Millburn, NJ

We live on the Union County side of three counties that meet at a single point. When we moved here, we very seldom ventured outside our own county. Most of our shopping was done in Union County. Our schools and jobs were in Union County. When we went for gas-guzzling Sunday drives, we’d take Union County roads to the major highways that would lead us either down the Shore or out west into Pennsylvania. New York City was also always a favorite destination.

I married a girl from Madison and a whole new world opened up to me: deliciously green and historic Morris County. We even lived in both Chathams a while.

This left Essex County still largely unexplored. Millburn is right next door in Essex County. We seldom go there. It’s hard to figure why. My son and I actually broke our usual routine and drove over to Millburn last week to check it out. It was a dreary day between snow storms.

We parked the car and decided to have a look around. It turned out to be an absolutely lovely town with quaint shops and oodles of interesting restaurants. I think every major world cuisine craving was represented. There was a movie theater with four screens in the center of town. But a much more famous venue is Millburn’s Paper Mill Playhouse.

I was surprised by how big it was. It’s always been the theater in our area that was the alternative to going to Broadway. I’ve heard that he shows here are every bit as professionally staged as they are in New York. They also feature known, professional actors. Go to their website, www.papermill.org for show information, tickets and directions. Parking fees are nominal, but ticket prices are only a tad less than for Broadway shows.

Millburn includes Short Hills which is home to the “Cora Hartshorn Arboretum and Bird Sanctuary”. It is also the home of the deliriously upscale “Mall at Short Hills”. We’ve been to there countless times, of course. In fact, I used to take the kids over there while it was still being built. It’s the only mall I know of where they don’t allow pushcart vending. Instead, you’ve got cars bearing monikers the likes of Rolls Royce, Porsche, Audi, Bentley and Land Rover taking up space in the center aisles. The mall also features some very good restaurants. At Christmas there is always live music and a ‘stand in line to get a picture to get your kid’s picture taken with’ Santa Claus.

It’s always good to get out and widen one’s horizons. In Millburn’s case I can honestly say, I traveled China before ever going to Millburn. This is not strictly true because it was actually necessary at times to travel through the town to get to somewhere else. Still it’s funny how it turns out; how a psychological blind spot can prevent us from going in a particular direction without ever being aware of it. It reminds me of looking for my wallet and finding it only after some time. It had always been in plain sight, right where it was supposed to be.

Peter Koelliker; pkoelliker8@yahoo.com