Author: Charlie

Retired American nature-lover, living in Costa Rica, photographing birds and other jewels of nature. This site simply reports on my joys of being RETIRED IN COSTA RICA!
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This is the way. Walk in it.

LifeWay VBS 2015 Theme Journey Off the Map, and yep! Parts of Costa Rica look like this!
Remember, Jurassic Park was here! Some thought of Costa Rica with Avatar, but there are no blue people here! 🙂

I just read about the jungle theme “Journey Off the Map” and focus verse of Vacation Bible School at my church back in Nashville. I love it! It is where I have been and where I am now both physically and spiritually:

Isaiah 30:21, “And whenever you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear this command behind you: ‘This is the way. Walk in it.'” 

I taught in Vacation Bible School this time last year at First Baptist Nashville and learned then this would be the theme and verse. I liked it. Soon afterwards I wrote a poem based partly on this Bible verse:  “Metaphors of Modification” which was one of the early posts on this blog. I’ll let you click the link to read it if you wish. It was back when I was still dreaming, before even the relocation tour.

I have felt at peace ever since about my “Costa Rica Decision Process,” the first title of this blog, and at peace about the final decision I made in September, and all that has happened since then.“This is the way. Walk in it.” (And I understand that the spiritual meaning of this is not specifically about my move. I hope to write more about the verse later, because in some ways it is another “life verse” for me.) I will miss teaching in VBS this year and especially the theme. If you are one of the good guys who helps in VBS, think of me down here in Costa Rica!  🙂

ADDENDUM: WORSHIP WITH FIRST BAPTIST NASHVILLE ONLINE TODAY

When I was in the apartments the first four months, I was walking to the nearby little non-denominational evangelical church most Sundays and the two times I tried the “streaming worship service” from First Baptist Nashville, my connection was not good enough to get more than little hiccups of video. With my new and better internet connection in this house I discovered today that it works very well here! I’m thankful for many reasons! The local worship in Spanish is not always working for me and Pastor Frank started a new sermon series on “Mile Markers of Life” today. I’m looking forward to his messages and thank Bill Latham for sharing them on Facebook.

But the biggest surprise today was that the flower arrangement in the Nashville church looks like it could have come right out of my Costa Rica garden, with Heliconia and Red Ginger dominating the arrangement! Both are blooming in my garden every day! Maybe they chose it for the exotic VBS theme! VBS starts there tomorrow. Here’s the two dominate flowers in their arrangement:

Heliconia in my garden, Atenas, Costa Rica
Red Ginger in my garden, Atenas, Costa Rica

Both of the above two flowers in my garden were a part of the flower arrangement at First Baptist Nashville today as I saw them on the computer screen in a streaming of their worship service.

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Metalmark Butterfly

One of the many Metalmark Butterflies, I’m pretty sure. No positive ID.
Atenas, Costa Rica, by Charlie Doggett
Metalmark Butterfly, Atenas, Costa Rica, by Charlie Doggett

My private gardener team came and did some good work yesterday. I’ve retained them for once or twice a month maintenance of garden and trees. (The ones who installed my garden.) The property gardener does a lot but works for about five or so properties doing mainly the big maintenance, weed-eating, etc. Most people here get a maid, I get a gardener!  🙂   Maybe a maid later. Still emptying boxes now.

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Sorry! Human error! But have you sent me mail?

Part of “Pura Vida” is not getting bent out of shape when things go slowly or go wrong. That is part of the warm climate attitude or lifestyle and if you can’t adopt it, go with the flow, and live with something going wrong, you will never be happy here. That is probably one of the biggest reasons some Americans don’t make it here or they are not happy here.

SO, HAVE YOU SENT ME MAIL?
If you have in the last four months to my Costa Rica PO Box, it was not delivered. Read on to see what happened to your letter.

DISCULPE – SORRY!
In late February I announced I had my own PO Box and you no longer needed to send mail by way of the apartments PO Box (where I received several Christmas Cards and letters just fine). You may remember that I was proud of my own address, bragged on how much easier it was to get that than open a bank account, and even posted a copy of a business card with the new address and my phone number. Yet I never received any mail in it. But I didn’t really expect it to be used except for local and Costa Rica business.

When my health insurance policy was completed the first of April I was expecting hard copies of the policy and an insurance card for my wallet. I never got it. Around the same time a friend in the states sent me an important letter that I never received. That is when I told everyone to use my Miami PO Box address for mail from states. Well the friend had the letter returned two month later as “not deliverable” or something like that in Spanish. They emailed me a photocopy of the returned letter and today I took it to the Atenas Post Office.

The older man who had set up my box was not there (learned later he was fired). The first person, a younger man, had trouble understanding and seemed to be looking for the letter somewhere. Then he called the woman over (exactly what I needed to solve my problem – really!). She managed my poor Spanish better AND when she understood what had happened, she had the insight to go to my box 441 and look at it (from the inside). I heard the rip of tape peeling off. She came back and said “Discuple” (Sorry!). Then someone else translated her explanation: The guy rented me a box with someone else’s name still on it and did not put my name on it like he was supposed to. So the mail-sorter would not put mail for me in such a box! The guy who sold me the box evidently made other errors because he no longer works there! And now that I am adopting the Costa Rica ways, I took three months to figure it out! And I will not worry about it. But if you sent me anything important, let me know! 🙂

I just called my Pricose INS Insurance agent about my medical insurance policy and wallet card. They will re-mail it all today! (Yep! Their mail bounced too!) See! Everything worked out! The world didn’t end! Life goes on! Pura Vida!

