Five years ago, I watched KABC cover the breaking news of you shaving your head in Sherman Oaks. I remember thinking: “She is so lucky, but why does she cry? If there is nothing missing in her life, why do tears come at night?”
But here I am – not a girl, not quite a woman – and it’s all coming into focus for me. One’s 20′s um, suck. They’re filled with heartache, self-doubt, and for some, a burning desire to shave off every last lock.
My 17-year-old heart sank that night, Brit. The sexy, cool, southern charmer that led me through my adolescence lost her way. I couldn’t imagine what you were dealing with to take such drastic measures. While we now know that incident may have been related to your alleged bipolar disorder, you also undoubtedly were experiencing a quarter-life crisis.
A basic Google search led me to this description of QLC:
“People experiencing a quarter life crisis often feel “lost, scared, lonely or confused” about what steps to take in order to transition properly into adulthood.” – Wikipedia, duh
This anxiety can be caused by the end of relationships, family pressure, and career goal concerns. Most note-worthy, it can lead to ‘acting out,’ (see: shaving your head, vandalizing cars with umbrellas, binge eating, etc).
Listen, B – 2012 has done to me what 2007 did to you. While I haven’t shaved my head (yet), I can understand why that seemed like your only option. After a certain point, it feels like your hair might be the last thing within your control. Ok, fine, that’s dramatic, but whatever.
I just wish I didn’t judge you, Britney of 2007.
I wish I could have called you up for drinks (maybe just tea for you) to hug it out. Because it turns out, you were once again blazing the way for girls like me. You showed us that hey, life might get a little shitty in your third decade, and that’s OK.
You ended up surviving that rough patch, B. You found true love – fingers crossed for this one, – you lost your meltdown weight, and you make 15 million dollars to sit in a chair.
While I can only hope for, at most, two of those things at the end of my third decade, I can hope for something – and that’s thanks to you, B.
Let this early 00′s country jam feel your feelings while you softly sob in a crowded, public space. It gets better.
2. Who You Are, Jessie J
“It’s ok not to be ok/sometimes it’s hard to follow your heart.”
Quit strumming my pain with your fingers, Jessie J.
3. Gonna Get Over You …. scratch that, the entire Kaleidoscope Heart album, Sara Bareilles
The Kaleidoscope Heart album phase will likely be the longest of your healing process: embrace it.
Nobody needs to know you spent your entire 30 minute commute listening to one SarBar song, (see: Basket Case).
4. New Beginning, Pascal Pinon
Giiirrrrrrrrlllllllllll.
5. Darlin’ Do Not Fear, Brett Dennen
Why this song marks your halfway point: You realize that moving forward is a one-day-at-a-time deal. Be patient with yourself. And remember,the familiar is not always good; the unknown is not always bad.
6. We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together, Taylor Swift
We all need to give in to T Swift from time to time. Obvi, healing from heartbreak is one of those times. And, if you’re ready for this track – congrats! You’re moving out of the pain and into the ready-to-take-back-control-phase. Yay you!
7. Merry Happy, Kate Nash
“Chatting on the phone/can’t take back those hours/but I won’t regret/’cause you can grow flowers/from where dirt used to be.”
Whip your hair back and forth, girl. It’s been a long road, but you’re moving forward.
8. Irreplaceable, Beyonce
Your darkest days are behind you when you reach the Irreplaceable point.
Beyonce’s got your back when you’re ready to say: You’re dumb. #kthxbaiiii
9. Stronger, Kelly Clarkson
The only thing that can destroy this song’s feel-good vibes is listening to how you sound while singing it.
10. Domino, Jessie J
Hey, rockstar! Pour yourself a drink, put on some lipstick, and pull yourself together. You’re gonna be just fine.
2. Say yes – as often as possible. As any improviser will tell you, coming from a place of “Yes, and” is the best way to keep the show interesting. Same goes for daily adventures.
3. Living on your own is exhilarating and expensive.
4. Eating at least one bowl of ice cream with sprinkles each day – for any extended period of time – has its consequences.
