| Following are e-mails that were sent over a period of time from Costa Rica. These were written while we were in the process of building the house. The trips are in order with the letters starting from the beginning of the trip. Saludos de Costa Rica 1 Greetings all, I have now been back for almost a week and what a difference in the house in that time. Painting the house made a dramatic change, and then landscaping the front made it seem like the house is almost ready. Next week they will put in the windows and doors. The furniture is being completed and looking great. It is getting close! Take a look at the pictures (it is really hard to decide which pictures to send) and if you think the house looks OK, give I have heard some reports that there is a problem with the website. I will try to get that straightened out tonight (now) when I go in to the internet café. I really do not want to leave our mountain, but I did promise Well, got to leave my humble bodega and get in to town. Dave
What a day. The windows are in and look and operate great. Hopefully, the sliders will be in on Thursday. We have to turn on lights all night to keep the bats from slinging shit all over the freshly painted walls. They can´t be content with the house I built for them. Won´t even look at it! No, they want to live in our house! Today we took out first coffee to the "recibadora´. They weigh it and give you a receipt for the volume. As soon as my application is processed, I can collect the money. Today my 3 peons worked all day picking coffee. We turned it in to the recibadora and calculated it was worth about c13,000 (13,000 colones). My workers cost me c12,500 for the day leaving a profit of about c500. At today´s exchange rate, that is a little less than a dollar! At least it is the start of something coming in and not just going out. I had to make two trips into It is raining right now, and it started early today. With the month of September being so dry, I expect to get some rain in October. I do hope we have some good weather when Rob and Bob are here next week. More fun today. The backhoe company called they finished their project early and told me they were on their way to the farm. I was not expecting them until Monday. They are enlarging the area in front of the house for parking and a circular drive. It needs to be cut down almost a foot to fill with material and then rock. They will also be doing some work on the drainage canals along side the roads. We also encountered a huge hole behind the bodega that was evidently an old septic tank. It is about 10 feet deep, 6 feet wide and 8 feet long. It´s a big frigin´ hole! We will just use the hillside above the storeroom to fill it in. It will create a nice flat area behind the bodega for future use. We did get the paint straightened out. They came out this morning and realized their error. I went in this afternoon to pick up the paint, but the 5 gallon base paint had not arrived from It´s almost time for dinner. Juan cooks a mean chicken soup and tonight we are having black beans, (as always), but I bought some chicharon to put in with the beans. With some rice and guacamole, we are set. Currently I am at the internet café collecting mail and Rob´s flight information. He will be arriving tomorrow night. That gives me time to lay another 40 meters of sod in the morning, among many other things. The windows are all in and the doors will be finished tomorrow. The painting is done and bathrooms almost finished, so it is getting close. The backhoe worked most of the day getting the circular driveway in front of the house leveled out and enlarged so there will be no problem with parking for I will be leaving around Later all, Dave
Oct 29. 2006 It has been a very busy 2 ½ weeks since I last wrote. In addition to the construction going on, brother Rob and friend Bob were by for a visit. We had a great time. Bob got to see all the changes since he was here a year ago, and Rob saw the farm for the first time. Bob´s visit was very short, but I did get to show Rob around a bit. We did have some rain, but the mornings are almost always beautiful. I am now living at the house. It is not really ready to be occupied yet, but it is a step up from the bodega. It is really nice to have a shower with a tile floor instead of concrete. I am now down to 1 worker and we have been working hard on the finishing and floors. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. I expect most everything will be finished in 2 weeks. Good thing too, because Anyway, I have the 2 burner gas stove set up in the workshop area and I can hose down the dishes. Just need to get the floors sealed so I can get a good hunting cat. There is a damn rat in the wood pile that keeps eating my tortillas! Oct. 30 I didn´t get much done yesterday including finishing this letter. I was really so tired that I needed a day doing nothing. I had just started a fire in the fireplace when Mom called. It was rainy and damp last night and the fire really takes the chill and moisture out of the room. I am currently in a little restaurant in the center of town getting some breakfast before doing my running around. Can´t wait until this is over and I can just sit on our mountain and relax. I know