INSPIRATION.

letter from Martha Graham to Agnes DeMille:

There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique.

And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is nor how valuable it is nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open.

You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate you.

Keep the channel open. No artist is pleased. There is no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer, divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive.

[thank you MC, AR, MLP, & MG]

“Type out your five favorite quotations and place them where you can see them every day.”

~Life’s Little Instruction Calendar Vol. III~



“When I wake up in the morning, I want the day to begin already. There’s no dread. And if there is, that’s just part of the day- you deal with it. Nothing’s going to stop me. Nothing.”

~Linda Hamilton, actress~

1991



“Climb every mountain, ford every stream,
follow every rainbow, ‘til you find your dream.”

~The Sound of Music~

1959 Broadway musical, 1965 movie, and my mom’s high school class song



“Rainbows are people whose lives are bright, shining examples for others.”

~Maya Angelou, poet~

from Hallmark’s Life Mosaic cards, 2001



“The people who influence us most are not those who buttonhole us and talk to us, but those who live their lives like the stars in heaven and the lilies in the field, perfectly simply and unaffectedly. Those are the lives that mold us.”

~Oswald Chambers, minister ~

“My Utmost for His Highest,” quoted by Heather Whitestone, the first deaf Miss America, in her memoir Listening With the Heart



“He was a man who was comfortable in his own skin, and I think the more people we see who conduct creative, fruitful lives with little or no drama or fanfare, the more people will say, ‘I can be that way. I can be happy.’”

~Stephen Huvane, writer~

about photographer Herb Ritts (1952-2002), The Advocate magazine, 2-4-03



“Dip your brush in sunshine and keep painting away.”

~Fannie Flagg, writer~

Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe, 1987 book, p. 234



“I keep my ideals because in spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart.”

~Anne Frank, diarist~

quoted in Wisdom of Women book



Don Quixote: “It’s true – I am guilty of being an idealist. I’ve never had the courage to believe in nothing.”

~Man of La Mancha, movie~

1972 musical starring Peter O’Toole, written by Dale Wasserman; 1605 book by Miguel de Cervantes



“Listen to the musn’ts child, listen to the don’ts, listen to the shouldn’ts, the impossibles, the won’ts, listen to the never haves, then listen close to me, anything can happen child, anything can be.”

~Shel Silverstein, writer~

Where the Sidewalk Ends, 1974 book



“Never forget who you are, Little star.
Never forget how to dream, Butterfly.
May the angels protect you
And sadness forget you, Little star.”

~Madonna, singer~



“When you talk about inspiration, it’s about the struggle, not the victory. It’s all about the fight, not the win. That’s just the nature of living.”

~Gary Ross, director~

of Seabiscuit, 2003 movie



“Do not resist chances. Take them like vitamins. Let go of the brakes. See what happens if you go five more miles. Footbridges be damned, find your own way across. Don’t worry about the bumps and bruises. Your body can take them. Don’t steer around the bits that scare you. Go over them. Go through them. Do something the guys in the bowling league will be terrified of. You will feel your chin rise from your chest. And you’ll be able to see what’s around you. What’s ahead of you. And there will be one less thing you cannot do.”

~Nike advertisement~

1995; from the quote collection of Lg. From Josh’s website: http://www.trizera.com/jsp/greatlines/nikewgl.html



“There is no finish line.”



“The most absurd and reckless aspirations have sometimes led to extraordinary success.”

~M. de Vauvenargues, moralist~

New Beginnings quote book, 1993 by Running Press



“Ideals are like stars; you will not succeed in touching them with your hands. But like the seafaring man on the desert of waters, you can choose them as your guides, and following them you will reach your destiny.”

~Carl Schurz, statesman~

1859. German revolutionist and American statesman. Quoted by Heather Whitestone, the first deaf Miss America, in her memoir Listening With the Heart



“Remember: A ‘D’ is only the end of the world in the dictionary.”

~YM magazine~

1998



Pledge allegiance to yourself.



“Maybe it will take someone giving me a swift kick, but keep in mind, I need that swift kick to be followed by a smile and a handful of Smarties.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

2006



CHUCK LORRE PRODUCTIONS #39

“Inspiration. Noun. 1. Stimulation of the faculties to a high level of feeling or activity. 2. The condition of being so stimulated. 3. An agency, such as a person of a work of art, that moves the intellect or emotions. 4. Something that is inspired, as an idea or action. 5. Theology: Divine guidance or influence exerted directly upon the mind and soul of man. 6. The act of breathing in; inhalation (From the Latin inspirare, to breathe into.) I’m under a lot of pressure to get one of these vanity cards written every week and to be perfectly honest, some weeks I’ve got squat. Like this week. Nothing of substance to say. Nothing even marginally amusing. Which is why I’m hoping for a little of #1 or perhaps even #5. I’m sitting here waiting… just sitting here. Oh, well, at least I’m doing well with #6. Which, if you read the definition again, still counts as inspiration. How about that, I’m inspired… and expired… and inspired… and expired… inspired.”

~Chuck Lorre, TV show co-creator~

Dharma and Greg, TV, 1997-2002

Each week, a “vanity card” is flashed for a second at the end of the credits. You have to record the episode, then pause the page in order to read or transcribe it. [Years later, magic of the internet: http://www.chucklorre.com/ for all the "cards".]



"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it."

~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, writer~

[contributed by Stephan Aichinger]

INTERSEX (GLBTI)

(tba)

as a featured category

ANGELINA JOLIE.

“We can’t forget our founding fathers were refugees.”

~Angelina Jolie, Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR~

in her 2003 book, Notes from My Travels: Visits with Refugees in Africa, Cambodia, Pakistan, and Ecuador, p. 6



“I love uniqueness and people who own their uniqueness.”

~Angelina Jolie, actress~

Allure magazine, Nov. 2004



“I'd rather take a boat and try to row than sit in a yoga class.”

~Angelina Jolie, actress~

Allure magazine, Nov. 2004

KEEP MOVING.

“We can’t just stop. We’re not rocks–progress, migration, motion is... modernity. It’s ANIMATE, it’s what living things do. We desire. Even if all we desire is stillness, it’s still desire for...”

~Tony Kushner, playwright~

character of Prior. Angels in America: Perestroika, 1994, p. 132. Broadway play starring Stephen Spinella; 2003 movie starring Justin Kirk

Kushner is a Pulitzer Prize, Tony, and Emmy winner



“I just have this absurd determination to live, don’t you?”

