Quotations

"It's delightful, it's delicious, it's de-lovely."

— Cole Porter, American composer, born 1891

"In a profound sense every man has two halves to his being; he is not one person so much as two persons trying to act in unison. I believe that in the heart of each human being there is something which I can only describe as a "child of darkness" who is equal and complementary to the more obvious "child of light.""

— Laurens Van Der Post, Afrikaner author, farmer, war hero, born December 13, 1906

"Something that is yours forever is never precious."

— Chaim Potok, American author, born 1929

"I looked at my right hand, the hand with which I painted. There was power in that hand. Power to create and destroy. Power to bring pleasure and pain. Power to amuse and horrify. There was in that hand the demonic and the divine at one and the same time. The demonic and the divine were two aspects of the same force. Creation was demonic and divine. Creativity was demonic and divine. I was demonic and divine."

— Chaim Potok, American author, born 1929

"Believe that there is a great power silently working all things for good, behave yourself and never mind the rest."

— Beatrix Potter, English author, born 1866

"The image is more than an idea. It is a vortex or cluster of fused ideas and is endowed with energy."

— Ezra Pound, American poet, born 1885

"A slave is one who waits for someone to come and free him."

— Ezra Pound, American poet, born 1885

"Music begins to atrophy when it departs too far from the dance. Poetry begins to atrophy when it gets too far from music."

— Ezra Pound, American poet, born 1885

"I get in fewer arguments when I'm alone."

— Paula Poundstone, American comedian, born 1959

"I don’t believe for a second that weightlifting is a sport. They pick up a heavy thing and put it down again. To me, that’s indecision."

— Paula Poundstone, American comedian, born 1959

"My Mom said she learned how to swim when someone took her out in the lake and threw her off the boat. I said, Mom, they weren’t trying to teach you how to swim."

— Paula Poundstone, American comedian, born 1959

"I’m an atheist. The good news about atheists is that we have no mandate to convert anyone. So you’ll never find me on your doorstep on a Saturday morning with a big smile saying ‘Just stopped by to tell you there is no word. I brought along this little blank book I was hoping you could take a look at.’"

— Paula Poundstone, American comedian, born 1959

"I'm the only person I know of who's ever been pulled over for attempted speeding."

— Paula Poundstone, American comedian, born 1959

"Art should not simply explain the world; sometimes, it must show us how unexplainable it is."

— D. A. Powell, American poet, born 1963