"I'm sorry ... What did you say? ... What did you say?" [Belligerently]

—Are you tired of helping people?

"Ten years from now ... Ricky Hart ... a floorwalker at Montaldo's."

—With a carpet bag with huge amounts of money.

"You know what?"

—Only what you've told me.

"Life is very lonely when you are always right."

—Just don't put a fountain in my back yard.

"Look what you did."

—The first time ... Design: Intelligence made visible ... You can do anything with your mind.

"There's nothing going on now, is there?"

—Working hard at nothing all day ... I'm self-employed.

"There's nothing to talk about."

—You know about the negative transference, huh?

"What have we learned?"

—I think for Christmas I'm going to get a train from Costco.

"Meaning?"

—Who knows? What I think is nothing ... You don't want to give people too many choices.

"Don't pick anybody up – It could be the lonely stranger who badly needs a friend."

—Joy: It's not a gift of god, it's something you can produce ... What is the pearl washed up on the ocean of existence? ... You don't guard against it ... You understand it ... Then it becomes a minor thing ... The cost of covering it up is a life ... You don't really do anything ... You allow the layers of your onion to fall off ... Until what's left is you ... You shouldn't make fun of someone ... No, I call myself a southern scoundrel ... Southern, right?

"I know the first thing you're going to do – You're going to try to ruin it."

—That'll keep me busy – looking, looking! – It's better to feel the trauma.

"Like what?"

—Once you know one, you know 'em all.

"So what's going on?"

—In Dead Horse, Alaska.

"I want you to play a great game of basketball, kid!"

—They have little power games they play to feel important.

"I am confident that I will get her votes if I am the nominee; it is not clear that she would get the votes I got, if she were the nominee." (–Barack Obama, referring to Hillary Clinton)

—The scoop on him is, he's a total liar, and he's a professional.

"Are you trying to be a talk-show host, or what?" [Student to Professor of Journalism]

—That's nothing! – In two years I'm going to enlist in the Israeli Army as a cross-eyed sniper.

"Professor Holmberg is a great editor." [Anonymous course evaluation]

—I never do things right the first time, but I do on the second, especially if it's pancakes!

"Nothing really matters to me."

—There are people who like to build castles in the air ... like where have all the holocausts gone?

"I know what's going on."

—Even when it's bad.

"I learned nothing from this class." [Anonymous course evaluation]

—You don't know what you're dealing with here – You think you're dealing with people of reason.

"I did not learn anything in this class besides a strong dislike of The N.Y. Times. There was no journalistic background taught." [Anonymous course evaluation]

—I wish everyone was like you – It's very good to have other things to do – even reading.

"Fuck you! I don't do what you tell me."

—I think that should be encouraged.

"Professor Holmberg is the worst professor I've had at N.Y.U." [Anonymous course evaluation]

—Nice atmosphere – Maybe a few more people will quit and we'll have peace and quiet around here.

[Tribal (and frightening) scream from a passing car]

—"Sometimes a scream is better than a thesis." —Ralph Waldo Emerson

"Surely a mumbled 'cockfarmer' is all that's needed in most situations?" [Link from ilXor.com]

—Real ones, too, believe me.

"What's going on?"

—Take time, or time will not be taken ... If you didn't spend so much time drinking, you would know.

"So how long is this construction supposed to go on?"

—There's just so much you can't keep up with.

"I love the quizzical look people give me: What the fuck are you talking about, Juda?"

—No one can see through another person's eyes.

"Have you really tried to look for a job? Where did you go?"

—How do you do? My name is Sebastian? [Claw] ... These people are not on the up-and-up ... They're biased.

"The postman always rings twice."

—They want to keep control over people.

"As you can guess, unfortunately, I'm going to be using a credit card."

—I'm not that bad.

"No fighting today?"

—They want to live large.

"And what are you doing tomorrow?"

—Rock and roll!

"I know exactly what you're thinking."

—What comes next? Nobody knows, huh?

