Family Night

The other night, we had just finished dinner (Mark made his mouthwatering burgers on the grill)...we were just sitting around relaxing before dessert...the girls (Bejuca and Mini-B) were in a playful mood and Mark kept them entertained...even with Mini-B still in her doggie head cone, she was jumping around and getting in Bejuca's face...
As little as Mini-B is, she has no fear and will literally jump right in Bejuca's face and put her front paws on Bejuca's neck to get her attention...Mini-B will growl as loud and mean as she can to get Bejuca growling right back at her...only problem is, Bejuca's growl is a lot meaner and louder than little B's, so we have to keep and eye on Bejuca and make sure she doesn't get too agressive with the little one...it's definitely entertaining and fun to watch the two of them playing together...

Is the Colonel shorting us down here?

OK, not looking to draw the wrath of Colonel Sanders and his army of lawyers that protect his estate, but we went to eat at KFC last week on a run up to Ciudad Quesada. . . And we're thinking that the Colonel has left out an herb or spice from his secret recipe down in these parts. . . It was good, but it didn't have the same pop that it does back in the States. Maybe our taste buds have changed (this was one of the few times we've eaten U.S. fast food since we've been here) but the conspiracy theorist that lurks not too deep below in me, suggests that instead of the 11 herbs and spices, we're getting perhaps nine or 10. . . The fried chicken at the family-style sodas, or restaurants, down here is really, really good. . . Has great flavor and is very juicy. Not sure what they're putting on it, but it's good eating--and less expensive than the Colonel. The one gripe (and it's a big one) is that you cannot get just a drumstick or a wing at the family places. You always have to get a breast (pechuga). . . I've argued in my miserable Spanish for just a bunch of wings and legs at several different places (even offering to pony up more colones) to no avail. Think it's time someone opened up a chicken joint here with just legs and wings, no pechugas. I'd go there on a regular basis.

What the sam hill. . .

Is this thing? No idea, and while Kenneth and Darleen told us what it was in Spanish, I can't remember. Just know that it's big, brown and crawly. . . Spotted it on one of the rocking chairs the other day, just where you would put your head if you plopped down into it. It's supposed to be a jumping insect, but one of its rear legs was missing, so it wasn't able to leap at all. . . Looks pretty scary, but since Kenneth and Darleen didn't get too worked up about it, we figured that it wasn't anything too dangerous, so we just took some pictures and watched it make its way to the ground (with some assistance from Kenneth) and then head out for parts unknown.

The variety of insects, animals, birds, plants, etc., down here is truly amazing. I'm not much of a bird person, or plant person, but even I will stop and stare at some of the things we come across. We will spot a bird that we have never seen before, and it will have the most brilliant colors, that we just stop and look at it. Never have taken the time to do that before. I don't think we're going all-Thoreau on everyone or Mosquito Coast, but it is nice to check out the various things around here, and it's very pleasant to be surprised on a regular occasion.

Wedding bells. . .

Nope, no renewal of the vows down here. . . However, we had our first wedding at Tree Houses last week. . . A great couple from Dallas came down to get hitched in Costa Rica. . . Not an uncommon happening, but most folks choose to get married on the beach (like Hawaii) instead of the jungle. . . The bride first e-mailed me about three months ago, asking if they could get hitched here. . . We get plenty of honeymooners, but this was the first wedding here. . . They wanted to scout out the hotel grounds for the wedding site, and not surprisingly, they chose the waterfall and pools to seal their nuptials. . . They told their families that they were getting hitched in Costa Rica a couple of weeks before they came down (enough time to ensure that they wouldn't be able to get passports) and are planning on telling other folks about their Costa Rican vacation with wedding pictures from here.

They had everything all set up by the time they arrived: the officiant and the photographer. . . Lucy, myself and the officiant's wife and kids were the only witnesses. They got married on the walkway by the first pool, where the waterfall first splashes down. . . It was a very nice ceremony, and the officiant was quite the character, flailing his arms and offering to stand in the pools and look up at them to conduct the ceremony.