5. Similarly, the body can only survive on pasta and rice for so long.
6. Managing long distance relationships with your family, friends, and significant others is tough. But, making the effort to keep in touch is worth building a strong support network.
6. Purge Facebook friends regularly. If you wouldn’t acknowledge or even recognize someone IRL, delete, delete, delete.
7. You may make choices that a younger you would not have made or agreed with – first, evaluate your decision considering moral and ethical standards. Then, ask yourself – “Do I really want the me from 2/5/10 years ago running my life?” Perspectives may change with age – embrace it.
8. Take out the trash a few times a week to prevent a bunch of small things from causing bigger issues. This is both metaphor and literal. Very, very literal.
9. If you find yourself saying, “There’s nothing good on TV;” consider that a blessing. Find a book to read, call a friend, stroll the neighborhood – use that couch time to do something productive/good/active.
10. Most adults are just kids that keep getting older. No one really has any idea what they’re doing.
11. Keeping that in mind, be kind to your parents, ok?
12. And, if you’re lucky enough to have them, be kind to your siblings, too.
13. As Uncle Vinnie says, “In life, there will people you like and there will be people you don’t like.” The trick is finding a way to work well with both.
14.Have a friend in need? Avoid doling out advice. Most times, the best way to help is to keep quiet and listen. People can often solve their own issues when given a chance to talk it out.
15. That being said, also avoid the Ann Curry interview voice. Talking slower and more softly often comes across as condescending. Obviously, it didn’t exactly work out for her. (Too soon?)
16. One deep breath can completely change your perspective. So, aim for one each hour to refocus.
17. Whether you’re employed or not, avoid spending your day sitting. Sedentary behavior inhibits your potential and I find, dampers positivity – get up, move around, change your scenery.
18. Unemployment is the absolute fucking worst. But, it doesn’t determine your value as a human being. Volunteer, read, explore, create, blog – don’t wait for a company and job title to give you purpose. Find your own.
19. Don’t be afraid to check your bank account. Know your money – having an accurate idea of how much you can and cannot spend is much better than feeling too anxious/guilty to do stuff. It’s your money, you’ve earned it (probably) – just use it wisely.
20. Your $200,000 diploma is not a free pass to stop learning. Continue to educate yourself. Continue to open your mind to new ideas. If you stop exploring at 21, that diploma means nothing.
21. Time flies whether you’re having fun or not. But, have fun. Go out for drinks on a week night. Use your vacation days. Eat too much birthday cake.
In two short weeks, I will board a plane headed for the states, pack up my summer abroad in overweight luggage, and leave behind the land of Oz.
When I thought about how I would describe the city to my family and friends back home, I worried I didn’t know it as well as I could. So, one morning I woke up and walked out the door without an agenda, map, or care in the world. I had a whole day ahead of me to explore, wander, and come up with a good story to tell.
I spent the first 30 minutes along George St – a central artery for the city. I normally walk this path each day during the first half of my commute to Channel 9. And, just a few blocks passed where I normally catch my bus, lies the always beautiful Sydney Harbor.
Here I saw the largest cruise ship OF ALL TIME.
If I had any balls at all I would have boarded the ship and let the chips fall where they may. But, this other big, white, shiney thing across the harbor stole my attention.
I followed the curved path along the harbor to the Sydney Opera House. I thought of all the history housed in this one building: the performers and patrons, the tourists and more importantly, the people who will never see this building in person. With those people in mind, I knew I had one thing to do. I had to touch it.
The view at the top of the opera house steps is breath taking. Surrounded by water, parks, and at this moment in time, construction, you have the distinct feeling that you are in fact on top of the world.
I breathed it in, twirled around, photobombed a few Asian tourists’ photos and decided to hit the road.
As my boyfriend, parents, friends, and anyone that’s ever met me around meal time can confirm, hunger hits me hard. My cave-man roots kick-in and I stop processing any information that doesn’t directly relate to me finding noms.
Luckily for me, I found a darling woman at a hole-in-the-wall deli who only wanted to asist my hunting and gathering. After panicking over the choices (food decisions induce anxiety for me), I landed on a spinach and ricotta roll – warm, healthy…ish, and cheap: the perfect meal.
