Movies I watched: March + April

Hello Friends!

I'm back again with some movie reviews!

Frozen (2013)

Everyone has been talking about this movie for AGES, so when it was on the big screen during my flight home I decided to finally watch it all the way through! Caroline (the girl I nanny for) has been obsessed with it, and will not stop singing Let It Go, so I guess it was about time! I did really enjoy it, but I think my expectations must have been too high, because I wasn't as into it as I expected to be! I liked the overall message, and Hans is such a great character. The soundtrack is really great, it's perfect for doing housework and singing along to. But yeah, I didn't love it as much as I expected to.

Captain Phillips (2013)

This is another movie they showed on my plane to Sydney, and while I didn't really intend to watch it, this is one of those movies where once you've started watching it, you literally can't tear your eyes away until you find out what happens. In fact, I needed to go to the bathroom really badly about 3/4 of the way through, but couldn't move because I HAD TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENED. I think this movie was really well done, they kept the suspense up really effectively, and Tom Hanks was (as he is in literally everything) completely fabulous. Of course it's completely one sided, but I didn't really care, I was just so relieved that it was finally OVER. 

Saving Mr Banks (2013)

As a huge fan of both Mary Poppins and Disney, I'd been meaning to see this movie, but never found the time, until my flight to Vancouver! This movie is magical and I love it so much and if I could I'd watch it again tomorrow I love it so much. I love it so much I've started writing in run on sentences. Now, I'm not saying that it's a great movie, or an honest movie, or anything like that - I just love it. Mary Poppins (the movie) was a big part of my childhood, and I can sing along to pretty much all the songs word-for-word. This movie tells the story of how Walt Disney got P.L. Travers to sell him the rights to the movie. She was very protective of Mary Poppins, and hated musicals and animation, so was wary of Disney from the start. We see why Mary Poppins is so precious to her through flashbacks to her own childhood growing up in rural Queensland. Despite the fact that the title gives away the movies punchline, it is, in my opinion, completely wonderful. Tom Hanks is a fantastic Disney, but honestly the whole cast is amazing. I am not personally a fan of Paul Giamatti, but he is does an absolutely wonderful job in this. B.J. Novak (author of one of the books I read this month!) and Jason Schwartzman are completely amazing, and it was so fun to see Bradley Whitford in something other than the West Wing! I'm not going to say anymore because... well because I've gushed enough! But I really love this movie. 

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013)

Another movie I watched on a plane! And another I'd been intending to watch for ages! I really, really love this movie. It encourages adventurousness and imagination and impulsiveness and it's really, really wonderful. It stars Ben Stiller and Kristen Wigg, both of whom are brilliant, and it was so fun to see Adam Scott (Ben Wyatt in Parks and Rec) playing a mean guy! The soundtrack to this movie is absolutely beautiful, and features the David Bowie song Space Oddity used perfectly. The movie is visually stunning, and shows so many beautiful places around the world. This movie is really fun, really beautiful, and has a perfect soundtrack. You should see it.

Richie Rich (1994)

Okay, so this movie is generally considered to be really terrible, but I watched it when I was a kid and am unnaturally attached to it. Yes, it's completely ridiculous and silly, but I love it. He has his own McDonalds! They put foam in the fountains! They have an artist carve their faces into a mountain and call it Mount Richmore. What more could you want?? (I also watched this on the plane).

The Book Thief (2013)

This was the second time I watched this movie and I think I loved it more the second time. Don't get me wrong, I loved it the first time too, but the Book Thief is my favourite book (favourite ever, of all time) and I found it difficult to adjust to the sound of Death's voice. This movie is absolutely brilliant, and while nothing will ever be able to compare to the book, this is one of the best book-to-movie adaptations I've ever seen. If you haven't read the book I highly recommend you do, and then go see the movie! I had a lot of doubts about the casting, and while some of the characters don't visually match their descriptions, the actors have all managed to capture their spirits very well. Max in particular is completely brilliant and I love him and I'm not going to talk about it any more because if I do I'll cry. Just see this, please. (After you've read the book, obviously).

Mean Girls (2004)

I'm not ashamed to say that I love this movie A LOT. Tina Fey wrote it, and it stars both her and Amy Poehler. It is a masterpiece. Mean Girls is so funny and clever and memorable that it is still constantly quoted. My generation is obsessed with it, for good reason. Love it forever.

Captain America 2: The Winter Soldier (2014)

It's no secret that I love Captain America very, very much - he is my favourite super hero by FAR (he was already a hero before he got super serum-ed) (let's not talk about it), so I was expecting to like this movie - and I did! It's nothing miraculous, a lot of it is very predictable, and the twists were really obvious, but it was a really fun superhero movie, and it introduced a totally badass new character (Sam is my favourite). The Black Widow continued being amazing, and the movie basically completely changed the game for all future Marvel movies involving SHIELD. Yay!

