This has got to be one of the most photographed signs in lower Manhattan. And for good reason. The Ideal Hosiery store and sign on Grand Street is one of the last remaining bits of evidence of what was once an entire district of hose.

I don’t know about anyone else, but sometimes in NY I forget to look up instead of down or straight ahead. But the reward of training one’s gaze skyward needs no explanation. There is no trickery to the scale in that last picture. It’s of Mary Lou’s Milk Bottle Restaurant in Spokane Washington — well worth a detour for a crazy delicious burger served with hand-cut fries and some of the best milk shakes you can imagine. The thing is huge. And, crazy as this sounds, it’s not the only giant milk bottle in town. It’s actually one of two in Spokane, built by the Benewah Diary Company back in 1935. The other one is a Democratic Party headquarters.

I am not, have never been and will never be a lover of hot humid weather. As we are well into a week of what New York late spring has to offer with regard to comfort, I find it hard to imagine that it will ever be cold again. This picture from just a few months ago made me think otherwise. I’ve just been told that tomorrow brings relief.

I used to use these eraser shields every single day when creating final blueprints or technical drawings. I miss the idea of them more than the things themselves. There are many different variations on the cutouts and the size of the plates, but here are a few of the most common ones. Buy them here, and here.

The hot weather ushers in what I believe is perhaps the best part of summer — eating and drinking out of doors. That said, I don’t much like to use this platform to pitch my own products, so full disclosure: I designed these melamine tumblers quite a number of years ago. And, to my surprise and delight, they are still in production. I’d like to think it’s because they are simple and bright, don’t have any cartoon characters slapped on them, and mostly because they last. They are virtually indestructible. They come in two sizes: 8 oz. and 14 oz.  Available here.