I said there would be pictures in the next e-mail, but the house is so close to being finished, I´ll send some in a week or two. Besides, I don´t want Just checked my email, and not much there folks. How about dropping a line to let me know how things are going. Got to get going. Lots to do. Dave Saludos from Hello all, I guess it´s about time for an update. I will be going in to town again tomorrow, so I want to check mail and send this out. The house is getting close. The vanities were installed today and the master bedroom furniture is in the house. It looks awesome! Olman is a real craftsman and the pieces came out great; rustic, but with proper door glides and hinges. I was going to take some pictures, but decided with The floor is still not finished. I want all this acid staining of the floors and counters completed by this weekend. I am so over dealing with this floor. I was extremely frustrated and really tired this past weekend working on this project. Between nozzles that don´t spray right and pump lines bursting, (thankfully with sealer and not the acid), I was ready to scream. So I did. What the hell, no one can hear! I had to take a step back and realize I was obsessing over the small stuff. There are some runs in the sealer and the bugs love getting stuck in the stuff as soon as you spray it, but that´s what makes it unique. There are definitely some defects, but look who is doing the work! Overall, I am still happy that I decided to use this instead of tile, although the cost is about the same. $65.00 a gallon for the sealer and it covers 200 sq ft with 1 coat. Of course you need 2 coats. The concrete poured here is about 2800 sq ft. of floor plus the counters. The enclosed area of the house is only about half the sq footage. We got a lot of deck. Anyway, with the stain almost $100 a gallon and the cost of the sealer, it turned out to be a little more than I anticipated. What a surprise! The biggest problem was trying to dry the concrete. I think this would be a lot easier in Over all, I can´t complain. I don´t know how to say this without sounding self-serving, but the house is so much nicer than I imagined it would be when we started this project. I really designed something very simple, but the artistic touches in the house really make it special. The tongue and groove ceiling, the custom furniture, and the one-of-a-kind floors are all coming together nicely. Soon it will be all over and I can get back to the flowers and the farm.
Coffee production is up!! The first couple of pickings were really slim, but now we are doing much better. It´s enough to pay their wages and have a little left over for the finca. I was talking to the co-op (I am now a member, they buy the coffee) and they have some nice incentives for reforestation. There are a variety of plans or you can just buy trees and coffee plants from them. They are really cheap with the most expensive trees costing about a quarter. I plan to reserve 1000 coffee plants to fill in areas in the cafetal that need replacing and further investigate the incentive programs available. I have about 6-8 acres on the other side of the hill that I want to reforest. Want to get this sent. In town to pick up more material and get some things done. Lots to do. Later, Dave
Nov.19, 2006 La "Jefa" has arrived! Oh, that´s right. I think overall she likes most of what I have done. We are a week behind where I wanted to be when she arrived and we will not have everything done before Mom and Last Saturday I was so beat up from working so hard and my hands and feet were in such bad shape that I went into town and had a massage, manicure, and pedicure. ($22.00 for the works). 2 ½ hours for a manicure and pedicure! I had no idea it would take so long. The manicurist told me if I came back in 3 weeks, it wouldn´t be so difficult. I said, " You mean I don´t have to wait 54 years for the next one?" I like to get my moneys´ worth. Anyway, I need to get back to the problem. Sunday I started to feel a pain in my butt like I rode the Well, I did receive some response from my kitchen picture. I really don´t know why I need another kitchen, this one works great. The drainage ditch runs right along the back of the outdoor kitchen and makes a great garbage disposal. Just throw the scraps there, and the next rain cleans it right out. The pressure cleaner we keep hooked up at the side and is great for washing dishes. All the conveniences! I mean, for me, this is such an upgrade from living in the bodega, it´s all good. Well, that´s it for now. We are really looking forward to Mom and Dave and Finquita Lucita
