thank god i finally figured out why they call it the garden state

A few weeks ago, I made the trek to Alpha, New Jersey, the home of my dear friend Harry -- who happens to be the former mayor of Alpha and current town councilman. I got the exclusive grand tour of Alpha that only a former mayor can give, complete with access to town hall and the council chambers to soak in the democratic process. And also, take really ridiculous pictures.

After spending about 24 hours in Alpha, Harry and I headed to Princeton, New Jersey, for a New Jersey HOBY Alumni party. (If you're not up on the HOBY thing, it's Hugh O'Brian Youth Leadership; I've blogged about it before here but you can also learn more here.) The party was held at one of Princeton's social club houses in the heart of campus, the perfect place for about 50 sweaty teenagers to dance to Britney Spears and play "HOBY Pony" on a Saturday night. After we took the PBR cans out of the trashcan in the entryway, that is.

As I shared with you just after returning from Alpha and Princeton, I did manage to forget just about everything I owned there, including my camera, and thus have been unable to blog about the adventure. As of Friday my camera is back in my possession, and I present to you a short film titled "Thank God I Finally Figured Out Why They Call it The Garden State." We start things off at Alpha's town hall, move through scenic Alpha, New Jersey, into Princeton and finally wrap things up at the HOBY Alumni dance party. Enjoy.

cheers,
elizabeth