8 years ago by
Ok, kids, I know you’re going to hate me for saying this, but we have to face reality: August 15th has passed, so what was always going to happen is now upon us: Summer 2015 is reaching its end, and it’s never coming back. Argh. Help!
In an attempt to stop thinking about it, I decided to do a little recap of my summer for you – the highs, the lows, the diagonals, and the perpendiculars (???)
And all of that in no particular order, obviously.
Award for the most depressing hotel room of the summer –
(I mean, of the year)(No, of the decade) was my room at the W in Chicago. Ok, I don’t like to be critical (ok, I love being critical) but you know the type of weird hotel that’s trying to be cool by putting bluish lights everywhere, and grandiose decorations like a giant bedside lamp (5 times bigger than me – seriously) in the lobby, and where the rooms smell musty and you can’t open the windows? Oh, and where the only electrical outlet is in the bathroom (seriously, I’m not kidding)?
Yep. There you go. Nothing to add.
Weirdest beach moment of the summer –
The day we decided to take advantage of all New York has to offer and went to the beach (30 minutes away by car! So cool!) with a group of super motivated friends (THIS SATURDAY WE’RE DOING SOMETHING OTHER THAN GOING TO BRUNCH!) and we brought so much food and alcohol that we ended up being drunk on the beach at 4:00 in the afternoon.
Trying to swim in waves that were both violent, unsurfable, and slightly greenish and filled with unidentified objects (I’m not criticizing, but I’d just gotten back from Lake Powell and its perfectly clear water, so…)
And we ended up being towel to towel with (super nice) tattooed hipsters, who were also drunk and playing paddle ball ON us.
Do I want to go back? Uhhhh… I think we’re going to try out all the other things New York has to offer in the summer first.
Most romantic moment of the summer –
Diving naked with Chris into the clear waters of l’îlot, my secret spot in my village, Girolata, in Corsica. Ok, everyone in Girolata knows about my secret spot, and Serge, the fisherman, cast his nets about 4 meters from us, but it was still really romantic.
The most unforgettable moment of the summer –
Spending a week alone with all the men in my life in Corsica: my father, my brother, and my guy, cooking, taking the boat out, and laughing. For a daddy’s girl, there’s nothing better than that.
The least Because I’m Worth It moment of the summer –
My eyes are extremely, extremely sensitive to sunscreen.
It drips into my eyes, makes me cry, makes my nose run, and after a few hours, my eyes swell up and suddenly I look like Donald Trump (What a nightmare! Especially since Chris is such a democrat!)
So one night when we were on the boat in Lake Powell, I had the misfortune of going to bed without taking my sunscreen off.
(I know, by saying that, I’m going to be kicked out of the order of bloggers, but I have to admit, sometimes (a lot of the time) (all the time) I fall into bed with all my clothes and make up on. Even though I have amazing Equipment pajamas!!! But hey, when you fall into bed, you fall into bed, right?)
Anyway, I wake up at dawn, still sleepy, and head toward the kitchen to make some coffee, except that…I can’t even open my eyes. I panic a little and try really hard to see. I can only see a little bit, but I manage to feel my way to the bathroom.
And when I get there, HOLY SHIT!!! My eyes are, my eyes are, my eyes are… I can’t even describe it – they’re so swollen, the bags under my eyes are like Rimowa suitcases (enormous and compact). I put water on them, I scrub off all my makeup, I put a huge pair of sunglasses on, and a hat, AND I go sit in a dark corner of the boat and try to make myself invisible.
Fortunately, three hours later, I can finally come out from hiding. I look like Donald Trump again, but considering what I looked like before (Jabba the Hut from Star Wars), I tell myself it’s perfectly acceptable as long as I wear a hat and sunglasses.
Nothing and no one can stop me from enjoying my vacation!
I hurry to tell Jenna about my problem, and she lets me in on her secret: Zinca sunscreen, which is so crazy thick it doesn’t run. Finally, a solution. She tells me it turns your face a little white, but hey, who cares.
I take my ego in my own two hands, and shove it under three layers of Zinca, and off I go for another spin on the jet ski. Finally, vacation, damn it!
So, in summary: Swollen eyes, white mask on my face AND, icing on the cake – a beautiful fluorescent life jacket. Chris didn’t even raise an eyebrow, which is a sign of a man who loves women who love men (don’t you remember that ad? No? Pffff, young people!)
