It’s My Birthday and I’ll Wallow If I Want To
I confess this will be a hastily written post, because I'm tired because I'm battling insomnia these days, I drove a ridiculous amount today (from New York City to Westchester, Westchester to multiple Boston drop offs, to home), and tomorrow I have a ton to do for my...
Time Travel Through Magazines
My name is Jennifer and I'm a magazine addict. Many places in life demand I exert some self-control; in most situations, I'm capable of doing so. In fact, I've gone the past five weeks both (mostly) sugar- and (totally) alcohol-free simply because I thought my body...
These Are a Few of My Favorite Things (2017 Version)
While I've complained a great deal about 2017--the politics of the past year have made an activist of me--the year had its joys as well, and for once, I'd like to focus on the good. As arbitrary as it is to look back on December 31, I'm a sucker for an opportunity to...
History Repeats: Irma and the Great Hurricane of 1926
Every now and then, in a writer's world, a strange confluence occurs when her work and her real life collide, and it's difficult to remember what's fiction and what's fact. I'm deep into the writing of my next novel. Normally, I don't talk about what I'm writing...
The March of the Elephants
The circus ended two days ago. After 146 years, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus closed the big tent. Slow ticket sales and protests by animal rights groups led to the demise of the three-ring extravaganza. Here's the thing, I've never been a fan of...
Why I Marched on Washington
Growing up, politics was discussed around the dinner table, and my sister and I were regularly quizzed on world geography. The world, we were taught, was bigger than just our family. Television wasn't allowed while we ate, so the one time an exception was madeāto...
One Man’s Junk: Going Through My Dad’s Stuff
All I wanted was the vintage paper reinforcers. Before I came home to visit my family, my father had sent me an email with a picture of old page reinforcers and asked, "Do you want these?" Um, office supplies? Yes! Vintage? Yes! Vintage office supplies? Yes, yes, yes!...
A Postcard Avalanche: Stop Bannon
Today is the day for the postcard avalanche to Donald Trump, telling him "Not Bannon." A Facebook group gives the details, but the idea is to mail him a postcard from your town or state with the short and to-the-point message. The card I chose feels fitting, as it's a...
The Sound of Thunder: A Trump Presidency
In 1952, Ray Bradbury published in Collier's one of my all-time favorite short stories, "A Sound of Thunder." I won't be able to do the story justice, so you should go read it (search for it online; I won't link because I don't know if they're legit reproductions),...
1933 vs. 2016: The Rise of Hate and Why You Need to Vote
On my morning run, I pass a house proudly displaying a āMake America Great Againā sign, an anomaly in my liberal Boston suburb. My heart palpitates and itās not because of my pace, which is snail-like. Itās because when I see those signs, I see swastikas and notices...
