Charley Quotes

Nobody named Cheerful Charley is tuned in on my wavelength ~ Philip K. Dick

There's another part, an obstinate part, that wants more. That wants Dutch live and in the flesh. That wants her hand. Her mouth. Her hips under mine. It wants all of her. Every last ounce. Body and soul. ~ Darynda Jones

When I'm not scouring through the backstreets of every city in the state, I keep an eye on the girl. My girl. ~ Darynda Jones

Are you ready?" she asked, whispering. "Ready as a drunk virgin on prom night. ~ Darynda Jones

The tastes of country music fans are not limited to the narrow range defined by consultants and programmers and record company moguls. ~ Charley Pride

I believe it is possible to tell what sign some people were born under by watching their eyes, watching how they walk, how they talk. ~ Charley Pride

Paul Theroux on Blogging, Travel Writing, and Three Cups of Tea

Speaking of books that contain an element of travel, Greg Mortenson's bestseller about Central Asia was in the news recently. Were you surprised by the allegations that Three Cups of Tea contained fabrications?

No, I wasn't. One of the things The Tao of Travel shows is how unforthcoming most travel writers are, how most travelers are. They don't tell you who they were traveling with, and they're not very reliable about things that happened to them. For example, everyone loved John Steinbeck's book Travels With Charley. Turns out he didn't travel alone, his wife kept meeting him, yet she was never mentioned in the book. Steinbeck didn't go to all the places he mentioned, nor did he meet all the people he said he met. In other words, Travels With Charley is fiction, or at least half-fiction. As for Three Cups of Tea, I think that philanthropists and humanitarians are even less forthcoming about what they do. I guess this guy did build a couple of schools in Afghanistan, but a self-promoting humanitarian is not someone I have a great deal of trust or belief in. I lived for six years in Africa and I've been to Africa numerous times since then. People build schools for their own reasons - not to improve a country.

The people I've known who've done great things of that type - you know, building hospitals, running schools - are very humble people. They give their lives to the project. Mi ~ Paul Theroux

We stood there, the three of us, our jaws firmly planted on the floor. Aunt Lil recovered first. She nudged me with her elbow and said with a cackle of delight, I think you guys should make some more of those brownies, 'cause that boy looks hungry. ~ Darynda Jones

Do you know how hard it is to diet with a name like Cookie?" "That's so weird." I stared off into space, marveling at the similarities of our situation. "It's hard to diet with a name like Charley, too ~ Darynda Jones

Chet Atkins ... is probably the best guitar player who ever lived. ~ Charley Pride

The FBI had finally wised up and put Charley Davidson on the task of bringing a killer to justice. Because that's what Charley did. Brought killers to justice. She also found lost dogs, exposed cheating spouses, and tracked down the occasional skip. And she rarely referred to herself in the third person. ~ Darynda Jones

The whites do not believe in such things," Charley said.
"Believe?" Tupshin was bewildered. "What is this talk of belief? Do they not believe in the sea, then? Or the mountains? There is a thing which is, it is not for believing or not believing. ~ Don Berry

On the hearth, in front of a back-brand to give substance, blazed a fire of thorns, that crackled 'like the laughter of the fool.'

Nineteen persons were gathered here. Of these, five women, wearing gowns of various bright hues, sat in chairs along the wall; girls shy and not shy filled the window-bench; four men, including Charley Jake the hedge-carpenter, Elijah New the parish-clerk, and John Pitcher, a neighboring dairyman, the shepherd's father-in-law, lolled in the settle; a young man and maid, who were blushing over tentative pourparlers on a life companionship, sat beneath the corner-cupboard; and an elderly engaged man of fifty or upward moved restlessly about from spots where his betrothed was not to the spot where she was. Enjoyment was pretty general, and so much the more prevailed in being unhampered by conventional restrictions. Absolute confidence in each other's good opinion begat perfect ease, while the finishing stroke of manner, amounting to a truly princely serenity, was lent to the majority by the absence of any expression or trait denoting that they wished to get on in the world, enlarge their minds, or do any eclipsing thing whatever - which nowadays so generally nips the bloom and bonhomie of all except the two extremes of the social scale.

