We are blessed to live so close to the Ocean, of course here in New Jersey we call it the shore. It’s nice to dream about as we once again have snow falling outside our cabin. The shore season officially begins on Memorial Day, and ends Labor Day, but our favorite time to go is just after the season ends in September. It’s quiet, no traffic, the beaches aren’t crowded, the prices are lower and the weather is still beautiful most of the time.
I’m not a sun bather, so don’t spend a lot of time on the beach in the heat of the day, you’ll find me there at sunrise, or sunset, beautiful, peaceful times. As for where to go, wow, oh my there’s so many different places, I’ll tell you about some we’ve visited in other posts as the spring and summer months get closer, but…sigh…I just had to take some time to dream a bit.
Just a little 2/29/08 Update - A local newspaper, “The Messenger”, found this blog and picture last week, and asked if they could use the picture. I connected them with my son, and he took it from there, the picture was in the paper we received today, thank you, Messenger, and congratulations on a great job, my dear son, Mark!
By the way, we’re having more snow today and into tomorrow.
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We had the most beautiful snow today, making for a winter wonderland on our rural street. My son took some pictures, this facing toward the dead-end of our street. Our home on the lake is on the left, and on the right, the homes are backed by a State Forest. Have a great weekend everyone!
As we look at the Primaries and Caucuses leading up to the election of our next President, my thoughts turned towards leaders that carried out historic moments here in New Jersey. This post focuses on a government leader who had everything to live for, but his life ended in Weehawken, NJ in a famous duel. His name was Alexander Hamilton. A few of the things he is noted for follow:
He was born in the West Indies, an illegitimate child to Rachel Fawcett Lavien and James Hamilton.
He came to America around 1772 and lived in NY
His guardian hoped to enroll him in College of New Jersey, but he ended up attending what would become Columbia University in New York
He enlisted in the militia, his skills caught the eye of George Washington who commissioned him as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Continental Army
He lead a regiment in the Battle of Yorktown in 1781.
He was an elected member of the Continental Congress
and his accomplishments go on, including being the first Secretary of Treasury
But the part of his life that capture the imagination, as if all the above isn’t enough, is how his life ended. After leaving the government, Hamilton returned to law. He did not support the leader of the nation at that time, President John Adams, and was against his re-election in 1800. He also did not like Aaron Burr who was running for the Presidency, hoping to win over Thomas Jefferson. Now Hamilton didn’t like Jefferson or his policies, but he decided to support Jefferson over Burr because he didn’t think Burr was a man of principle.
This angered Burr, and he challenged Hamilton to a duel…I thought these were things that you just saw in movies, or Westerns, not actions that were carried out by civilized men, but I am obviously wrong, because Hamilton took Burr up on his challenge. On July 11th of 1804 the two men met in Weehawken, NJ. From accounts that I have read, Hamilton shot his gun into the air, perhaps not wanting to actually do harm, and with his military training and skills, I’m sure he could easily have hit his mark. However, Burr aimed directly at his opponent, and Hamilton died the next day of his wound. He is buried in New York City at Trinity Church Yard.
What surprised me is that the man who was the first Secretary of the Treasury for our country left his wife and his 7 children with a large number of debts that they could not pay, but those debts were paid by friends who appreciated his service our Nation.
Abbott & Costello were a comedy team that I LOVED as a child, and it was only later in life, not that long ago actually, that I found out both were born here in New Jersey. Bud was born William Alexander Abbott in 1827 in Asbury Park, NJ, where we spent days at the shore when I was a kid. Lou Costello was born Louis Francis Cristillo in 1906 in the same County that I live in now, Passaic County in Paterson NJ, about a 30+ minute drive from our rural part of the County.
It was in the mid-1930’s when they began their act on the stage, then went on to radio, and finally to Television where I remember seeing them, and the movies. Their humor was clean and funny! The “Abbott and Costello Show” began it’s TV run in 1952, a year after I was born. I would have been about 7 years old when Lou Costello passed away in 1959. There’s a lot that can be said about this great duo, including all they did to help keep morale up during WWII, and almost everyone has heard of their skit “Who’s On First”, in fact, I have it for you below, enjoy!
In New Jersey, there are literally hundreds of Diners. No, I don’t mean people who “Dine”, I mean eating establishments called Diners. My husband was amazed at how many there were when he moved from Colorado to New Jersey years ago, they just don’t have them out west.
On my route to work in earlier years, I passed the Bendix Diner every day. This is your classic old-style diner, showing some age, but the food is great. Bendix Diner is one of the most photographed Diners, and the inside was used for shooting movies such as “Diner” in the 1980’s starring Kevin Bacon and other notable stars. But to me, it’s just a familiar place I see when I drive Route 17, a real piece of Americana right here in New Jersey.
The newer diners, the ones that no longer have the metallic look of an over-sized Air Stream camper, vary a bit in appearance inside and out, but there are a few things you can pretty much count on; a display of delicious Pies in a glass case as you enter; your choice between eating at a counter; at tables with bench seats that line the wall, and are often fastened to the wall called booths; and then there’s the open dining area with tables and chairs in the central area, and booths lining the walls.
What’s the best thing about a Diner…besides the pies? The huge selection on the menu! Some Diners are open 24 hours a day, and you can get any meal, including breakfast, at any time during the day or night.
1946-1964, were you born somewhere between those dates? Then you’re a Baby Boomer. Boomers were born during the years after World War II, the post-war years, when there was a surge in births in both the USA and other countries.
This Baby Boomer is Jersey through and through. I was born at Orange Memorial Hospital, raised in Nixon/Edison New Jersey until I was 14, then we made a move to Hillsdale in Northern NJ. From there, I made many a move from the age of 21-27, but always in NJ, until I met and married my husband, and we settled in West Milford….New Jersey, of course.
I look forward to sharing some Baby Boomer and “Joisey” trivia with you, I’ve got a lot of it in my head ready to spill out into this blog, covering a wide range of topics.
Now, being new to Wordpress, I have to get back to figuring out sidebars and widgets and such, see you soon!
