Life is too short not to create, not to love, and not to lend a helping hand to our brothers and sisters.

The writer loves the fog as it pours in; he loves the sun when the fog pours out. The rest of California is Beach Boys country, but San Francisco has that moody thing going on, those blues notes wrapped in moisture, an atmosphere that tempers California dreaming and makes life more real. The fog brings reality, but it is still a California reality, one spent outdoors the whole year round.

An artist must struggle to accept the shape of this universe - and achieve some important successes.

By 'expecting nothing' you are not 'giving up.' Far from it! You are making a decision to focus on what needs to be done rather than on outcomes.

Almost nothing beautiful or brilliant happens unless a person has thought about it a lot.

You can sweat by not practicing or you can pick up your clarinet. There's good sweat and there's bad sweat.

When a thing is not done, continuing to work is the strength; but when it is done, the strength lies in stopping.