Old houses are old houses no matter what country you are in

The bathroom is tiled and ready to use, wooo hooo! Except I wanted less than cold water. Mario started hooking up the ducha, or suicide shower again and I asked him which was the hot wire, he answered they are both white. Wrong answer! I knew one of the wires had to be hot and so began this morning's "discussion". He stormed out to his parents house and returned with an electrician. Thank God since he had the wires reversed! Thanks Dad for teaching me that you don't play with electricity especially in the water. The electrician fixed the ducha and we asked him to look at the stove. I have been having nightmares of a fire since the stove doesn't heat well, which to me means bad wiring. So now I am sitting in the living room as Mario and the electrician rewire the connection from the street to the breaker box. Seems they didn't use the correct gauge wires whent they did it the first time. Hopefully this fixes the problem. Kinda cool having a simple house though. It's a straight run  from the edge of the house to the breakers so it is not too much of a problem to fix.

The bathroom came out beautifully, I will put up pics when everything is back in place and I have showered. We put in a fence over the weekend so now Diego has a place to be without being tied up. I can also start to garden! I constructed the composter out of 2 of the plastic totes that we have, thanks to Andy and Fran (boomers offshore) for showing the idea in the first place! I am also making a greenhouse of sorts from another so that I can start seeds without the dog, chickens, and birds abusing them. Pics to follow as always lol. I suck at taking pics!

It's a beautiful day so I am off to garden!

Life is good! I have my stuff!

FINALLY we got our stuff out of jail in San Jose. It looks like it is all here and the bed is not moldy! In fact it is even more comfy than I remember. I slept like a baby. Of course it may have had something to do with trying to unpack all 30 boxes in 1 day. We need more storage furniture. I still have totes to unpack and we have no more room. But it is here and all in one piece!! Again kudos to Kevin and Billy and Mario, I thought for sure something would have been broken. So far I lost a shot glass. I can live with that!

German (Herman) is pounding away in the bathroom. I think it's going to be the nicest room in the house now lol. I can't wait to see the tiles up! I never picked out tiles before so this is exciting.
I also heard from work today. Thanks to Vern and the people at Atlas I will be telecommuting for 14 days in May. Yeeehaw I can live in paradise and work in the states. Who could ask for more?

Saratica from http://abroadincostarica.com/ posted as well. She was very ill and I was really concerned for her. I am glad to hear she is better and that the hospitals and doctors here really came through for her. It's reassuring to know that they are up to snuff.

Well off to unpack more stuff and plant the flowers we bought the other day! Have a good one!

Tomorrow we may have stuff!

The stuff we shipped from the states is still in San Jose. Mario has been on the phone with Ramon off and on for the last few days. We thought we could get it today but this morning's call informed us we had a "red light" and everything would be searched again. I called our shipper Port to Port and they said we were on our own - how nice. So guess I won't be recommending them to anyone soon. It is our fault, but I kinda hoped they could help a little. Apparently although both the shipping company and I stressed to Mario that EVERYTHING had to be included in the list of items in the shipment he decided to be creative and only list the stuff that seemed important to him. Note to self - if you want a job done right ... Well the customs agent noticed that like all my shovels and the metal chairs and the clock and other things that were not in boxes were also not on the list. He told Mario that by rights they could hold the stuff and not give it to us. I guess we have joined the band of mad shovel smugglers or something. So Mario tipped him and they tried to straighten out the paperwork. Yesterday the paperwork went to the reviewer who found some other issue and gave us the red light. So from 9 AM until around 1:30 they went through all of our things AGAIN. We now apparently have the green light and only need to go and pay the storage costs for them keeping our stuff all this week. You got it - we have to PAY because they wouldn't release the shipment. They assure us it isn't much, but still sheesh. Mario and our new furniture guy friend, Carlos, will be leaving at 4:30 tomorrow morning. I get to greet the tile guy Herman, also a really nice guy, at 7 when he will start to tile our bathroom! Yeah!!! No more skeevies in the shower.

