Aspiring Intellectual Pillows

"I've had those books for years. They represent the person I once aspired to be."

Books: Self-Improvement Just keeping up with Joneses.

How to win Genius Grants for Dummies!

Monkey tries to read a book.

"Where would you see yourself in five years' time?"

What else is there to wish for?

"With the caveat that the only certainty in this life is uncertainty, I still want to entertain the possibility of being a pundit when I grow up."

"That's Brian Eggleston, de facto leader of the playground intelligentsia."

"What's your project for the science fair, Arnold?"

"The teacher expects too much of me. She wants me to give it the old college try, and I'm only in grade school."

'I've been told before that I'm very mature for a three year old.'

'The bad news is you failed all your courses. The good news is you passed the urine test.'

The Idea of America.

'It's my application to Harvard...'

"Remember, junior, in America anyone can aspire to become the most powerful person in government - the special prosecutor!"

One day, he hoped to hit the big time.

You got into the college of my choice, and I got into the college of your choice. Now if we could just work something out...

'I found this copy of 'Atlas Shrugged' under his mattress!'

"The extent of your extracurricular activities in high school, may very well be participation in regular program of oral hygiene using an effective decay preventaative tooth paste, but that won't get you into a good university."

"You can achieve anything if you put you mind to it."

"The counselor wasn't much help about getting into college. All he said was to study hard and get good grades."

'My parents couldn't afford to send me to college, so they let me spend a night at a Ramada.'

'It's true that a college degree might render you overqualified for your present position, but it's a chance I'd take.'

"I went to college knowing I wanted to be an astronaut. My parents had only a third-grade education. But they were good teachers. They taught me the importance of hard work...of perseverance...of not being afraid to dream."

A girl climbs a ladder of books

How to get ahead and how to get further ahead.

'What do you want to be when you grow up?'

"It's beginning to appear as if I'll never have greatness thrust upon me."

'I'm majoring in political science and minoring in ballet - I want to be a spin doctor.'

'I love you and your father loves you. Now go paint a masterpiece.'

What we're looking for is someone who can dream big and work within our budget.

"Finally! Summer is here! That means we're one year closer to college!"

"You got 136? It says here you're genius if you get a 132."

How was your college tour? Good. Now I need straight A's and 375 extracurriculars to get in. You're exaggerating. Easy for you to say. You've got a 4.0. Yeah, but

'I'm sorry, Mr. Pringle, you failed the acid test. We won't be hiring you.'