Humans can’t fly. Believe me, I tried and I have had better ideas.

Humans can’t fly. Believe me, I tried. And the result? Well, I'll get to that...?

Several months ago, after two years of quite intensive service during the ‘you know what’, media/news-company Adformatie and I parted ways. I was fortunate to talk to the most interesting people in the field of advertising , brands , PR, creativity, art and the world of digital . From both agency and brand-perspective.?

If I do say so myself, I think I wrote quite a selection of pretty interesting stories and articles over there as well. Without losing love or interest in the advertising industry, it was fun conversing with all the big-shot CMOs , creative directors , creatives, artists and colleagues within the field and beyond.

But as every story has an ending, this one had too. So, time to spread my wings and soar to new horizons.

Without letting the world know I was free and available, I elected to part for some middle-of-nowhere place for some surfing, trying to figure out what next was going to be in store for me. Just with some small freelance projects and oodles of positive energy in my pocket, the universe smiled back at me.?

Standing on this wooden balustrade, overlooking some small buildings, the beginning of the sunset was, simply put, stunningly spectacular. The only disturbing feature was this sudden and eerily loud cracking noise… And there, right there and then, it happened. I flew. And, boy, what a flight it was.

Whilst falling down flat forward from, give-or-take, four meters, time stood still. It just afforded me enough time to calculate the odds of not dying versus dying, or, at the very least, permanent paralysis.

Without losing consciousness, my body hit the solid ground which lurked below, bone by bone, breaking each and every one in what seemed like a frozen-in-time, outer body experience. Somebody forgot to mention the ‘fasten your seatbelts’-part.?

On the floor, lying absolutely still, I was gazing in the less blue abyss of the sky. Could I still wiggle my toes? Did I feel my legs, arms and was my neck still in place? The scattered big wooden beam from the balcony lying next to me was less fortunate.

Moving forward...

I broke seven vertebrae in nine places throughout my neck and my back. Five ribs in my back were broken in multiple places, rattling in pieces up there like my collarbone did together with a bunch of fingers. Months of surgery, agonising pain and a pharmacy full of morphine and oxycodone concoctions later, I am still not dead nor paralysed.?

Also -?according to my dear mother?-?neither did I lose my innate stubbornness. Still healing, yes, walking, advising and typing slowly again. Now, even considering to restarting my modelling career in former glory once I can hit the gym again.

As such, the ongoing ambition still remains. Considering flying without wings I did not lose my intellect, mindset, knowledge nor my network… I am almost back on track, ready and willing to spread my wings again , though this time without the flying part because, let's be brutally honest here, that was a really dumb idea. Therefore I’m open to new projects, opportunities or perhaps even a new position within a company.?Just give me a call, text or send me a DM .

Though I did screw up those small projects I had left, I have already accepted some exciting, challenging alternatives and there are some interesting meetings scheduled too which look promising. But I would like to be part of something ambitious again, because sometimes it just might be better to fly together.

Flying solo can suck.

In the interim, I enthusiastically continue the personal challenge I have set myself, namely: composing a book and putting pen to paper - or finger to keyboard, as the case may be -relating the gruesome yet fascinating details of the crash and the way back because, between the jigs and the reels, boring it was not .