("The Three Strangers") ~ Thomas Hardy

A woman went so far as to hire private detectives to contact me to help bring her out of what she called a hypnotic trance. ~ Charley Pride

If it isn't Charley ~ Marcus Emerson

The new laws passed by Congress in the name of fighting terrorism pose a greater danger to the civil liberties of American citizens than to the operations of terrorists. Powers once assumed are never relinquished, just as bureaucracies, once created, never die. ~ Charley Reese

Denton struck Charley as the kind of man who never wasted energy on extra movement or idle chitchat. He was foursquare Sonny Boy Williamson and Sister Rosetta Tharpe, a Silvertone guitar, older than old school. ~ Natalie Baszile

This was the move that was supposed to sweep me away. She seemed a little out of practice. I guess life with Charley Royce hadn't exactly been the third reel of The English Patient. It had to be bad if Mickey Dolan was your back-up. Not to put Mickey down but he didn't strike me as the lover-boy type. Especially when he took out his teeth. The last time Mickey thought about pleasing anybody but himself was just before he discovered how to sniff glue. ~ Dan Ahearn

Are you God?" Kory asked, his voice soft.
"Um, no, but I appreciate the compliment. I'm Charley. ~ Darynda Jones

Charley was twenty-six, with that faint musk of weakness hanging about him that is often mistaken for the scent of evil. ~ F Scott Fitzgerald

And who came up with the animals for these euphemisms, anyway? Why bat shit? Why not cow shit or grasshopper shit? And why don't we give a rat's ass as opposed to a hamster's ass? ~ Darynda Jones

The politicians in this world ... have at their command weapons of mass destruction far more complex than their own thinking processes. ~ Charley Reese

Sitka Charley started. There had been more than one shot, yet there was but one other rifle in the party. He gave a fleeting glance at the men who lay so quietly, smiled viciously at the wisdom of the trail, and hurried on to meet the Men of the Yukon. ~ Jack London

I think Charley Pride has been one of the best things to happen to country music, to prove it belongs to everybody. ~ Loretta Lynn

Where the hell did my bones go? I asked. This whole upright thing had me stumped. ~ Darynda Jones

I didn't realize until I locked the door to my apartment and leaned against it, panting that my cheeks were covered in frozen tears. I was such an idiot. And my heart hurt. Bad. Every beat sent an ache rocketing through my body. I was having a heart attack. Or, more likely, my heart had just broken. ~ Darynda Jones

Charley looked like someone from a Greek play, Electra, or Cassandra. She looked like someone had just set her favorite city on fire. ~ Kelly Link

...and I was prepared to say blow off if you don't like this idea ~ Charley Harper

I felt like the girl who showed up at a formal dinner party in jeans and a Pink Floyd T-shirt. Probably 'cause I did that once. ~ Darynda Jones

For one week, all I could think about was drinking margaritas
well, that and running my tongue along Reyes's teeth
but I didn't have salt
or Reyes's teeth. I'd also lacked the energy to leave my apartment to get some
or the desire to stoop low enough to beg Reyes to let me lick his teeth after what he did
so I could only wish for a margarita. And dream of Reyes's teeth.
I'd secretly hoped a margarita would magically appear in my hand, but that would mean I would have to put down the remote, and God knew that was not going to happen. ~ Darynda Jones

Flying was as necessary to my business as fiddles and footlights. ~ Charley Pride

What do you want?"
"You," he said, his voice lowering an octave. "I want you, Dutch, body and soul. I want you in my bed every night. I want you there when I wake up in the morning. I want your clothes strung across my apartment and your scent on my skin. ~ Darynda Jones

