My motivation to write is in full force and it's good to be back. I made up some notes a couple of weeks ago about New Jersey that I thought would fit well in a blog. I've been bogged down in American Foreign Policy reading these past few days and, not surprisingly, the more I read the more difficult it is not to be happy the Democrats did so well on Tuesday.

Now, let me take a minute to tell you a bit about the state I grew up in, New Jersey. (Yes, I know the site says I'm from New York but it's close enough.) More specifically, I'm from a town about an hour’s drive south of Manhattan in central NJ called Marlboro. Despite what my roommate from Wayne in North Jersey might say along with half of Rutgers, there is a very strong cultural identity in my part of the state. People from below Toms River like to put my county, Monmouth County, in the northern part of the state and anyone from above Edison usually says the opposite. Just to make things simpler for anyone who might not be from the American Northeast: Central Jersey-- yes, we do exist.

New Jersey is a place of extremes. Even in Australia, I've encountered many of the same stereotypes I hear constantly at home. Even people who have never been there can usually associate the Garden State with Jon Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen, both of whom grew up not very far from my hometown. In fact, both Jon and the Boss sent their children to Rolling Hills, the day camp I worked at for three years in the suburban community of Freehold. (Bruce's son, Sam, left camp early my first summer to tour with his dad and Bon Jovi's daughter, Stephanie, has his lips. Rumor had it that the Bon Jovi family didn't tip their counselors and Patti Scialfa, Bruce's singer-wife, came to Parents' Night.)

New Jerseyans pay the highest tax and car insurance rates in the country. We also have some of the strictest driving rules in the US and we are one of two states where pumping your own gas is illegal. (I think the other is Oregon.) The weather has been known to jump around, but it is normally quite cold in the winter and hot and sticky in the summer. Although personally I could do without the snow, the change of seasons is one thing New Jerseyans take pride in. WIth my luck, I'll touch down in Newark from New Zealand and have to shovel the driveway at home the next day. The hot summer months keep the Shore packed between Memorial Day and Labor Day, which is fun because we only have so much time to enjoy the ocean during the year, anyway.

Unfortunately, New Jersey gets a bad rap and I'm not going to disagree with it. We are an overcrowded, somewhat obnoxious, and partially stinky state with, I think, one of the best locations in the country. Sydney may be beautiful, exciting, and a 21-hour flight from home, but it's no New York. Living in Manhattan's shadow, I don't think Philly gets enough attention either, as I took a road trip down there before I left and loved it. As much as I've enjoyed traveling this semester, I have to admit there is something very special about where I come from. There is a lot to be said about being comfortable in a place. You might not always appreciate where home is, but you can't change where you come from. Despite how much I've enjoyed being in Australia, I don't have the patience to stay in this place much longer. My Type A personality sticks out like a sore thumb and, if I have to dodge through one more slow-moving group of people on a Sydney sidewalk, I just might start barreling my way across the city.

At least in New Jersey, I know my immune system is sharp. Hence our slogan: Only the strong survive. Save for somewhere like maybe Thailand, if you can live in one of the most polluted parts of America, you don't have to worry about getting sick anywhere else. (I survived three months in LA last year without getting sick once!) In New Jersey, I have my choice of going to about 12 different malls pretty much regardless wherever I am in the state. (In the case of Bergen County, I have 27 malls to choose from only between Monday and Saturday. They've still got the Blue Laws up there...) If congested highways don't do it for you, head south where you'll find beach towns and farm country almost as isolated as some parts of the South. (In fact, if you spend enough time down there, you might start to forget you're no more than a few hours drive from some of the nation's best cities.)

The food also... wow. I'm sure Chris in Tokyo would agree with me in that the food in New York and New Jersey is the best around. Some say it's in the water (Have you tried getting a decent bagel somewhere outside the tri-state area? I rest my case.) but food where I come from is diverse, relatively inexpensive, and available at almost all hours of the night. There's something about that I can't quite put my finger on, but I can't wait to get home to hit up a deli, a pizza place, and all of the other places that I've missed so much.

I know a lot of these things are clichéd but I think they're true. I remember when my brother and I were younger and our parents would take us maybe once or twice a year to visit family in California. I loved going out there so much that I moved to Los Angeles last summer to work but one part of those trips has definitely stuck with me: hating coming back. Landing at Newark Airport, usually at night and in the wintertime, could not have been a more depressing, striking contrast from leaving Orange County and it got worse every time. We would throw such tantrums that several times Mom and Dad threatened never to take us on vacation again. Something changed though as I got older where I started to appreciate home more. Granted, I still complain about the place but I'm also not ready to leave. There was something comforting about getting back after my summer away last year and, extend the distance and time spent away, I'm sure it will be even more intense this time around.

