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I can tell you nothing about what you asked. But I cannot let this moment pass without chiming in on the toll roads. In Texas they are big business: if you want to drive unimpeded to Dallas, we can make it as painless as possible for a “bribe” of $20. You can drive 85 mph if you want to and we don’t care; just pay the money. I drove to Austin from my home 90 miles south last month, and to my chagrin, my highway has been replaced with a toll road. Refusing to fly in the fast lane and pay the toll, I drove the new speed limit of 50 mph on the access road all the way to the capitol.
Even more extravigant is the fact that there are no toll booths. It has been tested by a higher (and faster ) power than me that you can drive 200+ mph on the tollway and they can still read your license plate and mail you the bill. Ain’t technology “wunnerful”!Back to Costa Rica toll roads: I’m driving to wherever and here’s a toll both stopping me to pay 50 cents. Now that is worth stopping for. They probably want to know why I’m smiling. You see…I’m from Texas.
I read the article in today’s Costa Rica Star. It sounded like someone is trying to use up some “Green” grant money. They were trying to grow corn and other crops in a floating mat that wicks up the appropriate moisture. Aquaculture [b]can [/b][u][/u]work by recycling animal wastes (nutrients) through the root system until the affluent is pure and non-polluting. That is a good concept; the floating mats sounds pretty far “out there”.
Water hyacinth is used in holding ponds which turn sewer water into drinking water (theoretically) by the time it passes through the roots of acres of hyacinth ponds. It works for vegetables, too.I’ve never seen a scorpion in CR, but I once diverted a herd of a million army ants in a house in Monteverde. Great fun those boogers.
Anyway, besides the toxic alternatives, diatomaceous earth (DE, horticultural grade)or sometimes a sticky trap, like used for mice, is effective. You might accidentally catch a good guy–like a lizard–so check every day. In another life, I am a practicing organic gardener.I would think that the Gold Museum in San Jose would be spectacular. I’ve always wanted to go there and to the Jade Museum. Can anyone reccomend or at least comment?
I have already invested close to $100. in cabfare on my 1st trip to Costa Rica in hopes of seeing these 2 museums.
In 2010, my wife and I got in a taxi at the Aeropuerto Hotel in Alajuala and did not think that we would survive the ride.
The driver was a madman–stopping, starting, speeding, pulling around in oncoming lanes, all the while trying to wipe the inside and outside of the windshield during an afternoon rain shower!
No defrost and very little wiper blade action. When he got to the vacinity of gold, we asked him to take us back to the hotel.
My wife was green with carsickness. Can anyone tell us what we missed?
Spoken like a true Socialist. Just add a few government takeovers and kickbacks to the labor unions that supported the candidates and you got a great little system called Marxism.. You probably think Gov’ment Motors and their takeaway from the shareholders to give to the unsustainable union contracts was a good thing. The fact that a working family of 4 living in the U.S. has less expendable income than the non-working family of 4 does not seem to bother you. You enable someone to get unemployment checks for 99 weeks because it’s easier to sit at home. You hand out food and drink (via the Lone Star card), cell phones and free minutes, housing subsidies, free medical care, and the redistributive Earn Income Tax Credit. There may be other benefits as well. My church gives out food, blankets, and coats to all that ask for help. Yes, all of these things could be available on a “safety net” basis, not for the dependency for which they were created. Our Department of the Interior (through the Nat’l Parks Service) places signs “Do not feed the animals. It will lead to a dependency on humans”. The same people are feeding the humans at a record pace through Food Stamps.
The illegitimate birth rates for black kids is around 70%. People are being rewarded for not working. We are ignoring an influx of illegal aliens and “anchor babies”. Poverty level families have 2 cars, cell phones, 2 TVs, and more. We are now approaching 2 generations of the non-working, heads-of-household. I have a student that I offered a job for $8.00/hour for raking leaves and he turned me down. I blamed him for a few days until I found out that his 35 year-old Dad was on disability, but belonged to a Club basketball and football team. The student had no work ethic to relate to. I have hired people for almost 40 years. It is now unusual to find someone to work an unskilled job for minimum wage. This is the main reason that I have sold out my degree and my business, to work in a government school. I do have my roots and I never complain about my teacher pay. I’ve endured 25 years of payroll taxes, unemployment taxes, workman’s comp, and health insurance costs. I’m definitely not a good enough business man to overcome these obstacles. I now get a 2 week Christmas vacation, a Spring Break, and almost 3 months off in the summer to get my work done and see the beautiful country of Costa Rica.