We also got cable today. No TV, it's in San Jose, but we are ready dammit! Again I was assured in 2 months I will have real internet. This connection works OK but every now and then you just can't connect. My old job wants me to work from here, another BIG yeah!!, I need a reliable connection. Plus I use it for VOIP so I depend on it for the phone too. I will be renting an office in the city until I find out for sure that working from here is feasible or Cabletica gets me a reliable connection.

The really weird thing I have noticed about my life here is that I am tired when it gets dark. Remember that it is dark at 6 so going to bed now is sort of not a good idea. I hope my body clock adjusts or the damn rooster stops waking me up at 3.

The ceiling fan is here!

Apparently we have 2 main circuits in our house, lights and outlets. If you turn off lights you have none. So we have no lights as Mario installs the ceiling fan in the rain. But we have outlets so you can see him doing it lol.

ACK! Nothing is easy here!

As you know we shipped about 30 boxes and our bed here. Mario called to see when it wold hit San Jose and wooo hooo it was there. That was Thursday. We needed to pay a $15 fee to be able to pick it up. So we went to the bank and deposited the $15 and thought we were set. First we were going to use Mario's brother's truck to go get it. Nope the truck had a problem and the other one had issues with the paperwork. So the hunt for a truck was on. After a few fall throughs we had a firm truck, the guy who made our furniture agreed to go with Mario and pick up the stuff. Last night he calls and backs out - but -  he has another guy that will do it for the same price. Mario is worried the stuff won't fit on the truck, but what choice do we have? So at 5 AM the guy shows up. Good start! He showed up! off they go for the 3 hour treck to San Jose. Mario figures they will be back at 3 latest. I ask that he call and let me know when they have the stuff so I can relax. At 1:30 still no word, so of course I am frantic. So much for my pura vida state of mind. Mario calls, bad news, what a surprise. They opened every box and looked at what we shipped. Apparently you are not allowed to ship perfume or shoes so they were going to pull them, but with a "tip" they allowed Mario to keep them with the shipment. He needs my email address because the process is that the import tax is calculated and emailed to you. You then go to the bank, pay the tax and go back to San Jose to pick up the stuff. Great, so we pay the truck driver for nothing, well for a ride to San Jose. It's 4:30 and they still aren't back and I still have no email on the tax. Looks like maybe the end of the week for a return trip. At least he says the bed is not molded and all of our stuff made it intact (thanks Kevin!! You are a hell of a packer!)

More pics - Kitchen before:

The kichen now:

The table we had custom made:

OMG I have the INTERNET!!!

Finally! Now I can post some updates. We will be here 2 weeks tomorrow. More work than fun! We have finished the primer coat in the living, kitchen/dining room, and our bedroom. It looks waaaayyyy better than before. Cheery. So here's some before and after pics:

The house when I saw it in June:

The house now:

We are going to paint the window and door trim white again I think.

The living room in June:

The living room now:

It still needs stuff on the wall and some tables but we are getting there. The floor is the red ochre that I wrote about last time. If we stay here we will tile it but we aren't sure what we are doing yet.






I will post more pics tomorrow and as we get stuff done.

