A sad walk along First Avenue to work this morning. Amid the usual sidewalk clutter of newspaper boxes–the First Amendment in action!–was our own, those of the Stranger and Times, the usual shopping gazettes, and the iconic red P-I box. Only the latter were empty. How long before the Times–which handled distribution for both papers–retrieves these sad reminders from every street corner? And what will become of them? The Times’ daily circulation (about 200,000) is shrinking, and I’m pretty sure it can accommodate the circulation boost from P-I sidewalk buyers from its own blue boxes. So the empty red boxes will slowly disappear…and be sold for scrap? To be exported to Chinese steel mills and melted into new I-beams? We used to have one such red P-I box right here inside our office, courtesy of former managing editor Chuck Taylor. He previously worked for the Times, and I never asked if he’d stolen the thing as some kind of prank. Now I wish we’d kept it. It might actually be worth something to collectors.