This here little blog is all about story telling, sharing moments of candour, not just my own but those of the people who inspire me the most. And while I adore all the those beautiful women out there keeping it real on the gram (here's looking at you @jetsetmama and @adrienelouise) I thought I would kick off this #realtalk by introducing you to the women who I've known for a lifetime and who inspire my every single day with their tenacity and zesty outlook on life.
So, without further ado, may I introduce Johanna Borger aka JoJo aka JB (but not to be confused with J-Beibs). A million miles away from home and living her best life in London town this girl has a magical way with words, whimsy and just about anything else in life really.
How would you describe yourself in one word?
What inspired you to pursue a career overseas?
My gut / Immutable initiation / Confusion / A fear of sitting still / A glass of wine, lowered inhibitions, an Etihad airways sale and “pfft, why not?”. I’m not too sure which was the culprit.
What’s the most important lesson you've learned along the way?
Stop being so dramatic.
Where is the best place for a late-night boogie?
Someone’s living room with cheap wine at 3am, surrounded by great people who dance terribly and a playlist equal parts ABBA and Taylor Swift.
What are you reading (or watching)?
Novel: Kafka on the Shore (Haruki Murakami); News column: Josh Glancy’s “In New York”; menu: Wagamama’s.
What's the best advice you've ever received?
1) Be in the present and, 2) cut your hair short.
Both look good paired with a pair of large hoops.
What’s next for you?
I could tell you, but I’d probably change my mind approximately 0.5 seconds after. At the moment it involves eating the remaining Ben & Jerry’s cookie dough ice-cream in the freezer.
Unpredictable.
What's the best thing about living in London?
It’s a paradox, but what I like about London is that’s incredibly unlikeable. Anyone who has called this place a home will have experienced the sardine-stacking of the rush hour tube (made worse when suffocated by a middle-aged banker cologne). And then there’s the fact that you can’t escape the faint whiff of urine, weed and fryer oil. Or my personal favourite: sweaty bus poles.
This city offers on respite. You’re kept on your toes - turning a corner could result in a shoulder-brush with acting royalty (I crossed the road with Game of Throne’s Hodor once) or face full of mid-flight pigeon (delicious). It’s an everyday lucky dip and it’s addictively exciting, but check back in 6 months to see if I still have all my hair.
Talk us through your day-to-day work life…
Step 1: exit bed (crucial)
Step 2: enter workplace
Step 3: ensure that between steps 1 and 2 I change out of my pyjamas and brush my teeth. Combing hair is optional because if the tube wind tunnel doesn’t destroy your ‘do, the temperamental weather or a kamikaze pigeon will
Step 4: If I don’t have a briefing with the creative team, I’ll sit down at the cacti-breeding ground that is my desk and wait for my first email of the day. I never know what trajectory my day is going to take until I’m in it. Sometimes it’s cruising altitude and a lunch hour on Wimbledon Common; other’s it’s Houston we have a problem and a control room of people furiously working together to launch a campaign.*
*All of the above is interspersed with what is known in the medical community as “too many cups of coffee”
What's the best thing about living in London?
It’s a paradox, but what I like about London is that’s incredibly unlikeable. Anyone who has called this place a home will have experienced the sardine-stacking of the rush hour tube (made worse when suffocated by a middle-aged banker cologne). And then there’s the fact that you can’t escape the faint whiff of urine, weed and fryer oil. Or my personal favourite: sweaty bus poles.
This city offers on respite. You’re kept on your toes - turning a corner could result in a shoulder-brush with acting royalty (I crossed the road with Game of Throne’s Hodor once) or face full of mid-flight pigeon (delicious). It’s an everyday lucky dip and it’s addictively exciting, but check back in 6 months to see if I still have all my hair.
Talk us through your day-to-day work life…
Step 1: exit bed (crucial)
Step 2: enter workplace
Step 3: ensure that between steps 1 and 2 I change out of my pyjamas and brush my teeth. Combing hair is optional because if the tube wind tunnel doesn’t destroy your ‘do, the temperamental weather or a kamikaze pigeon will
Step 4: If I don’t have a briefing with the creative team, I’ll sit down at the cacti-breeding ground that is my desk and wait for my first email of the day. I never know what trajectory my day is going to take until I’m in it. Sometimes it’s cruising altitude and a lunch hour on Wimbledon Common; other’s it’s Houston we have a problem and a control room of people furiously working together to launch a campaign.*
*All of the above is interspersed with what is known in the medical community as “too many cups of coffee”
What inspired you to pursue a career overseas?
My gut / Immutable initiation / Confusion / A fear of sitting still / A glass of wine, lowered inhibitions, an Etihad airways sale and “pfft, why not?”. I’m not too sure which was the culprit.
What’s the most important lesson you've learned along the way?
Stop being so dramatic.
Where is the best place for a late-night boogie?
Someone’s living room with cheap wine at 3am, surrounded by great people who dance terribly and a playlist equal parts ABBA and Taylor Swift.
What are you reading (or watching)?
Novel: Kafka on the Shore (Haruki Murakami); News column: Josh Glancy’s “In New York”; menu: Wagamama’s.
What's the best advice you've ever received?
1) Be in the present and, 2) cut your hair short.
Both look good paired with a pair of large hoops.
What’s next for you?
I could tell you, but I’d probably change my mind approximately 0.5 seconds after. At the moment it involves eating the remaining Ben & Jerry’s cookie dough ice-cream in the freezer.
Thank you, Jojo
xx Abbie