So let me tell you what was involved with getting the internet. First of all we don't have internet in the barrio where we live. They say it is coming in two months. Right. So they told me to get internet on my phone and use it as a modem. Sounds good, works for 5 minutes at 4 am and works slowly. A really nice guy at I.C.E. (eesay) the government run communications distributor (i.e., the only game in town) told us we can get a data card and then subscribe to a service for the card. They get 200 cards at I.C.E. approximately once a week. They come in with little notice, and sell out within a half hour. Needless to say we are not one of the lottery winners. So the girl at I.C.E. says why don't we just buy one in the city? Oh, this is an option? sure! OK so we go to the 1 store that sells them and lo and behold Mario knows the guy who sells them. Shoot, just sold the last one. So he says there is a shipment that is coming on Friday at 4:30 and he will hold one for us. Whoopie! Friday at 5 we go to the store just to make sure. Yup the shipment came, but they are not in inventory, come back in 15 minutes. No problem! I am so close to internet access I can taste it! We come back in 15 and bad news. The truck could not fit all of the boxes so they left one and you guessed it, it was the cards. But they will be in tomorrow first thing. OK I can wait!  Next morning, this morning, we go into the city at 8:30 and wooo hooo there are the cards! But they are more expensive, seems everything was repriced last night since the dollar is so low. Regardless we buy one. Wait, you need to activate it, and they don't do it here. So they send us to Alex Cellulars across town. Alex Cells says they can't activate data cards, only I.C.E. can do it. Luckily they are open until 12 on Saturdays, because Costa Rica closes on Sunday. So off we go and find the I.C.E. office close by. Take our number, everything here has a number machine so you know how long you will need to wait before it is your turn. Our number? 61, what are they on? 25. sigh. Finally we get our turn and I have my precious internet access!!!

It's 6 AM in paradise what the hell am I doing up?

What a beautiful morning! The sun is streaming in the windows and the birds are chirping. We are going to Dominical today where I hope to find a bird feeder or something so I can start attracting them to the yard. We have been here a week now. I am sloooooowwwwwwlllllly getting accustomed to my surroundings. We live in a neighborhood that has some really shacky shacks, but also some nice homes. At first all I saw was the shacks, but looking around I am now seeing some of the beauty here. This week has been really busy. The house is pretty on the outside since it was painted, but inside it was Costa Rica green. Think the green that was so popular in the 50's. Nice for a blender, putrid for every painted surface in the house. So we are painting the inside sunny yellow. I got the primer tinted, so I have a pretty good idea of how the house is going to look when we are done. What a difference a coat of paint makes!

We also got the dining room furniture yesterday. I got a table with really funky chairs and a cabinet that spans the kitchen for about $500. The table was custom made since the one that came with the chairs was too big for the space. It is round with a glass center. It also appears too big, but we are leaving it in the kitchen for now. If it becomes cumbersome the guest room off of the kitchen can become the dining room. I think it will work out fine that way.

I have been learning tons, for example there is a red waxy substance that they use on cement floors here called ochre. It is preety cool if you can live with the red color since passing a broom over it shines the floor and it always looks good. The drawback I found is that a wet white dog will roll all over the floor to dry himself which produces a damp pink dog. Not a manly look for our Diego.

We went to the market the other day. I felt like a little kid. Every 2 seconds I was asking Mario - what is this? We bought some really odd food though. Some of it I like, some not so much. We got the oven on Friday but it is still not installed because we are painting. Mario worked all day yesterday on installing the washer and dryer. Also still not installed. It reminded me how different it is here.

Dad - this story is for you. Mario's brother Danillo had this house before and said there is a 220 line on the porch for the dryer. We didn't see one, but Mario thought that this one outlet MIGHT be 220 since the wires were thicker. His father came over and confirmed that the workmen who had done some of the work on the house had plugged the saw into the outlet and it had sparked and smoked so yup that's the 220 line. We went to the hardware store and got a new outlet when we got the dryer cord so no one makes that mistake again!

Next came connections for the washer. There was a PVC pipe sticking out of the ground with a cap on it. You guessed it, that needs a spigot and is the water pipe. We called Danillo over to find the drainage pipe. Apparently since this is not sewage, the pipe runs along the side of the house into the drainage ditch at the side of the road. Mario dug until he found the end of the pipe and then went and got the couplings we needed to connect a piece of PVC that someone had laying around to the existing drainage pipe. No permits, no calling experts, just do it. Weird, but somehow fullfilling knowing you control your own house. Of course I am praying we don't get electricuted when we plug in the dryer. Oh yeah, we threw the main to connect the 220 outlet. The "main" is outside the front of the house it is a lever near the dangerous looking wires.