In three hundred feet, turn right, Darth Vader said. The Darth Vader. I felt like we were friends now. Like I could tell him anything. ~ Darynda Jones

People who believe in gun control are ignorant, superstitious or stupid. ~ Charley Reese

Congress seems to want to cure every ill known to man except unconstitutional government and high taxes. ~ Charley Reese

I have depth. I've read Proust. No, wait, that was Pooh. Winnie the Pooh. My bad
Charley Davidson. ~ Darynda Jones

Is that what you think? That I follow you around to keep your ass out of trouble?"
"If so, you're not very good at your job."
A huge smile spread across his face. "True enough. So what's eating you? Because, sadly, it's not me. ~ Darynda Jones

We should date."
I laughed, curled him into my arms, and kissed the soft spot underneath his earlobe. "You're going to have to go to obedience school for that to happen. You have authority issues."
"Never mind. We should have sex again and then date."
"Since you put it that way, okay. ~ Darynda Jones

I grew up not liking my father very much. I never saw him cry. But he must have. Everybody cries. ~ Charley Pride

It was all very strange and complicated. It looked as though nothing were quite so simple as it seemed; it looked as though the people we thought we knew best carried secrets that they didn't even know themselves. Charley had a sudden inkling that human beings were infinitely mysterious. The fact was that you knew nothing about anybody. ~ W. Somerset Maugham

I don't think I get enough credit for the fact that I do all of this unmedicated. - T-SHIRT ~ Darynda Jones

It seems to me Montana is a great splash of grandeur. The scale is huge but not overpowering. The land is rich with grass and color, and the mountains are the kind I would create if mountains were ever put on my agenda. ~ John Steinbeck

Long distance is the next best thing to being there. But a dove in love would rather reach out and touch someone. Spring is in the air and all lines are busy with local calls as the wooing and cooing commences. ~ Charley Harper

If Americans wish to preserve a country they will recognize, then the first step is to recognize the enemy. Public education is the enemy. The entertainment industry is the enemy. The corporate culture is the enemy. The advertising industry is the enemy. And most of the politicians in both parties are the enemy. An enemy is defined as anybody, or any organization, which is attacking the traditional beliefs of Americans. ~ Charley Reese

Well?" she asked when she picked up.
"Do you think we're really alone in the universe?"
"Were you abducted by aliens again?"
"No, thank goodness. Once was enough for me."
"Oh, whew. So, what happened with Reyes? Did you see him?"
"Saw him. Argued with him. Barfed. ~ Darynda Jones

A journey is a person in itself; no two are alike.
An all plans, safeguards, policies and coercion are fruitless.
We find after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us. ~ John Steinbeck

Your father doesn't like me," Charley said to Wesley later when Wesley had gotten them away from the crowd.
"Father doesn't seem to like anyone," Wesley said. "Don't let it worry you."
"But you brought me to his house. I don't like to be in the home of someone who doesn't like me."
"But my brother Skylar claims it is his home, and I believe that Skylar does like you," Wesley said. "He's Indian like you."
"Yes. We are both Cherokees. What is Skylar's clan?"
"I believe I've heard him say that it's Wolf."
"Then we are related. I'm Wolf clan."
"That's amazing, Charley. So you and my brother are related. Does that make us related too?"
"I don't think so, Wesley, because the relationship is through our mothers."
"Well, that's too bad. I would like to be your brother. ~ Robert J. Conley

Okay, I'll strip. I'll tap dance. I'll sing 'La Cucaracha' in C minor. ~ Darynda Jones

I could hardly be responsible for my actions when everyone around me gave me every opportunity to sink to their low expectations. ~ Darynda Jones

Make sure the government treats others the same as you would want the government to treat you ... Once you consent to the government ignoring the Constitution, you deny yourself the protection of the Constitution. ~ Charley Reese

And this I would fight for: the freedom of the mind to take any direction it wishes, undirected. And this I must fight against: any idea, religion, or government which limits or destroys the individual. ~ John Steinbeck

