--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I still feel needles in my back when I…" description: "\"I still feel needles in my back when I think about all the horrible disasters that would have befallen me if I had permanently moved to San Francisco a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/hunter-s-thompson-278_affair_i-still-feel-needles-in-my-back-when-i-t_2147739.jpg" --- # I still feel needles in my back when I think about all the… ![“I still feel needles in my back when I think about all the horrible disasters that would have befallen me if I had permanently moved to San Francisco and rented a big house, joined the company dole, become national-affairs editor for some upstart magazine—that was the plan around 1967. But that…” quote by Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/hunter-s-thompson-278_affair_i-still-feel-needles-in-my-back-when-i-t_2147739.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/hunter-s-thompson-278_affair_i-still-feel-needles-in-my-back-when-i-t_2147739.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82a/hunter-s-thompson-278_affair_i-still-feel-needles-in-my-back-when-i-t_2147739.jpg) > “I still feel needles in my back when I think about all the horrible disasters that would have befallen me if I had permanently moved to San Francisco and rented a big house, joined the company dole, become national-affairs editor for some upstart magazine—that was the plan around 1967. But that would have meant going to work on a regular basis, like nine to five, with an office—I had to pull out.” [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He regrets abandoning a conventional life, fearing the loss of freedom and the weight of ordinary responsibilities. **In simple terms:** He fears a normal job would trap him. Key Takeaway Embrace the path that feels authentic. Themes freedom regret conformity Mood anxious reflective Type personal confessional When to use this quote - career decisions - relocation - life planning - creative pursuits Key Concepts existential dread personal choice Questions to Reflect On - What does "normal" mean to you? - Could stability coexist with freedom? A Different Perspective His vivid imagery may exaggerate the fear of normalcy. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Affair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affair/) [Back when](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back-when/) [Bases](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bases/) [Big House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-house/) [Big houses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/big-houses/) [Bigs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bigs/) [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Company Dole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company-dole-4501256/) [Disaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disaster/) [Disasters Befallen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disasters-befallen-3634805/) [Editors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/editors/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Five](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/five/) [Going to work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/going-to-work/) [Horrible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horrible/) [Horrible Disasters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/horrible-disasters-4501257/) [House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/house/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Magazines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/magazines/) [Moved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moved/) [Needles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needles/) [Nine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nine/) [Nine To Five](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nine-to-five/) [Office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/office/) [Permanently Moved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/permanently-moved-4501255/) [Plans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plans/) [Rented Big](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rented-big-4501258/) [San francisco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/san-francisco/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Upstart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/upstart/) [Worked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worked/) ## Related quotes > [I rented a place that I could have dogs - not in my house. 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He glared at me with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/i-m-afraid-not-hades-sighed-my-son-here-convinced-me-that-perhaps-i/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [Jean Jacques Rousseauis nothing but a fool in my eyes when he takes it upon himself to criticise society; he did not understand it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/jean-jacques-rousseauis-nothing-but-a-fool-in-my-eyes-when-he-takes/) [Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/) > [I want to be in an industry where the upstarts can grow and displace the incumbents, because that's why there's so much innovation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-ohanian/i-want-to-be-in-an-industry-where-the-upstarts-can-grow-and-displace/) [Alexis Ohanian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-ohanian/) > [“For by the word upstart I mean everyone who has raised himself through his own efforts to a social level higher than that to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/for-by-the-word-upstart-i-mean-everyone-who-has-raised-himself/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [From nobody to upstart. From upstart to contender. From contender to winner. From winner to champion. From champion to Dynasty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-riley/from-nobody-to-upstart-from-upstart-to-contender-from-contender-to/) [Pat Riley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-riley/) > [English, as a subject, never really got over its upstart nature. It tries to bulk itself up with hopeless jargon and specious complexity, tries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/english-as-a-subject-never-really-got-over-its-upstart-nature-it/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) > [Shunning the upstart shower, / The cold and cursory scrub, / I celebrate the power / That lies within the Tub.