Netflix: What We're Watching | 30th Post

Hello beautiful people!

Welcome to mid-year break! Finally we have time to unwind a little and not feel guilty about spending all day watching Netflix (or what ever method you use to watch hours upon hours of the one tv show). To help you out with this, and basically encourage your binge-watching efforts, we, with the help of a few of our friends, are here to provide you with our top picks. All of these shows are available on Netflix Australia. Even if you don't have an account yet, the introductory free month is probably sounding pretty good right now. Enjoy watching! And don't forget to exercise every once in a while. 

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

"If are in the mood for a feel good comedy and love Andy Samberg, then 'Brooklyn Nine-Nine' is the tv show for you! Set in the 99th NYPD Precinct in Brooklyn, the show focuses around the antics of the detectives and their precinct's captain.
I had only heard a small amount about B99 before Netflix landed in Australia. However, I did catch one episode on SBS 2 while channel surfing one night and I was hooked. I have already watched all of the episodes twice over! Not only does this show feature a diverse cast, it is genuinely funny. With the multitude of political dramas around and the 'dramedy' genre becoming a thing, Brooklyn Nine-Nine is refreshing. It definitely fills the sit-com void we have been needing to fill with the end of 'How I Met Your Mother', and the realisation that we have watched the complete series of 'Friends' 10 times. I am recommending this show to every one I talk to. It is just too, too good." -Grace


Friday Night Lights

"Originally a movie from 2004, the drama show follows the town of Dillon, Texas, their high school football team the Dillon Panthers and their coach, Coach Eric Taylor. Quaterbacks, game-plays, Boosters, pressure to get to State, relationships, college, scholarships, life. It's all here. 
'Friday Night Lights' might be about Texas high school football, but it is one of the most earnest shows I have ever seen. No character is perfect. All are flawed and complex and have their ups and downs, but it is so realistic. You can see a piece of yourself in everyone. The soundtrack is perf, and while I'm new to the world of American football, the game scenes were some of my favourites. This earnest show about a small southern town obsessed with it's football is, in a word, beautiful. 10/10, would recommend." -Claire

"If you are still not convinced, check out this video. It makes both of us want to start from the Pilot again." -Grace


The IT Crowd

"I've been a bit late to the party with 'The IT Crowd', but nevertheless, I do not regret watching all four seasons in an entire weekend. This British comedy revolves around three workers in the IT department of a large business who are all very different people. 

First there's Jen, the head of IT, who hasn't got a clue about computers. Then there's Roy, the laid-back and lazy Irishman who will do anything to get out of work. Finally there's Moss (my personal fave), the socially-inept geek who lives with his mother. The three get up to lots of mischief and there are many memorable moments and one-liners which have made me chuckle in public just by only thinking about them. This show is the perfect pick-me-up and at only 24 episodes, it is very easy to consume. Also, Noel Fielding makes several appearances, so how can you not?" -Cecilia

Orange is the New Black

"OITNB is very funny so you’ll laugh very hard at it but it can also be very sad and reflective, and you’ll probably cry. You so rarely see a television show where the female characters’ central plotlines, development and personality don’t revolve around a romance with the main guy so it’s very refreshing to watch. It can take a few episodes to really get into it but once you do, you’ll be binge-watching whole seasons with the rest of us." -Emily

The Office (UK)

"The original series of 'The Office' from the UK unfortunately seems to be lesser known than the American version, but it's just as delightful. Thankfully Netflix is going to change this.
The show has the same premise as the American version; a camera crew records life at Wernham Hogg Paper Company and the antics the staff and manager David get up to. You'll find yourself cringing constantly at Ricky Gervais' character David, but it's that wonderfully dry British humour that makes the show so special." -Miriam

Sense8

"'Sense8' has by far been my favourite show of the season. It’s a new Netflix original, which is great, as it means you can binge watch it! Less great, however, is the fact that there’s only one season at the moment, and it ends on kind of a cliffhanger. 

Sense8 is, in a nutshell, about eight people from around the world who suddenly become able to share senses and communicate with each other. The show is made by the Wachowskis, who you’ll recognise from 'The Matrix', 'V for Vendetta' and 'Cloud Atlas', so naturally, it’s filled with lots of action and plot twists, while still being quite intellectual. What is also amazing about Sense8 is it is super diverse! Among the main characters are a gay Mexican actor, a transgender woman in a relationship with another woman, a Korean businesswoman, an Icelandic DJ, an Indian pharmacist and a young bus driver from Nairobi, none of whom are vilified.

