Drew Barrymore quotes:

There's a tremendous difference between alone and lonely. You could be lonely in a group of people. I like being alone. I like eating by myself. I go home at night and just watch a movie or hang out with my dog. I have to exert myself and really say, oh God, I've got to see my friends 'cause I'm too content being by myself.

The stories that I want to tell, especially as a director, don't necessarily have a perfect ending because, the older you get, the more you appreciate a good day versus a happy ending. You understand that life continues on the next day; the reality of things is what happens tomorrow.

I have certainly had my share of long-distance love affairs.

I think happiness is a choice. If you feel yourself being happy and can settle in to the life choices you make, then it's great. It's really, really great. I swear to God, happiness is the best makeup.

I love the very exposed, humorous, imperfect, never-trying to-pretend-to-be-perfect journey that I have been on in my life.

Becoming emancipated at 14, my life wasn't normal. I didn't have to go to school, so I didn't. I was rebellious by nature. I spent my 20s focusing on my company, Flower Films, and producing movies. Now that I'm almost 30, I would like to try other things in lie. I'm crazy about photography, and I want to take an art history class.

I remember being on film sets when I was younger, and only men got to do the cool action movies. So I thought, 'Maybe I'll get to produce one day and get to do cool stuff too,' which is what happened when we did 'Charlie's Angels.' Starting my production company was a big turning point for me.

Oh, I would love to be a motivational speaker. I have pulled myself out of a million potholes, and I can see the potholes ahead of me. That doesn't mean that I could always do that so perfectly for my own life. I totally fall in potholes.

You're not supposed to look perfect while you're making babies. Making babies is the perfection. It's about feeling good in clothes and knowing you can get dressed up in the evening, work it for a minute, and maybe get back in a certain pair of jeans. But there's just no such thing as perfection.

I remember being on film sets when I was younger, and only men got to do the cool action movies. So I thought, 'Maybe I'll get to produce one day and get to do cool stuff, too,' which is what happened when we did 'Charlie's Angels'.

Whether you're throwing up or breaking up, you want your girlfriend right there! I don't trust women who don't go to their girlfriends.

You can't live your life blaming your failures on your parents and what they did or didn't do for you. You're dealt the cards that you're dealt. I realised it was a waste of time to be angry at my parents and feel sorry for myself.

Whatever I've experienced in my life is a part of my story, and I'm proud of that. But it's someone who wakes up early, works all day, believes in charitable work, business-minded, diligent, accountable, problem-solving... I'm so much about school, consistency and tradition.

I'm such an avid magazine reader - music, art, beauty magazines - and I found that food and restaurants were pouring into everything I cared about. Whether it was the pop-up concept, or some mysterious mini-mall restaurant, I got swept up in the sexy romance of the food movement.

I don't mind a little Sturm und Drang. When I was doing 'Riding in Cars With Boys,' I wouldn't smile at anybody, because my character, Bev, was angry at the world. I'm the opposite. Inside my head I'd be like, God, I'll explain to you at the end of shooting that I'm not this person.

Producing is so exciting because you can enable things to happen, whether it's like discovering a filmmaker who you're taking a chance on, protecting a battle and driving home at the end of the day just going, 'I'm so glad I stayed late at work and fought hard for that. Had my passion. Won that battle.'

The best kind of parent you can be is to lead by example.

My mother used to dress rather risque when I was a kid, and that sort of shocked me. I always thought moms were supposed to wear cardigans and flats, but she was in leather bracelets and minidresses. In hindsight, it was pretty cool, but I'm probably more conservative because of it.

I grew up in a family that was multifaceted, sexually oriented, and pretty much open to everything. And because I was working, my friends were all adults. I had a tough time going to different schools because people knew me from films and I was the fat child who got beaten up every day.

I grew up in a makeup chair. And to see the women around me getting ready was so aspirational. It's about mothers and daughters, a girl watching her mom at a vanity table.

I think some of the funniest and most artistic people I know are the ones who had a hard time at school. They often have humility and artistry. So, as much as I feel bad for kids who have to go through a rough childhood, I believe that if they can turn it around, it's going to make them better people later on.

