Crazy, random question. What's New Jersey like?

[I~LUV~Caddys8792]

I've always been curious. I've heard a lot of good and a lot of bad things about Jersey. What's it really like? I know we've got a few prominent members from there.

[Jesda]

The areas related to NYC metro are hideous. The rest of the state is absolutely gorgeous. Its like that scene from The Sound of Music. The hills are alive!

[dkozloski]

Don't you watch the Sopranos? It's all gangsters and corrupt dockworkers unuions.

[submariner409]

Most of New Jersey is a terribly corrupt dying union state trying to find an identity which belongs in the 1880's.

As Bob Dylan wrote: "Anything's legal in Jersey, as long as you don't get caught!"

(Close second to Maryland....)

[Playdrv4me]

There's a commercial on the radio frequently these days for a cough remedy called "Buckley's Cough Mixture". Their "gimmick" is that the stuff tastes absolutely HORRIBLE but does actually get rid of your cough.

In one of their commercials you overhear a person dialing their automated phone attendant, which begins to list out the reasons you might be calling and the corresponding button push. One of the button pushes corresponds to all the hideous things Buckley's Cough Mixture tastes like (ex. State fair porta-potty, A Monkey's sweaty back, Trash-bag leakage etc etc). The last one she mentions in that list is "New Jersey".

[77CDV]

Like any state, New Jersey has it's good and bad parts. I have family down in Cape May, and that seems like a fairly nice spot, unless it's hurricane season, then I suppose it really sucks. What I can't stand about Jersey (and the east coast in general) is the insane humidity during the summer. I remember visiting about 10 years ago and the combo of heat and humidity literally made me want to hurl. And it was only like 85 or 90 degrees, which is nothing here in SoCal, but there was like 80% humidity. Yuk!

On the other hand, I knew a kid in high school who was from Jersey and he couldn't wait to go back.

So, what's sparked your curiousity?

Craig

[I~LUV~Caddys8792]

Originally Posted by 77CDV

So, what's sparked your curiousity?

The boss and his undying love for his native state. As a few of you know, I'm a HUGE Springsteen fan, so I've got most of his CD's. A lot of his songs either take place in Jersey, or mention Jersey in them. A few that come to mind are:

-Open All Night
"Early north Jersey industrial skyline
I'm a all-set cobra jet creepin' through the nighttime
Gotta find a gas station, gotta find a payphone
This turnpike sure is spooky at night when you're all alone
Gotta hit the gas, baby. I'm running late,
This New Jersey in the mornin' like a lunar landscape"........


....."Your eyes get itchy in the wee wee hours
Sun's just a red ball risin' over them refinery towers
Radio's jammed up with gospel stations
Lost souls callin' long distance salvation
Hey, mister deejay, won'tcha hear my last prayer
Hey, ho, rock'n'roll, deliver me from nowhere"


-State Trooper
"New Jersey Turnpike, ridin' on a wet night `neath the refin'ry's glow
Out where the great black rivers flow
License, registration: I ain't got none
But I got a clear conscience `bout the things that I done"


With both of these songs, he makes it seem as though Jersey is an industrial wasteland...all sorts of refineries, and factorys and stuff like that..."dirty businesses" if you will.

-Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
And my tires were slashed and I almost crashed, but the Lord had mercy
And my machine, she's a dud, out stuck in the mud
Somewhere in the swamps of Jersey........."


In this (most excellent) one, he makes it seem as Jersey is like Northern Florida...swampy, more agricultural, etc etc. Much different from the picture he's painting in his later songs.

I guess after I really started getting into Springsteen a few years back, I've always had an interest in New Jersey. It seems like it's a big blend of culture, landscape, economy, climate and culture. Seems like it would be an interesting place to go and spend some time...

[gdwriter]

Originally Posted by 77CDV

Like any state, New Jersey has it's good and bad parts. I have family down in Cape May, and that seems like a fairly nice spot, unless it's hurricane season, then I suppose it really sucks. What I can't stand about Jersey (and the east coast in general) is the insane humidity during the summer. I remember visiting about 10 years ago and the combo of heat and humidity literally made me want to hurl. And it was only like 85 or 90 degrees, which is nothing here in SoCal, but there was like 80% humidity. Yuk!

I'll second that. One reason I could never live anywhere in the East, Midwest or South is the godawful humidity in the summer. And even after living in Phoenix for 15 years, 110º with 10% humidity doesn't feel as unbearable as 90º with 80% humidity.

Fortunately, it's rarely humid in Western Oregon. The Pacific breeze keeps it really nice here (most of the time) in the summer.

[lawfive]

What Jesda said. Most of Jersey is just awesomely beautiful. The parts that are bad, though, are horribly bad.

[dkozloski]

The trouble with low humidity is that all your furniture falls apart when the wood shrinks. The wintertime indoor humidity around here is about 20%. You walk across the carpet and get nailed by the light switch then you sit on a chair that goes to the floor.

[caddycruiser]

Haha! You know...even living in PA and then Delaware for my 21 years on the planet, I actually had never been to Jersey aside from the quick Turnpike jaunt to NYC.

A few weeks ago I went with my mother--on a car shopping expedition--essentially from Philly due east to the Jersey coast. Really seemed quite nice, aside from some terrible roads early on (I think Cherry Hill area, at slower speeds through town). Then once we got out of town, just typical rural/spaced out town looking, with nice scenery...and...round-abouts. That was a little odd at first, including the "Circle" signs beforehand, but were kind of cool after the first few.

