Nearly all institutions, it might be said, are based on signs, but these signs do not directly evoke things.
When many astronauts go to space, they see the insignificant size of the earth and vastness of space, and they become very religious, because they have seen the Signs of Allah.
In the eighteenth century, it was ladies and gentlemen and swings in a garden; today, it may be Campbell’s soup cans or highway signs. There is no real difference. The artist still takes his everyday world and tries to make something out of it.
There is nothing more inimical to writing than the spirit of fundamentalism. Fundamentalism abhors the play of signs, the endlessness of writing. Fundamentalism means nothing more or less than going back to an origin and staying there. It stands for one founding book and, thereafter, no more books.
I hate stupid people. They should have to wear signs that just say, ‘I’m stupid.’
Runners exalt the marathon as a public test of private will, when months or years of solitary training, early mornings, lost weekends, rain and pain mature into triumph or surrender. That’s one reason the race-day crowds matter, the friends who come to cheer and stomp and flap their signs and push the runners on.
Like the skyscraper, the automobile, and the motion-picture palace, neon signs once symbolized popular hopes for a new era of technological achievement and commercial abundance. From the 1920s to the 1950s, neon-lit streets pulsed with visual excitement from Vancouver to Miami.
We thought the church had withdrawn from interfering in Italian politics… but instead there is a terrible resurgence. These are ugly signs for freedom of expression.
I understand that some fans want to express their feelings with signs, and they should do so, as long as they stay within the boundaries of good taste and don’t block the view of other fans.
I just think self-satisfied people ignore certain signs about other people.
Our troops are home. It’s time for American business to replace the yellow ribbons with help wanted signs.
I have a lot of contacts, a lot of sources that I’ve developed over the years and I like to break this guy signs, this guy is fighting this guy, this event is happening on such a date.
There are many signs that the Egyptians are prioritising their relations with the Gulf states, especially Saudi Arabia, over their relations with Iran.
The signs that the world is spinning out of kilter are increasingly difficult to misinterpret. The question is how to convince enough people to join a critical mass of urgent opinion, in the U.S. and the rest of the world.
The U.K. needs a strong opposition, and Labour shows no signs of being capable of being that. The SNP is filling that void and will go on seeking to do that.
He is blind indeed who does not see, in the signs of the times, a strong tendency to plunge the Union as deep in debt as are many of the States, and to subjugate the whole to the paper system.
It’s not palm trees and neon signs in Florida; it’s strip malls, highways, hot sun beating down on you.
My sun and my moon signs are mostly Cancer – it’s really strong. We’re deeply intuitive and sentimental. I really like to take care of people, nurturing them. I’m very passionate about the things I do and like to see people I love grow.
When people are in crisis and pose a threat to themselves or others, those closest to them are often the first to see the warning signs.
I can feel middle age approaching, but I reckon the trick is to ignore all the signs. I’m lucky in that I’ve always looked half the age I am. So the way I see it is that I’m still in my twenties!
When I go to Indian reservations in the West, and especially to the Pine Ridge Reservation, I sometimes feel unsure where to put my foot when I open the car door. The very ground is different from where I usually stand. There are fewer curbs, fewer sidewalks, and almost no street signs, mailboxes, or leashed dogs.
Wherever I look, I see signs of the commandment to honor one’s parents and nowhere of a commandment that calls for the respect of a child.
I will return when I feel safe there, when negotiations start, when political prisoners are released. Those will be the signs for me to come back safely.
The pro athlete is a sad tale. He signs a big contract and thinks he’s set for life. I didn’t think I was set for life, and I don’t now. As athletes, we are important, celebrities, in demand and rich. Then we are out of the game and we are not important, not celebrities, not in demand and not rich.
I do genuinely believe that the political system is not linear. When it reaches a tipping point fashioned by a critical mass of opinion, the slow pace of change we’re used to will no longer be the norm. I see a lot of signs every day that we’re moving closer and closer to that tipping point.
A brain scan may reveal the neural signs of anxiety, but a Kokoschka painting, or a Schiele self-portrait, reveals what an anxiety state really feels like. Both perspectives are necessary if we are to fully grasp the nature of the mind, yet they are rarely brought together.
There’s a widespread cultural barrenness across art and political culture. But there are some pockets of resistance on the extreme margins, like the techno-savvy protest movements, small press, the creator-owned comics, that seem to be getting some signs of hope for the future.
My Finnish is… I’m sounding like a three-year-old, at my best. It’s super hard to really have a conversation, unfortunately. I know a lot of words, and so reading signs and stuff is becoming better, or going to a supermarket. But some specific words, of course, you don’t get in your first year.
If you study my paintings, there are no signs of human life.
My dad, as much as I love him, has one of those signs – ‘The Isbell’s’ – on his front door, and he’s got the damn apostrophe in there. I haven’t strangled him yet.
I’m certainly not a person who spends their every waking moment soaking themselves in signs and signals of the sort that cult studies people study; and it’s partly, I suppose, because some of those signs and signals aren’t worth bothering about. You have to be selective about these things.
As a DJ, I’m really focused on the crowd. I never play the same set. I always look at the crowd, try to read what they want, and always look at the signs, point at people.
I cannot write poetically, for I am no poet. I cannot make fine artistic phrases that cast light and shadow, for I am no painter. I can neither by signs nor by pantomime express my thoughts and feelings, for I am no dancer; but I can by tones, for I am a musician.
When I arrived at IBM, there were ‘Team’ signs all around. I asked, ‘How do people get paid?’ They told me, ‘We pay people based on individual performance.’
I fully expect to be able to complete one more campaign goal – and that is to proudly report that signs have been erected as you enter our great state that say ‘Welcome to Wild, Wonderful West Virginia: Open for Business!’
I’m happy for the modern-day player who signs his contract and makes lots of money. The players of my era helped make that possible.
Obama, like Carter, is reacting to warning signs by seeking to split the difference between dispirited Democrats and increasingly radicalized Republicans.
Rationally, I knew these fears were ridiculous. There were no signs, unfortunately, and I would never blame anyone for another person’s suicide. But if everyone felt that way, there wouldn’t be this cruel stigma, would there?
Stolen scrap like manhole covers, railroad weights, stop signs, guard rails, and public lighting put our residents in grave danger. Not only that, but the theft is tearing apart communities with stolen church and cemetery ornaments.
Black frost. The ground is hard, the air tastes bitter. Your stars cluster in evil signs.
We’ve seen some insane signs: ‘Is that a loaf of bread in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?’ Funny stuff along those lines. Very original. One just said, ‘I will do unspeakable things.’ I thought that was very interesting – and mildly terrifying!
I live in Vegas, and I see people by the side of the road with cardboard signs who seem like they might have tried that spending their way out of debt thing.
