48 Massachusetts Avenue. MIT Chapel. I don't generally give a rat's ass about churches, but Eero Saarinen's chapel for MIT is really spectacular. Unfortunately, the lettering left much to be desired, and the only worthy examples were on the doors to the restrooms. I had a hell of a time getting a decent shot of this lettering on the men's room door. And I tell you, it is very uncool to be fishing around a public bathroom with a camera.
51 Vassar. Building 44 at MIT. I don't know what's going on here, but this sign makes the Stata Center across the street look good.
51 Vassar. "Meet me at the Cyclotron." "At the what?!" "Oh, you know, the old particle accelerator on Vassar Street. And wear your red hat."
51 Vassar. This lettering is typical of older signage around MIT. Unfortunately the u in Building was scraped-off by Harvard scoundrels as payback for this.
32 Vassar. The adddress marker of Frank Gehry's much-maligned Stata Center at MIT. This building is on one of my running routes and I like to check my hair in the letters.
186 Broadway. Who knew there was a Michelin Man typeface?
161 Portland. Check out that ampersand. It reminds of a weeble which wobbles but won't fall down. (How can there not be a decent site for Weebles?)
Around 88 Hampshire Street. When I was a kid, I was so proud to live in Massachusetts because of these bumper stickers and the anthem that went with them. If you met me in person and asked politely, I might have sung you that anthem. Actually, I might have sung it even if you didn't ask. That changed the other day when I passed this 28-year-old sticker. Why oh why does the M in Massachusetts have to be lower than the baseline of the rest of the line? New Hampshire never looked so good.
896 Massachusetts Avenue. Surprisingly, Vermas doesn't have a Web site, so the following is from a review on yelp.com: "Want to get some years-old ramen covered in mouse turds? They got it!" And they sell New Coke.
928 Massachusetts Avenue. India Castle between Harvard and Central Squares. It's super-close to India Pagoda, India House, India Shack, India Dwelling, India Citadel, India Tent, India Fortress, and India Domicile. I happen to live next to the only Indian restaurant in the area that doesn't have 'India' and some sort of shelter in its name: Kebab Factory.
985 Massachusetts Avenue. Friendly Eating Place (defunct). Not to be confused with the Home of the Fribble.
Ellery & Broadway. The Switzerland Consulate seems to be empty at present, but I did come across this very sharp ThinkSwiss site. Free chocolate on the fifth Thursday of each month.
Corner of Francis & Kirkland. Lots of sidewalks have these nice little markers. I'll make an effort to start photographing them.
74 Ellery. Lots of fences have these nice little markers. I'll make an effort to start photographing them.
Irving, Scott, and Farrar Streets. These blue markers placed all over the city by the Cambridge Historical Commission celebrate the homes and birthplaces of significant Cantabrigians. I believe they got the idea from these handsome English mugs and tea towels. Incidentally, I bet this is the only blue marker in the city with lowercase letters.
34 Kirkland Street. Harvard is often strapped for cash. William James bequeathed money for this 15-story Psychology, Sociology, and Social Anthropology building but, reluctant to just hand Harvard a building, the only condition he demanded was that the University come up with the money for word spaces. The funds could not be raised, hence the building came to be known as Williamjameshall. True story.
Harvard Yard, Bradstreet Gate. Poster? I hardly know her!
1480 Cambridge Street. You'd have to be nuts to get psychiatric help from a place with a typo this bad.
Kirkland and Quincy. Erected in 7975 AD, this is (by far) the newest gate on Harvard's campus.
The Onion. Alexander Calder wuz here. And by "here" he meant the Pusey Library.
Nathan Marsh Pusey Library, under the ground. Home to the Harvard University Archives, the definitive collection of all things Havarti.
Mass Ave & Quincy. The book drop at Lamont Library. Check out the cap Rs in RETURN. They're like two different letters slammed together—and laboriously cut in brass.
20 Quincy Street. A carefully painted marker typical of the Harvard aesthetic. Such care makes my heart swell.
24 Quincy Street. A little lettering on Le Corbusier's lonely only building in North America, the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts.
32 Quincy Street. A modest little marker for the Fogg and Busch-Reisinger Museums.
1727 Cambridge Street. A post on the sidewalk that lights up to remind pedestrians that they're crossing a driveway. It's better in real-life.
1727 Cambridge Street. An adequate sign for the Center for Government and International Studies, but it's not as nice as the Ukrainian sign below.
1517? Cambridge Street. These posts for the Mid-Cambridge Neighborhood Association are all over, but I've yet to see any actual notices. No news is good news.
Harvard Yard, Bradstreet Gate.There's nowhere to park, but there is this nice slate marker to the left of the gates to Harvard Yard opposite the Science Center.
Harvard Yard, Bradstreet Gate.There's nowhere to park on this side either, but there is this nice slate marker to the right of the gates to Harvard Yard opposite the Science Center. Don't know who Anne Bradstreet was? See here. Coincidentally, Mrs Bradstreet was buried in North Andover, Mass, the town from whence I came.
17 Kirkland Street. The Abbott Lawrence Lowell Lecture Hall so renamed in 1959. Read all (but not very much) about it here. There's also a picture of the entire building from the early 80s here. Actually, I have no idea if that picture was taken in the 80s. I'm just guessing from the cars and trench coats.
50 Quincy Street. The Swedenborg Library attached to the Cambridge Swedenborg Chapel. I laugh and cringe every time I walk by this sign. It's so strange and bad. Actually, I think I could park my car between the r and a. Got to remember that the next time I drive into Harvard Square.
34 Kirkland Street. Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute. A simple sign in Garamond. Nicely done, Ukrainia.
61 Kirkland Street. The Weatherhead Center. They made a pretty good attempt at the top third of this sign, but they let an administrative assistant design the bottom two-thirds in Microsoft Word. Actually, now that I look at it, the C in Center looks like a G. Cuess I don't like this sign as much as I once thought I did.
200 Beacon Street. The American Academy of Arts and Sciences right around the corner from our offices.
Bryant Street. I love this little sign at the entrance to the foot path at the rear of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. Stepped in dog crap while taking this picture. "Hmph. Shit." I said.
Traffic Control. At the intersection of Beacon, Park, and Bryant Streets. I almost think this might be Somerville—which is a city. Not a typeface. Actually, I just checked. It is in Somerville—but just on the wrong side of the street. So close.