Oh, P.S. After three days of jet ghosting with Jenna (she and I on the jet ski scaring people with our white faces from morning until night) she finally ended up finding skin-colored Zinca. We totally mastered jet skiing glamour. On the last day…
Most hysterical moment of the summer –
Karaoke in Japan with Delphine, of course. Japanese people are nuts, I love them.
Delphine and I killed it on “Just Give Me a Reason” by Pink.
P.S. Do you love Pink too, or am I losing the little musical credibility I had left?
Why I love Pink –
Ok, first of all, her songs are great for singing at the top of your lungs and there’s nothing I like more in the world than singing at the top of my lungs. And besides that, she isn’t annoying us all, she’s not trying to be omnipresent (I’m so tired of omnipresent celebrities. Like, I have nothing against Taylor Swift, I think she’s actually pretty cool, but she’s everywhere, friends with everyone, everyone’s girlfriend, and on all the magazine covers. It’s either her or Kim Kardashian, hellllppp a little variety, please, ugh!) (Ok, I’m getting carried away)
Pink doesn’t even have Instagram! I don’t know, I think she’s cool. At the same time, I don’t really know anything about her life.
BUT THAT’S PROBABLY WHY I THINK SHE’S COOL.
I’m tired of knowing everything about the lives of people I don’t really care about.
Ok that had nothing to do with my summer recap, but actually it did a little, I guess, because I decided I liked Pink this summer.
The most “Ok, time to stop messing around” moment of the summer –
The moment I downloaded My Fitness Pal after hearing a podcast where someone said it was great and I started counting calories and figured out why I wasn’t losing those last few pounds. Ugh, do you know how many calories there are in a spoonful of peanut butter? I’m not even going to tell you.
The most “YES, life is so cool” moment of the summer –
This week! My team and I got a house together, so — Hello, from Accord, Upstate New York! We’re going to make margaritas every night (380 calories) and Birthday S’mores (416 calories for one + instant diabetes) to celebrate Emily’s 26th birthday, and then jump into the pool (-60 calories, YES, a quarter of a S’mores, woohoo!!!) and rethink everything about the blog, our lives and what’s on our plates. Hahahha.
The most “This is the real life” moment of the summer –
Hawaii! It was so great, the kind of trip where at the end of three days, you start looking at places to rent and you say to yourself: “I’m actually not sure what’s keeping us in New York after all.” Oh, except for our passions, our jobs, our friends, our projects, I mean… Pretty much nothing, right, babe?
The most long-winded moment of the summer –
Uh, well… This post!!! I still have lots of not-so-important things to tell you, so if you want, how about I continue the summer recap next week? That way we can prolong the summer a little more. What do you say?
Translated by Andrea Perdue
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C’est vrai que ce post signe un peu la fin de l’été, mais ici à Bordeaux la météo nous le fait bien sentir !
Un été sous le signe du voyage finalement !
En même Septembre c’est bien aussi, il fait encore beau mais pas trop, il y a plein de nouveautés et une énergie qui donne envie de lancer pleins de nouveaux projets !!
Amélie
https://charlesrayandcoco.wordpress.com
Oh oui raconte nous les moments pas importants, c’est ceux que je préfère !!
Et j’ai hâte de partir en vacances après tout le monde, suite à la lecture de ton post :) à moi le pays basque et le surf au mois de septembre !
Ah je te comprends ! Fin de l’été !! Le retour à Paris a été un peu dur niveau climat et pour la première fois je me prends à envisager de migrer sous des latitudes plus clémentes où l’été direrait plus longtemps… Je crois que je vais essayer, au moins pour ne pas mourir idiote ! Paris sera toujours là n’est-ce pas ? C’est l’effet résolutions de rentrée !
Bonjour Garance ,
Moi le meilleur moment de cet été ce fut lorsque je vous ai vu sur Hudson et la 14th street, j’en été toute retournée au point que je n’ai pas pu vous parler.
??????????
I just love your irreverent and self-deprecating humor, and how you keep it real and down to earth:))
Looking forward to the next installment!
More please! and photos of the house upstate!
Je pars en vacances dans 2h!
Vivement la suite!!!
J’A-DORE! Un post vraiment drôle héhé… Ça m’a fait un bien fou de lire ce post alors que je ne suis pas encore partie en vacances, snif… (Septembre!!! Canada!!!)…t’es en forme et ça se sent!
