Quotes, Poems, & Sayings...

[JakeTulane]

"The best kind of rain, of course, is a cozy rain. This is the kind the anonymous medieval poet makes me remember, the rain that falls on a day when you'd just as soon stay in bed a little longer, write letters or read a good book by the fire, take early tea with hot scones and jam and look out the streaked window with complacency." ~Susan Allen Toth

[JakeTulane]

"People say that what we’re all seeking is a meaning for life. I don’t think that’s what we’re really seeking. I think that what we’re seeking is an experience of being alive, so that our life experiences on the purely physical plane will have resonances without own innermost being and reality, so that we actually feel the rapture of being alive." — Joseph Campbell

[always2late]

"Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were only walls." - Joseph Campbell

[Fancy]

Beware the barrenness of a busy life.
Socrates

[justkim]

- To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don't need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself. -
- Thich Nhat - Hanh

[wolfbittenpoet]

"The typewriter is holy the poem is holy the voice is
holy the hearers are holy the ecstasy is holy!"
A footnote to Howl Allen Ginsberg 1955

[Janstevie]

Dogs have owners, cats have staff.

[purepisces]

Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, "I will try again tomorrow. ~ Mary Anne Radmacher

[Duchess]

"Seeds of faith are always within us; sometimes it takes a crisis to nourish and encourage their growth."
Susan Taylor (http://www.butchfemmeplanet.com/quote/13885)

[purepisces]

The world is but a canvas to the imagination. ~ Henry David Thoreau

[Duchess]

"When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hold on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn."(f)
Harriet Stowe (http://www.butchfemmeplanet.com/quote/27132)

[msW8ing]

Looking back, I have this to regret, that too often when I loved, I did not say so. ~David Grayson

[Miss Scarlett]

From my friend:

I Stay Focused.

Today I stay centered in and with Universal Goodness.

I know that the goodness that I experience in life is Infinite.

I know that I am an expression of this Infinite Goodness.

I sit back, relax and inhale the majestical Energy that is.

No matter what may be going on "outside" of me, today my focus is "within".

I try my best not to allow outer distractions stray me from my main focus.

When this happens I quickly get back on the beam.

The more I embrace this idea the richer my life becomes.

I love how this Stuff works!

I resonate with this idea right now.

And so it is.

[dixie]

Flatter me, and I may not believe you. Criticize me, and I may not like you. Ignore me, and I may not forgive you. Encourage me, and I will not forget you. Love me and I may be forced to love you. ~ William Arthur Ward

[JakeTulane]

"Life is like a blanket too short. You pull it up and your toes rebel, you yank it down and shivers meander about your shoulder; but cheerful folks manage to draw their knees up and pass a very comfortable night." ~Marion Howard

[JakeTulane]

"Who will tell whether one happy moment of love or the joy of breathing or walking on a bright morning and smelling the fresh air, is not worth all the suffering and effort which life implies." ~Erich Fromm

[JakeTulane]

"Eating, loving, singing and digesting are, in truth, the four acts of the comic opera known as life, and they pass like bubbles of a bottle of champagne. Whoever lets them break without having enjoyed them is a complete fool." ~Gioacchino Rossini

[justkim]

“You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.”

- Buddha -

[Arwen]

“Love’s journey would be terrifying if we didn’t have passion to give us courage.” — Deepak Chopra (The Path to Love)

[Diva]

Pleasure is spread through the earth
In stray gifts to be claimed by whoever shall find.

~William Wordsworth, 1806

[Diva]

Happiness is a form of courage.

~Holbrook Jackson

[PinkieLee]

"Maybe I smile too much. Maybe I wear too much pink. But please remember I can rip your throat out if I need to."

[purepisces]

The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit. ~ Nelson Henderson

[wolfbittenpoet]

"After one look at this planet any visitor from outer space would say 'I want to see the manager.'" William S. Burroughs

[JAGG]

"Character is higher than intellect." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

[JAGG]

He who rules within himself, and controls his passions, desires, and fears, is more than a king.

[StillettoDoll]

Don't make the same mistake twice seems to indicate three mistakes, doesn't it? First you make the mistake. Then you make the same mistake twice? If you simply say, "Don't make the same mistake." you'll avoid the first mistake.

George Carlin
http://images-partners-tbn.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT0nKjKsUusDGjuEjpqWptps8BhyQsyV nhoQegfWzlcszqid0LWuY5T-CA:members.cox.net/jritland1/images/GeorgeCarlin/GeorgeCarlin-L2.jpg (http://search.aol.com/aol/imageDetails?s_it=imageDetails&q=gearge+carlin&img=http%3A%2F%2Fmembers.cox.net%2Fjritland1%2Fima ges%2FGeorgeCarlin%2FGeorgeCarlin-L2.jpg&v_t=keyword_rollover&host=http%3A%2F%2Fmembers.cox.net%2Fjritland1%2FGe orgeCarlin%2FGeorgeCarlinPhoto2.html&width=101&height=127&thumbUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fimages-partners-tbn.google.com%2Fimages%3Fq%3Dtbn%3AANd9GcT0nKjKsU usDGjuEjpqWptps8BhyQsyVnhoQegfWzlcszqid0LWuY5T-CA%3Amembers.cox.net%2Fjritland1%2Fimages%2FGeorge Carlin%2FGeorgeCarlin-L2.jpg&b=image%3Fpage%3D13%26v_t%3Dkeyword_rollover%26q%3 Dgearge%2Bcarlin%26count_override%3D18%26s_it%3Dse archtabs%26oreq%3Df502a567ffc243e5b37fbe3f1ca1ee48 %26oreq%3D1eae376cf9a24882b2e2d6fe5f5781b9&imgHeight=441&imgWidth=350&imgTitle=George+Carlin+-+photo+2&imgSize=21239&hostName=members.cox.net)

[StillettoDoll]

Here's some fun: Stand in line at a bank for a really long time. Then when you finally get up to the window, just ask for change of a nickel. It's fun. They actually call other tellers over to look at you.

