How to go from being a Type A to a Type ZA

I had to fill out a questionnaire form at the dental hygienist's office the other day. Name, address, medical scheme (insurance), etc. I guess as a backdoor way of asking if I grind my teeth at night, it asked me to describe my stress level from 1 to 5, 1 being the lowest and 5 the highest. I thought about it for a second and circled the "2." I would have put "1" except I am pretty sure that is the same as being dead.

Now this was an amazing revelation to have! Before my move to South Africa, I would have put a "5", maybe even a "10" down without even stopping to think for a moment. Living in the Tri-State Area (NY, NJ and CT) and maybe even the entire mid-Atlantic corridor from Boston to DC is stressful. Everything - driving, shopping, getting a table at a restaurant - is a contact sport. There is a fierce competitive undertone to just living. Dog eat dog. Keeping up with the Jones'. Bigger is better. More is more. King of the hill. Top of the heap. Faster, better, bigger, first. Many people thrive on the energy and use it as positive motivation; others have heart attacks, high blood pressure, sciatica, migraines, etc. Stress is a killer.

I realized early on that there is no point to being a Tri-State Type A personality in South Africa. None. No one is going to move any faster because you want them to. No one else feels the same sense of urgency to "get things done now". Let's face it, they don't even have a real word for "now." "Just now" means "someday". "Now now" means "soon". There is no actual South African word  for "now" as we know it in the west where "now" really means "yesterday."

The robots (stoplights) are constantly out during rush hour. The cashier takes her sweet time to check you out. It is sweet actually as she is totally pleasant and stress-free. There are permanent signs that warn you that there are potholes ahead. In other words, nobody is fixing these potholes any time soon. You can call the manager over at the post office to complain about the long line at the single open window when there are 10 postal workers milling about doing absolutely nothing. But it would be a futile gesture. They will look at you quizzically, amused even, as if they do not even understand your point.

They have an acronym for it. TIA. This is Africa. So just put your Type A personality aside and adopt a South African Type ZA personality. Relax, reduce your stress level. If it doesn't get done "now now", it'll get done "just now."