After a short break, I continued onward back to George Street. I wasn’t quite ready to call it a day – although, I was craving the TimTams waiting for me at my apartment.
I wandered up an alley I often pass off of George St at Martin Place. A loud, stern, and quasi-dictatorial voice thundered over the loudspeakers (yeah, loudspeakers in the lamp posts…whaaa?) interrupting my ipod jam sesh and harshing my mellow.
“Who dare make me pause this brilliant music shuffle?” I demanded. Well, angry Aussie taxpayers, that’s who.
I inadvertantly walked straight into a highly populated protest against a carbon tax bill up for vote.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard ousted the former PM last year with a promise not to introduce a carbon tax. And now (!) Gillard is all, “Oh jk guyssss lol I’m gonna introduce a carbon tax.”
Needless to say, the taxpayers are not pleased.
I dodged, ducked, dived, dipped, and dodged my way through the crowd snapping pictures of the signs, mentally writing this blog post.
Sure, people stared. “Who is that unreasonably short girl with a pink-cased iPhone?” But I had no fucks to give. I’m a budding journo; I can’t just see a protest and keep walking! I have a journalism degree from Boston University and I plan to use it.
But, my fiery journo spirit cooled off quickly after I saw this woman:
scream at a couple that didn’t stop to join in the protest – “SHAME! SHAME ON YOU!”
I knew at that moment that I needed to flee. I would not have a single thing to say if I got called out by this broad.
I held my breath as I tiptoed past the crowds and continued up Prince Albert road towards Hyde Park.
At the entrance of Hyde Park I found this in the ground.
Whether it stands for Hyde Park or Harry Potter remains to be seen.
St. Mary’s Cathedral caught my eye across the street, and being the well-trained (read: guilt-filled) Catholic that I am, I decided to visit.
As it turns out, this was one of the most humbling and exquisite buildings I’ve ever seen. I did not take pictures inside – I think that’s disrespectful…unless it’s a wedding. Is that an actual rule? Anyway – if you’re ever in the area, definitely walk inside for a bit.
After the impromptu church stop, I realized I had walked for about four hours and decided to call it a day. Along the way, I passed a man carrying ten pints of Ben and Jerrys and thought – “Gee, that’s odd.”
Then, once I made it to Central Station, I saw the biggest Ben and Jerrys give away in all of Australia!
If you donated one dollar to the Oz Harvest charity you could walk away with as many pints of Ben and Jerry’s as you could carry! Obviously, I called my roommate, we joined the line, donated a dollar and walked away with 12 pints of Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Half-baked, and Triple Caramel Chunk. What a day!
Lesson for the day: Walking around a city is often the best way to experience it. And, make time to hang out with yourself. You’re dying to have a good adventure every now and then.
Remeber the opening scene of Shutter Island, with my boyfriend Leonardo DiCaprio?
Leo’s on a boat — quite seasick it seems — and the audience isn’t sure exactly where he’s going, but can tell it’s probably dangerous.
Well, my ferry ride to Taronga Zoo was sort of like that.
I experienced mild seasickness, which I dealt with by sitting down.
And, I didn’t know for sure where I was going, but I knew it was an island crawling with lions and tigers and… kangaroos.
A seal greeted us at the front entrance, and captivated our attention for almost 20 minutes. Isn’t it always the way? You spend most of your time at the first exhibits and inevitably lose patience by the end with the stuff you really wanted to see.
We mosied on over to penguins, and that was when I discovered the worst sound in the world: the baby voice a gaggle of girls use when they ‘talk’ to adorable animals.
I’ll take nails on a chalkboard any day – girls say some stupid shit.
“Oh you are just a wittle penguin! Oh yes you are! Oh I just wanna eat you like a cupcake!”
The animals are embarrassed for you.
After reaching a committee decision about which direction to turn, we headed for the elephants. The pictures really don’t do these animals justice.
The feature that stood out most to me about Taronga was the layout of each animal enclosure. With the exception of the lions, tigers, snow leopards, and gross creatures (flying frogs, rats, and spiders) none of the enclosures had plexi glass blocking the visitor’s view.