George Carlin
http://images-partners-tbn.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ-CoAKXKxUPpxvwsYNRntWsbYMli2GoNnvh8_SPuQKyqbRz0mNlC yelDU-:farm1.static.flickr.com/61/183587542_4f39b3ec25.jpg (http://search.aol.com/aol/imageDetails?s_it=imageDetails&q=gearge+carlin&img=http%3A%2F%2Ffarm1.static.flickr.com%2F61%2F18 3587542_4f39b3ec25.jpg&v_t=keyword_rollover&host=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.flickr.com%2Fphotos%2Fdgans% 2F183587542%2F&width=130&height=91&thumbUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fimages-partners-tbn.google.com%2Fimages%3Fq%3Dtbn%3AANd9GcQ-CoAKXKxUPpxvwsYNRntWsbYMli2GoNnvh8_SPuQKyqbRz0mNlC yelDU-%3Afarm1.static.flickr.com%2F61%2F183587542_4f39b3 ec25.jpg&b=image%3Fpage%3D13%26v_t%3Dkeyword_rollover%26q%3 Dgearge%2Bcarlin%26count_override%3D18%26s_it%3Dse archtabs%26oreq%3Df502a567ffc243e5b37fbe3f1ca1ee48 %26oreq%3D1eae376cf9a24882b2e2d6fe5f5781b9&imgHeight=350&imgWidth=500&imgTitle=George+Carlin+9%2F6%2F75&imgSize=56789&hostName=www.flickr.com)

[StillettoDoll]

Unique needs no modifer. very inique, quite unique, more unique, real unique, fairly unique and extremely unique are wrong, and they mark you as dumb. Although certainly not unique.

http://images-partners-tbn.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTsCEBe6Hq3FWDIwIRE0gmp292SfJTED 8fvLEQ7FCaJNnAvMKCtfYl1lw:thumbs1.ebaystatic.com/m/mJbi1fLjhSnHN46CBMV9O6A/140.jpg (http://search.aol.com/aol/imageDetails?s_it=imageDetails&q=george+carlin+cartoon&img=http%3A%2F%2Fthumbs1.ebaystatic.com%2Fm%2FmJbi 1fLjhSnHN46CBMV9O6A%2F140.jpg&v_t=keyword_rollover&host=http%3A%2F%2Fstores.ebay.com%2FCelebrity-Caricatures&width=72&height=93&thumbUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fimages-partners-tbn.google.com%2Fimages%3Fq%3Dtbn%3AANd9GcTsCEBe6H q3FWDIwIRE0gmp292SfJTED8fvLEQ7FCaJNnAvMKCtfYl1lw%3 Athumbs1.ebaystatic.com%2Fm%2FmJbi1fLjhSnHN46CBMV9 O6A%2F140.jpg&b=image%3Fimgc%3D%26v_t%3Dkeyword_rollover%26q%3Dg eorge%2Bcarlin%2Bcartoon%26s_it%3Dtopsearchbox.ima ge%26imgtype%3D%26imgsz%3D%26page%3D2%26oreq%3D8d3 9da823d334e359b8405363d21caec%26count_override%3D1 8%26oreq%3Dc69015f965584cad8bbb26d895b144af&imgHeight=140&imgWidth=109&imgTitle=George+Carlin+Picture%2C+poster%2C&imgSize=12145&hostName=stores.ebay.com)

[Jesse]

I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do. ~Edward Everett Hale

[Jesse]

Modern technology
Owes ecology
An apology.
~Alan M. Eddison

[violaine]

A garden is a grand teacher. It teaches patience and careful watchfulness; it teaches industry and thrift; above all it teaches entire trust.


--Gertrude Jekyll

[Jesse]

We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect. ~Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac

[Jesse]

The use of solar energy has not been opened up because the oil industry does not own the sun. ~Ralph Nader, quoted in Linda Botts, ed., Loose Talk, 1980

[Duchess]

"In a time of universal deceit - telling the truth is a revolutionary act."(f)
George Orwell (http://www.butchfemmeplanet.com/quote/492787)

[Diva]

Tell me, what will you do with your one wild and precious life?

~Mary Oliver

[JakeTulane]

"As we grow up, we learn that even the one person that wasn't supposed to ever let us down, probably will. You'll have your heart broken and you'll break others' hearts. You'll fight with your best friend or maybe even fall in love with them, and you'll cry because time is flying by. So take too many pictures, laugh too much, forgive freely, and love like you've never been hurt. Life comes with no guarantees, no time outs, no second chances. you just have to live life to the fullest, tell someone what they mean to you and tell someone off, speak out, dance in the pouring rain, hold someone's hand, comfort a friend, fall asleep watching the sun come up, stay up late, be a flirt, and smile until your face hurts. Don't be afraid to take chances or fall in love and most of all, live in the moment because every second you spend angry or upset is a second of happiness you can never get back." - Unknown

[JakeTulane]

"The real art of conversation is not only to say the right thing at the right time, but also to leave unsaid the wrong thing at the tempting moment." - Unknown

[JakeTulane]

“To love is to risk not being loved in return. To hope is to risk pain. To try is to risk failure, but risk must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing." - Anonymous

[Arwen]

We'd finally discovered that season of love. It is only found in someone else's heart. Right now someone you know is looking everywhere for it and it's in your heart. (the closing line from Peyton Place)

[Mr.Nobody]

What you do speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you say. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

[Butterbean]

In the night of death, hope sees a star, and listening love can hear the rustle of a wing.

~Robert Ingersoll

[DamselFly]

our fingerprints never disappear from those whose lives we have touched....
namaste,
DamselFly :moonstars:

[DamselFly]

if i could tell you

time will say nothing but i told you so
time only knows the price we have to pay
if i could tell you i would let you know

if we should weep when clowns put on their show
if we should stumble when musicians play
time when say nothing but i told you so

there are no fortunes to be told, although,
because i love you more than i can say
if i could tell you, i would let you know.

W.H. Auden

[Nat]

"Whatsoever therefore is consequent to a time of Warre, where every man is Enemy to every man; the same is consequent to the time, wherein men live without other security, than what their own strength, and their own invention shall furnish them withall. In such condition, there is no place for Industry; because the fruit thereof is uncertain; and consequently no Culture of the Earth; no Navigation, nor use of the commodities that may be imported by Sea; no commodious Building; no Instruments of moving, and removing such things as require much force; no Knowledge of the face of the Earth; no account of Time; no Arts; no Letters; no Society; and which is worst of all, continuall feare, and danger of violent death; And the life of man, solitary, poore, nasty, brutish, and short."

(Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan)

[Jesse]

Go often to the house of your friend, for weeds soon choke up the unused path.- Old Scandinavian proverb

[Jesse]

The glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, nor the kindly smile nor the joy of companionship; it is the spiritual inspiration that comes to one when he discovers that someone else believes in him and is willing to trust him.- Ralph Waldo Emerson

[Arwen]

No one imagines that symphony is supposed to improve as it goes along, or that the whole object of playing is to reach the finale. The point of music is discovered in every moment of playing and listening to it. It is the same, I feel, with the greater part of our lives, and if we are unduly absorbed in improving them we may forget altogether to live them. -Alan Watts, philosopher, writer, and speaker (1915-1973)

[purepisces]

Your work is to discover your world and then with all your heart give yourself to it. ~ Buddha

[purepisces]

When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you. ~ Lao Tzu

[purepisces]

In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect. Trees can be contorted, bent in weird ways, and they’re still beautiful.
~ Alice Walker

[JakeTulane]

"Oh, the comfort - the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person - having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all right out, just as they are, chaff and grain together; certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and then with the breath of kindness blow the rest away." ~Dinah Craik

[JakeTulane]

"Sticks and stones are hard on bones
Aimed with angry art,
Words can sting like anything
But silence breaks the heart."
~Phyllis McGinley, "Ballade of Lost Objects," 1954

[JakeTulane]

"You can kiss your family and friends good-bye and put miles between you, but at the same time you carry them with you in your heart, your mind, your stomach, because you do not just live in a world but a world lives in you." ~Frederick Buechner

[Janstevie]

My girlfriends got a stalker, well she does'nt know she's my girlfriend yet.

[nycfem]

Bein' Green by Sesame Street/Kermit the Frog

"It's not that easy bein' green
Having to spend each day the color of the leaves
When I think it could be nicer being red or yellow or gold
Or something much more colorful like that

It's not easy bein' green
It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary things
And people tend to pass you over 'cause you're
Not standing out like flashy sparkles in the water
Or stars in the sky

But green's the color of Spring
And green can be cool and friendly-like
And green can be big like an ocean
Or important like a mountain
Or tall like a tree

When green is all there is to be
It could make you wonder why
But why wonder, why wonder?
I am green and it'll do fine
It's beautiful!
And I think it's what I want to be"

[nycfem]

"Loneliness is the human condition. Cultivate it.The way it tunnels into you allows your soul room to grow. Never expect to outgrow loneliness. Never hope to find people who will understand you, someone to fill that space...If you expect to find people who will understand you, you will grow murderous with disappointment. The best you'll ever do is to understand yourself, know what it is that you want, and not let the cattle stand in your way"

Janet Fitch, from "While Oleander"

[nycfem]

“Every act of conscious learning requires the willingness to suffer an injury to one's self-esteem. That is why young children, before they are aware of their own self-importance, learn so easily...”
Thomas S. Szasz

[nycfem]

"There is a certain relief in change, even though it be from bad to worse! As I have often found in travelling in a stagecoach, that it is often a comfort to shift one's position, and be bruised in a new place." ~Washington Irving

[Diva]

We should do everything we can to gain a delight and joy in our society with all the available parts of the palette.

~Minoru Yamasaki

[Diva]

He who hesitates is a damned fool.

~Mae West

[Diva]

Love shall be our token; love be yours and love be mine.

~Christina Rossetti

[Glenn]

Talking about the evils of gossip, Master Yukteswar use to say:
"If it isn't something I may tell everybody, I don't want to hear it."

[Ms. Meander]

My own brain is to me the most unaccountable of machinery - always buzzing, humming, soaring roaring diving, and then buried in mud. And why? What's this passion for?
- Virginia Woolf

[Tommi]

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
Albert Einstein
:pile:

[JakeTulane]

"Time heals griefs and quarrels, for we change and are no longer the same persons." ~ Pascal

[JakeTulane]

“Accept fate, and move on. Don't yield to the seductive pull of self-pity. Acting like a victim threatens your future.” - Unknown

[JakeTulane]

“Scar tissue is stronger than regular tissue. Realize the strength, move on.” - Henry Rollins

[Tommi]

"I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink, but he whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles unto death."

Thomas Paine

[Arwen]

He who wants to do good knocks at the gate; he who loves finds the gate open. Rabindranath Tagore

[Ms. Tabitha]

"The difference between school and life? In school, you're taught a lesson and then given a test. In life, you're given a test that teaches you a lesson" ~ Tom Bodett

(f)

[Jesse]

If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters. ~Alan Simpson

[Jesse]

Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything simply because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it. ~Buddha

[Ms. Tabitha]

“Imagine”
~ John Lennon

[Ms. Tabitha]

“When you can’t change the direction of the wind - adjust your sails.”
~ H. Jackson Brown

[Ms. Tabitha]

"Never look down on anybody unless you're helping him up"
~ Anonymous

[UofMfan]

"No pretendas ser bravo cuando basta ser inteligente." ~ Paulo Coelho

[Mr.Nobody]

....Ain't good lookin', but you know I ain't shy...ain't afraid to look a girl in the eye...

Bob Seger

[Butterbean]

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. "Pooh!" he whispered. "Yes, Piglet?" "Nothing," said Piglet, taking Pooh's paw. "I just wanted to be sure of you."

~A.A. Milne

[Butterbean]

When we honestly ask ourselves which person in our lives mean the most to us, we often find that it is those who, instead of giving advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a warm and tender hand. The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing and face with us the reality of our powerlessness, that is a friend who cares.

~Henri Nouwen

[Duchess]

"I suppose everyone tells little white lies. Quite often they're necessary to make someone feel better or prevent feelings from being hurt. Whoppers? No, that's dangerous and they'll boomerang.":|
Richard Chamberlain (http://www.butchfemmeplanet.com/quote/788086)

[wolfbittenpoet]

"I am a rare species not a sterotype." Ivan E Coyote

[CrankyOldGuy]

All beings tremble before violence.
All fear death, all love life.
See yourself in others.
Then whom can you hurt?
What harm can you do?
- Buddha

[Ms. Meander]

I wonder if being sane means disregarding the chaos that is life, pretending only an infinitesimal segment of it is reality.
- Rabih Alameddine

[JakeTulane]

"There are two kinds of sparks, the one that goes off with a hitch like a match, but it burns quickly. The other is the kind that needs time, but when the flame strikes... it's eternal, don't forget that." - Timothy Oliveira

[JakeTulane]

"Sometimes it's a form of love just to talk to somebody that you have nothing in common with and still be fascinated by their presence." - David Byrne

[JakeTulane]

“A friend is someone who helps you up when you're down, and if they can't, they lay down beside you and listen.” - Unknown

[The_Lady_Snow]

Believe you can, and you're halfway there.

[Diva]

One problem with gazing too frequently into the past is that we may turn around to find the future has run out on us.

~Michael Cibenko

[Ms. Tabitha]

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage" ~ Lao Tzu

[Mr.Nobody]

In what you say of another, apply the test of kindness, necessity and truth, and let nothing pass your lips without a 2/3 majority. ~Liz Armbruster

[Goo]

They do not love that do not show their love. The course of true love never did run smooth. Love is a familiar. Love is a devil. There is no evil angel but Love.
William Shakespeare

[always2late]

To find a fault is easy; to do better may be difficult. - Plutarch

[Diva]

I can't wait all my life
On a street of broken dreams.