After the wedding, they opted to drive up to La Fortuna for some hiking and time in the hot springs. . . Unfortunately, when they returned to the hotel at 11:30 at night, the power had gone out and the gate wouldn't open as it's run by electricity. . . I walked up to the gate with a flashlight to walk them in. . . Ten minutes later, there's a knock on the door, and the groom was there. . . They had locked their keys in their car and their camera was in plain sight. . . This is a pretty safe area, but better to be safe and not offer up the temptation. . . We were up on the road until 2:30 a.m. trying to jimmy open the locks with a coat hanger. . . None of us has a career in car boosting.

Finally, I drove the Galloper up to the gate, and the newlyweds spent their first night as man and wife. . . sleeping in a Hyundai SUV until the sun came up and they felt OK enough to leave the car alone. . . They were great folks and had us take their picture in front of Tree House No. 4 (the Galloper). . .

Fire! Fire! Fire!

An homage to Beavis and Butthead, some may think. But alas, it's more pedestrian than that. It's just fire ants. At least that's what I think they're called. The other day, some monkeys were hanging out in trees close to the house. One of them pulled down a decent-sized branch that fell on the driveway. I went over to clear it off, not remembering that this particular kind of tree attracts ants that bite. I picked it up, and chucked it into the jungle. The next morning, my right thumb was swollen up pretty good and there was a nice red welt where one of the rotten little buggers had bitten me. OK, lesson learned. Two days later, I was with Kenneth, putting up new signs for the Tree Houses Hotel. I was wearing running shoes with socks and shorts, Kenneth in his usual long pants and rubber boots. About 3-4 minutes into the job, Kenneth looked down and yelled "Ormigas!". . . Me being the Spanish wiz that I am, thought he was looking for his friends (amigas). Turns out, ormigas are ants. And they were all over my shoes, socks and feet. . . I got chewed up pretty bad by the time I pulled off my shoes and socks. I was doing a little not-so-happy jig all the while, which Kenneth found amusing. OK, another lesson learned. Three hours later, a different sign, a different location. . . We were trying to shear off a short screw so we could hang the sign, so we laid it on the ground. I, naturally, put my hand into a pile of more ants and got my left hand gnawed on. Not sure if things will start to swell like the thumb (sure hope not, that will frighten folks) but do not mess with the little critters, they pack a powerful bite. The best way to ease the pain, I was told, is to douse yourself in rubbing alcohol.

Holy guano, batman!

OK, a collective groan, all at once please. . .

Of the three treehouses we have on property, the bats seem to be only drawn to Treehouse No. 3...they perch themselves on the outside deck, high above the ceiling...there can be as many as eight bats on any given day, just hanging out...
We have four of the mama bats with babies...the babies hang on to their mamas chests...it's kind of cool when you catch the babies stretching out their wings and you can get a good look at them hanging on to their mamas...in this picture you can see the three bats on top and if you look at their underside it's black...that black spot is actually a baby stuck to the mama...

The critters are fruit bats, so they help keep the bug population down around the area, which is very welcome at times. . . The bats are not inside the tree house, which most folks who stay in No. 3 are relieved to discover. . . They pretty much hang out at No. 3 until around dusk, then they take off and do what they do during the night, and will come fluttering back around dawn. . . One major downer: the little buggers are serious poop machines, and we have to go up daily to sweep the poo off of the porch. . . "Bat-poo cleanup on aisle 3!"

Not a happy camper. . .

Or maybe she is, she's pretty doped up at the moment, so maybe she's quite pleased with the situation. . . Most likely not. . . Mini-B is now a fixed pooch, so she won't be a mama. . . This is pretty rare in Costa Rica, as most people opt not to spay or neuter their dogs and cats. . . No worries, we're not going to go Bob Barker on you, but we just didn't want Mini-B dragging back from a night on the town at some point and getting a bundle of little surprises months later. . . She has to wear the halo for 10 days after surgery (she also had a tooth pulled, so it wasn't really a good day for her). . . When we first brought her home, she was walking backwards, as if she could back out of the halo. . . When the drugs wear off, it's probably going to be a challenge to keep it on her. . . The silver down below is something that the vet put on to help seal the wound. . . She goes back in a week to get her stitches out. . . Lucy was nearly in tears when we picked her up at the vet's office. . . Mini-B was shivering and shaking and didn't know what the sam hill was going on. . . I voted to wire her up to the satellite in hopes of getting free pay-per-view. . . That idea didn't go over very well. . .