~And the Band Played On, movie~

Donal Logue as Bobbi, 1993 movie about the AIDS crisis. Written by Arnold Shulman, based on the 1987 book by Randy Shilts



“There is no stasis. To stand still is to fall away from the truth; the inner light dims and flickers, starts to go out, as soon as one tries to hold fast.”

~Susan Sontag, writer~

1960 journal, reprinted in New York Times Magazine, 9-10-06, p. 55. To be published in 2008



“A river must keep moving so as not to become stagnant; it must have rocks in its bed for its song.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

1999, Passion in My Pocket, memoir in progress



“Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.”

~Will Rogers, humorist~

New Beginnings quote book, 1993 by Running Press

LANGUAGE.

“He recalls what he meant, and she recalls what she heard. But what he intended was not what she understood–which was what she would have meant if she had said what he said in the way he said it.”

~Deborah Tannen, communication expert~

and author of, among others, That’s Not What I Meant! How Conversational Style Makes or Breaks Relationships, 1986, p. 27



“A lot of movies try to set up a world with cool sets, costumes, camera work. In Brick, the world is born from the words.”

~Joseph Gordon-Levitt, actor~

www.imdb.com/name/nm0330687/



“The three oddest words:

When I pronounce the word Future, the first syllable already belongs to the past.
When I pronounce the word Silence, I destroy it.
When I pronounce the word Nothing, I make something no non-being can hold.”



“art is a LANGUAGE”

~Susan Sontag, writer~

1966 journal entry, reprinted in New York Times Magazine, 9-10-06, p. 57. To be published in 2008



“Why isn’t phonetic spelled the way it sounds?”

~1997 e-mail forward~



“The limits of my language mark the limits of my world.”

~Ludwig Wittgenstein, philosopher~

New York Public Library calendar book, 2006



“American Sign Language: seeing you loud and clear.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, interpreter~

and t-shirt designer. 2007, www.cafepress.com/backwardpress



“Spoken language travels at the speed of sound; sign language travels at the speed of light.”

~Robert Arnold, Deaf community member~

New York City



“‘Language of One’ – Yet another play about a Deaf, gay, Jewish architect falling in love.”

~New York Deaf Theater~



“I am a bear of little brain and long words bother me.”

~Winnie the Pooh~

character by A.A. Milne



http://www.sawlady.com/ – “music on the cutting edge”

~ad in subway car~

New York City, 2006



“‘Feminism, my foot!’ exclaimed my mother as she cremated the meatloaf. ‘This feminism thing is just a cover for being a lesbian.’ Perhaps this is not an exact quote; you see, my parents’ first language was silence and I’ve had to translate here.”

~Holly Hughes, writer~

in the anthology, A Woman Like That, ed. by Joan Larkin, 1999, p. 135



“Aoccdrnig to rsceearh at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tighng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a total mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.”

~2003 e-mail forward~



“Small words. Big thoughts.”

~Winnie the Pooh~

character by A.A. Milne

LEARNING.

“That’s what learning is. You suddenly understand something you’ve understood all your life, but in a new way.”

~Doris Lessing, writer~

quoted in Gloria Steinem’s Revolution From Within, 1993, p. 186



“The Four Reliances:

Rely on the message of the teacher,
not on the person of the teacher;
Rely on the meaning,
not just on the words;
Rely on the definitive meaning,
not on the provisional one;
Rely on your wisdom mind,
not on your ordinary mind.”

~The Dalai Lama, Buddhist spiritual leader~

Transforming the Mind, 2000 book, p. 51



“The important thing is not to stop questioning.”

~Albert Einstein, physicist~

from the quote collection of Lg



“WHY NOT?” [scan to be posted]

on a professor’s door, New York University, 1996



“On the set of Ocean’s 11 with all of today’s big stars always gathered around him, [director] Carl Reiner is always asking questions: ‘So, tell me...’ That’s why he’s so young. He’s still invested.”

~George Clooney, actor~

on The Charlie Rose Show about Reiner who “has done everything.” 2003



“We shall not cease from exploration
and the end of all our exploring
will be to arrive where we started
and know the place for the first time.”

~T.S. Eliot, poet~

"Little Gidding", quoted in the movie, Run Lola Run, 1998. Written by Tom Tykwer



“The unknown fires the imagination. Whether the starry night or extraterrestrial beings, the mystery of life itself or life after death or any of the uncertain boundaries between reality and resolute yearning, it is unknowns that populate history with gods and heroes, monsters of the deep and chimeric islands, lost paradises and the elusive El Dorado at the end of greed's rainbow, not to mention Martians.”

~John Noble Wilford, writer~

New York Times Science section, "Will We Ever Find Atlantis?" 11-11-03



“For if we think of this existence of the individual as a larger or smaller room, it appears evident that most people learn to know only a corner of their room, a place by the window, a strip of floor on which they walk up and down.”

~Rainer Maria Rilke, writer~

Letters to a Young Poet, #8, 8-12-1904



“Man’s mind stretched to a new idea never goes back to its original dimensions.”

~Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., poet~

New Beginnings quote book, 1993 by Running Press



Charlie: “I’m so easily distracted.”
His dad: “No, you’re easily fascinated.”

~NUMB3RS, TV~

starring David Krumholtz and Judd Hirsh. Series (2005- ) created by Cheryl Heuton and Nicolas Falacci



“To be in doubt is not comfortable… it’s a psychological itch, and you want to scratch your way to certainty. But it is often the first step on a path to greater spiritual or moral wisdom, a deeper compassion, a breaking free from constricting dogma.”

~New York Times~

review of the Broadway play, Doubt, 5-3-05

[also on Jonathan Carroll’s website]



“I’m 6'2"; he at his tallest was never more than 5'4". He was my big brother, my physical savior, my human savior. I made one mistake. He came to my room and asked a question. I didn’t like how he asked the question, so I spat on him. He beat me out of the room, down the hall, out to the yard. I had long hair and he grabbed it and put it in the fish pond. He said, ‘I am your big brother, say it!’ Blurb, blurb. I never had a problem with short people after that. I married a couple of them.”

~Maya Angelou, poet~

about her brother, Bailey. May 2002 interview



“thank you india
thank you terror
thank you disillusionment
thank you frailty
thank you consequence
thank you, thank you silence

thank you India
thank you providence
thank you disillusionment
thank you nothingness
thank you clarity
thank you, thank you silence”

~Alanis Morissette, singer~

“Thank You”, 1998



“Personally, I am always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught.”