~Journey, "It Could Have Been You"

[Ms. Tabitha]

“Sometimes in life there really are bonds formed that can never be broken. Sometimes, you really can find that one person who will stand by you no matter what.
Maybe you will find it in a spouse and celebrate it with your dream wedding. But there's also the chance that there's one person you can count on for a lifetime, the one person who knows you sometimes better than you know yourself is the same person who’s been standing beside you all along.” ~ Movie quote from Bride Wars

[Duchess]

"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion."(f)
Dalai Lama (http://www.butchfemmeplanet.com/quote/3758)

[Diva]

Nothing is worth more than this day.

~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

[Diva]

You have to wake up a virgin each morning.

~Jean-Louis Barrault

[Ms. Meander]

He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.
- Friedrich Nietzsche

[Elijah]

Nothing is permanent in this wicked world, not even our troubles.

~Charles Chaplin

[wolfbittenpoet]

"I think most people... would be glad to pay the same taxes they paid when Bill Clinton was president, if only they could have the same economy they had when Bill Clinton was president."-Howard Dean

[Mr.Nobody]

By swallowing evil words unsaid, no one has ever harmed his stomach. ~Winston Churchill

[The_Lady_Snow]

My strength lies solely in my tenacity.

[DamselFly]

everything you can imagine is real.
-pablo picasso

[Daywalker]

‎"...your eyes have to leak every now and then, no matter who you are. Otherwise you'll just get bloated. You don't wanna be bloated full of salty tears, do you?" ~ DW ~


:weedsmoke:

:daywalker:

[DamselFly]

you must be a lotus, unfolding petals when the sun rises in the sky, unaffected by the slush where it was born, or even the water.
sai baba

[DamselFly]

good for the body is the work of the body, good for the soul is the work of the soul, and good for either the work of the other.
-henry david thoreau

[Janstevie]

I woke up last night to find the ghost of Gloria Gaynor standing at the foot of my bed. At first I was afraid.......then I was petrified.

[JakeTulane]

“The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are.” - Anonymous

[JakeTulane]

Vitality shows in not only the ability to persist but the ability to start over.” - F. Scott Fitzgerald

[JakeTulane]

“Daring ideas are like chessmen moved forward. They may be beaten, but they may start a winning game.” - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

[StillettoDoll]

She said . " The world you see outside of you is a reflection of what you have inside of you . If you are one of these people who only sees problems or darkness or despair, that is all there is ever going to be. But if you are one of those people who see hope , opportunity and love then you can make a change and help me"

Virginia Jones , Tenant leader Newark public housing project

[StillettoDoll]

Why do I still live here, Cory? Why do I stay? Because I am in charge of homeland security."

Virginia Jones , Tenant leader Newark public housing project
http://mi-cache.legacy.com/legacy/images/Cobrands/StarLedger/Photos/objt0130vjones82_20110130.jpg

[always2late]

Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first, the lesson afterward. - Vernon Law

[Fancy]

When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.

Ansel Adams

[dixie]

I became insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity. ~ Edgar Allan Poe


Dreams permit each and every one of us to be quietly and safely insane every night of our lives. ~ William Dement

[Fancy]

“People who live in the past generally are afraid to compete in the present. I've got my faults, but living in the past is not one of them. There's no future in it.”
-Sparky Anderson

[jenny]

“Never try to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and it annoys the pig.” ~ Robert Heinlein

[Diva]

The world always looks brighter from behind a smile.

~Author Unknown

[Mister Bent]

"Monsters are interesting, the places you must go and the things you must see."

- Bugs Bunny

[femmedyke]

"I hunger for your sleek laugh and your hands the color of a furious harvest. I want to eat the sunbeams flaring in your beauty." ~Neruda

[The_Lady_Snow]

The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.*

[JakeTulane]

"Love cannot endure indifference. It needs to be wanted. Like a lamp, it needs to be fed out of the oil of another's heart, or its flame burns low." - Henry Ward Beecher

[JakeTulane]

"You'll discover that real love is millions of miles past falling in love with anyone or anything. When you make that one effort to feel compassion instead of blame or self-blame, the heart opens again and continues opening" - Sara Paddison

[JakeTulane]

"Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love." - Hamilton Wright Mabie

[Diva]

Don't be yourself - be someone a little nicer.

~Mignon McLaughlin, The Second Neurotic's Notebook, 1966

[Diva]

When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admire kind people.

~Abraham Joshua Heschel

[Rook]

{Don't care what some people say, I love this movie. heh heh}

Herger the Joyous: [Speaks Greek]
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: What did he say?
Melchisidek: "Hurry to meet Death before your place is taken."
[Fahdlan rides off]
Melchisidek: We will remember you. Go with God.
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: [Whimpers, looks skyward] You listening?

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Skeld the Superstitious: Blow-hards the both of you. She probably was some smoke-colored camp girl. Looked like that one's mother.
[laughter]
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: My mother was a pure woman from a noble family. And I, at least, know who my father is, you pig-eating son of a whore!
Herger the Joyous: Where did you learn our language?
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: I listened!

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

[Ahmad Ibn Fahdlan shows off his new scimitar, whittled down from a Viking claymore sword.]

Skeld the Superstitious: [Skeld shrugs] He insisted.
Weath the Musician: Give an Arab a sword, he makes a knife.
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: [Ahmad cuts through a thick wooden pole in one chop]
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: It works.
[He tosses it into the air, twirls it around, then holds the blade to Weath's neck]
Weath the Musician: When you die, can I give that to me daughter? [snickering]

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

[Olga inspects Ibn's wound]
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: Ow!
Olga: That's a woman's sound.
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: Do that again and you'll make it.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

{I still mumble this one to myself @ Loved ones funeral...corny, but comforting}

Buliwyf: 'Lo, there do I see my father. 'Lo, there do I see...
Herger the Joyous: My mother, and my sisters, and my brothers.
Buliwyf: 'Lo, there do I see...
Herger the Joyous: The line of my people...
Edgtho the Silent: Back to the beginning.
Weath the Musician: 'Lo, they do call to me.
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: They bid me take my place among them.
Buliwyf: Iin the halls of Valhalla...
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: Where the brave...
Herger the Joyous: May live...
Ahmed Ibn Fahdlan: ...forever.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

[The_Lady_Snow]

The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.

