Come join my dog and me in Philadelphia, USA

Details

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  Description

  Hi Everybody! My name is Garrett, and I've been on workaway as both a host and a workawayer, on and off for over ten years. I taught English abroad from 2015 to 2020: 16 months in Prague, 2 years in Hanoi, and a bunch of travel in between. I also taught English here in the states from 2020-2024.
  
  Now, in 2026, I am a gardener and bartender, and I have just bought a house in Northwest Philadelphia, where I live with my dog Pablo! Our new home is a beautiful old stone house (built in 1925!!), with a nice backyard and lots of old-world charm. I'm feeling creative, and my latest project is a house! I am very busy with my two jobs. I work six days a week, and when I'm not at work, I'm working on projects around the house. With so much going on, it is difficult to find the time to cook, clean, and take care of Pablo. These are the things that I need help with.
  
  I consider myself an ally and supporter of the LGBTQ+ community and the BLM movement. I believe in science, I believe in women's rights, and I believe in love, kindness, and understanding. Racism, hatred, and all kinds of bigotry are not tolerated here. If all of this sounds good to you, I'd love to hear from you!
  
  NOTE: DOG LOVERS WELCOME!! Workawayers will be spending lots of time with my 10-year-old, Shepherd-mixed pup Pablo! :D

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Art Projects

  Language practice

  Help with Eco Projects

  Gardening

  Animal Care

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance
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  Interests

  

  LGBTQ

  

  Events & social

  

  Sustainability

  

  Pets

  

  Culture

  

  Van life

  

  Self development

  

  Movies & TV

  

  Plant care

  

  Music

  

  DIY & crafts

  

  Books

  

  Art & design

  

  Architecture

  

  Cooking & food

  

  Gardening

  

  Languages

  

  Drawing & painting

  

  Carpentry

  

  Animals

  

  Cycling

  

  Hiking

  

  Outdoor activities

  

  Winter sports

  

  Yoga / Wellness

  

  Team sports

  

  Nature

  

  Mountain

  

  Camping

  

  Adventure sports
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  Workawayers will:
  
  - enjoy one of the greatest cities in the USA: PHILADELPHIA!!!!
  
  - enjoy their time in one of Philadelphia's up-and-coming neighborhoods.
  
  - have access to local culture, including art galleries, concerts, and festivals.
  
  - have access to local recreation, including hiking/running, kayaking, rock-climbing, biking, rec. sports, historic sightseeing, countless restaurants/bars/clubs, and more!
  
  - have easy access to NYC, Washignton DC, Baltimore, Atlantic City and the Jersey Shore.
  
  - lend their talents to creative and purposeful work/projects
  
  - have the opportunity to learn about various activities/skills/interests from the host and from the local community.
  
  - have the opportunity to improve their English. Workawayers should feel free to use their host as a free English resource.
  
  - and OF COURSE, workawayers will enjoy the privilege of spending time with Pablo, the goodest boy in all of Philadelphia.

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  Help

  Ideal candidates have the following qualities:
  
  - CREATIVE (artists welcome!)
  - self-motivated
  - thorough and meticulous in your work
  - DOG LOVER!!
  - have experience caring for and/or raising dogs
  - reliable and trustworthy
  - speak English (enough to understand my instructions)
  
  I am not interested in making workawayers work long hours. I have been a workawayer for several hosts in the past. I understand that one of the main reasons that people volunteer as workawayers is so that they can travel/live in a new place, experience a new culture, and have fun! I want my workawayers to make the most of their experience and truly immerse themselves in this beautiful city. When I say "maximum 3 hours x 5 days a week", I MEAN it. You will actually probably help only 12-15 hours/week. With that said, let me tell you a bit about the work I require.
  
  There are 3 different types of help:
  
  1. General Home help
  This and #2 are the most important. I am at my bartending job three days a week and my gardening job three days a week, so I don't always have time to keep the house as clean as I'd like. Workawayers will help with general chores around the house. Most of these chores only need to be done once or twice a week. A workawayer might spend 6-7 hours per week with these chores.
  
  2. Take Care of Pablo!
  This and #1 are the most important. I have a beautiful, smart, friendly, four-legged friend named Pablo! He's about ten years old, medium-sized, 65% German Shepherd and 35% Asian mutt. As I said before, due to my busy schedule, I don't always have time to give Pablo the attention he needs. He's not a puppy anymore, but he's still got lots of energy. When I'm at work, he has a beautiful yard that he can spend his time in, but Pablo likes to have someone to play with. During the work week (mon-fri), workawayers will walk Pablo 3 times a day and provide him with food and water. In addition, workawayers will spend time with Pablo monday-friday (not all the time, perhaps just 60-90 minutes/day). Workawayers can play with him, take him for a walk, cuddle him, whatever way you want to spend your time with him. He's a smart boy, he's potty trained, and usually pretty clean, so he doesn't need cleaning or training. He just needs attention from time to time. If you like dogs, you will LOVE Pablo. You've never met a sweeter dog.
  
