Los Angeles freelance science writer and editor
Someone asked me after I got vaccinated why I got vaccinated. I have science based reasons (as a biologist, I get asked a lot)-that the technology has been around for a couple of decades, it’s been used safely for other infectious diseases and cancer, and it’s less of a risk than getting COVID. But I follow... Continue Reading →
by Janice Nigro Irrational thoughts take over right before international travel. Of the “leaving your cocoon” sort. The kind that compel you to clean your home thoroughly before you leave. Such thoughts were unavoidable as the pandemic surges on around the world before my trip to Italy last month. Weird ideas, like did I get the... Continue Reading →
You can often recall the precise moment you fall in love. Sometimes the match looks good on paper and the connection is immediate. And sometimes it comes out of nowhere and hits you like a ton of bricks. There are no birds singing or harps playing, but your basic chemistry changes from a blip for... Continue Reading →
I didn’t think too hard when the taxi driver in Sorrento (Italy) asked me what I had for dinner. The words just rolled off my tongue. “Pasta ai frutti di mare.” I don’t remember how my travel companions responded. All I remember is what Bartolo the taxi driver said next. “Buon italiano!” “Good Italian!” I... Continue Reading →
An emergency text from a friend: Hi! We got a pasta making attachment for the KitchenAid mixer. Some recipes say all purpose flour and some say 00 flour. I thought we should ask an expert. That’s how my holiday season started, and it seemed to be a theme that carried through to the end when... Continue Reading →
by Janice Nigro Since my travel story hit the LA Times, I have been wondering why that one worked while so many others did not. And if I could figure out why, then I might be able to make it happen more often. Or tell others how to do it. There are some straightforward procedural... Continue Reading →
by Janice Nigro I had a boyfriend in college who wasn’t much of a romantic. But he did leave me a surprise Valentine’s Day card once in a place where I wouldn’t have expected it. I remember the card still today. Without saying much, I felt it said, "I am thinking of you." The history... Continue Reading →
by Janice Nigro Families get together over the holidays. Exchanging gifts and watching movies. And eating. And well... eating. Growing up I would say Christmas food for me was a lot about the cookies. My grandmother made the best cookies on the planet. She always had cookies in a cookie box, a rectangular Tupperware number,... Continue Reading →
by Janice Nigro We think it’s exciting, adventurous, and life changing to live and meet people around the world. I can say with certainty that it is. Right up until that moment you decide to leave, to move on. That final moment when you pass through airport security and you know you will make your... Continue Reading →
by Janice Nigro The odd bit about some of the less famous (small) places in the USA is that most of us start our lives in them. Or the only other way you might learn about them is by taking Southwest Airlines to fly across the country from one big city to reach another. Last... Continue Reading →
Janice Nigro 