Thursday May 13th, 2010
Ben and Lori leave
5:30pm at the casa
I hadn’t planned on getting up to say goodbye because 5:30am seemed so early, but the Whitefield’s were running late. We had said our goodbyes last night but, we woke to find them still here scrambling to get off the island. It turned out, with the kids in tow, they just had to much stuff to walk to the harbor. So, at 6am they were calling Jason, the island taxi guy, for a ride. They called and got his mother, who had to wake him for this fare. It was
Ben and Lori leave
5:30pm at the casa
I hadn’t planned on getting up to say goodbye because 5:30am seemed so early, but the Whitefield’s were running late. We had said our goodbyes last night but, we woke to find them still here scrambling to get off the island. It turned out, with the kids in tow, they just had to much stuff to walk to the harbor. So, at 6am they were calling Jason, the island taxi guy, for a ride. They called and got his mother, who had to wake him for this fare. It was
probably a good half an hour before he showed up, with Ben complaining the whole time. Kevin happily and begrudgingly helped bring all their stuff to the front gate while they waited. We sat on the hammocks out back till they left.
Clean up begins
6:30am Finally in the casa
The first thing we did was lay on the bed. We couldn’t wait to sleep in a real bed again. The week on the cruise and a few weeks in Nana’s bed was all that we had gotten since February. The RV was comfortable enough, but not a real bed.
The Whitefield’s had consumed all they could before they left, leaving us with one of Lori’s corn breads to bake and a bare refrigerator and pantry. I made a quick list, sending Kevin to the Pali on the bike. I stayed behind to clean up the dirty house, huge pile of moldy laundry and food crusted bed sheets left for us. Bleach was definitely on my list of things for Kevin to get. I swept, wiped down and re-arranged the best I could. I was about done when Kevin came home. I did what I could with the bleach, made the bed with our fresh sheets and finally, the place was ours.
First night in the Casa & Lori calls
Strangely enough, today we ran the eco-tank out of water by 3pm. We figured that the lovely Whitefield’s even consumed as much water as they could, showering before they left. No stress, tomorrow would be different. I made dinner in the one electric burner kitchen and swore I was going to make an outdoor kitchen. I knew before hand how hot it got but, now that I could do things my way, a double propane burner was on my to do list.
That evening Lori called to check on us, let us know the got Taylor’s passport and to tell us they stiffed Jason at the harbor. Supposedly, Ben only had 10mil in a bill and Jason charges 2mil. Un-fucking-believable. Even with a pocket full of money, they still leave owing yet another person. We were told if Jason asked, to tell him, just as everyone else, they would be back. A simple line of bullshit. We didn’t think they planned on coming back, you could just tell by thie things they said and the way they answered questions like, ‘what will you miss most about not being here?’. Lori’s response to this question was ‘the house since we built it and Ricky’s kids because she would probably never see them again.’ Funny, no one sees Tico Ricky and his kids going anywhere in the next year, Cocal is their home.
We popped a movie into the DVD player and went off to sleep.
Clean up begins
6:30am Finally in the casa
The first thing we did was lay on the bed. We couldn’t wait to sleep in a real bed again. The week on the cruise and a few weeks in Nana’s bed was all that we had gotten since February. The RV was comfortable enough, but not a real bed.
The Whitefield’s had consumed all they could before they left, leaving us with one of Lori’s corn breads to bake and a bare refrigerator and pantry. I made a quick list, sending Kevin to the Pali on the bike. I stayed behind to clean up the dirty house, huge pile of moldy laundry and food crusted bed sheets left for us. Bleach was definitely on my list of things for Kevin to get. I swept, wiped down and re-arranged the best I could. I was about done when Kevin came home. I did what I could with the bleach, made the bed with our fresh sheets and finally, the place was ours.
First night in the Casa & Lori calls
Strangely enough, today we ran the eco-tank out of water by 3pm. We figured that the lovely Whitefield’s even consumed as much water as they could, showering before they left. No stress, tomorrow would be different. I made dinner in the one electric burner kitchen and swore I was going to make an outdoor kitchen. I knew before hand how hot it got but, now that I could do things my way, a double propane burner was on my to do list.