I appreciate my journey, but I don't want that for my kid. Not any of it. It has nothing to do with whether I liked my childhood. I really did. But as a parent, that isn't the childhood that I'd provide.

It's not just about acting. I love film, I'm a director now, I love writing, I love producing, I love having a company that makes films and to be prolific and have a place to put all the ideas that are constantly bubbling up inside of me and that don't let me sleep at night.

I didn't grow up in a traditional family, and I never had a family dinner around the table, so whenever I actually had a dinner 'plan,' it meant a lot to me; it made me feel excited and safe.

I still, at hotel rooms, I do this one sort of not-so-cool thing: continually shoving my room service tray in front of someone else's door. Because I don't want the remnants. I don't want to be caught, like, being like the pig that I was at two in the morning.

When you're young, you're always wondering when you're actually going to feel like a grownup. And I think you probably fear it, in a sense, too. There's a danger to feeling like an adult... like this whimsical kid in you is going to die or something. And then all of a sudden, one day you kind of feel like an adult and it's really nice.

Great dad. Yeah, he would ask me for money on birthdays and, you know, inappropriate times. And I just wrote him off like, 'You're not a father.' I just learned you cannot emotionally invest in people who are not attainable.

Kisses, even to the air, are beautiful.

I really have created a family. I work with the people I love, I travel with them, I make films with them, and I'm in an office with them. So in a weird way - I know I haven't birthed a child - I feel that I'm a part of creating a family. It's a tribe. I love that word.

I feel like some of my baby fat is going away, and that's not just physically, it's psychologically. I think that your body is in tune with your mind and your spirituality and your heart. If things are going better, I just think you look better.

I've always said that one night, I'm going to find myself in some field somewhere, I'm standing on grass, and it's raining, and I'm with the person I love, and I know I'm at the very point I've been dreaming of getting to.

I'm not after fame and success and fortune and power. It's mostly that I want to have a good job and have good friends; that's the good stuff in life.

At 35, I'm definitely starting to feel more like a grown-up than I ever have. There's nothing in my life that is childish or whimsical. Having fun is fantastic and I never want to lose a sense of that - and also, I think, you have to have that to put into your work or else it's going to feel stiff.

I've always been a homemaker, like, I like creating spaces. Even if I stay in a hotel, I'll unpack, I'll put my books out, I'll put my camera out, I'll throw a sweater over the lamp to get better light. I am a homemaker.

I mean, I come from a hippie mentality where I just think to know someone, you need to look into their eyes. Eyes are so important. Until they start melon-balling eyes out, I won't be able to get to know someone another way.

It's the worst when you're kissing someone who's not a good kisser, and you're trying to make it look good, but you feel like you're just working on your own.

I personally battled with my own body image for years. I used to tell myself, You can't wear anything sleeveless or strapless. And all of a sudden I was like, What if I just didn't send such negative messages to my brain and said, wear it and enjoy it? And now I'm more comfortable in clothes than ever.

I never regret anything. Because every little detail of your life is what made you into who you are in the end.

I make movies. I have a passion. Puppies and daisies don't accomplish anything. That's not me at all.

A few years ago, I bought an old red bicycle with the words Free Spirit written across its side - which is exactly what I felt like when I rode it down the street in a tie-dyed dress.

Being a Barrymore didn't help me, other than giving me a great sense of pride and a strange spiritual sense that I felt OK about having the passion to act. It made sense because my whole family had done it and it helped rationalise it for me.

I don't even have voice mail or answering machines anymore. I hate the phone, and I don't want to call anybody back. If I go to hell, it will be a small closet with a telephone in it, and I will be doomed and destined for eternity to return phone calls.

A thank-you can be just as meaningful as a soulful ten-page message.

When I was a kid, I got really great advice from someone who is so important to me and someone who I respect so much, and they told me, 'Don't do too many endorsements. Don't throw your name on things; think of your longevity.'

I think that being happy makes the biggest impact on your physical appearance.

From my perspective, there's no reason to be afraid of aging, because if you age, you're lucky! The alternative is death.

I'd definitely be the kind of parent who enabled my child's dreams. I'd just watch and nurture and guide them. I have the blueprints of what not to do... I think I'd be a good parent, actually.

