THE MORE THINGS CHANGE the more they remain the same

This photo of ME was taken almost 60 years ago in the Hamptons (the part of Long Island just southwest of here) on a bluff overlooking the sea. I am riding a Raleigh bike with a wicker basket with Khaki shorts, and a plaid shirt. In Nantucket in 2010, I ride a similar bike in similar clothes along a similar coastline. They sell the "official" Nantucket wicker basket at the local bike shop. It's the same basket. Put a little Rosemary Clooney or Perry Como on the ipod and I could be easily transported back in time. What a world we live in. We buy Ralph Lauren clothes and "love" the vintage look. You should see how many men, who aren't gay, walk around wearing pink pants. Sure, it's called Nantucket Red but it a faded hot pink-salmonish color. Bermuda shorts are everywhere. The ubiquitous JEEP Wrangler, reminiscent of the WW2 military vehicle, the MINI Cooper whose design dates back 50 years, and of course the gray shingled houses that look the same today as they did in the 1700s, create the nostalgia you may be seeking.

One of my favorite movies, and soundtracks, is "Somewhere in Time" with Christopher Reeve. It takes place in Mackinaw Island which is another one of those places, like Nantucket Island where yesteryear is the theme. It is fitting, that the only clothing stores on Nantucket that are part of a national chain, are Polo Ralph Lauren, and Lily Pulitzer. Everything else is a little shop where you get to know the owner after living here for a couple of months, just like in the town where you were raised. So if you want to step back in time to a place where you can ride a bike everywhere, live and shop in buildings from previous centuries, and dress like you did when you were a child in a similar seaside town, come to Nantucket, but bring your wallet 'cause the prices have changed a little.