That’s the base of information that you need to know for this entry. I’ll add this one, crucial piece of information: given that there is near total devastation in many of New Jersey’s shore communities due to the recent super storm and blizzard, there are a lot of out-of-state people up here helping out at a variety of different companies. For example, I’ve seen utility workers from down south (who are running circles around the New Jersey teams, by the way). I’ve also seen insurance adjusters from out-of-state helping homeowners with their claims.

It’s a group effort to recover here in New Jersey.

With that information out of the way, the title of this entry suggests that there are evangelizers among us – even in Monmouth County! Here’s a story that I sent to some of my friends after spending some time warming up and reading a book at the local Barnes & Noble three nights ago. I think you’ll enjoy this:

I’ve been sitting at Barnes & Noble for about 30 minutes and this insurance adjuster – I can tell he’s not from around here by his accent – was sitting across from me the entire time doing some work. I paid no mind to him – I was just flipping between my cell phone and my NOOK.

Anyway, the guy just gathered his things and got ready to leave. When he was ready to go he came over to me and said, “Sir?” I looked up and said, “Yes.”

He said, “Can I tell you something?” I said, “Yeah.”

He said, “Do you know Jesus Christ?” I said, “Yes.”

He said, “Well, his real name is Jehovah. It’s Yahweh. And he’s coming back soon and I just wanted to tell you that he loves you. Just wanted to tell you that he’s coming back and that he loves you.”

I said, “Thank you.”

And he said, “Alright. Have a good night.” And he walked out of the store.

I’m compelled to write this experience on the blog because this type of stuff just doesn’t happen too often in New Jersey. We’re a state with a lot of skeptical people; we have people who are automatically apprehensive towards those that they don’t know. I’ve visited the South many times and it’s a bit disorienting when you’re walking on the street and random strangers greet you with a genuine, “Good afternoon. How do you do today?” It always stops me in my tracks until I get used to it again. That type of forward communication doesn’t happen in New Jersey unless it’s one person looking at another person the wrong way until someone cracks and says, “What are you looking at?”

It’s our way of life in this state. Don’t judge us.

But I had two immediate reactions to this guy coming up to me and saying what he said. First, I immediately felt warmed up in my spiritual heart. I don’t know about you all out there in internet land, but I go to church each Sunday and on Holy Days and I enjoy going to church. I didn’t always enjoy going to church, but I do now and I hope that I will continue to enjoy going to church. So when this person came up to me to tell me things that I pretty much already know and believe in from the teachings of my church – it just felt good.

Second, as I felt warmed up I began to feel better about the horrible situation that I found myself in with no electricity and a cold home to go back to that night. Hey, Jesus loves me – what else do I need, right?

And the third nearly automatic reaction that I had to this guy was a very small voice in my head saying, “What’s his angle? What’s he up to? Keep an eye on him as he leaves the store and make sure he doesn’t hang around. If he follows you home, drive to the police station instead. Maybe you should confront him outside and see what his deal is. I don’t know if I trust him. He did reference Jesus, but who is he?”

Hey, I’m from New Jersey – I’m skeptical about people sometimes!

Anyway, it was an interesting encounter and an overall good message. Over the last few days, I’ve thought about this message and this guy’s confidence and lack of fear in delivering it. Jesus Christ is coming back and he loves you.

Now that’s a pretty uplifting message if there ever was one!