[Fancy]

INSTALLING SPRING...
███████████████░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░ 44% DONE.
Install delayed....please wait.
Installation failed. Please try again.
404 error: Season not found. Season "Spring" cannot be located. The season you are looking for might have been removed, had its name changed, or is temporarily unavailable.

[Arwen]

The notion of making money by popular work, and then retiring to do good work, is the most familiar of all the devil's traps for artists. -Logan Pearsall Smith, essayist (1865-1946)

[Ms. Tabitha]

Happiness consists of three things; Someone to love, work to do, and a clear conscience. ~ Unknown Source

(f)

[Ms. Meander]

I think you have to know who you are. Get to know the monster that lives in your soul, dive deep into your soul and explore it.
- Tori Amos

[Butterbean]

They've got us surrounded again, the poor bastards.

~Creighton W. Abrams

[JakeTulane]

"To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting." ~e.e. cummings

[JakeTulane]

"All my life I had been looking for something, and everywhere I turned someone tried to tell me what it was. I accepted their answers too, though they were often in contradiction and even self-contradictory. I was naïve. I was looking for myself and asking everyone except myself questions which I, and only I, could answer. It took me a long time and much painful boomeranging of my expectations to achieve a realization everyone else appears to have been born with: that I am nobody but myself." ~Ralph Ellison

[JakeTulane]

"At bottom every man knows well enough that he is a unique being, only once on this earth; and by no extraordinary chance will such a marvelously picturesque piece of diversity in unity as he is, ever be put together a second time." ~Friedrich Nietzsche

[Mr.Nobody]

Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength. ~Eric Hoffer

[Mr.Nobody]

Fall seven times, stand up eight. ~Japanese Proverb

[Diva]

Cynicism is humor in ill health.

~H. G. Wells

[Nat]

Are you interested in knowing another person's point of view?

The feeling part - feeling other people's feelings or having a resonance in your body with what's going on with them - maybe there's not we can do about that. It either happens or it doesn't happen if we're open for it.

But to use our imagination and our thinking, that's something we have some choice over. So if you find yourself in a difficult situation with other people, a difficult interpersonal situation, from what perspective do you look at the difficulty?

One of the perspectives to bring into this situation is, "What is it like for that person? How is it for them to be in this conflict? How is it for them to be struggling? What's going on for them in their life that they are so angry? Let me take a moment here to try to understand the background of their situation - they are afraid. What happened in their life that they are so afraid?
That's a choice - to take time to think and reflect what perspective - what's the bigger picture - that this person is operating under, as opposed to retaining only the perspective of "This person's had an impact on ME, and this is the impact it's had on ME, and this person better understand MY perspective and ME history and what happened to ME in my life - and I'm going to tell them."

- Gil Fronsdal

[Soon]

"Nothing is easier than solving a problem on the backs of people who are poor, or people who are powerless, or don't have lobbyists, or don't have clout," Obama said.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/20/obama-debt-reduction-plan_n_851374.html

[Ms. Tabitha]

"The thing that counts most in the pursuit of happiness is choosing the right companion" ~ Frédérick Jézégou

[Ms. Tabitha]

" Do not confuse your rank with my authority!"
~ Me, to my son :phonegab:

[Mr.Nobody]

....whenever you are in conflict with someone, there is one factor that can make the difference between damaging your relationship or deepening it....that factor would be attitude...

[Ms. Tabitha]

"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." ~ Dr. Seuss

[Ms. Tabitha]

"If ever there is tomorrow when we're not together, there is something you must always remember.
You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.
But the most important thing is, even if we're apart, I'll always be with you." - Winnie the Pooh

[Mr.Nobody]

....funny..how a little fence, becomes a wall...before we even know it happened. how we post guards, always at the ready, to defend a broken heart and we entrust the key to a jaded past...and then it never ceases to amaze me...the power of a sweet babygrrl...to loose those stones...one by one...until all she has to do...to be home...is step over a little fence....

Me

[nycfem]

I can never hear this one enough :)

"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." ~ Dr. Seuss

[hpychick]

I haven't been the same since that house fell on my sister. :twitch:

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kqclxwvD4N1qzdvhio1_500.jpg

[Nat]

Nothing is easier than solving a problem on the backs of people who are poor or people who are are powerless or who don't have a lobbyist or don't have clout. I don't think that's particularly courageous.

- Obama, April 2011

[Joectigger]

"The very notion of out butching one another and competing for masculine validation intersects with complicated relationships, sex roles, friendships, and internalized sexism in a way that must be addressed directly. Lets put our fists down, and look eye to eye to those we are separating ourselves from so that we can collaborate in our fight for justice."

- Jessica Pettitt, Keynote Speaker -BUTCH Voices Dallas 2010

[femmedyke]

Loss as muse. Loss as character. Loss as life. ~Anna Quindlen

[femmedyke]

"Have you ever thought, when something dreadful happens, a moment ago things were not like this; let it be then not now, anything but now? And you try and try to remake then, but you know you can't . So you try to hold the moment quite still and not let it move on and show itself." ~ Mary Stewart

[JakeTulane]

"Even if happiness forgets you a little bit, never completely forget about it." ~Jacques Prévert

[Arwen]

Catch-and-release, that's like running down pedestrians in your car and then, when they get up and limp away, saying -- Off you go! That's fine. I just wanted to see if I could hit you. -Ellen DeGeneres, comedian, television host, and actress (b. 1958)

[JakeTulane]

"Happiness is always a by-product. It is probably a matter of temperament, and for anything I know it may be glandular. But it is not something that can be demanded from life, and if you are not happy you had better stop worrying about it and see what treasures you can pluck from your own brand of unhappiness." ~Robertson Davies

[JakeTulane]

"Often people attempt to live their lives backwards; they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want, so they will be happier. The way it actually works is the reverse. You must first be who you really are, then do what you need to do, in order to have what you want." ~Margaret Young

[Blade]

" The act of forgiveness is tough but it is the only way to forge ahead into blessings."

[purepisces]

Enjoy when you can, and endure when you must. ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

[purepisces]

When I do good, I feel good. When I do bad, I feel bad. That’s my religion. ~ Abraham Lincoln

[Nat]

God Says Yes To Me

Kaylin Haught

I asked God if it was okay to be melodramatic
and she said yes
I asked her if it was okay to be short
and she said it sure is
I asked her if I could wear nail polish
or not wear nail polish
and she said honey
she calls me that sometimes
she said you can do just exactly
what you want to
Thanks God I said
And is it even okay if I don't paragraph
my letters
Sweetcakes God said
who knows where she picked that up
what I'm telling you is
Yes Yes Yes

[JustJ]

No one can go back and make a brand new start. Anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending. - Carl Bard

[Diva]

Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.