Well, things have not worked out exactly as planned. I hurt so bad that we came back to the clinic on Sunday morning and I planned to email the above before returning to the farm. However, I have been hooked up to an I.V ever since we got to the clinic. I feel much better now than when I arrived. It seems that I have an infection in the colon that manifests itself as an abscess just outside the butt-hole. It had grown to the size of a plum and that was just what was above the surface. Extreme pain! I have been on continuous antibiotics and pain killers since Sunday AM. But perhaps this is more information than you really need. Suffice it to say that right now I feel much, much better and hopefully will be able to leave here tomorrow. I have a private room at the clinic with color TV and attentive and very cute nurses. It could be worse. The major problem is Mom and Other than that, I still have people working on the farm. They were supposed to be picking coffee yesterday and I guess they will have to take the coffee to the "recibador" with Rodolfo´s horse since the truck is here with me. I had been waiting for Olman, the woodwork guy just stopped by and they will have the folks room done today. I attached a picture of the front door to give you an idea of what the furniture and woodwork will look like. We have not put all the comforters on the beds yet waiting for them to finish, so just a little longer until we have more pictures. Hopefully, I can manage to get this sent today or in the morning. Take care all, Me Mom and This whole letter has gotten a little more personal than some recipients probably expected when they signed up to receive these emails and sorry about that. For anyone that has an interest, I just paid the bill at the clinic. The clinic is a 24 hour emergency care type clinic. First let me say that the attention I received was far better than anything I would have received in the states. I had a private room with color TV and cable. I watched a lot of movies; in English. There was a nurse and Doctor on duty there 24 hours a day and I was the only patient staying there. The 3 nurses were qualified, young, and very attractive. Hey, it doesn´t hurt to have attractive nurses when you have to drop your pants to change the bandage! Including the specialist that did the draining and checked on me morning and evening, the bill for everything was $2,000. I think it might have cost a little more in the states. The insurance I have here that covers me anywhere in the world for $2400 per year will cover 80% of the bill with no deductible. I think. That remains to be seen, but I am happy it is mostly over and soon Mom and Saludos from Greetings and Salutations! We are all healthy and happy here, so let´s get that out of the way first. My, "pain in the ass" problem is behind me. That is to say, I have been given an "excellent" report by the specialist and am no longer on any medication. We made it to Golfito with Mom and The furniture for the house is dribbling in, a couple of pieces a week. I have included the picture of the guest room Mom and Yesterday we took the inauspiciously, we ended up having a great day at the beach. After a tour of Dominical, we had lunch at La Parcela. It is located on a narrow, rocky peninsula extending a couple hundred yards into the I was just about to rise on Mom´s birthday morning when Rodolfo called me from outside the bedroom. At Well, we have got to get to town and get this posted. Last night they had the inauguration of the new park or town square. We will probably leave dad there to look at all the pretty girls while Mom and I go to the internet café. Greetings from I have now been back home for 10 days. It took about 3 days, (most gringos take years, I have lots of experience) but I did slow down and start appreciating the fact that I am in a country where things move at a slower pace. It is much easier to navigate the Costa Rican speed bumps, (potholes!) when one is not in a rush to get somewhere. Kind of works like that in all aspects of life and business down here. I had no problem picking up the Kia truck that I paid for a month ago. Everything on the truck was fine. I did have a problem with the insurance. The agent I had an appointment with failed to show. A little patience and a little luck and I was able to get insurance on Sunday morning. I was anxious to be on my way to After hurriedly tossing my bag in the hotel room, I was bound for the Finca. The road is the worse it has been. There are stretches where you could bury 101 Dalmatians, full grown! They are doing some work on the road, so hopefully things will improve. Arriving at the Finca, even after a short time away, is such a thrill. The bougainvillea that was planted along the fence line is in bloom. They are still small, but in a couple years, it will be magnificent. All the fruit trees with the exception of the Avocado are doing well. Some are already bearing fruit. Rodolfo has cut in somewhere around 600 steps to make the hiking trails easier to navigate. Just a short hike on Sendero Jaji will lead you through the orange grove, past the blooming coffee with its spicy citrus fragrance, around Banana Bend, and out to the point "Vista de la Casa". After admiring the flowers and watching the birds on the newly installed bench, you begin a decent to the lower trail through the shaded jungle to "Nacimiento de los Amores. It will stop you in your tracks. The flowers Rodolfo has planted are a palette of color against the moist earth of the trickling spring. There is an abundance of color in the sea of green that is Finquita Lucita. Between the impatiens, bromeliads, orchids, and mountain flowers of all colors, the dazzling display of the toucans, hummingbirds, and the other 200-400 species of birds, and the omnipresence of the butterflies, it is like a National Geographic episode everywhere one looks.
