Quotes by

Susan Orlean

I dont turn to greeting cards for wisdom and advice, but they are a fine reflection of the general drift of the culture. – Susan Orlean

I wish I had coined the phrase tyranny of choice, but someone beat me to it. The counterintuitive truth is that have an abundance of options does not make you feel privileged and indulged too many options make you feel like all of them are wrong, and that you are wrong if you choose any of them. – Susan Orlean

Sometimes Im dazzled by how modern and fabulous we are, and how easy everything can be for us thats the gilded glow of technology, and I marvel at it all the time. – Susan Orlean

Every corny thing thats said about living with nature – being in harmony with the earth, feeling the cycle of the seasons – happens to be true. – Susan Orlean

In the course of transferring all my CDs to my iPod, I have found myself wandering the musical hallways of my past and reacquainting myself with music I havent listened to in years. – Susan Orlean

The first thing I think about when I wake up most mornings is the fact that Im tired. I have been tired for decades. I am tired in the morning and I am tired while becalmed in the slough of the afternoon, and I am tired in the evening, except right when I try to go to sleep. – Susan Orlean

I have long been one of those tedious people who rails against the coronation of student-athletes. I have heard the argument that big-time athletics bring in loads of money to universities. I dont believe the money goes anywhere other than back into the sports teams, but thats another story. – Susan Orlean

Knowledge is a beautiful thing, but there are a few things I wish I didnt know. – Susan Orlean

The thing is, I have a zillion apps, and Im always looking for the perfect arrangement for them, so scrambling my home screen is part of that eternal quest. – Susan Orlean

When my son was born, and after a day of lying-in I was told that I could leave the hospital and take him home, I burst into tears. It wasnt the emotion of the moment: it was shock and horror. – Susan Orlean

Whats funny is that the idea of popularity – even the use of the word popular – is something that had been mostly absent from my life since junior high. In fact, the hallmark of life after junior high seemed to be the shedding of popularity as a central concern. – Susan Orlean

Buying a car used to be an experience so soul-scorching, so confidence-splattering, so existentially rattling that an entire car company was based on the promise that you wouldnt have to come in contact with it. – Susan Orlean

I want to let my friend Buster know that I would like to have dinner with him tonight. Does Buster work at home? Then how likely is he to have his cell phone on? Is he one of those people who only turns on his cell when hes in his car? I hate that. – Susan Orlean

I want a chainsaw very badly, because I think cutting down a tree would be unbelievably satisfying. I have asked for a chainsaw for my birthday, but I think Ill probably be given jewelry instead. – Susan Orlean

I once had a boyfriend who couldnt write unless he was wearing a necktie and a dress shirt, which I thought was really weird, because this was a long time ago, and no one I knew ever wore dress shirts, let alone neckties it was like he was a grown-up reenacter or something. – Susan Orlean

There will always be vain, obsessive people who want to own rare and extraordinary things whatever the cost there will always be people for whom owning beautiful, dangerous animals brings a sense of power and magic. – Susan Orlean

I am of mixed minds about the issue of privacy. On one hand, I understand that information is power, and power is, well, power, so keeping your private information to yourself is essential – especially if you are a controversial figure, a celebrity, or a dissident. – Susan Orlean

Recently, I have come to assume that any call to my landline is from a telemarketer or an automated call from Terminex, letting me know that our regularly scheduled pest-extermination service will occur on its regular schedule. So I usually ignore my home phone. – Susan Orlean

I work at home, in the country, and days will go by when, except for my husband and son and the occasional UPS man, the only sentient creatures that see me are my chickens and turkeys. – Susan Orlean

I have no idea how to get in touch with anyone anymore. Everyone, it seems, has a home phone, a cell phone, a regular e-mail account, a Facebook account, a Twitter account, and a Web site. Some of them also have a Google Voice number. There are the sentimental few who still have fax machines. – Susan Orlean