Here are more Christmas events to enjoy in New Jersey…continuing the theme of the previous post.
Cape May, all the way at the opposite end of NJ from where we live has a lot to offer:
Dec. 12, 19-20 Enjoy the Lamplighter Christmas Tour – Self-guided, tour 5 beautiful B&B’s and Inns. They are beautiful, too! Adults – $15, Children – $7.50 Tickets at the booth at Washington Street Mall.
Dec. 11-12 Cape May Candlelight Hospitality Nights – Merchants offer treats to holiday shoppers throughout Town. For more information, call 609-884-9565
Dec. 13 Cape May Christmas Candlelight House Tour – Another self-guided tour of Victorian Inns, homes, churches and more all decorated in beautiful holiday splendor. $22 for adults, and $11 for children. There is a free shuttle service. Call 609-884-5508 for more information.
Dec. 13 – Ocean City will have it’s Christmas Parade on Asbury Ave, complete with Santa Claus. This will be at 7:30 pm. from 6th to 11th Street.
New Jersey has a lot of fun things to do around Christmas time. I should have started this a week ago, because I’ve already missed the opportunity to tell you about the Cathedral Choir’s annual performance of the Messiah at Hawthorn Gospel Church, and how could I forget to tell you about the Holiday Open House at the New Jersey Botanical Gardens (NJBG), they were this past weekend, with the beautiful Ringwood Manor (pictured) decorated in Victorian Christmas splendor, especially since I was there for their wreath-making event, making a wreath for our home and another to decorate the botanical gardens.
Well never fear, there are a lot more things happening in New Jersey, I’ll try to post them as I stumble on them. Here’s things that will be happening this week, and this is not a complete list by far:
12/11/08 in Clinton, New Jersey:
Don’t miss CANDLELIGHT NIGHT when luminaries line the streets, there are horse-drawn carriages, and the shops are open later than usual. This takes place from 6 – 9 pm on Main Street. For more information, call the Clinton Guild at 908/735-8614
12/11/08 in Morristown, NJ:
VIENNA BOYS CHOIR will be performing their holiday show at The Community Theatre at Mayo Center for the Performing Arts from 8pm – 10pm. The price ranges from $32-$47. Theatre located at 100 South Street. Call 973/539-8008 for more information.
12/12/08 in Morristown, New Jersey:
THE DRIFTERS AND THE MARVELETTES will be celebrating Christmas from 8pm – 10pm at a price ranging from $27-47 at 100 South Street, the location of The Community Theatre at Mayo Center for the Performing Arts Call 973-539-8008
I’ll be back with more dates for you later…have to go get some lunch! Oh, please, if you have an event coming up in NJ, please add it in a comment!
As a young girl, living in the Nixon – Edison area of New Jersey off Route 1 until I was 14, I remember passing the Edison Memorial when we were on our way to visit my Aunt, and on many other occasions. This was a teaching moment for my Dad, an Electrical Engineer, an opportunity to tell me about the great man, Thomas Edison, that invented the light bulb and many other things that we still depend on today.
Today commemorates the introduction of the first Stock Market Ticker in New York City in 1867. When you look at pictures of the activity and technology involved with the Stock Market today…literally tracking and investing from our laptop if you use a laptop computer… it’s hard to imagine a day when the latest upswings or downturns had to travel by mail or messager.
While Edison didn’t invent the ticker, that credit goes to an Edward Calahan, Edison is noted for improving on the ticker, and patenting his model. Edison made enough money through the use and sale of this invention to be able to construct his laboratory in Menlo Park, NJ, very close to where I grew up, and it was there that many of the inventions he was noted for were developed, including the light bulb.
Mechanical tickers of one sort or another were used into the 1960′s, and in our baby boomer lifetimes, were replaced by what we have become accustomed to seeing today.
The Edison ticker image above is taken from SparkMuseum website, an interesting site.
I haven’t spent much time introducing you to some of the finer places to spend time in New Jersey.
One of these places is the 30+ year old New Philharmonic of New Jersey, the picture is borrowed from their website. Their 2008-2009 season began last month at the fully accessible Dolan Performance Hall on the campus of the College of Saint Elizabeth close to the center of Morristown, NJ.
Along with the concerts scheduled this year, the New Philharmonic of New Jersey “is proud to honor two local champions of the arts. At [their] November 23 concert, [they] will honor Judith Wharton for her support of fine music and her work to foster a love of music in people of all ages. At [the] March 15 concert, [NPNJ] will honor the late Jerry Ben-Asher for his lifelong devotion to classical music”.
