's destiny. Steve Erickson When you're in the day-to-day grind, it just seems like it's another step along the way. But I find joy in the actual process, the journey, the work. It's not the end. It's not the end event. Cal Ripken, Jr. I prefer natural hardwood lump charcoal - the other stuff makes your food taste like Goodyear tires. Jose Andres I had a strong conviction that there was something out there in the world that was wonderful. Mary Gaitskill Who you are as a person has to do with what you think and how you feel. It has to do with how you love and how you care for people. Scott Weiland If teaching isn't rewarding and challenging, we're going to continue to lose our best teachers to work in other fields. Michael Bennet A key ingredient in innovation i...

I hate these reality TV shows where people walk off Big Brother and think they're

A-list celebrities when they've done nothing in their lives, it really does my head in. Kevin Pietersen Success is just being happy. And I try so many different things. I do a lot of different things. Because I think God has helped me to love myself. I know who God is, and I love God. Herschel Walker Jumping genes are fundamental because they're agents of change. Everybody knows that organisms evolve. What makes them evolve is that their genes are dynamic and in motion. A familiar example is the stripe-y corn - called Indian corn - that you buy in the fall. Nina Fedoroff I feel like any single woman of color who's been onstage has a Shakespeare monologue in her back pocket, and a monologue from 'For Colored Girls.' It's just part of what you should have, as a woman of color. Kerry Washington As a parent, your perspective of childhood is through the eyes of this person that you care so much about and you just want the world to be great for them. You w...

If you have a film that's talking about God, you would think that it would

appeal to people that consider themselves religious, whatever denomination they're attached to. John Curran I even ate chips because I love the crunchy sound they make. And I didn't give much thought to what I was eating or what I was putting inside my body, except hummus, of course, which is one of my weaknesses. Khloe Kardashian I love to eat, I love to feed people, and I'm a great cook. I joked with my friends that I wanted to write a book where desserts had to be extensively researched, since I have a terrible sweet tooth. My particular downfall is cake. Julia Glass You can be plain and smart, or pretty and smart. You can even be plain and dumb! You just have to be yourself. Ashley Tisdale People be saying, 'Watch - when she gets some money, she's going to get a Gucci purse.' But I don't think that's my style. I like finding random stuff and random brands. Maybe one day when I'm sophisticated and older I might settle down and invest i...

If you're sixty-something, pushing 70, the chances of you getting a tremendously fascinating part in

the movies are very low, as to be almost negligible, or even in television. But in the theatre, there are still things to do, very interesting, very profound things. Brian Dennehy Islam tells us every girl and boy should be educated. I don't know why the Taliban have forgotten it. Malala Yousafzai I believe women who are supported by men are prostitutes; that is that, and I am heartbroken to live through a time where Wall Street money means these women are not treated with due disdain. Elizabeth Wurtzel The only good reason to embrace a philosophical position is that you are convinced it is true or at least makes sense of the world better than the alternatives. Julian Baggini I welcome newcomers to cons, or 'con-virgins' as I like to call them, by saying 'Welcome to the 'Supernatural' Circus,' and I mean it. We take pride as a cast to deliver a show that not only entertains the fans but ourselves, Creation Entertainment, and everyone involved on ...

If the brain expects that a treatment will work, it sends healing chemicals into the

bloodstream, which facilitates that. And the opposite is equally true and equally powerful: When the brain expects that a therapy will not work, it doesn't. It's called the 'nocebo' effect. Bruce Lipton I knew I wanted to do something creative, and you don't necessarily go to Harvard to do that. It's not the best choice for creative writing. Gabrielle Zevin The Jesus of the Scripture transcends all nations and calls all nations into judgment. Tony Campolo Anger is not an accepted thing for women. And, you know, I do get angry. I feel it's a very honest emotion. Rosamund Pike After I made it to the NBA, I said that I didn't want to be the last player from Africa. After my rookie year, I went to the league and talked about this, and they embraced my idea and started conducting basketball clinics in Africa, and that's when I knew I wouldn't be the last African. Dikembe Mutombo In the organization of any major sporting event or the pla...

If you take my own life, the longer you stay in a country, you almost

lose your former self and become this third-party person who is caught in between two worlds. Greg Poehler All I've ever done since I was 17 is tell stories. You know, I'm a storyteller. And that's what I'm going to keep on doing, especially now, kind of embracing and making sure that we tell immigration. Jose Antonio Vargas A high-powered, successful woman doesn't necessarily have the same support behind her that a man in that position would. Plus, she's expected to be a domestic goddess, as well as the best wife, mother, friend, and lover. But it's not just in politics: you see it in acting, too, and in journalism. Raquel Cassidy Partly, I like a bad reputation. But I also want a reputation of being a good person. Joan Jett I was always enjoying the moment. Acting, writing, looking for roles and getting involved with people and trying to create something that would be entertaining to people. With 'E.R.,' we were all very lucky to get th...