So missed the "Jersey Attitude" !!! (Washington, Salem: law, garden)

[southbound_295]

Originally Posted by ForumHopper

Phew! I agree! I was born and raised in Salem County and left when I was 18. Lived in various states for about ten years, and ended up marrying a so. California native and living there for 28 years. He and I had to move back to south Jersey because my mom needed help so she could keep living in her house. Neither of us has quit whining since we got here!

What with the mosquitoes, the humidity, the snow, the taxes, the absolute absence of anything to do, the ten-nice-days-to-be-outside a year ruined by the incessant whine of lawn mowers, edgers and blowers, all day long, every freakin' weekend, the miserable roads and the Xtreme Tailgater crowd , neither of us can wait 'til we can get out of here and go back home. We live twenty miles from where I work, and there are no freeways, that way; it's all back roads. People get RIGHT on the bumper (less than a car length) even at 55 or more, and just sit there, like that's going to make the guy in front of me go faster! In CA, maybe 5% of drivers do that; here, it's closer to 95%. Most of the time, I'll just pull over and let them go tailgate the next guy. Hubby and I chuckle 'cause it reminds us of a line-up of dogs sniffing each other.

As far as the "Jersey attitude", I'd say that the customer service department where I work epitomizes just that. Holy cow, those chicks are scary! Customer service, my Aunt Fanny! They think that I'm difficult to work with, even though in 30 years of working, I've had compliment after compliment about how helpful, friendly and optimistic I am. I'm just so grateful to have gotten out of here at 18, before that attitude set in!!!

And yes, I have heard that it's worse in north Jersey.

You are kidding, right? I've been to So California & if you are in any way near the LA metro or Orange County, it's nothing but bumper to bumper, off hours & a stand-still during rush hour.

Considering the rudely aggresive undertones in this post, my guess is that you've mastered the plastic fantastic Southern California attitude for at work. (Yeah, I'm about your age.) So. California is just so friendly. . . They tell you have a nice day through clenched teeth.

[Gerania]

Roads have shoulders in Salem County? There's usually just a drainage ditch.

[qjbusmaster]

Originally Posted by southbound_295

You are kidding, right? I've been to So California & if you are in any way near the LA metro or Orange County, it's nothing but bumper to bumper, off hours & a stand-still during rush hour.

Considering the rudely aggresive undertones in this post, my guess is that you've mastered the plastic fantastic Southern California attitude for at work. (Yeah, I'm about your age.) So. California is just so friendly. . . They tell you have a nice day through clenched teeth.

HAVING 20 different bus agencies DOES NOT HELP EITHER!!!! Train service is also POOR. southern california transit= EPIC FAIL

[frankgn87]

and don't forget. There is so much pollution, grass don't grown in CA ., So no lawn mowers cutting every weekend..

[templeu]

That said, the tailgating in NJ IS out of control (though I do personally prefer to East Coast to the S. West Coast). I was driving on 42 the other day towards Turnersville. I think the speed limit is something like 45 or 50? People were probably driving on average 65-70 and still within about 1/2 car length or less of one another. I was leaving at least two car lengths in between me and person in front of me and the folks behind me kept getting pissed (I was going 65) and weaving so that they could cut in front of me to eliminate the space. A motorcycle was driving essentially between two lanes (making a lane of his own). I'm only 30 and I'm sitting there thinking how did I become the slow, cautious driver on the road? Drivers generally just need to chill out.... oh and get off their frickin phones!!!

[ForumHopper]

Originally Posted by timneh5

Thanks for the visual. I'll never do it again.

It really is pretty funny-looking, from a distance.

Originally Posted by southbound_295

You are kidding, right? I've been to So California & if you are in any way near the LA metro or Orange County, it's nothing but bumper to bumper, off hours & a stand-still during rush hour.

Considering the rudely aggresive undertones in this post, my guess is that you've mastered the plastic fantastic Southern California attitude for at work. (Yeah, I'm about your age.) So. California is just so friendly. . . They tell you have a nice day through clenched teeth.

Oh, I was definitely one of the lucky ones with my commute - 12 miles on surface streets. Yeah, you have to leave pretty early to get to work on time during rush hour on the freeways.

Rudely aggressive, huh? Gee, maybe I didn't get out of Jersey in time after all. I did say that hubby and I haven't quit whining since we got here.

Seriously, though, deep down, most people (anywhere) don't really care what kind of day you're having, if you have a headache or had a fight with your spouse earlier, they just want you to be pleasant to be around. Is that "plastic fantastic" or is that just being a nice human being? I don't feel that I have a right to dump on anyone else because my coffee was cold, that morning, oh poor me. If I learned how to be fake and put on a good front anywhere, it was from my NJ-born-and-raised mother - "if things look good, they are good. If everyone in a picture is smiling, that means they're happy, and we don't take the picture until everyone is smiling."

Again, this afternoon, someone I'd just met told me that I was the friendliest person he'd met since he'd been here. I really do want the people I meet and work with to have a nice day, and do what I can to help. From what we've seen, that's just kind of rare, around here.

