Quotes from Laurence Shames

An old man's errors mattered both more and less than a young man's. More because there was less time to undo them; less because there was less time to endure their consequences.

Bert's dog smelled nature or history and began to tremble.

Loss. A strange word. It seemed to mean an absence, something missing; but loss was also a presence all its own, a fanged and snarling monster ready at any moment to break its chain and snatch someone away.

There are towns, you know, for making money. Towns to start a career. Towns to go to college. Towns to raise a family. Key West is no damn good for any of that. Key West is to feel good and be happy. That's all.

Success and failure. We think of them as opposites, but they're really not. They're companions - the hero and the sidekick.

I've never written a hard journalism piece in my life. I've never wanted to do that.

I listen to the Beatles all the time - in my car, at the gym. The Beatles are still part of my life. And because of that, John Lennon - in life and in death - remains part of my life.

Success and failure. We think of them as opposites, but they're really not. They're companions — the hero and the sidekick.

yacht club tastes and a rubber ducky budget.

His wife loved him. This was staggering. It rewrote history.

In Joey's neighborhood the blocks were short and there were stop signs on every corner. It was hard to get going more than fifteen miles an hour, and on those lazy streets Joey's refurbished 1973 El Dorado convertible got about eight blocks to the gallon.

Dog's constipated," said Bert the Shirt. "Who isn't?" said the Godfather.

Why are we inspired by another person's courage? Maybe because it gives us the sweet and genuine surprise of discovering some trace, at least, of the same courage in ourselves.