"I don't know what I'm doing here; I don't even want to be talking to you." [She's sitting across from you at a cocktail party, proving she's not wearing underpants]

—Be jealous of your attention, and greedy for beautiful impressions.

"How do I deal with conversations I find boring?"

—Sounds like a painting, doesn't it? – I'm glad you have a sense of humor about it – Ask yourself in situations like that, what am I afraid of? – They want long discussions just to torture you – Just realize, you don't have to – If you live in the jungle, why not get to know the animals? – Isn't that great? – Olive drab scratchy wool blankets – Inside you can try to have fine feelings, fine sensations – There's a lot of jungle! They don't call it jungle anymore ... They call it forest – Full of trees gone to seed – Very old stuff – I'm thinking I might – You could feel hate without expressing it – It's like hunter's vision – All animals love sugar – Cats are different – It's like horses ... they love sugar – Well, look at it this way ... Don't ever bite a grape!

"What's the occasion?"

—You're not missing anything.

"Going out?"

—How or why I don't know.

"What street are you going to?"

—A lot of pressure.

"What up?"

—It's all fluid and crazy and stupid.

"Nobody move, please. We are going back to the airport. Don't try to make any stupid moves ... We have some planes ... Just stay quiet and you'll be okay. We are returning to the airport." [Recorded voice on hijacked American Airlines Flight 11 before it was crashed into the World Trade Center]

—Cell phones ... It's open season.

"Maybe I could do that if I had thirty years of experience."

—Probably you can replace the tension with words.

"Do you know what?"

—You'll catch on — It just takes time.

"Guess what?"

—It's the only game in town.

"You have to guess."

—People miss out if they only see the surface.

"You're doing good, I guess."

—Making money is tantamount to making shit.

"What a beautiful day, David. Why aren't you smiling?"

—Past a certain point there's no reason to.

"What happened to your hand?" [To avoid "the iron grip," you're shaking hands with your left hand]

—It's so warped and twisty, who cares?

"What makes you so special?"

—Total recall.

"Listen to another person – You already know what you know."

—What did the insane hot dog man say? (Make me one with everything!)

"What did I do now?"

—Did it shine in the dark?

"What do you do to get a nice girlfriend like that?"

—And then some.

"What is the right way to kiss a girl?"

—I think it's from the grapes.

"Be careful what you wish for!"

—Rules are rules.

"What is the meaning of life?"

—Life has no meaning ... Life is an experience ... "It's man's purpose on earth to express himself, to bring form to thoughts, and to discover meaning in experience." (–Calvin & Hobbes)

"What does that tell you?"

—I guess that's it.

"So what?"

—The best revenge is a good life.

"WHAT!?" [She's wearing a microskirt]

—TOO HOT! ... I'm sure I don't know.

"What!? ... What!?"

—And how about in your refrigerator?

"Oh, boy, you're going to get some hot pussy tonight!" [Street person trailing you and your date after you've seen a play in a seedy theater district]

—Any tips? ... Didn't he have a great technique?

"What is that?"

—Do you need antlers?

"This is exactly what I'm talking about."

—I had a very warped childhood.

"You know what they say."

—What a combination!

"There's no love in this house." [Six-year-old Megan, a bright young girl in Scotland, to her mother]

—Is anyone bad to you? Nobody in school is bad to you?

"I miss daddy."

—Trying to drum up business maybe.

"I miss you."

—Hundreds of times – A little bit, a little bit, a little bit – And birds. And squirrels – I was thinking of a swan – So you have to have a tunnel – Keeps things from spiraling too fast.

"Why don't you get a job?"

—If you could.

"The world would be better off without people like you."

—I'm a stranger here myself.

"You can't just say it sucks without saying why."

—If you get a dog, you have to expect that.

"You can't just say, 'It won't work.' What are your reasons? You have to back it up. You can't just play a devil's advocate here."

—The front end of the horse and the rear end of the horse are two different people.

