NYC Is Literally Literary

(Note: This blog was originally posted on NYCTourGuy.com, a blog I managed when I lived in New York City. That blog will be taken down soon, and I’ll be moving all of that content here, post-dated at its original dates.)

Okay, right off the bat let’s knock these two things off the list:

1. Yes, I know this is the second consecutive blog with the word “Literally” in the title.

2. Yes, I know I finally skipped a day of blogging. I knew I couldn’t keep it up forever, but I promise I’ll still be writing as often as it makes sense. This website is still evolving; it’s figuring out what the hell it’s supposed to be. My thinking as of now is it’s going to be what a blog was created to be: a weblog, or journal. But I might decide that instead of just spewing crap every day, I’ll only write once a week or so and make sure it’s truly funny or interesting. I’ll know when I know.

***

I took the day off today to run some errands around my neighborhood, and surprisingly enough, I actually walked out the front door to do them. At the end of my own block, there was a table set outside of an apartment building with a cardboard box filled with used books. Written on one of the flaps to the box was “FREE! PLZ TAKE!”

My first reaction was, Goddammit it’s spelled “please”. You weren’t texting on this box! My second reaction was that this was really cool. When I first moved to NYC, I crashed on my friend Julie Tudor’s couch for about three months in Park Slope, Brooklyn. The Slope is a really liberal neighborhood in an already liberal city, and there are hipsters/nerds/democrats everywhere. Wandering around that neighborhood was the first time I’d seen books just simply in a box saying “free, please take”.

“This is very common here,” said Julie. “You take what you’ll read, and after you’ve read it, you give it away.”

I love that aspect of NYC. There is such a tremendous respect for the arts. Obviously, this city has amazing museums and performing arts centers, but it also cultivates authors of the written word. And it makes sure that said authors get their due exposure. It’s as if New York’s attitude is, a book isn’t written to be sold; it’s written to be read.

I love that.

I live in Astoria, which isn’t quite as liberal or book-y*, so this is the first time I’ve seen this in my neighborhood. I hope to see it more. And yes, I took a few books from the box. I guess soon I’ll be making a box of my own.

~J

*As a writer, I have literary license to make up words whenever I want. Nyah nyah nyah.