Desperately seeking a quote from Pirsig's 'Zen & The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance'

Sorry to put this on ILE, just did it to reach most of you, but I know you are all very well read and some of you probably know Pirsig's Zen, right?

I've been invited to write an op-ed for a national newspaper in defense of local journalism. Kind of a big deal, for me. Tl;dr: I am looking for a passage from 'Zen' to use for this, but I cannot find my copy of the book ANYWHERE. I must have gave the book to a friend or something, it is not here.

The passage I am looking for is this one: Phaedrus, being a teacher, tells his students to write an X-word essay on their village or town. One female student complains, says her place is so dull she can never write 'x' words on it. The teacher then says: "Ok, then give me an 'x'-word essay about your street/or a local shop (I forgot)". Even more in distress she complain again to the teacher, who then says: "I want you to write an essay about a brick in the facade of a local building." Student, at first, is flummoxed but in the end she churns out a fantastic essay.

I am looking for that passage because I want to use it in my article, but I can't remember it by heart, and can't find my copy of the book. Could someone please, please try and find it in their copy? I tried googling but don't know the right words, apparently, to get the right passage up. I can't reach my friends and relatives who own the book at the moment, either, they are out, and I need to turn this in before the break of dawn.

Would someone ever be so kindly to try and look it up? I wish I knew the page number. I don't. But it will probably be somewhere in the chapter where the focus is on Phaedrus being a teacher and very different from the rest of the staff.

ILX, please help me. I will be forever in your debt <3

I found the passage you want on Google books (http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=DPhACEL1orEC) - looks like pages 178-179. Searching inside the book for "opera house" should take you to the right part.

Oh man, you are a legend!!!

Sorry to sound daft, but how do I search through the book? I can't find out how to do that :-/

there's no preview for me. it's here tho http://xroads.virginia.edu/~hyper/Zen/Zen%20and%20the%20Art%20of%20Motorcycle%20Maintenance%20Part%20III.htm

Oh man, I found it!

Ms. or Mr. JLGT, I have not encountered you on ILX before tonight, but I thank you from the bottom of my heart! <3

xpost: Yes, Zvookster! Thanks! <3

Man, I knew ILE wouldn't let me down. This is just huge for me and I want to get it right. Thank you all so much!!!