I am off to enjoy the best coffee I have ever had since I hear Mario's parents have stopped their morning prayers! Have a great day!

We made it!!

We are here!! Unfortunately there is no internet access where we live so I will be posting sporadically.

We got into Costa Rica on a Continental Flight on Sunday. I dropped my dog off at the Quikpak station in Newark without an issue. We were able to check with the stewardess to make sure he made it on ok. My experience may differ from most since I was with my fiance, a tico, and put him as the receiver of the dog in Costa Rica becuase I figured he would have less problems than I would.


When we got to the airport in Costa Rica we proceeded through immigration and into the baggage claim area. They announced Mario's (my fiance) name over the loudspeaker and asked him to go to the desk in the baggage claim area. We provided the receipt they had given me in the Quikpak area and the man helped us through customs with our luggage and the dog. I thought we were going to a vetenarian to have the dog checked or something, but nope, next thing I knew we were outside on the sidewalk with all the luggage and dog. We tipped the guy and that was it. All that worry for nothing.

We went to see Mario's sister and all of the family from the San Jose area when we first got here. It was nice but very confusing, I can't remember who was there but they extended a warm greeting. We stopped up in Cerro del Muerte for lunch. I recognized the fried chicken and rice, but not much else. I had picadillo de palmito which was good and something I never had before. We finally got to Mario's parents (it is about 3 hours from the airport) and there was another gropup of the family to meet. Again, what nice people!

We have spent the last 4 days doing errands to set up the house and our new lives. We got a washer, dryer, fridge, oven, sofa set, dining set, and a cabinet for pots and stuff. The houses here come with nothing! In fact we had to buy lightbulbs. The first 2 days I showered with cold water since the house did not come with the hot water shower head. Coming from a family of electricians, it is very scarey here with electricity. The stove and dryer are hard wired into a 220 switch. Now this is not a normal switch on the wall it is a lever. I will put a picture on when I have a chance. The ducha or shower head is wired for hot water and is installed the same way with the wires running along the metal pipe to the plastic head. It is nicknamed the suicide shower. I can see why.

We are almost settled in now and are starting to enjoy our new life. We wake up to roosters crowing. I thought they crow at dawn, but no, it is well before dawn. At dawn all the birds start and the neighborhood wakes up. It is weird that at 9 am I feel like half the day is gone. I have always been a night owl, but I see this changing since there is not much to do at night and we are always exhausted.

We are sleeping on the air mattress until our stuff gets here. It is not really that uncomfortable. There are a bunch of dogs that roam our neighborhood, I know that sounds scarey, but they are about the size of a minipincher or smaller. Diego is marking his territory and letting them know he is here. I foresee a scuffle in his future, but I hope he can make some friends.

We are in Newark! Final countdown!!

After an arduous week of patience testing (prepping for my transition into Tico time I think) everything is as done as it is going to be. Since the entry I have been running around learning just how disorganized and confusing doing things in the US can be. Here's the rundown:

April 5 - Went to the vet for Diego's health certificate and final round of shots. Made appt with the USDA to get the paperwork stamped. Vet assures me there is only 1 type of health certificate and agrees to write Diego's value on the certificate. We debate whether he is priceless or worth $0. He is priceless to me but can I really sell him for anything? I sort of win and Diego is worth $0 so I will pay the minimum taxes when we hit CR customs.
Stop at TD bank to get the Affidavit of Single Status notarized. The woman assures me she is a Mercer County notary, important because the county and state also need to stamp the paperwork.

