Quotes from Sarah Shahi

To be beautiful in Texas, you had to be blonde and blue-eyed and have a name like Ann.

I never really paid attention to sports, which, coming from the mecca of football in Texas, is kind of odd. I played sports, but I was nerdy. Having a single mother, the pressure was on me to get good grades and a scholarship and go to college.

The most important mark I will leave on this world is my son.

I actually got more attention from one episode of 'The Sopranos' than I did from two years of 'The L Word.'

I never thought I would be one of those wacky chicks who say, 'I loved my labor,' but I loved every part of it. It was the best day of my life.

My father left when I was really young, but he's still living. There are things I wish I'd said that I didn't and I don't think I'll ever get the opportunity to say. He's battled addiction problems his entire life. I wish things were different. I wish there were a way my son could know him, know the good parts of him.

My mother raised three kids on her own, so I was taught that to be a working mom was a good thing.

It is therapeutic for me to act, to be able to slip into somebody else's skin, and know it's not you, but know that you bring a lot of yourself to it. At times in my life it's provided me with a lot of confusion. It's also provided me with a lot of discovery.

Right when I finish a workout, I feel pretty sexy. Even though I'm sweaty and I don't smell like a rose, I feel strong. It does a lot for me mentally and physically.

My favorite workouts are the ones that don't feel like I'm working out! So, dance is a big one. Another is any kind of isolated moves, like ballet moves. Anything that works the glutes and legs - sign me up! And I like to blast the music. I have to get lost in the music. That helps.

I'm a tomboy myself and have always been incredibly athletic.

I feel that as the world becomes more and more multicultural, it's a good tool to be able to speak another language.

I think it's important to love what you do and have a good time with it. I go to work every day and have a blast.

Once, I started cheering for the wrong team. I was hot, and I heard 'Touchdown!' and I started doing high kicks, and I looked around and nobody else was cheering.

You can get a man's attention if you got a pair of boobs and a butt. I hate to simplify them down so much, but I think it's true.

I came from a single parent household. And I had a bad example of what a husband and father could be and how irresponsible a father could be. So because of that, I didn't want to get married or have kids.

I love guns. I love shooting guns.

As a parent, you experience the most of everything. The most love, the most fear, the most hurt and the most tired, the most of every emotion.

I'm used to a lot of love scenes. I'm used to something that requires me to kick up my heels and wink-wink, flirt-flirt with a twirl of my skirt.

I'm not one to be messed with. I can be bad when it needs to happen.

I'm a wife and a mother. I don't want to be immature; I have to be ready at all times.

You really have to take your time; you have to know your character and your scene. The line you are about to say comes from the moment right before. It's not what's said, it's what is in between the spaces, it's what's in between the lines; that is the most important to play.

Growing up, I loved Morticia Addams and Lily Munster on one hand, and Jeannie from 'I Dream of Jeannie' on the other. Two completely different ends of the spectrum, kind of like me.

I did a lot of theater growing up, and in college I was in the musical 'Chicago.'