For a country boy, poor as I was, whose constant worry was to be able to have enough to eat, the Army guaranteed one's survival.

In general I love to eat anything. I enjoy anything that is well prepared, a good spaghetti, lasagna, taco, steak, sushi, refried beans.

I have a lot of cooking tools. In fact I have a whole drawer full of knives. Cooking tools, especially cutlery, are my toys.

Chinese culture has a lot of virtues that are tremendously valuable to not only us as Asian-Americans, but also the world in general.

People who don't travel cannot have a global view, all they see is what's in front of them. Those people cannot accept new things because all they know is where they live.

Why is America such a great country. It is because we stand united.

Possibly because I've lived so much of my life in difficult circumstances, I think I have a more profound understanding of life.

So when I do Chinese cooking, I mix everything together, then the kids have to eat their vegetables. They won't have the patience to pick them out.

I am also well aware that literature only has a minimal influence on political disputes or economic crises in the world, but its significance to human beings is ancient.

You can do almost anything with soup stock, it's like a strong foundation. When you have the right foundation, everything tastes good.

When someone forces me to do something I don't do it.

Whatever will be, will be, if and only if you let it be.

I've had so much stress in the last year so it's really a struggle. I never hide, when I walk down the street, someone's going to take my picture, that's what I look like.

In the compact between novelist and reader, the novelist promises to lie, and the reader promises to allow it.

Happiness is a choice. You have to choose it - and you have to fight for it.

Funny, how moms can tell you what to do no matter how old or big you are.

The greatest danger we face is not any particular kind of thought. The greatest danger we face is absence of thought.

Peace is not simply the absence of conflict, but the existence of justice for all people.

Obviously the Asian American community wants you to do well. They are cheering you on no matter what the circumstances.

Intemperance is the plaque of sensuality, and temperance is not its bane but its seasoning.

I love to walk in the forest and take my bike. I love to watch the little birdies. I'm a green person.