My name is Jennifer Gingras. I was Jennifer Campanile for a while, but it didn’t fit me well.

I am not the only Jennifer Gingras (and wasn’t the only Jennifer Campanile). I’m the one born and raised in Vermont, reorganized in Northern California, and educated in Washington, DC. After finding any excuse to get back to NorCal for years, I found myself most at home in Oakland in 2011, where my spouse and I started our family. Thanks to the disabling effects of Covid-19 on this one body of mine, to say nothing of the effect of Oakland Unified School District on my kids, we returned to the Green Mountain State in 2024. (You can find that story at Moving Sideways, the Substack newsletter I maintained as we crossed the country with two kids and a Westie.)

I started blogging using Blogspot in 2001 because it was more efficient than sending mass emails to friends. I eventually deleted that blog during one of those times when you shouldn’t make snap decisions. Whoopsie. (Seriously? I still have journals from the first grade. I can’t believe I threw away that much writing.)

I also blogged in MySpace for a while, because that’s where my people were, but I finally bought my own domain in 2008.

Welcome! Please use your inside voice.
(Opinions of all shades are welcome; malicious comments may will be deleted at my discretion.)

I’ve always been a writer and an editor. Occasionally, I have been a Writer, published here and there with pieces I like less than some of my eulogies, love letters, and lit theory essays. I moved from print publications (+web when I had time) into full-time web work in 2007; for the next 16 years, I made my living trying to improve and measure online (mostly) communication and engagement. On the best days, I pulled together the right people, understood the audience, crafted the best message(s), applied the right technology, pressed “go,” then measured and optimized.

On the worst days, I just pressed “go.”

I have a bachelor’s degree that says I’m a journalist who could not pass up a law or government class. I am addicted to CNN MSNBC not having cable. Also to marathoning scifi shows I should’ve watched ages ago or haven’t seen in ages (Babylon 5 quotes are always welcome).

I have a master’s in communication from Johns Hopkins University with a concentration in digital communication…or: A Master’s Degree In My Job. Making the time to reload my theoretical knowledge and tune in to cutting-edge stuff was a phenomenal opportunity; it helped me formalize web expertise that’s hard to quantify on a resume.

I’m an irreverent Cradle Catholic. Do not be surprised to find here discussions of doctrine and denouncements of dogma.

In 2014, I became a competitive masters rower. In 2015, I got a lot more competitive, found myself elected to my club’s Board of Directors, and led the redesign of club’s website before ducking out to have son #2.

Turning into an athlete was the biggest surprise of my adult life, by far, until Covid-19 reorganized so many of my molecules that I’m still sorting out the damage.

I’m all over the place and now I’m here.

Pleased to meet you.

(Additional: I finally started a Life List.)