April 6 - Wake up to a call from the friend who was supposed to drive our stuff to Delaware tomorrow. He can't. He found someone that can, but we don't know him and he would like us to have the truck loaded when he comes. I call Kevin, my BFF's husband in a panic, and he finds someone to go rent the truck with me who can drive in the morning.
Go to USDA in the AM. Clerk informs me that the health certificate should be a 6 page form not the little sheet my vet gave me. No, he cannot give me one, the vet needs to order them from the USDA and it takes 7-10 days to get to him. Call the vet, hmm, never heard of the form. He gives me another vet's name - bingo! they have the form but I need to have Diego come in and see the vet. Rocky, my new best friend at the USDA, says with that form and the valid rabies cert I am golden. Luckily I ask if the rabies cert I have is valid and he says yes and no. It's the right form but it is missing the manufacturer of the vaccine and the serial number. So I make another appt with the USDA and off I go to the vet. The backup vet agrees to give a form to my vet who completes the 6 part health cert and rabies info. Back to the USDA at 3 and whoopppeeee I have the paperwork I need to get Diego into CR!

April 7 - Off to Delaware with all of the things we will be shipping to CR. Everything is loaded without a hitch. Hope we see the stuff again. Really weird feeling seeing all your important stuff crammed into a trailer and closing the door.

April 8 - Go to the county to get the Single Status stamped. The woman at the desk informs me that the notary is not from Mercer County and that I should have asked her specifically. Crap - there are a few notaries in the area so I can walk Trenton to get the paper re-notarized. I call the bank and speak with the notary, she insists she is a Mercer notary, but it comes to light that she lives in Middlesex and usually you are registered where you live. So off into the streets of Trenton I go. Find a lovely woman at Sun Bank who agrees to photocopy the top half of the affidavit so that I can re-sign it and she can notarize it. Thank goodness because I can see the trouble ahead having 2 signatures and 2 notaries. Go back to the county and they stamp it, off to the state.
Now Trenton is a city to me and you really need to know how to parallel park in a city. Not my best skill, so I drive around until I find a spot you could back a tractor trailer into and park. Pay the meter and off I go. Apparently they give tours or something at the stat department in NJ because I arrive at the same time as 30 or so 8 year olds. The only way in or out is a revolving door, get the picture? Not fun. I get in and the desk guy is trying to talk with the teachers who can't decide if they are ready to come in. He finally asks if he can help me and I tell him why I am there. OOOOOHHH, that department moved out of this building and is now just to far to walk from here. So off I go into my 100 degree car that has no air and drive around and around until I figure out that there are no more tractor trailer parking spots in Trenton. I happen on a parking garage and go to get stamped. Whew almost done! The nice woman at the counter has me fill out the obligatory form and pay the 40 bucks and then says I can come back tomorrow after 11 to get the paperwork. Crap - come back??? but OK I will be there.
In between all the other exploits, Mario and I, well mostly Mario, cleaned the house, packed the suitcases and got the pool up and running. Also thanks to Mary and Kevin who got to listen to us argue, sold our stuff at garage sales, did backbreaking work at the house, and kept us on track, we would not have been able to do this move without them! We leave the house for the last time (after my hour crying jig) and off to our vagabond hotel life.
My other BFF throws a wonderful going away party for us at our favorite bar. It was great to have all of our friends around us to say goodbye. I am really going to miss them!
April 9th -  Today is the closing at 10 AM. It should only take an hour or so. At 4 it is finally over. I won't go into the details but I hope that anyone who has an aunt that is a lawyer leaves her home when they close! Needless to say I didn't make it back to the county for the paperwork, but I called and am assured that it will be mailed out on Monday - Again ty Mary for handling the cleanup!
Luckily banks are open late so I take the settlement check to the bank. Crapola, when I bought the house I still was married, when I divorced I took back my married name. Big problem with the Title Company, but I showed the proof of name change and they believed I was me. Of course I failed to notice the settlement check is written out in my married name. Back to the hotel for the form and the check is in the bank.

That brings me to today sitting here nervous as all hell in the Newark Sheraton with Mario contently snoring and Diego wondering what is coming next.....

