Watch what summer at the Jersey Shore looked like in 1989

For most of us who grew up in New Jersey, spending summers at the Jersey Shore was one of the highlights of our youth.

Whether it was family vacations as a kid or going "down the shore" after prom, the place holds special meaning for so many of us. Those images live on in our minds with such vivid fondness and joy.

So when you see videos of the shore from back in the day, you can't help but have those memories come flooding back. For those of us from South Jersey, the shore kind of ended at Long Beach Island. I remember thinking, "I know there are towns beyond there, but I don't know anything about them or anyone who does."

If you grew up in Central and North Jersey, it was just about the opposite. Long Beach Island was the border, and anything south of that was uncharted territory. But the experiences were pretty much the same.

When we were old enough to drive to the shore on our own, we'd head to Margate or Wildwood to go crazy, drink too much and look to "hook-up." For many others it was any number of other shore towns where pretty much the same thing was going on. It was the late seventies. Early eighties. Drinking laws were different and there was a lot more freedom, danger and it seems now, joy.

A listener of ours sent us a video he posted on YouTube, that he put together of his time from the summer of 1989. It's a little hokey but most of us can connect with it in some way. You probably won't know anyone in the video, neither do I, but you may recognize some of the places. And you'll certainly recognize the feeling we all had back in the day, "down the shore."

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Dennis Malloy. Any opinions expressed are Dennis Malloy's own.