nick hornby - a long way down

you know that things aren't going well for you when you can't even tell people the simplest fact about your life, just because they'll presume you're asking them to feel sorry for you. (maureen, p 199)

you need confidence to go into small places with regular customers -- small bookshops and small music shops and small restaurants and cafés. i'm happiest in the virgin megastore and borders and starbucks and pizzaexpress where no one gives a shit. no one knows who you are. my mum & dad are always going on about how soulless those places are, and i'm like, der. that's the point. (jess, p 188)

and that's me: i suffer from a failure of imagination. i could do what i wanted, every day of my life, and what i want to do, apparently, is to get walloped out of my head and pick fights. telling me i can do anything i want is like pulling the plug out of the bath and then telling the water it can go anywhere it wants. try it, and see what happens. (jess, p 209)