~Oprah Winfrey

[Tommi]

No pain, no palm; no thorns, no throne; no gall, no glory; no cross, no crown.

~~ William Penn

[Miss Scarlett]

His Holiness the Dalai Lama:

If we live our lives continually motivated by anger and hatred, even our physical health deteriorates.

Anger or hatred is like a fisherman's hook. It is very important for us to ensure that we are not caught by it.

Even in the case of individuals, there is no possibility to feel happiness through anger. If in a difficult situation one becomes disturbed internally, overwhelmed by mental discomfort, then external things will not help at all. However, if despite external difficulties or problems, internally one's attitude is of love, warmth, and kindheartedness, then problems can be faced and accepted.

We also often add to our pain and suffering by being overly sensitive, over-reacting to minor things, and sometimes taking things too personally.

Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.

[purepisces]

If you surrender completely to the moments as they pass, you live more richly those moments. ~ Anne Morrow Lindbergh

[JakeTulane]

"Observe always that everything is the result of change, and get used to thinking that there is nothing Nature loves so well as to change existing forms and make new ones like them." - Marcus Aurelius

[JakeTulane]

"You cannot hope to build a better world without improving the individuals. To that end each of us must work for his own improvement, and at the same time share a general responsibility for all humanity, our particular duty being to aid those to whom we think we can be most useful." - Marie Curie

[JakeTulane]

"Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections but instantly set about remedying them -- every day begin the task anew." - Saint Francis de Sales

[Butterbean]

Love is not the dying moan of a distant violin - it's the triumphant twang of a bedspring.

~S.J. Perelman

[purepisces]

Creativity occurs in the moment, and in the moment we are timeless. ~ Julia Cameron

[Mr.Nobody]

Never explain. Your friends do not need it and your enemies will not believe it anyway. ~Elbert Hubbard

[Mr.Nobody]

It's not who you are that holds you back, it's who you think you're not. ~Author Unknown

[little_ms_sunshyne]

If I should die this very moment, I wouldn't fear.
For I've never known completeness like being here,
wrapped in the warmth of you, loving every breath of you.

- Moulin Rouge

[justkim]

"Don't cry for a man who's left you. The next one may fall for your smile."
--Mae West --

[wolfbittenpoet]

"It does not require many words to speak the truth."-Chief Joseph

[wolfbittenpoet]

"Courage is knowing what not to fear." -Plato

[Jesse]

"The finest qualities of our nature, like the bloom on fruits, can be preserved only by the most delicate handling. Yet we do not treat ourselves nor one another thus tenderly." - Walden (http://thoreau.eserver.org/walden1a.html)

[Diva]

Assumption is the mother of the screw-up.

~Angelo Donghia

[Diva]

"When you're screwing up and nobody says anything to you anymore, that means they've given up on you."

That lesson has stuck with me my whole life. When you see yourself doing something badly and nobody's bothering to tell you anymore, that's a bad place to be. You may not want to hear it, but your critics are often the ones telling you they still love you and care about you, and want to make you better.

~Randy Pausch, from "The Last Lecture"

[StillettoDoll]

Tomb, thou shalt not hold Him longer;
Death is strong, but Life is stronger,
Stronger than the dark, the light,
Stronger than the wrong, the right,
Faith and Hope triumphant say
Christ will rise on Easter Day.

While the patient earth lies waking
Till the morning shall be breaking,
Shuddering 'neath the burden dread
of her Master, cold and dead ---
Hark! she hears the Angels say
Christ will rise on Easter Day.

Up and down our lives obedient
Walk dear Christ, with footsteps radiant,
Till those garden lives shall be
Fair with duties done for Thee
And our thankful spirits say,
Christ arose on Easter Day.

And when sunrise smites the mountains,
Pouring light fom Heavenly fountains.
Then the earth blooms out to greet
Once again the blessed feet;
And her countless voices say
Christ has risen on Easter Day.

http://images-partners-tbn.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTzc6qs4w-cjkBN4zxoEHA5lf_HTCZKTBC8ryzf0wP1Oge3Ncpd_mkiODY2: richmondmom.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/happy-easter.jpg (http://search.aol.com/aol/imageDetails?s_it=imageDetails&q=easter&img=http%3A%2F%2Frichmondmom.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2011%2F04%2Fhappy-easter.jpg&v_t=keyword_rollover&host=http%3A%2F%2Frichmondmom.com%2F2011%2F04%2F16 %2F6197%2Fhappy-easter%2F&width=149&height=150&thumbUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fimages-partners-tbn.google.com%2Fimages%3Fq%3Dtbn%3AANd9GcTzc6qs4w-cjkBN4zxoEHA5lf_HTCZKTBC8ryzf0wP1Oge3Ncpd_mkiODY2% 3Arichmondmom.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2011%2F04%2Fhappy-easter.jpg&b=image%3Fpage%3D1%26v_t%3Dkeyword_rollover%26q%3D easter%26count_override%3D18%26s_it%3Dsearchtabs%2 6oreq%3Da78c98e942a64faeb16f82f9a4363a65%26oreq%3D 31dac93014b9473c807125707c30b637&imgHeight=1600&imgWidth=1586&imgTitle=What+Does+Easter+Mean+to+You%3F&imgSize=406546&hostName=richmondmom.com)

[Tcountry]

"Find a guy who calls you beautiful instead of hot, who calls you back when you hang up on him, who will lie under the stars and listen to your heartbeat, or will stay awake just to watch you sleep... wait for the boy who kisses your forehead, who wants to show you off to the world when you are in sweats, who holds your hand in front of his friends, who thinks you' re just as pretty without makeup on. One who is constantly reminding you of how much he cares and how lucky he is to have YOU... The one who turns to his friends and says, thats her... "

[Kätzchen]

"The prerequisite to making love is to
like someone enormously,"

~ Helen Gurley Brown

http://podlogs.com/skywalker/files/2009/08/Infinity1_by_aquachild-vi-300x187.jpg

[MissItalianDiva]

