Once upon a time ~ (embiggenable) - iPhone
Once upon a time ~ (embiggenable) - iPhone
Here and now ~ (embiggenable) - iPhone
Here and now ~ (embiggenable) - iPhone
ONCE UPON A TIME STONE HARBOR, NJ AND OTHER like shore towns / villages were quaint-ish summer cottage enclaves. Places I would have enjoyed visiting, if only I could deal with the summer heat and humidity.
Fast forward to today where, over the past 10-15 years, these places have been turned into second-home (aka: seasonal vacation homes)-enclaves of the (obscenely) wealthy. I use the word “obscene” to describe the manner in which these place have been have been “turned”….virtually all of the quaint, cottage vibe has been eliminated, aka: demolished and replaced by ostentatious McMansions. The result - a lifeless facsimile of upscale suburban living.
Somewhat unfortunately, I have been consigned to the fate of spending 1 week a year-over the past 25 years-at the South Jersey Shore. Stone Harbor, NJ has been my wife’s family summer haunt for 60 years and that ain’t gonna change any time soon.
Lest this entry be what I want to avoid-whining about my personal life-I feel compelled to mention that what is going on at the Jersey Shore is not an isolated situation. There seems to be an American propensity for finding a place to visit-most often a place with unique character-and then, over time, completely destroying that character / uniqueness to the point where it becomes a Disneyland-like attraction. That is, a manufactured / contrived caricature of what it once was.