Since My Decision To Move to Costa Rica…
- I sleep a lot better at night, knowing that all this angst (political insanity, filing for residency and pensionado status, getting all my ducks in a row for the move) is only temporary and will end soon.
- My blood pressure (although never perilously high) is exactly where it should be nearly all the time.
- No more leg swelling. At all!
I didn’t realize how unstrung I was emotionally until I decided to listen to and rectify my nervous system’s issues!
- I’ve been crying regularly. That’s a good thing. Crying cleanses and refreshes when it’s the right kind of tears. Honest tears.
- I’ve been coloring mandalas like one possessed. It’s incredibly peaceful, creative, and stress-free.
- I’m taking my antiques to an antique dealer this week to get some cash for them.
- I’m down-sizing enormously, and collecting appropriate-size, sturdy boxes for the eventual move and the remaining things I will be taking.
- I’m making arrangements to re-home my goats.
- I spend at least two hours every day cogitating and sorting items. Keep? Sell? Donate?
It feels so new and fresh and exciting.
TRANSLATION, PLEASE!
I just ordered a Spanish-English real-time translator on this Cyber Monday so I can practice my Spanish between now and when I visit CR in the new year. I know quite a bit of the language already; I took two years in high school and have had DuoLingo on my Kindle for over five years, which I’ve used sporadically to refresh and review my memory of the language. DuoLingo tests reveal that I’m at about the sixth grade level, fluency-wise, which is a huge head start toward becoming fluent. I’m understandable in Spanish, but I get tenses and other relatively minor things wrong.
By the time I land in Costa Rica, I hope to be dreaming again in Spanish, as I did while learning it in high school and for years afterward. I don’t want the language barrier to exist when I go shopping, meet new people in public, and have medical appointments. (Luckily, most CR doctors were trained in the US so they speak English!)
GETTING MI GATO CHARLI IN
There are a few loops I have to jump through to get Charli in with me when I move. She has to have all her shots updated, including rabies, a health certificate made out in both English and Spanish, and an internal and external parasite exam. I plan to fly her under the seat in front of me when we move, so I can see how she’s reacting and reassure her if she’s nervous.
TAKING MOST OF MY STUFFED ANIMALS WITH ME
I’ll be taking most, if not all, of my stuffed animals with me. They weight next to nothing, so they won’t be expensive to ship at all. They give me a lot of joy.
I NEED TO FIND A HOME FOR MY HUNDREDS OF PERSONAL JOURNALS
I won’t be taking my lifetime of journals (since 1966) with me, or many of my photos (except for those that are on my PC). They are of no use to anyone in CR. I’m not even sure they’ll be of use to anyone here in the States, unless one of my relatives wants them, or some obscure library that collects first-person accounts of lifetimes spent finding oneself and one’s giftings/woundings/victories, etc.
It’s an adventure, for sure — making way for a new life.
I will have a LOT to write about when I get there; that’s for sure!