Divergent (2014)

This movie is based on one of my favourite book series, and so I had high expectations. It's a trilogy of books, and the first one is amazing (and will blow your mind). The 2nd & 3rd go downhill (and the third book actually ends up going into totally bizarre territory) much like the Hunger Games series, but they're definitely still worth reading (in my opinion). Divergent was the first movie I ever went and saw by myself in a theatre, and I really, really enjoyed the whole experience. I really, really like the way they adapted this book! I think having Veronica Roth, the author of the books, producing would have really helped. I think they did a fantastic job. They made it a lot more of an action movie, and took away some of the more interesting character rivalries, but they did a good job. Despite leaving out several of my favourite scenes and quotes. This is a good movie! Yay for good movies! 

View from the Top (2003)

This is an old Gwyneth Paltrow movie I remember watching once with my Aunt & Uncle when I was babysitting for them. It's super corny, and is generally considered to be a really terrible movie (it has a 14% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes!). One critic said "The characters have no wit or charm, the plot has no conflict or development, nothing happens for any reason." Ouch! Nevertheless, I love watching bad movies, especially when I've had a bad day! This movie also stars the adorable Mark Ruffalo, and was really fun to watch. It's definitely not good, but it's fun.

The Sweetest Thing (2002)

Another bad movie, this was the first "raunchy" movie I ever saw, it was shown on TV one night and I accidentally tuned in. It's again, another fun movie, with a weird romance. But it has 3 girls having fun, and introduced me to the Pina Colada song, so I love it. 

America's Sweethearts (2001)

This movie is another fluffy movie I used to love, it doesn't stand up particularly well to rewatching, but it's nice enough. I love Julia Roberts and would watch whatever she was in, no matter how terrible (same goes for Tom Hanks). Billy Crystal basically is just Billy Crystal, Catherine Zeta-Jones plays a witchy A-lister, and it's all pretty predictable. 

That's all for now! 

Love
Jess

Should I stay or should I go?

Hello Friends!

I have once again proven that I am terrible at keeping up with this blog!

2 weeks ago I made the (fairly major) decision that things were not working out with the family I'm currently working for. Last Thursday I signed the paper work to be officially released to start looking for another family to work for. So I have until next Thursday to find another family.

To be honest, the entire process has been kind of terrifying and has left me feeling very powerless. Making the decision to leave was a fairly stressful process initially, but I feel confident that I made the right choice. I was fairly miserable in the preceding weeks, but have felt much more positive and upbeat since. 

The most frustrating part of the process so far has been that I have very little "power" in the matching process - while host families can search for au pairs freely, using any number of criteria, and can talk to many at once, I, as an au pair, see only one family, and have no ability to search for another - I only get what the agency gives me. Another problem I've found is that if there is a family who I know are not right for me, I have no ability to have them removed from my account - for a host family, they can instantly release any au pair they do not want, but I have to email someone at the agency, and wait for them to take action, which can take a whole day. I have only 14 days to find a new family, so when my days are eaten up with families who do not contact me, it can be kind of frustrating. 

I have, however, been put in contact with a family who I really like. They are still looking at another au pair I believe, but told me they were definitely interested when they emailed me on Monday night. It has not even been 2 full days since I talked to them, but I am already anxious that they have chosen another au pair. 

Regardless, I'm hoping everything will work out. I have approached this matching process quite differently than I approached it when I was first going through it. This time, I've decided that it has to be mutual - the family must like me, and I must like them. I am agreeing to work with them for 8 months, and so I have to feel like I can be happy living and working with them. I will not be content to just go with the first family who asks, unless I really feel that it is a good match.

I realise, for everyone reading this, that this is an incredibly dull topic, so I'm sorry to have rattled on for so long about it.

I am so, so incredibly grateful of how supportive my friends and family have been of me during this difficult time. In particular, my wonderful mum, who has been asking me to consider leaving for a while, has been so, so helpful (as she always is). My wonderful Aunt sent me a lovely email, and my amazing friends Viva & Lauren have both helped me tremendously to stay calm and be positive during this time! My Poppy sent me a lovely letter, which was so nice to receive. And of course, my darling Dad has maintained the steady stream of encouragements he's been sending me on postcards. Receiving mail makes me so, so happy.

I am so, so lucky to have so many incredible people in my life.

I love you all infinitely.

Jess

Books I read: March + April

Hello Friends

I read some really excellent books I'd love to share with you!

This is what Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith (YA)

This is a book that I'd already previously read & enjoyed, so when I spotted it on the shelves of Barnes & Noble one day when I was feeling like some comfort-reading, I instantly grabbed it! This is a really enjoyable story about two people who develop a friendship after emailing by accident, only for them to subsequently meet and for our heroine, Ellie, to discover the boy she's been emailing all along is a major movie star. Now, it all sounds very cliche (probably because it is) but the way the story is told is super lovely, I really like all the characters, and it ends up feeling very relatable. 

