Genius unrefined resembles a flash of lightning but wisdom is like the sun.

And it's sad because it's like a surprise to people - almost an anomaly - when artists are actually refined and trained on an instrument. That's the last thing people think about.

I heard Nirvana and discovered that songs could be like poetry but a little bit more refined: you didn't have to have 20 verses to get your point across.

The old interests of aristocracy - the romance of action the exalted passions of chivalry and war - faded into the background and their place was taken by the refined and intimate pursuits of peace and civilization.

I had no books at home. I started to frequent a public library in Lisbon. It was there with no help except curiosity and the will to learn that my taste for reading developed and was refined.

The more easily digestible and refined the carbohydrates the greater the effect on our health weight and well-being.

It is wise to apply the oil of refined politeness to the mechanism of friendship.

Barack Obama's life was so much simpler in 2009. Back then he had refined the cold act of blaming others for the bad economy into an art form. Deficits? Blame Bush's tax cuts. Spending? Blame the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. No business investment? Blame Wall Street.

He has only half learned the art of reading who has not added to it the more refined art of skipping and skimming.