That evening Lori called to check on us, let us know the got Taylor’s passport and to tell us they stiffed Jason at the harbor. Supposedly, Ben only had 10mil in a bill and Jason charges 2mil. Un-fucking-believable. Even with a pocket full of money, they still leave owing yet another person. We were told if Jason asked, to tell him, just as everyone else, they would be back. A simple line of bullshit. We didn’t think they planned on coming back, you could just tell by thie things they said and the way they answered questions like, ‘what will you miss most about not being here?’. Lori’s response to this question was ‘the house since we built it and Ricky’s kids because she would probably never see them again.’ Funny, no one sees Tico Ricky and his kids going anywhere in the next year, Cocal is their home.
We popped a movie into the DVD player and went off to sleep.
The New Moon
Sunset at the campground
Tonight’s new moon brings the three of us high hopes for new beginnings in at the casa and campground. How appropriate that the new moon fell upon the date of Ben and Lori’s leaving. Here’s to new beginnings.
Friday May 14th, 2010
Clean up continues
All day at the casa
Today I managed to do some laundry and finish my organization and clean up. It was peaceful without the crying kids and they ability to get in out of the heat. Everyone was content and enjoying the quieter times than the past 10 days. We were settling in just fine, besides we maintained having water all day long.
Dan leaves for a rave in San Jose
11am at the casa
Yesterday Dan told us he was leaving for a rave in San Jose. He said he got a bus ticket for a day earlier than he needed to, he mistook the day of the rave. He planned on spending the day in San Jose to kill time. He was gone by noon and called that afternoon asking Kevin about a sling shot he saw for sale. He’d been wanting one for a while and thought he would buy this one.
Peaceful and quiet was our 2nd night in the casa, just the 2 of us. We watched some ‘Weeds’ episodes and went to bed shortly after dinner.
Saturday May 15th, 2010
Just the 2 of us and our first time online
9:30am downtown Quepos
We woke early and decided to run into town. I didn’t want to stay alone and Dan wasn’t here to hold down the fort. So, we decided to make a quick trip together in town. We locked up the casa and off we went.
We picked up some necessities at the Pali and found an internet café. We have had no contact with anyone since our fight out of the states and we were anxious to let our friends know we were OK and just check in. This we did and all was well. Nana had deposited the checks I left her and claimed Kevin’s unemployment weeks. Everything was working out just fine, with Nana’s help. So, we headed home.
We got home by 1pm, figuring that we could make it to town, do our errands and get home within 3 hours. Not bad. This seemed like a fair enough amount of time to leave the casa unmanned. Pixie was safe, as was everything else. For the rest of the day we just relaxed and did what little chores we had and enjoyed our time in Costa Rica.
Sunset at the campground
Tonight’s new moon brings the three of us high hopes for new beginnings in at the casa and campground. How appropriate that the new moon fell upon the date of Ben and Lori’s leaving. Here’s to new beginnings.
Friday May 14th, 2010
Clean up continues
All day at the casa
Today I managed to do some laundry and finish my organization and clean up. It was peaceful without the crying kids and they ability to get in out of the heat. Everyone was content and enjoying the quieter times than the past 10 days. We were settling in just fine, besides we maintained having water all day long.
Dan leaves for a rave in San Jose
11am at the casa
Yesterday Dan told us he was leaving for a rave in San Jose. He said he got a bus ticket for a day earlier than he needed to, he mistook the day of the rave. He planned on spending the day in San Jose to kill time. He was gone by noon and called that afternoon asking Kevin about a sling shot he saw for sale. He’d been wanting one for a while and thought he would buy this one.
Peaceful and quiet was our 2nd night in the casa, just the 2 of us. We watched some ‘Weeds’ episodes and went to bed shortly after dinner.
Saturday May 15th, 2010
Just the 2 of us and our first time online
9:30am downtown Quepos
We woke early and decided to run into town. I didn’t want to stay alone and Dan wasn’t here to hold down the fort. So, we decided to make a quick trip together in town. We locked up the casa and off we went.
We picked up some necessities at the Pali and found an internet café. We have had no contact with anyone since our fight out of the states and we were anxious to let our friends know we were OK and just check in. This we did and all was well. Nana had deposited the checks I left her and claimed Kevin’s unemployment weeks. Everything was working out just fine, with Nana’s help. So, we headed home.
We got home by 1pm, figuring that we could make it to town, do our errands and get home within 3 hours. Not bad. This seemed like a fair enough amount of time to leave the casa unmanned. Pixie was safe, as was everything else. For the rest of the day we just relaxed and did what little chores we had and enjoyed our time in Costa Rica.
