Brandon Stanton's Blog, page 222

“I accidentally threw away a receipt.”

“I accidentally threw away a receipt.”

“I’m a graphic designer, and I’m trying to be more assertive at...

“I’m a graphic designer, and I’m trying to be more assertive at work. My bosses tell me that I need to use my voice more. Whenever my work gets criticized, I have a tendency to say: ‘You’re right.’ Or ‘I agree.’ I don’t really stand up for my own decisions, even though I had good reasons for making them. Whenever I’m around my friends, I can be sarcastic and obnoxious and say things without thinking about them. But for some reason that confidence doesn’t transfer to the workplace. It’s especially frustrating because I know that there’s this stereotype of quiet, agreeable Asian females. And I feel like I’m fulfilling it.”

“We’re trying to break into this fashion world....

“We’re trying to break into this fashion world. There’s a lot of bitch faces in this industry. Most of the time, the person is just shy and the bitch face is not real. But sometimes it’s real. Sometimes it’s really real.”

“I used to self-harm. He was literally the first person...

“I used to self-harm. He was literally the first person who ever sat me down and told me that I didn’t deserve to be in pain all the time.”

“I’m at the beginning of my transition right now....

“I’m at the beginning of my transition right now. I had nine procedures recently. My best friend is worried about me. She’s afraid that I’m boxing myself in, and that people are only going to see me as this.”

“I just want to be a reality show. I think it’s close to...

“I just want to be a reality show. I think it’s close to happening. I just need to start a business or something. It’s really not that hard. The producers tell you what to do: choose some people not to like, make negative comments, get mad at everything, throw things…”

“It’s our fourth day of school. They’ve done...

“It’s our fourth day of school. They’ve done everything together up until this point. So I made sure they were put in different classrooms.”

“My mom found out I was skipping school. When I came home, she...

“My mom found out I was skipping school. When I came home, she told me that she’d bought something for me and put it in my room. When I went in my room, everything was gone. My TV was gone. My cable was gone. My systems were gone. My LeBrons were gone. My Jordans were gone. My Kobes were gone. All she left me was a pair of Reeboks.”

“I’m a rare book librarian. I get to touch books every single...

“I’m a rare book librarian. I get to touch books every single day. My colleague and I have a joke that we are Defenders of Wonder. A physical book assigns a sense of reverence to the content inside. It’s the same feeling you get when you look at a painting or hear a piece of music. And I think that’s something worth defending. And just like a book gives reverence to it’s content, I think the library gives reverence to books. The building itself is a masterpiece. So many famous thinkers have come here to study and write. Just being here connects you to that lineage.”

“I don’t have anything personally against homeless...

“I don’t have anything personally against homeless people. But I try to avoid getting into conversations with them. Because I may be walking later with one of my influential friends, and the homeless person may come up to me and start acting like we’re friends. And how’s that going to look? You’ve got to choose who you’re seen with. It’s a matter of optics.”