Ah Garance …. <3
J'adore ces posts!
I love how funny, real, and down-to-earth this post is! I can’t wait to buy/borrow your new book!
Sending good-job-high-five from Jakarta, Indonesia (a place which you need to visit ASAP! We have summer all year long!)
http://www.peppermintswing.tumblr.com
mais tu as fait PLEINS DE TRUCS cet été Garance ! :D
j’adore le moment avec les hommes de ta vie et le “hop, soudain je ressemble à Donald Trump. (Le cauchemar! Surtout pour Chris qui est hyper démocrate !)” ahahah
bisettes from Paris!
Le W de Chicago, tellement vrai, le seul hôtel où il faut une lampe frontale pour retrouver sa chambre/ le lobby/ les toilettes
Summer just starts for me in magic Sri Lanka…sorry Garance :)
surtout, n’arrête JAMAIS ces posts: ce sont les meilleurs, et de loin. Congrats!
Moi aussi j’ai bien vu que c’était la fin de l’été: il fait encore presque nuit quand je vais courir et il y a des raisins et des champignons du coin au marché (là ça sent vraiment la rentrée).
a) PINK est tellement peu omniprésente que je l’avais complètement oubliée !
b) les yeux charbonneux au réveil, je croyais que c’était sexy et qu’on avait le droit de ne pas se démaquiller une fois de temps en temps, c’est pas vrai ?
c) Quant au beurre de cacahouètes, c’est vrai, c’est pas faux, mais tu peux supprimer autre chose pour le garder lui, puisque c’est si bon. Et en plus, ça coupe beaucoup mieux la faim que d’autres trucs, pour plus longtemps, un peu comme l’avocat. C’est ce que j’ai fait, ça marche quand même, on peut perdre du poids en mangeant du peanut butter. (et les genre de trucs my fitness pal c’est pas seulement bien pour les calories, mais ça te dit aussi si tu risques de manquer de ceci ou de cela, pas besoin de suppléments de vitamines !)
ahah! moi aussi j’adore Pink :) et je sature aussi de toutes ces célébrités qui marketent leur vie.
Fabulous!!
Je pense que c’est une excellente idée , vivement la semaine prochaine ahaha! j’en peux plus tu m’a fait trop rire avec Donald Trump lol!!! des bises
Great post!
Passa a trovarmi VeryFP
Have you been looking at exactly what is in your sunscreen? I get watery eyes from anything with chemical blockers, but am okay with physical blockers (zinc oxide, titanium dioxide) in bases that are designed for sensitive skin (Invisible Zinc ESP all the way!). Partner is the other way around – his skin gets all dry and peely and irritated by physical blockers, but the chemical ones don’t bother him a bit. So we keep two kinds in the house.
Ah Ah Ah!!!!
Excellent, moi je l’adore cette logorrhée! :)
C’est fou le pouvoir des mots, tout d’un coup l’été ne paraît plus tellement se terminer! (je sais, j’y crois encore, je m’accroche telle une aoûtienne lool).
Merci Garance pour ce moment le plus fou rire de l’été et bonne TeamRetreat à tout le studio :)
XX
Garance,
There has been a massive down spike in the number of pictures of you lately.
I discovered an old closet confidential – interview you did for a magazine. Was really impressed. Decided to make a pinterest board with your looks. There were a few from the past. But lately, I cant find many outfit pictures of you.
GARANCE, tu es la meilleure! Journée un peu (trés,trés,trés) difficile, et avec quelques mots tu as réussi à me redonner le sourire. MERCI!
Naturally fantastic! Such a sparkling, warm and wonderful post! x
Alors, tu es fantastique, Garance, et ma été est trèes très chuade a bari, sur l’Adriatique mais j’etais à la maison, pas des amis qui me porte à la mer je lu Le rule de la maison du sidro di john Irving, grand romance, e j’ai une nouvelle chienne, petite, abandonnè e qui ma niece a retrorse. Pas mal, no?
Qu’est-ce que j’ai rigolé en lisant ce post! Je suis en train d’essayer d’endormir mon petit garçon de 2 ans, et je l’ai réveillé en gloussant.
