Who can confidently say what ignites a certain combination of words, causing them to explode in the mind? Who knows why certain notes in music are capable of stirring the listener deeply, though the same notes slightly rearranged are impotent? These are high mysteries, and this chapter is a mystery story, thinly disguised.

There is a decivilizing bug somewhere at work; unconsciously persons of stern worth, by not resenting and resisting the small indignities of the times, are preparing themselves for the eventual acceptance of what they themselves know they don't want.

I get up every morning determined to both change the world and to have one hell of a good time. Sometimes, this makes planning the day difficult.

I have a spaniel that defrocked a nun last week. He took hold of the cord. I had hold of the leash. It was like elephants holding tails. Imagine me undressing a nun, even second hand.

Although there is no substitute for merit in writing, clarity comes closest to being one.

Life's accumulation is more discouraging than life itself, when stirred up.

The world is full of people who have never, since childhood, met an open doorway with an open mind.