Quote Of The Week – Page 4 – Good Morning Gloucester

Henry David Thoreau Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on July 12, 2013July 12, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

“The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it.”

Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)

Sometimes called the first environmentalist, Thoreau, born and raised in Concord, Massachusetts, was mentored by the Transcendentalists Ralph Waldo Emerson and Bronson Alcott, his neighbors. His book Walden, about the two years he spent living in a hut he had built himself on Emerson’s woodlot at Walden Pond, has become a classic of American literature for its introspection blended with natural history. His Civil Disobedience, written as an explanation of his non-payment of taxes as a protest against the Mexican-American war, is still influential, and his books on his journeys to Maine, Canada and Cape Cod go much deeper than mere travelogues. Thoreau is also credited with the invention of raisin bread.

Nelson Rolihlala Mandela Quote Of The Week

Posted on June 28, 2013June 27, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

“There is no passion to be found playing small ― in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.”

Nelson Rolihlala Mandela (1918- )

Born into a family of royal counselors of the Xhosa people of South Africa’s Cape Province, Mandela, whose given name Rolihlala means “troublemaker”, was called Nelson by his British influenced teachers only when he began to attend school. He studied law and later joined the African National Congress rising to the presidency of its youth league in 1947. Later a member of the ANC’s executive council he was arrested and jailed numerous times culminating in his conviction for treason and his incarceration from 1962 to 1990. Even from prison his example and leadership helped overthrow the whites-only government, and he is credited with ending apartheid without the widely expected bloodbath. In the first South African election in which blacks were allowed to vote he was elected President and served in that role from 1994 to 1999, overseeing policies of national reconciliation and reconstruction. Described as the father of South African democracy, Mandela has in recent years served as counselor and elder statesman, receiving multiple international recognitions including the Medal of Freedom (US), the Order of Canada, and the Order of Merit (UK). He is currently hospitalized and in failing health.

Carl Jung Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on June 22, 2013June 20, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

June 20, 2013

“Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.”

Carl Jung (1875-1961)

The founder of analytical psychology, Jung was born, raised and educated in Switzerland. His mother’s mysticism and his own early experiences with little understood psychological phenomena such as neurosis led him to a life-long study of the mind. In 1906 he met the somewhat older Sigmund Freud and formed a friendship and professional relationship that lasted for many years though they eventually fell out over the nature of the unconscious mind, Jung holding that the “collective unconscious” had a deeper and more powerful effect on the psyche. He was responsible for the development of several core concepts of modern psychology, including extroverted and introverted personalities, archetypes and “individuation”, the process of integrating the conscious and unconscious within one’s self. His theories led to a number of current psychological tools, including the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, a test sorting individuals according to their perception of the world and their decision-making processes. Jung’s studies went well beyond the strictly scientific, including dream analysis, astrology, alchemy, and the occult.

Ted (Robert Edward) Turner Quote Of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on June 15, 2013June 15, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

“If I only had a little humility, I’d be perfect.”

Ted (Robert Edward) Turner (1938- )

Media mogul, billionaire, philanthropist and sailor, Ted Turner was born in Ohio, but his family moved to Atlanta when he was nine. Educated at The McCallie School and Brown University, from which he was expelled for having a woman in his room, Turner took over a successful billboard business at 24 when his father took his own life. Over the next two decades he parleyed that business into an empire by shrewdly expanding a local television station into the giant TBS cable network, while establishing CNN, the Cartoon Network, TNT, TCM and others. As captain and owner of the sloop Courageous he successfully defended America’s Cup in 1977, beating Australia 4-0. He owns the Atlanta Braves and the Hawks, more land than Rhode Island and Delaware combined, and a herd of 50,000 bison. Famously outspoken, “The Mouth of the South” has pledged a billion dollars to the United Nations Foundation and supports anti-war and environmental causes. Married three times, most recently to Jane Fonda, he now says he has four girlfriends, a situation he describes as “complicated.”

Vernon Sanders Law Quote Of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on May 25, 2013May 25, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

May 23, 2013

“Experience is a hard teacher. She gives the test first, and then the lesson.”

Vernon Sanders Law (1930- )

An Idaho native ordained in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at an early age, Law pitched for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1950 to 1967. During the 1960 season he went 20-9 with a 3.08 ERA, winning the Cy Young Award and beating the Yankees twice in the World Series. In 1965 his work on and off the field was recognized with the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award. Law is also cited as the originator of the quote “A winner never quits and a quitter never wins.” He is currently the pitching coach at Provo (Utah) High School.

