An Unfinished House

Buenas ____ (fill in the blank)! I have to admit that this past week was n’t one of astounding accomplishment - not much out of the ordinary happened. It was just your typical week in a tropical paradise, hanging out with the macaws, howler monkeys and rice. I had anticipated regaling you with tales from my SCUBA adventures but alas, that trip was postponed due to foul weather so you’ll have to wait. Don’t worry though, I’ve been saving some topics for a rainy day and as it turns out, it’s raining, so here goes another demonstration in verbosity. - Upon arriving home from school the other day my mam’a took one look at me and said “Los Lunes ni las gallinas ponen”. I could only make out ‘Mondays’, ‘chickens’ and ‘put’ so I had no idea what she was talking about until she pointed to a basket of eggs and then pointed to me. It suddenly became perfectly clear: on Mondays I am now expected to lay eggs because the chickens take the da y off; I didn’t even know we had chickens at the house. I...

You’d better watch out, you’d better not cry, you’d better not pout I’m telling you why…. Christopher Columbus and his merry band of pillagers are coming to town with a boatload of Small Pox and alcohol. That’s right e veryone, it’s your favorite holiday and mine, Columbus Day! Unfortunately here in Costa Rica, that no longer exists; down here October 12th is now celebrated as “The Encounter of Cultures Day”. Furthermore, lest anyone begins to wax poetic about Columbus, Spain or the Santa Maria at one of the many autumnal cultural encounter parties that will invariably occur this holiday season, the government has wisely moved the observance date of this most oppressive of public holidays to Monday the 15th, thereby severing all ties of Columbus from the autumn shopping season. The cultural elite have done their very best to inoculate us from any painful memories we might still be harboring from 1492 – and for that I give thanks….oh wait, wrong holiday. To be sure, I’ve never been a fa...

Greetings and salutations my dear readers, it seems an eternity since last we chatted but the calendar says that it’s been just 9 days; what a busy little beaver I have been . This past week was spent exploring points beyond San Jose and attending to the obligations of daily life – as much as possible I attempted to document all of this with my camera. This has however left me with a plethora of pictures and topics from which to write about; you cannot begin to imagine the mental anguish I have endured as a result. Another jewel in my Heavenly crown I am sure. Anyway, I attempted to glean from my list the most interesting and noteworthy of topics, hold on tight boys and girls ‘cuz this little entry is gonna jump around. - On the last Saturday of September I and a group of friends set out for a hidden little farming community called Orosi Valley. A Tico friend of ours has a friend whose grandfather owns an orange plantation there. In very L atin fashion however, there was some miscommun...