People were interesting at first. Then later, slowly but surely, all the flaws and madness would manifest themselves. I would become less and less to them; they would mean less and less to me.

Not everybody thought they could be a dentist or an automobile mechanic but everybody knew they could be a writer.

Only the boring get bored

I went to the worst of bars hoping to get killed but all I could do was to get drunk again.

agony sometimes changes form but it never ceases for anybody.

Knowledge is knowing as little as possible.

Cautiously, I allowed myself to feel good at times. I found moments of peace in cheap rooms just staring at the knobs of some dresser or listening to the rain in the dark. The less I needed the better I felt.