Happy Easter! OK a day early, but I'm trying to stay on schedule

I just love the way my brain farts when I am under stress! I feel so disorganized. We are going to my parents tomorrow which will be great, but sad, it's the last time I will see my family before I leave. We have a picnic today at Mario's brothers house. All of Mario's family will be there, also sad because it will probably be the last time we see them before we leave too. I have rented the truck for Wednesday's trek to Delaware with our stuff. I am following them down so we leave the truck in Delaware. Looks like I will be renting a hotel for Thursday night too. It's too stressful to have to vacate in the AM on Friday. The closing is at 10 AM so we would be rushing at the last minute. So I think almost everything is in place. Next week I am trying to get all the paperwork stamped and ready, Diego needs another round of shots and a haircut. I am trying to find out how to get his record stamped by the USDA. Wow makes me crazy thinking about it!

Have a Happy Easter!

Last Day at Work

Wow my last day at work. I am really going to miss all of the people I have met at Merck. What a wonderful group! Yesterday we went out to lunch and I can't remember when I have laughed so hard. It has been a great year. One more ending that is needed to start the new beginning. sigh.... endings are hard.

2 weeks 1 day and counting & Jake's on his way home!!

So I spent the morning packing and think we are gonna have to thin down what we are bringing. At first we said that we weren't going to bring anything, just whatever we could carry on the plane. Then I realized I would like to have the new king size bed I bought last year, it was expensive and we really sleep well on it. So the hunt for a shipping place began. We looked into a few options and talked to as many people as we could. We finally opted on a company that a friend of ours uses to ship cars and trucks to Costa Rica. The company is called Port to Port International. We went with them because for a reasonable rate we could ship a small amount of cargo to San Jose. They offered a 5x7x7 and a 10x7x7 space. You also can ship a haf or a whole container, but for the price we figured we could dump our old furniture and get new stuff in CR. So we now have reservations for that too. Our stuff has to be in New Castle, Delaware on April 7th. It will sail out on April 12th and with any luck will hit port in Limon on April 21st. From there they truck it up to San Jose and call us to pick it up. So we will be in Costa Rica several weeks before our stuff shows up. That seems ok to me right now because word has it the house has been fixed up and repainted and it is papaya and avacado. Light papaya and avacado but still I can't picture those colors with the red floor so I think I will get to do some decorating before the stuff comes.

We opted for the 5x7x7 space since we really were only going to bring the bed. Then I turned into Steve Martin in the Jerk! All I need is this bed, oh and this chair, and this lamp, and this ..... You get the picture. So now we have all these totes stacked in the office with marks on the floor and the wall to show how much space we have and I still have stuff I NEED to take with us. Looks like Mario will be sneaking more black garbage bags out of the house lol. (He cleaned out all the rest of the stuff I NEEDED that way when we put the house on the market)

On an even happier note, my son texted me to let me know they gave them leave early and he left Iraq this morning at 4AM. Great news because I will have a longer visit with him before we leave too.

It's getting closer all the time and a bit of adjustment

So I am driving home from work and Continental calls and lets me know that apparently the law changed in Costa Rica and now you need to pay an import tax on your pets. Crap I think, what's this gonna run? At a minimum $20 she tells me - hmmmm - a minimum? wonder what the maximum is. Any way that is the tax, but oh you need to hire a broker to get you through the process and that costs between $120 and $200 dollars. What??!! for a $20 tax? I ask her what if the dog's owner is a Costa Rican? (Luckily I thought ahead and Diego is now Mario's dog, I figured it would be easier to have a tico get him in than a gringa). She tells me it's the same for them.

OK adjustment to the budget time, I am trying my this is how we roll in Costa Rica mantra, it is what it is - relax. So not the end of the world, but not good news either. BTW, I also asked if anyone had any info on this great website - Association of Residents of Costa Rica.

On a more positive note we passed the U&O (Use & Occupancy) inspection so we are set!

We have tickets! so does Diego!!! We are leaving April 11th!

