MORNING MOMENTS OF ZEN


Costa Rica Cost Of Living Update:  Yummy Avocados— 72 cents Per Pound

My mornings are a lot different than when I was working. There are no more alarm clocks, snowy cars to brush off,  traffic, or stopping for a quick cup of coffee at a gas station.

I’m not rushed, aggravated, anxious, sad, exhausted, or any of the many things I felt during that forty-five-minute drive to work. Now I wake up and can’t wait to start the day. Somehow, someway, I fixed what was ailing me.

I don’t have the perfect recipe for happiness, but I think it might have something do with being awake… wide awake. Present for all the good and the bad in one’s life. The recipe might also include watching a bunch of monkeys outside your window every morning. They never look rushed, aggravated, anxious, sad, or exhausted during their morning commute.

Monkeys can teach us a lot, one of which is we’re going to have to hang upside down to reach the sweetest flowers. I know exactly how that feels. It was when I stretched the farthest that I finally found what I was looking for.

By | 2018-04-15T18:19:21-04:00 January 29th, 2014|Categories: Nature|Tags: , , , , , |25 Comments

About the Author:

Nadine is the author of the best-selling series, Happier Than A Billionaire. Join her as she navigates living as an expat in the sometimes confusing, always beautiful, country of Costa Rica.

25 Comments

  1. Robin Thompson July 20, 2017 at 12:48 pm - Reply

    Nadine, I’m just a click from moving to your paradise. Is it difficult living amongst the most deadly snakes and spiders in the world? I hear even the frogs can kill ya…your thoughts?

    • Nadine Hays Pisani July 27, 2017 at 9:50 am - Reply

      Not concerned at all really. The Ticos do tell me not to lick the frogs. I don’t what gives them the impression that I’m going to do that.

  2. The Monkey House March 2, 2015 at 8:57 am - Reply

    […] This allowed me to take the most remarkable photographs of their faces and hands, as well as video of them shoving the prettiest flowers into their mouths. Rob and I would watch babies jumped on and off their mothers’ backs, and males fighting for […]

  3. […] Monkeys can teach us a lot, one of which is we’re going to have to hang upside down to reach the sweetest flowers. I know exactly how that feels. It was when I stretched the farthest that I finally found what I was looking for.  Morning Moments Of Zen. […]

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  5. Peter March 7, 2014 at 4:15 pm - Reply

    When I went to Brazil on my last vacation there were Howler monkeys. I could not believe how loud they were. Booming voices!

    My major move to live Happier than a Billionaire in Florianopolis Brazil is on the 90 day or less countdown. I have sold most of my personal belongings and am getting my house ready to rent. Trying to sell it in this horrible market here in Green Bay would make me lose a small fortune in equity so I have decided to just rent it out for a few years and pray the real estate market bounces back.

    Every so often I need to pick up your book or visit your website here to help remind me why I am leaving the rat race of the USA and moving to a relaxed beautiful place to live and finally enjoy life.

    Thank you Nadine for the inspiration I need to push forward and make my dream of living on a beautiful island off the coast of Brazil a reality!

    Peter Geisheker

    • Nadine March 30, 2014 at 9:41 am - Reply

      Thank you Peter for following my adventure. I’m hoping to do more videos and show how spectacular it is down here.

    • Renee Vondle May 15, 2014 at 1:39 pm - Reply

      Peter:
      A word to the wise…..be very, very careful who you rent your home to. There are a lot of sick people out there. I hope you don’t have the experience I had. I rented my beautiful home out to people who had a good job, good references, etc. and they turned out to be serial renters who got a thrill out of ruining peoples houses. Took me 2 years and $6500 to get them evicted and then I had to go and repair all the intentional damage they did. I hope you have someone overseeing the new “renters”, a no cause lease (they have to move out for no cause just because you say so) and a good lawyer.

  6. Marilyn Stevens February 28, 2014 at 8:07 pm - Reply

    Just finished The Sequel in one sitting! I feel like I know you after reading Happier twice — once when planning our move and the second time after we’d been here and found our house in Grecia. Even though you’re so much younger and way more energetic I can relate to your passion for living in this beautiful country. I believe we may be getting together for some Italian food when you visit our mutual friend here in Grecia — I hope so. Thanks for painting such delightful word pictures!