~Winston Churchill, statesman~

LESBIAN (GLBTI)

see featured categories (at top)

LIFE.

"Do what you like
Like what you do
Life is good."

~motto of "Life is Good" clothing company~

http://www.lifeisgood.com/



“Moving at the speed of life,
we are bound to collide with each other.”

~Crash, movie~

poster in NYC subway station. Written by Paul Haggis, 2004



“Rush, rush, rush. Doesn’t anyone believe in breathing?”

~Eeyore~

Winnie the Pooh series; character by A.A. Milne



“Life is about loving something beautiful.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

2005. Passion in My Pocket, memoir in progress



“...Live to Learn Learn to Laugh Laugh to Live...” [written in a circle]

~Cathy, professor~

and American Sign Language interpreter. LaGuardia Community College’s training program for interpreters, New York City. 2005



“Both sides can hide and evade the lessons of life, which means being open to seeing ‘life’ – which can bring pain. The ones who are ‘survivors’ hide behind their anger, past and story. The ones who are privileged hide there or are cut off from the others to avoid seeing... Just recognize where you are and what is pulling you. It doesn’t always mean ACT, just recognize.”
~Lynnette, professor~

and American Sign Language interpreter. LaGuardia Community College’s training program interpreters, New York City. 2000



“It’s the circle of life, it’s the wheel of fortune
It’s the leap of faith, it’s the band of hope
We’ll find our place…”

~Elton John, singer~

and composer/lyricist of The Lion King movie and Broadway musical



“You talking about you want one and ain’t doing nothing to get none. The people that have them is the people who wanted them. You don’t do nothing but sit around and talk about what you ain’t got. The more you sit around and talk about what you ain’t got the more you have to talk about.”

~August Wilson, writer~

Two Trains Running, 1990 book; 1996-97 Broadway play



“Life is what happens to you when you’re busy making other plans.”

~John Lennon, singer~

“Beautiful Darling” lyrics



“Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you’ll be able to enjoy it a second time.”

~The Dalai Lama, Buddhist spiritual leader~



“Not living now the life that one wishes... is equivalent to a sense of abusing the present.”

~Susan Sontag, writer~

1961 journal, reprinted in New York Times Magazine, 9-10-06, p. 55. To be published in 2008



“Life is like a kite: You can keep it on a short leash, or let out big gulps of string until you break the cloud cover.”

~Fireman’s Fund ad~



“My life is like a stroll on the beach
As near to the edge as I can go.”

~Henry David Thoreau, writer~

hotel shop in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii



“I wanted to find out, as I looked back on a long and complicated life, how well I’ve don’t at measuring up to the values I myself have set.”

~Sidney Poitier, actor~

about The Measure of a Man, a Spiritual Autobiography



“The only thing I regret about my past life is the length of it. If I had my past life to do over again, I’d make all the same mistakes – only sooner.”

~Tallulah Bankhead, actress~

from Wisdom of Women



“I invented my life by taking for granted that everything I did not like would have an opposite, which I would like.”

~Coco Chanel, fashion designer~

from Wisdom of Women



“Remember that life’s most treasured moments often come unannounced.”

~Life’s Little Instruction Calendar, Vol. III~



Frodo: “I wish the ring had never come to me... I wish none of this had happened.”

Gandalf: “So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

~Lord of the Rings, movie~



“I believe in a little bit of suffering; makes me feel part of the world.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

2006. Passion in My Pocket, memoir in progress.



“At first it can be hard to accept how disappointing life is because that’s what it is and you have to accept it. With faith and time and hard work you reach a point... where the disappointment doesn’t hurt as much, and then it gets actually easy to live with. Quite easy. Which is in its own way a disappointment.”

~Tony Kushner, playwright~

character of Hannah to Harper. Angels in America: Perestroika, 1994, p. 37. Broadway play starring Kathleen Chalfant and Marcia Gay Harden; 2003 movie starring Emmy winners Meryl Streep and Mary-Louise Parker

Kushner is a Pulitzer Prize, Tony, and Emmy winner



“Life has been reckless with these people.”

~Reckless, movie~

nun running the homeless shelter (Eileen Brennan), 1995. Written by Craig Lucas



“If you got nothin’ you don’t need nothin’.”

~Brokeback Mountain, movie~

Heath Ledger as Ennis, 2005. Written by Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana, based on a short story by Annie Proulx



“the world is not respectable; it is mortal, tormented, confused, deluded forever; but it is shot through with beauty, with love, with glints of courage and laughter; and in these, the spirit blooms.”

~George Santayana, writer~

http://www.quotablecards.com/



“Life is a bursting unity of opposition barely held.”

~Robert Frost, poet~

in his notebooks, published by Robert Faggen. Newsweek, 2‑5‑07, p. 61



“Once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return.”

~Leonardo da Vinci, artist~

http://www.quotablecards.com/



“What do we live for, if it is not to make life less difficult for each other?”

~George Eliot, writer~

quoted in Friendship Notebook, Helen Exley, editor. 1991



“A thousand things advance; nine hundred and ninety-nine retreat; that is progress.”

~Henri Frederic Amiel, philosopher~

New Beginnings quote book, 1993 by Running Press



CHUCK LORRE PRODUCTIONS #106

“The Buddha taught that
the first principle of existence
is impermanence.
Absolutely everything in this universe
is impermanent.
Impermanence creates uncertainty.
I don’t know about you but I have
a very low tolerance for uncertainty.
Uncertainty causes me discomfort.
Discomfort causes me to think stupid things.
Stupid thoughts cause me to take stupid actions.
My stupid actions bring about unfortunate results.
Luckily, the unfortunate results are impermanent.
Is this a great universe or what?”

~Chuck Lorre, TV show co-creator~

Dharma and Greg, TV, 1997-2002

Each week, a “vanity card” is flashed for a second at the end of the credits. You have to record the episode, then pause the page in order to read or transcribe it. Years later, magic of the internet: http://www.chucklorre.com/ for all the “cards”.



- “I don’t want you to go.”
- “I’m almost back.”

~Beyond Silence, movie~

1996, Jenseits der Stille, written by Caroline Link and Beth Serlin



“I believe that God put me on this earth to accomplish a certain number of things. Right now I am so behind that I will never die.”

~Garfield comic strip~

by Jim Davis - from the quote collection of Lg



“She used to eat more than 2 pounds of chocolate a week and treat her skin with olive oil, rode a bicycle until she was 100, and only quit smoking 5 years ago...

