A Jersey State of Mind

Urban Outfitters sells these t-shirts; maybe you've seen them...."NJ, Only the Strong Survive."

Although I laughed the first couple of times I saw someone wearing the shirt, I never really considered the fact that it's pretty much the truth. This became apparent to me on my latest trip home for Thanksgiving.

As I drove North on I-95, I noticed that the toll booth attendants became increasingly disgruntled the closer to NJ that I got. I received a "Happy Holidays" at the Maryland toll plazas; a nice smile at the Delaware toll plazas; and by the time I got to the Delaware Memorial Bridge, bringing me into my home state, I got a grunt and a head nod... ah, home sweet home!

City living is supposed to make you tough, or at least hardened. Maybe it's because DC is no longer one of the Top 10 Most Dangerous Cities . After nearly 5 years of living in DC, I don't feel as though I have to put on my suite of armor when I go out. Don't get me wrong - I get just as disgruntled as the next person concerning tourists and people who have poor Metro etiquette, but honestly...i've never seen a showdown in DC quite like the many I saw during Black Friday shopping in a NJ strip mall! And I wasn't even in North Jersey!

aggressive behavior is the only way to get things done in NJ, it's just a state of mind that everyone up there has. I have to admit that I wasn't able to shed my NJ shell right away, and I was tearing through the streets like a mad woman on my trip back.

I guess i'm finding that my decision to stay in DC is no longer purely motivated by the fact that i'm employed here and have great friends in the area. I'm comfortable with my life in DC, I feel at ease with people and the attitude in this city, and the more I go home to NJ, the more I realize that DC is the home where I want to be.