Another Hump Day...

Ah, lottery fantasies. This one is just a week or so late, courtesy of Lileks. Assuming (a) I’d bought a ticket for that big Powerball drawing and (b) assuming I’d won, MY fantasy was (seriously) just a little place in NYC to hang out for a while. A place something like this. The floor plans are not that easy to see, but the interior views and photos of the facilities are pretty good, as are the cityscape views. If you opt for one of the penthouses, you get a free gratis interior design consultation with Armani/Casa. Wanna see what Armani’s interior designers can whip up? Take the virtual tour here. It’s cool, no doubt.

Lileks also has another treat, if you’re so inclined (and there’s a pun there, if you follow the link). What may be the world’s largest Varga Girl, ever. A newspaper photo of a 124-foot long Varga girl serving as an ad for a WW II vintage movie, photographed in April of 1944. So VERY cool. I mean that. The entire “Acme” series is a treat if you’re into vintage newspaper photography. (I consider all these links to be work-safe, but there are tastefully done bare breasts in a couple of thumbnails, so be advised.)

Those Vargas links fired off a few long-dormant synapses in my aged, addled brain. Alberto Vargas was responsible for my earliest introduction to artistic renditions of the female form. Ol’ Alberto’s work was ubiquitous during Big Bang Two, what with simple Esquire pin-ups decorating the most modest of GI living accommodations to elaborate nose art on all sorts of combat aircraft. There were numerous examples of Vargas’ work to be found in my house as a child, but none so dramatic as the Vargas-inspired lithograph that hung above my parents’ bed. I don’t remember if the picture was an original or a copy, nor do I remember if it was an actual Varga Girl…there were many, many artists doing Vargas knock-offs in the ‘50s. At any rate, this large lithograph was probably four-feet square and featured a full-frontal view of a long and lithe blonde standing on a beach, flanked by two Afghan hounds, one on each side. The blonde wore a transparent bikini, and that was it. It was a stunning piece of work, let me tell you, and it was also the first picture that got hung every time we moved, which was often (remember, my father was career USAF: we moved a lot). The other salient fact? My mother hated that picture. But she put up with it. “Father Knows Best,” the 50s, and all that. I think my step-mother still has that picture.

We’re under a wind-advisory all day, until 1800 this evening, and we’ve cooled off a bit…what with the high only going up to 70, at most. Still no rain, but the forecast says there’s a slight possibility.