She was someone who, constitutionally and biologically-speaking, was immune to stress. She once said, ‘If you can’t do anything about it, don’t worry about it.’ [She was] unflappable.”

~from the obituary for Jeanne Calment, a French woman who died at age 122~



"Much of the insensibility and hardness of the world is due to the lack of imagination which prevents a realization of the experiences of other people.. we are under a moral obligation in choosing our experiences, since the result of those experiences must ultimately determine our understanding of life."

~Jane Addams, writer~

Democracy and Social Ethics, 1902.

[Contributed by Wendy]




"Every day, we should at least hear one little song, read one good poem, see one exquisite picture, and, if possible, speak a few sensible words."

~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, writer~

[contributed by Stephan Aichinger]




“I don’t really believe in neat, packaged endings – unless everyone blows up in the end.”

~Zoe Cassavetes, filmmaker~

of Broken English, 2007. New York magazine, 1-22-07, p. 81




"Givers sleep well and takers eat well."

~LoLAA P. Style, artist~

for information about her original, hand-crafted knitted products & to find her uniquely nomadic store, pls. contact lisa.kasamoto@backwardpress.org

LOVE. (pt. 1)

“Haply I think on thee, and then my state,
like to the lark at break of day arising,
sings hymns at Heaven's gate.
For thy sweet love remember'd
Such wealth brings, that then,
I scorn to change my state with kings.”

~William Shakespeare, poet~

from Sonnet XXIX, quoted in TV’s Beauty and the Beast, 1987. Series created by Ron Koslow



“That's your problem: you don't want to be in love; you want to be in love in a movie.”

~Sleepless in Seattle, movie~

Rosie O’Donnell, 1993. Screenplay by Nora Ephron, story by Jeff Arch



“Talking about love is like dancing about architecture.”

~Playing By Heart, movie~

1998, Angelina Jolie as Joan, written by Willard Carroll



“Ovaltine?”

~Playing By Heart, movie~

1998, Angelina Jolie as Joan, written by Willard Carroll



Randy: “God, Evie, you are so sheltered.”

Evie: “Well, unshelter me.”

~The Incredibly True Story of Two Girls in Love, movie~

1995, written by Maria Maggenti



“I was over the moon for you.”

~Hope Floats, movie~

1998, Harry Connick, Jr. as Justin, written by Steven Rogers



“You wanna feel my pulse? It’s beating really fast.

~Anywhere But Here, movie~

1999, written by Alvin Sargent, book by Mona Simpson



”We’ve fallen awake it seems.”

~The Education of Max Bickford, TV~

2001-02 series



> Prince: “It’s only my skin that’s keeping me from going everywhere.”

> Prince: “I used to think that to care about one thing, I’d have to care about everything and I’d go stark raving mad.”

~Ever After: A Cinderella Story, movie~

1998, Dougray Scott as the Prince, screenplay by Susannah Grant



“And Ruth said, Intreat me not to
leave thee, or to return from
following after thee:
for whither thou goest, I will go;
and where thou lodgest, I will lodge:
thy people shall be my people.”

~The Bible, Ruth 1:16-20~

quoted in Fried Green Tomatoes, 1991 film by Jon Avnet, based on the 1987 book by Fannie Flagg



“In a very unusual way, you made me whole.”

~Linda Eder, singer~

from her CD “It’s Time”; from the Broadway musical NINE, lyrics by Maury Yeston, 1975



“The water is wide, I can’t cross o’er
Neither have I wings to fly
Give me a boat that can carry two
And both shall row, my love and I.”

~spiritual~

sung by the Indigo Girls, Jewel, and Sarah McLachlan at “Lilith Fair, A Celebration of Women in Music,” 1997



“For once in my life, I managed to write a happy love song. It only took 15 years.”

~Sarah McLachlan, singer/songwriter/musician~

about “Push,” a song for her husband. New York City concert, 2005



“I love you here, I love you now
You are my today and every today to follow
I do not want to be far away tomorrow
You – I don’t want to leave.
You will not look better from five thousand miles away
Then my eyes will only see you’re missing
My heart will only feel your absence
You – I will keep right here.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, poet~

In These Thoughts, 2005, p. 52



“Don’t threaten me with love, baby.
Let’s just go walking in the rain.”

~Billie Holiday, singer~

from Wisdom of Women



“If you don’t like someone, the way he holds his SPOON will make you furious; if you do like him, he can turn his PLATE over in your lap and you won’t mind.”

~Irving Becker~

greeting card



“Love and a cough cannot be concealed.
Even a small cough.
Even a small love.”

~Anne Sexton, poet~

from Wisdom of Women

LOVE. (pt. 2)

“I never cared much for moonlit skies.
I never winked back at fireflies.
Never ‘cause stars are in your eyes.
I’m beginning to see the light.”

~song~

Mona Lisa Smile, 2003 movie



“I know there’s a place you walked where love falls from the trees...”

quoted by actress, Jorja Fox, in the Hollywood Reporter, 11-18-04. From www.jorjafox.net



–“She wouldn’t bring me a cup of water in a rainstorm.”

–“I’d bring you a waterfall in the desert.”

1998



“Speechless – my heart is trying to breathe.”

1998



“Our eyes caught across the parking lot and I fell in love like slamming into earth.”

~Crystos, writer~

in the anthology, A Woman Like That, ed. by Joan Larkin, 1999, p. 114



> “All of a sudden, I felt like I had to sit down...”

> “She continued, as if she hadn’t touched me, as if it didn’t mean anything, as if my head weren’t about to split into a thousand love-lost pieces.”

~Elizabeth Lorde-Rollins, writer~

in the anthology, A Woman Like That, ed. by Joan Larkin, 1999, p. 166 & 169



“I remember kissing her for the first time on the library steps and feeling such intense desire that I thought I would explode and shatter into tiny bits of flesh at her feet.”

~Tristan Taormino, writer~

in the anthology, A Woman Like That, ed. by Joan Larkin, 1999, p. 260



“I didn’t say anything – I couldn’t. Breathing was a challenge.”

~Elizabeth Lorde-Rollins, writer~

in the anthology, A Woman Like That, ed. by Joan Larkin, 1999, p. 171



“I’m here because I feel more like me when I’m with you than I do when I’m with me.”

~D.E.B.S., movie~

Jordana Brewster as Lucy, 2004. Written by Angela Robinson



“I would like to be the air that inhabits you for a moment only. I would like to be that unnoticed and that necessary.”