I called my friend Pari on the way home. "I need you to do my apt."
"I'm not that attracted to your apt."
"I think I'm being bugged."
"Like I am? Right now? ~ Darynda Jones

My powers of persuasion are only as strong as the bullshit I have to back it up.
- Charley Davidson ~ Darynda Jones

Our species ... has only one creative instrument, the individual mind and spirit of a man. Nothing was ever created by two men ... Once the miracle of creation has taken place, the group can build and extend it, but the group never invents anything. The preciousness lies in the lonely mind of a man ... And this I believe: that the free, exploring mind of the individual human is the most valuable thing in the world. And this I would fight for: the freedom of the mind to take any direction it wishes, undirected. And this I must fight against: any idea, religion, or government which limits or destroys the individual. This is what I am and what I am about. I can understand why a system built on a pattern must try to destroy the free mind, for that is one thing which can by inspection destroy such a system. Surely I can understand this, and I hate it and I will fight against it to preserve the one thing that separates us from the uncreative beasts. If the glory can be killed, we are lost. ~ John Steinbeck

The dreams continue for over a month. Each reveals a new facet of her personality. One night, she is wild and unpredictable. The next, she is shy or giggly or coy. She laughs and growls and bites and sucks. ~ Darynda Jones

I printed it once more on my eyes, south, west, and north, and then we hurried away from the permanent and changeless past where my mother is always shooting a wildcat and my father is always burning his name with his love. ~ John Steinbeck

American tyranny has come gradually, like a slow rising river. Each of us does not realize the danger until the water comes to our door. Until then, it is merely someone elses problem and a problem that we fool ourselves into thinking won't reach us. ~ Charley Reese

That's what scares me the most, Paul. That I'll just pass through life and all the people I know will just disappear, without a trace, without me ever telling them how much they mean to me, no matter how small the time spent was or how great the friendship was. That they'll be gone and they'll forget me and I'll end up with nothing."
I saw in my head Charley laughing, Charley sticking his head out the window and screaming, Charley playing a video game so intensely he was a foot from the screen. Moments flashed before my eyes in a quick, unrelenting sequence.
I shook my head. "I know. Believe me, I know. ~ J.C. Joranco

Reyes and I sat arm in arm in the back of the rented SUV. He seemed relieved. Happy. ~ Darynda Jones

Do you really think you'd go to hell?"
"No. As a god, I'd go to a prison dimension, I suppose."
"I think you've seen the inside of enough prisons to last you a few million years. And besides, why would you go there? You've done nothing wrong, Reyes."
He offered me a sad smile and looked away. ~ Darynda Jones

After 14 months of military service, I had a wife, a child, half an apartment, no car, and no job. ~ Charley Pride

Hurricane Charley is the worst natural disaster to befall our state in a dozen years, and it is unthinkable that anyone would try to take advantage of neighbors at a time like this,. ~ Charlie Crist

It was unlikely that anyone had ever heard a black person sing country music. ~ Charley Pride

A black man singing about a blond girl was potential trouble. ~ Charley Pride

Americans, both politicians and voters, may have become corrupted by big government beyond redemption. A virtuous government requires a virtuous people. A frugal government requires a self-reliant people. A free country requires people who value liberty more than money. ~ Charley Reese

What makes Travels with Charley so readily accessible to even the most casual reader is the deft evocation of the natural world, the colors and textures of leaves on the trees, the rich smells of earth, the slur of rain on pavement, the sharp rays of the sun as they pillar through a scud of clouds. Indeed, one can hardly open a page of this book without stumbling upon some bright image from nature. ~ John Steinbeck

If you look at Washington, you see permanently camped on the banks of the Potomac spread around in concentric circles an army representing thousands of selfish interests. The sole purpose of their presence is to plunder, by hook or crook, the public treasury for the benefit of their particular people or corporations. ~ Charley Reese

