What town is the "closest" in New Jersey?

No theories here. I am looking for advise. North - South - it doesn't matter.

I have a second little brother for Big Brother/ Big Sisters of America who lives in Clinton Hill in Brooklyn. (My first I am proud to say will be attending Rowan University as a freshman on a scholarship this month).

There have been many emails I've gotten which criticized New Jersey. One standout email commenting on our film was a person who wrote that he moved to Brooklyn from New Jersey and wrote that Brooklyn had "more of a sense of community" than any New Jersey town would. . . North or South.



I thought about this as I ate dinner and played chess with my little on DeKalb Ave. and everyone said "hi" from their cars and walkers stopped to greet the waiters and diners outside on the block.

I was impressed. . . but because I love New Jersey - I was determined to find a similar city/ town in NJ.

I have lived in many places in New Jersey - which gave me the confidence to go through with this documentary: Woodbury, Ewing, Margate City, Somers Point, Maplewood, and Hoboken. I feel like I know the state better than many, but I still learn things new everyday.

Right now, my girlfriend and I talk about marriage, about our future - and I want to see it in the Garden State.

Yes, I get out. I was out west for 3 weeks with teenagers and travel to Europe often . . . (we're looking to go to Turkey next . . . as a history guy - it is a good place).

But what town in New Jersey, in your opinion, fits the bill of having that great "sense of community?" A place where you see someone new everyday and someone you know everyday? A place where everyone says hello and there are an abundance of outdoor cafes. A place where there is such an immense pride of "being there" . . . that it cannot be argued.

I have seen it in many places: In Monmouth County - there are some great towns that I found and in Hunterdon - there are many too. But even in Millville and Morristown - I felt good. Of course, Hoboken grows with me everyday . . but I really want to know - what is the best New Jersey town that has the "sense of community for you?"

Screenings near you!

We have a busy September ahead of us, with 4 possible screenings of part of our film:

SOUTH - Tues. Sept. 9th - Cherry Hill, NJ - Ponzios on Route 70 at 7pm - working with 1210am - The Big Talker- as sponsor, amongst others.
FAR SOUTH - Thurs. Sept. 25th or Fri. Sept. 26th - Wildwood, NJ - Place and Time TBA - Wildwood by the Sea Film Festival
FAR NORTH - Sat. Sept. 27th or Sun. Sept. 28th - Rutherford, NJ - Place and Time TBA - Reel Jersey Film Festival

"CENTRAL" - College of New Jersey - Ewing, NJ - Possible Sept. or Oct. screening.

All events will feature a Q & A with Steve, the director. Depending on the amount of time, there will also be a slideshow presentation and other clips which we hope will eventually translate into DVD extras.

The only thing is that "The Line" will not be revealed. . . we have been advised to wait for that. But if you really examine these blog posts closely and come by and watch the film, you can make an educated guess, I'm sure!

Last hours to vote on Ewing

See below post . . .

If Ewing is decided to be north . . . I will post a picture of me in my Devils' jersey.

If Ewing is decided to be south . . . I will post a picture of me in my Phillies' hat.

YOU decide!

My hometown, Ewing, North or South?

When asked, "Why did you start this project?" I have often cited that many people who grow up in Mercer County ask this question often.  For instance, there are many facebook groups dedicated to North and South Jersey and one of them debated "getting rid of Mercer" . . . . and did. 

It was feeling like we didn't fit in anywhere.

In Mercer, we really are our own entity. Princeton-Trenton is considered to be its own metropolitan area, even though the influences from New York and Philadelphia are both quite high. Well now, my hometown, Ewing, is in the spotlight.

Arguments for North:

-Residents get nearly all the New York news and sports' channels on basic cable with the exception of NBC 4 out of New York, though they do get it on HD.
-It is North of Trenton
-As of 2000, the county is considered to be part of the New York metropolitan area (if you ignore the smaller Trenton-Princeton metro area referenced above)
-No Wawas in the town, but there is a prominent 7-11 close to TCNJ (and I rarely, if ever, visited a Wawa when in High School  . . . except that dingy one near Princeton University).

Arguments for south:

-It is a "hoagie" here and "Pork Roll" . . and since Pork Roll was actually invented around this area, don't EVER call it Taylor Ham.
-Closer in miles and driving distance to Philadelphia
-Township borders the Delaware River
-Septa train line connects town with Philadelphia

Reasons for confusion:

-Both local newspapers cover Philadelphia AND New Jersey/ New York sports' teams; it was common to see teachers and students fighting at my High School over the Giants and Eagles.

-It is easy to get the NJ Transit train out of Trenton to go to New York or the SEPTA R7 to Philadelphia, also out of Trenton.

-In our documentary one girl summed up the feelings that many have in Mercer. When interviewing her on the campus of TCNJ, she told me that she was a Yankees' fan and grew up in Burlington County her entire life. She said that she was messed with by Philly fans often, but once she crossed into Mercer, she felt "it is now OK to be a Yankees fan." Certainly the Yankees don't dominate the area, as there are many Phillies' fans, but in Mercer, "It is now OK."

So Mercer County's slogan could be: "Mercer: the county where's it's OK to root for any sports' team and not get thrown out of the bar. . . . well unless you're a Dallas fan."  

Though you may say it's an argument for Central Jersey - try finding any other counties like this one.  It could be just my native pride - but there is no other place in Jersey like it.  But please vote above and we'll see if it's closer than the Asbury Park vote . . which turned out to be: 63% North to 36% South.

Get out your notebooks & maps

We were at TCNJ today and it was eye opening. I had to cut A LOT here just to trim it to 6 minutes (a long highlight for us). The centrally located town of Ewing provides the setting for the campus, which is perfect as you will see when the guy talks about how antennas had to be tilted certain ways to get Philly or New York channels years back.

Going to college in NJ is one of the first times students from this state run into the "culture shock" of North and South Jersey: you say where you're from and get judged by others who are from somewhere different. This is where the debate starts many times and thanks to TCNJ we were able to witness a lot: best friends saying completely different answers . . . people realizing that there are cultural differences among them, but they are most definitely united on campus about Wawa, though there is a 7-11 right down the street. We think we also got to the bottom of some counties in terms of North/ South. . . but you judge.

I editing all of these really fast, keep that in mind. I'm losing sleep but doing it because people are really watching now! We are definitely starting to gain a following.

Click To Play