November 19, 2004

• Oh, I guess they *live* in New Jersey. Sorry.
• Is it true that there's still no self-serve gas pumping in NJ?
• Oh wow, looks like someone's jealous! And no, still no self-serve gas pumping.
• I've been to the IKEA in Paramus.
• Our call center used to be in Paramus. Now it's...somewhere in India...
• It's true of last time I was there, Hawthorne. Growing up there, I have a bit of a soft spot for New Jersey. It's not all a hellhole.
• And before anyone else does it: Monkeyfilter: It's not all a hellhole.
• That was the dumbest thing I have ever read. Anyone who uses the phrase "boner biting" as an insult outside of southpark doesn't deserve the air they breathe.
• I prefer "cock gobbler".
• Or "jizz gargler"
• Indeed. New Jersey does not allow drivers to pump their own gas. You see, common wisdom holds that New Jerseyites are so dim that they would smoke while pumping gas and cause many explosions. (Either that or it's a job preservation measure).
• The luminous swamp gas blooms from the landfills in Sayreville and East Rutherford can be quite breathtaking. Some say that there's magic in that methane, and it's responsible for Bon Jovi's meteoric rise to success.
• Q: Why did New Jersey get all the chemical waste dumps while California got all the lawyers? A: New Jersey got first choice
• The luminous swamp gas blooms from the landfills in Sayreville and East Rutherford can be quite breathtaking. growing up in the former i can attest to said gas blooms. we would stand on the banks of the raritan at night to gaze upon the "eternal flames."
• O shit...lol. I'm in jersey, and it's really not that bad. So what if we have tons of psychotic midget italians? they first came from NY anyway. AND AND we're a blue state. It would be nice if it didn't smell like that when you're in the turnpike going from Linden to Elizabeth tho... perhaps the biggest oil processing facility in the east coast wedged right in between those two towns has something to do with it? NAH! i think it's the garbage facilities right outside newark.
• Maybe if they traveled south of Newark, or Asbury Park even, they'd see it's not that bad a place. Not that I have anything against North Jersey, but I grew up in South Jersey so I'm biased. Not that the distinction means anything to anyone outside of NJ...
• I'm a recent transplant to Joisey and I don't think it's that bad. I'm never going to get used to mandatory full-serv gas, though.
• Say what you will about New Jersey - at least it's not Long Island.
• but it's my state and i think it's great (warning: midi and popups abound)
• Heh - I grew up amongst the dairy cows, rolling meadows and woods of Hunterdon County (kind of west, central jersey), sledding at the farmer's hill in the winter, splashing through streams and tubing down the river in the summer. All within an hour of NYC. I'd thank these knuckleheads for keeping the real NJ a secret from interlopers, but sadly (given the development I'm seeing with each visit home) they're not doing a good enough job.
• jalexei: I lived in Hunterdon for 6 years and loved it. I also think every state should have full-service-only gas pumps. It always struck me funny that gas was cheaper in NJ than in surrounding states, even with higher labor costs.
• I grew up in new jersey & feel I must come to her defense here. The parts of nj the usual traveler sees (ie, near Newark Airport, a kick ass airport IMHO) is merely a fraction of the state. Head out west, tour the area around Princeton, or better yet, head north to the area I spent my adolescence in. Passaic co, nw Bergen co., and points west: underpopulated (kinda), wooded, clean, low crime, lots of animales running around (like bears, deers, possums etc) lakes, huge sprawling parks etc., its pretty & it smells nice!!! The town I lived in click the "tour" thingy if you wanna waste some time. the site kinda sucks, but it will give you an idea...
• It always struck me funny that gas was cheaper in NJ than in surrounding states, even with higher labor costs. Yep - the labor cost is offset by cheaper transportation costs, given the amount of refining that happens right there along the turnpike. When I went away to college and left home for the first time, I found myself in Oregon, the other state that has (had? haven't been there in a while) full-serve only gas. Make of that what you will. And Medusa's right. People would look at me sideways when I described the wildlife in our backyard. Deer, pheasant, wild turkeys, the odd bear.
• the odd bear? but no even ones, right?
• I spent a weekend in Millville and got addicted to Wawa coffee. The bar scene there was amusing, but no different to any small town anywhere.
• the odd bear? but no even ones, right? Every time. They always leaned to the left...
• My favorite part of New Jersey (except for all the pretty parts with the mountains and the farms and the seashore): the Pine Barrens, and, of course, the Jersey Devil.
• What New Yorkers and other out-of-staters don't understand is that all of this mocking only makes us STRONGER. Grrr...