Douglas Adams Quote Of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on May 18, 2013May 17, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

May 17, 2013

“I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.

Douglas Adams (1952-2001)

Born in Cambridge, England, Adams was an early standout in prep school for his height and writing ability. He was initially “discovered” by Graham Chapman of the Monty Python troupe and is one of the few outside writers to work with the Flying Circus. In 1974 he wrote The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy as a play for the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. A tour de force of British humor and understatement, it was later published as a five volume series of books. Adams also wrote for the television series Dr. Who and worked on various BBC shows as a script doctor. A fine amateur guitarist, he sat in on occasion with Pink Floyd and Procol Harum. He counted evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins among his friends and worked with him on expressions of their shared atheism. Adams died of a heart attack at 49 while in California. His many fans celebrate Towel Day each year on May 25^th and remember not to panic.

Audrey Hepburn Quote Of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on May 5, 2013May 5, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

May 4, 2013

“You can tell more about a person by what he says about others than you can by what others say about him.”

Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993)

Born in Belgium to an Austrian father and a mother from the royal family of the Netherlands, Hepburn studied to be a ballet dancer before beginning her cinema and stage career. Her films include Gigi, Roman Holiday, Charade and Breakfast at Tiffany’s. She is one of a handful of people to have been awarded a Tony, an Emmy, a Grammy, a Golden Globe, and an Oscar. Famous for her elfin good looks, her collaboration with designer Hubert de Givenchy set the style for women’s high fashion in the 1950’s, and helped to popularize the iconic “little black dress.” In later life she devoted herself to work with UNICEF and was recognized for her commitment with a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1992.

Joseph Campbell Quote Of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on April 28, 2013April 26, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

“We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us.”
Joseph Campbell (1904-1987)

Raised in an Irish Catholic family in White Plains, Campbell had an early fascination with Native American culture and mythology. He attended Dartmouth and Columbia Colleges and received degrees in English and Medieval Literature. While returning from a family trip to Europe in the 20’s, a chance shipboard meeting with Jiddu Krishnamurti (quoted earlier in this space) awoke in him a lifelong interest in eastern philosophy. Campbell withdrew to a shack in upstate New York for five years of intensive reading and study, learning French, German, Latin, Sanskrit, and Japanese in the process. He taught at Sarah Lawrence College for many years and in 1949 published The Hero with a Thousand Faces, the seminal work of comparative mythology, followed in the 1960’s by The Masks of God. Both books have had an enormous influence on writers and storytellers as diverse as George Lucas and Richard Adams, but it was the 1988 PBS series The Power of Myth, in which journalist Bill Moyers interviewed Campbell at length, that brought his ideas into popular culture. The Joseph Campbell Foundation continues to publish his astonishingly prolific output of books, essays and talks on the nature of the universal human search for meaning.

Frank McKinney Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on April 20, 2013April 20, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

April 19, 2013

“It ain’t a bad plan to keep still occasionally, even when you know what you’re talking about.”

Frank McKinney (Kin) Hubbard (1868-1930)

Midwestern humorist, cartoonist, and writer known best for his political commentary, Hubbard was a high school dropout who said his goal in life was to own a circus. He worked briefly as a silhouette artist and attended art school for a short time before beginning cartoon work for the Indianapolis News. For 25 years he drew the acclaimed cartoon “Abe Martin of Brown County” which went into syndication and made him nationally known. Will Rogers cited Hubbard as an influence and called him the greatest humorist of his time.

Susan Sontag Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on April 6, 2013April 4, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

“Do stuff, be clenched, curious. Not waiting for inspiration’s shove or society’s kiss on your forehead. Pay attention. It’s all about paying attention, attention is vitality. It connects you with others. It makes you eager. Stay eager.”
Susan Sontag (1933-2004)

Educated at Berkeley, the University of Chicago, Harvard, and Oxford, Sontag was known as the “Dark Lady of American Literature.” Although she described herself as a novelist, she was a prolific essayist and critic as well, not only of literature but also photography, the Vietnam War, patriarchy and Western Civilization. Her articles and short stories in the New Yorker magazine brought her widespread fame and a MacArthur Fellowship in 1990. Sontag was married to writer David Rieff from 1950 to 1958, but was openly bisexual in a time when it was not generally accepted, and had a long-standing romantic relationship with photographer Annie Leibowitz. Sontag’s last novel, In America, was given the National Book Award.

