Quotes on Being

I'm not constrained by being a genre writer. Any story I can imagine, I can cast as a fantasy novel and probably get it published.

Author: Lynn Abbey

'How do you know so much about everything?' was asked of a very wise and intelligent man; and the answer was 'By never being afraid or ashamed to ask questions as to anything of which I was ignorant.'

Author: John Abbott

While we are guarding the country, we must accept being the guardian of the finest ethics. The country needs it and we must do it.

Author: Creighton Abrams, Jr.

I'm really fascinated and you know I've been wondering about that usage of language, various breathing techniques and why in these practices language is being used in another way.

Author: Kathy Acker

Liberty is the condition of duty, the guardian of conscience. It grows as conscience grows. The domains of both grow together. Liberty is safety from all hindrances, even sin. So that Liberty ends by being Free Will.

Author: John Acton

A great photograph is one that fully expresses what one feels, in the deepest sense, about what is being photographed.

Author: Ansel Adams

I like getting married, but I don't like being married.

Author: Don Adams

There is not a more unhappy being than a superannuated idol.

Author: Joseph Addison

I value my garden more for being full of blackbirds than of cherries, and very frankly give them fruit for their songs.

Author: Joseph Addison

After being Turned Down by numerous Publishers, he had decided to write for Posterity.

Author: George Ade

Nothingness not being nothing, nothingness being emptiness.

Author: Isabelle Adjani

The human is indissolubly linked with imitation: a human being only becomes human at all by imitating other human beings.

Author: Theodor Adorno

I just feel like sometimes I'm a force to be dealt with. My talents are sometimes overused and also sometimes underused. It's not easy being me.

Author: Ben Affleck

There's something really great and romantic about being poor and sleeping on couches.

Author: Ben Affleck

Being number two sucks.

Author: Andre Agassi

So, where's the Cannes Film Festival being held this year?

Author: Christina Aguilera

I am a being of Heaven and Earth, of thunder and lightning, of rain and wind, of the galaxies.

Author: Eden Ahbez

As we saw in the Queen's Speech, anti-social behaviour - a phenomenon that I believe to be a genuine worry that is also being fed by a lot of scare stories - is the political theme of the moment.

Author: Kamal Ahmed

I'm being trained to shake the bon-bon appropriately.

Author: Clay Aiken

Those are my favorite kind of parts to do, just being a goofball and seeing how far you can go with something until you're just way out of line.

Author: Malin Akerman

The whole period has taught me that I enjoy being part of an ensemble rather than just a front man. Don't get me wrong - I enjoy that too, but I get more enjoyment out of really listening to everyone.

Author: Damon Albarn

From early on, everything I did was calculated to being elected to Congress.

Author: Carl Albert

I'm busy doing my job, and being a loudmouth doesn't appeal to me as much as when I was younger and had the youthful delusion that I was smarter than everybody else.

Author: Steve Albini

No man or woman of the humblest sort can really be strong, gentle and good, without the world being better for it, without somebody being helped and comforted by the very existence of that goodness.

Author: Alan Alda

I am a writer and always was; being a writer is an integral part of my identity. Being published, being well regarded, is a component of that identity.

Author: Brian Aldiss

The difficulty with becoming a patient is that as soon as you get horizontal, part of your being yearns, not for a doctor, but for a medicine man.

Author: Shana Alexander

You can make more friends in a month by being interested in them than in ten years by trying to get them interested in you.

Author: Charles Allen

A lot of things happened in a lot of places. And to see how well it was handled in Atlanta. There are a lot of reasons for Atlanta being a special town in the Civil Rights era.

Author: Ivan Allen

The possible is constantly being redefined, and I care deeply about helping humanity move forward.

Author: Paul Allen

But the irony is that because the band isn't the focus any more, it allows me the chance to enjoy being a member of Def Leppard much more.

Author: Rick Allen

Me being a skinny guy, I could crawl into the steel pit.

