The world, even the smallest parts of it, is filled with things you don't know.

Read. Read 1000 pages for every 1 page that you write.

The problem is that too many adults think their kids' lives are simple, or they try to make their lives simple, when their emotional lives are just as complicated as ours. They might have a few less tools to deal with it because they're young, but the emotions are all the same, and the subject matter is all the same.

I'll quit eating meat when you get a cow out here to beat me at a poetry slam. Only so many words rhyme with 'Mooo.' I mean, yes, we're supposed to be better stewards; yes, we're supposed to take care of the earth; yes, we're supposed to honor the sacrifices made by the animals; yes yes yes yes yes, but dammit, we're in charge, and you know why? It's because of these [holding out thumbs]...Maybe you think that carrots are less important than cows. I think they're equal, especially in a sauce.

When a glass sits on a table here, people don't wonder if it's half filled or half empty. They just hope it's good beer.

I write in blood because I remember what it felt like to bleed.

I don't have to participate in another culture's ceremonies in order to respect that culture.