“Orchids are one of the few things in the world that can live forever.” — Susan Orlean Copy Share Image
“Being an orchid hunter has always meant pursuing beautiful things in terrible places.” — Susan Orlean Copy Share Image
One of the very best reasons for having children is to be reminded of the incomparable joys of a snow day. — Susan Orlean Copy Share Image
A snow day literally and figuratively falls from the sky, unbidden, and seems like a thing of wonder. — Susan Orlean Copy Share Image
“Many people who collect orchids designate an orchid heir in their wills, because they know the plants will outlast them.” — Susan Orlean Copy Share Image
I love tearing things out of the ground. I love digging and discarding. I love pruning. In fact, I love pruning so… — Susan Orlean Copy Share Image
“To desire orchids is to have a desire that will never be, can never be, fully requited. A collector who wants one… — Susan Orlean Copy Share Image
Winter in the country is very white. There is black grit on all the shoulders of the roads and on the big… — Susan Orlean Copy Share Image
I might have missed my calling as an editor. In the spring, the sight of my empty garden beds gives me the… — Susan Orlean Copy Share Image
When we stopped to rest and Tony tried to figure out what was wrong with his compass, I asked him what he… — Susan Orlean Copy Share Image
I've used Twitter now and again to try to figure something out; it's an amazing resource. But I think you have to use it… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
Who on earth is going to use 'utilize' in a text message, a whopping seven characters including the always-hard-to-type 'z,' when you can say… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
When my son was born, and after a day of lying-in I was told that I could leave the hospital and take him home,… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
I'm happy to be reminded that an ordinary day full of nothing but nothingness can make you feel like you've won the lottery. — Susan Orlean Copy Share
I once had a boyfriend who couldn't write unless he was wearing a necktie and a dress shirt, which I thought was really weird,… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
“I, too, had set out to be remembered. I had wanted to create something permanent in my life- some proof that everything in its… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
I think of myself as something of a connoisseur of procrastination, creative and dogged in my approach to not getting things done. — Susan Orlean Copy Share
I'm very excited about my new Spotify account, which gives me access to twenty gazillion songs any time, all the time. The day I… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
I approach stories as a private educational enterprise: I want to learn about something. I teach myself through research, reporting, and thinking, and then,… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
We're fascinated by animals because it's almost like having Martians living among us. We can see some familiarity in them, but they're entirely different… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
My inspiration is really very simple: I'm struck by things that I want to know more about. I really do react just as a… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
I am dismayed to realize that much of the advice I used to parcel out to aspiring writers has passed its sell-by date. — Susan Orlean Copy Share
I wish I had coined the phrase 'tyranny of choice,' but someone beat me to it. The counterintuitive truth is that have an abundance… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
My ace in the hole as a human being used to be my capacity for remembering birthdays. I worked at it. Whenever I made… — Susan Orlean Copy Share
Sometimes I think I've figured out some order in the universe, but then I find myself in Florida — Susan Orlean Copy Share