Author: Luther Allison

I do some concerts. At the moment, I'm being helped a lot by a gig I play in London, which is Pizza Express.

Author: Mose Allison

There was a great deal of peer recognition to be gained in elementary school by being able to draw well. One girl could draw horses so well, she was looked upon as a kind of sorceress.

Author: Chris Allsburg

I don't enjoy being a celebrity, I don't want any part of that or any part of that fame for fame... i'd actually rather die than be a celebrity slime!!!

Author: Marc Almond

I mean being a writer is like being a psychoanalyst, but you don't get any patients.

Author: Al Alvarez

'm thrilled to be joining the incredible team at ABC News. Being asked to anchor 'This Week' and the superb tradition started by David Brinkley, is a tremendous and rare honor, and I look forward to discussing the great domestic and international issues of the day.

Author: Christiane Amanpour

So long as a person is capable of self-renewal they are a living being.

Author: Henri Amiel

Order is a great person's need and their true well being.

Author: Henri Amiel

You cannot combine being a movie star with not being a movie star.

Author: Martin Amis

I have a real problem with stillness. With just stopping and being quiet.

Author: Gillian Anderson

After I did nine years of a television series, I didn't want to do anything really that involved going to a set and being in front of a camera for quite a while. And when I did start to want to do things, I wanted to focus more on film.

Author: Gillian Anderson

Being born in a duck yard does not matter, if only you are hatched from a swan's egg.

Author: Hans Anderson

I can never make up my mind if I'm happy being a flute player, or if I wish I were Eric Clapton.

Author: Ian Anderson

There's nothing glamorous about being dead.

Author: Loni Anderson

Being away from her is torturous and I'd much prefer to be with her. So I just try to get out of here as soon as I can. I make sure I do my job real well and fast.

Author: Richard Anderson

The thrill of being in front of a camera remains exactly the same.

Author: Julie Andrews

If I look at it, it's about being able to get lost in New York, to explore the city, to have more personal stories about New York, although some could also take place in Paris.

Author: Keren Ann

The United Nations, whose membership comprises almost all the states in the world, is founded on the principle of the equal worth of every human being.

Author: Kofi Annan

I have made a public statement about me and Ralph by being seen with him. I don't need to make any other. You can live the way you want.

Author: Francesca Annis

I like being infamous. I think it is safe being a cult.

Author: Adam Ant

When a scene is being shot, it is very difficult to know what one wants it to say, and even if one does know, there is always a difference between what one has in mind and the result on film.

Author: Michelangelo Antonioni

Hollywood is like being nowhere and talking to nobody about nothing.

Author: Michelangelo Antonioni

It's difficult to see yourself up on screen without being a critic.

Author: Devon Aoki

I don't have a big thing about leaving my mark or being historic.

Author: Fiona Apple

Getting through the nights is the toughest part. Being alone. Not having her there to talk to.

Author: Stuart Appleby

For me being the youngest, there was never ever anything that was an issue to cause rivalry between me and my sisters.

Author: Nicole Appleton

Being a mum has made me a lot more responsible, it's not just me anymore. But it's also brought me the most joy ever!

Author: Nicole Appleton

Because philosophy arises from awe, a philosopher is bound in his way to be a lover of myths and poetic fables. Poets and philosophers are alike in being big with wonder.

Author: Thomas Aquinas

On the first movie we got good reviews, but we were still dealing with genre stuff. It's going away. Judge the movie - is it a good one or a bad one? We know we made a great movie and it's being judged for just being a good film.

Author: Avi Arad

Wherever the relevance of speech is at stake, matters become political by definition, for speech is what makes man a political being.

Author: Hannah Arendt

I am confident that I can serve my country without being involved as the president of the country now.

Author: Jean-Bertrand Aristide

You're going through the horror of it, you're going through the isolation of it but you're being empowered by reminding yourself that you're connected to everybody else.

