World Series! I was maybe 10 when my father handed me a bible, a tome that encapsulated the fundamental tenets of our religion. It was called The Yankee Hater's Handbook. A masterpiece of framing, it armed me with any number of responses to claims of the greatness of the team, the excellence of Mssrs. DiMaggio and Maris, the basic mental capacity of Mr. Berra. At that time, though, in the mid-1980s, hating the Yankees was like someone today hating the Knicks. They're so terrible - why bother? (more...)

The Wayback Machine This photo is a solved mystery; a compact set of clues and information revealing the incidental way in which it came to be. Looking closely at it reveals the big picture — a trolley headed through New York's Midtown West (note the '59th St. & 7th Ave.' destination sign) sometime in the early 20th century. But it reveals the details of life in the city: newsboys selling the paper to a disinterested audience, the challenges of public transportation, ads for theater and bow ties. Imagine having your picture taken by a tourist while you're getting on the bus. Now imagine people looking at it a century from now. (more...)