~Margaret Atwood, poet~

“Sleep,” from “Variations on the Word.” New York City subway’s “Poetry in Motion” series, 2000



“But when you feel longing,
sing of women in love;
for their famous passion
is still not immortal.
Sing of women abandoned
and desolate (you envy them, almost)
who could love so much more purely
than those who were gratified.”

~Rainer Maria Rilke, poet~

“Duino Elegies” (first), 1923



“You set up your place in my thoughts, moved in and made my thinking crowded...
Not everything is better spoken aloud, not when I’m talking to you...

Maybe that’s all that we need is to meet in the middle of impossibility.
Standing at opposite poles, equal partners in a mystery.”

~Indigo Girls, singers~

“Mystery” lyrics



“Love is the extremely difficult realization that something other than oneself is real.”

~Iris Murdoch, writer~

from Wisdom of Women



“You took the words right out of my mouth. It must've been when you were kissing me. I was just about to say, ‘I love you.’”

~song~

2000



“Anywhere you go, I'll follow you
Anyplace but those I know by heart.”

~song~



“If you get caught between the moon and New York City, the best that you can do
is fall in love.”

~song~



“The more I live, the more I think two people together are a miracle.”

~Adrienne Rich, writer~

from the quote collection of Lg



The most irrational desire known to mankind... falling in love.

~Love and Death on Long Island, movie~

1997, written by Richard Kwietniowski, based on the novel by Gilbert Adair



“The heart has its reasons which reason knows nothing of.”

~Blaise Pascal, mathematician~

from the quote collection of Lg

LOVE. (pt. 3)

“It hurts then to love. It’s like giving yourself to be flayed and knowing that at any moment the other person may just walk off with your skin.”

~Susan Sontag, writer~

from her journals, reprinted in New York Times Magazine, 9-10-06. To be published
in 2008



James: “And what if you were to hurt?”
Sarah: “I would shrivel up and blow away.”

~Mark Medoff, playwright~

Children of a Lesser God, 1980

“All my life people have said I would become a psychopath if I didn’t learn how to feel. But I want to know what the f--- is so great about feeling. Because I finally let myself and I feel like my heart’s been completely ripped out.”

~the L word, TV~

starring Katherine Moennig as Shane; series (2004- ) created by Ilene Chaiken

“You’ve got to dance like nobody’s watching, and love like it’s never going to hurt.”



“so smash the rearview mirror with your fist
BECAUSE YOU’RE DONE LOOKING BACK ♥ ”

~ http://www.bestmyspacegoodies.com/ & www.myspace.com/simpleme005 (?)~



“Every time I look at you, I feel so completely dismantled.”

~the L word, TV

Jenny to Marina (Mia Kirschner, Karina Lombard). Series (2004- ) created by Ilene Chaiken



“Oh, seek, my love, your newer way;
I’ll not be left in sorrow.
So long as I have yesterday,
go take your damned tomorrow!”

~Dorothy Parker, poet~

from Wisdom of Women



“Most of us take our broken relationships to the therapist. She took it to #1.”

~about Alanis Morissette, at the Grammy’s, 1999~



“If I cried me a river of all my confessions,
would I drown in my shallow regret?”

~Sarah McLachlan, singer/songwriter/musician~



“Wife to mistress: I knew there were things I could’ve done, for myself, for my marriage... but hating you was easier.”

~Touched by an Angel, TV~

1994-2003 series created by John Masius



“In life, the most dangerous people are not the ones with everything to gain. They are the ones with nothing to lose. In passion, it is the same.”

~Thieves (Les Voleurs), movie~

written by Andre Techine and Gilles Taurand, 1996



“I wouldn't wanna date myself.”

~Christie~

giving the best argument for why opposites attract. 2000



“The smallest divisible human unit is two people, not one.”

~Karl Marx~

quoted by Tony Kushner, playwright



“In the arithmetic of love, one plus one equals everything, and two minus one equals nothing.”

~Mignon McLaughlin, writer~

from Wisdom of Women



“Me minus you equals blue.”

~Glenn Medeiros, singer~



“I love you to the moon and back.”

~one of comedian Rosie O’Donnell’s son’s note~

2000



> “Love is when your wife talks to you as endearingly as she does to the cat.”

> “Love is when your husband talks to you as lovingly as he does to his dog.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, t-shirt designer~

2005 www.cafepress.com/backwardpress



“Love should be, ‘I love you standing up or lying down.’”

~Gaynell, group home counselor~

2000



"I will not love you long time."

~t-shirt~

Asian-themed t-shirts at http://www.blacklava.net/, by Ryan Suda

“Not science, not even the greatest poet,
has measured how much love the heart can hold.”




“He says he sees little green men. She loves him so much she starts seeing them, too.”

MADNESS.

see featured categories (at top)

MANIC-DEPRESSION (bipolar)

see featured categories (at top)

MEMORY.

“Memory is the ability to pick roses in the winter.”

from the quote collection of Lg



“Remembering was my way of making things matter.”

~Desert Bloom, movie~

starring Annabeth Gish as Rose, 1986. Written by Linda Remy and Eugene Corr



“Remembering is both a form of sacrifice and salvation. To forget, Valentino says, ‘would be something less than human.’”

~David Amsden, writer~

reviewing Dave Eggers novel, What is the What, 2006. In New York magazine



“What is memory but the repository of things doomed to be forgotten, so you must have History. You must have labor to invent History. Being faithful to all that happens to you of significance, recording days, dates, events, names, sights not relying merely upon memory which fades like a Polaroid print where you see the memory fading before your eyes like time itself retreating.”

~Joyce Carol Oates, writer~

Foxfire, 1993 book, p. 44



“‘All memories are false.’ Well, yes, they are, in a sense. But [Shelagh] Stevenson goes on to demonstrate that memory is also the fabric of our past, always existing as a reality however much its color adapts to changing light.”

~review of The Memory of Water, play~

MENTAL HEALTH.

see featured categories (at top)

NEW YORK CITY.

“Put some pepper spray in your purse. Even if you’re not sure, just start spraying.”

~Coyote Ugly, movie~

Bill (John Goodman) to his daughter who’s moving to NYC, 2000. Written by Gina Wendkos



“The city, seen from the Queensboro Bridge, is always the city seen for the first time, in its first wild promise of all the mystery and beauty in the world.”

