January 9, 2009

Happy New Year. It’s been a busy time since my last post. I eventually got my paper from immigration saying I had renewed my residency. When I took the letters in, they told me they had to be in Spanish, and when I returned with those, the lady assured me that all the delays were my fault. Now I have to go back again to get my identity card.
Linda arrived on the 18th November, and we worked to get the place ready for our first company. Howie came down on 24th December with his daughter, Stephanie, and his friends Serge and Francoise with their daughter Melissa. They were here for two weeks, and to put it mildly, did a lot of stuff. The young girls enjoyed the Huevo most, I think, and we went quite often, although I never managed to stay awake for the big Saturday night dance over there. We went deep sea fishing and caught a sailfish and a tuna. We had less luck fishing from a panga in the Gulf, but enjoyed a scenic tour, including the prison on Isla San Lucas, a secluded beach on the other side of the island, and a beer in Playa Naranjo. The women all went horseback riding in the mountains near Miramar. They also had a day in Puntarenas to explore and shop, and a few visits with Jamie and her animals. Erika made ceviche for us. The fresh fish and shrimp were hard to find, as the fisherman aren’t getting many right now, and the shrimp farms are in the drying, sterilizing and restocking phase.
As they say, a good time was had by all. We have a month now before more visitors arrive, and there is lot’s to do. We are getting caught up though, and as long as there is less to repair than improve, I think we can gain on it.
Beast, my 8 month old puppy died of tetanus on New Year’s day. It’s very rare in dogs. It is a spore, and entered through the cut where I had him neutered.
There was an earthquake centered near San Jose yesterday. We felt the movement here. The little table I was sitting at bounced around, and the cracks in the floor of the old house spread a bit, but there was no damage.