Author: Adam Arkin

I'm sensitive about my image of being hard to reach.

Author: Roone Arledge

I don't want to live in an ivory tower, being the songwriter who just turns inward.

Author: Billie Armstrong

It's all about being flexible, and avoiding choices whenever possible. Choices suck, they are inherently limiting.

Author: Craig Armstrong

I like being a strong, independent woman, and to be honest, I was never afraid to be on my own.

Author: Dido Armstrong

Gliders, sail planes, they're wonderful flying machines. It's the closest you can come to being a bird.

Author: Neil Armstrong

I am still in shock and awe at being fired.

Author: Peter Arnett

After saying yes to Turkey, the EU is having difficulty finding clear and consistent grounds for saying no to other, still more remote candidates - but being in the general vicinity of Europe does seem to be a continuing requirement.

Author: Timothy Ash

Being a villain is great, even though I've only gotten to do it a few times.

Author: Shawn Ashmore

Instead of being on teams at school, I was preparing for auditions.

Author: Shawn Ashmore

Creationists make it sound as though a 'theory' is something you dreamt up after being drunk all night.

Author: Isaac Asimov

When it comes to the point where you occasionally look forward to being in prison on the basis that you might be able to spend a day reading a book, the realization dawns that perhaps the situation has become a little more stressful than you would like.

Author: Julian Assange

When I am working it is up early and coffee and 15 hours of being on the set. When I am not working, it is up late and coffee, golf or softball and hopefully a ball game on the television.

Author: Mackenzie Astin

I don't even know what the odds are for one kid or one team to make it here. Obviously, being from Canada this is their Stanley Cup - they made it. It's hard enough to get here and it's hard enough to advance.

Author: John Atkinson

Are you tired of sand being kicked in your face? I promise you new muscles in days!

Author: Charles Atlas

Being in touch with the natural world is crucial.

Author: David Attenborough

And there are certain things, and they are evident, obviously, without being boring about it, but I mean obviously, the two evident and easy ones being Gandhi and Cry Freedom, there are things which I do care about very much and which I would like to stand up and be counted.

Author: Richard Attenborough

I think the British have the distinction above all other nations of being able to put new wine into old bottles without bursting them.

Author: Clement Attlee

I have been in danger of being drowned twice.

Author: John Aubrey

Do you wish to be great? Then begin by being. Do you desire to construct a vast and lofty fabric? Think first about the foundations of humility. The higher your structure is to be, the deeper must be its foundation.

Author: Saint Augustine

Bad company is like a nail driven into a post, which, after the first and second blow, may be drawn out with little difficulty; but being once driven up to the head, the pincers cannot take hold to draw it out, but which can only be done by the destruction of the wood.

Author: Saint Augustine

Always point your finger at the chest of the person with whom you are being photographed. You will appear dynamic. And no photo editor can crop you from the picture.

Author: Ken Auletta

Where youth and diffidence are united, it requires uncommon steadiness of reason to resist the attraction of being called the most charming girl in the world.

Author: Jane Austen

To flatter and follow others, without being flattered and followed in turn, is but a state of half enjoyment.

Author: Jane Austen

Vanity and pride are different things, though the words are often used synonymously. A person may be proud without being vain. Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves; vanity, to what we would have others think of us.

Author: Jane Austen

About five, six FBI agents walked into the courthouse and arrested me. They said I was being arrested for distribution of information related to explosives over the Internet.

Author: Sherman Austin

It's a wonderful feeling just being in this creative motif.

Author: Roy Ayers

There is no possible negotiation with these killers. Our aim is to win over terrorism. Only by being firm we can stop terrorism. We must be firm fighting the terrorists and opposing the final aims they want to achieve.

Author: Jose Aznar

Yet Aristotle's excellence of substance, so far from being associated with the grand style, is associated with something that at times comes perilously near jargon.