"I actually look good. I dress good, am clean-shaven, bathe, touch of cologne — yet 30 million women rejected me — over an 18- or 25-year period. That is how I see it. Thirty million is my rough guestimate of how many desirable single women there are." (–George Sodini, in his notebooks, before he opened fire in a Pennsylvania fitness center, hitting 12 women, 3 fatally, before turning a gun on himself)

—Liking someone is liking their consciousness ... Liking someone is not giving them burdens ... Liking someone is putting their welfare on the same level as your own ... Liking someone is not having a severe hatred for their mother's living room furniture ... Liking someone is leaving them alone ... Liking someone is removing obstacles from their path to make their life easier ... You're better off acting like a pirate than acting like your mother and father ... On the inside say, "I am a total freak of nature." ... The more tempted you are to lose yourself in another person, the more you should put your attention back and place it in your own arms, legs and hands. You don't want to achieve psychic control of another person – You want to achieve psychic friendship with yourself, especially your sense of humor ... Around a boy or girl, avoid acting like your mother or father. You are better off acting like a courteous cutthroat pirate ... Girls aren't stupid. The best way to see them is as jealous narcissistic human beings ... They don't like you – They're just little narcissists ... The minute you pretend you're bad, they like you ... They can just turn in a minute ... "I'm never going to turn you into my mother – My father destroyed her!" ... Cruel development ... "Stop saying there's something wrong with you or I'll start to believe it!" ... "And what else is wrong with you?" ... Think about what you want to do – That's the sneaky way to do it ... If you want them to care, act like a Frigidaire ... Don't expect to get something you ask for ... Did you ever hear of someone else? ... This, too, will pass. She, too, will pass ... They will grow old and die ... A good life is the best revenge ... There'll be another ... With gold ribbons ... If a bunch of people came in here that was going from place to place looking for the best bad bar food, what what would you think? ... Misery loves company – Misery is like a magnet ... Would she make my life better? ... Would she make shoppers out of my dogs? ... If you get to the bottom of what's bothering you, you can begin to turn things around – a door, a mirror, a light, a way ... Come on in! Welcome, stranger! ... You know, something stupid ... "Come into my tent!" – I hope you're good! ... You don't have to get all serious about someone you make out with ... Remember to play after every storm ... Treat someone with kindness and respect, the way you would treat a stranger ... If you're alive, you've got something good going for you.

"A man needs a woman for confidence. He gets a boost on the job, career, with other men, and everywhere else when he knows inside he has someone to spend the night with and who is also a friend." (–George Sodini)

—Alien Corner Café: Where sometimes dreams do come true.

"I took off today, Monday, and tomorrow to practice my routine and make sure it is well polished ... I need to work out every detail, there is only one shot. Also I need to be completely immersed into something before I can be successful. I haven't had a drink since Friday at about 2:30. Total effort needed. Tomorrow is the big day." (–George Sodini)

—There is a certain underworld, of which everyone is familiar ... Sleeping with one eye open ... In the overworld you can find the culture of aggressive people, who laugh and break all the rules, and the culture of suspicion, people standing aloof, watching to see who breaks the rules ... There is a middle world, what people call their emotions, populated by a Nazi and a limo driver, both sticking to you in their own way, one trying to lead you into the world of Perfection, the other watching your every move, studying you, steering you to the more expensive items ... You don't need the Nazi or the limo driver ... A Nazi clown, devoted to perfection, throwing cloaks of fantasy over everything, and a resentful limo driver, shadowing your every move ... They're idiots.

"Any of the 'Practice Papers' left on my coffee table I used or the notes in my gym bag can be published freely. I will not be embarrassed, because, well, I will be dead." (–George Sodini)

—This may be the only idea he's ever had in his life, and he may not understand, some ideas aren't good.

"A man without a wife is but half a man." (–Benjamin Franklin)

—From out of the frying pan into the fire, right? ... Maybe this is an approach to orgasm ... Maybe it will improve your position ... He's constantly tricking her into attacking him.

"You have to defend yourself if you're going to say that."

—You don't have to fight anything.

"It's hard to condemn a whole company based on an interview with one individual."

—Near the Dead Sea.

"What did they think?"

—Enough to make it worth our while, I guess.

"This is what I found – Don't take it personally."