Woody Allen Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on March 30, 2013March 29, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

The QW is still on location in Indiana.

March 28, 2013

“If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.”

Woody Allen (1935- )

Born Allan Stewart Konigsberg in the Bronx, Woody began writing comedy as a teenager and in the 1950’s was a highly paid gag man for Ed Sullivan, Sid Caesar and others. In the Sixties he began developing his own stand-up career and the character of the nebbish with which he is so closely identified today. He began his film writing and directing with slapstick comedies but moved quickly on to more dramatic material with Annie Hall, Manhattan, and Hannah and Her Sisters. He describes his work as heavily influenced by Bergman and Fellini, and he himself is taken more seriously in Europe than at home. He has won four Academy Awards and has been married three times. Woody frequents the New York club scene and sits in as a jazz clarinetist. Although he is famously agnostic, his quote reveals a recognition of the comedy inherent in humans attempting to understand the divine.

Tenzin Gyatso Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on March 22, 2013March 21, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

“This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.”

Tenzin Gyatso, the 14^th Dalai Lama (1935 – )

A native of Amdo, in the disputed province of Qinghai, the Dalai Lama was chosen as the incarnation of the previous title holder when he was two. He began his monastic training at six and was awarded the highest level Buddhist degree at 23. From the age of 15 he headed theocratic Tibet, which was being subsumed into China first by the Nationalists and later by the People’s Republic. At the beginning of the Tibetan Uprising of 1959 he led 80,000 refugees to India to establish a government-in-exile. He has traveled widely in the West and garnered international support for an independent Tibet while receiving honors from several countries culminating in his 1989 Nobel Peace Prize. His simple message and support of ecumenism has endeared him to the members of many faiths. He is the longest incumbent Dalai Lama in history.

Eleanor Roosevelt Quote Of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on March 10, 2013March 8, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

The Quote of the Week comes from Bloomington, Indiana. There’ll be pictures of the re-installation of opus 91 once we get a little further along.

March 7, 2013

“A woman is like a tea bag – you can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.”
Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962)

A New Yorker by birth and niece of Theodore Roosevelt, Eleanor lost both parents and a brother before she was eleven. She attended Allenwood Academy in London and was influenced by headmistress Marie Souvestre, an early feminist. She married Franklin Delano Roosevelt, her fifth cousin, in 1904, and supported his forays into politics despite his polio and her discovery of his extra-marital affairs. Wishing to carve out an identity for herself, she became active, first in the New York State Democratic Party when FDR was Governor, and then as the most outspoken of all First Ladies when he was elected President for the first of his four terms in 1932. She was an ardent supporter of the rights of women and minorities, and created much controversy when she opposed some of her husband’s policies, including Japanese-American internment during the Second World War. Following FDR’s death in 1945 she was named one of the first delegates to the United Nations, the founding of which she had strongly supported, and continued her social justice advocacy for the rest of her life, becoming one of the most admired and respected Americans of her era.

Ezra Pound Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on February 24, 2013February 23, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

"Credit is the future tense of money"
Ezra Pound

(1885-1972) from Canto
13
Quoted, with thanks, from JoeAnn Hart’s excellent new book Float.
Born in what was then the Idaho Territory to parents of Quaker and Puritan ancestry, Pound was raised in Philadelphia, but rebelled against his genteel surroundings and exiled himself to England to be a poet. Disgusted by the slaughter of the First World War, which he blamed on market capitalism, he spent much of the next twenty-five years in France and Italy. He befriended and championed Eliot, Hemingway, Frost, Joyce and our own Charles Olson, and helped to publish much of their early work. A supporter of Mussolini and Hitler, he made radio broadcasts denigrating the United States during the Second World War, was arrested as a traitor at its conclusion, and spent the next 12 years in an American psychiatric hospital. Meanwhile his poetry continued to be read and appreciated, winning controversial awards and prizes. Finally released in 1958, he returned to Italy publishing the last of his Cantos, 110-118, in 1968.

Greg Bover

Dr. Laurence J. Peter Quote of The Week from Greg Bover

Posted on February 16, 2013February 15, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

"The man who says he is willing to meet you halfway is usually a poor judge of distance."
Dr. Laurence J. Peter (1919-1990)

Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, and educated at Washington State University, Dr. Peter was a coordinator of programs for emotionally disturbed children at the University of Southern California. As a student of bureaucracies, he was famous for his theory The Peter Principle, and his 1968 book of the same name, which posits that in a hierarchical organization an employee rises until he or she reaches one level above that at which they are competent. In later life he was active in the Kinetic Sculpture Race which occurs in many locations around the world (and looks like a whole lot of fun. Couldn’t we have one on Rocky Neck?)