Rodolfo the caretaker, no the caregiver of Finquita Lucita is an amazing man. Born 62 years ago on the property next door that he still farms, he can work tirelessly for hours, hunched over chopping weeds with a machete and raking back the freed weeds with a hooked stick. Actually it is a very efficient way to clear the overgrown land. Rodolfo knows every tree on the farm by name, every flower, and I have not seen him unable to name any bird or plant around. Obviously an intelligent man, he has never been to school and can not read or write. He rises every day at He is a simple, humble man and the stunning beauty of Finquita Lucita is a small part my vision and a large part Rodolfo´s labor of love. It is now a beautiful morning. The computer hibernated last night and I did too. It was I want to get this posted and it will be continued. Greetings 2 from Happy Birthday Bro! Well, the "Jefa" (female boss) has arrived. It is going to take her a while to become accustomed to life here, but I think she is starting to get a feel for it. She really likes the little cottage I rented, but I knew she would. With its incredible view and manicured gardens, who would not like it! It is now about Friday I closed on another small piece of property. I bought it to sell to Rob. Sorry Bro, No birthday gift of land in C.R., but I will make you a great deal. The property is at the top of the mountain shared by Rodolfo, myself, and now Rob. It is about 4 acres with some mountain and once cleared land that now needs to be recleared and forested or planted. The plantel and road are being put in next week. From the plantel (building site) there is a spectacular 360 degree view. It is really a great piece of property, especially since it connects to a 40 acre nature preserve, Finquita Lucita. Rob, ya got to get down here to see it! Or at least Send Money!! I have finished your building site, Mom and Today, John the builder is dropping off the water tanks so we can start getting things going on the water. Electric is still being a problem, but I am confident we will get something together soon. In this country you do need patience. The rest of the farm is proceeding nicely. This week I have two more peons working on the property clearing the secondary growth where the land was cleared before and then neglected for 8 years. It all needs to be cleared and then reforested with native hardwoods and flowering trees. Looking out from the building sites, you will see a canopy of flowering trees and evergreens. It will be something special. The property is turning in to" Well, Yesterday I went to the Finca, later than I wanted, but I got Today we are going to the farm this morning and then to town for shopping and e-mail. Hopefully, I will be able to attach a couple pictures this time. All is good here and we hope all is well with all of you. Dave Greetings 3 from I just looked back at Greetings 2 and it has been almost 3 weeks since I wrote anything significant. I was not sure that I would be able to send it. The computer developed a virus, and I could not open programs, save pictures or attach anything to an e-mail. With the error messages I received, I thought the ?puter was a goner. I took it to a shop and they installed McAffe anti virus and cleaned it up. Cost $12.00. Thought it was a pretty good deal. So, maybe I can get this sent and even attach some pictures. The farm is really going through a transformation. There are now three peones working on the property. Among other things, Rodolfo and son are clearing the secondary growth by machete, leaving the plants and good young trees. They have probably cleaned about 10 acres and have another 10 acres to go. The purpose and urgency to get this done is to have the entire land ready to plant when the rains start in 2 months. It is really starting to take shape. Rodolfo´s son-in-law is working exclusively in the coffee. It really looks pathetic right now. Some plants are cut down to just the stump. The idea is that by cutting the fingers on the trunk, they develop various shoots or babies in the next year. The best of the shoots, 1 or 2 per finger, are kept and the rest are chopped. After 2 year, all the work finally bears fruit and the coffee should not only look good, but also be a good producer. As far as the building goes, the bodega has a roof. Well, at least most of one. They should have the warehouse finished by the end of the week. Then we will do the entry gate, septic tank at the house, (It´s a big tank) and start on the house. It would be nice to have electric. Not essential, but certainly helpful. Hopefully plan 4 will get