One More Thing: Stories and Other Stories by B.J. Novak

This collection of short stories is the funniest thing I have read in a long, long time. I don't think a book has ever made me laugh out loud this much! B.J. Novak was an actor, writer, director and executive producer for the brilliant TV show The Office (US version) and he is completely amazing. This book is incredibly wry and clever and a little bit sarcastic and I love it so much. Some of the stories are pretty long, and some are incredibly short (one is only a title and 2 lines!). Some of them interweave characters, but for the most part they are all stand alone. I highly recommend this book to absolutely everyone, the great thing about collections of short stories is that if one isn't exactly your style, the next might be. My personal favourite stories were The Market Was Down, Chris Hansen at the Justin Bieber Concert, The Best Thing in the World Awards, and The Something by John Grisham. Basically I could just list them all, that's how much I love this book. 

The Avery Shaw Experiment by Kelly Oram (YA)

This book is one of a few I bought intending to read them on my flight back to Philadelphia on my Kindle - I deliberately bought lighthearted, romantic YA, so that's what the next few books are! I really enjoyed this book, despite the fact that it is very cliche. Avery Shaw's best friend and lifelong love has recently decided he needs a break from being her friend, so she decides she needs to go through the 7 stages of grief to fully accept this, and she is helped by his attractive, charming older brother. The chapters alternate between Avery & Grayson (the older brother)'s perspectives, and was really fun to read. I liked how realistically it dealt with everyone's emotions, though I highly doubt anyone could ever be as clueless as Avery is. 

Solving for ex by Leigh Ann Kopans (YA)

This book is a modern day retelling of the Jane Austen novel Mansfield Park. I've never read Mansfield Park before, but I loved the last Austen modernisation I read (Epic Fail by Claire LeZebnik). Unfortunately I just don't think the Mansfield Park storyline is for me, and I found the way this author wrote the ending to be very, very abrupt, but overall it was still enjoyable. I found some of the antics hard to believe, but this was still a quick, easy read.

The Trouble with Flirting by Claire LaZebnik (YA)

Another lighthearted, romantic YA novel! I enjoyed this book, about a girl who goes to work at a theatre camp sewing costumes with her aunt, only to discover her childhood crush is there. But there's also another dude to starts showing interest in her, but is he being sincere? blahblahblah. This book was fun, and I read it in one sitting, but I found some of the characters completely unrelatable and ridiculous. 

Veronica Mars: The Thousand Dollar Tan Line by Rob Thomas and Jennifer Graham

I'm going to come straight out and say it - I loved this book. I adore the TV series more than anything (Veronica is my hero and she basically inspired me to care less about stupid people in high school), and I helped fund the movie that recently came out! This book follows on from where the movie ends, and while I found the movie to be quite disappointing, this book makes up for it. The dialogue has always been what's made Veronica Mars such a wonderful show, and the dialogue is what makes the book so great. The characters all 'sound' spot on throughout the book, and as I was reading I could hear them in my head. It's so fun to have the story continuing! The great thing about this book is that you don't need to have seen the show or movie to understand what's going on. I just realised I haven't even said what the story's about AT ALL haha. Veronica is back in her hometown, and is called upon to solve a crime! A college student visiting on Spring break has gone missing, and it's up to Veronica to find out what happened! I found the crimes a little messy, and there wasn't really any way to put the clues together until Veronica did her big reveal, but I still really enjoyed this book. I can't wait for the next one! 

two boys kissing by David Leivthan

David Levithan is one of my favourite authors. Everything of his that I have read, I have loved, and his novel Boy Meets Boy is one of my top 5 favourite books. So it's safe to say I went into this novel expecting to love it. I found it kind of difficult to get into originally, because it's written from an unusual perspective. This book is narrated by the generation of gay men who died from AIDS, as they look down on the gay teenagers of the present. Like I said - very unusual. But it also makes this book unique and so, so insightful. You, as the reader, are offered a window into the lives of a handful of teenagers, while being shown why these lives are so important. The gay rights movement has come a long, long way in the last few decades, and being gay is becoming, in most parts of the world, much more accepted (I wish there was a different word I could use here. Celebrated? Suddenly it's not a big deal at all and we all just get used to the idea that some people are straight and some people are gay and some people identify as all sorts of other things, and it's not a big deal? I guess accepted is better than tolerated.) But this book is still hugely important. One of my favourite quotes from this book is "Just because it's better now doesn't mean that it's always good." People are still bullied and beaten and killed for being gay. Or for being perceived as gay. And that's why I think it is so important that everyone reads this book. Every parents and every teenager in particular, because nothing else will help you to understand why acceptance and love are so important, for everyone, but especially for teenagers who feel they are risking something by coming out. 

