[UA] Re: Unknown Jersey

[Steven Milkowski]

New Jersey is fun because it gives you easy access to
two major Metropoli (NYC aka The City and Philly),
along with having lots of backwater areas rife with
cannibal hillbilly types. Sussex County in the north
west up Rt. 23 (near me!) has MILES of undeveloped
mountainous woodland.  Perfect for burying bodies or
channeling The Savage.  However, recently, many
housing developments and their requisite Walmarts have
been sprouting. Sterling Mineral Mine in Ogdensburg
could serve as a nice subteranian entrance to any
number of Otherspaces.

New Jersey's highway system is pretty convoluted, and
VERY important to getting around.  Giving people
directions mostly revolves around teling them which
highways to get on, and the exit number they need to
get off. Commuting is a BITCH, so don't expect any
high speed chaces from about 7-9am and 5-7pm.  The
large number of malls could also play a roll, as malls
jockey for position of community importance. (If two
malls are near each other, one is simply "The Mall"
and the other is a "dirt mall"... the one that sucks)
Remember to sprinkle a fair share of the "F" word in
your dialogue.

The Jersey Shore (aka The Beach to you normal folk) is
covered with skanky seaside "resort" towns.  Seaside
(aka Sleazside) and Wildwood (aka Wildhood) are pretty
much a small center of tourist attractions; water
parks, arcades, hotels, bars, etc. surrounded by
communities of abject poverty, the inhabitants of whom
provide the summer work.  these places are SCARY the
rest of the year, when they all but shut down. 

In the south you have more shore towns, along with
Atlantic City (AC, as it's known). More scary cannibal
hillbilly areas, and also the Pine Barrens... home of
the Jersey Devil.  If you live in the South you root
for the Philly teams, if you live in the North, it's
the NYC teams. (Or the Jersey Devils for hockey, and
the Nets for Basketball)

Nutley is indeed filled with mob types, being a large
Italian community that has moved out of the
Bloomfield/East Orange/Newark area when minorities
began moving in. Alot of towns in New jersey are
heavily ethnic.  Ridgefield, for example, once once
largely Italian/Irish, but has recently become heavily
Korean.(one of the largest growing minorities in NJ,
as far as I can tell)  Usually when one ethnic group
begins moving in, the older one begins moving out.
(mostly Italians and Irish, in the older group)

New Jersey is also home to the murder capital of the
US, with Camden,(Go us!) which is across the river
from Philly, and has been trying to build an upscale
riverside area, with the Camden Aquarium and various
yuppie attractions.

New Jersey has a multitude of 24hour diners, where you
can get anything and everything you want to eat, along
with attracting interesting types around 4am.

...I'm sure I can come up with more.