[ForumHopper]

Originally Posted by templeu

That said, the tailgating in NJ IS out of control (though I do personally prefer to East Coast to the S. West Coast). I was driving on 42 the other day towards Turnersville. I think the speed limit is something like 45 or 50? People were probably driving on average 65-70 and still within about 1/2 car length or less of one another. I was leaving at least two car lengths in between me and person in front of me and the folks behind me kept getting pissed (I was going 65) and weaving so that they could cut in front of me to eliminate the space. A motorcycle was driving essentially between two lanes (making a lane of his own). I'm only 30 and I'm sitting there thinking how did I become the slow, cautious driver on the road? Drivers generally just need to chill out.... oh and get off their frickin phones!!!

Isn't hands-free phoning while driving the law, here? Or is it just more of a suggestion, like the speed limits? We arrived here with our Bluetooths and thought we'd heard or read that they were required in NJ, too. As far as we've seen, we're the only two people in this half of the state that own them! And it seems like cops never hand out tickets here, either. Oh, we see them with a semi pulled over, now and then, but they could sit by the 45 at peak times and practically balance the county budget in a week. <exaggerating for humor purposes>

My husband got into a conversation with a local town councilman (or "freeholder", I think they're called) from one of the next burgs over and asked about just that. He mentioned that if they started handing out tickets for speeding and tailgating alone that they'd bring in money like crazy AND cut down on some of the insanely dangerous driving. The guy actually told him that "we don't like to do that because it's not nice." <not exaggerating, at all.> Not NICE? Seriously? What is this, Pleasantville? (The movie, not the town over there near the shore.)

[ForumHopper]

Originally Posted by frankgn87

and don't forget. There is so much pollution, grass don't grown in CA ., So no lawn mowers cutting every weekend..

The main problem with trying to maintain a lawn there is water! It just takes too much. There are plenty of low-water, pretty plants to grow instead of grass, which frees up all that time to do something else.

Then, there's this....

Environmental impact

A 2001 study showed that some mowers emit the same amount of pollution (emissions other than carbon dioxide) in one hour as driving a 1992 model car for 650 miles (1,050 km).[17] Another estimate puts the amount of pollution from a lawn mower at four times the amount from a car, per hour.[18] Beginning in 2011, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has set standards for lawn equipment emissions and expects a reduction of at least 35%. [19]
Mowers also cause significant noise pollution,[20][21] and may cause hearing loss if used without hearing protection.[22]
.

From THIS LINK toward the bottom.

An enviable lawn isn't any environmental bell-ringer, either.

Originally Posted by qjbusmaster

HAVING 20 different bus agencies DOES NOT HELP EITHER!!!! Train service is also POOR. southern california transit= EPIC FAIL

Oh, yeah, that's a complete joke, no question! We're still reeling at the idea of digging a subway in the earthquake capital of the US!

[southbound_295]

Originally Posted by ForumHopper

Oh, I was definitely one of the lucky ones with my commute - 12 miles on surface streets. Yeah, you have to leave pretty early to get to work on time during rush hour on the freeways.

Rudely aggressive, huh? Gee, maybe I didn't get out of Jersey in time after all. I did say that hubby and I haven't quit whining since we got here.

Seriously, though, deep down, most people (anywhere) don't really care what kind of day you're having, if you have a headache or had a fight with your spouse earlier, they just want you to be pleasant to be around. Is that "plastic fantastic" or is that just being a nice human being? I don't feel that I have a right to dump on anyone else because my coffee was cold, that morning, oh poor me. If I learned how to be fake and put on a good front anywhere, it was from my NJ-born-and-raised mother - "if things look good, they are good. If everyone in a picture is smiling, that means they're happy, and we don't take the picture until everyone is smiling."

Again, this afternoon, someone I'd just met told me that I was the friendliest person he'd met since he'd been here. I really do want the people I meet and work with to have a nice day, and do what I can to help. From what we've seen, that's just kind of rare, around here.

OK, so, according to you, you are the friendliest person on the east coast. You thought that we'd like to know what a god-awful place that you think that South Jersey is? Am I clear on that?

Most people in South Jersey are friendly. Some are transplants. Some of the transplants didn't adapt really well, and with the economy being what it is, well, they're stuck.

The boom forced me out & I went to NC, where people are generally friendly. When I've gone back up, the people who I've dealt with in Philly & South Jersey have all been friendly, except one woman who was a recent ransplant who was stuck there, & was happy to tell me that.

[ocnjgirl]

Originally Posted by templeu

That said, the tailgating in NJ IS out of control (though I do personally prefer to East Coast to the S. West Coast). I was driving on 42 the other day towards Turnersville. I think the speed limit is something like 45 or 50? People were probably driving on average 65-70 and still within about 1/2 car length or less of one another. I was leaving at least two car lengths in between me and person in front of me and the folks behind me kept getting pissed (I was going 65) and weaving so that they could cut in front of me to eliminate the space. A motorcycle was driving essentially between two lanes (making a lane of his own). I'm only 30 and I'm sitting there thinking how did I become the slow, cautious driver on the road? Drivers generally just need to chill out.... oh and get off their frickin phones!!!

The speed limit is 55. Were you in the left lane?