James Mercer Quotes

Sometimes it is a great joy just to listen to someone we love talking.

Forget all the bars and schmoozing and everybody checking out everybody else. My ideal date would be to park in a dark place, check out the stars, and have a great conversation. When all else fails, you can just make out.

I'm really big on day dates. If you go for a stroll, have a picnic or lunch with a glass of wine - it doesn't get better than that.

You hear about quality time a lot but I really think that quantity time with a person is really what strengthens a relationship. That's when you really get to know somebody. You get to know their strengths and their weaknesses and that brings you closer. That's what 'Time Is Love' is all about.

I think romance is friendship and attraction sort of meeting together and that does influence what I'm writing a lot. I try to establish the attraction, obviously, but I also think it's important to show the characters having actual conversations about things other than their feelings for each other - and to develop their friendship on the page.

I think that romance sort of coincides with effort, so you can fall flat on your face, but as long as you're making a great effort, I think it comes off as romantic. So it can be something as simple as, like, if you're someone who doesn't cook, you can make a meal.

I think families should vacation together, and cruising is a wonderful option.

It must be remembered that the sea is a great breeder of friendship. Two men who have known each other for twenty years find that twenty days at sea bring them nearer than ever they were before, or else estrange them.

I had a great childhood, a very close-knit family. We were all overweight, and we had good times eating together, I imagine.

Books are such a great way to spend time with your children, open lines of communication with your children, and just build that strong foundation.

Meals make the society, hold the fabric together in lots of ways that were charming and interesting and intoxicating to me. The perfect meal, or the best meals, occur in a context that frequently has very little to do with the food itself.

I don't have a bunch of mates. I don't have a man cave. My wife and I, we are each other's best friend.

Alinea is not the type of restaurant where you go if you're in a hurry. Really, it's about enjoying that three-hour block of time and reflecting on the food, having great conversation with your dining companion.

Despite our ever-connective technology, neither Skype nor Facebook - not even a telephone call - can come close to the joy of being with loved ones in person.

I like a quiet evening with family or friends over, great food and great discussion and a lot of laughter. That's really what I think fills my tank.

My wife and I tried two or three times in the last 40 years to have breakfast together, but it was so disagreeable we had to stop.

What do you do with your best friend? You do nothing.

I have a horror of boring someone or, worse still, of someone boring me. I said to my mother when I was seven, 'But, Mums, if it was only my husband and me in the house together, what would we talk about?' I've never wanted to answer my own question, and doubt I'll bother now.

I'm quite old-fashioned. I like going out to dinner. You have the chance to talk to somebody and get to know them better.

People are really happier with friends than they are with their families or their spouse or their child.

Back in the old days, when I was a child, we sat around the family table at dinner time and exchanged our daily experiences. It wasn't very organized, but everyone was recognized and all the news that had to be told was told by each family member. We listened to each other and the interest was not put on; it was real.

The worst part about being married is when you're not connecting. Your partner is going out the door when you're coming in, and you don't have a chance to debrief on the day. That's the worst.

It doesn't take money to turn off the television and cultivate real bonding time.

The truth is, the reason why a party is fun is because you are enjoying the people you are with. It doest have much to do with the decor or what you wear... It's really just about being with each other and spending special time together.

What I miss the most is chatting with my friends and family and having a good laugh over a simple meal.