What do I miss about my life before the internet…?

It seems that nostalgia is big these days. Everybody is always referring to "the old days" and the other day I was asked whether I don't miss life before the internet and all the gadgets we are surrounded with these days.

Seriously? Do you want me to tell you that I miss standing in the queue at the bank to deposit money to pay my accounts? Do you want me to tell you that I miss writing out cheques to pay creditors, putting them in envelopes and then having to go to the post office to post them? And then having to follow up where the cheque is when a creditor says they haven’t received it?

Do you want me to tell you I miss taking photographs and then having to go to a photographic shop to have them printed out, with many botched photos in the batch for which I have to pay, and then having to post them off to family and friends to share? Do you also want me to tell you I enjoyed paging  through telephone books to find a store’s number, spend hours on the phone with various stores to find out what products they have, how much it is and then spend hours comparing prices?

I also can’t tell you that, before the internet, I enjoyed having to deal with scores of estate agents when I wanted to sell a property, signing endless mandates from which nothing ever materialised. I also can’t tell you I enjoyed huge phone bills endlessly querying wrong accounts and talking to rude people and, to boot, getting nowhere!

No, I can’t tell you that there is ANYTHING that I miss about my life before the internet!

The big question...

What is better than coffee in bed?

Coffee with a friend!

Images from CoffeeBrüe on Twitter

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To bless this kind earth

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Every day is a gift

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Glory of expression

Simplicity is the most difficult thing to secure in this world; 

it is the last limit of experience and the last effort of genius.  

- George Sand 

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Don't ever grow too old

Don't ever grow too old for birthdays,
†† Fun-things that you used to do,
†† Don't give up your dreams because you
†† Feel that they have not come true.

†† Don't forget the sound of laughter,
†† Or the love in someone's eyes,
†† Don't trade memories for pleasures,
†† All that in a moment dies.
†† Don't give up your zest for living,
†† Saying you are much too old,
†† Is this what you feel, or is it
†† Something that you have been told?

†† There's a valley deep within us,
†† Where there is eternal Spring,
†† Where there is no sound of sorrow,
†† And the birds forever sing.
†† Though your gait is not as steady,
†† Now as once it used to be,
†† And your vision's clouding over
†† Things you used to clearly see,

†† Do not let the weight of decades,
†† Turn you into bitter gall,
†† For with age there comes a wisdom,
†† That's a blessing to us all.
†† Hold your years up like a banner,
†† Wave it brightly in the sun,
†† When folks tell you life is over,
†† Tell them it has just begun.

Author Unknown

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I wish...

I wish I had invented blue jeans: the most spectacular, the most practical, the most relaxed and nonchalant. They have expression, modesty, sex appeal, simplicity - all I hope for in my clothes.

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The ultimate sophistication

Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.

- Leonardo da Vinci

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Create peace again

"The simplified life is a sanctified life,

Much more calm, much less strife.

Oh, what wondrous truths are unveiled-

Projects succeed which had previously failed.

Oh, how beautiful life can be,

Beautiful simplicity."

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Hell hath no fury...

She spent the first day packing her belongings into boxes, crates and suitcases.

On the second day, she had the movers come and collect her things.

On the third day, she sat  down for the last time at their beautiful dining room table  by candlelight, put on some soft background music, and feasted on a pound of shrimp, a jar of caviar, and a bottle of Chardonnay.

When she had finished, she went into each and every room and deposited a few half-eaten shrimp shells dipped in caviar into the hollow of the curtain rods.

She then cleaned up the kitchen and left.

When the husband returned with his new girlfriend, all was bliss for the first few days.   

Then slowly, the house began to smell. 

  

They tried everything; cleaning and mopping and airing the place out.

Vents were checked for dead rodents, and carpets were steam cleaned.

Air fresheners were hung everywhere. 

Exterminators were brought in to set off gas canisters, during which they had to move out for a few days.

In the end they even paid to replace the expensive wool carpeting.
Nothing  worked. 

People stopped coming over  to visit...
Repairmen refused to work in  the house...
The maid quit... 

Finally, they could not take the stench any longer and decided to move.