A government that intended to protect the liberty of the people would not disarm them. A government planning the opposite most certainly and logically would disarm them. And so it has been in this century. Check out the history of Germany, the Soviet Union, Cuba, China and Cambodia. ~ Charley Reese

There are two theories on hitting the knuckleball. Unfortunately, neither of them works. ~ Charley Lau

Hey, I'm going to Super Dog for a quick bite and to pass along a message from a dead guy to his girlfriend. You should come with me."
"I can't go with you."
"Is it because of my questionable morals?"
"No, it's because it's three o'clock in the afternoon and I have to pick up Amber from school."
"Oh, right. So the morals thing doesn't bother you? ~ Darynda Jones

For directly afterwards, the Dodger, and Charley, and the two young ladies, went away together, having been kindly furnished by the amiable old Jew with money to spend. ~ Charles Dickens

This monster of a land, this mightiest of nations, this spawn of the future, turns out to be the macrocosm of microcosm me. ~ John Steinbeck

Where you just possessed?" Cookie asked after a long moment, awe softening her voice. "'Cause let me tell you, sweetheart, if that was possession, I'm selling my soul. ~ Darynda Jones

I realize I was more of a curiosity to the older Nashville artists than the new ones. ~ Charley Pride

When I look at a wildlife or nature subject, I dont see the feathers in the wings, I just count the wings. I see exciting shapes, color combinations, patterns, textures, fascinating behavior and endless possibilities for making interesting pictures. I regard the picture as an ecosystem in which all the elements are interrelated, interdependent, perfectly balanced, without trimming or unutilized parts; and herein lies the lure of the painting; in a world of chaos, the picture is one small rectangle in which the artist can create an ordered universe. ~ Charley Harper

I was more than willing to put aside the Charley Davidson Book of Etiquette and Mud Wrestling if it resulted in earth-shattering orgasms. ~ Darynda Jones

They were back. The demons in all their glory. And they had a plan. I made plans sometimes, too, but they rarely involved world domination. Hot dogs on a grill, maybe. Tequila. ~ Darynda Jones

I climbed into Misery and called Uncle Bob. "We hooking up?"
"Why does everything out of your mouth make me sound incestuous?"
"Um, I wasn't aware that it did. Perhaps you have a guilty conscience."
"Charley."
"Is there something you need to get off your chest? Besides that skank I saw you with the other day? ~ Darynda Jones

There's no dishonor in being forced by a superior power into slavery, but it is an eternal disgrace to voluntarily surrender one's liberty for a filthy bowl of oatmeal and promise of security by liars. ~ Charley Reese

I watched as Reyes fell, a scream I couldn't hear wrenched from my throat as I waited for him to do something. For him to react. To save himself. It was Reyes, after all. He could do anything. ~ Darynda Jones

I was just passing by. Saw the commotion. Figured you were involved. ~ Darynda Jones

You would use your body to get what you want?"
"In a heartbeat."
He was hurt. I could feel it echo through him. He stepped closer again, leveled his face inches from mine, and whispered in the softest of voices, "Whore. ~ Darynda Jones

A split second later, my life flashed before my eyes, and I came to one important conclusion about it.
It was fun while it lasted. ~ Darynda Jones

Reason and truth have rarely prevailed against demagoguery when the audience is too ignorant to tell the difference. ~ Charley Reese

God gave you brain, Charley. If you're using it then that's a gift from him. Not for someone else to determine for you what's right and wrong. Twenty people read the Bible and each has a different interpretation. More wars fought and blood shed over religion than anything else. That should tell you something. No clear right or wrong about anything. That's how I see it. ~ Paulette Mahurin

Our Founding Fathers were proud that Americans were trusted with arms because they knew that only when people are armed could they truly be thought of as free citizens. And that's where the circle closes. Those who want to deprive you of your right to keep and bear arms are intending to deprive you of your freedom, period. Like the criminals their policies encourage, these elitists know that it is always best to disarm victims before you enslave them. ~ Charley Reese

