“It’s just an accident that we happen to be on earth, enjoying our silly little moments, distracting ourselves as often as possible so we don’t have to really face up to the fact that, you know, we’re just temporary people with a very short time in a universe that will eventually be completely gone. And everything that you value, whether it’s Shakespeare, Beethoven, da Vinci, or whatever, will be gone. The earth will be gone. The sun will be gone. There’ll be nothing. The best you can do to get through life is distraction. Love works as a distraction. And work works as a distraction. You can distract yourself a billion different ways. But the key is to distract yourself.” – Woody Allen, “What I’ve Learned”
There’s the door, go through it
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2 thoughts on “There’s the door, go through it”
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One of my favorites in a long line of thought-provoking quotes you’ve gathered here. Distraction is a big fucking deal, practically the only reason for doing anything at all. That blank space in the dead of night is where the goblins live—we must try at all costs to avoid it.
Goblins also live downstairs. The neighbors who live below me have a chronic hard time (shouting, wailing, screaming, slamming doors, visits from the cops). They are presently having, as part of their Thanksgiving in Hell, a true Black Friday. Susan and I were coming back in from a refreshing visit to the lakefront. One of the downstairs dungeon denizens stopped us as we were coming back into the building and asked us if she could borrow our phone to call 911 because her roommate was trying to kill herself. I said, “I’ll call,” and I pulled out my cell and called. Susan and I waited in the lobby for the next few minutes while the police and fire departments responded. Soon as they were here, Susan and I went back upstairs, where we presently are, feeling fortunate and being thoughtful.