“First paycheck I get, I thought, I'm going to get myself a room near the downtown L.A. Public Library.”

“When I get back to L.A. I'm going to buy myself a Blackberry and a slew of French-cuffed shirts. Possibly a nipple ring.”

“When I get nervous, I go to the library and hang around. The libraries are filled with people who are nervous. You can blend in with them there. You're bound to see someone more nervous than you are in a library. Sometimes the librarians themselves are more nervous than you are. I'll probably be a librarian for that reason. Then if I'm nervous on the job, it won't show. I'll just stamp books and look things up for people and run back and forth to the staff room sneaking smokes until I get hold of myself. A library is a great place to hid.”

“Scary thought - what if I get to know myself and I'm someone I don't want to be?”

“When I get real bored, I like to drive downtown and get a great parking spot, then sit in my car and count how many people ask if I'm leaving.”

“The library, I believe, is the last of our public institutionsto which you can go without credentials.You don't even need the sticker on your windshieldthat you need to get into the public beach.All you need is the willingness to read.”