For those of you that are living the dream in CR, I envy you, but I can’t close my eyes to the problems in the States like you can. Many of my students are dressed in designer clothes and tennis shoes. They have unwed parents and one of my group has a “baby momma” in the 8th grade. They have iphones, flat screen TVs, and nice cars. Ugly, but expensive and totally unnecessary tattoos adorn them; even though they have to cover them up at school.
Perhaps you might read some of my favorite black Conservative writers like Thomas Sowell, Walter Williams, Ken Blackwell, and Star Parker. Marco Rubio and Sen. Ted Cruz (TX) are my latest heroes to come to forefront, as the old, white men are too busy playing golf with the President. These Conservatives have their roots in work ethics, racial problems, and the American Dream and will perhaps lead some out of the wilderness. Or you chose to ignore them. “Don’t confuse me with the facts—my mind is made up!”
I’m leaving you today with a quote from Margaret Thatcher – “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people’s money. “Since David C is certain that the estate tax taking the family farm is a myth, perhaps he could solve my family dilemma. My Mom owns a beautiful place on the river that has been in my family for 150 years. When the new estate tax hits on January 1, 2013, the rate is set to be 55% with an exemption of $1 million. The close to 300 acres is valued on county tax rolls at $1.8 million. So if my 85 year old Mom dies in January, how do I pay the $440,000 that is due? And the government deserves to benefit–how?
The Washington Post (I believe) floated the idea over the weekend that the solution to this year’s budget could be found in a loophole of the Federal Laws regarding currency. Obama could sidestep funding a $2 trillion budget shortfall by minting 2 platinum coins with a placed value of $1 trillion dollars each. Just deposit the 2 coins with the Federal Reserve and presto-chango–no deficit. Genius!
If things remain this easy, perhaps the mythical Obama Budget can be finally enacted, and maybe we don’t have to do this “ugly redistribution of wealth”.[/quote]
My first confession is that I’m not a scuba diver. That being said, I like to snorkel. While the Pacific Ocean is beautiful during the Green Season, the influx of rain water adds a cloud to the visability. So you almost have to get on a dive boat and out to deep waters to find clear water. I tried a lot of places all along the coast, but if you’re expecting Belize, you’ll probably be disappointed. Maybe someone could confirm how the various islands (Cano,Catalina,and others) hold to their promises of great diving. If you hike down the beaches, about your only hope is to find a tidal pool at low tide. There’s no waves crashing you into the lava crags, and the visability is great. Santa Elena has a few pools and I’ve heard Montezuma does also. I’m willing to try again if anyone’s got personal experience with snorkel or scuba sites.
By the way, skip the “sail & snorkel” out of Quepos. Visibility is poor and your dive is about 30 minutes. Your boat ride is about 4 hours. The crew was very personable, lunch was nice–unless you add “motion sickness” to the mix![quote=”2bncr”]OK so what is or is not going on over there? Has anyone seen any construction or land movement that indicates there will be an airport? And if so what kind? I believe it was written that it will be only capable of handling small planes that may fly to Panama city or David or Granda/Managua. What gives really?[/quote]
Did you catch the reference in the Home Page story about the International Travel recommendation of CR Real Estate?
Here’s the quote from the story:
“I am also sure that the property investment also took into account the fact that Costa Rica’s 3rd international airport is earmarked for opening in 2014. Considering what a new airport did to property values in Guanacaste, it’s little wonder that investors are turning their attention towards the South Pacific.”As in the past, I’m sure Scott will set the record straight in a correction. International Airports don’t just fall together in a couple of years. I enjoyed the story, I just don’t think the accuracy is all there.
To quote that renowned Scottish explorer, Hugo First, “You never want to be at the front of any parade.”
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Sorry, but I had to add a Texas truth to the above axiom. We have horses toward the end of our parades. So, to add to David’s wisdom, “you never want to be “bringing up the rear” of any (Texas) parade!