I'm a total control freak and love to participate in the design of every single aspect of life.

My life takes me all over the world, and I know how hard that can be on a relationship.

I just want to make sure I have a sense of balance between work and life, because work is my life and the lines can get really blurry.

I'm so in control of my life, you shouldn't dislike anything I do-because I'm not only in the best place I've ever been, but it keeps getting better and better.

In a world and a life that moves so fast, photography just makes the sound go out and it makes you stop and take a pause. Photography calms me.

Life's too short. We have to love each other.

It's embarrassing to go through any rebellious stage in front of people that you love and respect, and yet I'm glad I did.

Life is very interesting... in the end, some of your greatest pains, become your greatest strengths.

If you're going to go through hell... I suggest you come back learning something.

My life choices are not supposed to be the gateway to somebody else's. That's my journey.

A fish may love a bird, but where would they live?

I did love horror films from the '70s and '80s. That was my sweet spot.

I think that we all have to have that rite of passage of dating the tortured artist who seems cooler than we think we are; we aspire to be like them, and we're excited that somebody is turning us on to new music or a new lifestyle.

Celebrity! It's become the most disgusting word on the planet. It makes me sick to my stomach.

My own mum cared about Hollywood, and I didn't. I wanted to act, and I loved the creativity of it, but I didn't care for the lifestyle.

I'm a real stay-at-home mom. I'm really hands-on. Everything else became secondary.

Kissing - and I mean like, yummy, smacking kissing - is the most delicious, most beautiful and passionate thing that two people can do, bar none. Better than sex, hands down.

Everyone is like a butterfly, they start out ugly and awkward and then morph into beautiful graceful butterflies that everyone loves.

The way things have gone in my life, sure, I could have been a bitter person. But I just find bitter people really un-fun, you know? And who wants to be that person?

I guess I do have a childlike sense of fun, and although I still have my dark days, I'm generally an optimistic person. The way things have gone in my life, sure, I could have been a bitter person. But I just find bitter people really un-fun, you know? And who wants to be that person?

I'm a bit of a control freak.

There are a lot of us little gypsies out there that need to go and find another place you know. A safer, healthier or just a different venue in order to develop and find ourselves. I am so lucky to live the life that I do.

Love is the hardest habit to break, and the most difficult to satisfy.

I have always been fond of recognizing the spiritual side of someone's personality. It's a very lovely concept.

I used to look in the mirror and feel shame, I look in the mirror now and I absolutely love myself.

I'm such a profound believer that timing is everything; I would tattoo that on my arm.

I'm very sensitive to the English language. I studied the dictionary obsessively when I was a kid and collect old dictionaries. Words, I think, are very powerful and they convey an intention.

I don't know anybody's road who's been paved perfectly for them, there are no manuals, you don't know what life has in store for you.

I'm glad I lived such a full life before I settled down into a family because I got to enjoy it and get it out of my system.

I hate flatscreens. I don't want to see anything in that much pixilation. I don't need to see the pimple on someone's face. I love the world through glass. The more old, dusty and tainted that glass is, the prettier and more impressionistic that is to me. I don't need to see everything perfectly. I don't like it.

I aspire to be that, to be a voice of reason one day.

I do everything in this life-or-death way.

I've approached so many things in my life with such intensity that I want to approach motherhood with dedication and focus.

I still feel like I have a lot to prove. My biggest burning question is 'How much more are you capable of?'

I am obsessed with ice cubes. Obsessed.

I pray to be like the ocean, with soft currents, maybe waves at times. More and more, I want the consistency rather than the highs and the lows."

There are so many pressures that are put upon young women. Whatever we can do to alleviate that and help women feel beautiful about who we are inside, which is the only beauty there truly is, is so nice. Let's get down and dirty. Let's be a real girl.

I pray to be like the ocean, with soft currents, maybe waves at times. More and more, I want the consistency rather than the highs and the lows.

People are like moths. First they are ugly and awkward, until they break out of their shell and become a beautiful butterfly.

I always thought I desperately wanted a husband and a big family, because I didn't have it growing up.

