“Or just don't wear it. Then you can check off the skinny-dipping and kill two birds.''I'm not surfing naked, Asher.''Rats,' he said.”

“Don't talk to strangers. Don't do drugs. Don't smoke. Don't drink and drive. Don't have sex. Wear a condom. Wear sunblock. Wear a seat belt. Wear a helmet. If you see something, say something. Just say no. Stop, drop, and roll. Stop, look, and listen. Look both ways before you cross the street...Safety is an illusion. Bad things can happen to anyone at any time, whether you follow the rules or not. You can check left, check right, check left again before you step off the curb and into the crosswalk, but that won't stop an anonymous asshole in his shitty pickup from putting you in intensive care...”

“It was strange how once you saw a rat wearing clothes, it became slightly disgusting to imagine the animal naked.”

“You saying killing a rat would be murder?" said Raufman."Yes. Of course.""But it's just - ""Talk to the paw, mister, 'cos the whiskers don't want to know!”

“I'm not that squeamish, Mr. Stone.""Ethan," he said. "I'm naked. I'm in a tub. You're wearing my nightshirt. You've already slept in my bed. I think you should call me Ethan.”

“Picture a tall, dark figure, surrounded by cornfields...NO, YOU CAN'T RIDE A CAT. WHO EVER HEARD OF THE DEATH OF RATS RIDING A CAT? THE DEATH OF RATS WOULD RIDE SOME KIND OF DOG.Picture more fields, a great horizon-spanning network of fields, rolling in gentle waves...DON'T ASK ME I DON'T KNOW. SOME KIND OF TERRIER, MAYBE....fields of corn, alive, whispering in the breeze...RIGHT, AND THE DEATH OF FLEAS CAN RIDE IT TOO. THAT WAY YOU KILL TWO BIRDS WITH ONE STONE....awaiting the clockwork of the seasons.METAPHORICALLY.”