And though it can take up to a month from the states, my local mail address will work now (they say!).

Sr. Charlie Doggett
Apdo. 441-4013
Alajuela, Atenas, Atenas
20501 COSTA RICA

And yeah! It is not written like you do it in the states! That second line is my Province (state) first, then the Canton (county), and then Pueblo (town). Last line is the zip code BEFORE the country name. But honestly, the Miami address is still more efficient and usually here in 5 business days.

Charlie Doggett
PO Box 025-331
SJO 170066
Miami, FL 33102-5331

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Wanna see my baby pictures?

Baby Howler Monkey & Mom at Hacienda La Jacaranda, Atenas, Costa Rica.
Photo by Charlie
“Come on Mom! Let’s go!” White-faced Capuchin Monkey
Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica – Photo by Charlie
And another White-faced Capuchin Monkey Baby on Mom’s back.
Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica – Photo by Charlie
Yep! It’s a baby! Green Parrot Snake
Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica – Photo by Charlie
And – incredibly- with my cell phone through the guide’s spotting scope.
Baby (youngster with Mom just below him on tree stump) Stripped Iguana
Tarcoles River, Costa Rica – Photo by Charlie

Now look at these professional photographer’s shots of “Costa Rica’s Most Adorable Baby Animals.”

Look at little kids and wild animals, these are two groups of things that whenever I’m with them forces me to be in the moment.
–Dominic Monaghan

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Mowing the Grass in Hilly Atenas

Javier mowing the hill behind my house. All mowing is done by weed-eaters.
Only in Central Atenas are there flat lots where a regular lawnmower might work.

I close the doors to avoid flying debris. I am feeling a little better, so virus med & diet is working.

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I Have a Bee-ruus

I’m beginning to learn how Costa Ricans speak Spanish. I went to Dr. Candy today sick. Though she speaks perfect English and pronounced “virus” the way we do in the states, her assistant in the office and my taxista pronounced it “bee-ruus.” There is not a Spanish word for virus, so they use the English word with local pronunciation. Although there is a separate “V” sound in Spanish, a little more lispy than in English, most in Central America pronounce it like “B.” All “I’s” are pronounced like a long E and most “U’s” are pronounced like uuuu. Languages are fun!

I have meds and electrolytes to take and a list of what foods I can eat and not eat. So I should feel better soon. I am to go back if not better by Thursday. Medical care here is done very well, just mostly in Spanish!   🙂

Since all my posts have photos, here’s an unrelated butterfly shot made recently:

Colored like a Duskywing and tail like a Swallowtail but no match so far!
And a green head! If you know what it is, please contact me!
charlie@charliedoggett.net
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Tico Love Affair with Limons & Mayonaise!

Limon mandarinas is the full or official name. They are neither lemon nor lime.
They are the green things in the middle that look like limes,
though tree-ripened ones can be almost orange in color. Sold in bags of 12!

They are squeezed on everything from salads to your favorite meat, yet I am yet to see them made into a drink. A wedge of one is stuck on or in the glass of some drinks in bars and restaurants. I no longer use any kind of salad dressing, but just cut up a limon and squeeze it over my salad with some herbs. Delicious! You can read more about them online. But another surprise about Ticos is their love affair with Mayonaise!

More varieties of Mayonnaise than any other condiment at Coopeatenas!
And an even larger variety at Walmart! But the unquestionable favorite is
Mayonnaise con Limon!

Yep, in that photo everything to the right of the brown bottles is mayonnaise! And the brown bottles are another Tico favorite, Salsa Lizano! It is particularly loved on Gallo Pintos (special beans and rice dish) eaten most often at breakfast with eggs. It is somewhere between Worcestershire Sauce and a vinegary steak sauce. More about food here later!

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Green Tree Anole

Green Tree Anole went across my garden and up the wall.
Atenas, Costa Rica
Notice how long the tail is, making him similar to a Pug-nosed Anole,
but I’ll stick to my identification of Green Tree Anole.
The line shadows are from ornamental grasses above the wall.
Atenas, Costa Rica

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Atenas Graffiti

It appears on an ugly wall behind the High School in first two photos, then on the concrete wall of a city park in front of the Primary School. It is the only graffiti I’m aware of and wonder if it was a school art class project?

A 4 or 5 shot panorama of wall behind high school that I walk by almost every day. There’s more beyond gate at right, next.
More behind the high school gym to the right of above image. 
The front of the high school however would never have graffiti. 
Wall on big city recreation park in front of primary school, more in next photo.
This park has soccer, basketball, volleyball, skateboard, and more recreation.

Though not all great art, it  too seems too well organized to be vandalism.
Note the skate board ramp is also painted with graffiti above & below.
Skateboard ramp in city park in front of Escuela Central.
“People say graffiti is ugly, irresponsible and childish… but that’s only if it’s done properly.” 
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Full Service Gasolinera!

The one and only gas station in Atenas! A part of the farmers’ cooperative
in front of their Mercado where I buy most of my groceries, Coopeatenas.

I have only used it two times during the couple of weeks I had a rent car. It is straight out of one of those 1950’s Texaco TV ads where the attendant runs up to your car as soon as you pull in, asking what kind of gas you want and if you want your fluids checked. Then while the tank is filling, he washes your windshield. The way gas stations were meant to operate. Only the well-off have cars here. Most people walk and ride taxis and buses.