[82 Card]

It's crazy how a small state like New Jersey divides itself into North and South or North, Central and South, depending on where you are. Burlington County, which is across the river from Philadelphia, considers itself part of South Jersey, even though it's geographically in the center and a long drive from say, Vineland. New Brunswick, an hour away, is considered North Jersey to the people in south of south of around Bordentown, (slightly south of Trenton), but considers itself Central Jersey, a designation unknown south of Trenton. The papers in "South Jersey" don't consider Rutgers part of their coverage areas.

My direct knowledge of the divisions is a bit dated, having moved to CA in 1979. Growing up in Morris County, things were much more narrowly drawn than north, central and south. Classmates were more likely to know the Poconos and Catskills than to be familiar with some part of the county next door. The Jersey shore was barely on the radar. We thought of the team from Phillipsburgh as being from out of state; we didn't really know where they were because we never played them away. NYC was a dangerous exotic destination known to induce migraines. The first time I ever saw Princeton was taking a back-woods route on my way to Penn.

This narrow view of the world is not unusual. Folks in the east bay of San Francisco tend to have no idea what's in Palo Alto. Folks in the Inner Richmond district of San Francisco often know little about the neighborhood around Kezar and may not even be able to find China Beach (a few blocks away but tucked behind Sea Cliff mansions). When I spent a summer in Los Angeles, I found the locals knew less about getting to other parts of LA than I did.

[82 Card]

It's crazy how a small state like New Jersey divides itself into North and South or North, Central and South, depending on where you are. Burlington County, which is across the river from Philadelphia, considers itself part of South Jersey, even though it's geographically in the center and a long drive from say, Vineland. New Brunswick, an hour away, is considered North Jersey to the people in south of south of around Bordentown, (slightly south of Trenton), but considers itself Central Jersey, a designation unknown south of Trenton. The papers in "South Jersey" don't consider Rutgers part of their coverage areas.

My direct knowledge of the divisions is a bit dated, having moved to CA in 1979. Growing up in Morris County, things were much more narrowly drawn than north, central and south. Classmates were more likely to know the Poconos and Catskills than to be familiar with some part of the county next door. The Jersey shore was barely on the radar. We thought of the team from Phillipsburgh as being from out of state; we didn't really know where they were because we never played them away. NYC was a dangerous exotic destination known to induce migraines. The first time I ever saw Princeton was taking a back-woods route on my way to Penn.

This narrow view of the world is not unusual. Folks in the east bay of San Francisco tend to have no idea what's in Palo Alto. Folks in the Inner Richmond district of San Francisco often know little about the neighborhood around Kezar and may not even be able to find China Beach (a few blocks away but tucked behind Sea Cliff mansions). When I spent a summer in Los Angeles, I found the locals knew less about getting to other parts of LA than I did.