This subjects covered in this book are obviously ones I'm very passionate about, so I'm sorry if I'm coming on too strong. The book centres around two boys planning to achieve the World Record for the longest kiss. The book flits from character to character, showing how they interact, how their lives are the same and different. Some of their families are fully accepting, some deliberately ignorant. The story that hurt the most to read was of the boy who was kicked out of his home when his family found out. The other amazing thing about this book is that it shows the lives of all these people without ever feeling preachy, or like it is pushing a message down your throat. It is just telling these characters stories. This book also features a trans character, which is so wonderful, because no other mainstream novel I've read has so much as mentioned a trans character. 

(Full disclosure: I read this book at 8am in a Starbucks in New York City and ended up quietly weeping in the corner. David Levithan is amazing. This book is, at times, confronting (and honest), so if you're looking for something less likely to make you sad and/or mad, I highly, highly recommend Boy Meets Boy, or Will Grayson, Will Grayson, by David Levithan and John Green).

So yes. I'm sorry this is so long. Read this book. If you are a parent, you need to read this book. If you are a teenager, you need to read this book. But I believe that if you are a human being, you should read this book. It will help you to feel empathy if you need help with that. And it will give you insight. And it will hopefully help everyone to be more accepting of everyone around them, whoever they are.  

(Trigger Warning & Spoiler Alert: This book discusses one character's suicide attempt, various character's being taunted and having things thrown at them, and one character being physically beaten).

I really like the books I read over the last couple months, and I have lots more books to read!

I'm currently reading Orange is the New Black, One Summer: America 1927, A Sunburned Country and The Art of Fielding!

Lots of Love,

Jess

P.S If you have any book suggestions, pretty please let me know! 

The Girl Who Was Bad At Blogging

Hi Friends! I'm back! 

Sorry about the unexpected break! Things have been kind of weird over the last month or so & I haven't much felt like blogging. I spent 2 weeks back home in Brisbane, which was lovely, but leaving made me really sad, and I found it difficult to get used to being so far away again. But I'm getting there. I'm so blessed to have the wonderful friends and family I do. I get by with a little help from my friends.

This week was my 2nd back in Philly, and it was easier than the first. I've been making an effort to do fun things for myself, but also letting myself take breaks and naps. I LOVE naps. I only had 2 nap days this week (I have to get up at 6am every weekday for my job, so once the kids are on the bus I sometimes go back to sleep at ~8am for a few hours), which is pretty good, considering I REALLY wanted to nap on Friday (but didn't). 

It's really warming up at the moment, last weekend it was 26 degrees! crazyness. Luckily Tuesday & Wednesday were cool & rainy, so I really loved that! If you're ever in a rainy-day situation, I would suggest that the "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" soundtrack is PERFECT for such listening conditions. It features Jose Gonzalez and Junip, as well as some other lovely songs. I've also been loving Ingrid Michaelson's new album Lights Out. So there's that.

I'm going to do my best to keep this blog more up to date with the bits and pieces I get up to, as well as my incredibly astute (I'm sure) observations about life in Philadelphia. I have LOTS of books and movies I want to share with you. 

Lots of love,
Jess

Movies I watched: February

It's no secret that I LOVE watching movies! So I thought I'd give you my thoughts on some that I've watched recently.

The Butler (2013)

I'm cheating with this one, because I actually watched it in January - but I wanted to sneak it in anyway. To be completely honest I didn't love it, but I'm not sure if that's because of the movie itself, or because I watched it on my flight from LAX to JFK, after my 10+ hours travelling from Brisbane! Nevertheless, I didn't find it completely gripping, but the characters were interesting and it was well acted. Maybe I would have enjoyed it more if I knew more about American presidents?

Penelope (2006)

I really loved this movie! It's a modern fairytale type story, and the cast is WONDERFUL: Christina Ricci, James McAvoy, Reese Witherspoon, Peter Dinklage, and Nick Frost all star. While it's not the best movie I've ever seen, it was a really fun movie to curl up and watch on Valentine's Day. I like the story and the soundtrack, which features music from some of my favourite bands, made the movie even more enjoyable to watch. I recommend this one if you like lighthearted movies! I especially like the (somewhat surprising) ending.

The Host (2013)

Another movie I loved! I've been waiting to see this film for quite a while, as I absolutely love the novel it's based on (Yes it's by Stephanie Meyer, no it's not terrible!). This movie was mostly a wonderful adaptation, and I really enjoyed watching it! I think it was really well cast, and I loved all the characters in the movie just as much as I did in the book! This movie does have some scifi elements, so if you're not into that, this may not be for you. I highly recommend reading the book first - it is quite long, but for the most part, doesn't feel that way as you are reading it! (You should just always read the book first. Always.)

