This is the second blog post of the day. There may be a third, with delightful pictures, so stay tuned.

 

Here we go!

 

Yesterday I walked a total of 10,875 steps by day’s end.  This morning so far (8:41 a.m.) I’ve walked 6290 steps and am on my second cup of coffee.

 

UCR GOT BACK TO ME

 

The University of Costa Rica got back to me overnight and attached the document I need to confirm the donation of my body to medical science (when I’m through using it, I hasten to add! LOL!). I emailed their message with its attachment to Jon to ask if he would send it on to DIMI for printing OR give me the email address to DIMI so I could.

 

He texted back to say he has emailed it to DIMI and that he’ll pick it up on the way to pick me up this afternoon to have lunch in Upper El Cajon. I thanked him and asked him to get several copies so I can give them to Clinica Sanchez, keep one in my wallet, post one on my fridge, and put others wherever I (or he) think they should be to make sure my wishes are fulfilled when I croak. He texted back, “Sure.”

 

CHARLI’S CAT CARRIER 

 

I brought Charli’s cat carrier down from the loft this morning (since she abandoned it several days ago for some unknown reason) and got most of the dust, dander and cat hair off it but it sparked a coughing session. I’m okay now but now I wonder if it’s the loft dust that is causing me problems. It’s the only area of this casita that I don’t visit or clean because of its precarious accessibility up a steep flight of metal stairs.

 

I’ll let Cat know that it’s the only place I haven’t been when cleaning. The rest of this casita is pristine.  I may need to dig out my Claritin before I  move if I continue to have issues.  (More on this a little later.)

 

I SURE HOPE LISA’S BACK IS BETTER

 

and that she’s taking good care not to tweak it again. She can’t be risking her own physical wellbeing to help incapacitated clients.

 

SLEPT FROM ABOUT 7:15 PM TO 2:30 AM LAST NIIGHT

 

and then got up to update the earlier blog post (the one immediately preceding this one). It took about four hours including the proofreading.

 

I tried to fall back asleep afterward but the sun was up by then and Charli was having none of the “sleeping in late” pose — she was hungry — so I got up after about 45 minutes, fed her and then started the day with a cup of coffee in one hand (the first cup) walking in front of Eileen’s place again.

 

I hoped to see Hillary and her wife this morning before they headed out for the airport for their flight back to the States but had no luck. I didn’t want to knock on their door or call out to them that early in the morning. I would have liked to hugged them goodbye and wish them a safe, uneventful flight home. But they’ll be back! I’m certain of that!

 

9:10 a.m.

 

In four hours — God willing and the creeks don’t rise — Jon, Francisco and I will be at Marilyn and Guido’s having a whee of a time at lunch. I’m delighted to have been invited by Marilyn.

 

Their place used to be Jon’s, but it was too cold up there in the cloud forest for him long-term. It’s probably a good 2K feet higher than I am here in Lower Cajon.

 

I need to remember to take pictures of everybody, including the critters, and especially Oliver the goat. I want a picture WITH Oliver and pictures with the humans plus permission from all (except the critters) to share here and on Facebook. I forgot to take pix at lunch yesterday, and I’m very sorry about THAT!

 

Francisco Got a Haircut

 

Francisco got a haircut and his beard trimmed. He looks super handsome. Jon looks guapo, too.  My brothers are MUY GUAPO!  Dale, my other brother, is too.  And Crystal, as we all know, is GORGEOUS. Heck, I’m the only “lesser light” among them as far as looks go. Go figure!

 

I Need to Start Typing Directly Into My Blog Again

 

It’s a drag to have to move the good stuff over two or three times a week. I kinda loathe repetitive/redundant writing tasks. One and done is more my style. Having to rewrite is a drag on my spirit.

 

I’LL BE HAPPY AT A HIGHER ELEVATION THIS AFTERNOON

 

Being in a cooler microclimate will help me cough less. But I’m not coughing now, so maybe I’ve outlasted the allergens that I stirred up a while ago when I brought Charli’s cat carrier down.

 

I wonder of that’s why Charli abandoned the loft a few days ago. The detective in me has now been aroused!

 

BROOKE SAYS THIS IS ALLERGY SEASON

 

I never had allergies in WA State but I did have them in Sacramento, which is also a large agricultural region and closer to the equator.

 

What I’m experiencing here isn’t super bad — nowhere near asthma — but I might end up getting something more robust than OTC Claritin if this continues. I (TMI!) blew a little bit of green snot a few times over the past couple of days, but most of the time it’s clear.

 

JUST SITTING HERE WAITING FOR 12:45 TO ROLL AROUND

 

…so I can head to Calle Los Angeles to catch my ride with Jon and Francisco. It’s 9:30 now.

 

God, is this neurodiverse behavior? This “time-passing protocol”? I used to think it was perfectly normal/common, but I’ve learned it isn’t. Not at all.  How many other people do this kind of “waiting”?

 

Trevor Noah — who says he is ADHD — says that for HIM, time is either “now” 0r “not now/later.”

 

No specific “later” — no watch-based behavior — just “not now.” Which does sound completely sane to me since NOW is really all the time we really have for certain.

 

But I think I might get depressed or anxious looking at time as he does.

 

I’m commonly “here, now” but also anticipating “something else (usually something GOOD) “later.”

 

Like, right now — for example — I’m appreciating what I’m doing now and my second cup of coffee — but I’m also keenly anticipating “something else good later” — the lunch in Upper El Cajon with my friends – and more specifically, at an approximate “later” time.

 

So, I get what Trevor is feeling about time on his terms, but I think I’D lose track of appointments if I adopted his perspective. I don’t know how he ever gets anywhere “on time” if he only thinks of time as “now” and “later.”  I guess I require more (perceived) structure than that.

 

I like to be “on time” for people and things so I don’t keep others waiting. But is that anal, or people-pleasing, or just a cultural (US) expectation?  It’s very likely the latter!

 

Here in Costa Rica “manana” might not even necessarily mean “tomorrow”

 

That’s what it means literally, but culturally it can also mean “just not now; in the near future, a day or so.”   This is changing as gringos have influenced the culture, but few people here actually expects anyone to arrive “right on time” or “a little early.” Leeway is built into every time frame expectation.

 

TRANQUILO.

CHILL.

IT IS WHAT IT IS.

RELATIONSHIPS MATTER MORE THAN TIME/MONEY.

 

It’s a GOOD Thing!

 

And for we elderly folks, it’s an absolute godsend!!  The culture defers to the elderly, allows us to go ahead of younger folks. As Brooke explained to me with a laugh, “This culture knows that when you’re old, you don’t have a lot of time left! You’ve done enough waiting all your life. so GO TO THE HEAD OF THE LINE RIGHT NOW!”

 

To me, it feels like CHEATING, but they INSIST — with extreme deference and kindness. In fact, I feel bad when I DON’T comply with their generosity of spirit, so I have resorted to doing it after four months!

 

It’s just wonderful!