(Courtesy of Coffee House Studio)
Tempest Brews Over Quotes on Starbucks Cups
A sampling of contributions to Starbucks' "The Way I See It" promotion
Michael Medved, radio talk-show host "Americans spend an average of 29 hours a week watching television ... which means in a typical life span we devote 13 uninterrupted years to our TV sets! ... Cutting down just an hour a day would provide extra years of life — for music and family, exercise and reading, conversation and coffee."
Rita Golden Gelman, author, "Tales of a Female Nomad" ... "Without risk, nothing new ever happens. Without trust, fear creeps in. Without serendipity, there are no surprises."
Alice Randall, novelist and first black woman to write a No. 1 country song "Mother-love is not inevitable. The good mother is a great artist, ever creating beauty out of chaos."
Erykah Badu, musician "The wise healer endures the pain. Cry. Tears bring joy."
Nikki Giovanni, poet "Hot allusions. Metaphors over easy. Side order of rhythm. Message: If you want to be a poet you've got to eat right."
Jonah Goldberg, editor, National Review Online "Everywhere, unthinking mobs of 'independent thinkers' wield tired cliches like cudgels, pummeling those who dare question 'enlightened' dogma. ... Cliches begin arguments, they don't settle them."
J.A. Jance, crime novelist "When I began writing, the words that inspired me were these: 'A writer is someone who has written today.' If you want to be a writer, what's stopping you?"
Source: Starbucks
5 comments:
This issue upsets me, because it forces me to defend Starbucks, which really is evil, albeit not for the reason that Concerned Women of America think!
I can relate to the Maupin quote, because society really does pressure us to "conform" to what is accepted as "normal". It is a personal issue which I have ultimately learned to deal with, much the same way that Armistead did... but oh, those wasted years... We will never get them back...
Peace,
=RD=
Continental Op,
The current political situation will make some strange bedfellows indeed... currently I am much more concerned about the Concerned Women of America!
Rainbow Demon,
We all have to struggle with those pressures (of course there may be more at stake for some and the possible retributions may be worse for some) ... it seems that the journey to maturity is struggling to come to terms with who you are and the willingness to be true to your beliefs, feelings and desires (especially in interacting with others).
When I was young I felt a strong desire to help out others and be a kind, gentle person. My environment demanded a male attitude of hardness, brutality and aggression. I was too scared to be otherwise and I lost a lot because of my cowardice. Strange to come to terms with the concept that being kind/gentle is strength and that being brutal/aggressive is weak, but the latter was too easy and required no committment or strength on my part, while the former has always required courage of my convictions and the ability to understand myself and not be afraid what others think. A continuous puzzle that I have not quite solved... I guess it never ends.
I say this because there is this easy dismissal from heterosexuals of the experience of being closeted as if it is just something that is unique to the fear of one's homosexuality being exposed, when in reality many of us fear our true selves being discovered and have developed assorted blinds, traps and shields to protect our true feelings/desires from being seen/perceived by others. At least I did ... maybe that is why Maupin's has always been a favorite writer, especially his Tales of the City. He portrayed a San Francisco and a group of people that I will always remember--a time of experimentation and wonder---a community of people from all walks of life, who for a brief period of time, were coming to terms with who they were... I also cherish the PBS mini-series, with Laura Linney, Olympia Dukakis and Ian McKellen!
I too adore Maupin's "Tales" and heartily enjoyed the TV version. When I moved to SF, I was very disappointed not to find a place to live like Barbary Lane.
another example of why I love living on the west coast.
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