Rate the county: Mercer

So I have devised a new gimmick to keep the subscribers to this blog happy as well as readers:

I will give you a county; please comment on any adjectives, phrases or descriptions that you would use to describe the county.

For instance, at the New Jersey Devils' game last night - I saw a rare creature. A guy who was a Devils' fan and a Phillies' fan . . . just like me. I immediately guessed where he was from. I said, "You must be from Mercer County." That guy was from East Windsor . . . and he couldn't believe that I nailed it.
But that's Mercer: the only county in New Jersey where EVERY town's sports loyalties must be questioned and are debatable. You just can't find another county in the state that compares. Ocean comes close. But there are few Phillies' fans in Toms River.

So how would you describe Mercer County - the home of Trenton and Princeton?

What is Central Jersey culture?

If you were to google "North Jersey" or "South Jersey" you can find many quizzes or other lists that start like . . . . "You know you're from North/South Jersey when . ."

There are others that say, "You know you're from New Jersey when . . . ." also.

But I have yet to find one that says "You know you're from Central Jersey when . . ."

Now if some of you think it is hard to convince me there is a Central Jersey, let me tell you that with one of our consultants; it is even harder. This person asked me today, "What is Central Jersey culture? If it is just a mish-mash of the two (North and South). . then I don't call that culture."
OK, and this has no bearing on our line and could be attributed to my native Mercer county pride, but I countered this person and told them that there is no bigger cultural difference in New Jersey than going from Mercer to Burlington. The cable changes, the sports loyalties go from mixed to solid Philly and the newspapers change (somewhat . . still Trenton papers, but the Star Ledger and Philadelphia Inquirer seem to flip flop) and even some voting patterns change.

But my consultant brought up a good point. What IS Central Jersey culture? I have written here before that Monmouth and Mercer county have little in common. I mentioned Kevin Smith (a Monmouth native) in my last posting. And when Clerks came out in 1994 - that movie might have well been set in a foreign country. I didn't know people who tawlked like that and really couldn't call it my Jersey (though I did love the street hockey on the roof). Chasing Amy (a movie I LOVED) also was different. Smith made it seem like every New Jerseyan just hops into "The City" easily; but during my college summers, I was much more likely to go to Philly than New York.
Hence my confusion and feeling like the South Jersey people were never fairly represented when people spoke of New Jersey.

Then, I moved to Margate City after graduating and had people tell me I was from North Jersey. When I argued, they cited the the fact I was an NJ Devils' fan and noted "those long-winded politicians in Trenton." Alas, I had to agree there was a faster pace of life in Mercer compared to Atlantic and even Burlington (that I mentioned earlier) . . .

So, after all of this rambling - the question still remains. What is Central Jersey culture? I challenge readers to come up with a quiz or posting . . . to answer this.

PS - It is acceptable to also say that there is no Central Jersey.

NJ 101.5 traffic report

NJ 101.5 FM radio does traffic every 15 minutes, and during rush hour - they break each traffic report into "New Jersey Traffic North" or "New Jersey Traffic South."
It exactly follows our Dunkin' Donuts line, and by now - you probably don't have to be a genius to figure out that NJ 101.5 and Dunkin' Donuts follow the greater media market each NJ county falls into: New York or Philadelphia. But people keep labeling Mercer County either the "Princeton-Trenton metro area" or New York (which wikipedia claims is new as of 2000). I can't seem to prove it . . . but I will say that our line goes through counties . . . and towns!

More on the sports battle within the state

I have written extensively on the sports' divide in New Jersey, more specifically - whether you are a New York/ New Jersey sports' fan or a Philadelphia sports' fan.

But this sideshow may be of interest to you: the big boys are using the minor league sports' teams to stake their claims in the state.

In Trenton, which has a very mixed sports loyalty base, the New York Yankees and New Jersey Devils are marking their territory like protective cats. In 2003, the Yankees made the Trenton Thunder their Double AA Minor League Baseball affiliate and in 2007, the Devils took over the rights to the Trenton Titans (who were affiliated with the Philadelphia Flyers) and renamed them the Devils. The Trenton Devils' slogan for the 2007-08 season was: "Paint this town Devil red."

In Lakewood, which even though it is in Ocean County, and geographically south, is all New York/ New Jersey fan territory. A trip to the local Dunkin' Donuts or Sporting Goods apparel store will confirm this. The Philadelphia Phillies brought the Blueclaws to Lakewood in 2001 and it is their Single A affiliate.

What you now have is the Phillies' minor league team in an area heavily loyal to North Jersey/ New York and the Devils' affiliate in a highly disputed area, Trenton, which is neither completely loyal to Philadelphia or North Jersey. I met plenty of Philadelphia Flyer fans who debated giving up their season tickets because of the name change, but admitted it was smart marketing by the New Jersey Devils. I have no thoughts from the Lakewood residents, as the move was well before I started this documentary.

