Something positive
I swore up and down that I would never, ever do the blog thing. They're so trendy in a lame sort of way. And they tend to be nothing but people who think they have something radical to say ranting, bitching and moaning. Kind of like how I've been doing.
Well, that's about to change, at least for now.
Yes, I live in New Jersey, the laughing stock of non-New Jerseyans. "The Garden State," as George Carlin said, "if you're growing smokestacks..." Yeah, I admit, it's not the greatest place in the world and I certainly don't plan to live my whole life in this weird place, but there are some nice things about it:
- Compared to just about everywhere else in this country, gas is cheap here. (Then again, anywhere in this country, gas is cheap. How much does a gallon of ice cream cost? A gallon of toothpaste? A gallon of plutonium?) As of October 23, there were stations charging $2.399 for regular.
- Highway tolls aren't bad. Yes, New Jerseyans would read this and firmly say, "Uhhh...'scuse me?" Yep, tolls are not bad at all. Don't believe me? Take a trip to the northwest and southwest suburbs of Chicago. There aren't any tolls anywhere in Chicago, but you pay up the wazoo in the outer suburbs, including right outside of O'Hare, an airport that actually is not in Chicago. On January 1, 2005, all Illinois toll roads doubled their fees -- except for those who have IPass, who are still paying the old tolls. In New Jersey, we have three toll roads: the turnpike, the Garden State Parkway, and the Atlantic City Expressway. I can't say much about the Atlantic City Expressway, as I've only traveled on it twice and just for a few miles, but at least you can see that the tolls they collect on the Parkway actually go to keep the road in shape. And despite George Carlin's rants about the number of times you have to stop and pay a toll, it's really not that bad. Seriously, the farther south you get on the Parkway, the fewer times you have to stop for tolls...it's way the hell up north where you have to stop every five feet.
- Car insurance is cheap. What? You heard that New Jersey has the highest car insurance rate? Maybe true for some people, but let me explain. When I was living in the Chicago area, I was covered by State Farm and paying maybe $110 a month 12 months out of the year. When I moved to New Jersey and had my account transferred, I was paying $220 a month and had to drop $440 upon signing up. Then came a little thing called New Jersey Manufacturers, which my girlfriend (now wife) recommended. You have to be a special kind of person to get New Jersey Manufacturers. Mainly, you have to work at NJM-approved companies, which at the time I did. And once you're covered by them, they won't drop you unless you really suck at driving. I signed on with New Jersey Manufacturers, and I started off with a $113 monthly bill. Yeah, three bucks higher than State Farm in Illinois, but...with NJM, I only pay nine months out of the year. Sweet deal! Went from $1320 a year to $1017. Then I got married. Just the fact that I got married lowered my monthly bills to a bit over $80. Then I turned 25. Suddenly I was just paying a bit over $60! And now that my wife and I are on the same policy, we're paying maybe $1500 annually for the both of us.
- The bagels out here are pretty good. You can't get a decent bagel anywhere outside of New Jersey, unless you go to New York City.
- Software Hut, my trusted Amiga dealer for over ten years, is a driveable distance from any point in New Jersey!
Oh...and for those of you who like to read the average, everyday, bitch'n'moan variety of blog, don't worry -- I will eventually be sharing my thoughts on the bad things about New Jersey. I might have to break it up into several hundred installments, though.
posted by dauber @ 10:40 PM
2 Comments:
On Illinois Tolls, the doubling for non-IPASS users is actually good. Most of the tollways are being upgraded to have wide-open IPASS lanes so they can get rid of the morons that run the booths and you can go 60MPH or whatever through them. The new system will also handle EZ-Pass and I believe they are trying to incorporate other states into it also so as not to screw over too many people who lack an automated toll paying device.
Oh and gas is down to $2.29 here though when i was in San Francisco in mid-Sept., gas was like $2.93 when it was $3 in Chicago. So much for the myth of CA gas costing more than everywhere else.
Point taken, but show me one person who doesn't use IPASS that thinks the toll doublage is a good thing. Oh...and $2.17 here in Jersey now, with some stations in the southern part of the state BELOW two bucks! Oh...and did I mention that here in New Jersey all gas stations are full-service?
You read that right. One more thing I like about New Jersey: not only do you not have to pump your own gas, but it's also unlawful to pump one's own gas. I've heard two different reasons as to why the law is such. One theory is a pretty common belief -- that the state doesn't want the common folk messing around with explosives. But I heard on the radio that apparently the reason for this law is to help keep at least minimum wage job opportunities abounding. Go figure.
I tell ya what, though...what gets me is that some people are actually offended by the don't-pump-your-own law. They claim that they'd rather pump their own gas to ensure they're not getting ripped off. Uhhh...ever think of watching the numbers on the pump? And what if the pump is miscalibrated? What are you going to do -- open it up and recalibrate it?
All I know is that thanks to this law in New Jersey, I can stay put in my car, nice and comfy, and not have to get out of my car, go inside and pre-pay, pump gas and get gas stench on my hands, then go back in and either get my change or pay more for the extra gas I pumped. Instead I can stay inside my nice, warm car when it's freezing out!
Not too long ago Lisa and I spent the day in Connecticut with our friend David, who cooks the best Italian food you'd ever want. On the way to his house we stopped to fill up. I think it was in New York, but it could have been in Connecticut. The station had several self-serve pumps and one full-serve pump. The self-serves were pretty busy, but nobody was at the full-service pump. It was about 15 cents a gallon more. I didn't mind paying an extra 15 cents per gallon.
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