"You are what you don't shit"

~~~~Wavy Gravy

[MissItalianDiva]

It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.

~~Aristotle

[JakeTulane]

"I have learned not to worry about love; But to honor its coming with all my heart." - Alice Walker

[JakeTulane]

"Accept the things to which fate binds you, and love the people with whom fate brings you together, but do so with all your heart." - Marcus Aurelius

[JakeTulane]

"For true love is inexhaustible; the more you give, the more you have. And if you go to draw at the true fountainhead, the more water you draw, the more abundant is its flow." - Antoine de Saint-Exupery

[Ms. Tabitha]

"I believe in pink.
I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner.
I believe in kissing, kissing a lot.
I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong.
I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls.
I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles."
~ Audrey Hepburn

[Ms. Tabitha]

"For Attractive lips, speak words of kindness.
 For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.
 For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.
 For beautiful hair, let a child run their fingers through it once a day.
 For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone.
 People, more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed, and redeemed.
Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one at the end of each of your arms.
 As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself and the other for helping others."
~Audrey Hepburn

[Butterbean]

'Twas Easter-Sunday. The full-blossomed trees
Filled all the air with fragrance and with joy.

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

[justkim]

Fall in love or fall in hate ~
Get inspired or be depressed ~
Ace a test or flunk a class ~
Make babies or make art ~
Speak the truth or lie and cheat ~
Dance on tables or sit in the corner ~
Life is divine chaos ~
Embrace it ~
Forgive yourself ~
Breathe ~
And enjoy the ride ~

~ Solbeam ~

[CrankyOldGuy]

"Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket." - Easter Bunny

[JakeTulane]

"To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive, and the true success is to labor." - Robert Louis Stevenson

[JakeTulane]

"Our life is an endless journey; it is like a broad highway that extends infinitely into the distance. The practice of meditation provides a vehicle to travel on that road. Our journey consists of constant ups and downs ..."- Chogyam Trungpa

[JakeTulane]

"Every day you may make progress. Every step may be fruitful. Yet there will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path. You know you will never get to the end of the journey. But this, so far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb." - Sir Winston Churchill

[JakeTulane]

"Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

[kannon]

Lights such as love require more faith than fuel.
Of all leaps, the most dangerous is into the mind of your lover.
Regarding miracles: What is less explicable than
Remaining in love through the long icy anguish of anger?
All lovers long for freedom only slightly less than they fear it.
In the end, love burns not desire but fear.
Not one of us would be capable of keeping the fire burning
Except for the knowledge that it is the sweetest, best, and most
beautiful thing in our lives.

Dimitri Shostakovich

[The_Lady_Snow]

God is a comedian playing to an audience that is afraid to laugh.

[nycfem]

"Everything happens for a reason, and the reason is God needs a good laugh."

God is a comedian playing to an audience that is afraid to laugh.

[Diva]

A happy life is one spent in learning, earning, and yearning.

~Lillian Gish

[wolfbittenpoet]

"If you are a dreamer, come in. If you are a dreamer, a wisher, a liar, a hoper, a prayer, a magicbean buyer. If you're a pretender, come sit by my fire, for we have some flax-golden tales to spin. Come in! Come in!" -Shel Silverstein

[wolfbittenpoet]

"This is the way the world ends. Not with a bang but with a whimper." -T.S. Eliot

[Duchess]

"Life is too short to have anything but delusional notions about yourself."(f)
Gene Simmons (http://www.butchfemmeplanet.com/quote/152968)

[hpychick]

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

[Duchess]

"To me, horror is when I see somebody lying. I mean a person I know. A friend. And he's telling me something that I accept. And then suddenly, as he or she is telling it, there's something that gives them away. They're not telling me the truth."(f)
Jonathan Frid (http://www.butchfemmeplanet.com/quote/1415763)

[wolfbittenpoet]

"Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently. They’re not fond of rules, and they have no respect for the status quo. You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as “crazy,” we see genius. Because the people who are “crazy” enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do." —Jack Kerouac

[always2late]

Aim for the moon...even if you miss you'll land amongst the stars.

[wolfbittenpoet]

"Every lover in his heart a madman and in his head a minstrel." -Neil Gaiman Stardust

[2myladyblue]

"The butch/femme dynamic is a conscious, loving binary of desire and trust; it's a dance of love and outlawed romance. Butches and femmes share a sense of tribe, extended family, and kinship--no matter what our genders might be." Auntie Kate! (Kate Bornstein)

[2myladyblue]

"When we define ourselves, when I define myself, the place in which I am like you and the place in which I am not like you, I'm not excluding you from the joining--I'm broadening the joining."

[2myladyblue]

"In choosing to look the way I do, I experience a privileged sort of femme invisibility, one that enables me to move through the straight world with relative ease...it seems to me that how femmes experience and respond to this kind of invisibility is as diverse as the range of femme identities. The corollary of femme invisibility is what I think of as strategic visibility, those moments in which we choose to out ourselves. Femmes are chameleons, able to blend in or stand up by standing out. We know when to make our colours burn bright for our chosen mates or as a way to disrupt someone's expectations about what a queer person looks like and when to match the wallpaper." The incredibly fabulous ZENA SHARMAN

[2myladyblue]

Riding in Your Sidekick

I slide my hand along your thighs
my fingers thrill
to the line of your boxers
under your levis
Suddenly you're standing beside me
near our bed
your T-shirt & boxers wet
with my cunt juice
& your delicious
I-got-what-I-wanted
grin
your hand patting my ass
which still
shivers

[JakeTulane]

"When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves." ~Victor Frankl

[JakeTulane]

"Without accepting the fact that everything changes, we cannot find perfect composure. But unfortunately, although it is true, it is difficult for us to accept it. Because we cannot accept the truth of transience, we suffer." ~Shunryu Suzuki

[JakeTulane]

"The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water, and breeds reptiles of the mind." ~William Blake

[Just_G]

"Like a double edged sword, your word can create the most beautiful dream, or it can destroy everything around you."
Don Miguel Ruiz

[Tommi]

Candle Hat


In most self-portraits it is the face that dominates:
Cezanne is a pair of eyes swimming in brushstrokes,
Van Gogh stares out of a halo of swirling darkness,
Rembrant looks relieved as if he were taking a breather
from painting The Blinding of Sampson.

But in this one Goya stands well back from the mirror
and is seen posed in the clutter of his studio
addressing a canvas tilted back on a tall easel.

He appears to be smiling out at us as if he knew
we would be amused by the extraordinary hat on his head
which is fitted around the brim with candle holders,
a device that allowed him to work into the night.

You can only wonder what it would be like
to be wearing such a chandelier on your head
