WOOOOOO we’re still unemployed. Please send help and good luck. The vibes were off this week as we battled a lot of annoying life things, but we are still here and thriving! No place we’d rather be than in London, so we’re trying to make the most of it nonetheless. Fortunately, we planned a trip to hike the Seven Sisters cliffs on Saturday, which was truly the highlight of this week.
Monday August 5
C: I sat outside with the cat and was shockingly productive on my dissertation. I also took a cute pic of the cat, who kept me company for a long while. Zoe painted my nails a summery beachy theme to prepare for our trip to Brighton on Saturday, which was the light at the end of the tunnel for this week!
Z: I must warn you before you read the rest of my week summaries that this has truly been one of the most thrilling work weeks of my life, and this Monday really set that tone. First, I woke up and made bread. I then kneaded the bread for 8 hours before putting it in the fridge. Time definitely passed between rounds of kneading bread, but what I did during those 45 minute intervals is completely unknown to me. After dinner Catja and I decided we needed dessert, so we walked to Sainsburys in our pjs to pick up some random sweet treats.
Tuesday August 6
Z: I finished Hillbilly Elegy last week, so I was on the hunt for a new book to read in between stressing about my dissertation and applying to jobs. Catja and I went into the Central in the morning to go to a really good second hand book store in Bloomsbury called SKOOB. They have a huge selection of books that is turned over constantly, so there are always new and interesting books to pick from. I spent my time pursuing the memoirs and politics sections while Catja looked for books in French. We both got a couple books and then headed back home.
C: I struggled through work and job apps yet again before having some TikTok time. I was watching a vid of Henrik Christiansen, my brother from another Scandi father, expressing his deep obsession with the Olympics chocolate muffins when I got a text from Zoe. She texted me a link to another TikTok with someone making these famous muffins, so we decided to indulge ourselves. I chopped chocolate while Zoe whipped up the batter and ganache. They were a little toasty from our annoying oven, but they were delicious! We ate them while watching bouldering and speed climbing. We finished the evening with a few episodes of Stacey Dooley Sleeps Over. The one about the child model was surprisingly so wholesome.
Wednesday August 7
Z: I’ve got another real chaotic one for you all today…I did my laundry. Sheets and clothes. Wild. I also saw the neighbor’s cat while hanging my laundry. I then watched the entirety of “Sweet, Pray, Obey”, a docu-series about mormons on Netflix that Hebe recommended. It was horrifying. Extreme Mormonism is really something else. I believe I was doing some sort of art project while watching this, but again I have no memory of what I was doing.
C: Not much to report other than working from home again. Zoe and I hardly see each other because we wake up, eat breakfast, then isolate ourselves in our rooms to work. Every time I get antsy and can’t focus, I take 15 minutes and clean or pack something in my room. We move in less than a month which is super exciting, but traveling+dissertation+job hunting+packing+planning for our trips home is a lot to balance at once.
Later, I went to Hampstead Heath to have a picnic with Anna and her friend from back home. It was very gloomy and looked like it was about to rain any second, so I wandered around trying to find a gazebo I saw once upon a time. I was walking around and around random paths trying to find it when I eventually met up with Anna and her friend. I said that if I couldn’t find it in 5 minutes, we’d just find the nearest tree. Luckily, I trusted my gut and found it! We chatted about life, family lore, and school for a few hours until it started getting dark. It was nice to literally touch grass and socialize for a while.
Thursday August 8
C: Work work work. Same as usual, except that my body completely shut down when my period started. I had no energy, my body was aching, and I felt gross. I spent most of the day in bed with a heating pad listening to my Pride and Prejudice audiobook and fighting exhaustion. Blessed Angel Zoe knocked on my door a few hours later, when I crawled out of bed to attempt even a little bit of work, and she handed me a dark chocolate bar from Sainsbury’s. I almost cried.
I dried the wishbone from the chicken I roasted on Sunday, and Zoe and I split it. I got the wish end, and I made a wish I really really hope comes true soon. Then I gave Shawn Mintes, our overgrown mint plant with no sense of personal boundaries, a haircut.
Z: I found out on Wednesday evening that I didn’t get the job I interviewed for, so I was sad and frustrated on Thursday. This also meant that I returned to applying to many jobs everyday, hoping that one will stick. I spent most of Thursday applying to all of the jobs. I then made pasta that I saw on TikTok for dinner for Catja and I. We sat in the living room for a while after dinner listening to “All Night Longer” by Sammy Adams, a nostalgic banger for us, in an attempt to cheer ourselves up. See video in the photo album for visual of Catja dancing along. We finished our evening by watching Love is Blind UK.
C: Zoe and I last danced to “All Night Longer” in a rainy hail storm at Conn in 2022, which is one of my absolute favorite memories. When we both were feeling shitty tonight, I cued it up on the speaker, and we had a little dance party, which actually helped a lot.
I hadn’t watched more than a few minutes of Love is Blind before, but we decided to watch it for something to cheer us both up. We unexpectedly got so invested. Shows like this are even more entertaining with British accents. We are big fans of one guy who is a funeral director from Manchester. Although the entire point of the show is to not be superficial, we agreed that he is HOT. And he’s just a sweetheart. And he has the most endearing Mancunian accent. This show is really good at building up to cliffhangers in the last 60 seconds, so we eagerly ate up the next ep before heading to bed.
Friday August 9
C: Ethan told us about a Facebook livestream of his Sandhurst Sovereign’s Parade, so I hopped on the bus to watch as I made my way to Green Park to meet my friend, Maggie, for coffee. It was like a very intense ballet with precise lines, swords, and horses. The military band played all sorts of military marches and popular songs, like an ABBA medley and the Indiana Jones theme. It reminded me of my childhood.
