Is a Jersey Girl still a Jersey Girl if she finds herself down the shore after 40 years?  For whatever unfolding of circumstances I found myself not on the Cape this June but down the shore.  What a difference four decades makes and yet there was not much difference at all.  What a disaster one storm can make and yet so little seemed evident.

Staying in Spring Lake was beyond relaxing.  It’s a quaint seaside town with B & Bs, the famous Breakers, the longest continuous boardwalk, mostly residential with a wanna be downtown.  Our hotel, the Hewitt Wellington, sits on the corner of the lake with one of the best porches around.  I once thought I was an expert on porches, having photographed enough of them, until someone pointed out to me that it wasn’t the porches I was after but the chairs.  Anyway…

Five days and four nights, at the suggestion of my sister, were spent in total slug mode.  There was breakfast (including latte because yes I did bring my Nesspresso machine), lunch and dinner, books, the pool, wine on the porch, you get the picture.

We finally roused ourselves on the last day to head out to Point Pleasant for dinner and a nostalgic walk on the boardwalk.  You know a real boardwalk with games and rides and screaming kids and parents trying to corral the lot. I was feeling all things haven’t changed a bit with the usual garb, shorts, tee shirts, flip flops, hoodies.   I was familiar with all that but then the do rags and tattoos started making their way into view.   Don’t get me wrong, I have a tattoo, I appreciate the art it just wasn’t forty years ago when the only tattoo you saw was on some father’s forearm and it said semper fi or something military.  Therein lies the rude awakening.

Walking along it was good to see that Jenkinson’s still owns everything except for Martell’s Tiki Bar.  But there didn’t seem to be any tickets left??? Big savings cards were the method of payment for the games.  What?  No streams of tickets around your neck?  Finally down the boardwalk there were games taking tickets so all was not lost and funny you could pay cash or credit for those tickets.  Credit?  Who the hell paid credit on the boardwalk?  OMG I am sounding so damn old.  The rides were familiar; the tot train still left the station with parents squeezed into the seats holding on to scared/excited toddlers.   The water guns had changed from pistols to Uzis, really?

The food was interesting too.  Funnel cakes and waffle cones of frozen custard, thank God, but someone explain to me what the hell is Philadelphia Water Ice.  Sushi?  I thought for dinner we would just grab a slice and walk along the boardwalk until I realized I had become a sit down and be served kind of girl…no interest in burning the roof of my mouth while trying to keep the cheese in the fold.  Just sayin.

As we walked around, my sister rolling her eyes at me, I realized she was more of a Jersey Girl than I would ever be or had ever been.  She truly spent time down the shore and to this day thinks nothing of jumping in the car to drive down the parkway to meet friends of hers who are continuing the shore legacy with homes of their own.  She knows full well the significance of Point Pleasant’s boardwalk having random boards replaced and not whole sections the way Seaside Heights needed or the other truly devastated towns. She understood far better than I when we overheard a local bitching about “some woman tourist” stating it didn’t seem that bad.  He mentioned she should kiss his ass, love that part of Jersey, pretty sure that’s the part of the Jersey Girl I wound up with.  She’s been to and still goes to the Stone Pony.  Me not so much, but I am in awe of her and her friends and the dedication to this little piece of the state that is in such dire need of continued support.

Funny thing about the support part, we looked everywhere for a Jersey Strong tee shirt and there were none to be found.  What’s up with that?  Please don’t tell me someone owns the right to that little catch phrase…and for those of you who don’t think much of our President, his reassuring and damn true words, New Jersey is stronger than the storm, just might be a lasting legacy.    As for me returning to the shore, I’m not sure.  But I know like I know that I am so glad they are absolutely Jersey Strong.