Sunday May 16th, 2010
Enjoying the peace
All day at the casa
We knew Dan would be home sometime today. So, we took our last hours alone and delighted in our new life here at the casa.
Dan arrives home
8:30pm on the casa porch
We had already started a movie and I was sleepy. Kevin heard Dan out in his locker and went out to talk to him. He spoke of how strong the LSD was here in Central America and of his adventure tripping alone in the jungle. He wandered away alone but in earshot of the rave and had an incredible time. This was good to hear, because tomorrow there was work to be done around the casa and we needed Dan’s help.
Monday May 17th, 2010
Dan lazes around & I build a shower surround
All day at the Casa
We woke, had breakfast and got right to it. There were plenty of leaves to be raked and I wanted to close in the outdoor shower by the house. Dan had other ideas. He was ‘hung over’ from the rave and tired from lack of sleep. He got up late and wasn’t feeling well, tired mostly. While eating lunch, his Mom called. It was a short but sweet conversation. After that, he showered and hung out in the hammock, on the porch, for the rest of the day.
I, on the other hand, was motivated to build a surround at the outdoor shower. There were no limbs or branches cut to make the posts. So, I disassembled the make-shift grill area in the campground. No one was using it and was an eye-sore. The posts were a little thicker than I needed but, I built away, anyway. I had fun doing it, even though it was quite the little undertaking. Much to my dismay, in all the tools left behind, there was no staple gun. I had to nail in tack to hold the plastic onto the posts. It was harder than it would seem, but I got the Job done.
Kevin raked and burned leaves. I actually got Dan to help with the lighting of the fires with Kevin. That was all he did and went back to the hammock.
Needless to say, this pissed off Kevin. Dan was suppose to be here to help and wasn’t. I to put him at ease by saying it
was because of his wild weekend and that Dan would be back to normal tomorrow. Kevin never said a word to Dan, but complained to me that Dan was just not a worker.
In conversation, I let Dan know that he was a nice guy, but one to do physical labor? No. We all just laughed it off and Dan told us things like, he took the first part of the military entrance exam and not the 2nd. He also announced that he had to go back to the states because his family was moving from New York to Florida. He had told us when Ben and Lori were still here about the move but, never mentioned leaving. We knew his 90 days was drawing near and he had to have his passport stamped soon. So, the trip wasn’t much of a surprise. He mentioned that he would be leaving within a week or so and be back in 2 weeks. No problem. We knew we had a lunch date with Gypsy the next day. We asked Dan if he could stick around the Casa and hold down the fort, as we had no idea how long we would be. He said sure no problem.
We all went off to bed that night, after dinner and conversation on the porch.
Tuesday May 18th, 2010
Dan sneaks away
6:00 am at the cabina
Kevin woke early this morning, as he usually does. He went out to change the water from public to the eco tank and found Dan packing to leave. Usually, Dan doesn’t wake till around 10am. To see him up so early surprised Kevin. He went in and talked to him and Dan announced he was leaving for town and if he could get a ticket home today he was going, if not he’d be back. Dan never came back.
When I woke and Kevin told me I was more disappointed than surprised. After all, Ben had warned that at any moment Dan could be gone. I was hoping Dan would at least stay long enough to give living with us a shot and long enough for us to settle in. Kevin thought maybe it was all the acid he did over the weekend that caused Dan’s leaving. We don’t know. Since that day we haven’t heard from Dan.
Lunch in town with Gypsy
Noon in Downtown Quepos
Well, we decided to go an meet Gypsy and not leave the casa unmanned. We had done it just a few days before and Kevin was still unsure. So, he walked to the commune to talk with Andy. He told him about Dan and asked if he would hang out on the porch while we went to town. Andy obliged us and we met Gypsy right on time at the designated spot.
We told her we anted to have lunch somewhere ‘local’. After all, you can only eat so much Chicken on the Run. She took us to a Cuban restaurant. The owners were Cuban by way of Tampa, Florida. We had some yummy fired plantains as an appetizer. Kevin ordered his first hamburgesa in Costa Rica and I chose the nachos. Gypsy had a casado and probably made the best choice. Kevin wasn’t thrilled with the Costa Rican version of the hamburger but my nachos were fine sans cheese as cheese was expensive in Quepos. I was hoping for a Cuban sandwich but there were none on the menu. The owner explained that it was because the price of pork here was outrageous. It seemed most meats were expensive here.
