For those who may not have been following, Mr. Clyde Haberman of The New York Times, interviews a different New York City player every other week. This puts Mr. Haberman and his interviewee in a restaurant of their choosing, usually for breakfast, or lunch.
The most recent interview was with Gene Russianoff, staff attorney and public face of the Straphangers Campaign. Apparently in keeping with Mr. Russianoff's modesty and not-for-profit leadership, a very plain breakfast/lunch place was chosen near City Hall and the Straphangers' offices. The inside word is that the next 'Breaking Bread' interview might be somewhere where they use tablecloths.
No matter, it was interesting to read about Mr. Russianoff's background and learn, quite surprisingly to me anyway, that he's only 60. It seems he's been around forever. Anyone who has absorbed some local news telecasts over the years has surely heard his name when there's a report released on the subway's cleanliness and on-time performance. Or, a reaction to a fare increase, always a hot button NYC topic. His organization is a bit of a gadfly to the MTA, representing the ridership that has no real representation.
The easy euphemism for subway riders is 'straphangers.' I know what this refers to, as do both Mr. Hasberman and Mr. Russianoff, and anyone else who started riding subways in Brooklyn in the 1950s when they were four years old. But do other people know?
It seems when Daniel Okrent, a newspaperman, editor, and author of 'Last Call' first encountered the word in print he mentally pronounced it 'straff-hangers,' reacting to the 'ph,' likely thinking it was something to do with German WWI bi-planes. Mr. Okrent is from Detroit, so ignorance was understandable.
Pictured above is what replaced the strap, a porcelain grab loop that once was a looped leather strap that looked like a barber's strop. I don't remember the leather straps, but they were phased out because vandals kept cutting them in half. There's always someone you have to build a defense against.
Those above morphed into stainless steel grab loops, making the subway cars look like a the inside of a giant leather key holder held upside down, dangling loops to hold keys. Now, it seems there is a continuous bar that on a few occasions I have seen become a piece of gym equipment for those who perform an acrobatic stunt accompanied by boom-box music, and then look for a bit of folding money, or jingle for their jeans. Amazingly, no one seems to get hurt.
The take-away from the interview was a reminder that there is a half-fare transit card awaiting those who turn 65.
It was good to be reminded of this.
http://www.onofframp.blogspot.com
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