~F. Scott Fitzgerald, writer~

The Great Gatsby, 1925. Quoted by a taxi driver in TV’s Beauty and the Beast, 1989



“New York City is like a living organism, constantly moving, changing. At first, it is intoxicating, then comfortable and safe. Sometimes you're on the out and then making up. It's a cellular relationship. Every now and then, you catch yourself in this transcendent moment and you realize, Oh my god, I'm madly in love with you and I will always be.”

~Dawson's Creek, TV~

Jen’s father about being in NYC 30 years ago. 1998-2003 series created by Kevin Williamson



“New York City is my destination, it is my arrival gate, it is my love. It is my favorite channel, number one on my speed dial, my surprise party, my anti-depressant, the death of my spirit, the life of my recovery, my drug of choice, my soundtrack, and the reason I wear earplugs.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

“New York City Groupie” -
http://journals.aol.com/idgie2yourruth/writer./#Entry706



McGuire: “I’m nobody.”
Sarah: “I’m nobody, too. Nice to meet you.”
McGuire: “Nice to meet you. But in your case, I don’t believe it. You’re in New York now, right? Nobody knows you. So you can anybody you want. Invent yourself.”

~Time of Your Life, TV~

Party of Five spin-off, Jennifer Love Hewitt as Sarah, 1999



“NYC with its intelligentsia, its liberal consensus, is in relationship to the rest of USA like Vatican in the midst of Italy, a tiny private state with immense power + wealth, but SEPARATE.”

~Susan Sontag, writer~

1966 journal, reprinted in New York Times Magazine, 9-10-06, p. 57. To be published in 2008



“New York City is a wonderful city… It’s going to be the capital of the world. It isn’t like the rest of the country - it’s like a nation in itself-more tolerant than the rest in a curious way. Littleness gets swallowed up here.”

~John Steinbeck, writer~

1946 quote in the John Steinbeck Museum, Salinas, Calif.



“He’s not American, he’s from New York.”

~Cracker, TV~



Q: “[Does] it make you mad to think that some people say, ‘Oh, he helps her out’?
Edie Brickell: “Asking my husband [Paul Simon] to help me write a song would be like asking him to salt my food to his taste. I wouldn't do it. We're not perfectly compatible in our imaginations. It's almost like coming from different countries, being from Texas and New York.”

~New York Times Magazine~

interviewed by Amy Barrett, 10-12-03



“There are as many Manhattans as there are people who live here. Each of us is an island unto ourselves.”

~CSI: New York, TV~

series (2002- ) created by Anthony E. Zuiker, Ann Donahue, and Carole Mendelsohn



- “The great thing about NY is that it isn't static, it is not something that ‘is’. It is always changing.”

- “The first skyscraper in 1900's had 11 stories. It was then surpassed by towering 18-story. One person stepping out on the top floor called out, ‘Is God here?’”

- “When they find the street crowded, they just tilt the street on its side [and build up].”

~New York: A Documentary Film~

PBS, 2000



“1) You buy an unlimited Metrocard. And then you ride the subway to places you don’t even need to go. One time you took the 1-train from 72nd St. to 68thy St. Just to get your money’s worth.

2) As the man at the fruit stand puts your bag on the scale, he will ask, “Outside or inside?” Of course, you always go straight for the outside stuff. The way you figure, a kiwi’s a kiwi. It’s not rotten; it’s just super, super ripe. Besides, you want the discount.

3) You get a doggy bag for the coleslaw that came with your burger. Why? Because you paid for it. Nothing should stand between a man and his uneaten cabbage.

4) You get half priced haircuts from student hairdressers. You’ll let some kid with scissors chop until you say “when” just to get a good deal. Sometimes you even tell her, “Just do whatever you think looks good.”

5) You will go all the way to Newark Airport and not even get on a plane. Why? Because you need to rent a car. Sure it’s inconvenient. And an hour in the wrong direction.

6) You will rent a car, drive across the river to a big warehouse and buy 24 rolls of toilet paper and a 10-gallon vat of mayonnaise. Neither of which really fits into your studio apartment. But hey, when you factor in the price per square and spoonful, it’s a deal you can’t ignore.”

~Cingular subway ad~

mobile phone Rollover Minutes offer, for people who save money



“$8 for my property? In Manhattan?! You can’t live in a pothole for $8.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

playing the NYC version of Monopoly, 2006



“In Calif., a stranger is a [potential] friend until he proves otherwise; in NY, a stranger is an enemy until he proves otherwise. One uses up a lot of energy in NY by that hypothesis.”

~Susan Sontag, writer~

1967 journal, reprinted in New York Times Magazine, 9-10-06, p. 38. To be published in 2008



“That’s what New York is all about. It’s giving to people with nothing in return.”

~Lee, graffiti artist~

as he watched the commuters view an entire 10-car subway train that he and two others painted. The Mole People: Life in the Tunnels Beneath New York City by Jennifer Toth, 1993, p. 131



“This city took me in. Everything important happened to me here. Good... bad...”

~Heroes, TV~

Santiago Cabrera as Isaac. (2006- ) series created by Tim Kring



“While waiting for the subway at the 57th St. station, I noted a well-dressed man standing on the platform close to the tracks. He was removing his gray suede gloves, and as he pulled the first one off, it slipped from his grip and fell on to the tracks below. Without pausing, he removed his other glove and threw it onto the tracks to join its mate. I smiled and he smiled and we both knew that he had thrown the second glove so that some lucky track repairman would find a pair of new and wearable gloves.”

~Ira L. Levinson, reader~

posted in the E-train, a reprint from The New York Times’ “Metropolitan Diary.” 5-7-05



“I don’t read the Sunday Times because it outweighs me.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~



“Our holy grail.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

re: the Second Avenue subway, 2006



“They’re putting dollars before sense.”

~Transit Workers Union~

re: the Metropolitan Transit Authority, during contract negotiations, Nov. 2005, that led to a 3-day strike of subway and bus workers



“I’m for the Mets, you like the Yankees,
But I’d give you CPR anyway.”

~American Red Cross advertisement~

LaGuardia Airport, New York City

NON-JUDGMENT.

“The most radical thing we can do is introduce people to one another.”

~bumper sticker~

New York City, 2003



“Travel is fatal to prejudice.”

~Mark Twain, writer~

quoted in OutTraveler magazine’s premiere issue, 2003, p. 14



“The greatest crime: to judge.
The greatest failing: lack of wholeheartedness.”