—Me go to heaven, you fry! – That's what Christianity is ... Do you think Christians are better than other people?

"Did Jesus have a sense of humor?"

—Does God have antlers?

"Jesus! — Take my head off!"

—It comes in handy, doesn't it?

"What happened to the Air Force Academy?"

—What a change!

"Bob, what did you do with the sun?"

—Maybe there is a God.

"Talk is cheap."

—You'd be surprised.

"Words are cheap."

—Say what?

"You had 100 billion chances and ways to have avoided today but you decided to spill my blood. You forced me into a corner and gave me only one option. The decision was yours. Now you have blood on your hands that will never wash off." [–Cho Seung-Hui "Ismail Ax"]

—I wonder if someone lives just around the corner who likes you? ... You never got the chance to value yourself ... I think that's the way I learned to pay attention to myself ... I was totally put down and ignored ... What else can I do?

"Your Mercedes wasn't enough, you brats. Your golden necklaces weren't enough, you snobs. Your trust funds wasn't enough. Your vodka and cognac wasn't enough. All your debaucheries weren't enough. Those weren't enough to fulfill your hedonistic needs. You had everything."

—How would you know? – What are you sure of? – Maybe years ago – Maybe even earlier – The idea is not quantity, it's quality – Quality and subtlety of attention is important – You have to develop an inner barometer to tell what your inner weather is – The reason is probably separation anxiety – Anger, hurt and jealousy over something are secondary – Come back from the mountain.

"You have vandalized my heart, raped my soul and torched my conscience. You thought it was one pathetic boy's life you were extinguishing. Thanks to you, I die like Jesus Christ, to inspire generations of the weak and the defenseless people."

—It's very hard to understand – It's not a lot – Your parents are enormous attention grabbers – Big shots! – Too many demands – People who put you down and fill you with hurt are stealing your attention – The way they act has nothing to do with the way they feel about you – They'll do anything to get attention – If you ever want to talk to someone, you can talk to me.

"You caused me to do this." [–Virginia Tech shooter]

—It is a sad thing – It hurts a lot – You scum! – I hope you're not afraid of ghosts. [Feelings of worthlessness or helplessness, feeling unloved, or feeling lonely all come about because people cannot accept their separation anxiety – Instead of wanting their mother or father, they try to act like Napoleon – We're all like this – It's not yearning for careers – It's where you place your attention – The master claps twice! ... and a black box the size of a man is brought into the room – Value yourself, want yourself, find yourself, listen to yourself, look for yourself, cling to yourself, be yourself ... and the black box opens – Inside is a magic forest, a clearing, and little animals dart across ... Be better than other people, and the black box closes]

"Now I'll go out in style ... I'll be famous." [–Omaha mall shooter]

—Very vindictive, pouts, blames other people, thinks he's better than other people ... Now you all back off! ... Our fearless leader.

"Reach out to loners? But how do you talk to someone like dat? Leave sum advice."

—Voice mail: "I'll really miss you when you're gone. Is this when the cheap rates go in? I'll be glad when you're dead, you rascal, you!" ... It's a light touch ... You shouldn't make fun of someone ... Don't mock your own! ... You're another! ... You feel hurt, too ... Everyone does ... All loneliness is separation anxiety, brought about by people who steal your attention, so the idea is to do or say less! ... The great secret of acting is, Be an Oil Painting ... Do what you're doing ... Do less! ... Many times! ... "Sense Location 1005," because if people say, "Location 5," people don't take it seriously ... If I could go back in a time machine, I could think of a lot of people I'd like to shoot – I'd be yet another great assassin, but don't have enough money for a good lawyer.

"Are you lonely?"

—My companions are like the stars — No matter which one you follow, you are on the right path.

"You're not special – Maybe you are just a lonely old man."

—You probably identify with the little animal ... You have to smash your way into the fourth dimension – I hope it's the right one! – A bird peeing on a spoon.

"I don't know what is going on here."

—That's really tough stuff.

"If you're not paranoid, you don't know what is going on around here."

—It's very frightening to have a mother and father.

