September Update
Sticker machine news, ten calls for local artists (and one for libraries/museums), hiking 36 miles in Essex County, a free workshop about the history of NJ grave markers + more.
At the beginning of August, I attempted something most people would consider kind of crazy: to walk the entirety of the Lenape Trail, a 36 mile urban/suburban route that connects 18 parks throughout Essex County. It’s a really unique trail that incorporates suburban parks with paved paths (like Montclair’s Brookdale Park), deep woods and actual mountains (including South Mountain Reservation), rail-trails (the West Essex Trail), and just normal streets in between. I’d wanted to do it since I learned about it a few years ago when I moved to Essex County.
My friend John, who you may know from his business Cozz Coffee or from his music, did the entire hike in one day in early June. When he posted a video of his experience, I mentioned I was jealous and really wanted to do it someday too, and next thing I knew, John decided to organize a group hike and someday was suddenly August 3rd.
I did not end up finishing the whole thing. I definitely did not train as well as I should have, and when a muscle behind my knee started to feel really off to the point I couldn’t ignore it, I knew I was going to have to dip out early unless I wanted to end up really injured. I ultimately completed just about 20 miles: from our start in Branch Brook Park to Verona Park. And I’m really proud of myself for that! I’m excited to do the last stretch another time (or to break those 12 miles into segments).
There were almost 30 of us altogether. Some people joined us for shorter segments, and some people kept going after the point where I decided to summon an Uber. Ultimately, six members of our group did end up making it to the final finish line in South Mountain Reservation!
It was a really fun day. We were lucky, weather-wise. It was one of those rare, very tolerable summer days with little humidity and a cool breeze. We were even luckier company-wise; everyone who came on this weird journey was very fun to talk to. The joke I kept making is that I don’t know what I was expecting—anyone who would see a post advertising a thirty-six mile hike and think “sure, sounds fun,” is obviously someone with a sense of adventure. I think my favorite part of this whole thing was getting to chat with everyone. I knew some of the hikers previously, and there were many people I didn’t already know, but going through something like this is definitely a way to bring people closer. Alex and I had ribbons made up for everyone who joined us, and it was really fun giving everyone a little token when they parted ways. One of the hikers even brought along a print of the trail that Alex made (without knowing he would be on the hike) and had us all sign it.
After the hike, I did some digging online and found a few other people who wrote about their experiences with the Lenape Trail. I really enjoyed reading this account, which also includes really excellent photos! If I was going to share advice about doing the trail, I would probably point you toward how those hikers broke up the miles. My other advice is, if you dip off in Cedar Grove, there’s a Fresh Grocer right off the trail which is helpful for grabbing snacks and lunch and more fluids. They had these extremely good chicken salad wraps that I am choosing to believe are really that delicious and that they weren’t the best thing I’d ever eaten simply because I’d been on my feet all day at that point.
In all seriousness, the Lenape Trail is a really cool way to get to know Essex County. I’m not originally from here, but I’ve lived here for about five years now, and this was a really special way to experience the place I’ve decided to call home at this point of my life. The area sometimes feels so crowded, but it was really cool to remember that there are all of these patches of legitimate nature within a few miles of my apartment.
Thanks for reading! I hope you have a great Labor Day weekend, whatever that looks like to you. Since moving to North Jersey a few years ago, I usually avoid heading south if I can help it, but the chance to see my favorite band from my teen years headline the Summer Stage while they’re on tour for the first time since the year I graduated high school was too tempting.
-Kerri
Condé Nast Traveler put out an article called “50 States, 50 Desserts,” where they attempted to define each state’s most iconic dessert. For New Jersey, Jersey Bites editor Deborah Smith chose Kohr’s Frozen Custard to represent us.
I know we still have a bit of summer left, but there’s a (to me, welcome) chill in the air lately that’s got me thinking ahead to fall. This free virtual workshop on 9/16 from Preservation New Jersey sounds really interesting: “an eye-opening introduction to New Jersey’s little-known tradition of folk grave markers” from the 1910s-1930s, which are often “linked to immigrant communities in urban cemeteries and reflect a rich, yet underappreciated, chapter of New Jersey’s funerary and folk art history.”
