As if we needed confirmation, the U.S. Census Bureau has released a mountain of data indicating that commuting in New Jersey is terrible.

If you were one of the fortunate souls to enter the Morristown National Guard Armory in a timely manner Saturday afternoon for the overcrowded Big Brew Beer Festival, there was plenty to see and much to taste.

Several hundred concerned citizens joined the Morris Area Committee to Reduce Gun Violence, Morristown Mayor Tim Dougherty, and surprise guest and gubernatorial hopeful Barbara Buono on the Morristown Green tonight at a rally and memorial vigil marking the two-month anniversary of the tragic elementary school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.

The jughandle is one of New Jersey’s most-endearing idiosyncrasies. The concept that we must turn right to go left is an article of faith for Garden State drivers. But will these serpentine spillways survive?

If there’s one thing nearly all of the victims of Hurricane Sandy’s devastation can probably agree on, it’s that they could use a beer. Or, even better, a beer that comes with the promise of financial relief.

In the finest Jersey Shore tradition of bizarre behavior, a Lavallette man has inspired a media frenzy by scaling the iconic tattered remains of the Jet Star Roller Coaster in Seaside Heights.

If someone asks you, “What part of New Jersey are you from?” you’ve probably got a stock answer—town, county, North/South Jersey, the Shore. But those are all staid responses lacking any je ne sais quoi. If you want to inject a little cachet into that response, try some new terms—“New Jersey’s Wealth Belt,” or “the Northern Exurban Fringe.”

During a recent trip to Wightman’s Farms in Morristown to grab some apples and cider donuts, it was hard to ignore the surprising allure of the farm’s central attraction—the pumpkin slingshot.

There is no shortage of bar options down the Shore, to be sure, but there’s something about sipping a favorite drink at a rooftop bar that puts me in a better mood. Daddy-O, in the Brant Beach section of Long Beach Island, provides just such an experience.

New Jersey, of course, offers much to recommend it. But among the natural wonders and culinary treasures that abound in the Garden State, one item in particular dominated the agenda of a few out-of-town friends who stopped in for a visit this past weekend—pizza.

It was as if nothing ever happened. Just four days after two workers were rescued from the steeple next door to the New Jersey Monthly offices in Morristown, we returned to work this morning to see a cherry picker once again lifting two workers toward the top of the steeple.

With so much going on in New Jersey these days, let’s take a look back at some of the major storylines that developed this week that should be of interest to any informed resident:

Now that our governor officially will not run for president in 2012, after speculation reached a fever pitch in the past week, we are left to wonder if there was ever any justification for predicting what he would do in the first place.

As the 5.8-magnitute earthquake centered in Mineral, Virginia, rippled up and down the eastern seaboard, startling many an unsuspecting Mid-Atlantic resident, Carole King’s famous lyrics played through my head as I did what true New Jerseyans do in times of distress—I ate another slice of pizza.

Researchers at MIT probably have little firsthand knowledge of the hypothetical divide between “North” and “South” Jersey, but the mobile phone data they studied recently illustrates a clear pattern of phone activity that cuts the state nearly in half.

Of all the traditional American sporting events that crowd the spring television schedule—the Masters, the NBA and NHL playoffs, Major League Baseball’s opening day—I’ve always favored the Kentucky Derby on my list of required viewing.

They may be Giants…but they do much more than simply play football. A Taste of the NFL charity event was held at the Stadium Club at Giants Stadium on Monday night. Fans and players (current and former) mingled amid a sprawling array of food sampling stations from premium metropolitan restaurants.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but if Photographers Against Hunger have their way, donated signed pictures of Bruce Springsteen will feed a thousand mouths.