Signs of the Times

Why bring along a book in New York?  Or read your blackberry as you're walking?  There are always interesting things to read all around you.  The latest batch, collected over the past two weeks:

I'm rather perplexed by this one.  Why was the writer moved to write this on a door facing the street?  Is it a message to the world, or someone in particular?

I looked around for the sticker- nothing. Apparently Anthony had already found it.

I love this.  I've never thought about pastrami in gender terms, but appreciate the equal opportunity sensibility.

Just today, I walked through the tunnel below 42nd to get from one train line to the next.  I looked up, and bolted overhead were a series of signs, each a few steps further down from its predecessor:

Surely there is a story behind this, I thought, and googled it once I got home.  Sure enough.  If Wiki is to be believed, this series of signs was inspired by the Burma Shave ads and originally installed in 1994, with a plan to keep it up for one year.  It was never taken down.  The words are from Norman B. Colp, and it's called "The Commuter's Lament".   There are certainly days when I can relate to the sentiment, but I'm glad I don't normally go down this stretch-- it would be too depressing to see every day!