Quote of the Week by Greg Bover

Posted on February 9, 2013February 7, 2013 by God's Morning

And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.

T. S. (Thomas Stearns) Eliot (1888-1965) From Little Gidding, Section V, The Four Quartets

Though born in St. Louis, Eliot’s family had New England roots reaching back to the Salem witch trials and deep into Harvard yard. He attended Milton Academy and spent summers on Cape Ann (see The Dry Salvages), later studying at Harvard, Oxford, and the Sorbonne. In later life he renounced both Unitarianism and his American citizenship in favor of Anglicanism and the United Kingdom. Eliot is often cited as the greatest modern poet, and The Waste Land as one of the most important poems of the 20^th century. In 1948 he was awarded both the Nobel Prize for Literature and the Order of Merit.

Gregory R. Bover

VP Operations, Project Manager

C. B. Fisk, Inc

978 283 1909

Samuel Taylor Coleridge Quote Of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on January 28, 2013January 27, 2013 by Joey Ciaramitaro

January 25, 2013

And winter slumbering in the open air,

Wears on his smiling face a dream of Spring…

Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834) from “Work Without Hope” 1832

An English poet and aesthetic philosopher, Coleridge may be best known for his long poems The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and Kubla Khan. He had intended to enter the ministry but was given an annuity by Josiah Wedgewood so that he might devote himself to writing. A life-long friend of William Wordsworth, he was an important influence on Emerson and the Transcendentalists and is frequently credited with helping to foster both the Romantic and Gothic sensibilities. His lectures on Shakespeare and Milton did much to raise awareness of their writing to the heights they enjoy today. He suffered from depression, which he treated with laudanum, leading to opium addiction, against which he struggled for many years, but which ultimately contributed to his demise.

Greg Bover’s Quote of The Week from Japan!

Posted on December 27, 2012December 27, 2012 by Joey Ciaramitaro

I’m in Japan for a couple of weeks so the quote is sent in from Kyoto today.
"You wouldn’t worry so much about what other people think of you if you knew how seldom they do."
Variously attributed to Olin Miller, Eleanor Roosevelt, Phil McGraw and others.
Greg

Edmund Burke Quote of The Week

Posted on December 24, 2012December 24, 2012 by Joey Ciaramitaro

December 20, 2012

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”

Attributed to Edmund Burke, (1729-1797)

Known as the Father of Conservatism, Burke, a native of Dublin and longtime Member of Parliament, was supportive of the American Revolution but condemned the French Revolution for its excesses. He wrote extensively on the role of government and was widely praised for his ability to clarify philosophical issues.

This quote, made popular by John Kennedy and attributed by him to Burke, is a good example of how difficult it can be to pin down exactly who said what several hundred years ago. According to The Quote Investigator, who often refers to The Quote Verifier by Ralph Keyes, it is likely that it may have been first pronounced in similar form by the Reverend Charles Aked, but is also attributed to Thomas Jefferson, John Stuart Mill and others. As with many of the quotable sentiments of the famous it has its roots in scripture, and expresses an ancient recognition that it is the duty of persons of good will to act, not merely to hope.

Ellen DeGeneres Quote of The Week From Greg Bover

Posted on December 15, 2012December 15, 2012 by Joey Ciaramitaro

December 13, 2012

“Normal is getting dressed in clothes that you buy for work and driving through traffic in a car that you are still paying for – in order to get to the job you need to pay for the clothes and the car, and the house you leave vacant all day so you can afford to live in it.”
Ellen DeGeneres (1958- )

A Louisiana native, DeGeneres began her public career as a stand-up comedian after a number of working class experiences as a waitress, house painter and bartender. She had a sitcom for several years before her syndicated talk program The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which has won multiple Emmys. She has appeared in several movies and is in demand as a voice actor, especially since her award-winning role as Dory in Finding Nemo. Her wisecracking ability to think on her feet has made her a memorable host of the Emmys and the Academy Awards. She famously came out as a lesbian on the Oprah Winfrey Show in 1997 and is married to Portia Rossi. DeGeneres is an animal rights activist and owns a vegan tapas bar in Los Angeles.

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