approved this week and we can proceed. The inspector was supposed to come last Thursday-Friday, but he got sent to Just in town now to get some papers from the engineer. I am going to send this and send a separate e-mail with some pics, I hope. Will continue the letter later. Me Greetings 4 from How was your sunset? Not a bad view from our patio. I am going to try to insert pictures in this document as I have not been able to attach them. Everything is going well at the farm. The bodega is almost finished. The roof is on and the last thing is wiring the electric and plumbing. Hopefully that and the septic for the house will be done this week. The land is looking so much better with all the work Rodolfo, son, and son-in-law are doing. They have cleaned-up a lot of the abandon secondary growth area and are starting to clear some of the garbage trees they use here to delineate areas or use as fence posts. Some of the trees are 30 years old and 1 ½ feet in diameter. It is too bad they did not plant some nice teak trees 30 years ago. We have also removed at least a kilometer of barbed wire that criss-crossed the property. We are still having some problems getting the electric, but I am confident something will be worked out soon. Patience is an essential ingredient in the building process. We have finally broken ground on the house. The bodega is finished and we have begun on the house. Yesterday the bulldozer cleared Rob´s building site and cut in the road to the plantel. It came out even better than I expected. The view is really spectacular.
Well, time to get going. I sure hope this email can be sent with the pictures. Pura Vida, Dave and Greetings 5 from We are laying block! The bodega came out great and the house is coming out of the ground. The rush is on to get the walls up and the roof on before the heavy rains start. It would have been easier if they didn´t have to start 5 feet under ground. They pour 8 inches of concrete and start building from there. Hell, we are paying for 4 feet of house that´s underground! The crew is doing a great job. I am really fortunate to have such a great group building the house. If only I could get electric! Hopefully, we have that worked out and in the next month may, possibly, hopefully, have electric. Only a couple more days and we will be back in Love, Us A new trip down. Pura Vida from I have been here 2 weeks now, so I guess it´s time to let everyone know what is going on. Right now, I am camped out in the Bodega (storeroom). It is really not bad. The view is great and if it had electric, it could be very comfortable. There are anywhere from 1 to 4 workers staying here during the week, so I have been staying at the Hotel Diamante Real. For under $20, I have a nice room, A/C, T.V., internet, and Hot Water. No electric, no hot shower. There is a 3 bedroom house in town for rent with internet and phone that will be available the first of the month. I am looking at other options, but for $250 a month, I may rent it for a few months. It will give us a place to stay when The house is coming along. I wish it would hurry up, but we are about on schedule. We should be putting on the roof next week. The electric posts are in and the transformer is installed (We got a 50 whatchagizmo, enough for 4 houses). The trench is dug from the top of the orange grove to the house, the house to the bodega, bodega to rancho. It´s a foot deep and about 300 yards long. The inspection has been done and the meter ordered. I hope we will have electric soon. It is costing $100 a week in gas for the generator in addition to having to push it up the hill every night to put in the bodega. As far as pictures, well, y´all just got to come down and see for yaself! I will include a picture. The Finca is, well, a huge project. There is so much that I want to do. Right now we are planting the first half of our order from the nursery. The order includes 200 bougainvillea, 1500 Vetever (a tall thick grass used like a retaining wall), and 5000 Mani (groundcover for cuts in hillsides). The land needs to be cleaned and holes dug for all of these. In addition, there are 100 bags, 40 Kg each of organic fertilizer. It is time to fertilize the coffee and do the pruning. It is a 10 year project. Rodolfo in my month long business trip to the states accomplished an amazing amount. The trail system now extends all the way to the bottom of the little mountain. It is amazing walking through the dense forest and listening to all the birds. Some of the trees are simply monstrous. Much of the path has to be steps cut into the mountain. I imagine there are over 1000 