On 10/18, Beach Badge Zine is hosting a shore-inspired storytelling workshop with Somers Point Arts Commission, followed by a Jersey Shore-inspired poetry and prose open mic. The workshop is a very affordable $10, and the open mic is free, and will also have free pizza.
NJ Transit created a new interactive map called Jersey Journeys, which allows you to search for parks, historic sites, and other things to do that are located along NJT rail or bus routes.
Alicia Cook, who contributed an essay to New Jersey Fan Club had her first book of poetry adapted into a song cycle, and the sheet music is now available to anyone who wants to bring it to life.
Good news if you, like me, were a big fan of the Montclair art book and stationary shop Iris: Jamie is bringing it back in the form of an online store that will launch on 9/17. I’ve really missed being able to discover really surprising books and items in the shop, so I’m excited to be able to do the same with the online presence!
Upcoming events
Just a heads up that I will be doing fewer markets this fall/winter than last year, so if you want to shop in person, mark your calendars. And remember: you can always shop our webstore or visit our stockists if you can’t make it out to any of these!
The Bazaar Fall Festival
Sunday, October 26 from 12:00-5:00 PM
Whitechapel Projects: 15 2nd Ave, Long Branch, NJ
Geek Flea
Saturday, November 22 from 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
First Presbyterian Church of Arlington: 663 Kearny Avenue, Kearny, NJ
Porta Holiday Market
Sunday, December 7 from 12:00-4:00 PM
Porta: 911 Kingsley St, Asbury Park, NJ
Howling Basset Books event recap
Huge thanks to Howling Basset Books in Lambertville for having me and Kamelia DeSoucey for a New Jersey Fan Club event, and thank you to everyone who attended! It was so great to see some familiar faces, meet some Internet-acquaintances, and meet many new folks who packed the bookstore.
New Jersey Fan Club came out three years ago this summer, which is wild. It’s been so fun to see the book continue to reach new readers and I’m so grateful that I am still receiving invitations to engage with the book after all of this time.
A new/revised sticker
I had to restock our beach tag sticker and decided to change it up a bit, so going forward we will carry this version featuring the words “Jersey Shore” instead. Thanks to Alex for designing these back when we made Go Fish! I was waiting until they ran out a bit to order the new version. Now that the stack has dwindled a lot, I finally did!
Now until they run out, all orders of New Jersey Go Fish! will come with a free retired Go Fish! design sticker, no code needed. Any orders of a sticker or set will come with the new version (I still have to update the shop photos).
Maybe you want a Lenape Trail ribbon?
Alex and I had these ribbons made to celebrate the group hike, but we ended up with a few extra so I’ve listed them in the shop in case you want to attempt the trail, have done it in the past, or know someone who has!
There are only a few left over, but if a lot of people ask about them, maybe we’ll order some more! You’ll see some “scratch and dent” quality ones listed as an option—those have minor flaws but are still nice. If you want Alex’s hand drawn and screen printed maps of the trail, you can find it here.
Sticker Club
Our first Cape May pop-up!
From September 15th to the 26th, whenever they’re open
Ostara’s Coffee House - 600 Park Blvd, West Cape May, NJ
I’ve wanted to bring the machine to Cape May for a while now and I’m so glad to announce I’ll be doing so this fall. Bring your quarters and grab a Series 3 sticker from Ostara’s Coffee House in West Cape May, and be sure to also pick up a breakfast sandwich and drink while you’re at it!
Oops!
So…I got a second sticker machine.
I had no plans to do this at all. I live in an apartment. Usually, when the machine is not at a location, it is buckled into the backseat of my car because I am not carrying that thing up the stairs more than necessary. I also have gotten a little jaded with sticker/mini print machines in general because they’ve started popping up everywhere and I get multiple emails a week from people asking if they can rent mine for an event even though that’s not really a road I want to go down, and it’s just been a lot. So yeah, getting a second machine was definitely not on my radar!
But, I was recently browsing listings on CL and FB marketplace and came across this little guy.
