Jersey Shore Fact of the Day 42: It's Turtle Season

If you are driving down the shore this week, PLEASE BE CAREFUL. It's egg laying time for the terrapins, and they cross the roads and causeways to get from point A to point B. If you see a turtle, please slow down or, if it's safe, help the turtle across the road. I was in Strathmere this time last year and spent a good 15 minutes just helping them along.

This is a crucial time for the terrapins, and no matter now many good citizens help, a lot will be killed. If you see a dead turtle on the side of the road, you can still help - the Wetlands Institute in Stone Harbor can harvest their eggs and hatch them at the Institute. Here's a website with more information.

Just wrap the turtle in a towel that you don't care about because they will still bleed after they RIP.

Jersey Shore Fact of the Day 41: The Ocean City Music Pier is a Great Rest Stop

Need a break while making your stroll up or down the Ocean City Boardwalk? Take a stop at the Ocean City Music Pier. Not only does it have bathrooms (a BIG plus if you've been on the beach all day), but it also has shaded benches on a pier over the sand, and it has a tourism office as well. I've said this before, but I'll say it again: if you're looking for deals, always stop in the shore town's tourism center. They'll have coupon books with discounts on food, rides, shops, and just about anything you'd spend money on down the shore. It's a cool place, too, built in 1928.

The Ocean City Music Pier has events as well, and is usually the location of Ocean City events.

She's Here!

So remember when I said that the book wouldn't be out until June? Guess what: She's now shipping from BN.com and Amazon.com!

The Nook version is also available, but I'd hold off on Kindle - right now it looks like the Kindle version is still the first book.

I'm also going to be doing a signing in Avalon on Thursday night - more details on that later this week.

Jersey Shore Fact of the Day 40: It's Summer!

Grab your bathing suit, your suntan lotion, and your best iPod mix. It's shore time.

Today isn't really the first day of summer, but for a lot of us, this kicks off our summer - and shore - season. Sure, the ocean's probably too cold for swimming. And the kids still have to go back to school on Tuesday. But you can feel it. You can almost taste it, too, if you're yearning for Mack & Mancos.

The forecast is hot and humid, so expect EVERYTHING to be busy. So good luck. Keep your patience, even if you're stuck in that backup on the AC Expressway. You're getting there.

I met up with reader Dina this morning to give her a copy of my book. She's from California and new to Philly. She and her husband and heading down the shore for the first time. I hope they have as great an experience as you guys who have been going down every summer since you were born.

Have a great weekend.

Jersey Shore Fact of the Day 39: Two Atlantic City Classics Team Up with Casinos

I've started doing media interviews in connection to the book, and the first question every asks is: What's new down the shore this year?

The most interesting thing to me has been traditional Atlantic City restaurants joining up with casinos. As far as I know, this hasn't really happened before.

First up: White House Sub Shop. I have waxed poetic about this hoagie place many times on the blog, and in print. As of yesterday, they opened up a spot inside Trump Taj Mahal. That's a boon to people who don't want to drive out to the original spot (though I HIGHLY recommend it).

Second: Harry's Oyster & Seafood Bar is opening up at Bally's in June. This is from Frank Dougherty of Dock's Oyster House and, as he told me while interviewing him for Edible Jersey magazine, he sees this was what seafood places in Atlantic City used to be, which was good, fresh and not over the top expensive.

Frank also talked at length about how the dining scene has changed in Atlantic City, especially post-casino era. That article will be out shortly in the summer issue of Edible Jersey Magazine. I'll put up a link when that article's available online.

BEA: Salt Water Taffy Edition

Yesterday, I hit up Book Expo America, the largest publishing conference in North America. I've gone to BEA for the last five years, but as a journalist looking for story ideas. This was the first time I went as an author.

(Sorry for the not great picture. My publicist is great at what he does, but is not apt at taking iPhone photos - hi Tom!)

The 50 books my publisher brought with him were gone in under a half hour. And what a half hour! I only had one person make a snarky Jersey Shore comment, and after talking to him about the region for two minutes, he took a book. Some of you blog readers found me, as did my Twitter friends (hey guys!), but what was really nice were the people who were about to breeze by, and stopped when they saw the four boxes of salt water taffy. I could see the switch of nostalgia flip on in their brain. "I haven't had this in years," said one woman from California. And of course she took a book.

I couldn't have asked for a better day, though it was an exhausting one.

Reaction so far has been fantastic. I'm mailing out about 20 books tonight, too. If you'd like a signed copy, let me know and I'll arrange on getting one to you (they're only $20 and make great Father's Day gifts)

Jersey Shore Fact of the Day 38: Revel is Scheduled to Open May 15

The CEO of Revel Entertainment announced yesterday that the new casino will be open on May 15, 2012.

Can I file this under "see it when I believe it?"