    • Nadine March 30, 2014 at 9:40 am - Reply

      Thanks Marilyn, Grecia holds a very special place in my heart.

  7. kerri February 20, 2014 at 1:06 pm - Reply

    Love the book, Love your life!! Costa Rica is where it’s at! Truly, Pura-Vida! If you don’t mind me sharing, maybe some of your snowed-in followers would like to join you in paradise… or just dream about it 🙂 http://youtu.be/Rt-lYxUW3Mw
    Thanks for sharing your adventures!!

  8. Kathy Toth February 1, 2014 at 9:35 pm - Reply

    I just recently read your book and laughed until I cried. So funny but also very informative. My husband is reading it now and enjoying it as much as I did. We are hoping and planning to retire to Central America in the near future. Thanks for all the good information, and for sharing the positives and negatives of making an international move. I envy you!

    • Nadine February 22, 2014 at 7:06 am - Reply

      Thanks for stopping by Kathy. It’s been a pretty funny journey so far. Mostly because my husband tends to get me tangled up in his shenanigans. I hope you do come down, just bring duct tape. That’s all you’ll ever need to fix anything here (according to my husband).

  9. Motorman February 1, 2014 at 4:09 pm - Reply

    Daily the rat race of monkeys is not as funny or pleasurable as the howlers…. What a great way to start your day 🙂

    • Nadine February 22, 2014 at 7:05 am - Reply

      That and a cup of coffee… priceless.

  10. tommy dott January 30, 2014 at 6:49 pm - Reply

    LOVE the book!!! (and my girlfriend is enjoying it as I type). We are in your neck of the woods for the next 2 weeks. Any chance we can buy you a drink at The Green House of The Mokey Bar and get our booked signed??? Too friggin funny!

    • Nadine February 22, 2014 at 7:03 am - Reply

      Hi Tommy! Thanks for the invite, but I just got to these comments today. I’m working hard on the cooking show and finishing my book so I’ve been running all over the place. I haven’t tried the Green House yet, but they have a restaurant in Liberia and everyone loves it. I’ll have to check it out.

  11. Dan Gaskell January 30, 2014 at 12:13 pm - Reply

    You’ve captured what we seek. All those things you mention – anxiousness, rush-rush and exhaustion are what sap us from, well, life. We love your story and the information, photos and stories you beautifully give us. Thanks for pulling back the curtain on Costa Rica for those of us who are still in the (cold) rat race!!

    • Nadine February 22, 2014 at 7:02 am - Reply

      THanks Dan. It was quite the learning process. We rush and rush and rush… rarely taking the time to look around and enjoy the moment. It’s one of the biggest lessons I learned in Costa Rica.

  12. Sherry January 30, 2014 at 8:54 am - Reply

    Early mornings are my absolute favorite up here in the mountains. No alarm clocks ever needed. I always look forward to waking up to a new day. Every day here feels like it holds a new promise. It just makes you happy to be alive.

    • Nadine February 22, 2014 at 7:00 am - Reply

      Just got up at 5AM. The monkeys were going nuts!! I look outside and it’s like rush hour traffic out there. A bunch of howlers jumping from tree to tree… incredible.

  13. Constance January 30, 2014 at 3:07 am - Reply

    Exactly! Best perk to the new place I just moved into in centro Lagos (Portugal) from the suburbs; crawling out of bed early, just me, my coffee and the storks clattering away. Sun rising over the river, sailboats looking so pretty at a fancy marina and hearing the ocean cause the traffic hasn’t drowned it out yet. Oh those storks…I can watch them all day.

    • Nadine February 22, 2014 at 6:59 am - Reply

      I know what you mean Constance. It never grows old. I still marvel at the monkeys and birds, like it’s the first time I saw them. I’m so grateful for it all.

  14. Sharon Wallace January 29, 2014 at 5:09 pm - Reply

    Don’t know where you’re at… we’re currently at Ocotal…. sort of… kind of between there and Playa del Coco. Been reading your blog for… well… a long time. This area is quite different from Cuidad Colon, where we stayed before. Just dropping a line to say hola!

    • Nadine February 22, 2014 at 6:59 am - Reply

      Hi Sharon. Love Coco and Cuidad Colon. Hope you get to do some fun stuff. The beach is like a big, adult playground!

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