Op Eds & Essays
Pamela Jane is an author of over thirty children’s books, and an essayist whose work has appeared in The NY Times, The Wall Street Journal, The NY Daily News, Writer's Digest, The Independent, and The Writer. Pamela has also published humor in The Daily Drunk, Erma Bombeck, Brevity, The Satirist, and others.
Photo: The author in 1975 by Jun Kobashigawa
You Think It Can’t Happen? How My Picture Books Were Stolen By A Major Published
I was browsing in our local bookstore when I noticed two colorful picture books with identical titles to those of my two stories. I felt like I had been punched in the gut.
The Ambivalent Agnostic: An Adoption Story
The adoption agency said it could take months to get a baby. A year went by, then two years. “Baby shortage,” the agency said.
“Elephant pregnancy,” my friend Cathy said. (Elephants have a two-year gestation period.)
There’s A Peanut In My Ear!
Desperate for peace, I went looking for something to plug up my ears. All I could find was a jar of dry-roasted peanuts in the kitchen. This will work, I thought, popping a peanut into my ear
Santa Shock!
In the weeks before Christmas, I wrote long letters to Santa addressed to the North Pole. “What do you think you’re doing?” asked my friend, Karen, who celebrated Hanukkah.
Maybe Neighbourliness Isn’t So Old-Fashioned After All
Sometimes I feel nostalgic for a vanished past I’ve only read about in novels, when milk and cream were delivered from the farm, and the kitchen smelled of warm soup and fresh-baked bread. But I’m a millennial mom. I juggle motherhood with writing and would rather simmer a plot than a pot.
A Kidde Car Syndrome
The adults had given me the distinct impression that I possessed a rare talent for kiddie car driving. And I had believed them! Now, it turned out, I hadn’t been doing anything at all.
No Silver Lining
Kindergarten came as a rude interruption to my existential preoccupations, and I almost flunked out.
Woodstock: Miracle or Mess?
If the twinkling fairytale forest was a medieval fair, this was Dante’s inferno.
Put Your Panic to Work! 6 Outstanding Applications
Millions of Americans produce unprocessed, renewable panic with little energy or expense. Is it possible we could recycle this abundant natural resource to help the environment?
Messaging Mediums and Skyping Skeptics: A Cautionary Tale
The medium was in high demand, and I had to book her months in advance. I didn’t anticipate that she would cheat but just in case I used an alias to set up a new email, PayPal, and Skype account.