He told me that when his drinking was at its worst, the only thing that kept him from suicide was the thought he’d never be able to have another one.

I like to keep myself unbusy.

Your unexamined regard for your own training, professional standing, judgment, and notoriety leads me to question your intelligence.

She said, if you could kindly refrain from dropping objects where and when they cease to be of interest, it would greatly improve the lives of those around you.

Passing Rockland Psych Center, saw dead dog on side of road.
Wept for next 38 miles.
Just when you think there’s nothing left, there it is again.

We all have those rare friends who seem to generate an irresistable force field that draws people to them. I have the opposite power; my side of the room is always dependably empty and silent.

Sleep—when there’s nowhere else to go.

Later he would remember this as his Year of Watching Tennis. He didn’t particularly like or understand tennis. He found it boring. But little by little, hearing the ball bounce back and forth, he felt his mind putting itself back together.

Exquisite language that only calls attention to itself.

My aunt had a big old chunky hand-carved Dubrovnik set she picked up in Yugoslavia in the early 80s. Each piece was over 5 feet tall and moved around on a football field-sized board with an elaborately geared system of pulleys and levers. Tournaments were winner-take-all affairs, with the losers consigned to tower jail cells. In the event of a draw both players were executed.