  3. Cook Dinner (optional)
  Workawayers will be provided with basic food needs (butter, oil, salt, pepper, herbs, spices, rice, flour, oats, etc), and they are also welcome to cook/eat breakfast foods such as coffee/tea, cereal, oatmeal, toast, jelly/jam, grits, pancakes, bagels, etc. With the exception of these basic foods and breakfast items, however, food IS NOT provided as part of the workawayer's compensation, UNLESS the workawayer would like to cook as part of their work. I cook for myself once or twice a week, and I enjoy going out to local restaurants as well, so I do not NEED anyone to prepare food for me. However, if the workawayer enjoys cooking and would like to prepare meals as part of their weekly work, this could certainly be arranged! I love trying new foods :)
  
  These are the tasks that I primarily require from workawayers, but at any given time, there is also a long list of projects around the house that I'm working on. If you are open to other types of work and/or eager to learn new skills, I could always use an extra set of hands with these projects as well.
  
  I can host single workawayers or couples.

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  Spanish: Intermediate

  This host offers a language exchange
  I have a TEFL certificate and Pennsylvania ESL Specialist certification. I taught ESL/EFL 10 years, and though I am no longer a teacher, I am always happy to help workawayers with their English. Workawayers should feel free to use me as a resource. I'm always happy to chat and discuss English and other languages. Additionally, I have been teaching myself Spanish for a few years now. My pronunciation, vocabulary, speaking, and writing are at a pre-intermediate to intermediate level, but I need to work on my listening, reading, fluency (speaking), and grammar. I would love to host Spanish-speakers (of any nationality) to help me with my skills! At different points in my life, I also spoke some French, Italian, Czech, and Vietnamese. I would welcome some casual language exchange for these languages and any others!! I love to learn :)
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  Accommodation

  Pablo and I live in a three-bedroom house in Manayunk, a lively and culturally diverse neighborhood in Northwest Philadelphia. To read more about the neighborhood, see below. The house has three (3) floors. All three bedrooms are on the third (3rd) floor. The front bedroom is where I sleep. Workawayers sleep in one of the bedrooms in the back of the house. The Workawayer's bedroom includes a large mattress (200cmx180cm), a closet and dresser for clothes, heat and AC (in the summer), a ceiling fan, and a window to the garden. The bedroom is air conditioned, and so is the rest of the house. The living room, dining room, and kitchen are all on the second (2nd) floor, and the first floor is a basement/art studio with a door that opens up to the street. Workawayers should feel free to use the house as they please (except for the other two bedrooms). The house has WiFi, washer/dryer for laundry, a full kitchen (fridge, freezer, stove, oven, microwave, toaster, coffee maker, fresh drinking water, etc), safe drawers for locking up passports and other valuables, and a television. The house has 2-3 off-street parking spots, and there are always a lot of free parking spaces on Tower Street. The back garden has a fire pit and has plenty of space for parking a bicycle. I would not say that I am a smoker, but I do smoke from time to time, so smokers are welcome.
  
  Since workawayers only work 12-16 hours/week, I do not provide food as part of your stay (unless workawayers want to cook. see above). Workawayers may help themselves to basic breakfast foods like coffee/tea, milk, bread, jam, oatmeal, cereal, and yogurt. I usually cook 1-2 times a week, but I also enjoy going out to local bars and restaurants. Manayunk and its surrounding neighborhoods are full of a diverse blend of restaurants, bars, and nightlife destinations. There are many vegan/vegetarian food options nearby as well. As your host, of course I am happy to help workawayers find good/cheap food nearby. Once in a while, I may cook dinner for workawayers and/or take them out for food/drinks.

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  What else ...

  Generally, workawayers will work 4-5 days a week, but the schedule is VERY flexible. 3-day weekends are possible. Workawayers may also do all of their weekly work in one or two days instead of spreading it out over the week. You make your own schedule!
  
  In their time off, workawayers are free to do as they please. Our house and garden are beautiful, quiet, and peaceful. Workawayers should feel free to make themselves comfortable. Our home is within walking distance of all of Manayunk's best restaurants, bars, and attractions. Center City Philadelphia and the rest of this great city are only 30-45 minutes away by public transportation. I myself am always looking for cool new bars and restaurants around Philly's many distinctive neighborhoods, and I like to be active and go out on the weekends. It's nice to host workawayers who also have a sense of fun and adventure and will come out for drinks/activities once in a while!
  
  Speaking of ADVENTURE, Philadelphia is in close proximity to many great weekend destinations in the American Northeast, including: NYC, Washington DC, Baltimore, Atlantic City and the Jersey Shore, the Pocono Mountains, and many others. Philadelphia is pretty easy to explore by car, but you need to pay close attention to parking laws. There is also a relatively cheap system of trains and buses for public transportation. Workawayers should feel free to explore the rest of this beautiful and culturally diverse country in their free time. I'm always happy to provide travel tips and help you arrange transportation.

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  A little more information

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    Internet access

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    Limited internet access

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    We have pets

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    We are smokers

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    Can host families

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  Can host digital nomads

  I am happy to host digital nomads and can surely provide you with any space, resources, and/or privacy you might need.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  Two

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  My animals / pets

  Pablo (8 years)

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