I am an enthusiast, but not a crank in the sense that I have some pet theories as to the proper construction of a flying machine. I wish to avail myself of all that is already known and then, if possible, add my mite to help on the future worker who will attain final success.
I must say I am not pleased to have to arrange the Senate schedule around the availability of Senators who are running for President.
Since being in India, I am more convinced than ever before that the method of nonviolent resistance is the most potent weapon available to oppressed people in their struggle for justice and human dignity.
I don't think I am avant-garde. I made a lot of creations and created harmony with my fabrics, but I was not like Balenciaga, for example, although he was, of course, a great inspiration.
In India, I have been called a 'destroyer.' But that is only because they mixed my identity as a performer and as a composer. As a composer I have tried everything, even electronic music and avant-garde. But as a performer I am, believe me, getting more classical and more orthodox, jealously protecting the heritage that I have learned.
If the Loki in 'Thor' was about a spiritual confusion - 'Who am I? How do I belong in this world?' - the Loki in 'Avengers' is, 'I know exactly who I am, and I'm going to make this world belong to me.'
The cutthroat avenues of rock 'n' roll, I am fed up with. I don't want anything to do with it.
I am only an average man but, by George, I work harder at it than the average man.
I can reach people the average person can't reach because I'm as grounded as I am.
Americans are generally very self-sufficient and I think generally averse to pretension, just as I am.
I am not averse to politics, but that does not mean that I am going to join politics.
I am averse to incompetency. I need mentally stimulating people and intelligent conversations.
I am not averse to the idea of being in a relationship. In fact, I think everything in this world can be solved through love.
I started my own Pies Descalzos/Barefoot Foundation when I was 18. We provide education to vulnerable children in Colombia and other developing countries. I am an avid believer that education - and especially early childhood development - is the key to breaking the cycle of poverty.
I am an avid hunter and marksman, and I will not hesitate to shoot anyone who has myself or family in fear for our lives.
I was an avid reader as a child. I am losing that habit now, as my brain congeals into cabbage from wearing too many heels and too much foundation.
I am a passionate reader, having been tutored very early by my mother. I avidly devoured all books on chemistry that I could find. Formal chemistry at school seemed boring by comparison, and my performance was routine. In contrast, I did spectacularly well in mathematics and sailed through classes and exams with ease.
I am for violence if non-violence means we continue postponing a solution to the American black man's problem just to avoid violence.
When I was 18, 19, I was presented as the 'aw shucks' Nebraska kid who's coming up with a big serve, and then I flipped out a couple of times, and then I was ueber-brat, when I feel like there's parts of both, but I don't think I am either one, if that makes sense.
We underestimate children and the people who work with them. I swear - so often, I tell people I am a children's author, and it's like they want to pat me on the head: 'Aw, isn't that sweet.'