What about the Trenton Thunder? Well, they landed safer in my opinion. Even though Trenton is disputed territory, and contains plenty of Phillies' fans - the New York Yankees are like the Dallas Cowboys of baseball. Thus, their fan base stretches further beyond geographic borders than say, the local NBA, NHL or NFL teams. Trenton feels like home for them - and I say this as a native and as a Phillies' fan.

So it seems some of the major professional sports' teams are using their minor league organizations to spread their influence. Central (and I use that word loosely) New Jersey is the battleground. Is it working? Does it matter? Or is it just smart marketing?

Could Mercer be barren of Philadelphia fans in 20 years? How about Ocean County barren of Mets' fans? This all remains to be seen. If the attendance remains high at all of these venues - the younger generation may tell us who won this battle when they buy season tickets.

But I totally recommend supporting your local minor league baseball team this summer. It's something different and relaxing, as well as a greater chance of catching that foul ball.

Here are the teams:

Atlantic City Surf
Camden Riversharks
Lakewood BlueClaws
Newark Bears
New Jersey Jackals
Somerset Patriots
Sussex Skyhawks
Trenton Thunder

Update I

We have contacted and hope to interview Comcast Cable executives (to see where NYC and Philly news stations overlap in NJ). We also will be able to film at many Sporting Goods' stores (for example to see if they sell more Eagles or Giants' jerseys), and have been honored with a phone call from NJ's prime historian, John T. Cunningham.

We'll also do fun things like see where driving styles and accents differ and try to find "down the Shore" where the term for visitors, Benny (a North Jersey term) and Shoe Bee (a South Jersey term) overlap in the state (hint Ocean County).

Also got permission to film at a Lakewood BlueClaws' game and I am really hoping the Trenton Thunder and Somerset Patriots follow suit (but for now, why not get tickets to see a BlueClaws as a favor for their kindness?)

Finally, I have setup interviews with many mayors of what we considered to be "border towns." Most of the replies came from mayors in Ocean or Monmouth counties. But sadly, noth much yet from Mercer & Hunterdon counties. There must be something out West. In Mercer, you'd think the county I'd most identify with home would show me some love. :( . . but the good news is that there was one, the one we considered most important. Mayor Palmer's office in Trenton has confirmed with me and that city is VERY important to me as I've always considered it my base (as I grew up in Ewing).

An interesting fact is that the Trenton papers: the Trentonian and the Times cover both Philly and NYC sport teams (though on the Trentonian's site is has a main link to allaroundphilly.com . . . interesting). But to shuffle things up a bit the capital city has two minor league teams: The Thunder and the Devils (renamed from the Titans) who are the New York Yankees and New Jersey Devils' minor league affiliates. It may have really changed the dynamic.
I thank Mayor Palmer's office for the call and also hope to get more call backs soon . . . filming starts next month. Stay tuned for many video updates in the next couple weeks.

Where is the dividing line between North and South Jersey? This is a question that matters only to those who live in or near the Garden State, but has been asked quite often, as most residents here do have an opinion on the matter.

So, this summer I (with a film student) will be traveling to all 21 NJ counties to ask people to draw their line on the map and also get their thoughts on camera.

True this has been written about before. But there are still many unanswered questions as of now.

Sometimes, the term, “Central Jersey” will come into the mix . . . appropriately so. But for the sake of this documentary, we are more focused on trying to define ONE geographical boundary rather than two. This is hurtful for me, as someone who grew up near Trenton and always referred to the area as, “Central Jersey” as well. But we can't make this too difficult a task, though it will be handled with care. I come to this project with a good background I believe.

I lived my early years in Woodbury (Gloucester), then grew up most of my schooled life in Ewing (Mercer). After college, I lived in Avalon (Cape May), and Margate City & Somers Point (Atlantic). Then, I moved jobs and lived in Maplewood (Essex) and currently reside in Hoboken (Hudson). All in under 30 years.

I have a theory that sports' loyalties clearly divide the state. I will seek to prove it in with interviews and graphs. Geography is important to me. I have degrees in the humanities and taught history and geography for six years. The truth is that borders have always fascinated me. I am as much of a product of the divided loyalties the state represents as anyone: I am a Philadelphia Phillies and Eagles fan, while I bleed red and black for the New Jersey Devils. I probably even hate the Flyers more than the Devils’ traditional rival, the New York Rangers. People ask me how I can do that all the time, but it is all that I have known.

So the project will involve me and my very creative friend, Helen, who is a film student at Temple, shooting this documentary, compiling statistics, blogging and vlogging in all 21 counties of New Jersey of the next couple of months.

We hope to release the full film in the spring of 2008. Love to hear people's comments . . . but I must say, unless you live or grew up in the area . . . you won't care. If you did, this is a very important question.