A month later, even though  they had cut their price in half, they could not find a buyer for their stinky house.

Word got out, and eventually, even the local Realtors refused to return their calls.

Finally, they had to borrow a huge sum of money from the bank to purchase a new place.

The ex-wife called the man, and asked how things were going.
He told her the saga of the rotting house. 

She listened politely, and said that she missed her old home terribly, and would be willing to reduce her divorce settlement in exchange for getting the house back.

Knowing his ex-wife had no idea how bad the smell was, he agreed on a price that was about 1/10th of what the house had been worth ... but ...  only if she were to sign the papers that very day. 

  

She agreed, and within the hour, his lawyers delivered the paperwork.

A week later, the man and  his new girlfriend stood smirking as they watched the moving company pack everything to take to their new  home... 

including the curtain rods.

I  LOVE A  HAPPY ENDING, DON'T YOU?

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If I do not want what you want

"If I do not want what you want,

please try not to tell me that my want is wrong.

Or if I believe other than you,

at least pause before you correct my view.

Or if my emotion is less than yours,

or more, given the same circumstances,

try not to ask me to feel more strongly or weakly.

Or yet if I act, or fail to act,

in the manner of your design for action, let me be.

I do not, for the moment at least,

ask you to understand me.

That will come only when you are willing

to give up changing me into a copy of you.

I may be your spouse, your parent, your offspring,

your friend, or your colleague.

If you allow me any of my own wants,

or beliefs, or actions, then you open your-self

so that someday these wants of mine

might not seem so wrong,

and might finally appear to you as right-for-me.

To put up with me is the first step in understanding me.

Not that you embrace my ways as right for you,

but that you are no longer irritated or disappointed

with me for my seeming waywardness.

And in understanding me you might come to prize

my differences from you, and far from seeking to change me,

preserve and even nurture those differences."

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A simply quiet life

Simplifying your life does not only mean cleaning out your cupboards, re-organising your store room or getting rid of excess stuff. All most of us want, is a quiet life. By that I don't mean you must not travel, be adventurous or have a busy life. I'm talking about having a quiet, peaceful mind, a mind that is at ease with where you are in life, that can handle whatever is thrown at you.

Decluttering our minds is one of the most important aspects of living a simple, fulfilled life. If your cupboards are neat and organised but your mind is still in a place of turmoil, you won't feel any better. We all have problems that arise in our lives and important decisions to make and problems are much easier to handle when we have inner peace.

Inner peace is obtained by taking a good look at what's going on in your life and deciding what is important and dumping all the rest. By clearing out "unnecessary" thoughts and problems, it leaves us space to deal with only that which is necessary. We often fill our minds with all sorts of irrelevant things which makes it impossible to see the big picture. 

If you're contemplating moving house, don't sweat the small stuff like, "where am I going to put this in the new place" or "I won't have space for my desk and computer" or "the new bathroom is so small". Life has a way of working out those small issues and we are all actually very adaptable beings. Once you've made a decision, just do what you have to do and the rest will fall into place.

Inner peace also comes from deciding which problems you can actually do something about and which you cannot help with except by giving constant support, like a friend or a family member that might be going through a difficult time. If the problem is of a financial nature and you can help, that's fine. If not, let it go and know that things happen as they must. To tell you the truth, you are not actually responsible for the rest of the Universe, even your own adult child, but love and support is something that we all have an abundance of and that's the best we can do.

All problems and decisions are the same - changing jobs, getting divorced, financial security, loss of a loved one - look at the big picture, let go of what you can and move on. Regrets and living in the past serves no purpose. All we have is now, tomorrow might never come, so let's do the best with NOW that we can.

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Coquettish maids

 

Lovely

Coquettish maids

Peeking painted faces

Coyly from under tilted green

Sun shades.

- Imogene Wagner (1948)

Taken in my garden -

Camera : Canon EOS 550D

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May today there be peace within - New Year 2016

May you trust your highest power that you are exactly where you are meant to be.

May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.

May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you.

May you be content knowing you are a child of the Universe.

Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love.

It is there for each and every one of us.

On this day and for the rest of our lives.

Happy New Year!

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