The classic A&J cartoon is from October, 1994. That was the year the Major League Baseball season was interrupted and the World Series canceled, because the owners and the players couldn’t agree on how to split up all the money. In case you were wondering, that’s why Arlo is so cynical, but his point remains valid, if you think about it. The strip had more import than I imagined at the time. I was an avid follower of Major League Baseball in 1994, the Braves in particular. I’ll bet I haven’t watched a dozen complete Major League games since. I’m not that stubborn, but by the time I was finished sulking, I’d gotten out of the habit.

Over the course of Arlo & Janis, some of the longest continuing stories have involved Gene’s love life or Arlo’s dream of owning a boat. The story that’s unfolding in newspapers right now involves both, so we could be here a while! Did you notice there were two versions of the strip that appeared yesterday? Wasn’t that weird?