steps that Rodolfo and crew have cut into the paths. He also has bordered some of the closer paths to the house with plants and flowers, and planted many trees. Sometimes I am hiking around the property and I stumble across things that are done that I didn´t know about. It is starting to take shape. Thursday I went to Well, that´s about it for now. The workers left this bodega a mess, but they did leave a pot of good black beans. I bought some chicken in hopes of cooking it over the fire, but my campfire plans might have to change, hard to get a fire going in the rain. I do have the 2 burner strove here, so can cook up some rice to have with the beans. Actually, it seems to be clearing so who knows. The weather has been very good with some late afternoon showers, but work on the house has continued and we have lost only a few hours to rain so far. Evenings are cool but not cold, and the mornings are glorious. It´s getting dark. Time to light the candles. Pura Vida, Dave I am back at the hotel with internet, electric, and hot water! Currently I am charging the computer, phone, camera, and 18 volt power tool batteries. Pura Vida from Greetings everyone. I hope everyone is well. I have been waiting a long time to say this. We have electricity!! More importantly, I got to take a hot shower at the bodega today. Last night I turned off the light bulb and went back to the candles. Much nicer, now if only my lady was here. I guess Things are moving along with the house. The beams are going up now. Next comes all the tablia, (The tongue in groove) then the electrician, insulation and roof. It will be another occasion when the roof is complete. There is so much more to get done. Work on the water system and the drainage system needs to be done ASAP, but the roof is the most important at this time. The weather has been very cooperative and we are receiving enough rain for the planting, but have lost little time in construction due to rain. Well, I didn´t get a lot written when I started this, so I had better get it finished over this weekend so I can send it Monday. I am back staying in the bodega. When the weather is nice it is very pleasant staying here. Last night it pissed down rain. Not so nice here with the rain blowing in and the wind swirling around. Yes, we are in the rainy season and I expect a lot of the same for the remainder of June. In July and August we should have some nice summer days mixed with some rainy weather, but not as wet as June. Then Sept and Oct lots of rain again. Even rainy days like yesterday have beautiful mornings. It is now The rains last night have done some damage and we have lost some pieces of bank and have a lot of work to do rerouting water. Mi Amor, this is why I am spending the money to get in the groundcover and the "retaining wall" plants. I´ll take some pictures. The workers have arrived, so I need to survey the damage and see what we need to do. It´s pouring again. One of those afternoon rainstorms we know so well in The farm is looking much better, but there is still so much to do. We planted the 125 cypress trees and I have a line on some yellow cedar trees in a pueblo at the bottom of the hill. Evidently, a lady has a load of them and is selling them for a quarter each. I´ll plant a couple hundred if I can get them at a good price. I just bought a few more fruit trees and a flowering tree called the "Pride of India". Chacko´s tree. I want to go with Rodolfo to a little nursery
Enrique is back working in the coffee. Or at least he was until these recent problems. We have finished applying the organic fertilizer, and he is now de-babying (direct translation) the plants, leaving only 1-2 babies on the stalks he cut 4 months ago. When finished, he needs to trim the Poro trees that provide shade for the coffee. The coffee alone is work for 1 person 3 weeks a month. I estimate that just to maintain what we have already macheted, maintaining the paths and flowers, and keeping up with the orange grove is full-time work for 1 person. Needless to say, with all the other work we are trying to do, the damn weeds are growing faster than we can get to them. I need the trees to get big enough to provide shade so the weeds do not grow underneath. That´s what is so cool about the primary jungle on the property. It is beautiful and requires no work! I am back at the hotel and want to get this sent. Sunday was beautiful and it dried things out a bit. This AM was also nice, but we are getting some showers now. We got the farm cleaned up after all the rain, and things are back to normal. I am hoping this is my last week at the hotel. That´s