Jenny’s work appears regularly in the New York Times, Medium and many other major news outlets.
I Remember When Rock Was Young
What the music of Elton John meant to a closeted teenager in 1970. My NYT column for 11/25/70
The Long Shadow of the Reagan Years.
How 1980 brought us to 2020. A memory of leaving home, and the month the country changed. My NYT column…
It’s Not Easy Being an Optimist in Maine
We have late-spring storms and high-stakes Senate races. But we also have lobster and Patty Griffin.
Will You Leave the Country if Trump is Re-elected?
A generation of Americans prepares to flee. My NYT column for 9/30/20.
The Most Powerful Man in the World Thinks My Family is ‘Less Than.’
The Fight for Equality isn’t over, and can most definitely still be lost.
What Donald Trump Could Learn From Jimmy Carter
The one-termer club doesn’t have to be so bad, Mr. President.
The Doggiest Days of Summer Demand Gin and Tonics
They’re refreshing and ridiculously easy to make, and come with just enough bitterness to help you get through this miserable…
I’m a Lip Reader in a Masked World
There are ways to accommodate people like me. But if our collective pandemic experience has taught us anything, it’s that…
Mainers Are ‘Disappointed” Too, Susan Collins
Maybe we’ve been expecting too much of her all along. My NYT column for 7/8/20.
Mr. Jones and Me: Younger Baby Boomers Swing Left
Were you more into punk than the Beatles? Were you less likely to protest the war than streak? You might…
Harry Potter and the Scales of Justice
A Little Bit of good news, in a dire month for LGBTQ people.
Two Flags Over Maine (and America)
Flags are not just symbols of a country or a state. Their meaning lies in the consciousness of the person…
President of the Flies
What stories of shipwreck and plane crashes have to teach us about Donald Trump’s America. My NYT column for 5/27/20.
The Coronavirus Mental Health Crisis Hits Home
A Journal of the Plague Year, Week 9. My NYT column for May 12, 2020
Protecting the Ones I Love, With Sausage and Cheese
A Journal of the Plague Year, Week 7. My NYT column for 4/29/20.
The Curious Incident of No Dog in the White House
What if Donald Trump had become the owner of a golden doodle? My NYT column for 4/25/20/
What Are the Songs That Are Helping You Survive?
A Journal of the Plague Year, Week 5. My NYT column for 4/5/20.
The Quarantinis Are Flowing and the Store is Out of Milk Bones
A Journal of the Plague Year, Week 3. My NYT column for 3/31/20.
The World We Once Lived in Has Vanished
A Journal of the Plague Year, Week 1. My NYT column for 3/18/20
My $145,000 Surprise Medical Bill
What my brief glimpse into the financial abyss taught me about the American health care system. My NYT column for…
Iowa’s in Love Again. Sort of.
Why should we listen to her anyway? Remember when she fell for Rick Santorum? My NYT column for 2/6/20.
The First Time I Said, “I’m Trans.”
Enough, I said. I will set out on this journey, although I do not know the way. My NYT column…
How Should We Respond to Hate?
Tessa Majors, and the Worst Thing I Ever Heard. My NYT column for 1/08/20.
The Extremely Online Decade of “Get Out,” Fake Meat, and Crystals
A Look Back at the Decade. I celebrate Jennifer Egan and Sarah Kate Ellis; I lament Duck Dynasty and people…
Yes, We Read the Comments
I joined Farhad Manjoo, Gail Collins, Bret Stephens, and Nick Kristof in responding to our favorite comments on our NYT…
My Very Marry Christmas
Why do we love to get engaged around the holidays? My NYT column for 12/25/19
Rudolph, the Queerest Holiday Special
Even misfits can find a place where they belong. My NYT column for 12/13/19.
Why Do I Eat Pigs, but Give My Dog Her Own Cowboy Hat?
One day, I found myself coating the shingles on the roof with hot chili oil, in order to burn the…
Is a Donald Trump Mask Scary?
This Halloween, the line between almost scared and truly terrified is thinner than ever. My NYT column for 10/30/19
How to Make Hearing Aids as Cool as Glasses
First, let people buy some devices over the counter. My NYT column for October 1, 2019.
A Story of London in Three Pints
The city I once loved has changed a lot in 40 years. But so have I. My NYT column for…
Love in the Time of Democrats
Booker and Warren shone. Four people who were not there lost. My NYT column for 9/21/19.
I Don’t Want a Pickle
Actually I love the new symbol of trans rights. But I love justice more. My NYT column for 9/18/19
How I Learned to Fail Better
What the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference taught me about revision and invention. My NYT column for 8/4/19.
How an E-bike Changed My Life
Riding grew harder as I grew older. Then I got an e-bike. My NYT column for 8/20/19.
The Latest Victims of Trump’s Cruelty? Foster Children
A new proposal would make it easier to discriminate against LGBTQ parents who wish to adopt.
Why Kathy Griffin Will Not Stand Down
Two years after her infamous photo, the comedian is back, and fighting for her career.
What I Learned at Summer Camp
The names of stars. How to swim. And the meaning of profound homesickness.