If you love classical music, and are local to, or will be visiting, the New Jersey area over the next several months, visit New Philharmonic of New Jersey’s website for schedules, cost and directions. Read the interesting link to their history.
As much as I love where I live in New Jersey, there are times when my husband and I get frustrated about certain things…like taxes, and such. We’ve even had moments when we’re ready to put a for sale sign out in front of our little lakefront cabin, but here we stay, so far anyway. It was nice to stumble on this article written by a travel consultant to remind me of the GOOD things about New Jersey.
Why New Jersey is the Best State to Live In
By: Frank Dalotto
Often the butt of jokes from visitors from neighboring states, and negative stereotyping from TV shows like the Sopranos, despite all of that, New Jersey continues to attract people looking for good paying jobs, quality health care and education, awesome leisure activities, and a great place to raise kids.
I am quick to acknowledge that New Jersey is not an inexpensive state to live in. The definition of best does not mean cheap or inexpensive.
While you may be paying more, New Jersey has the nation’s best state and municipal services contributing to an infrastructure that supports a safe environment and a variety of quality of life services.
As a wise old man once told me You get what you pay for.
The Top Five Reasons Why New Jersey is the Best State to Live In.
1. Health Care
By almost any measure, NJ is at the top of any list in states with the best healthcare. Ranked #1 in lowest (best) population under served by primary care physicians and ranked 7th in lowest infant mortality rate in 48 states. Source: AARP. Ranked 8th out of 50 states in number of Physicians/1000. Source: U.S. Census Bureau 2004 2006 Data. And just across the river in NYC and Philadelphia, New Jersey residents have access to some of the best medical institutions and doctors in the world.
2. Low Crime Rate
Ranked 4th in property crime and 13th in violent crime out of 31 states east of the Mississippi River. Source: U.S. Census Bureau 2004 2006 Data. And when you consider that New Jersey has the highest population density in the U.S., New Jersey is a very safe place to live and is a credit to the state and the municipalities in crime protection and law enforcement.
3. Student Education Grades K-12
New Jersey stands tall when it comes to education; New Jersey is Ranked #1 out of 50 states in Grade 8 to High School graduation rates; Source: National Board and Educational Testing Policy and Ranked #4 in the lowest (best) Student/Teacher ratio. Source: IES National Center for Education Statistics.
4. Entertainment
New Jersey is a Mecca for entertainment. Because of the states small size, world class entertainment is in easy reach of most New Jersey residents. There are major entertainment venues throughout the state as well as the hotel casinos, and the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, [Note from site owner: wasn't too happy when Atlantic City became a Casino haven, a gaudy blemish on the otherwise beautiful Jersey Shore, but that's just me.] New Jersey is a magnet for world class entertainment. New Jersey also has 2 NFL teams, a NBA team, and a NHL Team. And with New York City and Philadelphia, just across the river with Broadway shows and major entertainment venues, the entertainment options for New Jersey residents are unbeatable.
5. Geographic DiversityWith outstanding beaches like Wildwood [picture below at sunrise] being the best on the East Coast, beautiful hills and mountains in Northwest NJ [the area where we live also pictured], and quaint Victorian towns like Cape May, New Jersey’s diverse geography is easily accessible within an hour s drive from almost any place in the state. National Geographic magazine has called New Jersey America in Miniature.
Author Resource:-> Frank Dalotto is a freelance writer and travel consultant. His specialty is writing articles about New Jersey travel, including attractions, events, and restaurant reviews. Frank is the owner and editor of http://www.new-jersey-leisure-guide.com/ New Jersey Leisure Guide and a travel consultant for Leisure Travel Mart.
I have always heard that the prices of oil and gasoline in our State are lower than other parts of the country (you could have fooled me!) because we have so many refineries here. With the price of oil being such a big topic these days, I was curious, so did a little looking around.
First, I wanted to know if New Jersey really has a large number of oil refineries. I came across a site a government site, the Energy Information Administration, which has a list of the top oil refineries in the US and ranks them by production. I saw, if I counted correctly, 6 refineries in NJ in the list of approximately 150, but was surprised to see how many other States in the USA have refineries.
We have driven by the refineries on the NJ Turnpike all of or lives, which you have to drive when you come into NJ from out of state and land at Newark Airport. It’s no wonder you may think that the Garden State is really and industrial State.
Yes, our prices may be a LITTLE lower than some places, but believe me, we’re feeling the pinch not only when we drive, but when we heat our house, as we heat with oil. The wood stove is going to be put to good use come this winter.
I haven’t spent much time introducing you to some of the finer places to spend time in New Jersey.