You felt as if you were standing in this animal’s natural environment. And, the silly way visitors behave at zoos — taking pictures of the animals, tapping each other’s shoulders and pointing to different exhibits, communicating by squeal and grunt — make us seem more like animals in an enclosure than anything else.
The committee reconvened to discuss lunch options, weighing the pros and cons of the food court versus the stand-alone food vendor.
While the debate lasted longer than the meal, this refueling came at a perfect time.
Afterwards, we packed up and took some dumb pictures.
The giraffes exhibit was the height of my experience. (GET IT!) The sight of these beautiful and humongous animals really drove home the point that I would die quickly in the wild.
Somehow we ended up in a turkey enclosure. I don’t know.
After following the signs, (because “the map was like, totally like, wrong”) we found the kangaroo area. We opened one fenced door and bam! – we were standing in their territory in complete awe.
That is, until this emu with a piss-poor attitude ruined the party. Those beady red eyes and lanky neck terrified a group of grown American girls – one of whom has, like, driven through Compton. He kept heading towards the door and cawing at anyone who neared it.
It seemed the bird had hatched a plan to escape! Muahaha
We meandered into the wild cats area and I said a quick thank you that I wasn’t a few inches shorter and more male.
Normally, I favor the tigers (or jaguars, if possible), but the Taronga Zoo snow leopard stole the show this day.
This animal, SL for short, had a beautiful enclosure complete with flat land for resting and a waterfall mountain for climbing – a mountain which Jules named “Pride Rock.”
Jules patiently waited about five minutes chanting “Pride. Rock! Pride. Rock!” but walked away when SL refused to climb for her entertainment.
As soon as Jules left, SL went for it – scaling the rock walls, pacing at the top like a boss.
We managed to call Jules back to the exhibit, and SL made direct eye contact with her from the top of Pride Rock, as if to say ‘”This jump’s for you, Jules.”
And then, he leaped down onto his front to paws, leaving his hind legs on the top cliff.
And he proceeded to pee straight up into the air – never once breaking eye contact with Jules.
Knowing nothing could top that, we decided to head home.
On our way out we happened to look up and caught this magnificent view of Sydney’s skyline.
We also noticed a few signs advertising the option to ‘sleep over’ at Taronga. Pfffttt – that sounds safe. Sleeopver on an animal island. Coming to Channel 9 next fall. (Shout out – internship!)
All in all: Great day, amazing animals, beautiful views. The weekend’s lesson: Sit down on ferry rides, avoid eye contact with snow leopards, and always always look up- or you might just miss an amazing view.
Maybe it was my Italian upbringing, maybe it’s because I’m so classy – but, I have always enjoyed a fine glass (or bottle) with friends and family.
I knew I wanted to visit the world famous Hunter Valley region during my short stay in Australia and jumped at the chance to go last weekend. A BU staff member organized a trip for about 15 program students to travel up to the popular destination and visit three different wineries.
We started the day at Tamburlaine Winery:
Gordo, our sommelier, was articulate, knowledgable and upbeat – a great start to our day-drinking. We sampled Sauvignon Blanc, Verdelho, Chardonnay, Semillion-Sauvignon, Riesling, Petit Fleur Rose, Merlot, Shiraz, and Cabernet Sauvignon – all this before 11 a.m.
Gordo ended our session with a few dessert wines – Botrytis Chardonnay, Framboise Rasberry Liquer, and Aged Liquer Muscat. The dessert wines were a bit too sweet for me, but I toughed it out.
While the day was still young and the blood-alcohol content still low, I diligently took notes on which wines complement what meals and flavors. I truly enjoyed the overall experience of tasting and actually appreciating these wines. In fact, I enjoyed this trip so much I am actively looking for way to make wine tasting a viable career path for me. Expect a resume from me, Food & Wine.
By 11 a.m., once we were good and tipsy, we grabbed lunch at the Smelly Cheese Factory. The food was substantial enough to prevent a mid-afternoon hangover, but the gorgeous view of endless grape fields more than made up for any culinary mediocrity.