I took the plunge and bought the tickets today. Can't believe it! We sold almost all of our stuff at the yard sales this weekend and are almost done packing. We will have to do some last minute stuff right before we ship it but so far so good. Can't keep my heart from racing at this point. I am facilating from exhileration to pure terror. I am as prepared as I will ever be informationwise, but still I am thinking can I do this? I saw a video yesterday from Michael Alan and D'Angelo (travelcostarica.com) which described me to a tee and then told me these are the types of people who have a hard time making it in Costa Rica. Well I hope I can become less type A, more forgiving and more patient. At least I have Mario blocking for me and explaining his gringa's silly ways.

Anyway some info:

1. We are flying Continental. I have read many good things about shipping the do through them and that's why we are using them. So far they have been friendly and helpful and I am very happy.
2. Since I am an American I need a round trip ticket. You cannot enter Costa Rica without a ticket to leave the country within 90 days of your arrival. Mario does not need a round trip ticket and we are doubtful he could get a visa to come back with me in 90 days. Having said that, apparently it is more expensive to purchase a one way ticket than a round trip so he also has a round trip ticket.
3. Diego at 25 pounds will not fit into the small carrier you can use to have him in the plane with us. I think maybe a toy dog might, it's really tiny. It may be better anyway because I figure he would whine the whole way if he knows I can hear him. If he doesn't see me he probably will sleep.I bought the crate for him a few weeks ago and we have been using it in the house so he is used to it. You need to have something absorbent on the bottom so I put his bed in it. You need to call a second number to book the flight for a dog travelling as cargo (in the bottom of the plane). You can cancel your flight within 24 hours if they can't get your dog on the same plane as you. I had no problems booking us all on the same flight.
4. Diego needed to have a rabies shot at least a month prior to leaving. They originally said it could not be more than a year old, but the guy at Continental told me the 3 year shot is fine now. CHECK FOR YOURSELF if you plan to do this. I got Diego his shot 2 months ago so we are fine. Ten days before we leave he will need some other shots and a certificate of health. The info can be found on Costa Rica Consulate Pet Policy.
5. Our flight is non-stop. I opted for this so I can rest easy about not losing Diego when we switch planes. Unfortunately we need to bring him to Quickpak to send him which is on the Domestic flight level so yeah I am freaking that he may not be put on the same plane. This is going to be the first - breathe deep - loss of control and trusting that everything will be ok.
6. You need to provide a telephone number and address in Costa Rica where they can contact you. I decided to have my phone turned off after we get there so that in case of an emergency I can be contacted. I gave Mario's name for the receiving end since he is a Costa Rican and I thought maybe customs would be easier.

So that's the poop on what we have done so far. I plan to try on Tuesday for the single status and police report paperwork again. This time with the county. We are also getting the U&O inspection which is the last hurdle on the house. I think we are really going!

COSTA RICA we are coming!!!

WOOOO HOOOO the deal is a done deal!! After we make the last few fix-ups to the house we are set! Looking to buy tickets for an April 11th flight. I can't believe we are really going!

I sent an email to the Costa Rican consulate in New York to try to figure out what paperwork I need. They responded in 1 day, faster than the county seat in Doylestown lol. They said:

Regarding your concern, besides the divorce papers will be necessary a certificate from the city hall establishing you are single or performing a sworn declaration before a notary public. Then your documents must be certified by the notary, by the County Clerk and by the Department of State of where the document was issued (see enclosed). Once you have the documents duly certified you can send the documents by the post office duly certified with an additional prepaid envelope with your return address.

That's what will constitute and affidavit of single status.  So I sent an email to Doylestown (the county seat) seeing if they can do this certificate because I am reasonably sure that if my little town of Morrisville has a City Hall they will look at me like I have 3 heads if I ask for this certificate. If I don't hear back from Doylestown I will go the Notary route. Hopefully I will be working from home on Friday and can get some of this done then. Once I have all of the paperwork (Original birth certificate, Affidavit of single status, Police record, Valid passport, Divorce decree) I have to send it off to the appropriate Departments of State to be certified. The NJ documents should be fairly easy since they go to Trenton. I am going to see if I can go there and do it. PA documents have to go to Harrisburg so I am thinking Fed Ex. Then everything goes to New York. Since we have only about 3 weeks to go I have to get this done quickly!