it for now. Pura Vida, Dave Pura Vida 3 Happy Most of you will probably not be reading this until the 5th, so hope you had a good time celebrating. There were a couple of Gringo parties this weekend and with my birthday falling on Saturday, it worked out really well. The electricians stayed at the bodega and worked through the weekend, so I also had someone there to watch things. At the Dominical Lifeguard Benefit, I won one of the 50/50´s and received $223.00! Live music, great BBQ, on the beach, and after contributions still walked away with $150, not a bad deal! The house is coming along. I am pleased to say that at the end of the week the roof and gutters will be finished and the entire floor will be poured. What a relief. That way all the work will be inside and we will have no worries over rain. Although it has not been a major problem so far (except for the 1 weekend I wrote about last time), it is still time consuming to cover everything for the inevitable afternoon shower. I have attached a couple pictures of the house. It is very difficult to take a picture from the rear of the house because of the orchard and all the trees, and I need a 30 foot ladder to take a picture of the front of the house because the hillside drops off steeply. Guess everyone just needs to come down and see it for themselves. The farm itself is looking better each day. More paths have been added, the coffee has been pruned, fertilized (organic of course), and the shade trees are being shaped now. We have planted 25 flowering trees and another 100 bougainvillea. They now run all the way to the top. It should look spectacular in a couple of years when they are all filled in. It is going to take some patience. Most of the flowering trees will not be blooming for 2-5 years. It gives us something to look forward to. I still want to plant a couple hundred cedar trees, but time is running out. It may just have to wait until next June. I have been spending a lot of time on the end of a machete, and am getting pretty good at it. Still not able to put in a full day with the peons, but it is getting easier. Sure do get dirty! Tomorrow I move in to the rental house!! Finally! There were a couple delays, but I am packing up and moving out of the hotel. That of course inspired this letter. Here I have the wireless internet and once in the house, I will have to use an internet café. I will however have a refrigerator and at least a cook top. No oven so I can´t make banana bread. Darn! Well, that´s about it. I am trying to find someone locally to do a web site for the farm, but haven´t found anyone yet. I will have something soon. I already have pages written including tours and package deals!!! Family, start making reservations now ?cause when the paying folks is booked, the only thing left is the bodega or the rancho! It is nice to hear from people in the other world. There are friends and family out there who are reading and receiving this and have never once written. Ya think it´s about time to drop me a quick line? It wouldn´t hurt to let me know you are still alive. I hope everyone is realizing their dream. If not, think about a change. It really is not so hard. "The vast majority prefer the certainty of misery to the uncertainty of change." Pura Vida, Dave Pura Vida from Greetings all, Well, It appears that we may be going to Work on the house has slowed down now that we are doing all the walls. It takes a lot of time to get them all filled in and straight. It is really a good time to go away as there is really not much exciting going on at the house. We should be finished with the walls at the end of the week and start the final coat of stucco. It will then be time to pour the floor. We had to wait on the floor because we are doing a chemical treatment on the concrete instead of ceramic tile. Go to www.kemico.com to get an idea of what we are doing. Next week we meet with the woodworkers that will be building the cabinets, doors, and making our furniture. We have seen the work that they do and it is really excellent. They work in pine and specialize in rustic furniture. He came to the farm to look at the pine that we cut from the trees that had fallen in last years storms and he told me the wood was excellent for furniture, so our furniture or at least part of it will be from wood growing on the farm for the last 40 years. Kinda cool, no? The farm is getting better each day. All the big trees in the coffee have been severely pruned the way they should be so the sun penetrates in the rainy season and the leaves and branches grow to provide shade in the summer. The loop