Quality of life...

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“To live well, one must live unseen.” ― René Descartes

I never had time for “holiday” in my life – I didn't take “a year off” or loaf around watching the clock tick by – it is just not who I am. I successfully managed to worm my way out of my “first ever fail” in school - left, went to college - loved it and excelled, graduated early December two years later, had a job lined up for Jan and the train has not stopped since. Hopped through a couple of jobs and finally gave my last the middle finger in 2000 – that was when the real work began. Determined is probably a slight understatement for my character dynamic. A little bit of a double edged sword really – but it is what it is, isn’t it?!

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”Become your own boss” they said ”it will be fun, they said!” pretty much sums up the next 17 years of my life… hahaha!!! I am kidding! Yes, it was hard… no, let me rephrase that – it was FUCKING HARD WORK!!! - BUT, I loved every minute. No – that is a lie, because there were some pretty shitty times along the way, but I did – LOVE IT!

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I had a small concern in the grand scheme of things, but 99% of business is done online these days so 99.9% of your success can be attained by how you present yourself online. I was good at that – very good in fact, so my “small concern” became one of Cape Town’s most fondly spoken of below the line print businesses… and anybody who has ANY real experience in the corporate world will educate you with the fact that word of mouth is not only the most POWERFUL form of advertising but also the most difficult to attain. My team and I achieved it, surpassed it, lit that shit on fire and roasted marshmallows for everyone!

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It was go go go go ALL the time!!! 160+ walk in clients per day front of house and 10k+ back-house production clients per month. It was FUCKING AWESOME… BUT, it left me nothing for myself! Literally… nothing! I am the kind of individual that will keep on, keeping on – to my own detriment – and that is precisely what I did. A bottomless coffee is never really bottomless – there always comes a point when you simply cannot stomach anymore. I reached that point! I didn’t want to even LOOK at a design brief, say hello to people that knew me or even open my email. My ENTIRE being went into “system shut down” and ALL I wanted to do was ESCAPE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

“Our egos are utterly convinced that ‘quality of life’ is found in the ‘domineering of life.’ And a very simple way to effectively destroy the whole of your life is to live by this for the smallest part of your life.” ― Craig D

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I did – escape. Been a few years, now, I find myself here… In the middle of “nowhere” almost, and you know what… I love it!!! I would not give you thank you to go back to the city which I have literally spent my entire life in! Sure… it is beautiful and yes there is so much to see and do, but the reality is – I saw and enjoyed very little of it, not unlike 80% of the rest of the population! City life is a master at consuming you! You are always “busy” yet you achieve very little of substance and still end your days feeling like a flat fucking tyre.

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Perhaps it is my age creeping up on me which makes me think about such things, but ALL I want in my world now is a life of quality. I no longer give a shit if I look like yesterday’s breakfast when I go into town to the shops, I literally live in old denim shorts, slip slops and shirts with fish moth holes in them. My hair has not seen a hair dresser in years, my hands and feet are no longer manicured and it does not matter to me in the least. I used to put a FULL face of make-up on every single day of my life… you are LUCKY if you get a stroke of mascara out of me these days and you know what… I love it, because it is so much FUCKING simpler!

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I don’t actually care what other people think of me anymore and that feels so damn good! So, in a nutshell – for the first time in my ENTIRE life, I am REALLY becoming comfortable in my own skin, seeing life from a meaningful perspective and taking time out for the things that TRULY matter! It took 40 years… but I reckon I still have a bit of mileage on this clock, so it’s all good!

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“My new deliberate and slower pace has created a higher quality in my experiences.” ― Lisa J. Shultz

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“The Quality of your life depends on the quality of the questions you ask yourself” ― Bernardo Moya

❤❤❤

Until next time...
Much Love from Cape Town, South Africa xxx
Jaynielea

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26 comments
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I hear you ... the thing about hard work is it never pays off until you stop doing it. They never tell you that part.

The photo essay was gorgeous.

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Ah, under the radar of city life. Thinking about that for some time now. Practicing it most of the time. Can't say I'm worse for that.

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Yeah, it has a way of creeping into your being... and poof - country bumpkin :D Hope you are well @manoldonchev - been a while!

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Yeah, I'm well-busy. Well-into-the-rat-race. And well, too.

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Sounds productive and healthy :)

You should drop by our Lifestyle server - plenty 'ol PHC'ers there just for the sake of connection :)

https://discord.gg/jUtTwcPavb

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I guess I'll get to that...some day. Have fun, meanwhile!

And some

!BEER

for a change ;)

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hello dear friend @jaynie good afternoon
reading this post was intense, full of many feelings and emotions.
What beautiful photographs you have selected for this post.
I take this opportunity to wish you a splendid weekend

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Thank you for the lovely feedback and for the blog share!

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(Edited)

one of my favorite quote in life is,

the beauty in simplicity

Its amazing how far you've come, but even more beautiful the lessons you've learned along the way and how life changing it has being for you. One thing is for sure, there is no better feeling than being comfortable in your own skin, you don't have to live for people no more but for yourself and your loved ones.

I wish you all the goodness of life ma'am💙

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Your comments are always thoughtful. It doesn't go unnoticed.
!ENGAGE 30

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thank you so much
😌

Words are powerful they say

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Thank you for your engagement on this post, you have recieved ENGAGE tokens.

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Beautifully put @stevenson7 - thank you! There is a derivative of that quote... K.I.S.S (Keep It Simple Stupid) hahaha!!! - Humans complicate things for no good reason!

Thanks for stopping by! Have a lekker week ahead!

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thank you so much ma'am

I'd try to KISS as much we I can 😅

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Release.

The letting go of something.

So many see it as loss but mostly I see it as a huge gain, especially so in your case as above. Letting go of everything but that which is truly important is true enlightenment in my opinion and I'm pleased to see a other soul find it, and to actually want it.

I haven't quite found that middle of nowhere place yet, well it's found, I just haven't reached it yet, but I will...And then that care factor will be no factor, as it is for you. You're there...I want to be...So seems like we're on the same page.

Nice post Jaynie. As always.

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Thank you @galenkp.

I haven't quite found that middle of nowhere place yet, well it's found, I just haven't reached it yet.

I suppose this reverts back to the point of release - The letting go of something. These things can take a little time - but generally worth it once that bridge has been crossed.

Appreciate your input, always.

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What an amazing place, would love to visit someday!

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You are an inspiration! It's not easy to step away from the grind and find your true self. It's too easy to fall into the trap of being what you think you should be, and sacrificing yourself in the process. But there's real magic in giving up the smoke and mirrors method of showing up in the world.

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Oh what a journey Jaynie! City life can consume you and lead you to burnout. Not a great feeling.
Being all natural, enjoying more of your life, living with a state of inner peace. This is happy life. And not giving a f*** about what people think is the best part. Because too much of our life is consumed by this fear of never being enough, of never acquiring enough, of not showing how capable we are. Such a waste of time. We can literally go into a grave by living such a consuming lifestyle. I am happy that you learned what is important and live your life as an example of freedom.
The questions we put are very important. You know that someone stopped learning and growing when they stopped putting questions. To others, to themselves.

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