where are you now?
Since nobody else said it, I will: North Jersey should be be a state separate from South Jersey. The northern part is “New York light”. Same accent, attitude, politics, etc.
South Jersey is nothing like the North. We identify with Philly more than anything from upstate. North Jersey folks identify with NY things and would never consider supporting a SJ sports team, shore location, political view etc.
I worked in N. Jersey for 12yrs and my co-workers were all from the North. They might as well have been from NY.