Wow we are really going - still not quite sinking in.

Almost there!

The home inspection report came in and the buyer did not ask for anything unreasonable - woo hooo!! We are almost done fixing what he asked for. We are waiting on the FHA Report and his approval. Fingers crossed - this actually may go through!

We are looking for more info on the paperwork I need for Costa Rica. I need an affidavit of single status and have no idea what that is. I am emailing the consulate. Hopefully I get a response.

I just found out this really cool thing! Apparently I have a web feed associated with this blog so feel free to subscribe!

Inspections are in!

The inspection results are in and they are not too bad. I think we can fix most of what is on the list. If this is acceptable to our buyers we are one step closer! If not back to the drawing board. Next step - figure out the paperwork I need to get translated and stamped so we can get married when we get there!

Another day ...

another snowstorm, another contract, do we dare hope to close this time?

Back to the Drawing Board

Crap the contract fell through again. This is no fun. We are going to try fixing the floors the best we can and then putting rugs over them. Our house is older but has a lot of character. Apparently what I see as character other people term "Flaws". It's so hard having the house I love trashed by a home inspector. Actually the inspection wasn't that bad. But the young couple that wanted to buy the house had never seen a report before so they panicked and backed out. So here we are looking at making the move - take 3 once it sells again. Wish us luck...

We're Moving - Take 2

So I finally have this blog up to date. I had started one at another site but they were very strict about putting links on the site because they thought it would be advertising. I like the format of the blogs here better too, so here I am.

To catch up - the deal on the house here in the states fell through and we had to put it back on the market - bummer! It sold again now and it looks promising for an April closing. I am a validation specialist for the pharmaceutical industry and was on a contract that was supposed to end in December but thankfully got extended to last Friday. So now I am unemployed. So we are thinking why wait? and plan to leave at the end of February and start our lives in CR.

When I visited, Mario's house looked like this:

He had the roof and wood that was bad replaced (they say it was most of the wood) and they painted the house a light blue and light yellow. They painted the inside of the house a light green. It should be more cheery now and ready for us to move in.

I bought the GPS program for the Garmin from NAVSAT so we are all ready to tackle the roads when we get there. Mario bought a car, an older toyota which I won't be driving since it is a stick and I am petrified to try a stick on the mountain roads. He says he did it on purpose so I get a car to take the dog around in. He really thinks I am crazy to treat the dog like a member of the family.

We will be going to the consolate in New York next week, when the blizzards here in Pa let up, so that we can get my paperwork translated and stamped. We plan to marry in Costa Rica and they require a bunch of paperwork, official translation, and stamps all done here. I got the required police report online, I had to do it years ago when I adopted my son. We had to wait weeks for it. Now if you aren't a criminal they send you the certificate to print out. I hope it's acceptable at the consolate.

I also got magic jack. Really cool, it sounds good here but I have high speed internet. It gives people the ability to call a 215 number to get me in CR, so they won't have to pay international rate to call me. I sent one to my son in Iraq and he called me and left a message. It was really clear! Hope it is in CR too!

We are packing everything up now and trying to figure out what to bring. We found a shipping company that leaves from Wilmington and delivers to San Jose. A friend recommended them and they seem reasonable. We have opted for a 5x7x7 space, although it looks like we will be needing 10x7x7. The 5' space is $750 and the 10' space is $1250 so I am trying to see if the stuff we are adding is worth the extra money. Originally we were only bringing our king size mattress and boxspring, but that has slowly increased over time. I feel like the guy from The Jerk, "All I need is this chair and this lamp and this..."

So that's it again. Seems like we are really leaving this time, kinda surreal still.