Sense8 is an amazingly diverse ensemble show, and all the actors really step up to plate to deliver amazing performances, leaving you loving every single character and desperately wanting more." - Alice

"I watched all 12 episodes in two days, and then I immediately started re-watching them. It's that good." - Claire

Jen Kirkman – I’m Gonna Die Alone (And I Feel Fine) 

"What I really love about Netflix is all the comedy specials available! I absolutely love stand-up comedy, and Jen Kirkman is one of my favourite comedians. In her special 'I’m Gonna Die Alone (And I Feel Fine)' she talks about her divorce, single life, her friends having kids and growing older. What I love about her is the energy and vivacity in the way she tells her stories; she really throws herself into her show. Throughout the special, Kirkman is able to cut through stereotypes of a forty-year-old divorced woman to expose the societal demands on people to perform certain roles. She uses long-form stories in vivid details to really entertain and illustrate to the audience her points, in many comedic angles. She is hilarious and I cannot recommend her stand-up enough, as well as her podcast 'I Seem Fun'." - Stephanie

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We hope you enjoyed our 30th Post! We have also passed 5,000 page-views, which, for a blog jsut starting out, is a pretty good number. So thank you all for your support and interest. It means the world to us.

Stay gold, 

Grace and Claire.

DISCLAIMER: We have not in anyway been approached by Netflix or any of these shows for promotion. This is all out of our own personal recommendations and experiences. we aren't getting paid for this.

Graceful and Claire also do not own any of the images used in this post.

21.6.15 | Claire

Sunday the 21st of June, 2015.

Good morning! We were off to the train station at 9:30am, and it was quite the brisk morning. Also, I debuted my new bag, which I purchased at the op shop on Saturday. It's a carpet bag in the style of a bowling bag. It's perf and I'm so in love. (Plus it was only $8!)

Brunch at: Brighton Shoolhouse

We shared the Glee Club Pancakes (blueberry and ricotta pancakes with a scoop of white-chocolate ice-cream, bacon and maplebutter)

 It was delicious. Sorry for the lack of pic, we were just too eager to eat it all!

We had brunch with our fave, Lizzie. She's moving to Boston on Saturday, so this was a bit of a last hurruh for a while. We are going to miss her immensely.

OOTD Grace:
Bag from Collette (similar), Shoes from Target, Scarf from boohoo.com and coat from K-Mart

OOTD Claire:
Dress form JayJays forever ago, Coat form Target forever ago, Hat from Target (recently), boots from Target, bag from The Shop of Op on Chapel Street.

Photographic proof that Lizzie has been in our apartment.

Hard at work or hardly working? We spent the afternoon on the couch, under a mountain of blankets watching The Lizzie McGuire Movie and The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants. The perfect movies for a lazy Sunday afternoon.

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Hello, all!

This blog is a learning process for us, so we are still trying to get a feel for what type of posts we want to do. So here is the first post of a new approach: a photodump/A Day in the Life. Often we feel like we don't know what to post about, but since this blog is about our lives in Melbourne, why not document it this way? So let us know what you think, there will be more to come!

Stay Gold,

Claire

A Post About Grocery Shopping | Claire

Hello, all!

EXAM PERIOD IS AT ITS END! 

I (Claire) finished last Wednesday, after having 4 essays due in 3 days (living the fast life), and Grace finished today! For all of you who have also finished, congratulations! May your days be spent in bed binge watching Netflix/Stan/Presto (ok, let's be honest. We're all using Netflix, aren't we?) as your life is free from academia once more. 

And to those of you who are still going, YOU CAN DO IT. But ugh, studying is the worst, isn't it? Remember to take breaks and don't work yourself too hard. Passing is important but so is your health. 

With swotvac and exam period, we were two very busy bees. So much so, that by the end of last week we had no washing powder, had squeezed the last bit of toothpaste out of the tube, and all we had to eat were 2 minute noodles, soup, and mac and cheese. All great food options, but not ideal to live off. When you have so many essays to write, grocery shopping just doesn't seem like an option. So last Friday morning, when I was enjoying the start of my Uni break and Grace had a couple days until her next one, we wrote a list, took our personal shopping trolley (this nifty thing from ikea), and set off to our closest Coles. 

