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living the dream

to which extent are you able or willing to live the moment, the beauty & grace of now?

I feel fortunate in that I don't have to attend a 9-5 job & no family that needs me. on the other hand the freedom to do whatever I desire at any given moment can lead to a lack in discipline to a degree that may not always be healthy.

my personal solution is to stay flexible & actively hold the balance.... though this can be exhausting in itself, which is why I don't always apply it 😉

walklightly 8 Apr 3
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6

I actually am living the dream. Most my time is my own to do as I please. I work but mostly hours I choose. I know what times I like to go for my bike ride, swim and walk, and what times my brain is best for working or taking a nap on the beach. I have learned to give myself a bit of a schedule, otherwise I won't do my daily routine and will get lazy.

I'm lucky in that I like to spend most my time alone, but also lucky that I can usually find an aquaintance to do something with when I need to get out, or pop into a local bar up the street where they know me and I'm taken care of and maybe I'll dance a little hula if the musicians ask me, which is a nice way to feel the moments going through my body, expressing a beautful story and seeing it connect with the tourists.

My favorite times are when I'm riding my bike along the coast, with the sea breeze on my face and the changing scenery and friendly faces going by... and then also when I take my evening walk to sit on the beach to watch the colors change in the sky, while live music from the tiki bar with familiar hula music fills my heart. Visitors come by to enjoy the sunset sky or moonrise and often ask me to take their picture with the lovely scene behind them. Then I walk home to enjoy the rest of the evening any way I choose.

On days that I work, I work barefoot in the sand at sunset, totally involved with some emotional moments of my clients (I'm a wedding officiant) and get to see some family bonding, etc., in a lovely setting. So, mostly whether at work or play, I'm enjoying every moment of my life.

that sounds like total bliss. congrats to your achievement!

@Fanburger Well, I’ve been writing a book that I hope could change the world and live beyond me. I need the current drama out of my life and then I will get back to it. Otherwise, when I’m gone, I hope I will have positively affected the lives of those who knew me in some small way. My kids can sell my place and tuck away the money to make their lives better, as my parents did for me. Or they could keep my place and rent it to tourists and spend time here themselves, enjoying the life I love so much.

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I am now retired and lived much of my life as a musician taking 9-5 jobs to fill the gaps between gigs. I have always lived in the moment in so many beautiful places, yes I traveled a lot and I'm now retired due to injury, living my life as an introvert. Happily I must say. I say to people when they convey restrictions on their thinking is to "Die happy!"

thank you 🙂

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I just retired and realizing that I need to change so many social safety nets that I had when I worked, alls changed time to grow and I must admit their are some growing pains that's what my grand pop use to call it. But I'm ready to give it hell!? like what was said " no. Body makes it out of here alive!

... & (though it fits only halfway here) i have to land one of my favorites, translated from german: the last shirt has no pockets.

@walklightly tees and jeans, all the way.

I think one of the most difficult things to do upon retirement is to realize that you don't have to do anything. Once I got that through my head, I could relax. A great weight lifted from me then.

@Condor5, ok, tees don't have pockets to begin with 😀
i started travelling long before retirement, coming to love the life style in thailand in particular. that's where i learned to cherish the moment of emptiness. doing nothing, thinking nothing, breathing, aaaah!

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When l gave up an advertising career in my 20's to play music full time the freedom of lifestyle was an overwhelming and wonderful feeling. The loss of material things was surprisingly easy. Everyone has to find whatever it is that feeds their needs. For me it was freedom of lifestyle, for others it is being a parent, or making money. Whatever it is, find it and go for it.

absolutely! that's what it's all about: the freedom of being self.

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I'm in the same place right now. I am just looking for people who are as free as I am.

You will find quite a few on this sight.

I've been here since November - very active here.

sometimes it feels as though i spend half my current life here, with this community, @sassygirl3869. the "real-life" community where i live doesn't seem to have much real time: single parents, achieving professionals, retirees overwhelmed by the volunteer work they signed on to 😀

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Good stuff

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Dance like no one is watching! 🙂

like that!

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Waiting for the lotto

LOL!

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I had an accident last summer and suffered a severe brain bleed which cost me my short term memory. Every day my mental clock resets, so all I really have IS a moment, so-to-speak.

