Posted in Personal Journal Blog

NZ MIQ DAY 11 (3 more sleeps!)

Posted on by @JeriMooreBrunton

There’s something to be said for spending two weeks in isolation with a 15 yr old who doesn’t often initiate conversation or can’t hear you when you start one (thanks, Apple AirPods). I don’t watch TV, and we’ve had ours on over the last 11 days for maybe a total of 2 hours. Zoë watches stuff on her phone or our laptop and snaps her friends and sisters for entertainment. I tidy, tinker, read and write (and now do my 5-minute on-the-hour alarm exercises as of two days ago). We are as different as chalk and cheese, but it works. We have had about 3 minutes of friction through our stay, and that is an accomplishment! You would think placing a 15 yr old girl and 53 yr old menopausal woman in a box together for two weeks would be a cat-scratching, bitch (female dog) howling, disaster. When in fact, It has been a delight to be penned up with my baby G.

The long periods of silence in any given space force me to reflect on my external and internal life. While I’m excited about walking out the doors of #NZMIQ on Monday morning with 100 other people (socially distanced and a single file line, of course), I am also thankful for the time I’ve had to be in this environment where I’ve had the chance to focus and reflect. There have been no distractions of daily life. No dogs to feed and walk, groceries to buy, meals to prepare, gardens to water and weed, no pressure to socialize, worry about what I look like, and no guilt over being an unpaid writer (at the moment). I’ve been here being all that I am in one tiny bubble.

Since we arrived at #NZMIQ, my mind has run a gamut of emotions:

• 😃ahhhh, we’re finally in NZ!

• 😃AHHHHH This room has the softest bed and best view.

• 😃Spoiled for choice with Indian and Asian food, yum!!

• 😃Let’s jump on the bed for exercise!

• 😃We’re having a blast playing cards and mancala!

• 😃I’m super stoked to blog about our daily happenings.

• 🙂Wow, the meals in here are pretty nice.

• 🙂Awesome, we can sleep as long as we want!

• 🙂I’m so excited that we’ve booked to go outside for a walk!

• 🙂The healthcare and military workers here are very upbeat and friendly.

• 🙂It was nice to see my babies through 2 fences and mesh after not seeing them for 18 months.

• 😌We’ve got our exercise routine down to a science; we’ll be so fit when we leave.

• 😏Ugh! We’re in NZ, and it seems like we will never get out there to enjoy it.

• 😒I don’t want to know what day or time it is.

• 😒This room smells musty, and the carpet reeks of damp dust.

• ☹️I’ve been in bed so long I’m sore! I can’t stand sitting or lying on the bed anymore.

• ☹️I don’t even want to touch the bed!

• 😳Everything out the window looks surreal, and it’s hard to believe we’re going out there.

• 😐I can’t be bothered to go outside and walk in a 40 x 60 oval for 30 minutes (or more if we want, but we don’t want).

• 😐Sabrina and Molly shouldn’t bother coming to visit us through the fences and mesh. We can see them better on FaceTime, and they don’t get rained on that way.

• 😐What’s the point of exercising? I’m sleeping until our release day!

• 😠”Zoë, I will end you if you use the chair on my side of the room!”

• 😠”No, I don’t want to play cards or mancala Zoë! You keep kicking my ass at everything.”

• 😠I don’t want one more plate of curry or pad thai! And please, no more breakfast in bed.

• 🤔Yes, my blog is reaching into some deep personal territory at this point. My inner space is all there is to explore!

• 😵‍💫I feel manic and can’t stand sitting still anymore.

• 😵‍💫I have no idea how I will handle the simulation of the world beyond these doors. Maybe I should ask to be institutionalized?

Despite my progression of thoughts, I have begun learning how to put into place the outline for the novel I have been planning and am to the point where I can define my characters and settings and the premise of my tale. This stillness has gifted me that, and I realize now that to finish, I’ll need more isolation. Honestly, positive and enjoyable things have come from this experience.

We are looking forward to the unknown of the days to come.

Author:

I have had a wonderfully colorful life, rich with varied experiences. My ability as a singer and career as an administrative assistant/marketing communications manager; have presented me with a wide range of opportunities. I have been fortunate to work with and learn from some accomplished and intelligent business owners, executives and artists. I have explored the world, markets and non-profits I would have never dreamed of exploring. I started out performing in community theater then professionally in night clubs and working as a studio vocalist at the age of 12 in Naples Florida, my home town. My vocal studies began at the age of 8 with my mother who gave me my first vocal lessons. I have had the opportunity to learn with some talented vocal coaches since those lessons with my mother. With them I developed the ability to sing Classical, Jazz and Pop; which allowed me to make a living in the music industry for over 30 years, in America, Europe and NZ. I became proficient in handling the business end of performing and teaching and developed administrative skills that would be used more prominently later on in my life, which I cover further down in this piece. I managed all my own performance bookings and began promoting myself as an up and coming singer, beating the pavement in Nashville TN and learned how to sell my talents in a place where everyone and their mother can sing. Performing in front of large audiences has forced me to be more than skilled at holding my own. I have also been a studio singer and voice over artist, taught choir and private lessons and was the president of a local non-profit music school in NZ for 3 years. Once my husband and I began a family, my career focus shifted more to assisting others in their businesses, along with marketing and often selling their products. I took on the roles of Sales, Marketing Communications and Administrative Assistant full time. Environments where I have worked in these capacities have varied. The most joy I find in my career is having the ability to tap into my creative side where I have been encouraged to indulge in my love for creative and copy writing, both personally and for professionally. I worked in our own residential and commercial playground company and for a Website development/social media management company and cherished watching the birth of our new products become known to the public and seeing our client base grow. I have developed the skill for marketing and promoting products and services through the written word, but I am also a strong and persuasive sales person face to face. We moved from NZ where we had been for 12 yrs, back to Naples Florida in 2015. I took the position as the Administrative Assistant to the Pastor, at the church I grew up in. In my position there I used every skilled I had acquired over my lifetime, from administrative to performing as a vocalist/worship leader. I am a passionate employee and business woman and find it easy to fully immerse myself in my work while still finding joy in the day to day, what I do and the people in my life. My passions are still singing, promoting, creative writing, encouraging others to pursue their dreams while achieve their goals and being outdoors. I love my hometown of Naples and take advantage of all the beauty and outdoor opportunities it has to offer on a regular basis. Being an active person I work best when on the move and busy, socializing and intellectually stimulated. I also thrive in a situation where I have the opportunity to continue learning new skills. I work on being the best version of myself and strive to give it my best shot every day.

One thought on “NZ MIQ DAY 11 (3 more sleeps!)”

  1. Hang in there sissy !! It is a very difficult thing I am sure, I don’t think with my clostaphoebia that I could do it, nope nope I couldn’t !!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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