Now, if you haven't already gathered, Grace and I live out of home, and so grocery shopping is up to us. Planning meals is probably the hardest part of independent living, as well as finding the time to go to the supermarket (check out  part one of Grace's adventures in the kitchen here). However, grocery shopping is Grace's favourite time of the week, and I will have to agree. You see, we have a routine. Every Saturday morning we clean the apartment (somewhat) and then we go grocery shopping. This is the same routine our Mum has back at home, which we helped with and carried through with us here. (Thanks, Mum <3) 

We really enjoy grocery shopping, but we are not sure why. Is it the freedom to put whatever food you want in the trolley without someone to say no? (Kind of. We still stop each other from getting unnecessary food items from time to time. Remember to keep an eye on that budget!) Or is it the "adult-ness" of it? It is all so grown up, doing your own grocery shopping. We think this must be it. 

Moving to Melbourne and having our own apartment/routine in the city is something we have always looked forward to while in high school. Is that weird? Perhaps we watched too many movies/TV shows growing up. But which TV show glorifies being an adult? Because Suddenly 30 (That's 13 Going on 30 for you non-Australians), definitely doesn't. Maybe it's our love of watching YouTubers and their vlogs... 

Nonetheless, trivial things like going grocery shopping makes us happy! It's like we have control of our lives, and being twins, I guess being independent is more important to us... even if we are being independent together, it's more like we get to ease into it together. Grace has been doing the independent life longer than I have, since I was at a residential college on campus last year and all of my food was prepared for me (shout out to the kitchen staff!), so we help each other. 

If you have made it this far with a post about grocery shopping, we love your dedication!

We don't have that many tips with grocery sopping, other than always look for specials, and even then, check all the price tags and see what the cheapest option is. Just because it is on special, doesn't mean it is the cheapest option. Also, try and plan your meals for the week before you go. That way you can stay focused and get what you need, as well as get in and out of there without wasting 10 minutes staring at a shelf. 

All in all, we appreciate the trivial things in life. We are so happy, and lucky, to be able to living in Melbourne and have this as our life. Like, we are living the dream, basically. Living in Melbourne with jobs, great friends, and studying what we love at a University we love. We are so grateful to have these opportunities. So yeah, we are happy we get to go grocery shopping. It means we are growing up and are at a place where we can afford to do that. Which is pretty special. 

Now that we are on Uni break, let's see if we post more! Here's to hoping!

Stay Gold,

Claire x

A Day In the Life: SWOTVAC Edition | Grace

Follow Grace around as she conquered a day of SWOTVAC, or as we like to call it, swot-WHACK. (I know, we're very funny), through a series of snapchats. And when you're done, give our individual snapchat accounts a follow for more looks into the daily lives of uni students living that Melbourne life.

Okay now... go!

I started work at 7am and it was freezing! I don't mind the early start, though. It means that I can get a lot more done in the day. 

After work I went home and changed, then Claire and I went into the city and met our fabulous friend, Miriam, for some lunch. We decided to try out Journal, which is next to the Melbourne City Library in Flinders Lane. I ordered a pot of English Breakfast because I don't usually have time to enjoy my morning cup of tea in the mornings I start work early, and the mushroom bruschetta, which was one of the specials for the day. I am so obsessed with mushrooms right now. I cannot get enough! 

As exams are coming up, we decided that we should actually do some study today, and hey, studying isn't so bad if you do it with friends! So we went to the Starbucks across from QV in Swanston St, where we set up camp like the other Uni students that were there studying, and did some work for a few hours. I was working on my American History revision essay/exam, just going over what I had written the day before and editing here and there. Something casual as I knew that I would probably get distracted being with Miriam, as she is one of my best friends. 

Then of course, there is the multiple journeys on the Melbourne Metro service. Nothing too exciting here.

(Boots: Target, two years ago (similar) | Boot Socks: Cotton On | Jeans: Cotton On, last year)

Also, totally not planned was me rushing to the bank at 4:30 in the afternoon trying to sort out an issue with my online banking. I totally felt like a real adult though, guys! I did not freak out at all and I handled the situation very maturely. Our Mum is so proud. Go Grace!

And of course, because it is SWOTVAC and today was a kind of Treat Yo' Self kind of day, Claire and I finally decided to satsify our multiple-weeks-long craving for donuts, and bought a Krispy Kreme each to enjoy as a dessert. Of course, while doing more studying. 

And there you go! Thanks for following along. Let us know if you enjoyed it and would like to see more posts like this. If you just CANNOT POSSIBLY WAIT (wow, enthusiasm), for another post to see what we get up to during our days, you should probably add us on Snapchat, because we post many many snaps a day. 

Grace: gracefulwhitex

Claire: clairencew

Until next time,

Stay gold!

Grace