Icebergs in Paradise

My quote books sit on my beside table, currently with more than one thousand quotes written down. Here I am sharing them with you, accompanied by pictures or videos or other nifty things uncovered on the Internet. Below each quote is a number, corresponding to it's numerical place in my books.

[icebergsinparadise]

Success, not greatness, was the only god the entire world served.

Drew, Elizabethtown

No. 159

[icebergsinparadise]

But love, he said, was anythign but believable, real life was ridiculous, yokels laughed at love.

Transparent Things by Vladimir Nabokov (p. 63)

No. 112

[icebergsinparadise]

That's when you know you've found somebody special; you can just shut the fuck up for a minute and comfortably enjoy the silence.

Mia, Pulp Fiction

No. 836

[icebergsinparadise]

Don't you know that a man being rich is like a girl being pretty? You wouldn't marry a girl just because she's pretty, but, my goodness, doesn't it help?

Lorelei Lee, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

No. 62

[icebergsinparadise]

Hey, if you can't drink their booze, take their money, and then vote against them, you don't belong in this business.

Senator Arnold Vinick, "In Cod We Trust," The West Wing

No. 641

[icebergsinparadise]

Iraq is now an open-air jail. You forget what you are missing until you visit another country and see people walking freely, laughing, and eating at restaurants. I didn’t know that Americans were so careless and joyful. I was envious and angry. My friend said, 'Why do you want to walk in this weather?' I told her it's because in Iraq we are like animals in the zoo; we dash from one house to the next always afraid that someone will harm us while we are travelling in between.

Waiting for an Ordinary Day by Farnaz Fassihi (p. 176)

No. 232

[icebergsinparadise]

You were right. It counts for nothing if you can't back it up.

Dr. House, "Charity Case," House, M.D.

No. 507

[icebergsinparadise]

...no real idea can be said to exist without the words made to measure.

The Real Life of Sebastian Knight by Vladimir Nabokov (p. 84)

No. 673

[icebergsinparadise]

People do stupid things when they try to pretend they're not trapped.

Mr. Fitch, "Emily," Skins (U.K.)

No. 458

[icebergsinparadise]

"And you're not the first fool for love," she says.

By Nightfall by Michael Cunningham (p. 225)

No. 618

[icebergsinparadise]

Everyone gets hurt and violated sometimes. Why are women so special?

Daniel, Brief Interviews with Hideous Men

No. 694

[icebergsinparadise]

I don't control life, but I control how I react to it.

"Vipassana" by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis

No. 276

[icebergsinparadise]

Calling it your job doesn't make it right, boss.

Luke, Cool Hand Luke

No. 999

[icebergsinparadise]

How does it feel to know you never have to be alone?

"Sweetest Goodbye" by Maroon 5

[icebergsinparadise]

You broke me like a mirror.

"Symmetry" by Title Fight

No. 1081

[icebergsinparadise]

No one familiar with the history of this country can deny that congressional committees are useful. It is necessary to investigate before legislating. But the line between investigating and persecuting is a very fine one, and the junior Senator from Wisconsin has stepped over it repeatedly. His primary achievement has been in confusing the public mind as between the internal and the external threats of Communism. We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty. We must remember always that accusation is not proof and that conviction depends upon evidence and due process of law. We will not walk in fear, one of another. We will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason, if we dig deep in our history and in our doctrine, and remember that we are not descended from fearful men. Not from men who feared to write, to speak, to associate, and to defend causes that were for the moment unpopular. This is no time for men who oppose Senator McCarthy's methods to keep silent, nor for those who approve. We can deny our heritage and our history, but we cannot escape responsibility for the result. There is no way for a citizen of a republic to abdicate his responsibilities. As a nation we have come into our full inheritance at a tender age. We proclaim ourselves as indeed we are the defenders of freedom wherever it continues to exist in the world. But we cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home. The actions of the junior Senator from Wisconsin have caused alarm and dismay amongst our allies abroad, and given considerable comfort to our enemies. But whose fault is that? Not really his. He didn't create this situation of fear; he merely exploited it, and rather successfully. Cassius was right: 'The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves.' Good night, and good luck.

Edward R. Murrow, See It Now, 9 March 1954

No. 321 (partially)

(Note: I wanted to post this today because of its relevance to what has been happening in Boston and all over the country.  Please remember that "accusation is not proof" and wait to make your assessment of what happened until all the facts are in.  And remember that "we cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home."  This is no time to turn on loyal Muslim-Americans and peaceful Muslims all over the world.  Remember to keep the peace, and not to exploit the situation of fear.)

[icebergsinparadise]

We like to think we're so smart, and we have all the answers. And we want to pass that on to our children. But if you scratch beneath the surface, you don't have to dig very deep to find the kid you were, which is why it's kind of crazy that we're raising children of our own. I guess that's the real circle of life; your parents fake their way through it, you fake your way through it, and you just hope you don't raise a serial killer.

Phil Dunfey, "Dance Dance Revolution," Modern Family

No. 304