Author: Irving Babbitt

It's not so much the amount of tax we pay - it's the sense that our pocket's being picked without our knowing what's going on.

Author: Andrew Bacevich

Your only obligation in any lifetime is to be true to yourself. Being true to anyone else or anything else is not only impossible, but the mark of a fake messiah.

Author: Richard Bach

So, it ended up being what you have there, seven songs brand new and ten live songs which is a good mix.

Author: Sebastian Bach

Man is an imagining being.

Author: Gaston Bachelard

A schoolmaster should have an atmosphere of awe, and walk wonderingly, as if he was amazed at being himself.

Author: Walter Bagehot

Being constantly with children was like wearing a pair of shoes that were expensive and too small. She couldn't bear to throw them out, but they gave her blisters.

Author: Beryl Bainbridge

I remember being told 'Someone's gonna make a fortune out of this rap thing' and thinking 'no way'.

Author: Arthur Baker

I never have reservations about doing anything as long as I'm being paid.

Author: Colin Baker

Rare is the human being, immature or mature, who has never felt an impulse to pretend he is some one or something else.

Author: George Baker

The worst thing about being a tourist is having other tourists recognize you as a tourist.

Author: Russell Baker

I loved being in Close Encounters, just to watch Steven Spielberg working was exciting.

Author: Bob Balaban

If you're treated a certain way you become a certain kind of person. If certain things are described to you as being real they're real for you whether they're real or not.

Author: James Baldwin

It's a helluva start, being able to recognize what makes you happy.

Author: Lucille Ball

I can't even picture being without rock 'n'roll.

Author: Hank Ballard

We can believe that we know where the world should go. But unless we're in touch with our customers, our model of the world can diverge from reality. There's no substitute for innovation, of course, but innovation is no substitute for being in touch, either.

Author: Steve Ballmer

The One, the Good, the True, and the Beautiful, these are what we call the transcendental attributes of Being, because they surpass all the limits of essences and are coextensive with Being.

Author: Hans Balthasar

Nothing is a greater impediment to being on good terms with others than being ill at ease with yourself.

Author: Honore Balzac

I'd never had so much pleasure with another human being.

Author: Anne Bancroft

When I was in college I was accused of being a goody two-shoes. But every goody two-shoes has a bad side.

Author: Elizabeth Banks

There is no law that says a man who earned a hundred million dollars in his first half-dozen years on the job has to be a decent human being, but Mike Eisner is that and more.

Author: Joseph Barbera

I've always said that playing rugby in Spain is like being a bullfighter in Japan.

Author: Javier Bardem

What does it mean, being a woman?

Author: Brigitte Bardot

I leave before being left. I decide.

Author: Brigitte Bardot

There are many advantages in their being accustomed to the use of arms, and no possible disadvantage.

Author: Joel Barlow

I have been watching and drawing the surface of Mars. It is wonderfully full of detail. There is certainly no question about there being mountains and large greatly elevated plateaus.

Author: Edward Barnard

My longing to improve my looks via The Body Shop is being replaced by my longing to improve my looks via Photoshop.

Author: Gina Barreca

Geographically, Ireland is a medium-sized rural island that is slowly but steadily being consumed by sheep.

Author: Dave Barry

I am not sure how much I would like being married if I wasn't married to him. A man who likes flea markets and isn't gay? I knew I was lucky.

Author: Lynda Barry

Some venues are better run than others. Sometimes it's just maddening to deal with full dinners being served in front of your face. You can have a good or bad show anywhere.

Author: Todd Barry

Try being my size and going into a public restroom.

Author: Billy Barty

Since it is seldom clear whether intellectual activity denotes a superior mode of being or a vital deficiency, opinion swings between considering intellect a privilege and seeing it as a handicap.

Author: Jacques Barzun

He was very concerned about his children potentially being kidnapped or attached, and that's why they were covered up. When he went to Berlin zoo, there were 200 photographers.

