Life of JEM: My Life In The Inland Empire

A BLOG ABOUT THE ZANY CHILDHOOD AND ADULT ADVENTURES OF A GIRL FROM THE INLAND EMPIRE WHO MOVED OUT OF THE INLAND EMPIRE ONLY TO END UP BACK IN THE INLAND EMPIRE.

Tuesday, March 31, 2015

ghost of bodies past

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I had an epiphany at a Target while on cold medicine last week. I was stumbling through the aisles, drowsy, and saw myself in the mirror. ...

Saturday, March 7, 2015

Memories

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I have come to realize that I am only truly happy when writing. The act of punching the keys gets me out of my head. At times, I am an anx...

Friday, January 30, 2015

On The Outside

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There is an Oingo Boingo song called "I'm on the Outside". It goes like this: "This is where it all begins. On the outs...

Sunday, December 28, 2014

The Mountain

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"Daddy, I can't see anything," a young girl said. That was my own voice I heard in my dream last night. My eyes shot open an...

Thursday, December 11, 2014

The Coolness

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One eye halfway closed, I type and listen to my husband snore beside me. I am warm, but it is cold and windy outside. Every night, I put o...

Sunday, November 23, 2014

Coming Home

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"But my heart cried out for you, California. Oh California, I'm coming home. Oh make me feel good rock n' roll band. Califor...

Friday, November 21, 2014

Where do we go now?

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Sometimes, I use this blog as my own personal therapy session. I work out things on the page so I can work them out in life. This can have...

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About Me

Juanita E. Mantz (JEM): JEM's life story is the stuff that memoirs are made of. JEM went from punk rock high school dropout to corporate lawyer to rock star deputy public defender and nonfiction writer. JEM's stories, blog and video podcast document her journey so take a look! Her YA memoir, "Tales of an Inland Empire Girl", is available via Los Nietos Press (and through all national retailers). Her book tells the poignant story of her chaotic YA life growing up in the IE. Her chapbook, "Portrait of a Deputy Public Defender, or how I became a punk rock lawyer", was also released in Aug 2021 by Bamboo Darts Press. JEM is married to her wonderful husband Adrian who is a dentist. They have two Shih Tzus, Frodo and Chewbaca (Chewie to his friends). Her work has been published in Aljazeera, The Acentos Review, The Dirty Spoon Radio Hour, Entropy, As/Us, Inlandia, & Mutha magazine, among others. Go to her author website for more info at https://juanitaemantz.com. JEM is in the creative writing MFA low residency program at UNO. She has presented at AWP, Beyond Baroque and the UCR Punk Conference.

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