LJ49 Level 4 Apr 3, 2018

i imagine that to be quite more challenging than comfortable, & wish you a full recovery ❤

@walklightly I am trying to accept it as the damage is permanent. I had a seizure last July and fell and smashed my head on concrete. my head is still misshapen. I have to have a 'handler' now as well as my service dog Bill.

Just saw a film , called 50 First Dates , starring Adam Sandler . I think there may be some useful suggestions there , for you .

@Cast1es There are, and I use them all of the time. Good movie and I appreciate your feedback!

@LJ49, i am very sorry to hear about the tribulation you have to face now. nearly lost for words, i can only wish & hope that you will find acceptance & peace in the future. my heart goes out for you.

@walklightly Thank you so much. I do try to make the best of my days.

2

Good for you . It is the time of your life to enjoy and do as you will. I have lived this way for a while now and I love it. I stay busy of course doing what I won't to do. I try to socialize so I don't lose my social skills. It is a time that not all get to experience. You are very fortunate. It can be a very good time of your life. "KUDOS".

i feel very fortunate, & grateful for my life so far 🙂

2

After years of working 9 to 5, I am enjoying my current job, school bus driver. After you add in the commute and overtime, 9 to 5 turns out to be more like 5 to 7. Now I live close enough to walk to work. Work is 2 hours in the AM and again in the PM. Summers and school days off are the same for me. I still have a schedule but really like it.

my ex used to drive school buses, & i remember us having lots of time to enjoy. but he didn't have the nerve for kids' chaos.

@walklightly They are kids full of energy. There are a few attention getters whom some may call troublemakers. Biggest issue, they find it hard to stay in the seats. If they get too out of hand, I pull over and park, that settles them down. If something really bad goes on, I get on the mic and yell. You can hear a pin drop after that.

@Mark013, yep, & that'll last a minute, after which it's back to mayhem 😀
but you're entirely right, of course: they are kids, still got excess energy.

2

I have more opportunity for pure moments than I remember to use, but it happens. My living alone, (great cat, though) is getting better and better. I learn more all of the time.

1

I learned to live in the moment back in the period - 1969 0 62 in Berlin, Germany, when we were srore surrounded by 300,000 Russian troops and Kraschev was threatening ab atacj in us iuf we did not get out of Berlin. The intensity and immediacy of life was fantastic. Since retirement, I am relaearning that way of living.

ha, that's interesting: after having been born in berlin i returned in 1971, & it was an tense time in my life, all about discovery, involvement, passion.

1

Agree! I love to take care of those around me. Now I have one more to be kind to. And that makes all the diference.

1

Where do I start.... That's an excellent question...willing to live the moment? Let me start here, I am very lucky in a sense that I love what I do. It is a 9 to 5 type of job but I couldn't care less. I would pay for the privilege to have my job (of course I am NOT going to tell them that, so they will still pay ME ? ), but but but..yeah, there is always something, right? Its all great with one little problem. I live in the bible belt, so there is not much to do when I am not working. I have projects of my own to keep me busy, I read a lot, you name it. So, what I would really like to do???... Here it goes, my dream finale for a long successful life would be to get a good job in Bangkok Thailand for my last years. I would work hard and party hard until some day I would just drop dead at Sukhumvitt street in Bangkok. How willing would I be to get the heck away from the bible belt and go somewhere else??... I gotta give it to you, you have planted the bug in my mind......cheers !!

cheers! you make me smile 🙂
with a name like yours you should fit perfectly into a world of buddhist philosophy - go for it!

Ha ha ha... Buddhist philosophy is not exactly what I meant... It's more like drinking to my dead in the busiest crazy street in the whole world. Its just beautiful, everyone talks to everyone with no prejudice of any kind. Just lovely and fun. Thanks for your fast reply. Cheers to the far side of the world !!!

@IamNobody, oh, i do know the scene on sukhumvit road - which is in part possible due to the endless tolerance of a philosophy that is accepting of everything & anyone there is. no moral judgements in buddhism. enjoy! 😉

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I haven't been able to ...ever I guess

thank you for being open.

@walklightly thank you for making me think

@LadyAlyxandrea, oh no, i may trigger thinking (which seems to be part of what i'm here for), but you are the thinker! enjoy! 😉

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No one ever, said as they die, "I wish I had spent more time at work".

I have a lot of flexibility too and the balance is sometimes a challenge. I like spending a lot of my time with my dog, watching the sunset over Puget Sound and the Olympic Mountains.

sounds like the real thing to me, perfectly balanced 🙂

0

Agree!

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