~Susan Sontag, writer~

1964 journal, reprinted in New York Times Magazine, 9-10-06, p. 56. To be published in 2008



“Tolerance, fundamentally, is a personal decision... a belief that every other person on Earth is a treasure.”

~from http://www.tolerance.org/ ~

from the quote collection of Lg



“There are many ways to be in this world.”

~Pat Maravel, mother~

Rosie O’Donnell’s second mother; The Advocate magazine, 9-14-04, p. 88



“I am not judgmental, but I’ll judge you if you are.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

1999



“Emotions are more sincere underground. Unlike our society, the underground dwellers do not judge each other on their pasts or any element of how they live, except how they treat each other.”

~Jennifer Toth, writer~

The Mole People: Life in the Tunnels Beneath New York City, 1993, p. 117



“Mean people suck.”

~bumper sticker wisdom~

NORMAL.

see featured categories (at top)

NOT TOO BRIGHT.

“When a finger points at the moon, the imbecile looks at the finger.”

~Chinese proverb~

“Not the brightest crayon in the box, now are we?”

~stamp store~

Provincetown, MA, 1999

“Call Dorothy and tell her to meet you at the yellow brick road. When you get to the end of the road, you’ll see a man. Ask him for a brain.”

~Will and Grace, TV~

Will to Jack; starring Eric McCormack and Sean Hayes. 1998-2006 series created by David Kohan and Max Mutchnick

“You’ve got to stop the Q-Tip when there’s RESISTENCE.”

~Friends, TV~

Chandler to Joey (Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc). 1994-2004 series created by
David Crane and Marta Kauffman

Chandler: “Here’s the phone bill.”
Joey: “This is the phone bill?!”
Chandler: “That’s our phone number.”

~Friends, TV~

starring Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc. 1994-2004 series created by
David Crane and Marta Kauffman

Phoebe: “Hey Travis, whatcha doing with that gun?”

~Friends, TV~

“I like to feel dumb. That’s how I know there’s more in the world than me.”

~Susan Sontag, writer~

1965 journal entry, reprinted in New York Times Magazine, 9-10-06, p. 57. To be published in 2008

“Mrs. Stoner devised six classes of people. In ascending order of value, they were idiots; destructionists; morons; hypermorons (in while class she put most people); geniuses (who were creative); and progressionists (who could get things done in business and related fields).”

~New York Times~

9-3-06, re: a 1920's resident of The Braender building, New York City

OBSTACLES.

“What on earth would we do with ourselves if something did not stand in our way?”

~H.G. Wells, writer~

from the quote collection of Lg



Don Quixote: “When one door is shut, another opens.”

~Man of La Mancha, movie~

1972 musical starring Peter O’Toole, screenplay by Dale Wasserman; 1605 book by Miguel de Cervantes. From the quote collection of Lg



Maria: “When the Lord closes a door, somewhere He opens a window.”

~Sound of Music, movie~

1965, starring Julie Andrews; book by Howard Lindsay and Rusel Crouse



Abbe de l’Eppe: “What we cannot cause to enter by the main door, we can send in through the window.”

~When the Mind Hears, book~

quoted by Harlan Lane, p. 36, in his book about Deaf people and their history



“How should we be able to forget those ancient myths that are at the beginning of all peoples, the myths about dragons that at the last moment turn into princesses; perhaps all the dragons of our lives are princesses who are only waiting to see us once beautiful and brave. Perhaps everything terrible is in its deepest being something helpless that wants help from us.”

~Rainer Maria Rilke, poet~

Letters to a Young Poet, #8, 8-12-1904. Quoted in TV’s Beauty and the Beast, 1987; series created by Ron Koslow



“A stumble may prevent a fall.”

~English proverb~

from the quote collection of Lg



“What if the two of us were the strongest people in the world, if nothing weighed more than this beer can? How would we know how strong we are?”

~House of Cards, movie~

starring Kathleen Turner as Ruth, 1993. Written by Michael Lessac and Robert Jay Litz



“Do we really know the mountain when we do not know the cavern?”

~Victor Hugo, writer~

about his book, Les Miserables, exploring the underground, metaphorically and literally. The book is about the underclass; crucial events are set in the sewers under Paris.

quoted by Jennifer Toth in The Mole People: Life in the Tunnels Beneath New York City, 1993 book, p. 172



“There’s an easy solution to every human problem: neat, plausible, and wrong.”

~H.L. Mencken, writer~

quoted on TV’s CSI by Grissom (William Peterson). Season 2, “Chaos Theory”. Series (2000- ) created by Anthony E. Zuiker



“Catch the bread before it falls butter-side down.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

2005. Passion in My Pocket, memoir in progress.



“John: How are you?
Stella: Fine.

F reaked out
I nsecure
N eurotic
E motional”

~The Italian Job, movie~

starring Donald Sutherland and Charlize Theron, 2003. Written by Donna Powers; original 1969 screenplay by Troy Kennedy-Martin

THE OUTSIDER.

“And I don’t want the world to see me
‘cause I don’t think that they’d understand.
When everything’s made to be broken,
I just want you to know who I am.”

~Goo Goo Dolls, singers~

“Iris” lyrics - from the quote collection of Lg



“We got... misplaced somehow.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

fan script for the L word (TV) contest, 2006, character of Jenny. Show created by Ilene Chaiken



“perspective: are you inside or outside?
how do you know?”

~Lisa Kasamoto, t-shirt designer~

2004 www.cafepress.com/backwardpress



“You can try, I don’t care.
Forcing circles into squares
You can spend precious time
marching in your perfect line
But I don’t hear that drum.
I’m looking for something else.

And if you don’t like what you see,
you don’t have to look at me
If you don’t like what I say,
you can turn the other way
If you don’t like what you see,
then don’t look at me.

Add it up, count me out.
I’m taking a different route
I did not mean to offend.
Before I broke, I chose to mend
So I’ll be on my way.
I have nothing left to say...”

~Melissa Etheridge, singer~

in Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael, 1990 movie



“If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer.”

~Henry David Thoreau, writer~

quoted in The Advocate magazine, 3-19-02, p. 41



“Not everything can be defined
or even fit between the lines.
Too many lines can make a box;
why question what it is we’ve got?
Let’s learn whatever we may learn
and read the pages as they turn.
No need to put a name to this;
just let it be just what it is.”

~Zonna, singer~

track 11



“It is only too true that a lot of artists are mentally ill - it's a life which, to put it mildly, makes one an outsider. I'm all right when I completely immerse myself in work, but I'll always remain half crazy.”

