Updating you on our doings while we have a few unscheduled minutes to relax and reflect.

 

Here we go!

 

Prepare to smile!

 

Lisa and I have been having a ball

 

Yesterday (Friday) we walked 8711 steps all day.   We went to Rescate on Thursday (as you saw in yesterday’s post), followed Friday by visiting the feria in Grecia, where we bought a lot of vegetables and some fruit and some fish and pork for meals while Lisa is here.

 

Lisa got a few more pix of iguanas there, but we didn’t spend a lot of time looking for more since we saw so many at Rescate and because we were tightly scheduled time-wise between the feria, lunch, and the return home.

 

Lisa and I took a cab (my first cab ride ever) to the Grecia Futbol Club, where we all had lunch.

 

Lisa and I had breaded tilapia for the second time in as many days (yum!). She took pix of the gang, which we will publish later.

 

My driver from El Cajon, Marianela, picked Lisa and me up at the club at 1:45 (Jon, Francisco and Dale had left ten  minutes before that to head to Jon’s and Francisco’s place to lug down a box of books for me) and drove us to Jon’s and Francisco’s new home to load the book box so we can sort through and choose the ones we want before I get the rest to Diane Cooner for the BLOOMS group.  GREAT titles and authors!

 

THE TOPHER BENUM SAGA

 

Topher Benum sat with a dentist when he was here in September so the dentist could make him a dental night guard appliance (and save nearly $500 as a result when compared to US prices for the same appliance).  He asked the Garrisons (our mutual friends) to fetch it for him because it took two weeks to make and he was flying back before then because he knew Lisa would be here in February and would fly it back up to him. (CR isn’t allowing shipments to the US because of T Wrecks’ tariffs, so mailing the appliance to him sooner was impossible.)

 

Well, the Garisons tried MIGHTILY — including visiting and calling — but the gate to the dentist was always shut and locked and neither of the phone numbers posted on the gate worked, were answered, or had an answering machine when they called.

 

Then Jon and I tried a couple times to get there, without luck or response.

 

So, I texted Topher telling him I think the dentist may have gone out of business because no one can reach him to make arrangements to pick up the appliance.

 

At that point, Topher sent the dentist a message on What’sApp (this was just yesterday) and heard back from him right away, saying to give me his WhatsApp number and make arrangements to come get it during his (rare few) open hours every day.  So, I did that and was told we could come get it this morning.

 

The problem is, the dentist (although just about three miles away) is too far away and too far downhill to walk to — because walking back up would kill us — and going there on the SI-Grecia bus would have required us to get dropped off and then wait an hour for the bus to get back to us to take us back home! NOT the way we want to spend out rare, spare time during Lisa’s time is here with me!

 

So, we called dear Adilio to see if we could hire him to take us this morning!

 

Yes, he could, and yes he did. 

So we did it. 

WE’RE MIRACLE WORKERS!!! 

Thank you, Adilio!!!

 

So Topher’s night guard is in Lisa’s possession now and safely secured so she can fly it back.

 

Success at long last, JUST IN TIME, after literally months of efforts by the Garrisons and of several others more recently to make it happen.

 

ALL’S WELL THAT ENDS WELL!

 

I’m just so thankful the dentist was still in business and kept the appliance for all this time when no one realized that they had to text via WhatsApp to make the necessary connection.

 

I meant to ask him when I was there what he charges for teeth cleaning, but he had a patient in his chair. I have his WhatsApp number now so I can text him and ask when he isn’t actively working on someone!

 

Lisa Loves My New Place

 

…and has met most of my Costa Rica friends in only the three days she has been here.

 

Tonight, when I texted Jon to let him know the dental appliance collection was a fait accompli, I signed off with “Had a great time again today and love you!” He texted back saying, “I love you, too” and then followed it immediately with a second text saying, “You are both wonderful.”

 

*sigh*

 

That made my night!  I felt very sure that he Lisa, and Francisco would hit it off because their professions are so similar and require compassionate, loving and integrity-based people (when they’re any good at all, and all of these individuals are cream of the crop in that regard). It has been wonderful fun watching it all unfold in real time.

 

Lisa Has Met Most of My Costa Rica Friends Now

 

She had met Adilio, Dale and Marianela, and even met Christine briefly at the feria yesterday — all wonderful people as well, she confirmed to me!  She has yet to meet Crystal (who is a working fool) but that’ll happen no later than Tuesday — maybe even sooner, if Crystal can walk tomorrow when we go.

 

Adilio is Taking Us to Sarchi’ on Monday

 

Jon double-booked himself and had to cancel his “shuttle service” (grin) because his 96 year old friend has a birthday on the day we scheduled Sarchi’, so I asked Adilio if he’s available and yes, he is, so he will be taking us there on Monday to visit the big souvenir store there and a pet store where we got the Bentonite cat litter last time I was there.

 

Updating and optimizing my Website

 

This morning before we headed out to get the dental appliance and do a little more grocery shopping, Lisa updated and optimized this website so I can optimize the photos so they don’t take up so much space.

 

I asked Adilio to drop us back at SuperSanIsidro so we could shop there and walk back. He did so.  Lisa bought some condiments and other things to have what she needs on hand to prepare some of the meals she has in mind to make for us. She also bought what looks (or looked, before we ate half of it!) like a 3 foot long baguette just out of the oven. We had to smell it all the way home so our taste buds were READY when we got in the door.  Heavenly!

 

We walked back up the hill after that.  That’s all the walking we plan to do today.  We’ve put in 3397 steps today.

 

We bought a lot of good food at the feria yesterday too

 

— pork, tilapia, produce — for several great meals.  I’m very much looking forward to what Lisa dreams up for meals.  She’s a great cook!!! And she loves my big kitchen and all the gadgets that it is stocked with. Just seeing it turned her “creative meals” button on, I think!

 

Mao the Cat is a Terrorist

 

I can’t leave Charli outside unattended or with the screen door left open a little because my landlady’s cat is a terrorist. Charli needs to be able to zoom inside and hide behind the headboard of the bed whenever Mao spots her. NOT an optimal situation, but it does keep Charli very local or well hidden in jungle until the coast is clear and she can navigate unmolested.

 

That’s all for this time.