That Awkward Moment (2014)

Despite the fact that this movie has been receiving awful reviews, with a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 12% (ouch), I quite enjoyed it! Haha I've been saying that a lot, I guess I'm easily entertained! I think what saved this movie for me was the totally charming cast - the plot was nothing new, and it wasn't particularly funny, but it was easy enough to watch, so I didn't mind it!

About Last Night (2014)

Let's be real: I hated this movie! Despite the fact that it has somehow managed to get 76% on Rotten Tomatoes, it still sucked. Maybe I just didn't enjoy it because I really dislike Kevin Hart, who plays the main character, and don't find him funny at all? It was raunchy for the sake of being raunchy, and didn't really tell a story. I don't think I laughed more than twice, which, for a movie that's supposed to be a comedy, is saying something. Ugh. I want my $12 back!

Thor (2011)

Happened to catch this movie on TV at a friend's house, and found that it stands up to rewatching - Loved it the first time, still like it now! The dialogue's still witty, and plot's still interesting and the cast are still fantastic. Nothing much more to say!

Katy Perry: Part of Me (2012)

I put this movie on Netflix to have something in the background while I wrote some letters, and I ended up getting pretty engrossed haha! It's a fairly typical concert movie, mixing footage of live performances with interviews with fans & friends and 'behind the scenes' footage. The story covers the Part Of Me tour and the simultaneous breakdown of Katy Perry's marriage to Russell Brand, which makes it a little more interesting I guess? Seeing her sob in costume 30 seconds before she bursts onto stage singing was a little heartbreaking, but I still feel like the 'documentary' makers were exploiting it. Oh well, it was still fun to watch and the music is super catchy!

& That's all! Hopefully I'll be on track to finish my 52 movies in 52 weeks project at the end of the year! 11 down, 41 to go!

Books I read: Jan + Feb

Yay for book reviews! 

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

I really loved this book! My mum read it with her bookclub and recommended I read it, and I'm really glad I did! It's very clever, and very funny! I think Rosie is a truly wonderful character and I loved reading about her. I really enjoyed the way the book was written and don't really have anything more to say!

The Nanny Diaries by Nicola Kraus & Emma McLaughlin

Another highly enjoyable book! I brought this book with me, thinking it would be fun to read seeing as I am now a nanny. I read this book during my first week living with my host family, which was an excellent decision. It helped me realise that whatever this family's quirks are, they will never, ever be as bad as the family portrayed in this book! This book was really fun and easy to read, and I remember really enjoying the movie made about it as well. The authors have done a great job of showing how you can adore a child you care for while having difficulties working with their parents! 

She Went All The Way by Meg Cabot

I thought this book was going to be nice, easy to read chick-lit, but it had a weird twist that made it more of an action/adventure book, but it was still pretty good. I didn't love it, but it's the perfect holiday/plane book. The premise is the pretty stereotypical "2 people hate each other, get stranded together with no hope of rescue, fall in love" type of thing, with some added gun fights and chases through snow storms. 

The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson (YA)

I really love this book, which looks at the life of the daughter of a PTSD sufferer. This book is incredibly well written and the characters are all perfectly flawed. While it does deal with some really heavy, difficult topics (drug use, suicide, domestic violence), I never felt overwhelmed, or like I was being manipulated. I really hate it when authors use sudden twists, or overly emotive language for the sole purpose of manipulating the reader into being emotional (like I feel Jodi Piccoult does). Laurie Halse Anderson is a wonderful author, and I really love one of her other novels, Speak. I highly recommend this book.

Severed Heads, Broken Hearts (now called The Beginning of Everything) by Robyn Schneider (YA)

Another book I really enjoyed! I kind of expected to hate this book, based on it's title and synopsis, so don't let those things fool you! The book is nothing like it's synopsis implies! I honestly feel it's been slightly mismarketed. This book, about a high school senior who has a major car accident right before his senior year starts, is funny and brilliant and smart. It's really hard to describe what exactly it's about - it's mostly just about life. 

Where She Went by Gayle Forman (YA)

This book is the sequel to "If I Stay", one of my favourite books I read in 2013, so I had high hopes for this book. While it doesn't come anywhere near having the emotional impact of "If I Stay", about Mia deciding if she'll stay after a major car accident kills her family and leaves her in a coma. Despite the fact that it sounds incredibly morbid and depressing, it is so well written and so, so well done that I still love it. It's hard to talk about this book without spoiling "If I Stay", the fact that there is a sequel kind of hints at how it ended, but it is still definitely worth reading. Honestly, I didn't enjoy "Where She Went" as much as I expected to. It's written from the perspective of Adam, Mia's boyfriend at the time of the crash. He's not a character I particularly cared for in the first book, and I didn't enjoy his perspective at all. But I do enjoy having some closure on what happened after the first book. So while I think "If I Stay" is a must read, you can probably skip "Where She Went". Nevertheless, I read this book in one sitting, and it is incredibly well written and easy to read, even if I don't like the protagonist. 