After lunch Gypsy took us to pay the electric and phone bill which totaled 180 dollars. The Whitefield’s left us 130. So, Kevin had to go next door to withdraw the money out of his bank account because they didn’t take credit cards. This had him pissed off because he uses his bank account monies to pay his bills. Now his account would be short. We let Gypsy know how they stiffed us and that we would get another outrageous bill the following month because of their being in the house for 2 weeks during the next billing cycle. All she could say way, ‘Just let them know, Im sure
they will send you the money. Wow, Gypsy really had no idea of their financial situation, or how they were constantly on the make.
Then off to ICE, the electric/phone/internet company to find out about getting a wireless card for my laptop. The clerk explained we needed to buy a data card and gave Gypsy a list of people in town who might have them. The wait in ICE was longer that expected. Kevin was getting antsy after his bill pay experience, but managed enough patience for us to find the right store and put my name on the waiting list for one. They were to be in by the 15th of next month.
Back at the Casa
4pm on the casa porch
We had no idea what time it was when we returned. Andy was still on the porch writing on his laptop. We had left before 11 am and it was now 4pm. It felt like Gypsy ran us all over town and I couldn’t even imagine how to find the computer store again. We were tired and thankful of Andy’s help and invited him to stay for dinner, in thanks.
I whipped up a quick meal and we enjoyed dinner on the porch. We decided that almost 6 hours being gone was way too long. We had even discussed our situation with Gypsy, earlier, over lunch. She advised us not to lock the shutters on the house that face the street. She said it would be too obvious that we were gone. Also, that 4 hours was tops to be away from the house unattended. We all concurred with what she said .
The disappointment that Dan was gone set in. I felt as though I would be the one always at the house while Kevin went to town. This bummed me out and I let Kevin know. He totally understood and we vowed that we wouldn’t be gone more than 3 hours or so if and when we went to town without anyone to watch the house.
Dan sneaks away
6:00 am at the cabina
Kevin woke early this morning, as he usually does. He went out to change the water from public to the eco tank and found Dan packing to leave. Usually, Dan doesn’t wake till around 10am. To see him up so early surprised Kevin. He went in and talked to him and Dan announced he was leaving for town and if he could get a ticket home today he was going, if not he’d be back. Dan never came back.
When I woke and Kevin told me I was more disappointed than surprised. After all, Ben had warned that at any moment Dan could be gone. I was hoping Dan would at least stay long enough to give living with us a shot and long enough for us to settle in. Kevin thought maybe it was all the acid he did over the weekend that caused Dan’s leaving. We don’t know. Since that day we haven’t heard from Dan.
Lunch in town with Gypsy
Noon in Downtown Quepos
Well, we decided to go an meet Gypsy and not leave the casa unmanned. We had done it just a few days before and Kevin was still unsure. So, he walked to the commune to talk with Andy. He told him about Dan and asked if he would hang out on the porch while we went to town. Andy obliged us and we met Gypsy right on time at the designated spot.
We told her we anted to have lunch somewhere ‘local’. After all, you can only eat so much Chicken on the Run. She took us to a Cuban restaurant. The owners were Cuban by way of Tampa, Florida. We had some yummy fired plantains as an appetizer. Kevin ordered his first hamburgesa in Costa Rica and I chose the nachos. Gypsy had a casado and probably made the best choice. Kevin wasn’t thrilled with the Costa Rican version of the hamburger but my nachos were fine sans cheese as cheese was expensive in Quepos. I was hoping for a Cuban sandwich but there were none on the menu. The owner explained that it was because the price of pork here was outrageous. It seemed most meats were expensive here.
After lunch Gypsy took us to pay the electric and phone bill which totaled 180 dollars. The Whitefield’s left us 130. So, Kevin had to go next door to withdraw the money out of his bank account because they didn’t take credit cards. This had him pissed off because he uses his bank account monies to pay his bills. Now his account would be short. We let Gypsy know how they stiffed us and that we would get another outrageous bill the following month because of their being in the house for 2 weeks during the next billing cycle. All she could say way, ‘Just let them know, Im sure
they will send you the money. Wow, Gypsy really had no idea of their financial situation, or how they were constantly on the make.
Then off to ICE, the electric/phone/internet company to find out about getting a wireless card for my laptop. The clerk explained we needed to buy a data card and gave Gypsy a list of people in town who might have them. The wait in ICE was longer that expected. Kevin was getting antsy after his bill pay experience, but managed enough patience for us to find the right store and put my name on the waiting list for one. They were to be in by the 15th of next month.
