Los cambios se producen cuando vamos en contra de todo lo que estamos acostumbrados a hacer

Ever so slowly, my new room is coming together. When Emily and I first arrived to 25 metros sur de Super Sabanilla (our legitimate physical address that you cannot actually send mail to) we were supremely impressed by our (then) temporary abode. It sits in the hills of San Antonio de Escazú in a gated community. There are a total of five houses in our community, three of which are occupied. Ours, in particular, is special because of the little plot of land consumed with vegetation and a small creek beside it. The house is only one level with four rooms- kitchen, bathroom, living room/bedroom (Emily’s room), and a large storage room.

The storage room was absolutely disgusting. It contained a large chair that our former roommate’s cats had pissed on, boxes of random things, ropes crisscrossed from either sides of the room to hang laundry from, and quite possibly had never been cleaned or occupied. It smelled like musty basement mixed with rainforest. The smell is still there since some of the floor is dirt, but it has improved dramatically. 

After Erin, the person who invited us to stay with her until we found somewhere to live, but, incidentally we ended up taking over her place, left to go to Honduras, the serious casita makeover had begun. I cleaned out the entire room; getting ride of everything that was left there that had been forgotten about or no longer cared for. It took a lot of courage to use the broomstick to ride the crevices and ceilings of the massive spider webs, more often than not, with large alive spiders still attached. I also cleaned the windows which had spider cadavers and webs that were worked on so well they were almost like fabric. I also painted the walls with a mente (mint) green purchased from Wal-mart for about 3,300 colones per gallon (about $6-7). And, yes, most of the grocery stores are owned by Wal-mart and Wal-mart itself is new and glorious to the Ticos. In addition, I had to spackle the spider holes and paint over them. One corner of the room requires a bit more effort. It appears that perhaps a sink was once desired to be placed there, but never completed. In this area the cement is messy and a favorite place for spiders. So, with all my creative efforts I have decided to mosaic it with random pieces of tiles I have been collecting from the neighborhood. I have used caulking glue, but spackle seems to be less messy. This will be my ever long in-progress task. 

Earlier last week we had a “foam” guy recommended to me by a new friend in Costa Rica come to take a look at our project room. His job would be to seal all the areas in the room that are exposed to the outside world. Also, he could seal the cracks on the sides of the cement and fill the area of the floor that is open to the elements as well. He hasn’t been exactly easy to get a hold of. I had been trying to contact him for a couple of weeks before he came. He is an American from Texas, I believe. He said that he wouldn’t be the cheapest route because he would probably charge $100, but could do the entire job. After sleeping in the same bed and in the same room with Emily for a few months now, I don’t mind. But, once the room is sealed it will become livable. I would like to get this done so I can have my own room. There would also be no need to get any more materials to seal the floor and do things ourselves, so I think he would be worth it. In true Tico fashion he said he would come back to measure and give us an exact price, but is away in Tamarindo for the next ten days. That’s fine because we are going away Thursday of this week to Playa Flamingo on the Pacific side for a little vacation and to celebrate my 27^th birthday (on Saturday). 

Things happen when there are meant to happen here. Many times things even in your control surprisingly only happen when they are ready to. I am learning patience and acceptance here which I am reminded of everyday. We will be approaching a month of living here and everything is coming together slowly. The less you have the more you appreciate the little you do. It’s wonderful to have a great cheap (we pay $150/month each, including utilities and internet) rustic little casita that we really like. Progress is happening!