"When are you going to sell it?" [Your life story]

—It's like a labyrinth you go through to find out who the curator is.

"Richard must see that going on all night." [Two dogs attacking each other]

—They're more restrained.

"What was I going to say?"

—What did King Tut say?

"Hey, guys, where are we going?"

—I want my mummy!

"I always sense that Carson is on guard, wary." [Mike Wallace to Johnny Carson]

—It doesn't stay.

"I forgot what I was going to say."

—Just stick with it.

"We have attempting to figure out what is going on."

—In the mass culture, they don't want 'em to be too smart.

"Are you going somewhere?"

—Maybe I'll put instructions.

["I went to Dartmouth."] "I applied there, but I didn't get in."

—Did you know that you're riding with the Mozart of cab drivers?

"Don't tell me how to do my job."

—You don't want to be perfect.

"That's my job, man!"

—You just never know.

"Put your head down in shame!"

—I look up! ... and money is falling through the skylight.

"You don't want to put me out of work, do you?"

—It has nothing to do with reality.

"This is the American way."

—Just take your time.

"I know what THAT means!"

—That's what they all say!

"I know just what you're thinking."

—The others don't.

"Nothing stays the same anymore."

—The same thing every day, right? – Jesus is so transitional – You have a rising star and a falling star at the same time.

"Nothing stays in one place."

—It's the memory.

"Don't say hello or anything — just ignore us."

—It must hurt.

"No good-morning, no nothing!"

—Allah loves the lazy.

"It was a quiet summer night."

—Well, I don't want to say anything.

"That's right, call the police. There isn't any proof. There's nothing that can be proved."

—Another victim.

"It's like having to take a big shit, and there's nothing there."

—You don't have to carry a gun to kill someone.

"Hey, you said, 'shit!' — You learned a new word."

—Three words can say a million things.

"You learn something new every day."

—That little bit.

"Modern art."

—Down and dirty.

"Jesus loves you!"

—At least you don't suffer.

"Maybe you can get a higher-paying job."

—I think your job is so severe.

"You don't like your job? Maybe you could get some other job."

—You have leadership potential.

"You couldn't get 'taxi.com'?"

—Don't believe everything you think!

"He couldn't just ask you if he could use a chair?"

—He must come from a very weird family.

"Where there's a will, there's a way."

—They migrate.

"You know, there's good and there's bad."

—Further proof of my lineage.

"You're a little young to be retiring."

—That's not so bad.

[Someone betraying they didn't hear a word you said — They're too busy formulating their own preconceptions]

—What a lucky life!

"We want you to reflect on why you may have enemies."

—Pick up the White Man's Burden: the hatred of those you help; the fear of the ones you guard.

"There's something you don't understand."

—That's a lot.

"There's no such thing as a free lunch."

—Bubble universes.

"There's nothing original."

—Real sharp shells – What about the brain? – Everyone should have one – Learning to live within your means – Just one – I would try not to be too controlling – You know the story of seven lean years and seven fat years? – There'll be other times – You know, you can wait – So, I don't mind, I'm just reporting – All people really want to do is steal from other people.

"Sometimes, researchers say, one homeless person attacks another in turf battles or other disputes. But more often, they say, the assailants are outsiders: men or in most cases teenage boys who punch, kick, shoot or set afire people living on the streets, frequently killing them, simply for the sport of it, their victims all but invisible to society ... Some of the Las Vegas homeless resort to living in a maze of underground flood channels beneath the Strip. There they face flash floods, disease, black widows, and dank, pitch-dark conditions, but some tunnel dwellers say life there is better than being harassed and threatened by assailants and the police." (–Eric Lichtblau, "Attacks on Homeless Are Rising, Many Simply Motivated by Thrill," NYT, August 8, 2009)

—"It's hard to believe that tunnels that can fill a foot per minute with floodwater could be safer than aboveground Vegas, but many homeless people think they are. No outsider is going to attack you down there in the dark." (–Matt O'Brien, a Las Vegas writer who runs an outreach group for the homeless) ... Unfelt or unconscious or invisible conditions, containing intelligence, perception, memory, instincts, aggression, enjoyment, resourcefulness, or all of the above, are also inside us, along with very real physical or emotional pain, somehow locked up in a memory, lock, stock and barrel, so as not to be felt ... One unconscious memory buried on top of another unconscious memory leads to impulsive teenage behavior ... Motivated by thrill ... Anything to avoid feeling bad.