as if you were a walking dining room or concert hall.

But once you see this hat there is no need to read
any biography of Goya or to memorize his dates.

To understand Goya you only have to imagine him
lighting the candles one by one, then placing
the hat on his head, ready for a night of work.

Imagine him surprising his wife with his new invention,
the laughing like a birthday cake when she saw the glow.

Imagine him flickering through the rooms of his house
with all the shadows flying across the walls.

Imagine a lost traveler knocking on his door
one dark night in the hill country of Spain.
"Come in, " he would say, "I was just painting myself,"
as he stood in the doorway holding up the wand of a brush,
illuminated in the blaze of his famous candle hat.

Billy Collins
2003

[Daywalker]

An arrogant heart knows no humility...nor nobility.

~ DW ~

:coffee:

:daywalker:

[Mr.Nobody]

When a man sends you an impudent letter, sit right down and give it back to him with interest ten times compounded, and then throw both letters in the wastebasket. ~Elbert Hubbard

[justkim]

- Life is a challenge, meet it! Life is a dream, realize it! Life is a game, play it! Life is Love, enjoy it! -
- Sri Sathya Sai Baba -
(RIP, November 23, 1926 – April 24, 2011)

[justkim]

- No one outside ourselves can rule us inwardly. When we know this, we become free. -
– Buddha -

[Butterbean]

Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing.


~Wernher Von Braun

[Mr.Nobody]

I don’t know how to save the world. I don’t have the answers or The Answer. I hold no secret knowledge as to how to fix the mistakes of generations past and present. I only know that without compassion and respect for all of Earth’s inhabitants, none of us will survive—nor will we deserve to"— Leonard Peltier

[Mr.Nobody]

Sacred Words Of Motherhood

I've carried children within my body. Slept with babies on my chest. I've kissed boo boos & mended broken hearts. I've been puked on, peed on, pooped on & spent sleepless nights in the rocking chair. But I wouldn't have it any other way. My body is far from magazine perfect, but when I look in the mirror I see a MOM, & there is no greater honor or blessing!!

Joslynn Lurie-Santa Cruz

[violaine]

Under der linden

an der heide,

dâ unser zweier bette was,

dâ mugt ir vinden

schône beide

gebrochen bluomen unde gras.

vor dem wald in einem tal,

tandaradei,

schône sanc diu nahtegal


--Walther von der Vogelweide (c. 1170–c. 1230)

[justkim]

- The truth is, we make a mistake when we think that generations can be separated. The truth is you need me so that I have shoulders you can stand on, and we need you because you have shoulders somebody else can stand on. We are one. -
- Maya Angelou -

[Kätzchen]

"There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are messengers of overwhelming grief . . . and unspeakable love,"

~ Washington Irving

[JakeTulane]

"It may be added, to prevent misunderstanding, that when I speak of contemplated objects in this last phrase as objects of contemplation, the act of contemplation itself is of course an enjoyment." - Samuel Alexander

[JakeTulane]

"Love involves a peculiar unfathomable combination of understanding and misunderstanding." -Diane Arbus

[JakeTulane]

"Where misunderstanding serves others as an advantage, one is helpless to make oneself understood." - Lionel Trilling

[wolfbittenpoet]

"Follow your inner moonlight; don't hide your madness." Allen Ginsberg

[Corkey]

I have seen the future, and they are us.
~~Me, after watching Stargate Universe last night.

[wolfbittenpoet]

1. Scribbled secret notebooks, and wild typewritten pages, for yr own joy
2. Submissive to everything, open, listening
3. Try never get drunk outside yr own house
4. Be in love with yr life
5. Something that you feel will find its own form
6. Be crazy dumbsaint of the mind
7. Blow as deep as you want to blow
8. Write what you want bottomless from bottom of the mind
9. The unspeakable visions of the individual
10. No time for poetry but exactly what is
11. Visionary tics shivering in the chest
12. In tranced fixation dreaming upon object before you
13. Remove literary, grammatical and syntactical inhibition
14. Like Proust be an old teahead of time
15. Telling the true story of the world in interior monolog
16. The jewel center of interest is the eye within the eye
17. Write in recollection and amazement for yourself
18. Work from pithy middle eye out, swimming in language sea
19. Accept loss forever
20. Believe in the holy contour of life
21. Struggle to sketch the flow that already exists intact in mind
22. Dont think of words when you stop but to see picture better
23. Keep track of every day the date emblazoned in yr morning
24. No fear or shame in the dignity of yr experience, language & knowledge
25. Write for the world to read and see yr exact pictures of it
26. Bookmovie is the movie in words, the visual American form
27. In praise of Character in the Bleak inhuman Loneliness
28. Composing wild, undisciplined, pure, coming in from under, crazier the better
29. You're a Genius all the time
30. Writer-Director of Earthly movies Sponsored & Angeled in Heaven

[Butterbean]

If there's a book you really want to read but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.

~Toni Morrison

[UofMfan]

"We can never judge the lives of others, because each person knows only their own pain and renunciation. It's one thing to feel that you are on the right path, but it's another to think that yours is the only path.” ~ Paulo Coelho

[justkim]

“The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water, and breeds reptiles of the mind.”
William Blake

[JakeTulane]

"It may be when we no longer know what to do, we have come to our real work, and that when we no longer know which way to go, we have begun our real journey." - Wendell Berry

[JakeTulane]

"It has never been, and never will be easy work! But the road that is built in hope is more pleasant to the traveler than the road built in despair, even though they both lead to the same destination." - Marion Zimmer Bradley

[JakeTulane]

"I believe that life is a journey, often difficult and sometimes incredibly cruel, but we are well equipped for it if only we tap into our talents and gifts and allow them to blossom." - Les Brown

[Fancy]

Just like the many colours of roses, we may be of different nationalities, ethnicities, religions or race. But no matter what colour a rose may be, it is still a rose, and likewise we are all human beings first.

- Sushil Koirala -

[JAGG]

"When you find yourself in a deep hole, stop digging."

[StillettoDoll]

We do not stop exercising because we grow old - we grow old because we stop exercising.
Dr. Kenneth Cooper, Cooper Institute

[StillettoDoll]

The bicycle is just as good company as most husbands and, when it gets old and shabby, a woman can dispose of it and get a new one without shocking the entire community.
~Ann Strong

[always2late]

The worst lies are the lies we tell ourselves. We live in denial of what we do, even what we think. We do this because we're afraid. ~ Richard Bach

[FlowerFem]

The worst lies are the lies we tell ourselves. We live in denial of what we do, even what we think. We do this because we're afraid. ~ Richard Bach

I love this.

[JakeTulane]

"Observe always that everything is the result of change, and get used to thinking that there is nothing Nature loves so well as to change existing forms and make new ones like them." - Marcus Aurelius

[JakeTulane]

"Poetry is not only dream and vision; it is the skeleton architecture of our lives. It lays the foundations for a future of change, a bridge across our fears of what has never been before." - Audre Lorde

[JakeTulane]

"You cannot hope to build a better world without improving the individuals. To that end each of us must work for his own improvement, and at the same time share a general responsibility for all humanity, our particular duty being to aid those to whom we think we can be most useful." - Marie Curie