I just started my summer vacation — and I don’t want summer to be over!
http://hashtagliz.com
Pink is from my hometown and I agree with your sentiments! She is always described as being super rebellious, marched to the beat of her drum, and didn’t let anyone get in her way. She was also a super raver and just seemed all around awesome. No embarassment there, just a girl doing her thing! Whoever doesn’t sing those songs at the top of their lungs is literally having no fun, ever…
Oh YES, please!!!!
Besos from Bolivia
Patricia
http://www.patriciayclea.com
Hi Garance – Long time lurker, first time poster. Firstly, I’ve loved your evolution and the honesty with which you write. :) And I’d never guess this would be the post that would compel me to comment. But..I’ve recently started loving Pink too! For those exact reasons, in the age of information it’s nice to have a bit of mystery and have you seen her True Love video? Her family is too cute! (Yes, I realize my mentioning her most intimate video is contradictory to what I just said. Lol) Also, you don’t realize how crazy talented she is until you try and sing one of her songs – I also fell in love with Pink singing one of her songs during a karaoke session. The range on that lady is absolutely amazing and it’s fun trying to mimic. Sia is another another spectacular singer I like to emulate while karaoke’ing…to more disastrous results. :) Thanks for another honest read and wishing you a great rest of your summer.
Garance you are the best! I laughed so much :) Summer re-cap from the UK: a hot week in April. Then rain. More rain. Ventured out in July- yup, still raining. Some more rain today. Papers say the summer is gone. What summer?
Ana
http://www.champagnegirlsabouttown.co.uk
This is just great! Also, I agree Pink is amazing and oh so cool because you know she doesn’t care at all about being COOL.
http://www.beingskindeep.com
Haha! I love your recap, yes please, keep them coming. Summer is my favorite season (even though oof, it’s so hot and there’s no air-conditioner in my lil place), so ANYTHING to prolong summer!
À la prochaine!,
AMO xx
Pink!
Hilarious as always, Garance! I love your views about Pink. More post like this please :)
Summer — where did it go? Hawaii is like that: when I arrive I’m always so wound up from regular life and just look around and think everything is a little silly — so much pineapple, Hawaiian shirts and prints, and people by the pool. By the third day of R&R, sunning, and umbrella drinks with names like “Lava Flow” (just never ever ever count the calories in one of those), I’ve inevitably decided that it is the most beautiful place in the world and it is the best vacation and then I start buying sundresses in Hawaiian prints … It’s the “island fever” — something in the island air or water, but it is kind of wonderful.
Hey Garance, i’m reading your blog since 2008, but this is my first comment :)
I have similar problem with combination of sensitive eyes and sunscreen (and most makeup…). My eyelids sometimes get to the size of golf balls, and i can’t open them. What seems to be the most effective (and i have even tried corticosteroids eye drops) is chamomile tea. I make strong tea, dip cotton pads in it and then cool it down and put them on my eyes. It tends to get better after 10-15 minutes.
Nale
It looks like you’ve had an amzing Summer. I mean… jet skiing with Jenna? Your life is completed now.
xx,
E.
http://www.theslowpace.com
J’adore ce post hilarant!
Bonne semaine Upstate, hâte de lire un post dessus :)
L’été dure encore 1 mois, profites bien!! :)
You are my favorite blogger in the world. I always smile and have such a happy attitude after reading your posts.Thanks for being so fun and wonderful, and not taking mishaps too seriously.
I can’t wait for your book, and will have to block out time when it hits my door, I think, because I know I won’t be able to put it down. I’m so proud! (weird but true) because I have read your blog since 2007!
tough about your lame hotel experience in Chicago. (my home) Goodness, we can do better than that. For a great beach, we go 1.5 hours to the southwest shores of Lake Michigan. Gorgeous fresh water, so clear, great little towns. No dangerous sea creatures.
You could always move to Texas where its summer up until October…and maybe November ? :)
Oui s’il te plait, recap de l’ete 2eme partie la semaine prochaine :) Ce post m’a fait tellement rire! Et m’a fait oublier qu’ici, a Glasgow, l’ete a ete inexistant et que mes etes en France me manquent!
Moment le plus inoubliable de mon été? Découvrir votre Isle ( La Corse)! Sublime….je ne voulais pas partir!
Petit découvert sur le plan beauté- L’immortelle- voir le post:
http://www.blushandbeyond.com/skincare/immortelle-the-anti-aging-flower/
Colleen
…..more next week please! What a summer you’ve had! F**king hilarious.
