Wednesday, April 7, 2021

I seem to be drawn toward books about people walking in cities. At the moment, I’m reading A Walk Through Paris by Eric Hazan. I got it out of the Los Angeles Library, which due to the Covid-19 life, takes a few weeks or more to get a book delivered to your local library. I walk to the Silver Lake branch to pick up my book about walking. The strange thing about taking a walk is not an exercise issue but a mental process and the need to explore one’s living area. I’m very fortunate that I live in a place near three bus lines, as well as getting LYFT. Although since the lockdown, I haven’t been on a bus for over a year now. The same with LYFT. So, I find myself traveling within my home. 

Most people have a destination where they know where they are going. I usually don’t. If I leave the house, I haven’t the foggiest idea what direction to go on. I often go down the public stairs, but the other day I changed that route due that there was a man passed out on the steps. This didn’t alarm me because this is a regular occurrence around here. But I refuse to step over him because I feel that I’m invading his private space, although he is clearly in a public area. Then, I turn back and go back to my home. 

The absurdity of dealing with life outside of one’s residence is intense, and I think of traveling through my library and record collection. Even that is not a clear path to finding what I want. I don’t have sections in my household for books in categories. For instance, I don’t have a fiction section nor books on cinema/poetry and so forth. I usually place my books in a manner due to the size or color of the spine. I have a memory of what I own, but I’m just unsure where that book or record is located. What I do is place books I’m reading in a specific place on my work desk. Or if it is a library book, then it’s a place where I keep those books. Beyond that, it is a total adventure when I go through my books. I often find titles that I had no interest in finding until I found them. 

Today I’m going to be reading A Walk Through Paris and think about actually taking a walk, but perhaps in a different direction to avoid the man asleep on the public stairs.