It was a relatively uneventful day at Convention Hall in Asbury Park this past Sunday, Sept. 1, when I got the following text from the unsung hero of this story, Matt Tiedemann (a.k.a. Tiedes).

“Bruce is here. Come here.”

A little background on Tiedes: We were roommates in 2009 and then he let me live with him in Tinton Falls while my Bradley Beach apartment was being repaired for five months after damage caused by Sandy.