When the going gets tough

 When it feels like you are getting stuck, then nothing comes easy. The lack of regularly doing a blog is one of these manifestations. 

At first, my reasoning for not getting a new post published was that I wish to remain positive in reporting my progress. When I realized 5 days ago that I may be able to start writing a new post without immediately publishing it, I finally got down to work.

I blame my being stuck on the lack of progress with my work, my lack of anticipated income. This happened because I've lost touch with the market in that I didn't foresee a recovery take place as quickly as it is happening right now. I fell into some kind of a depression, but as my life now is not centered around income, other factors were also at play.

My goal to get new clothes and have a summer break in Europe was also not to be. I've been procrastinating for too long, and had to postpone this plan to next year. The good part about this is that I will continue to wear my clothes until they are really finished - I'm so tired of this, but will persist and find value in some of the clothes I haven't worn for a while. I also have enough time now to save money and plan the holiday. 

Right now my goal is two months of holiday a year. With the Italy plan coming apart, it was another reason for me to feel down. I've had 3 weeks in Brazil earlier in the year, but that was it. 

My subscription to the Tinder dating site is becoming a challenge in itself. I've now met with two ladies - one is gone, and two others waisted my time when I pursued what turned out to be two fake profiles. The second person I met is from Thailand, and we've been seeing each other almost every weekend. She's invited me to join her when she returns to her home country, and I've been showing her around Cape Town, like a tour guide, with the hope that she'll show me around Thailand when we go there. This was planned for around April next year, but when she suddenly decided to go home early, and this a week after my Italy plans were finally cancelled, I grabbed the opportunity. So, I'll be leaving to the warm weather of Thailand on 4 September and will have 3 weeks to make up for my lack of holidays for the year. Thailand was also one of those countries that I thought I will visit when I'm old one day, and now I have the bonus to tick this off my bucket list.

My MG sports-car was 20 years old this year. It's been slowly deteriorating in looks in spite of the fact that it continued to perform well. Then I had a small crash about 50 meters from my house a month ago, and the insurance decided to write off my car. A bitter sweet ending. This however now leaves me with a car the size of a bus to use when going on appointments further away - I usually use my bicycle or walk to appointments, and I'm starting to look into electric cars as my fast new mode of transport. Something to look forward to, and pressure on me to make hay while the sun shines.

Well, with me now going on a summer break for 3 weeks, with summer coming to Cape Town, and with a property market about to enter a boom phase, the tough is about to get going.

Not everything is as bad as it feels, and when I look on the bright side, there is enough positive events in the past to look back on. I've learned more about retirement annuities and how my investments can work for me in the future. I'm spending more time in my garden and planted a Cypress tree last month. I'm investing time looking at opportunities and ideas with the goal of starting something new by 2028 - a project to occupy my mind and my time. Just as with the sudden break to Thailand, this goal may arrive suddenly and unexpectedly. Furthermore, I keep on running at least once a week, and I'm now doing more planks than ever before - an excellent form of exercise I read about in The 5 AM Club, a book by Robin Sharma I read about 3 years ago.

Here's to my next post arriving sooner than expected. 

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