"I remember those! A desk blotter for use on letters, checks, etc., when we used fountain pens and real ink!
Well, akshully, I still use a Mont Blanc fountain pen that was my Father's... "
I first encountered those blotters in the post office in the Soviet Union, when I went there in 1975. The tables had inkwells and pens to dip in them, and blotters to use afterwards.
I, too, am a fountain pen fan, a habit I picked up from my father as well as a preference for black ink.
I should have a copy of "Curious George" at home somewhere; I'm a big fan of his. Just to prove it I have a t-shirt with his image along with a mouse pad and drinking cup. And a metal pencil box with an image from "Curious George Gets a Job". He is the patron saint of liberal arts majors and people who push buttons to see what happens, because we make marginally foolish decisions and usually get away with it. I wrote an absolutely brilliant essay with the title "Deus ex machina in a big yellow hat" and my disk promptly crashed, so no one but me will ever know.
George the Curious is probably also the patron saint of three year olds, since they have a lot in common with the two previously mentioned categories.
