Wow, I've never seen those in real life (I live in Poland). I know most of the results are photos, but I always encountered those in the form of icons, so my brain is still telling me that I'm looking at icons. It's a weird feeling ;)
Certainly a peculiar regional difference, they are ubiquitous in the States. I might not have one in my house, but I grew up around them, they are usually clipped into a clipboard.
Photos of typical yellow pads: https://www.google.com/search?q=yellow+legal+pad&tbm=isch
History of the yellow legal pad: http://www.legalaffairs.org/issues/May-June-2005/scene_snide...