Back at the Casa
4pm on the casa porch
We had no idea what time it was when we returned. Andy was still on the porch writing on his laptop. We had left before 11 am and it was now 4pm. It felt like Gypsy ran us all over town and I couldn’t even imagine how to find the computer store again. We were tired and thankful of Andy’s help and invited him to stay for dinner, in thanks.
I whipped up a quick meal and we enjoyed dinner on the porch. We decided that almost 6 hours being gone was way too long. We had even discussed our situation with Gypsy, earlier, over lunch. She advised us not to lock the shutters on the house that face the street. She said it would be too obvious that we were gone. Also, that 4 hours was tops to be away from the house unattended. We all concurred with what she said .
The disappointment that Dan was gone set in. I felt as though I would be the one always at the house while Kevin went to town. This bummed me out and I let Kevin know. He totally understood and we vowed that we wouldn’t be gone more than 3 hours or so if and when we went to town without anyone to watch the house.
Wednesday May 19th, 2010
Glen & Brit don’t arrive
Do Nothing day
All day at the Casa
After our big day in town we decided to take a break. A lot has gone on in the past week, since the Whitefield’s left the casa and Costa Rica. We were drained. I looked at the calendar on the refrigerator and noticed that today was the day Glen and Britney were suppose to come and visit. They had booked their reservations through the website even before we arrived, knowing that we were taking over. It was Britney’s birthday and they were taking a surf trip. One of their stops was to stay with us. We had known they contacted Lori to change the date, but Lori could remember when they changed it to. Without the internet, it was hard to keep in touch with people because phone calls were so expensive. We couldn’t wait to get that damn data card and internet but, the 15th didn’t seem that far off.
Glen & Brit don’t arrive
Do Nothing day
All day at the Casa
After our big day in town we decided to take a break. A lot has gone on in the past week, since the Whitefield’s left the casa and Costa Rica. We were drained. I looked at the calendar on the refrigerator and noticed that today was the day Glen and Britney were suppose to come and visit. They had booked their reservations through the website even before we arrived, knowing that we were taking over. It was Britney’s birthday and they were taking a surf trip. One of their stops was to stay with us. We had known they contacted Lori to change the date, but Lori could remember when they changed it to. Without the internet, it was hard to keep in touch with people because phone calls were so expensive. We couldn’t wait to get that damn data card and internet but, the 15th didn’t seem that far off.
Thursday May 20th, 2010
Lunch with Gypsy and her Roatan friends
12:00 noon Quepos
Today we made our way to town, to meet Gypsy and her friends from Roatan, for lunch. At the casa, we had told Gypsy that we really loved Roatan, about the cruise and our thoughts of moving there. She mentioned she had some friends in town from Roatan and she would try to arrange lunch. So, we were to meet them at the Mira Olas restaurant in the Best Western. It was on the 3rd floor and had great views.
When we got there we didn’t see Gypsy. As we were ordering our Pilsen’s, she rounded the corner. She showed us to the table and introduced us to her friends. Alex and Kelly, from Roatan, by way of New York. The biggest piece of information we got form them was that Roataon was much less expensive than Costa Rica with its American prices with 1/3 of the average income. We also came to realize that we could make this ‘international house sitting’ thing a real job. One of the first questions Kelly asked me was if we house sat professionally or something like that. Taken back by the question, I answered no. Later, Kevin pointed out that yes we do. For example, Rebecca’s home and he was right. I was more caught up in the ‘out of the country’ aspect of the question. Once we get the internet, damn it, we could open so many doors! We took Alex’s card and Kelly’s name, to add her on Facebook We said our good byes and rushed home. Today Pixie was in the house alone while we went to town. The dreaded unmanned casa.
Earthquake hits
5:00pm at the Casa
I was in the bedroom, Kevin and Andy on the front porch. Standing at the corner of the bed, I felt the ground move under my feet. Then heard some clanging in the kitchen. It was the strangest sensation I had ever experienced. Then, I realized it was an earthquake. I ran outside to where Kevin and Andy stood dumbfounded. Kevin exclaiming how he thought the roof was gonna come down. We all were amazed, none having felt an earthquake before.
We came to find out that the earthquake hit Quepos at a 5.2 on the richter scale. This was the biggest earthquake to hit the area in years. At that point we all were wondering what the next year had in store for us.
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