Id always been a big reader, and I loved books, and I always thought writing would be a great way to get by in the world.

Some people were born just so they could be buried.

If a person does this for just a couple of years and discovers that it just isn't for him, that's okay. At least he can move on knowing that he gave it his best shot.

Look, girls don't care how many push-ups you can do. They just want to get high and wear flowers in their hair. Maybe steal a car.

The Oxys filled holes in me I hadn't realized were empty. It was, at least for those first few months, a wonderful way to be disabled. I felt blessed.

I'm beginning to believe that anything I do to extend my life is just going to be outweighed by the agony of living it.

Though there are still many good people out there in the world, it seems that they're vastly outnumbered by the stupid, selfish, violent ones.

I spent thirty-two years in a paper mill in southern Ohio, and before that I worked in a meatpacking plant and a shoe factory.

A lot of people get the wrong impression, think there's something romantic or tragic about hitting bottom.

When I turned fifty, I decided to quit the mill and go to graduate school.

I sort of like writing about weird characters, I guess.

Ten minutes with a genuine friend is better than years spent with anyone less.

..The stuff you learn beforehand will never be one-tenth as useful as the stuff you learn the hard way, on the job.

I don't know any Baptists who don't want to see folks get saved… you start winning folks to the Lord and baptizing them… They'll pretty well put up were [your methods].

There is one thing that all true spirituality has in common, whether that spirituality is derived from faith, from science, from nature or from the arts - a sense of wonder.

Surround yourself with good people that keep you grounded, work hard, and be patient.

Sharing's only fun when it's not your stuff.

The ideal we serve and strive to attain could never be evolved from us were it not potentially involved in our nature.

Writing songs has a therapeutic effect, and it either kills off love or wins the heart of the lover.

Men in business are in as much danger from those at work under them as from those that work against them.

Knowledge is not power, it is only potential. Applying that knowledge is power. Understanding why and when to apply that knowledge is wisdom!