Meant To Be by Lauren Morrill (YA)

Another cute, easy to read holiday book! On a high school trip to London, Julia starts receiving mysterious texts from an unknown suitor. Her nemesis, Jason, vows to help her find the sender. Despite having a completely cliche premise, this book was still really enjoyable, and didn't go down the paths I expected it to, based on the blurb. In made me fall in love with London and want to visit immediately, which is quite an accomplishment! This book was fun and not as cliche as I expected, so I really enjoyed reading it and finished it in one day. 

haha okay so I am clearly not destined to be a book reviewer! But I still want to keep a record of the books I read and movies I watch, so I'll try and keep up to date on those things at least every 2 months!

Better

Hello again!

Since my last weird post, I'm feeling much better. On Tuesday I went out to dinner with 2 other au pairs and it was really nice! We're meant to be going to see a movie tonight as well! I like getting to leave the house haha.

On Monday when I went out for my walk, I went via Good Karma. I was looking forward to trying a 'Cinderella' but (shock, horror) they've changed to their Spring Menu! So I am looking forward to trying a whole range of new drinks! There's the Buttercup latte and the Dandy Lion and the Spring Fling and my gosh all the names are so cute! I walked into the city in a completely new way, so I got to see a whole bunch of new things, which was fun. I ended up having lunch at Shake Shack, an American chain of burger restaurants. The Cheeseburger and Fries were average (sidenote: why do people put cheese on burgers? IT DOESN'T BELONG THERE), but the Shake (or frozen custard) was made of magic. After Shake Shack I wandered to my bank, and I have to say something I never thought I'd say - I love my bank. Everytime I go in, there are at least 3 people I recognise behind the counter. Last time I went in my favourite teller exclaimed that she hadn't seen me for 2 weeks! And asked how I was. This time I had a new teller, but she was super lovely, asked about my accent (which she correctly identified as Australian, not British!) and was generally really friendly and helpful! 

Unfortunately this walk meant that my blister doubled in size, so since then I've been avoiding walking as much as possible! (Which basically means I've had an excuse to stay in bed & watch The Good Wife for 3 days in a row... shhh). Today I went grocery shopping, which was pretty fun! Leaning on the trolley helped me avoid walking on my blister haha! 

So this is just an update to say that things are going a little better. I'm still not the social butterfly queen of Philadelphia, but I'm feeling happier. 

Lots of Love,

Jess

Homesickness.

Today was a really hard day. Today was the first time since I left 6 weeks ago that I have genuinely regretted leaving. That I have wished to be home, with my family. I don't know exactly what brought it on. I think maybe I'm lonely. The 2 other au pairs who live closest to me who I occasionally see don't really include me in their plans (which is okay. they don't have to). I am not 21, so I can't join them on most of their expeditions anyway. I don't have any real friends in Philadelphia. But I can work on changing that. That is within my control. I spent most of this morning feeling sad and stayed in bed watching (can you guess?) The Good Wife. But I left the house for a few hours (more on that in a later post) and walked around. Talked to the lovely, friendly people who work at my bank. I came home feeling better. I have so many plans. I want to take piano lessons, Japanese lessons, cooking lessons. I want to adventure around Philadelphia, walk down streets I haven't yet. I want to have people in Philly who are my people. I will work on that. 

I came home feeling better. Then I saw I had mail - a postcard and a card. The postcard from my Daddy made me smile - I love, love, love receiving mail. I don't think I've ever felt more loved than the past month, my family are the best. As soon as I opened the card, I completely lost it. My wonderful, brilliant, beautiful mother had filled a whole card, inside and out, with her handwriting. I miss my parents so much that sometimes it's a physical ache. I try to stay busy and ignore it, but today it bubbled out. But that's okay. It's okay to be sad sometimes. And I know that while I'll always miss them, it won't always be this hard. 

I know this post is going to be weird for anyone other than me to read. But to be completely honest, I'm not writing it for anyone else, I'm writing it for me. I know that everything is going to be okay. I know that I really love Philadelphia. and I know that I really, really love these kids. 

When I met the bus this afternoon (it was on early, which it never is, so I was the only nanny there to meet it!) my kids came tumbling off the bus. C put her arm through mine, and R, who normally hates holding hands, grabbed mine and held it and told me a story. I love these kids. They make me happy and they are the reason I am here. They make me laugh, and they make me frustrated, and they make me happy. I am glad that I am here. I am glad that I chose to come halfway round the world and live in a new city with new people. I will persevere. I can do this.  

Other days will be easier. This too shall pass.

