This past Fall I had a Librarian Internship with the Los Angeles County Public Library system. Of all the locations in the county I ended up at the Manhattan Beach Branch, a library with an ocean view two blocks from the beach in one of the most upscale communities in LA. Manhattan Beach is an affluent independent city of 40,000 close to the airport, about 10 miles away from my studio in Westwood.

When the city was founded around 1900 it started off as an isolated reasonably priced escape, and many of the first resident’s decedents still hold property throughout the area. There is still a functioning downtown with restaurants and shops, and also the world headquarters of Sketcher shoes. With ocean breezes, fun things to do and great schools, all within walking distance, this is one of the greatest places in the world to live if you can swing it.