trail is now finished to the bottom of the farm and back up again. I don´t know how many visitors will be up for the hike, but I will enjoy it. We have finished planting some 30 flowering trees and with the newly planted bougainvillea it brings our total to over 240 bougainvilleas lining the property. Some trails have been lined with flowers and bushes and the impatiens are growing wild all over. There is so much in bloom now, it is impossible to recount. It needs to be seen to be appreciated. Lunch is about ready. Pura Vida, Dave Pura Vida from Greetings all- Jorge has arrived and we have really been enjoying our time together. We have hiked his property and he found out 10 acres of mountain property is a lot to walk! Currently we are at the attorney´s office waiting to sign the papers to transfer the property. He is very excited and I think a little relieved to get the paperwork done and the title transferred. I mean, can´t blame the kid. I got my money and he doesn´t have squat. It´s about time to get this done. We have been doing a lot of running around since picking up Jorge and have taken the beach tour, the The house is coming along. It has been a long process but the walls are all plastered and tomorrow we will begin to put on the final coat of stucco. The gutters are being finished now and they look great. They are really Big gutters. Guess we need it here. We are ordering decorative stone today to finish up the house trim and do the entrance wall. It should look nice. The farm is, as always, looking a little better each day. The workers have cleaned some more large areas and the flowers I planted have started to bloom. The Gladiolas are spectacular. I took a short walk today and picked some flowers from the farm to take to Before we picked up Jorge, last week, Well, I know I said I would be sending some pics, but when things calm down here I promise I will. Got to get going, lots to do. Pura Vida to all, Dave Pura Vida from Greetings All- Well, I guess this will be the last installment of the Pura Vida from The house here, like the flowers we have planted, has finally started to bloom. What was just a hunk of concrete block a week ago has started to take on some character and charm. The decorative rock on the columns and fireplace is finished and looks really sharp. The kitchen and bathroom counters have been poured and the tile will be installed soon. The white stucco has really brightened up the place and it is starting to look like a real home. We were looking at colors today for the inside and outside of the house. The farm is still looking a little better every day. There are hillsides of blooming inpatients with various trees and shrubs also producing color. Together with the seeds and flowers we have planted, there is plenty of color to go with the verdant background. The bougainvillea that was planted last year is much bigger. I have been pruning and shaping the plants and this summer (Dec-Mar) they should be loaded with long spears of flowers in a dozen different colors. All the young trees we planted seem to be doing well. The ornamental flowering trees will not be showing much for 4-5 years but some of the fruit trees are already producing. Others will take up to 10 years, but all are growing. The oranges and bananas are just falling to the ground they are so plentiful. Some of the bananas are in areas that are not easily accessed by vehicle. Ever pick up a stalk of bananas? Trust me, those suckers are heavy!! I told Rodolfo I would like to have a variety of bananas and plantains close to the house for easy pickin´. I expected he would bring maybe a dozen plants with 4-5 different varieties of bananas and a couple plantains. He planted 22 bananas and 18 plantains. There are 6 different types of bananas including red bananas, square bananas, and little finger sized bananas. Maybe the monkeys will find their way back to the farm with all these bananas! The loop trail has been finished to the bottom of the farm and back up. It is a beautiful trail through the primary jungle, crossing the springs at the bottom of the farm and then up the ridge created by the water erosion of the parallel springs. There are a lot of steps. I have my altimeter but I always forget to take it when I go to the bottom. I want to measure the difference in altitude between the top and bottom of the farm. Up and down a couple times a day would get you in good shape in a hurry! We are heading in to town shortly, and I can get this letter I started a week ago sent. Today Wessa, Anyway, we will be back in Pura Vida, Dave and Finquita Lucita Alto de Perez Zeledon, |