(I'm sorry if you're reading this. I just needed to get this all out, so in a couple days I can come back & read it. I know it doesn't make much sense or have any structure. I'm sorry)

Crazy weather, crazy week!

Hello again friends!

I think I may need to start getting used to rapidly changing weather in Philly! This week has been all over the place! As I strolled through the streets with my coffee on Tuesday, I didn't even think to make the most of the sunshine! What a mistake. 

On Wednesday I was determined to leave the house, despite feeling a little under the weather. Right as I was walking out the door, my HD (hostdad) suggested I grab an umbrella, as it looked like it was about to rain. I glanced out the window and noticed...it was very, very dark outside! Umbrella in hand, I pranced out the door... and the pouring rain started about 3 seconds later! As I reached the end of the block I considered turning around, going home and curling up with a book. But I didn't want to 'waste' another day doing nothing, so I persevered. And then the thunder and lightning started... very close by. Looking around I noticed there were very few other people walking on the normally busy streets... I wonder why? I reached Rittenhouse Square just as the wind picked up and turned my umbrella inside out! I decided it would be best to take shelter in the nearest store I could find, which, luckily for me, was Barnes and Noble, the wonderful bookstore! I spent over an hour browsing and found 2 books and 2 magazines I couldn't leave without. Unfortunately the rain was still thundering down outside, so I perched in a corner and started reading! When everything had finally died down, I meandered home, and had a lazy afternoon. 

On Thursday I was feeling very lethargic and achy - I needed to sit down for a few minutes after a trip up or down the stairs, which is normally something I can do with ease several times a day. So Thursday was a day spent sleeping. Which unfortunately meant that I couldn't get to sleep until after midnight that night, because my body was too rested! I was glad to spend the day inside though, because it was very gray outside!

On Friday I ventured out to the grocery store (woohoo!), but as soon as I turned on the radio I heard "dense fog warnings". Exciting! Driving across the Benjamin Franklin Bridge (across the river) the fog was very, very dense - I could still see in front of me, but the cars overtaking me kept disappearing into the fog ahead of me! Speaking of overtaking... the speed limit on the bridge is normally 45 mph, but was changed to 25 mph because of the fog. That didn't stop all the cars around me going at least 50mph! American drivers are crazy! Unfortunately because the grocery shopping takes a few hours, and because my host parents go out on Friday nights, I ended up working more than 13 hours on Friday...ugh. I finished the day tired and grumpy, not least because the children had been given permission to stay up to 9:30pm, instead of going to bed at their usual 8pm! 

On Saturday I slept in until 12 (but given the crazy day before, I didn't feel too bad!) and, despite my plans to head into the city, even if just to visit the bank, I ended up spending most of the day in bed, watching The Good Wife! I'm addicted, it's so good! Hulu & Netflix have both been very bad for my productivity levels! I can watch almost any TV show or movie I want at anytime! The previous day my HM (hostmum) had mentioned that they had tickets to a contemporary dance show that night, but didn't want to go. She offered the tickets to me, which I of course gratefully and enthusiastically accepted! The show was called "Bad Boys of Dance" and I ended up with 3 tickets! Unfortunately the 2 friends I invited to come with me both had to work, so I ended up with 2 spare tickets. 

I decided that I could walk the 1.4 miles to the theatre, in University City, and because the snow has FINALLY melted, I wore my beautiful new boots. Anyone who knows me well will know that I've wanted a pair of proper cowboy boots for YEARS now, ever since I read "Kitty, Kitty" by Michelle Jaffe! These boots are the closest I've ever found to cowboy boots, and they were only $15! It was a really nice walk, but I underestimated how warm the 16 degree weather would be! It was -7 degrees earlier in the week but now it's 16 degrees! Crazy! When I arrived at the theatre and picked up my tickets, I asked if I could donate the 2 spare tickets to the next people arriving to purchase tickets. The kind people at the box office informed me that all they could do was swap the tickets for tickets to the next performance, but they had no control over what I could do... Taking this advice, I waited for the next person to enter the line, and offered him my tickets - he only needed one, so I gave it to him. At this point, the Box Office Manager came marching over and informed me, in very strict tones, that I was not allowed to sell tickets in the lobby! I told him I just wanted to give it as a gift! He let me give the one ticket to the man, but then got right up in my face and forcibly suggested that swapping the other spare ticket would be best for everyone. He grabbed the ticket from my hand and went and swapped it for me. While it wasn't the most pleasant experience I've ever had, I understand that he was just doing his job. 

