Soaring Past Stress

Bonjour, Jacques here! I’m writing this from the airport, bag packed and suitcase checked, and I’m listening to the new Vampire Weekend. Just yesterday, I submitted the last assignment due for spring semester which means I’m done with all the classes required for my major! Whoo! All that’s left is this internship abroad and I’ll have the last credits I need, so I’ll graduate at the end of summer. I’m so excited to end 16 years of schooling and start a career as a Real Adult. I’ll wear blazers! I’ll talk about the budget in two-hour-long meetings with a comptroller named Mark! Seriously though, I couldn’t think of a better way to kick it off than with a trip around the globe.

My internship for the summer will be with “A Poele,” a podcast which interviews French chefs about their lives. I’ll be working on cross-cultural marketing and getting this French podcast accessible to English speakers. If you like hearing about incredibly delicious French cuisine, then make sure to check back in later to see what I’ll be working on! (So if you speak French, go subscribe now! If you speak English, go subscribe, then wait a month or two.) I’m sure I’ll get plenty of great photos of the food they make for us, and interviews with some amazing chefs about how they approach the kitchen.

This plane ride, I’ve grabbed a couple books that I’m looking forward to cracking open. To start off, I’m going to read Tales of the Unexpected by Roald Dahl. My friend actually bought me this book a few years ago when she visited Paris—to think I was so jealous of her then, but look at me now! These short stories have been translated to French and the translated title states itself simply: Bizarre Bizarre. So ‘bizarre’ might not exactly be the word I’m looking for, but I certainly hope what I see and experience in France is unique and unexpected. I’ve also packed two other books; The Complete Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams and the memoir of Hayao Miyazaki, Starting Point. I’m a slow reader so we’ll see how far I get with them!

Alright, I’m boarding the plane, but the college radio show host in me says I should leave a playlist of some of my personal great travel tunes. These tracks start off with some great energy that translates into some more relaxing ones at the end. Check it out!

1. Rivers Cuomo—Blast off!
2. Louis Cole—Weird Part of the Night
3. Self—What a Fool Believes (cover of the Doobie Brothers)
4. Jack Campbell—Absentee
5. The Whitest Boy Alive—Burning
6. ROAR—Christmas Kids
7. Early Eyes ft. Dizzy Fae—Case for You
8. Joy Again—Born a Fool
9. Crumb—So Tired
10. Mama Cass Elliot—Dream a Little Dream of Me (!!! the best tune here !!!)