The funny thing about GPS was it didn't always send you in the right direction.
I knew that if I took a right and took Twelfth instead, I'd get there faster, so I turned right. Ozzy did not approve.
Wut the foock? ~ Darynda Jones

There only have been two people on this earth that I was nervous around: Chet Atkins and Mickey Mantle. It's because of the respect I have for them. ~ Charley Pride

The time I spent thinking about how I was better than somebody else or worrying about somebody else's attitude was time I could put to better use. ~ Charley Pride

You know, I was thinking about my in-laws." I strolled closer, craving his heat. And his scent. And the power that continuously hummed through him like an infinite source of energy. "You know, from your supernatural side? By being married to you, I am Satan's daughter-in-law, Jehova's sister-in-law, and Jesus's aunt by marriage. ~ Darynda Jones

He was increasingly irritable and suspicious, and a cantankerous mood could fly over him as quickly as the shadow of a bird. But Jesse was neither close-mouthed nor sulky for long, and over the weeks that he and Charley were on the road, he unscrolled yarns and anecdotes that excited interest in Charley only insofar as they permitted him a corresponding reminiscence. ~ Ron Hansen

On Elizabeth Gaskell's 'Sylvia's Lovers'.
'Philip Hepuburn worships Sylvia Robson, and finds dishonour' Sylvia Robson worships Charley Kinraid, and finds disillusionment. Charley Kinraid worships himself, and finds a career in the Royal Navy and an heiress who agrees with him. ~ Lucinda Elliot

God is dead,' Nick said. 'They found his carcass in 2019. Floating in space near Alpha.'
'They found the remains of an organism advanced several thousand times over what we are,' Charley said. 'And evidently could create habitable worlds and populate them with living organisms, derived from itself. But that doesn't prove it was God. ~ Philip K. Dick

To my Charley on his wedding day –
…Here is what you are going to find out about marriage: you have to work at it together. And you have to love three things. You have to love:
Each other.
Your children (When you have some! Hint! Hint!).
Your marriage

What I mean by the last one is, there may be times that you fight, and sometimes you and Catherine won't even like each other. But those are the times you have to love your marriage. It's like a third party. Look at your wedding photos. Look at any memories you've made. And if you believe in those memories, they will pull you back together.

I'm very proud of you today, Charley. I am putting this in your tuxedo pocket because I know how you lose things.

I love you every day!
Mom ~ Mitch Albom

Gemma talking to Charley ...
"Got it. Have you seen my pants?"
"Speaking of which, how did you get home without them?"
"I borrowed a pair of you sweats. I ran into a convenience store with them on. I talked to neighbors out in their yard when I pulled up. And only after I got inside did I realize the had 'Exit Only' written across the back."
"You stole my favorite sweats?"
"I wanted to die."
"It's weird that sweats would make you suicidal. I'd analyze the crap out of that if I were you."
"Do you actually wear those in public?"
"Only when I go out in them ~ Darynda Jones

There was nothing like a trip to the gynecologist to make one feel just a little violated.
Charley ~ Darynda Jones

I could fight a dozen hounds from hell, I could bring down the son of Satan with a word, but put me in the ring with a psychotic chick, and I go down in the first. ~ Darynda Jones

I have always lived violently, drunk hugely, eaten too much or not at all, slept around the clock or missed two nights of sleeping, worked too hard and too long in glory, or slobbed for a time in utter laziness. I've lifted, pulled, chopped, climbed, made love with joy and taken my hangovers as a consequence, not as a punishment. ~ John Steinbeck

Apparently, this really was Kill Charley Davidson Week. Or at least Horribly Maim Her ... It would probably never get government recognition, though, destined to be underappreciated like Halloween or Thesaurus Day. ~ Darynda Jones

Gun-control has always been an elitist method of controlling the common ... ~ Charley Reese