One-column machines aren’t super popular and you don’t see them a lot. I liked the idea of being able to have a smaller machine that’s significantly easier to move around. It would be cool to be able to book the main machine for more longer-term pop-ups without having to take into account my market schedule.
It’s going to need a few things to get it up and running, and I’m excited to have something to tinker with a bit. It works but the mechanism doesn’t slide as smoothly as I’d like, it needs some general cleaning up, and the mechanism only accepts $0.50 so I’m either going to need to find a way to change that or I’ll be handing out two quarters as “tokens.” Or maybe I’ll use this machine for something else entirely?? Stay tuned, and look for this little blue machine when it makes its debut.
Monmouth County Fair
Location: Freehold, NJ
My first job in high school and then later my first full time job as an adult were both technically for Monmouth County (for the parks system and then the library system). One of my favorite county employee perks was getting free tickets to the fair every July. I no longer work for the county, but going to the fair is still one of my favorite summer traditions.
A few weeks ago, I went to the fair with family and friends, like I try to do every summer. There’s something kind of soothing about how stuck-in-time the fair is. I’ve been going since I was a teenager, and it is largely the same. They have many of the same entertainers, who are set up in the same parts of the fairground. They hand out maps at the entrance, but I never need one.
One of my favorite sections is the big tent full of the ribbon winners. They award winners for various forms of arts and crafts, vegetables and flowers, baked goods, and more. My favorite entertainer is hands down Hilby the Skinny German Juggle Boy, who manages to do some very high brow comedy at the same time as some extremely lowbrow shit, and every year I laugh like I’ve never seen his act before. This year’s musical lineup was pretty impressive, too: Nicole Atkins and Jackson Pines played the stage. You can also reliably get the kind of food you want from a fair, and see animals, go on rides, and play games.
Save the date for next summer: July 22-26, 2026!
Let’s hear from an interesting New Jerseyan! Interview has been lightly edited for space.
This month, I talked to Jeff Quattrone, Founder of Library Seed Bank and author of the book Iconic Jersey Tomatoes: an American Folklife and Foodway, set to release on September 26, 2025.
What can you tell us about your new book?
It’s been such a great experience talking with people over the years about seeds, growing food, and all the education that comes along with the activism I do. It’s Jersey, so inevitably when I talk about my Library Seed Bank project, the conversations would naturally progress to tomatoes. And I would hear great stories from people about their personal connections to the Jersey tomato. Then I got to do the research, and I was introduced to some of the farmers, seedsman and their experimental farms and seed companies, and ketchup and canning companies. I got to know their lives through research. They were doing their own things. Collectively, they created this way of life, folklife, and foodway around the Jersey tomato that we all get to celebrate every summer by growing our local pride in our soil, yards, community gardens, and farms.
There’s history and the relationship to the really cool fact that we are a peninsula state, how we have this really great terroir and merroir, and how we’re proud, bold and unapologetic about who we are and the state we’re from.
I'm a public librarian, so I'm pretty up on what libraries are doing, and I know that many of them around our state offer seeds as part of their collections. Is that something we can thank you for?
When I started my project in 2014, there were three or four seed libraries already in Central and or North Jersey. In South Jersey, though, I am responsible for the seed libraries at the independent and county levels across South Jersey. Gloucester County was the first county-wide system and set up a thoughtful and functional model, which others have followed. There are seed libraries at the county level in Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, Cumberland and Cape May counties. Atlantic County is working one now. I've consulted for other libraries, community groups, and individuals across the state over the years. I did one in Calabria, Italy that I set up in 24 hours at a Slow Food International Terra Madre food conference. My dad’s family is from Calabria, and I’m a citizen there.
Do you have a favorite tomato variety?
It used to be Cherokee Purple. I love the dark color varieties: the blacks, browns, and purples. One year I grew this Frankenstein plant that gave me these dense, sweet, acidic tomatoes. So I changed to Frankenstein. Despite saving seeds and trying different plants, I haven’t been able to get the same tomatoes. What I get are good, but they’re not like what I had that year. I have an unintentional cross of Cherokee Purple and Orange Oxheart that I’m growing out. That’s my new favorite. Large beefsteaks with the green shoulders of the Cherokee Purple and deep, dense, beautiful orange flesh.