OMG Garance, merci pour le passage sur Taylor Swift! Elle est tellement présente et “parfaite” avec toute sa team de copines/mannequins que j’en viens à me demander si tout ce cirque autour d’elle n’est pas que de la communication. Je regrette un peu le temps où les célébrités ne mettaient pas leur vie en scène de cette manière. L’avantage d’être absent d’Instagram, comme Pink, c’est qu’elle fait sa musique et basta ;)
Enfin, c’est aussi la faute des followers qui recherchent cette proximité, ce partage de l’intimité poussé à l’extrême mais très contrôlé au final.
Sinon, c’est toujours un réel plaisir de te lire, tu n’as jamais perdu ton naturel et c’est très chouette de passer sur ton blog et de lire tes anecdotes :)
Très bonne continuation!
xx
Anne
I honestly don’t understand why all NYC businesses haven’t completely relocated to Oahu!!! Think how happy everyone would be living in paradise – life would be perfect! The sunshine (instant Vitamin D) puts a smile on every face, the surf keeps every body in shape, fresh island foods (have you tried Ocean Vodka?!) are grown all year, and just imagine… meetings outside, all the time, in a temperate 80 degrees year ’round. An added benefit: a lighter wardrobe – who needs heavy coats, sweaters and boots in Hawaii?!
Looking forward to Part II!
Garance, looks like your summer has been eventful! Love your funny accounts :)
I have stayed at that W (I’m assuming you were in the one downtown, not the one just north of downtown on Lake Michigan…although that one is not much better). Anyway, that W could have embraced the weird feel of that building and done something cool with it, but instead they just did what I call a “brand slap”. The good news is that their are plenty of other awesome more genuine feeling hotels in Chicago (High Tea at the Drake is my particular stuffy hilarious way to spend a Saturday afternoon). Longman & Eagle in Logan Square has rooms to rent in case you go overboard at their bar, that always sounded oddly fun to me.
Come for a visit to LA! It feels like our summer is just starting. Thanks for a great post and a laugh. I am looking forward to part 2.
I laughed at your comment about the W in Chicago. I live here (as a transplant) and I can only imagine how cheesy it was. There are a ton of really nice people here, but Chicago is a bro/yuppie/midwestern city and the aesthetic sensibilities and fashion just don’t do it for me!
Fantastic, I really enjoyed this post!! More summer recap next week please and I’m going to do my own one in the meantime….that way the summer just keeps on giving LOL!
Je suis tout à fait d’accord avec toi, le 15 août malgré les légendes marque vraiment la fin de l’été. J’étais à Nice le 15 août, et bien c’était orage, pluie, et température descendant vers les 20 degrés…
Bref, je me dit tout de même que pour les personnes habitant dans le sud de la France, on peut toujours espérer avoir du beau temps jusqu’à fin octobre et en profiter pour prolonger notre été….
http://www.atode.fr
If you ever go back to Chicago (please don’t give up on the midwest!!!) stay at the Sofitel. It’s great there!
Yes please continue but stop writing about envious stuff, after all we are human too but not as happy as you ?
Yeeeeees, I love Pink too. I also for making me sing at the top of my lungs!
Accord, NY?! You’re kidding. If you’re looking to see something TOTALLY different, ask about the Ukrainian Estate in very nearby Kerhonksen. Glamorous it ain’t, but its one of a kind. Some of the woodwork may even be worthy of a Weekend Inspiration (And the teeny gift shop has REAL vintage embroidered blouses & dresses- *very* Vita Kin.)
And, if for whatever reason, you have to call an ambulance and a cute ponytailed guy named Olie comes to your rescue, tell him Katie from Chicago said “HI”
Garance, I have the same problem with sunscreen! The best I’ve found is SunSense SPF 50+ invisible tint finish. It’s an Australian brand. I even wear it surfing and have never had stingy eyes with it.
:)
je me suis retrouvée allongée juste à coté d’Isabel Marant, dans une jolie crique sauvage à Ibiza …..elle est adorable “en vrai”….mais moment gâché par la logorrhée de son compagnon, qui parle fort, mal et vulgaire…. en plus de ses créations sublimes et de son talent artistique, il doit vraiment avoir quelque chose de spécial, non, pour qu’elle le supporte ?