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-mcginley/shunning-the-upstart-shower-the-cold-and-cursory-scrub-i-celebrate/) [Phyllis McGinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-mcginley/) > [It is contended that those who have been bred at Eton, Harrow, Rugby, and Westminster, that the public sentiment within each of those schools…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/it-is-contended-that-those-who-have-been-bred-at-eton-harrow-rugby/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [It is a note Of upstart greatness to observe and watch For these poor trifles, which the noble mind Neglects and scorns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-jonson/it-is-a-note-of-upstart-greatness-to-observe-and-watch-for-these-poor/) [Ben Jonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-jonson/) > [A competitive threat is not the same thing as an antitrust violation… It is difficult to make out FairSearch’s precise antitrust arguments. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-gallagher/a-competitive-threat-is-not-the-same-thing-as-an-antitrust-violation/) [Peter Gallagher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-gallagher/) > [Writing is for men who can think and feel, not mindless sensation seekers out of nightclubs and bars. But these are bad times. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naguib-mahfouz/writing-is-for-men-who-can-think-and-feel-not-mindless-sensation/) [Naguib Mahfouz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naguib-mahfouz/) > [In a certain reign there was a lady not of the first rank whom the emperor loved more than any of the others. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murasaki-shikibu/in-a-certain-reign-there-was-a-lady-not-of-the-first-rank-whom-the/) [Murasaki Shikibu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murasaki-shikibu/) ## More by Hunter S. Thompson > [“There was also the fact that sending a penniless writer to get $135 worth of beer was — as Khrushchev said of Nixon —…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-was-also-the-fact-that-sending-a-penniless-writer-to-get-135/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“Cases of champagne and scotch lay broken in the street, and everyone I saw had a bottle. They were screaming and dancing, and in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/cases-of-champagne-and-scotch-lay-broken-in-the-street-and-everyone-i/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [No music + Bad TV = Bad mood & no pages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-music-bad-tv-bad-mood-no-pages/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [By disgracing and degrading the presidency of the United States, by fleeing the White House like a diseased cur, Richard Nixon broke the heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/by-disgracing-and-degrading-the-presidency-of-the-united-states-by/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [No one holds command over me. No man. No god. No Prince. What is a claim of age for ones who are immortal? What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-one-holds-command-over-me-no-man-no-god-no-prince-what-is-a-claim/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“The person who doesn't scatter the morning dew will not comb grey hairs”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/the-person-who-doesn-t-scatter-the-morning-dew-will-not-comb-grey/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Hope rises and dreams flicker and die. Love plans for tomorrow and loneliness thinks of yesterday. Life is beautiful and living is pain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/hope-rises-and-dreams-flicker-and-die-love-plans-for-tomorrow-and/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [If we get chased out of Iraq with our tail between our legs, that will be the fifth consecutive Third-world country with no hint…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/if-we-get-chased-out-of-iraq-with-our-tail-between-our-legs-that-will/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [At age 22 I set what I insist is an all-time record for distance hitchhiking in Bermuda shorts: 3,700 miles in three weeks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/at-age-22-i-set-what-i-insist-is-an-all-time-record-for-distance/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [Paranoia is just another mask for ignorance. The truth, when you finally chase it down is almost always far worse than your darkest visions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/paranoia-is-just-another-mask-for-ignorance-the-truth-when-you/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“No doubt they all Got What Was Coming To Them. All those pathetically eager acid freaks who thought they could buy Peace and Understanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-doubt-they-all-got-what-was-coming-to-them-all-those-pathetically/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [“For several months they'd been drifting toward political involvement, but the picture was hazy and one of the most confusing elements was their geographical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/for-several-months-they-d-been-drifting-toward-political-involvement/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [He wandered into the Newsroom and asked for a job the same way he’d walk into a barbershop and ask for a haircut, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/he-wandered-into-the-newsroom-and-asked-for-a-job-the-same-way-he-d/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [There's no point in getting into politics at all unless you plan to lash things around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-s-no-point-in-getting-into-politics-at-all-unless-you-plan-to/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [There’s a lot of things wrong with this country, but one of the few things still right with it is that a man can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/there-s-a-lot-of-things-wrong-with-this-country-but-one-of-the-few/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) [Explore all 765 Hunter S. Thompson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) ## More Affair quotes > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. 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It is very seldom that it weathers the experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/love-is-mainly-an-affair-of-short-spasms-if-these-spasms-disappoint/) [Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/) > [The Fundamental Principle that governs - or ought to govern -human affairs if we wish to avoid misunderstandings, conflicts, or pointless utopias, is negotiation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/the-fundamental-principle-that-governs-or-ought-to-govern-human/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [My hope does not rest in the affairs of this world. It rests in Christ who is coming again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-graham/my-hope-does-not-rest-in-the-affairs-of-this-world-it-rests-in-christ/) [Billy Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-graham/) > [In 1953, the United States played a significant role in orchestrating the overthrow of Iran's popular prime minister, Mohammed Mossadegh. 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