I’m not one of those Americans who automatically assume our quality of life is the best in the world. For many, it is, but for others, it isn’t. What I do know is that America has been very good to my family. I have no reason to complain about the means under which I was brought up and I certainly have nothing to complain about the standard of living I’ve always enjoyed. I always said home isn’t where you might sleep at night or keep your things. For me, home is where my parents live and the place I have more memories of than from anywhere else. That’s why I’m sure that, if I were to move out of New Jersey and never go back, I would appreciate the change of scenery (for a while, at least) but the fact that quality of life is what you make of it wouldn’t change. Yes, it would be nice to live on some tropical beach somewhere but I’ve realized that where you come from is an enormous part of who you are. It doesn’t leave you, no matter how much you might try to assimilate. This is why I’d rather travel the world exploring places that are different. I have a strong feeling that if I were to constantly look for something better, I might never find it.

Posted by Jason at 05:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

I thought a note about the mid-term elections back in the states deserved its own entry, albeit maybe a short one. For someone whose usually pretty on top of things, I surprised myself when I realized I didn't file the paperwork in time for an overseas ballot but I figure that's ok. I've had more than enough politics since I got here, anyway. I am, however, following the race at home thanks to the New York Times website and I think things are looking good, especially in Jersey. I should mention, though, that what's happening in politics now is another reminder for me of how uncomfortable I'll probably for a while in trying to slip back into my life in New Jersey. Perhaps I should stop looking at it that way. Has this experience changed me to the point where I'm no longer compatible with my old life? Maybe it's time to start a new one.

You're probably wondering what my stream-of-consciousness philosophizing has to do with the midterm elections so here it is: it's been more difficult than I thought it would be to keep up with news at home. I'm not just talking about front-page stuff, but even the things that don't matter. Gossip, news from around school, and the opening of probably another bagel shop in my hometown while I was away-- all things I will inevitable have to catch up on when I get back. The football team at Rutgers is having its best season in Scarlet Knight history and, despite the fact that I don't follow them even when I am home, it would have been fun to get caught up in the excitement on campus. Thanks to my brother though, I'm able to know in Sydney that the Knights of Piscataway are 8-0, 14th in the nation, and playing Louisville to a soldout crowd Thursday night.

RU, rah, rah... Go Knights!

Posted by Jason at 03:25 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

It's hard to believe that my semester abroad's winding down and, as I'm sure you can tell, it's all I've been able to think about lately. It was over a year ago, when I originally hoped to go away in the spring semester of my sophomore year, that I began planning everything. I remember thinking last year: "In 12 months, I'll have just come back from Australia." It might as well have been ten years ago since that's how long ago it seems. I have packed more fun, more experiences, and more adventures into these past few months than I could have in a few years at home and I can't believe it's back to reality in just a few short weeks.

Ok, enough of that! Seriously though, I am looking forward to getting back but I still have almost a month left abroad that has to be enjoyed. I do owe everyone an apology for slacking in my online duties here. Somewhere between all the papers and upcoming exams, I lost the desire to sit down and write but don't worry! Now that the bulk of my final assignments are behind me, that interest is slowly coming back and I hope to finish off my season of blogs with a bang. Another reason, I think, that I haven't been as good about updating lately is because it's easy to believe that, unless I'm visiting some distant city with an Aboriginal name or falling off a surfboard, whatever it is I'm doing isn't worth writing about. Now, I hope that's not true because if I actually needed to pack every blog or every photo with stories of me riding elephants or examining the Barrier Reef, I wouldn't get to class very often, now would I?

That having been said, this past week or so has been relatively quiet. I spent all day Saturday in Sydney catching up: catching up on souvenir shopping, catching up on American Foreign Policy reading for one of my finals (of which I have two, by the way-- the other is in Media Politics), and catching up with friends in a couple of pubs in the Rocks. The next couple of weeks will be mainly about studying for finals (idealistically, yes. Realistically, I'm not sure.) and trying to soak up as much of Australia as I can. Beach, anyone?

I also have to start thinking about my last episode of JYA Down Under. It would be great if I could share my trip to New Zealand with all of you but I would probably have to get my own show for that to happen. (Hint, hint...) As of now, I'm thinking an Aussie-American Thanksgiving would be a great way to wrap up the show but I'm open to any suggestions all of you out there might like to share with me. (Michelle from Brasil -- any ideas? Brett?) I am going to have a very long list of people to thank when I wrap up Number 8. Getting a little emotional just thinking about it right now...

Speaking of wrapping up, it is probably about that time. Although, there is one last thing! There has been some talk of late at NBC about extending JYA for two extra episodes just to cover the transition back to life in the states. What do you think of that? I'll be home for about a month or so before the semester at Rutgers starts again and it should be a good one. This time of year in New York is always fun and it'll be good to catch up with all the people I know are so eagerly awaiting my return. Plus, I'm planning to visit my grandparents in Florida in January so it's not even like going home actually involves spending that much time around my house, anyway.

This is Jason, signing off.

Posted by Jason at 02:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)