Memoir | Virtually Gina

Deprogramming the Messages from a Christian Science Childhood

July 4, 2022 by Gina Marie

“It’s not that easy to let go of the way you were taught to think about everything.” -Leah Remini, Season 1: Episode 10 Scientology and the Aftermath I have recently begun to re-evaluate a chapter of my life I thought had closed long ago: that is, the departure from my childhood religion, Christian Science. I haven’t set foot in the church in nearly a decade, nor read the literature, nor followed the principles with which I’d been raised — not […]

Categories: Memoir • Tags: christian science, Memoir, religious trauma

Lessons Learned from a Year in New York

April 21, 2018 by Gina Marie

I’ve always loved cities. I love the hustle and bustle, the cool architecture, the colorful street art. When my husband and I made the decision to move from suburban Monmouth County, New Jersey, to the crown jewel of all American cities last year, it seemed like a dream come true. From the very beginning, I knew that there would be sacrifices. Steep housing costs and cramped living quarters were just the beginning. In preparation, I got rid of as much […]

Categories: America, Humor, Memoir, New York, New York City, Personal, Recovery, Urban • Tags: Humor, Memoir, New York, New York City

The Bridge That Glows Golden

February 14, 2016 by Gina Marie

It was nearly midnight on my last night in Budapest, and I was perched by a bay window in our room at the Sofitel, where my new husband and I were staying on the final night of our honeymoon. The room had a magnificent view of the Lanchid, or “Chain Bridge”, aglow with golden lights that spanned the Danube river. As I gazed out the window, I felt tears welling up in my eyes. * * * My father and his family […]

Categories: Ancestry, Budapest, Europe, History, Memoir, Personal, Photography, Travel • Tags: Budapest, Family HIstory, Hungary, Memoir, Photography, Travel

My Kind Of Town . . . To Visit

March 15, 2015 by Gina Marie

That Toddling Town It was half a lifetime ago when I made my first visit to Chicago. I was 18 years old, a college freshman on a road trip to DC with a group of friends. We crashed for a night on the outskirts of America’s third largest city, and I marveled at the unfamiliar, slightly gritty, architecture and the way the buildings all seemed to crowd together. On our way out, we drove past a billboard on 1-90 which […]

Categories: America, Chicago, Memoir, Photography, Travel, Urban • Tags: America, Chicago, Memoir, Photography, Travel, Urban

Just One Tiny Bite

August 9, 2014 by Gina Marie

Summertime 2006. I was with my friend Dylan, who suggested that we go out for ice cream. “I’m trying to lose weight,” I reminded him. “Ice cream is strictly on the ‘forbidden foods’ list.” “So just come keep me company,” he suggested. I shrugged and followed him to the car, taking my usual spot in the passenger seat as he drove the approximately three miles to the nearest Dairy Queen. At the drive through window, he ordered one large Heath […]

Categories: Food, Friendship, Humor, Memoir, Short Story • Tags: Humor, Memoir, Short Story, summer

A Storm of Herculean Proportions

January 3, 2014 by Gina Marie

Ah, the post-holiday afterglow: Chrismas lights still adorn houses, the air is cool, presents have long been unwrapped, and New Year’s toasts have all been exchanged. It’s time for a fresh start and, apparently, a fresh snowfall. (Thank you, Winter Storm Hercules.) I’m a Minnesotan by birth, so I should be used to this. Still, even I–who have lived in Philadelphia going on three years–was surprised by the intensity of last night’s storm. I attempted to capture it from my […]

Categories: America, Earth, Holidays, Life, Memoir, Minnesota, Philadelphia, Photo Essay, Photography, Trees, Winter • Tags: America, Earth, Hercules, Holidays, Life, Memoir, Minnesota, Philadelphia, Photo Essay, Photography, Storm, Trees, Winter

One Week Ago Today

January 27, 2013 by Gina Marie

Sunday morning, 6 a.m. Streetlamps still flooded Lexington Avenue, and the first hint of light was barely detectable in the skies overhead. In search of an elusive breakfast joint, I settled for a medium coffee from a national chain known for their remarkably strong brews. My husband, Jeff, was trying to hold out until we could find the restaurant. With the styrofoam cup nestled snugly in the crook of my palm, and my Nikon D-SLR swinging from the strap around […]

Categories: Memoir, New York City, Photography, Travel • Tags: Memoir, New York City, Photography, Travel