A Woman Walks Into a Bar
You’re a single woman in a restaurant. Do you sit alone at the bar, or at a table?
Romantic America’s Dead and Gone
I thought that like Wesley in The Princess Bride, I’d become immune to the news, like iocane powder.
What Grade Would You Give Donald Trump?
The president won’t release his college transcript. But we can guess what it says.
What Tolkien Knew About Love
Like Henry Darger, he created an epic fantasy. Why is Tolkien remembered, and Darger nearly forgotten?
What Happens to a Magazine Deferred?
The American Bystander, published for just one issue in the 1980s, is back. It was worth the wait.
The Brilliant Uncertainty of the Grateful Dead’s “Dark Star.”
Fifty years ago, the band recorded the most entrancing version of its most hypnotic composition.
The Madness of King Donald
The new BBC production of “King Lear” is great fun — and an uncomfortable reflection of American politics these days
Do You Hear That? It’s the Sound of Winter
In Maine, the ice groans and the axes clunk, noises both terrifying and comforting
Coming Out as Trans Isn’t a Teenage Fad
Conservatives are inventing a "syndrome" to undermine young people's transitions.
Why Christmas is About Food
In a time of bittersweet memories, meals with family restore us. My NYT column for 12/12/18.
Why Are Gender Reveal Parties a Thing?
They say more about our culture than the sex of our children. My NYT column for Dec. 3, 2018.
Pennywise, the Dancing President
The president spins falsehoods to make us afraid–of immigrants, of trans people, of each other. My NYT column for 11/28/18
Woozy with Moderation
Can Governor John Hickenlooper of Colorado run for president as a moderate? My NYT column for 11/14/18.
When Nightmares are Real
Donald Trump has harmed me more than any specter ever could. My NYT column for Halloween, 2018.
The Hag of the Beara
“If you’re there,” I prayed, “make it possible for me to live one life, not two.” A Halloween story of…
“Keep it Low”: Beyond Balls, Strikes, and Justice
What do judges and umpires have in common? Not as much as some people think. My NYT column for 10/24/18.…
Trump Cannot Define Away My Existence
The administration seems to think trans people like me are as imaginary as hippogriffs. My NYT column for 10/21/18.
Will Deep Fakes Technology Destroy Democracy?
Imagine if doctored video of a politician appeared the night before an election. It’s everything Putin ever dreamed of. My…
Susan Collins is the Worst Kind of Maverick
She pretends to be a moderate, but she regularly votes with Trump. My NYT column for 10/9
Are You A Lawn Mower Parent?
We want to teach our children to be tough. But we also have to show them love. My NYT column…
What happens when you give LSD to an elephant?
Tusko did not develop an interest in jam bands. My NYT column for 9/24/18
A Nuclear Bomb Inside the Vatican
“I wondered if all this grace could possibly be real.” My NYT column for 9/19/18.
How a Sliver of Glass Changed My Life
It is never to late to change your life. My NYT column for 9/2/18.
Saving the World– Through Frisbee.
One group is trying to bring peace to the Middle East– through Frisbee–and succeeding. My NYT column for 8/22/18.
Who Wants to be a Bust in the Hall of Fame?
Fame, as David Bowie noted, is “bully for you, chilly for me.” A trip to the no-longer famous Hall of…
The New Know-Nothings
Introducing a new political party called the “Republicans.” My NYT column for 7/25/18.
A Day Off From the World
A celebration of a few small things, now that so much else has been lost. And no mention of Himself.…
Why Scarlett Johansson Shouldn’t Play a Trans Man
It’s not about creativity. It’s about letting us tell our own stories. My NYT column for 7/6/18
Now We Are Sixty
“I Turned 60 in the Age of Trump”: lessons for everyone. My NYT column for 6/27/18
What is Sadness? What is Depression?
Two separate countries that share a common border. My NYT column for 5/13/18.
Let Them Eat a Constitutional Amendment
The Masterpiece Cake decision impels a constitutional amendment. My NYT column for June 4, 2018
What to Expect the 264th Month
Being a parent is hard, especially when you’re trying to figure out when to stop. MY NYT column for May…
Do Men or Women Enjoy Sex More?
To answer the question, I turned to greek mythology and modern science. My column for the New York Times.
My Identity is Not Your Debate
Participating in a conversation about whether I exist is insulting and demeaning. How about we all treat each other with…
Lost in Space–and Time
Fifty years ago, the US Space program was grounded and Lost in Space was on TV. Now both are true…
Forrest Trump
Who would you rather have as President? The current “stable genius”? Or a man who says, “I know I’m not…
Real Families and the Fictional Roseanne
I wasn’t going to watch it, for the same reason Samuel Jackson says he won’t eat sewer rat. My NYT…
Trumps Trans Ban Shows Who He Really Is.
The ban on transgender troops is motivated by bigotry alone. My NYT column for 3/25/18
Faith & Friendship
We were back at the shore, me and my friends from 7th grade, and I was telling the story of…
Die Scheisse Hits the Fan
A scuffle over the German national anthem inspired me to take a good look at our own. Plus: the curious…