--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The whole time I pretend I have mental…" description: "\"“The whole time I pretend I have mental telepathy. And with my mind only, I’ll say — or think? — to the target, 'Don’t do it. Don’t go to that job you ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20e/matthew-quick-1377_adulthood_the-whole-time-i-pretend-i-have-mental-t_227358.png" --- # The whole time I pretend I have mental telepathy. And with… ![“The whole time I pretend I have mental telepathy. And with my mind only, I’ll say — or think? — to the target, 'Don’t do it. Don’t go to that job you hate. Do something you love today. Ride a roller coaster. Swim in the ocean naked. Go to the airport and get on the next flight to anywhere just for…” quote by Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20e/matthew-quick-1377_adulthood_the-whole-time-i-pretend-i-have-mental-t_227358.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20e/matthew-quick-1377_adulthood_the-whole-time-i-pretend-i-have-mental-t_227358.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20e/matthew-quick-1377_adulthood_the-whole-time-i-pretend-i-have-mental-t_227358.png) > ““The whole time I pretend I have mental telepathy. And with my mind only, I’ll say — or think? — to the target, 'Don’t do it. Don’t go to that job you hate. Do something you love today. Ride a roller coaster. Swim in the ocean naked. Go to the airport and get on the next flight to anywhere just for the fun of it. Maybe stop a spinning globe with your finger and then plan a trip to that very spot; even if it’s in the middle of the ocean you can go by boat. Eat some type of ethnic food you’ve never even heard of. Stop a stranger and ask her to explain her greatest fears and her secret hopes and aspirations in detail and then tell her you care because she is a human being. Sit down on the sidewalk and make pictures with colorful chalk. Close your eyes and try to see the world with your nose—allow smells to be your vision. Catch up on your sleep. Call an old friend you haven’t seen in years. Roll up your pant legs and walk into the sea. See a foreign film. Feed squirrels. Do anything! Something! Because you start a revolution one decision at a time, with each breath you take. Just don’t go back to thatmiserable place you go every day. Show me it’s possible to be an adult and also be happy. Please. This is a free country. You don’t have to keep doing this if you don’t want to. You can do anything you want. Be anyone you want. That’s what they tell us at school, but if you keep getting on that train and going to the place you hate I’m going to start thinking the people at school are liars like the Nazis who told the Jews they were just being relocated to work factories. Don’t do that to us. Tell us the truth. If adulthood is working some death-camp job you hate for the rest of your life, divorcing your secretly criminal husband, being disappointed in your son, being stressed and miserable, and dating a poser and pretending he’s a hero when he’s really a lousy person and anyone can tell that just by shaking his slimy hand — if it doesn’t get any better, I need to know right now. Just tell me. Spare me from some awful fucking fate. Please.”” [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker urges embracing spontaneity, curiosity, and kindness as acts of personal rebellion against a monotonous, oppressive life. **In simple terms:** Live boldly, explore, and connect with others to break free from routine. Key Takeaway Take small, joyful actions daily. Themes freedom creativity human connection Mood hopeful inspired Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - travel - trying new foods - talking to strangers - creative expression - self‑care routines Key Concepts mindfulness personal agency existentialism Questions to Reflect On - What simple act could you try today? - How does spontaneity affect your wellbeing? A Different Perspective Idealism may overlook practical constraints like finances or safety. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adulthood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adulthood/) [Free country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/free-country/) [Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/future/) [Old friend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-friend/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Rest of your life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rest-of-your-life/) [Roller coaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/roller-coaster/) [Telepathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telepathy/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“Sounds like the start of a beautiful friendship, Leonard. It really does.” “Here’s looking at you, kid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/sounds-like-the-start-of-a-beautiful-friendship-leonard-it-really/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [“Cliff says Sylvia Plath's work is very depressing to read, and that his own daughter had recently suffered through The Bell Jar because she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/cliff-says-sylvia-plath-s-work-is-very-depressing-to-read-and-that/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [“I don't want to brag or anything, but I'm sorta like a rock star to these people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/i-don-t-want-to-brag-or-anything-but-i-m-sorta-like-a-rock-star-to/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [“I still love you in my own fucked-up way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/i-still-love-you-in-my-own-fucked-up-way/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [“I need you so fucking bad.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/i-need-you-so-fucking-bad/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [Let's not pretend that mental phenomena can be mapped on to the characteristics of billiard balls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregory-bateson/let-s-not-pretend-that-mental-phenomena-can-be-mapped-on-to-the/) [Gregory Bateson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregory-bateson/) > [That's basically the mantra of Herr Silverman's teaching - think for yourself and do what's right for you, but let others do the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/that-s-basically-the-mantra-of-herr-silverman-s-teaching-think-for/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [“I'm sorry I couldn't be more than I was”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/i-m-sorry-i-couldn-t-be-more-than-i-was/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [People should be nice to you, Leonard. You're a human being. You should expect people to be nice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/people-should-be-nice-to-you-leonard-you-re-a-human-being-you-should/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [I feel like I’m broken—like I don’t fit together anymore. Like there’s no more room for me in the world or something. Like I’ve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/i-feel-like-i-m-broken-like-i-don-t-fit-together-anymore-like-there-s-2/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [There's a lot for you to live for. Good things are definitely in your future, Leonard. I'm sure of it. You have no idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/there-s-a-lot-for-you-to-live-for-good-things-are-definitely-in-your/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [You're different. And I'm different too. Different is good. But different is hard. Believe me, I know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/you-re-different-and-i-m-different-too-different-is-good-but/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [Did you ever think about all of the nights you lived through and can't remember The ones that were so mundane your brain just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/did-you-ever-think-about-all-of-the-nights-you-lived-through-and-can/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [You don't know what mental telepathy exists from the human to the animal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tippi-hedren/you-don-t-know-what-mental-telepathy-exists-from-the-human-to-the/) [Tippi Hedren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tippi-hedren/) > [“The reason creatures wanted to use language instead of mental telepathy was that they found out they could get so much more done with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut-jr/the-reason-creatures-wanted-to-use-language-instead-of-mental/) [Kurt Vonnegut Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut-jr/) ## More by Matthew Quick > [I grew up in a blue-collar neighborhood and was raised by a man who did not emote, ever... I always cry at movies, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/i-grew-up-in-a-blue-collar-neighborhood-and-was-raised-by-a-man-who/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [Life is not a PG feel-good movie. Real life often ends badly. Literature tries to document this reality, while showing us it is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/life-is-not-a-pg-feel-good-movie-real-life-often-ends-badly/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [Maybe my movie isn't over, I say, because sometimes moviemakers trick the audience with a false bad ending, and just when you think the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/maybe-my-movie-isn-t-over-i-say-because-sometimes-moviemakers-trick/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [“Like maybe he really, truly believes I'm worth listening to, worth saving.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/like-maybe-he-really-truly-believes-i-m-worth-listening-to-worth/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [...I am now watching the movie of my life as I live it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/i-am-now-watching-the-movie-of-my-life-as-i-live-it/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [You need to make time for family no matter what happens in your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/you-need-to-make-time-for-family-no-matter-what-happens-in-your-life/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [When she needed help most, she was abandoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/when-she-needed-help-most-she-was-abandoned/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [I am so happy. I am so impossibly happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/i-am-so-happy-i-am-so-impossibly-happy/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [“the only way you could meet my crazy was by doing something crazy for yourself”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/the-only-way-you-could-meet-my-crazy-was-by-doing-something-crazy-for/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [When I travel round the country, people can't place my accent; if there's someone in the audience, they'll be like, 'You're from Philadelphia', but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/when-i-travel-round-the-country-people-can-t-place-my-accent-if-there/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [“Empiezo a comprender que tenemos una clase de amistad en la que no se necesitan muchas palabras.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/empiezo-a-comprender-que-tenemos-una-clase-de-amistad-en-la-que-no-se/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [When she needed help most, she was abandoned--and only when she offered help to others was she beloved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/when-she-needed-help-most-she-was-abandoned-and-only-when-she-offered/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [“Sounds like the start of a beautiful friendship, Leonard. It really does.” “Here’s looking at you, kid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/sounds-like-the-start-of-a-beautiful-friendship-leonard-it-really/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [Someday an opportunity will come. Think about Harry Potter. His life is terrible, but then a letter arrives, he gets on a train, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/someday-an-opportunity-will-come-think-about-harry-potter-his-life-is/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) > [Haven't you ever noticed that life is like a series of movies?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/haven-t-you-ever-noticed-that-life-is-like-a-series-of-movies/) [Matthew Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) [Explore all 240 Matthew Quick quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-quick/) ## More Adulthood quotes > [Age is an accumulation of life and loss. Adulthood is a series of lines crossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/age-is-an-accumulation-of-life-and-loss-adulthood-is-a-series-of/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [People often say that you should never work with child actors. I think that's all wrong. Children have not had the imagination kicked out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-cage/people-often-say-that-you-should-never-work-with-child-actors-i-think/) [Nicolas Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-cage/) > [Two things suck about becoming an adult male - paying taxes and getting a finger in your butt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-code/two-things-suck-about-becoming-an-adult-male-paying-taxes-and-getting/) Guy Code > [You can only pretend for so long before reality hits and you realize he/she is not who you thought or what you truly