~Vincent van Gogh, artist~

(1853-1890, Dutch) - http://bipolar.about.com/od/celebrities/p/vangogh.htm?nl=1



“For me, my sexuality, race, and gender are advantages that give me confidence. I believe that I will survive because of my marginality.”

~Cheryl Dunye, filmmaker~

and African-American lesbian



“I think if you look at literature and movies, the most interesting stuff is always the people who don't feel like they're part of the ‘we.’ Those are the best characters, the best novels, the best everything. Opposition, a little friction, creates the pearl.”

~Peter Sarsgaard, actor~

The Advocate magazine, 3-1-05, p. 48



“The homeless seem attracted to or at least more numerous in huge urban areas where they can better live within the cracks.”

~Jennifer Toth, writer~

The Mole People: Life in the Tunnels Beneath New York City, 1993 book, p. 41



“Theirs [outcasts’] is a strange and foreign world, but it is very near and largely of our making.”

~Jennifer Toth, writer~

The Mole People: Life in the Tunnels Beneath New York City, 1993 book, p. 38



“They’re sending us underground.
Run and hide.

But if I go underground
if you come with me
you can bring the light
you can bring the sun
the moon
the tides
the grass.

I don’t need to tell you to bring the love.
That’s always inside you.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, poet~

In These Thoughts, 2005 book, p. 55



“To be great is to be misunderstood.”

~Ralph Waldo Emerson, poet~

(1803-1882) - from the quote collection of LDP



“Everyone is someone else’s weirdo.”

~Maxine~

Maxine Truisms, from Hallmark cards; in an e-mail forward



“Now for years and years and years, people in my hometown were telling me I was a freak because of my sexual orientation. Until I came to San Francisco and I found a community of freaks just like me.”

~And the Band Played On, movie~

Donal Logue as Bobbi, 1993 movie about the AIDS crisis. Written by Arnold Shulman, based on the 1987 book by Randy Shilts



“Am I outside your margin or are you outside mine?”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

idea from Margin Films, movie company for Drift, 2000



“It is not worth an intelligent man’s time to be in the majority. By definition, there are already enough people to do that.”

~G. H. Hardy, mathematician~

(1877-1947, British); New York Public Library calendar book, 2006

OVERCOMING.

“With every breath I’m learning how to breathe again.”

~Namoli Brennet, singer~

and transgender activist, song “Breathe”, 2003 CD, “Welcome to the Afterglow”



“The world breaks everyone, and afterward, some are strong at the broken places.”

~Ernest Hemingway, writer~

A Farewell to Arms, 1929. Quoted in Gloria Steinem’s Revolution From Within, 1993, p. 68. It’s also the title of Linda Sanford’s book, Strong at the Broken Places



“That which does not kill me makes me stronger.”

~Friedrich Nietzsche, philosopher~

quoted in TV's Beauty and the Beast by Paracelsus (Tony Jay), 1988. Episode “To Reign in Hell,” written by Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa. Series created by Ron Koslow



“If it doesn't kill you, it... just doesn't kill you.”

~She Spies, TV~

2002-04 series



“I’ve learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.”

~Maya Angelou, poet~

interviewed by Oprah; quoted in 2004 e-mail forward



“Every day is amazing, even when it's awful, because everything is for a reason. I know that this horrible thing that's happening today is going to bring me something so amazing.”

~Sandra Bullock, actress~

1999 interview



“And what it all comes down to
is that everything’s gonna be fine, fine, fine.”

~Alanis Morissette, singer~

“Hand in My Pocket” lyrics, from 1995 CD “jagged little pill”



“If you’re lost, you’ve come to the right place.”

~Winnie the Pooh~

character by A.A. Milne (1882-1956)



“You suppose if a wound goes real deep, the healing of it can hurt almost as bad as what caused it?”

~Spitfire Grill, movie~

Alison Elliott as Percy, written by Lee David Zlotoff, 1996



James: “What if you admitted that you hurt?”
Sarah: “I would shrivel up and blow away.”

~Mark Medoff, playwright~

Children of a Lesser God, 1980 play, p. 32



When you get in a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hold on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time the tide will turn.”

~Harriet Beecher Stowe, writer~



“When you walk through a storm, hold your head up high
and don’t be afraid of the dark.
At the end of the storm is a golden sky
and the sweet silver song of a lark.
Walk on through the wind, walk on through the rain,
tho’ your dreams be tossed and blown...
Walk on, walk on, with hope in your heart,
and you’ll never walk alone.
You’ll never walk alone.”

~Richard Rogers and Oscar Hammerstein II~

composer and lyricist, respectively, of Carousel, Broadway and movie musical




“The choice may have been mistaken,
but the choosing was not.”

~“Move On” lyrics~

song covered by Barbra Streisand. 2006



“Nothing can cure the soul but the senses.”

~Oscar Wilde, poet~

(1854-1900, Irish); quoted on The Five Senses movie poster, 2000



“A tough week is when you find out your son died in Iraq. Or your child is sick and it’s inoperable... I was ready to come back that Monday.”

~Jay Feely, New York Giants’ kicker~

responding to a reporter who asked about his “tough week” in which Feely missed 3 of 3 potentially-game winning field goals, 2005



Justin to woman in wheelchair: “Sounds hard.”
Adrienne: “So what’s easy besides complaining?”
Lindsay: “As if you never did that.”
Adrienne: “Oh back off, bitch. I’ll roll over your foot.”

~Queer as Folk, TV~

2000-05 U.S. series created by Russell T. Davies



“We are all in need; we are all saviors.”

~Lisa Kasamoto, writer~

2005. Passion in My Pocket, memoir in progress



“...like a broken glass that somehow holds its shape.”

~The Advocate magazine~

describing a character in Notice, book by Heather Lewis, 10-12-04, p. 96



“keep on keeping on.”

~Maryanne~



“For the road that’s yet to be traveled on by the ones who will carry on,
I’ll carry on.”

~Amy Grant, singer~

“Children of the World” lyrics - from the quote collection of Lg



“Nothing’s lost forever. In this world, there is a kind of painful progress. Longing for what we’ve left behind, and dreaming ahead.”

~Tony Kushner, playwright~

character of Harper. Angels in America: Perestroika, 1992. Broadway play, starring Marcia Gay Harden; 2004 movie, starring Emmy winner, Mary-Louise Parker

Kushner is a Pulitzer, Tony, and Emmy winner