Author: Martin Bashir

The priest is an immense being because he makes the crowd believe astonishing things.

Author: Charles Baudelaire

The poet enjoys the incomparable privilege of being able to be himself and others, as he wishes.

Author: Charles Baudelaire

Perhaps the world's second worst crime is boredom. The first is being a bore.

Author: Jean Baudrillard

Perhaps the world's second-worst crime is boredom; the first is being a bore.

Author: Cecil Beaton

Retirement may be looked upon either as a prolonged holiday or as a rejection, a being thrown on to the scrap-heap.

Author: Simone Beauvoir

To make oneself an object, to make oneself passive, is a very different thing from being a passive object.

Author: Simone Beauvoir

Partly I resented being perceived as weak because I was a girl.

Author: Alison Bechdel

Being at a club that supported me meant a lot.

Author: David Beckham

Biology has progressed tremendously due to the model that Darwin put forth. But the black boxes Darwin accepted are now being opened, and our view of the world is again being shaken.

Author: Michael Behe

I loved Catholic school. I didn't like being beeped at by old pervs at the gas station because I was wearing a plaid skirt, though. It's like, do you think I'm going to stop and give you my phone number?

Author: Kristen Bell

I'm a geek who loves fashion. There's been a reinvention of the word geek. It means being passionate about anything that's under the radar or sort of frowned upon, like Comic-Con.

Author: Kristen Bell

Thus the Convention is unequivocal in its call for children to be consulted, to have their opinions heard and to have their best interests considered when law and policies are being drafted.

Author: Carol Bellamy

I wanted to be Anthony Hopkins and ended up being neither a film star nor having a career on the stage.

Author: Dirk Benedict

Torture is banned but in two-thirds of the world's countries it is still being committed in secret. Too many governments still allow wrongful imprisonment, murder or "disappearance" to be carried out by their officials with impunity.

Author: Peter Benenson

I am really looking forward as I get older and older, to being less and less nice.

Author: Annette Bening

The great advantage of being in a rut is that when one is in a rut, one knows exactly where one is.

Author: Arnold Bennett

Does there, I wonder, exist a being who has read all, or approximately all, that the person of average culture is supposed to have read, and that not to have read is a social sin? If such a being does exist, surely he is an old, a very old man.

Author: Arnold Bennett

To me, living in the present means being aware of your conscious choice to focus on the past, present or future - it is not necessarily having to focus on the present.

Author: Bo Bennett

Not being in tune with your customers is like living in an alternate reality; the way you think your customers feel about your product is not always the same as what your customers really think about your product.

Author: Bo Bennett

Communication is about being effective, not always about being proper.

Author: Bo Bennett

Lohan and I talk about just things that happen. It's Lindsay. She's great. I went from not knowing who she was to not being able to get rid of her because she's everywhere. She's on everything.

Author: Jonathan Bennett

I am sure it is one's duty as a teacher to try to show boys that no opinions, no tastes, no emotions are worth much unless they are one's own. I suffered acutely as a boy from the lack of being shown this.

Author: A. Benson

I don't care about being a star. I can do a supporting role; I don't have to be a lead.

Author: Tom Berenger

Quite a few operas are still being commissioned around the world, although nothing apart from audience popularity can ensure more than a few performances.

Author: Bruce Beresford

The man who gets drunk in peacetime is a coward. The man who gets drunk in wartime goes on being a coward.

Author: Jose Bergamin

I never have really said much about the whole episode, which was endless. But his speech was a perfectly intelligent speech about fathers not being dispensable and nobody agreed with that more than I did.

Author: Candice Bergen

But when I disappeared, it sort of pissed me off, that guys get to go on being sexual until they're seventy or eighty, and we disappear at forty-five or fifty.

Author: Candice Bergen

Nakedness reveals itself. Nudity is placed on display. The nude is condemned to never being naked. Nudity is a form of dress.

Author: John Berger