1. It ain’t over till the fat lady sings. Batman has won more fights at the last minute than we can count. The singing, the lady — it’s a good metaphor. But we actually mean this one literally. Leave an opera before the fat lady sings, and you know what is over? Your life as anything other than an orphan, that’s what. Learn to appreciate a little culture every once in a while — it just might save your parents’ lives. 2. Never trust a man who smiles all the time. He is either trying to sell you something or trying to kill you. 3. There are two faces to every friend … and enemy. Good and evil, friend and foe, life and death — there are two sides to every action, two aspects to every personality. Believe in original sin, but also in original virtue. And remember, most of all, that everybody has the capacity for both. 4. Some days, you just can’t get rid of a bomb. A group of nuns, a flock of ducks, even a marching band — on a pier for crying out loud! Some days it’s as if the whole world is conspiring against […]