Sunday, July 10, 2011

Hi and Bell

[Hi and Lois, July 10, 2011.]

Today’s Hi and Lois is a grand tour through the brave new world of self-service: Hi Flagston takes his bottles and cans to a recycling center, buys a newspaper from a machine, pumps his own gas (from a rather retro pump), scans his own groceries, stops at an ATM (helpfully marked “ATM”), rents a DVD from a Redbox-like machine, and dials an automated help-line. Meanwhile, son Chip wonders where the summer jobs are.

I found myself paying too much attention to the panel above. Do you see why?


I remember the last time I saw a Bell System Public Telephone sign: last September, at Schubas Tavern in Chicago. It was too dark to take a decent photograph. The above photograph, “Bell Telephone Sign,” is by mdf3530 and is licensed under a Creative Commons 2.0 License. Thanks, mdf3530, for sharing your work.

Related reading
All Hi and Lois posts (via Pinboard)
Van Dyke Parks in Chicago (At Schubas Tavern)

comments: 2

Pete said...

And haven't most cities eliminating corner mail dropboxes? I know that sign, and have used that phonebooth at Schuba's - one of my two or three favorite bars in the world.

Michael Leddy said...

What with the mailbox, newspapers, and pay phone, it’s like a collection of endangered species.

I’ve been to Schubas but once, which was enough to be impressed by the atmosphere, the service, and the sound system.