I STILL think the illegal to pump your own gas thing is bizarre, but then again full service is a great thing for a lot of people...and it is still cheaper, due to their lower gas tax. Always funny, though, to meet someone at home or here at school from Jersey...who's completely in the dark about how one actually DOES put gas in their car. Talk about blank stares at the pump

Overall...like any other state, with its own oddities. Good areas and bad. Rural, towns, and cities. Throw in round-abouts instead of typical larger intersections...and full service gas per law...and you have New Jersey.

[gdwriter]

Originally Posted by caddycruiser

I STILL think the illegal to pump your own gas thing is bizarre, but then again full service is a great thing for a lot of people...and it is still cheaper, due to their lower gas tax. Always funny, though, to meet someone at home or here at school from Jersey...who's completely in the dark about how one actually DOES put gas in their car. Talk about blank stares at the pump

Neither Oregon nor New Jersey allow self-serve gas. I had owned Cruella for nearly two years before I actually filled her tank myself, on the road trip to Des Moines.

[AMGoff]

Jesda summed it up pretty well...

Frankly, there is no such thing as "New Jersey," there's North Jersey and there's South Jersey (although there's some who insist there's such a thing as Central Jersey, but that's nothing more than a myth..). The sad thing is, when most people think of New Jersey (especially those who've never seen the entire state), they think of North Jersey... and that's not a good thing (Sorry, Sandy). I don't associate with that part of the state, hence my location is listed as "South Jersey," it is for all intents and purposes, an entirely different state... in fact, there have been a number of times in the state's history when referendums have been brought forth to actually split the state in two.

South Jersey is beautiful and vast tracks of it remain untouched. It's an area steeped in history - much of which goes back to colonial times. Despite what people may think, most South Jerseans have more southern inclinations, than northern inclinations - if extended to the coast, half of South Jersey would actually lie below the Mason-Dixon line.

There are three predominate features here - the shore areas, the Pine-barrens, and the agricultural areas. The shore area offers a full range of experiences, from the history of Cape May, to the cozy hideaways like Stone Harbor, to the family friendly destinations of Ocean City and the Wildwoods, to the glitz of Atlantic City - the last three being well known for their boardwalks. Just as a point of clarification - it's not the beach - it's the shore.

The Pine-Barrens is 1.1 million acres of sandy, heavily forested, primarily untouched land. It was the country's first established National Preserve and development in the area is strictly regulated and largely prohibited. The sandy consistency of the soil helps to filter and recharge the Cohansey aquifer - 17 trillion gallons of what is considered to be the purest water in the United States. It was one of the earliest major industrial areas during the Revolution - the area's naturally occurring bog-iron was gathered to create cannonballs which were summarily lobbed at the British up through the War of 1812. The modern, domesticated blueberry and cranberry were cultivated in the Pine-Barrens, and the region is the nation's second and third largest producer of blueberries and cranberries, respectively.

I was born, raised, and still live in Salem County - which is one of the cornerstone counties that comprise South Jersey's rural/agricultural area. With approx. 67,000 people, we are the least populated and the least densely populated county in the entire state (in contrast, the most populated - Bergen County in North Jersey, has a pop. close to 900,000)... to further put things in perspective, latest estimates put the county's livestock population at about 100,000. Salem County covers 338 square miles, of which 167 square miles (49%) is actively farmed and another 53 sq. miles (16%) consists of meadow and marshlands, tidal and freshwater wetlands, bay beaches and dunes, and vast tracks of forest. We lie in the southwest corner of the state, nestle along the Delaware Bay... the landscape is dominated by rolling hills and is dotted with quaint little towns (Boroughs) that are surrounded by townships largely comprised by farms. It is an absolutely gorgeous area, and it's only further highlighted by it's varied features.

The county is rich in history... it is the oldest county in the state, having been created in 1694. Our county courthouse is the second oldest in the nation in continuous use, built in 1735 during the reign of George II. My hometown was originally founded in 1726 and the town founder's house still stands since 1728. There were two battles fought here during the Revolution - Hancocks Bridge and Quintons Bridge, General "Mad" Anthony Wayne crossed the Delaware into Salem County in search of livestock to feed the Continental Army at Valley Forge, and the Salem Courthouse was the site of the infamous "Treason Trials," which convicted several loyalists who helped the British during the war. It was in 1820, when a local army colonel publicly ate a tomato - dispelling the previously held myth that tomatoes were poisonous making Salem County the "birthplace" of the Jersey Tomato. Fort Mott, became a heavy Union fortification designed to protect the Delaware River and Finns Point National Cemetery was established to bury Confederate POWs who died at Fort Delaware. And to just further the "southerness" of the area - my town, well the surrounding township actually (it's a shared school district, so it's considered the same) is home to Cowtown - the oldest continuously operating rodeo in the United States - yes, in NJ.

So when people make jokes about NJ, I only shrug them off... because I realize that they've never been to my part of the state and are summarily talking out of their ass. There is nothing like South Jersey and I feel I am blessed to have been born in and continue to live here. There is no other place where you can be so far out "in the country," while still only being 50 minutes from Philly and 2-2.5 hours from NYC, DC, and Baltimore... it really is the best of both worlds, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Oh... all that and I don't have to pump my own (relatively cheap) gas.

[Night Wolf]

Worst drivers ever.

[urbanski]

it smells like a taint