Catching up with Maggie was so fun. She just came back from Paris, where she was supporting her friend in Artistic Swimming at the Olympics. So cool! Maggie is also the queen of nail art, and she showed me her stunning Olympics-themed nails.
Z: Finishing out the work week with another wild day. I left to take the tube to pick up my glasses in the morning, only to find out the Jubilee line was down. So I ended up walking for an hour to get to Finchley Road, making me a solid 45 minutes late for my appointment. I got my glasses, got the tube back, and watched Ethan’s parade from the train. I then applied to jobs…yay. Then I could not do that anymore, so I took all the art off the walls in my room and packed up my winter clothes for our move in a few weeks.
C: Later, Zoe and I watched the debut of Olympic breaking, which I was so excited about. BGirl Logistix, a fellow Filipina American, absolutely crushed it. We learned a lot about the art of breaking from watching. I don't know how the judges can judge when everyone was very impressive.
Z: After watching all the breaking our brains could handle, Catja and I walked to Sainsburys to pick up some snacks and breakfast for our big day out tomorrow.
Saturday August 10
Z: We woke up bright and early on Saturday and by that I mean 5am ish. We headed out to the tube station at 5:45 to meet Callum, Luke, and Nathan for a day in Brighton. We rode to Blackfriars and got on the Thameslink directly to Brighton. It takes just over an hour, so we caught up about our weeks. Once we arrived in Brighton, we got a bus to East Dean, which was about an hour trip. When we got off the bus we were right at Birling Gap, where we would begin our Seven Sisters Hike.
Before getting to the trailhead we stumbled upon a little cricket club with a bathroom, which was needed after our many hours of traveling. While Catja, Callum, Luke, and Nathan used the bathroom, I wandered into the empty playground and sat on the swings for a bit. Catja can attest that I have been complaining about the lack of access to swings as an adult in London for many months, so this was a pleasant surprise. I cannot explain how joyful I felt swinging while looking out onto a hillside of sheep in an empty little rural street. I think every ounce of stress left my body. It was a fantastic way to start the day, and I do wish that someone would build a swingset for adults in this city.
We then walked to the trail, stopping to admire the views of the ocean, before headed off on our hike. The Seven Sisters hike is absolutely stunning with views of the ocean and chalk cliffs it is hard to beat. The sun peered out of the clouds, so we stopped every once and awhile and enjoyed the warm sun while looking out at the water. While stopped for a snack, Callum confidently stated that he felt like a noble steed when eating an apple. We all laughed, but Nathan was shocked as apparently he has expressed this many times before. I’m not entirely sure I understand this sentiment, but Nathan and Callum both feel like regal horses when eating apples? We finished out the hike by descending over the last cliff into the small town of Seaford.
C: I feel completely healed in mind, body, and spirit from this hike. And I remembered my inhaler, which shockingly helps so much! Unlike in the Peak District, I could actually breathe and didn’t feel like I was going to faint off the cliff. The weather was absolutely perfect too, and Luke constantly forced Nathan to reapply sunscreen. After the hike, we found the nearest pub and downed a pint to cool off. The pub gave big Ted Lasso energy, and everyone was so nice! Next, we walked to the Seaford Beach to chill for a bit. Luke, Callum, and I stripped down and ran to the water, but I didn’t realize how painful running on rocks barefoot would be. We made it into the sea and battled the big waves. I was bouncing on the ouchie rocks while trying to brace myself against the crashing waves, and Callum had to grab my arm and keep me from washing away a few times. He also taught us that the white crests of crashing waves are called white horses, which was also the name of a pub we passed by earlier. I definitely felt like a horse was rolling into me.
After drying off in the sun, we hopped on a train to Brighton, my happy place. I’d only ever been to Brighton in the winter before, so seeing the beach, boardwalk, and pier in its summer glory was stunning. If I get rich or retire, I’d love to be one of the artists with a studio right on the water and just paint white horses and sunsets every day. We wandered around for a bit, stopping inside a gorgeous medieval style pub to try and catch the women’s soccer final. Unfortunately, it was full of laddy lads watching the Man U game, so we decided to find somewhere else. After exploring a bit more, we ended up drinking cocktails and eating burgers outside on a side street. It was complete bliss. We discussed how Chappell Roan would thrive in Brighton, the gay capital of the UK and full of artsy artists. Many a shop or pub was playing “Pink Pony Club” or “Good Luck, Babe!”
After stopping for one more pint and sitting on a curb to people watch, we walked back to the station to catch a train back to London. We hugged goodbye, asleep on our feet, and made our way back home. I already want to go back and hike the rest of the trail.
Sunday August 11
Z: After a less than stellar week and a big day of travel and fun on Saturday, all I wanted was a day of sitting in the living room and doing absolutely nothing. I woke up a bit earlier than Catja, so I whipped up some pancakes. Catja then made tea and blew up on the air mattress in the living room and we ate breakfast in complete lounge mode. We watched women’s weightlifting, which genuinely might be the most impressive sport I have seen. These women are lifting 173 kilograms while I complain most days that my backpack is too heavy. Really puts things in perspective. We were in complete awe of Li Wenwen and were so excited for her when she won and ran around the stage lifting up her coach.
C: The all day sleepover was exactly what we needed. We watched the badass weightlifters, and our jaws dropped every time they lifted heavier than we thought possible. Later, we listened to music and did some work. Zoe read through her adviser’s feedback on her diss draft, and I went wild on Canva making the most try hard CV for a creative publication job. Lord, please employ me. While in my job hunt mindset, I came across a job on LinkedIn that said someone who applied had a LAW PhD?! WTF.
After stressing about life for a bit, we chilled back out to eat dinner and write this blog. Spurs just signed Solanke for a fuck ton of money, so maybe this is an auspicious sign of good things to come? I miss Spurs.
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