Garden State

It dawns on me tonight that perhaps sometime in the future, I might move out of New Jersey and put down roots somewhere else. That's not to say that I don't like Jersey, in fact I enjoy living here (save for the high car insurance rates and property taxes...but let's face it, what state doesn't have its cruddy underbelly?). It gets hot in the summer, but nothing compared to the south or the west, it gets cold in the winter, but it ain't like freezing in New England or Northwest, and let's face it, our natural disasters don't compare to all the other states out there. In fact, New Jersey is a very pleasant place to live in, meteorologically speaking. But it's a whole 'nother thing living somewhere else...a new experience. So, in the interest of potentially pursuing the adventure of living in another state, I've compiled a "loose" list of things I'd want to do while I'm still in the borders of the Garden State:

1. Hit up every diner from Cape May all the way to High Point. This is probably the best way to get to know the state I'm living in right now. I had fond memories of the diners around our local town here. I'm pretty sure that all the other diners in the other towns carry with them the same charm that makes them unique. That and I want to know who makes the best greek salad and pastrami omellete in NJ.

2. Follow the wine trails. Many people probably don't know that NJ boasts a strong standard in terms of making wine. Right now, there are about 30 or so wineries all over the state and many of them make excellent wines as well as fruit wines. That's right, we take our own fruit produce and make them into vino, and if you've never heard of it, or think it hoaky...wait until you try the almondberry or the blackberry currant wines these wineries have in stock.

3. Walk the Appalachian Trail. Yep, NJ also is part of this prestigious trail and there's a nice span of it along the northern part of the state which leads towards Delaware (I think). Anyways, I've never really gone hiking before and what better way to get right into it than by going down this road?

4. Fishing the hotspots. I've only gone fishing twice. The first was in South Jersey by the Cohansee River where I caught a 21 inch striped bass (no lie!) among MANY other fish (yea, fishing was good in those areas - Many thanks to Mr. Piontkowski for taking me out on his pontoon at 5 in the morning.) and the second was in California (where I got skunked in a man-made lake seeded with catfish and trout). Somehow I'll take my chances along with my bait and tackle and check out the different state parks that offer fishing around here.

5. Book and music hunting. Probably there are many other places out of NJ where this activity might be more fruitful, but there's a lot to be said about the mom and pop used bookstores and music shops all over NJ. Case in point,The Montclair Book Center and The Princeton Record Exchange, to name a few that I've visited before. Both areas are teeming with awsome finds. I could easily lose all my money in these two shops alone. I'm sure there are others that are just as cool.

6. Spending time at the beach. There's still a lot to be said about the Jersey Coast. No, not the Seaside, MTV type of beach (ugh)! More along the lines of Cape May, Sea Isle City, Wildwood, LBI, Point Pleasant, Belmar, Sandy Hook, etc.

7. Hitting the farm. NJ isn't called the Garden State for nothing. There's plenty of fruit to be picked from the summer with it's peaches and strawberries to the fall with its apples and pumpkins (I'm a sucker for fresh fruit)

8. Driving through the highways. I'd like to think that someday, I could be placed in any road in NJ, blindfolded and know my way around well enough.

9. Go sky diving. It's not really related to NJ, but I still want to do it!

10. Check out the top 10 sites featured in Weird New Jersey. Need I say more?

That's a pretty hefty list. I guess I better get started.