• Governor Christie Is In Control. Thank God we have a leader like Governor Chris Christie in charge of New Jersey during this chaos. I don’t care if you’re a Republican or a Democrat, you have to respect the way that Christie took on this situation directly and without any delay. He warned people well in advance to get out of certain areas of the state. He is on-site managing cleanup and recovery efforts. He isn’t making stupid decisions like attempting to hold a marathon in the middle of the mayhem (a rare miss by New York City’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg). Christie is doing an amazing job for the state and I’m glad that we have him on the job during this time.
• The Governor Throwing Politics to the Side. Again, unlike some of his pathetic predecessors, I have to praise Governor Christie for his direct statements about President Barack Obama and the leadership that he showed during his visit. When a FOX News reporter asked Governor Christie about how he felt about potentially giving Obama a pre-election bump in the polls after thanking him during his visit, this is what Christie said: “I endorsed Mitt Romney 13 months ago because I thought he was the best guy for the job and on Tuesday I’m voting for Mitt Romney because I think he’s the best guy for the job. But it doesn’t mean that I can’t turn the President of the United States of American and say to him ‘Thank you, sir, for providing good leadership during this crisis and for helping the people of New Jersey,’ and to extend my hand of friendship to him.” Can you imagine a liar like Governor Jim McGreevey or Governor Jon “Money Bags” Corzine giving as direct and noble an answer as Christie did?
• The Immediate Post-Hurricane Shoppers. What I really don’t get about the aftermath of the hurricane are the people who stormed the grocery stores and left with wagons and wagons filled with food. First, didn’t these people do the same thing not but two days earlier when the entire state was in a panic over the pending storm? And if they did, then did they eat through a wagon (or two) filled with groceries in just two days? Stop eating so much! Second, if these people did not fill up their pantries and refrigerators prior to the storm hitting… why not?! What part of a major storm aiming directly for our state did you not understand? Get with the program, people!
• Staten Island is Decimated. I can’t believe the pictures and video coming out of Staten Island. Seriously, if you’ve not seen these pictures, then you need to do a Bing or YouTube search and you’ll see the devastation that I’m talking about. It’s absolutely unbelievable. I’m going to comb through some of my clothes to see if I can donate some of them to the people who lost everything in the storm.
• There Are Always Dumb People. If you live in New Jersey, then you’ve probably tuned in to NJ 101.5 at some point in the last week. I heard one called say that she was really upset that there was so much focus by the utility companies on the Jersey Shore region and not where she lived up in Northwest New Jersey where she was without power, too. Typically, I’m with this woman and I think that the people in Northwest New Jersey are often overlooked when it comes to government-regulated services. But what really irked me was what this idiot mentioned in her rant. She said that the utility companies were disregarding the people in her area because “we don’t live right on top of each other like it’s the Third World like they do down the shore.” What a moron. The hosts of the radio show were quick to tell her that what she thought was her biggest selling point – that the people in Northwest New Jersey live in a geographically dispersed region – was actually what was preventing the utilities from focusing on them. Anyone with half a brain realizes that these utility companies have to get power to the most people as quick as possible. So they’re obviously going to choose to restore power to those areas that are heavily populated versus those that are widely dispersed. I wanted to call in to this woman and tell her that if she was annoyed that this happened all of the time, then she should go out and buy a generator. Yes, if you live out in the woods (like all of my family does and like I would like to do again some day), then you should be prepared to buy a generator for situations like this one. Get real, idiot.
• We’re a Strong, Hardy People. The populations of New Jersey and New York are strong. We’re a tough people, a hardy people. We’re the American versions of the British mentality of keeping a stiff upper lip. In other words, as soon as it was safe to go outside and start cleaning up and helping people recover their lives, we began working. Companies opened, neighbors helped neighbors once the power came back on, people began donating old clothes and other items in mass quantities, congregations began organizing food drives. This part of the Northeast megalopolis is packed with tough, stern individuals. We relish being challenged. We love overcoming adversity. We typify the American angst and, frankly, anger at being put off of our various courses in life. When things get bad, the New Jersey/New York population digs in fights back. This entire area will come back stronger for the effort.

I was conflicted on whether or not to add a final thought in a final bullet point up there. The final thought relates to my last sentence in these bullet points about coming back stronger for the effort. I’m not entirely sure that we should be planning to come back in the same form or with the same function as we were before the storm hit. Let’s be honest – when the people who were living below sea-level down in New Orleans were obliterated during that storm, there were voices from throughout the nation saying that they should not be rebuilding in those low-lying areas that are prone to destruction. The same chorus can be heard each year when parts of the Gulf States and Florida, in particular, get battered by hurricanes.

That same thought is running through my mind in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Should we rebuild everything as it was or should we rebuild things differently? If you think we should rebuild things differently – how so? What should be different?

Other than additional reinforcement of some of our structures, I don’t know what could have been done to protect against a storm of that nature. I’m interested in your thoughts, so please share them!

So sit back, relax, and enjoy some poetic verse.

I’ll Always Call the Jersey Shore Home
– Joseph P. Martino

What good is family and friends

When you are thousands of miles away?

And when I return home, it’s for such a short stay?

No matter where I happen to be entertaining on a foreign tour,
There’s nothing like returning to my home on the Jersey Shore.

I’ll always call the Jersey Shore home.
Money and fame is just fine,

But being home with my family will always be my immediate quest,
It’s the only way I’m able to set both my mind and body at rest.

For deep down in my soul,
I know that State of New Jersey is one place my heart loves best.

So no matter what world stage I may appear,
Be it Toronto, Sydney, London, Paris or Rome

There’s no greater feeling
Like performing before my fans at Home.

For I’ll always call the Jersey Shore Home.

Copyright Joseph P. Martino

Enjoy!

The sunrise as viewed from Long Branch's Pier Village. Absolutely beautiful.

From 1981 – 1988, I lived on the upper east side of Manhattan. That’s where my family lived when I was born and that’s where we stayed until my younger brother was born in December 1987, when my parents decided that it was time to move to our summer house in New Jersey because there was more room for my brothers and I to grow up and be kids. So from 1988 – 1999, I lived in Roxbury Township up in Morris County and I really don’t have anything bad to say about it. Although, I should preface that statement by saying that I don’t really remember a whole lot from those early years up there, but I do remember a lot about the mid and late 1990’s when I was in Junior High School and High School – and I really had a good time.

Then in the Fall of 1999, I moved down to West Long Branch to attend Monmouth University and – except for the summer in between my Freshman and Sophomore years of college – I’ve been living down the shore ever since. It’s not so bad down here and I don’t really have any major complaints other than that the hour and a half drive back to Roxbury is a bit of a pain sometimes just like my hour drive to and from work each day in Trenton is a bit annoying, too.

