A walk towards a dead end

Hope's dead end, Los Angeles, Ca c. 2009

Whenever I have some spare time on the weekend, I like to visit the Central library on Sunday afternoons. It has been a pastime of mine over the last 13yrs or so. When I was younger I'd enter through the south side of Hope since it was near the metro station. Since I started driving however, I choose to park in front of the fire station on 1^st st simply because the parking meters aren’t turned on Sundays.

I know this parking spot is a good 5 blocks away from the library but I enjoy the walk. Uphill on 1^st, turn right on Hope, past (sometimes through) the Disney concert hall, down the flight of stairs near the library tower that lead directly to the 5^th street entrance. I enjoy the light exercise and I like to notice new details along the familiar path.

The northern side of Hope St is so peaceful on the weekends. I definitely understand why Downtown L.A. is such a popular location for film production companies. I’ve seen countless commercials and film scenes being shot in the area.

A couple of Saturdays ago I went the library to work on some pictures on my laptop. The library doesn’t have the fastest wi-fi but it’s better than using the public computers. I went late in the afternoon and I thought I was running out of time until I noticed a small sign nearby concerning a change in the library hours. The library now closes at 6 on Saturdays instead of 5. That was a pleasant little surprise. I had an extra hour before I left.

There were more things I wanted to work on and I had every intention of returning the next day, my preferred day. As I went to the bulletin to confirm the hours of operation on Sundays, I then read that the library is now closed on Sundays and Holidays. An adolescent "shut UP" escaped from my mouth.

I understand the state and the city are in some serious debt but I immediately blamed our elected officials. I thought of our mayor offering to pay for Michael Jackson’s funeral service at the staples center last summer. I wondered how much of the city’s money had been misappropriated to get us in a mess where public libraries are taking the hit.

To me, libraries are a place of hope. THIS library is a place of hope. I think it’s interesting that this library is located on Hope St’s dead end. A place where kids want to learn, & where adults want to expand their knowledge even further. With this change, limits have been set even further. Honestly, I wish the library was open all night. I’m sure many of the homeless folks that I see take literal and intellectual refuge would agree.

Time escapes so many of us due to the responsibilities of life. With a weekend day stolen from Los Angelenos, we must now pencil in time to learn and juggle anything else beating down on us . I guess all I can hope is that Saturdays aren’t stripped from us either. At least for the time being...