Always prefer the plain direct word to the long, vague one.

You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.

Failures are finger posts on the road to achievement.

I know lots of people who are educated far beyond their intelligence.

It's difficult to think anything but pleasant thoughts while eating a homegrown tomato.

There's no such thing as being too Southern.

The game of life is a lot like football. You have to tackle your problems, block your fears, and score your points when you get the opportunity.

Baptists never make love standing up. They're afraid someone might see them and think they're dancing.

It's better to have died a small child than to be a politician who gets caught in a scandal during a slow news month.

You call to a dog and a dog will break its neck to get to you. Dogs just want to please. Call to a cat and its attitude is, 'What's in it for me?'

Instead of getting married again, I'm going to find a woman I don't like and give her a house.

The practice of love offers no place of safety. We risk loss, hurt, pain. We risk being acted upon by forces outside our control.

There is no gift of principles, you must apply them if you want to move forward.

Some books we read, tho' few there are that hit the happy point where wisdom joins with wit.

Often I'd take out my magnifying glass and stare into the chaos that was her face.

The real rulers in Washington are invisible, and exercise power from behind the scenes.

If I ever have a son, I would call him Frankie, and it's a family name - it's my dad and my dad's dad, so you know, it sticks. I won't forget it.

I've got a bit of an independent streak. I'm not afraid of bipartisan compromise on issues that are important to the nation.

Don't forget during the primary debates when Trump pointed at Carly Fiorina and said, "Look at that face, who would vote for her?" That tells you everything about him and what he cares about women.

The anger is useful too because when things about the world upset you, that is really a fertile feeling to channel into fiction and to put out into books.

I did a salad, but I didn't do a garden.