Would I move away from the shore? Sure. I’m not sure where, though. I’d be happy going back north to live in the Roxbury Township/Morris County area. I’d also be able to survive in the New Brunswick area once my company moves there in the fall (essentially eliminating my commute). But I do have a lot of friends down the shore and I also built up some business relationships that I’d have to release – causing me to lose money. Obviously, if I moved away from the shore I wouldn’t be as eager to be an adjunct professor at the local college down here (especially given the meager amount that adjuncts earn). So that would be a small drop in income. At the same time, I’d elect to cut off some of my remaining business relationships with my small web design firm. Also a very small loss of income.

And then I’d miss out on doing some of the things that I like to do down the shore. I’m not as big a fan of going to the beach as some of the folks who live down here, but I do like going there every once in a while. Also, I like going to the Monmouth Hawks basketball games – I don’t think that I would attend the games if I had to drive a long time to get there.

But I’m not looking to go anywhere right now. In fact, I just renewed my lease for another year. It’s nice down the shore and I’m happy. Hey, do you think I can call myself a “local” now?

From Garfield High School...

After the game, a Facebook page that purports itself to be Austin’s official page had this to say:

My passion for football began at Garfield.. not sure why yall are so upset that I repped them for once instead of Monmouth. Yall should know I love MU and always will.. But without Garfield and the support I received there, I woulda never made it to Monmouth. Kids need to know that high school is a time to find your talent or passion and run as far as you can with it.

Now, I’m not sure if this is Austin’s real Facebook page or not, but the blurb above makes sense in my world. Of course, before Austin posted this on his Facebook account, I commented about how hilarious I found the whole situation. In the comments following my blurb, I wrote the following:

[My Roommate] and I figured that thousands of MU alumni started laughing out loud when he said “Garfield High School” while dozens of MU employees and administrators were confused as to why someone would do that in the first place!

And this point is the crux of this entry. I guarantee that all of the idiot “yes men” ass kissers that I went to college with had no idea why Austin wouldn’t even consider announcing himself from Monmouth during that opening game. I also guarantee that some exorbitantly paid administrators at Monmouth who are so full of their own bullshit started to panic after hearing “Garfield High School” during what should have been the shining moment of their delusional impressions of my alma mater. The fact is that many of the folks working in the administration at Monmouth are out of touch with the student body. And when they need to get student opinions on issues and items, they choose their “yes men” and ass kissers to provide feedback for the general population. It’s useless.

Oh, and I speak for a super-majority of the current students and alumni from the school? How do I know that? Very simple. I looked at a copy of Monmouth University’s most recent results on the National Survey of Student Engagement. One of the questions asked, “How well do students get along with administrators and staff?”

The answer?

Some 35% of first year students find the administrative personnel and offices helpful, considerate, and flexible. Gah! If 35% of my clients thought that I was helpful, considerate, and flexible to their needs I’d get fired on the spot! Because if 35% think that you’re great, then 65% want to bang their head into the wall each time they deal with you!

Anyway, for the reason that Austin stated in his Facebook update and because of the results of the national survey – and for the many less-than-pleasant encounters I had with the administrators over there when I was an undergraduate – I’m glad that Austin said he was from Garfield High School instead of Monmouth University. It serves them right. There’s clearly a disconnect that the university isn’t addressing and, quite frankly, doesn’t seem to know how to address.

So for this Giants fan, my favorite Cowboy is Miles Austin. And that’s in light of the fact that Tony Romo and I are in the same fraternity (Sigma Pi Fraternity)!

You know, when I take time off from work I have to use my vacation days. Yet, most of the times when I use those days I’m actually not “vacating” anything. In fact, most of the time I’m doing some type of volunteer work for the Sigma Pi Educational Foundation.

So…

Now that I actually have a few days off, I’m thinking about heading to the beach. Believe it or not, for the last ten years I’ve lived a few minutes from the Atlantic Ocean on the beautiful Jersey Shore and yet I’ve probably been to the beach less than ten times in these ten years. It’s bizarre, really. In addition to the beach, I plan on going to the movies and seeing whatever’s big right now (maybe Toy Story 3 is still playing? What’s good?) and probably sitting out in the backyard of the townhouse and doing a little sunbathing.

Should be fun!

http://www.jerseyshorerestaurantweek.com/

Enjoy!

This has got to be a big pain in the ass to those businesses that are located along the Jersey Shore in those areas that are heavy tourist areas. With beaches closed and the rain coming down, nobody is going to want to come down to the shore this weekend. Of course, I hope that we miss the majority of the downpour so that some of these businesses can make some money (Lord knows that they need the revenue), however, I don’t think that we’ll be able to avoid getting washed out this weekend.

No matter what, though, be sure that you’re safe and out of harm’s way if/when the rain starts coming down. Even the tail end of hurricanes can pack some powerful punches.