Down and up

 When writing a blog, in this case me plotting my life going forward, it is not easy when one is going through challenging times. Nobody wants to give the impression of struggling to keep head above water. We all want to be and feel strong in dealing with obsticales in our path. My lack of reporting - it is 5 months since my last post - is a reflection of the difficult times I've been going through.

The holiday I had in Thailand at the end of a very cold winter in Cape Town last year, gave me the inspiration I needed, to focus on getting back on track. I lost interest in my work and the cold really got to me, but after 3 weeks in the tropics, and with summer about to start in Cape Town, I had my dream life come back to me. (And that dream life; to be able to not have to live in winter if you don't want to.)

Summer has come, and it is almost Autumn again, and when winter is about to set in, I'm off to escape the cold this year, and explore Sicily this time, leaving in the middle of May.

But back to "Down and up", the title of this post. So, being back from a break, and feeling inspired and motivated, I was ready to take on the world again. Summer is usually a busy time, the property market was finally coming out of a depression that lasted almost 7 years, and with my clients picking up on my renewed enthusiams, I was about to make sales, many sales. And, I've been telling everyone about it. 

Miraculously, three of my customers waited for my return from holiday to take on the sale of their properties. I didn't disappoint them. In fact, in the last 2 months of last year, I sold one house less that the whole of the rest of that year. 

As the year came to an end, my friend of Thailand wanted to visit me again, and I invited her for 3 months; the usual time allowed for a holiday in a strange new country. It was going to be a time of adjusting, of different cultures living together. In our case, me middle class estate agent and she, working class massage lady. The challenges presented itself right away, from cooking and what to eat, to washing and cleaning, the barriers caused by the difference in languages - she can hardly speak English and I can now speak maybe 3 words of Thai, and what to do during this time, with our time. My lady is a busy body, and I need to make time to generate an income too.

January came without a single sale, but my focus remained strong on my work, and it felt that I could be selling a house or two or three or more at any time. A bit of luck arrived when Vin found a job in the city - doing massages between 10 am and 7 pm, 6 days a week. She was happy to be able to make more money than she can in her Thailand, and I was more motivated and happy too. Now we have time for each other, and time for work; and a balanced relationship was starting to develop. I decided to remain patient through-out it all, and developed a routine of actually finishing work by the time she comes home.

Staying focussed and motivated resulted in 4 sale in February, and I see a record year ahead. This is the attitude that will drive sales, and I hope to keep the wheels turning, and live the life I set up for myself and dream of.

My birthday is one day away, tomorrow, when I'll be 62. I am now 3 years away from finding a place outside of the city, where I can add value and bring life to an under utilized piece of real estate, ideally a piece of land with few people around. I am also 3 years away from increasing my holidays to 3 months a year.

I count my blessings, try to stay healthy, eat healthy, keep the planet clean, and keep on exploring new ideas, with the goal that one of these will one day not only empower me, but others too.

Here's to writing a blog when you feel on top of the world. May these come more regularly.

Observatory, Cape Town - 02 March 2025


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