want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-tiwari/you-can-only-pretend-for-so-long-before-reality-hits-and-you-realize/) [Abhishek Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-tiwari/) > [If I were entering adulthood now instead of in the environment of fifty years ago, I would choose a career that kept me in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lindbergh/if-i-were-entering-adulthood-now-instead-of-in-the-environment-of/) [Charles Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lindbergh/) > [“English: "Being an adult doesn't mean killing the child we once were; it means being able to protect him." Česky: „Být dospělým neznamená zabít…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebasti-n-wortys/english-being-an-adult-doesn-t-mean-killing-the-child-we-once-were-it/) [Sebastián Wortys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebasti-n-wortys/) > [“I wondered what a man I had encountered the day before on the plane en route to Chicago's O'Hare airport would have made of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-moss/i-wondered-what-a-man-i-had-encountered-the-day-before-on-the-plane/) [Robert Moss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-moss/) > [“Sometimes your kids will say the nastiest things, won't they, Rose? You want to ask,'Whose child is this?'" Rose chuckled. "But usually, they're just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/sometimes-your-kids-will-say-the-nastiest-things-won-t-they-rose-you/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [No one, it has been said, will ever look at the Moon in the same way again. More significantly can one say that no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/no-one-it-has-been-said-will-ever-look-at-the-moon-in-the-same-way/) [Anne Morrow Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) > [Being an adult is the ability to postpone a want for the sake of a family need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hogan/being-an-adult-is-the-ability-to-postpone-a-want-for-the-sake-of-a/) [Chris Hogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hogan/) > [“one Secret of Adulthood is “Never start a sentence with the words ‘No offense’”? “And”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gretchen-rubin/one-secret-of-adulthood-is-never-start-a-sentence-with-the-words-no/) [Gretchen Rubin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gretchen-rubin/) > [In their youth, mortals behave more like nymphs. Adulthood seems impossibly distant, let alone the enfeeblement of old age. But ponderously, inevitably, it overtakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-mull/in-their-youth-mortals-behave-more-like-nymphs-adulthood-seems/) [Brandon Mull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-mull/) > [Public schools were designed as the great equalizers of our society - the place where all children could have access to educational opportunities to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-napolitano/public-schools-were-designed-as-the-great-equalizers-of-our-society/) [Janet Napolitano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-napolitano/) > [“Yet GenX'er teens didn't slow down--they were just as likely to drive, drink alcohol, and date as their Boomer peers and more likely to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-m-twenge/yet-genx-er-teens-didn-t-slow-down-they-were-just-as-likely-to-drive/) [Jean M. Twenge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-m-twenge/) > [“The entrepreneurs are only about my age, probably younger, but they don't seem so. Their tailored clothes and unbending hairdos, their clipboards and laser…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-baume/the-entrepreneurs-are-only-about-my-age-probably-younger-but-they-don/) [Sara Baume](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-baume/) [Browse all 651 Adulthood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adulthood/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“The whole time I pretend I have mental telepathy. And with my mind only, I’ll say — or think? — to the target, 'Don’t do it. Don’t go to that job you hate. Do something you love today. Ride a roller coaster. Swim in the ocean naked. Go to the airport and get on the next flight to anywhere just for the fun of it. Maybe stop a spinning globe with your finger and then plan a trip to that very spot; even if it’s in the middle of the ocean you can go by boat. Eat some type of ethnic food you’ve never even heard of. Stop a stranger and ask her to explain her greatest fears and her secret hopes and aspirations in detail and then tell her you care because she is a human being. Sit down on the sidewalk and make pictures with colorful chalk. Close your eyes and try to see the world with your nose—allow smells to be your vision. Catch up on your sleep. Call an old friend you haven’t seen in years. Roll up your pant legs and walk into the sea. See a foreign film. Feed squirrels. Do anything! Something! Because you start a revolution one decision at a time, with each breath you take. Just don’t go back to thatmiserable place you go every day. Show me it’s possible to be an adult and also be happy. Please. This is a free country. You don’t have to keep doing this if you don’t want to. You can do anything you want. Be anyone you want. That’s what they tell us at school, but if you keep getting on that train and going to the place you hate I’m going to start thinking the people at school are liars like the Nazis who told the Jews they were just being relocated to work factories. Don’t do that to us. Tell us the truth. If adulthood is working some death-camp job you hate for the rest of your life, divorcing your secretly criminal husband, being disappointed in your son, being stressed and miserable, and dating a poser and pretending he’s a hero when he’s really a lousy person and anyone can tell that just by shaking his slimy hand — if it doesn’t get any better, I need to know right now. Just tell me. Spare me from some awful fucking fate. Please.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Matthew Quick" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/the-whole-time-i-pretend-i-have-mental-telepathy-and-with-my-mind/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Adulthood" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-quick/the-whole-time-i-pretend-i-have-mental-telepathy-and-with-my-mind/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20e/matthew-quick-1377_adulthood_the-whole-time-i-pretend-i-have-mental-t_227358.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20e/matthew-quick-1377_adulthood_the-whole-time-i-pretend-i-have-mental-t_227358.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/20e/matthew-quick-1377_adulthood_the-whole-time-i-pretend-i-have-mental-t_227358.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The whole time I pretend I have mental telepathy. 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