Anyway, the dance performance was AMAZING, they blended ballet and contemporary dance techniques which was stunning. The beautiful lines, and jumps, and twirls of ballet mixed with the fun and energy, and physicality of contemporary dance was so much fun to watch! It was all set to pop music and the dancers were amazing. The only thing I didn't love was that the only female dancer was dressed in skimpy outfits, and her only role in the whole show appeared to be "Hot girl arrives on scene, boys dance off for her." However, there were some truly amazing dance sequences. One, set to "The Scientist' by Coldplay, while (disappointingly) not done backwards (let's face it, how amazing/impossible would that have been), was danced mainly by the woman and the main male dancer, simulating fighting and anger. Dance-simulated fight scenes are some of my favourite things ever, so I obviously loved this number! Overall, the whole performance was so energetic and joyful that I left feeling super energised and upbeat! I am so grateful that I got the chance to see this performance, and didn't have to pay for it!  I also have a ticket for the next contemporary performance in March, which should be super fun to go to! When I tried to give the ticket back to my HM, because the tickets were hers in the first place, she informed me that because they were on the board, they got tickets to all the performances anyway, so this one was mine to keep! She also let me know that in future, if there are any performances they don't want to go to, they're more than happy for me to take their tickets! So generous and kind! 

Unfortunately the ~3 mile round trip to the theatre in my new boots has left me with a massive blister right in the centre of my heel, so my plans of adventuring today have been cancelled. I'm going to spend the rest of the afternoon in bed, watching more Good Wife! And I've just discovered that Good Karma is open from 7am-10pm EVERYDAY so... maybe I'll go sit there for a while! 

I'm sorry this is such a massive essay, you get +100 brownie points if you made it to the end! 

All my love,

Jess

Mission Accomplished

Hello friends!

Mission accomplished - I made it to Good Karma cafe! And it was even more amazing than I ever could have imagined! It's the kind of cafe where people sit for hours with their notebooks and laptops and "write novels". They have a full blackboard of winter specials, including the delightful sounding 'Cinderella' (some form of pumpkin spice latte) and 'London Fog' (a special kind of Earl Grey tea!). My first foray into their coffee was a Candycane Mocha and it was quite nice! The barista did a wonderful job of making sure it was the perfect temperature - warm enough to keep my hands warm, cool enough to drink straight away! One of my personal pet peeves is when a coffee is waaay too hot to drink straight away (looking at you, Starbucks). 

I actually haven't been drinking very much coffee since I've moved to Philadelphia - which is kind of strange for me, given that I normally drink coffee every time I leave the house at home, or when on holidays! I have a feeling Good Karma is going to break me of my new habit, as I want to go back and try all their specials! 

I also discovered a wonderful cafe called 'Sabrina's' on Saturday, I went for brunch with some of my friends and it was splendid. I guess the one downside is that on the weekends you could be waiting for up to an hour for a table, and when you get inside it is quite noisy! But the food is spectacular! Their brunch menu changes every 2 weeks, but at the moment it's Beyonce themed, so I tried the "Destiny Fully-Filled" French Toast, which was marvelously decadent and over the top! The serving size was big enough for at LEAST 2 hungry people! 

On Sunday night I went out with the same friends to see a movie! We saw 'That Awkward Moment', which was WAY better than I thought it was going to be, but was still kinda predictable. I'm looking forward to more movie outings soon!

I hope your day is going marvellously! My next mission is to try Shake Shack for lunch tomorrow!

Love

Jess

Welcome to Philadelphia!

Hello friends!

It's been just over a month since I arrived in the USA, and I've decided (with a little encouragement from the lovely Viva) to start documenting my experiences on this blog. I can't promise that it will always be exciting or interesting for anyone other than me, but hopefully it'll be fun to write! 

I am absolutely loving living in Philadelphia! All the streets around where I live are full of red brick terrace houses (or row houses, as I am learning to call them!) and it is such fun to walk around and see how people have managed to personalize their houses! There are so many planter boxes under windows, which I find charming! 

I realised recently that despite the fact that I've spent many days wandering around exploring the city, there are places VERY close to my house that I haven't even looked at! There is a coffee shop very, very close by that I haven't stepped foot in! There is an adorable looking shop called 'Pancake' and a Bagel shop called 'Spread', both of which I walk past on a daily basis but haven't called in to buy something delicious! So my aim for the next couple of weeks is to continue finding lovely, new places to visit! My mission for tomorrow is to buy a hot chocolate from the coffee shop that is so close to me! I will let you know how I go! 

Last week I found Joseph Fox Bookshop while wandering down a street I hadn't walked down before, and was thrilled to discover such a tiny, filled-to-the-brim independent bookstore in my new city! I always judge a new bookshop by how extensive their range of children's books is (not sure why, but it works!) and found that they have a whole room dedicated to picture books, children's books and young adult books! Wonderful! Unfortunately because it is a relatively small space they only have room for one book by each author, but it was still such a nice find! 

Alright I think I'm done with this post! It was a little all over the place, but I hope you enjoyed it! 

Lots of love, Jess