The first recipe for happiness is: avoid too lengthy meditation on the past.

We owe to the Middle Ages the two worst inventions of humanity - romantic love and gunpowder.

Without a family, man, alone in the world, trembles with the cold.

We can talk frankly about our defects only to those who recognise our qualities.

An artist must be a reactionary. He has to stand out against the tenor of the age and not go flopping along.

A happy marriage is a long conversation which always seems too short.

A marriage without conflicts is almost as inconceivable as a nation without crises.

We appreciate frankness from those who like us. Frankness from others is called insolence.

Conversation would be vastly improved by the constant use of four simple words: I do not know.

A successful marriage is an edifice that must be rebuilt every day.

If you create an act, you create a habit. If you create a habit, you create a character. If you create a character, you create a destiny.

Writing is like breathing -- it is necessary for my survival.

Today is the first day of the rest of your life. The past is history. The future is mysterious. Then tomorrow—this starts all over again.

Writing a book is burning your brain to enlighten another man's mind

I'd like to think that on a lot of teams, I'd be a No.1. The thing I do know is that every time I take the mound, in my mind I'm the best pitcher in the league.

I spent my first 50 years trying to become known as a writer and the next 30 trying to avoid being famous. I walk down the street or go to a football game and people shout, 'Hey Andy'. I hate that.

In or orchestra we have many nationalities, types, and temperaments.

I like dogs. They give Mister something to snack on.

I believed in realism, as summarized by John McCarthy's comment to the effect that if we worked really hard, we'd have an intelligent system in from four to four hundred years.

You tried your best and you failed miserably. The lesson is 'never try.' Homer Simpson

I think Stieg Larsson was pretty brave. He wanted to bring up things that we don't like to talk about, or like to ignore.