Afternoon Haunts: Central Library, DTLA
A treasure trove of info, books and resources.
In this series of pictures, I want to highlight the utilitarian value of your neighborhood library. Since all information is now available online, nobody goes to these centers anymore for everyday assistance but I think besides the old and homeless, regular folks — especially newbies to the city — can gain a lot with a library card.
Welcome to the Central Library.
It’s kind of like a mall.
BOOKS BOOKS BOOKS.
Cosy, Productive Spaces.
There’s really interesting events that happen here:
But really getting to information and services…
My favorite service of all:
Not photographed: The computer from year 2000 where you need to open your document, get a password and then use the releasing printer before your papers get here. All for 25 cents per page.
There’s a neat shop called The Library Store that sells cute stuff from stationery and tees to candles and witty cards.
One Petty Picture:
Random Highlight: The Science & Tech department had these cool models.
Support libraries, reading, community spaces!
As a child, books were my escape. I would constantly read at the dining table and chose staying in and reading over going out and playing as early as 8. I peaked with the Harry Potter series and then, there was steady decline — from simpler novels to magazines to just articles to *cringe* listicles and tweets. It’s been almost a year since I reinstated the habit of reading long form. I still read online content but I spend time on longer, thought out pieces (Medium to Cracked). Sometimes Quora, rarely reddit. Goodreads and LAPL have been great resources in reigniting the love for books. The internet is great for research reading, when you want to dive headfirst into a niche topic. I find books to be more immersive and exclusive in a sense because you can only jump word to word, line to line, page to page. There’s no multiple tabs. You can regulate the habit, which keeps it special.
You never feel lonely when you have a book to read and it may sound silly but sometimes just the thought that there will always be new books to read, new books that will make me giddy with excitement and take me to new places, brightens the moment.
I met this young man who works part time at the library. It was his last day on the job. We got talking and he pointedly mentioned that he doesn’t believe in coincidences. When discussing reading preferences, I got to know that he also harbored an interest in philosophy and spirituality like me. However, he confessed that he had to put down the books for a minute because he felt he was getting to know too much about people, which made him feel vaguely sinister. Relatable, bruh.
His Book Recommendations for me:
Hitler’s Charisma and Autobiography of a Yogi.