"Hunt the Homeless: Kill one for fun. We're 87 percent sure it's legal." [Blurb In Maxim, spotlighting a coming "hobo convention" in Iowa] (–Eric Lichtblau, "Attacks on Homeless Are Rising, Many Simply Motivated by Thrill," NYT, August 8, 2009)

—Skirts ahoy!

"Have you ever faked an orgasm?"

—If I did everything my mother told me to do, I'd be a human pretzel.

"Black people are constantly being stopped, searched, harassed, publicly humiliated, assaulted, arrested, and sometimes killed by police officers in this country for no good reason." (–Bob Herbert, "Anger Has Its Place," NYT, August 1, 2009)

—It's scary, because you don't know what's going to happen next ... A sign of the times ... Both of them had it so hard! ... The Art Students' League ... Come on! I'm going to show you how the other half lives!

"Life in the United States is mind-bogglingly violent. But we should take particular notice of the staggering amount of violence brought down on the nation's women and girls each and every day for no other reason than who the are. They are attacked because they are female." (–Bob Herbert, "Women at Risk," NYT, August 8, 2009)

—It's like a reflex ... It just gets to you, doesn't it? ... Why not feel better? ... It's just rampant ... That kind of thing ... I guess you could reverse it! ... Behind the morning glories, behind the arbor, behind the falling fence.

"If you ever come back here again, I'll have you arrested! What you do is steal my joy! What you do is criminal!"

—They keep pretending they're this and this and this, and then you see what they really are ... It might be a little psychotic ... And here's where things get really weird ... Because not only was I diminishing my own input under certain conditions, I was also reaching out, somehow, to diminish other people's input ... I was the wrong-way escalator guy! ... who always gets to the other side, through sheer determination, though in appearance, totally outlandish ... It's not exactly like a lever, because what you do is turn and go into the anger ... or turn and go into the fear ... or turn and go into the pain and somehow permeate them, searching for the sentient creature inside, which is yourself, suddenly finding yourself a witness to a "white, or unfelt memory" ... Just as a footnote: Marijuana and all that stuff is totally blind to these things, because it makes even the gateways into the invisible, invisible ... You've got to have a gnawing suspicion, inside yourself, that's alive and kicking. It's funny, because as interested and compassionate toward yourself as you are to get in, what's buried inside you wants to get out, and from what I can tell, meets you way more than halfway ... I've heard people say that those who have arrived, or "woken up," or "become enlightened," which I haven't, don't have teeth. And it's true. If you can reach into a belly pouch and pull out a Kimber .45 semiautomatic pistol and simply shoot someone with deadly accuracy, whether you're looking at them in the outside physical world or not, or have subtle effects on people by running energy up your spine, who needs teeth?

"Why do this? ... To young girls? Just read below ... It seems many teenage girls have sex frequently. One 16 year old does it usually three times a day with her boyfriend, So, err, after a month of that, this little hoe has had more sex than ME in my LIFE, and I am 48. One more reason. Thanks for nada, bitches! Bye." (–George Sodini, in the month before he went on a shooting rampage, killing three women, injuring another nine, before suddenly stopping and shooting himself)

—Like in a fire door ... Not in the center, one on each side ... I'm a has-been, going in reverse! ... It's a universal closure ... Push, pull, left, right ... There's two ways you can do it ... We have to figure out if it's push or pull ... It's more a perception than an action ... Don't you know I need new shoes? ... The Last Testament of Dr. Moron ... I don't want people to know there's a door there.

"Hey! We're talking about your job here!"

—Support groups are good.

"I like you, Tommy. Personally, I think you're a great guy."

—I wonder what comes next?