There's a big world out there. Bigger than prom, bigger than high school, and it won't matter if you were the prom queen or the quarterback of the football team or the biggest nerd. Find out who you are and try not to be afraid of it.

I want people to be blown away when I do what they don't expect.

God made a very obvious choice when he made me voluptuous; why would I go against what he decided for me? My limbs work, so I'm not going to complain about the way my body is shaped.

No matter what the genre, I want to see me and my friends. I want to see reality. I want to see what we're really like. I loved Bridesmaids. I thought it was the most honest portrayal of female friendship in such a long time.

I love inventive food, but I want the classic dishes to taste like how I remember them. I get a little bummed out when there is too much fancy stuff going on and it doesn't resemble the original dish at all.

I love roller coasters that make my stomach drop. One ride in Las Vegas, the Big Shot, straps you into a row of seats and catapults you into the air from the top of the Stratosphere Tower - then plummets back down. I ride it over and over; it's exhilarating.

I like so many different kinds of chick flicks. I like rom-coms, I like female friendship movies.

Oh, I love hugging. I wish I was an octopus, so I could hug 10 people at a time!

Daisies are like sunshine to the ground.

When I lay my head on the pillow at night I can say I was a decent person today. That's when I feel beautiful.

Indecision is the most unsexy thing on the planet. I don't know if I'm sexy but I think decisiveness is sexy. I also lose trust and faith in them when I realise I'm a bit on my own and that's a very disheartening feeling.

I just think happiness is what makes you pretty. Period. Happy people are beautiful. They become like a mirror and they reflect that happiness. If somebody walks in the room and they're drop-dead gorgeous and sexy, it's really fun to look at. But if someone is giving of their spirit and they make you laugh and feel good, that's a whole other level of beauty.

School feeding not only fills stomachs, but has a proven track record of boosting enrollment, attendance and academic performance. For just pennies a day per child, this program changes lives - and ultimately can impact the futures of poor countries around the world in a profound way.

I believe that everything happens for a reason, but I think it's important to seek out that reason - that's how we learn.

I understand there are inevitable things that we have to go through: heartbreak, family problems. I don't feel like some Quixotic idiot who says, 'We don't have to feel pain.' No! Let's feel it, let's make it work for ourselves. But I want us all to be able to get past it.

I no longer have the fear of being alone. It's cool to find out that you don't need a boyfriend to be happy.

Feeding a child at school is such a simple thing - but it works miracles.

I don't really get into architecture in the hotel room. But maybe a little Feng Shui here and there.

Beauty is so within. I don't care if you're the most attractive person on the planet...if you're not good inside, it will show. You fall in love with people from the inside out.

I could never be cynical, not that I think there's anything wrong with cynicism. I think it can be quite funny at times. But I just feel so grateful to be alive.

California is an unbelievable state. One day I might be in a spiritual place like Joshua Tree, then before I know it, I'm eating groovy sushi in a mini-mall. I'm a Cali girl through and through.

I know what the intimidation level of high school is. You're on a hamster wheel, running, running, running, trying so hard to fit in. It's all about how you deal with what you're given, feeling OK with being the odd man out before you're finally successful.

Happiness is a choice. You have to choose it - and you have to fight for it.

I think happiness is what makes you pretty. Period. Happy people are beautiful. They become like a mirror and they reflect that happiness.

I have no regrets in my life whatsoever.

I can't think of any issue that is more important than working to see that no schoolchild in this world goes hungry.

I want people to love me, but it's not going to hurt me if they don't.

I am who I am because of the people who influenced me growing up, and many of them were gay. No one has any right to tell anyone what makes a family

I don't want to be stinky poo poo girl, I want to be happy flower child.

When I was 19, I picked up an old, tiny, automatic Yashica camera and I just started shooting. We didn't have iPhones back then, we didn't even have cell phones. I loved having a camera in my hand.

I've been a vegetarian for years and years. I'm not judgemental about others who aren't, I just feel I cannot eat or wear living creatures.

When you work in film, you learn to appreciate a distributor. You can have this great little film, but if you don't have a distributor, you are sitting in your living room with a great little film.

There's something liberating about not pretending. Dare to embarrass yourself. Risk.