:: in.a.mirror.dimly ::

Another holiday means another time to reflect on driving in New Jersey, THE **cough, cough** GARDEN STATE. While driving just about the length of this densely populated state, I had a few thoughts.

1. Can we find a new slogan for NJ??? There are not all that many farms. What if they took the vanity plate that says, “Shore to Please” and made that the slogan? That’s at least a touch more accurate, and the shore is what people typically associate with NJ (that is in a positive sense).

Of course we could play with Garden State too. “Former Garden State,” “Garden State . . . NOT,” and so forth, but I prefer a new slogan. This doesn’t have to be a loss either. This could be win win.

Sure the farms and gardens are covered in concrete, cement, and asphalt, but NJ now has a chance to reinvent itself so to speak. Find a new niche and made a big public relations thing out of it.

2. Defensive driving brings its own punishment, aggressive driving brings its own rewards. For some reason it’s just much easier and enjoyable to drive aggressively in NJ. A safe following distance only means that people will cut in front of you and put you in just as much danger if not more if you were close to the car in front of you.

So after numerous cars swiftly buzzed in front of me and led to a slamming of the brakes, I decided to harden my heart. Screw ‘em. I didn’t let anyone in front of me. If they sped up along my side, I boxed them in by equaling their speed. And somehow, I felt nicer and more at peace. Ah the paradox of driving in NJ.

And that’s really about it. We didn’t drive too much in NJ this trip and rarely ever left the main road. Phew.