Our next stop, Drayton Winery, offered more of the same wines of Tamburlaine, but our 19-year old sommelier was no match for Gordo’s expertise. No matter, my friends and I worked our way through another expansive selection and then jumped at the opportunity for a photoshoot. Mind you – this was the area’s first sunny day in almost a week, which made the photo shoot almost obligatory.
We ended the day at Brokenwood with a beautiful outdoor tasting.
I was feeling pretty good at this point in the day. There’s just something about drinking fresh wine under the Australian sun with your best friends that makes you feel at peace with the world.
While I (seriously, albeit briefly) considered throwing away my journalism degree to pursue the life of a sommelier, I figured if I stick with journalism I’ll end up drinking quite a bit anyway.
Around hour seven, the BU Staffer somehow managed to get all of our non-sober bodies back on the bus and home safely. There’s really no feeling quite like waking up on a dark bus in the middle of a three hour ride with a hangover at 7 p.m. Trust me.
Luckily I happen to know the cure for hangovers consists of bread, cheese, and bread. I made the girls jalapeno/bean/salsa/guacamole nachos (recipe courtesy of Mama Montorio) and french bread pizza (recipe courtesy of Papa Montorio). I may put on weight while I’m here (fair warning, Ky), but days like this are totally worth it.
Lesson of the weekend: Wine is meant to be enjoyed with good friends and good food.
The BU Sydney Staff did a great job of welcomming us to the Sydney and planning events to help us transition. On our first weekend, they hosted a harbor cruise for the program which included two free drinks, dinner, and most importantly, sweeping views of the Sydney harbor, skyline and cliff-side suburbs.
Sure, drinking on a boat sounds like a great time anywhere. But, nothing beats sipping pink bubbly and snapping pictures of the Sydney Opera house. Nothing.
That night witnessed the birth of a family as well. Erin, Jules, Sarah, Anna, Megan and I have been inseparable ever since. Traveling abroad becomes much easier and more enjoyable with a group of friends that share your sense of adventure.
Vivid Sydney
Shortly after stumbling of the harbor cruise ferry, the large tipsy lot of us decided to check out Vivid Sydney. As one U.S. student put it, “The city, like, feels bad that the sun goes down at, like, 4:30, so they light up the opera house.”
While a few things in that description could be clarified, it gets the general point across. Vivid Sydney is a light display projected onto the opera house for a week. But, ‘light display’ doesn’t quite capture it:
One BU staff member recommended the Glenmore Hotel on the Rocks as cheap bar with rooftop access – the perfect place for budget-restricted uni students to check out the view.
Well, believe it or not, we lost our way while walking over to the bar. Go figure – a bunch of Americans get lost on their first night on the town.
So, while I called the staff member to help reroute us, some genius decides to ‘ask a local.’ Under any other circumstance (read: with more clear communication) asking a local would have been great. But, because this person asked for directions to ‘the rooftop bar at the hotel’ we ended up with directions to the restaurant on the top floor of Sydney’s Shangri-La.
36 floors later, and we find ourselves in the swankiest rooftop restaurant I’ve ever seen. Boston readers – this place makes Top of the Hub look like T’s Pizza.
(Look to the lower left hand corner – there’s the opera house! How do I book that table?)
After acknowledging the humbling fact that we stuck out like sore thumbs, we finally left, got directions from the helpful (no surprise there) concierge and made it to the Glenmore.
A great big pub with patio, indoor and rooftop seating, the Glenmore was the perfect beer garden to start our night and kick-off our first weekend in Sydney.
We skipped out a little later to get closer to the action. Our original group of 40 or so had whittled down with each turn, and I eventually found myself with a much more manageable group of 10. We ooh-ed and ah-ed through the street fair and suddnely, after blocks and blocks of merchants and tents, we looked up to see the opera house in all its glory.
For the first time in my few days in Australia, I finally felt the reality wash over me: I was abroad – like, really far abroad. And, here I was looking at one of the most iconic buildings in the world. And the only thing I could think was -
I couldn’t have asked for a better night to set the tone for my time in Australia. I spent the night intoxicated by champagne, the city, and the endless potential for this summer.
And, the one lesson I learned that first weekend: you can never be lost if you want to explore it all.
