You can't ever be really free if you admire somebody too much.

You can't ever be really free if you admire somebody too much.

A theatre is the most important sort of house in the world because that's where people are shown what they could be if they wanted and what they'd like to be if they dared to and what they really are.

All men are chums who will never leave each other in the lurch. A chum doesn't forgive, he just forgets - women forgive everything but never forget. Being forgiven is very unpleasant.

Christmas always rustled. It rustled every time, mysteriously, with silver and gold paper, tissue paper and a rich abundance of shiny paper, decorating and hiding everything and giving a feeling of reckless extravagance.

Dogs are mute and obedient, but they have watched us and know us and can smell how pitiful we are.

I wonder if the nursery and the chamber of horrors are as far apart as people think?

It was the winter of war, in 1939. It felt completely pointless to try to create pictures... I suddenly felt an urge to write down something that was to begin with 'Once upon a time.'

Lie on the bridge and watch the water flowing past. Or run, or wade through the swamp in your red boots. Or roll yourself up and listen to the rain falling on the roof. It's very easy to enjoy yourself.

Mummy weighed sweets and nuts so that everyone would get exactly the same amount. During the year, everything is measured roughly, but at Christmas, it has to be absolutely fair. That's why it's such a strenuous time.

Nothing is as peaceful as when Christmas is over, when one has been forgiven for everything and can be normal again.

On the morning, Daddy and I get up at six o'clock because Christmas trees must be bought in the dark. We walk to the other end of town, as the big harbour is just the right setting for buying a Christmas tree. We spend hours choosing, looking at every branch suspiciously. It's always cold.

One makes a trip by day, but by night, one sets out on a journey.

People idealise their animals, and at the same time they patronisingly overlook a dog's natural life - biting fleas, burying bones, rolling in garbage, barking up an empty tree all night... But what do they do themselves? Bury stuff that will rot in secret and then dig it up and bury it again and rant and rave under empty trees!

Sometimes it's better to look at things than own them... owning means anxiety and lots of bags to carry around.

Those damn Moomins. I don't want to hear about them any more. I could vomit on the Moomintrolls.

When one's dead, one's dead... This squirrel will become earth all in his time. And still later on, there'll grow new trees from him, with new squirrels skipping about in them. Do you think that's so very sad?

Some people just shouldnt be disturbed in their inclinations whether large or small. A reminder can instantly turn enthusiasm into aversion and spoil everything.

Gathering is peculiar because you see nothing but what youre looking for. If youre picking raspberries you see only whats red and if youre looking for bones you see only the white. No matter where you go the only thing you see is bones.

The faint whisper of rain and running water was still there and it had the same tender note of solitude and perfection.

Someone who eats pancakes and jam can't be so awfully dangerous. You can talk to him.

Smell is important. It reminds a person of all the things he's been through; it is a sheath of memories and security.

Storms probably exist only because after them we can have a sunrise.

The morning after my high school graduation found me up early job hunting. The dream of college I put on the back burner.

All experience is an arch wherethrough gleams that untravelled world whose margin fades for ever and for ever when I move.

I've loved 'Vanity Fair' since I was 16 years old. You know, we're all colonial hangovers in India, steeped in English literature. It is one of these novels that I read under the covers at my convent boarding school in Simla.

Nothing we do is ever going unnoticed. It's on CCTV cameras, it's on iphones, it's everywhere.

My inspiration is love and history.

It was gross enough for fast food restaurants to ban, but apparently our government wants so-called pink slime to be a staple in your kids' lunches.

In the black culture, certain kids are given nicknames that they roll with forever; the nicknames outweigh their real names. I'm one of those scenarios.

This wonderful plant has so many uses and yet is often neglected in our society. The primary use of the dandelion plant is for its superior liver cleansing qualities. The plant is a powerhouse of nutrients!

Love always involves responsibility, and love always involves sacrifice. And we do not really love Christ unless we are prepared to face His task and to take up His Cross.

If we were to use the success of 'Need You Now' as the barometer for every other song, then we'll probably be highly disappointed. That song will probably undoubtedly be the biggest song of our career. We can hopefully have success for 20 years, but we may not ever have the success of that one particular song again.

It's still a trip for me to see somebody that I've only seen on television or in a movie. When they are there in real life, it's very different. When we played Detroit, Kevin Costner played before us.

I definitely try to live my life in a very fearless manner, but there are no other sports that you jump from a three-story building and land on your hands! Diving is a lot like life. You just have to trust in what you know and allow it to happen.

I don't go out, so I don't get attention from girls. They're not going to have posters of me on their walls. I just try to get on with my life.

It really is true that an orator is simply a good man who speaks well.

I was a troubled teen and I was constantly looking for someone to throw me a rope. Those ropes are connections. They allow us to see that life exists beyond the little worlds we are currently a part of.

Even between the best of friends mistakes and misunderstandings can happen.

Through music I either tame my demons or unleash them and allow them to be what they are. I don't want the music to be about provocation, I want the music to bring you to a place where you feel at home.

If you're going to be an R already, you may as well be 'The Hangover,' and you may as well be as shocking as possible, because that's what delivers the most return.

In New Orleans, bounce music was prevalent. That was all they wanted to hear. It was new and trendy, and it was hot, and it was taking off. Artists were coming out of everywhere. They did some great songs, some really catchy, fun songs. That was just the feel of New Orleans music.

Nothing is so embarrassing as watching someone do something that you said couldnt be done.

I cannot stand superheroes. I do not understand any of its appeal. It has just bored me to death since I was a little kid.

Unless you're trying to make a movie on the sly, there's no way to get around this. If you want to use public spaces, film on the streets, have the cooperation of the police, you have to have a permit.

One of the best parts of a woman's body is that curve, and I go a little bit higher on all of my things to show off the best part of the hourglass.

Getting to know someone else involves curiosity about where they have come from, who they are.