The older you get, the more fragile you understand life to be. I think that's good motivation for getting out of bed joyfully each day.

I had lunch the other day with my niece, Emma, and she said, 'You're so smart, Aunt Julia.' And I wanted to say, 'I'm not smart - I'm 41! You're 17!'

~I try to call my mother, Betty, with more regularity because I think, What if Hazel didn't call me for two weeks? I'm able to see her mothering now from a different vantage point.~

Show me a person who doesn't like to laugh and I'll show you a person with a toe tag.

I could have been a dental hygienist with nothing bad ever appearing in print about me, but that's not how I've chosen to lead my life. I knew that you put yourself under a microscope the more famous you become.

An Oscar is a total honor. It's thrilling, and on the one hand, it means a lot of things, and on the other hand, it doesn't really mean anything. It's a moment in time.

When I was a child I had a crush on Abraham Lincoln. Why I would choose to reveal this, I know not.