Besides tomatoes, what else do you like to grow?
I love to grow everything. Everything and anything for pollinators. Native plants as much as possible. Sunflowers, zinnias, sweet alyssum, basils, celery, and a new interest: citrus marigolds. It all has to be outdoors, I don’t have much luck with indoor gardening and that’s fine. It keeps the seasonal element in place.
What advice would you share with someone who wants to garden but doesn't know where to start?
Get a book, specifically Rodal’s Basic Organic Gardening. It’s a great way to get a baseline of what gardening is about from established principles, and not algorithm- driven engagement. It’s straightforward and not intimidating. Social media can be very confusing when you’re trying to find basic information. As you read it, think about what peaks your interest and what you don’t understand. Once you have questions, find the answers in a book, digitally, or from community gardening, and you’ll find your own process. Take it slow and build on your success. You will fail—that becomes compost. I still fail every year.
How can someone get involved with your projects?
They can email me. This has been a very long haul and this book will offer resources and opportunities to progress further. My goal has always been to share the seeds and now these stories in my book for people to embrace and continue this generational history with the seeds. When folks do save seeds to share, they’re preserving local history.
The Friends of Rahway River Parkway is looking for submissions for their 10th annual Rahway River Photo Contest. Photos must be taken “along the Rahway River Parkway which includes any greenways immediately along the Rahway River as it flows through Union County, and all parks and sections” listed on their website. Winners in three categories will win cash prizes, and will be featured in their 2026 calendar. Deadline extended to 9/7.
AAAfter Dark, “an evening showcase about Animations, Art, Anything run by Lex McClintic,” seeks work with an emphasis on time-based media or performance such as “animations, short films, comic readings, slideshow presentations of art pieces, musical or dance performances with animations or other projected visuals, or you can do a magic trick in front of a GIF you made,” for a showcase held at SMUSH Gallery on October 4. Deadline: 9/10
New Jersey archives, libraries, and museums are invited to submit short films (up to 15 minutes) held in their collections for the first-ever New Jersey Archival Film Festival, to be held on November 1st at Monmouth University. Submissions may include “documentaries, short films, performance recordings, home movies, and public service films that either relate directly to New Jersey or reflect broader historical or cultural themes.” Institutions outside of New Jersey can submit as long as the film relates to NJ. Deadline: 9/12.
Morris Arts is accepting applications for its Local Arts Grant Program, which awards “Morris County organizations that provide the community with arts events that are artistically excellent, provide public benefit, and are accessible to the public.” Deadline: 9/19.
Monmouth Arts invites artists from New Jersey to apply to create designs for a series of postcards commemorating Red Bank’s Count Basie Center for the Arts’ 100-year anniversary. Deadline: 9/22. Only Monmouth Arts members ($40/year, free for students) can submit; use code STAMPED for $10 off membership.
Asbury Park pizzeria Talula’s and Over the Moon Art Studios are seeking pizza themed artwork to display at the restaurant for a group show titled “Hot and Fresh.” Deadline: 9/23.
Tiny Gallery is accepting works of art in any medium, four inches or smaller for Newark’s Biggest Tiny Art Show, themed around the question, “What brings you joy?” Deadline: 9/26.
The Port Authority of NY & NJ is seeking Newark-based artists for two projects at Newark Airport station: a mural and digital designs to be used for a work made of glass blocks. Deadline for both: 9/28.
Monmouth Arts invites the creative community of Monmouth County to submit to Seen & Unseen, a “multidisciplinary exhibition illuminating the forgotten, the hidden, and the quietly profound.” Deadline: 9/30. Only Monmouth Arts members ($40/year, free for students) can submit; use code SEEN for $10 off membership.
The South Jersey Cultural Alliance seeks “talented photographers of all experience levels to help us document arts and culture events throughout Southern New Jersey.” Pays $150 stipend per event. No stated deadline.
Alex's Lenape Trail map print is really excellent! I'm going to have to pick one of those up