Just patting Myself on the Back

OK, when I bought my home, I wondered if it was smart to stay in Franklin Township. Sure, I already knew the commuting distance, and how far away each of my friends were. I knew about the convenient shopping, and the nice park areas. Apparently, Money magazine knows, too:

America's Best Places to Live 2008 (numbers 4 and 5)

When you hear the phrase “primeval old-growth forest,” chances are New Jersey doesn’t spring immediately to mind. But the state known for jokes about its mammoth turnpike does in fact boast such a pristine wilderness: a 65-acre one. In Franklin Township. This surprising 46-square-mile municipality, home to several different villages, also contains a towpath along a 19th-century canal beloved by bikers and runners, and bucolic back roads dotted with colonial houses and working farms.

Damn, my town sounds positively pastoral!