personal essays
The Long Loneliness of the NHL Offseason
When there's no hockey on TV it can be like the sport doesn't exist.
My Return to Weed After Years of Being a Bourgeois Suburban Mom
Could pot help me rediscover the rebellious feeling of my younger days?
Emily Gould's New Novel 'Friendship' Reads Like a Young Adult Novel About Adult Problems
We sat down with Emily Gould to discuss her new book and her online feminist bookstore, Emily Books.
A Stripper's Review of Strips Clubs in America
After a year of stripping in Los Angeles, I wondered about other city's strip clubs, so I hit the road for a month-long tour of the finest and shittiest strip clubs in America.
How to Survive Being Rescued from Sex Trafficking
It's now illegal in Alaska to induce a minor to work as a sex worker, but in the 1990s, Alaska's foster-care system repeatedly took away my money, forcing me to work as a sex worker—and my situation wasn't uncommon.
Photo Lab Workers See Some Crazy Shit
For some people, photo labs are a relic from a bygone era. For others, they're a safe space to celebrate and document their freakiest private predilections.
I Survived the Isla Vista Shooting
Last Friday, I did some laundry, rewatched episodes of Game of Thrones, and passed out on the sofa. It was a typical day—at least until I woke up to a loud BLAM.
My Son Has Replaced Me with a Cardboard Daddy
An essay on the everyday difficulties of helping your kids grow up.
Reality Strikes a Cheerleader
After college started, I lost contact with everyone from high school except for a couple of punks—at least until I ran into a cheerleader on the train, and she decided to apologize to me for bullying people throughout our teen years.
Perfectionism Is a Mental Illness and It's Ruining My Life
Perfectionism affects every aspect of my life. It tells me: "No matter what happened in the past, you can validate it now by being perfect." Every mistake I make festers in my being, compounding my misery.
Growing Up in Apartheid-Era South Africa
Three decades ago, my mother immigrated from South Africa, her home, to America because of Apartheid. This week, I sat down with my mother, Chryl Resnick, to talk about growing up in Apartheid-era South Africa, sneaking into townships, and why Mandela...
Calling Me a Terrorist Is Not Flirting
Every single girl knows what it’s like to be creeped on. But there’s a special breed of getting creeped on that absolutely needs to be addressed, and I call it flirty racism.