News from the Jungle

Terri & Gary who?

Thought we got swallowed up by the jungle? Or maybe met our demise with an unfriendly snake or fallen tree? No, nothing so dramatic. I know it has been ages since I last sent a jungle update. My apologies. I'm sending this on the eve of a trip Gary and I are making to the states. We're going to visit family and friends we haven't seen for almost 2 years now. How could it really be that long? It seems somewhat appropriate to send it now as an advance to our visit for some we may see and a "no we didn't fall off the face off the planet" for others. The update is attached here as an MS Word document. If you cannot open it, let me know and I'll send it in the e-mail text.

So much has passed in that time it is almost tempting not to write at all. Not sure where to begin. But I will make a feeble attempt to again share this adventure that Gary and I are on. We're all happy and healthy, Sydney, Gary and I and have settled into our lives filling our days with new friends, projects, adventures, and everyday mundane tasks. The following are excerpts that have been written over the last year, but never compiled into anything befitting a 'jungle update.' I humbly submit this narrative in hopes you can get a feel for the experience.

We've been busy. Gary returned from the states in November, after finally selling the house. Hallelujah! That was a huge piece of the puzzle for our overall financial security and a link that distracted us from here. We're so glad to have decided to sell everything and not try to maintain a home back in Oregon. It still feels like our US home, but this is our true 'home' now.

The passing of time here is chronicled more by the changing seasons, the tides, our projects and activities than by any calendar. We know little of current events in the world, and are more disconnected to the world media than ever. Maybe that's one reason Gary's blood pressure has dropped 30 points!! We moved back to our property in December (I was staying at our friends' cabin in Gary's absence) and are once again without cell signal and Internet. A wonderful Tico family has offered use of their satellite Internet, so I make the 5 mile trek every few days, computer in tow, to partake in the communication e-mail ritual. The only thing I still miss here is access to the Internet, but at about $3,500 to have the satellite service, we just can't justify it. We'll wait.

They don't call it the 'rainforest' for nothing
As May came, so have the rains, and they haven't let up. I understand this is a much more 'normal' year than last. It rains virtually every afternoon into the night. Yesterday and today were the first days we've experienced where it rained all day, non-stop. I'd say it's like Oregon, except it's 75-80 degrees when it's coming down. Gary was out all morning in it spraying a batch of compost tea he made. We were able to bring a 50 gallon tea brewer with us when we moved here and are working hard at improving this stuff they call tierra here. It isn't, it's barú, better known to us as mud or red clay. We've pulled out all the artillery. We have a wonderful compost bin, two worm bins going and the tea brewer set-up. Thanks Karl Rubenburger, Elaine Ingham and others who have taught us so much in the states. We've found a few local worm farmers and all are trying to spread the good word about worm compost. Gary and Henry (our caretaker and new found champion of worms) had a worm composting booth at our local Earth Day Fair in April.

And speaking of Earth Day, or Día de la Tierra, we helped coordinate a great event in Puerto Jiménez, much like the events in Douglas County. With little local awareness of the world-wide event, the planning committee made up of locals and gringos coordinated a very successful day of exhibits, games, activities, music, and prizes. It consumed a significant amount of our March and April. Try coordinating an event to take place 2 hours away by rough road, in a different language, trying to attract people that have major obstacles to overcome to get there. Made the Douglas County events seem like a piece of cake. Over 350 people came.

Life is certainly an adventure here. I wake up each morning and just can't believe I live in this beautiful, rich place. Ever since (and probably because of them) my zoo days I have wanted to live in a natural, wild place. This definitely qualifies. One day I am battling a new track of termites that are trying to devour my closet, the next enjoying the call of the cicadas. Nature is closer than I want sometimes.

Cleaner ants
We have a very knowledgeable wildlife guide friend here, Mike Boston, who once said that it will be the ants of the world that take it over when we are history. I believe it. In these journal entries I've often commented on the insects and spiders and other crawling creatures we see, but ants are with us day and night and fill virtually every niche imaginable. Did you know that anteaters don't even eat many ants because they are such nasty creatures? They prefer termites and other more mild-mannered insects.

Ants live quite nicely in cracks in wood, in bamboo furniture, cardboard boxes, in the dirt, inside tree trunks, in holes in the ground, in huge multi-chambered ant palaces, and just on the 'march.' One such example of the latter is a type of army ant we call the 'cleaner' ant and they deserve a spot of recognition on these pages. They can strike fear in the soul of the unknowing as they arrive in a wave of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, of large black ants and march together where their leaders take them. Every General's dream! They are indeed an army of troops, but act as one organism, a long undulating ribbon of little piranhas that are set to devour anything in their path that they consider food. Luckily for us, this usually isn't 'our' food. Their preferences are other insects such as ants and termites, their nests, and their dead bodies. They are to be avoided as they will inflict a nasty bite, and better left alone. They are not here to stay and will leave when they've completed their mission, to clean everything in their path. When gone, they are like the best houseguest imaginable - nothing left behind to indicate they were there. Not a bad cleaning service, as long as you don't mind the random hours they keep. I've witnessed a few of these invasions. Awestruck as they make their path, inside and/or outside your house, 6" to 2ft. wide, and lasting for one to two hours. They don't stop, they don't turn around. Don't try to stop them. They all march in the same direction; up a tree trunk, then down, under a door, through cabinets, up walls, and across patios. Animals know to avoid them. On a hike we once witnessed insects running and hopping off in one direction, running for their lives from a battalion of army ants close behind. I'm not making this up!! You wonder where those Hollywood directors get their ideas for all those wild & crazy horror flicks. Well, nature provides some incredible scripts.

Sometimes nature can be so enchanting, it stops you in your tracks. One night I looked outside the cabin door to see the stars finally arriving after a rain storm, and witnessed a blanket of fireflies, about a foot off the ground, completely covering everything around me. The ground, the bushes, and the trees looked like they were layered with a magic blanket of twinkle lights, giving the appearance that I could have walked on top of them. It was a truly magical moment to experience what was likely a natural phenomenon, a mass hatching of fireflies. No less a blessing because it was a natural event. When I finally went inside and turned out the electric lights, the cabin rafters and the window screens were lit up with them too. Greg Brown wrote a line in one of his many lovely songs, Spring Wind, "there were more fireflies than stars." Obviously, he's seen it too. I wouldn't have thought it possible.

A little about the English Classes
I've been teaching English one evening a week and currently have about 20 students in two levels, ranging in age from 6th grade to adult. Most adults have not gone beyond the 6th grade, the mandatory school term, and so teaching a new language poses additional challenges. I find I need to teach general grammar in Spanish, and then teach it in English. I'm not sure who is learning more, me or them. But they are advancing their skills and I'm as proud as any teacher could be. I charge only for materials so more can afford to participate. It amounts to about $4 per student per eight week session. I've kicked around the idea of teaching an official class at the primary school, but that would have to be a couple days a week, more time consuming, and more of a commitment. By law every school is supposed to have English classes, even if by a roving teacher. But out here it just doesn't happen.

One of the reasons I am trying to stay with the adult English class is that I see it as an important tool for the locals 5-10 years from now. The big developers are starting to come in; lots of gringos buying land for speculation and for various tourism projects. Very few are like Gary and I who have bought land that we actually want to live on. Land prices have soared astronomically! Unfortunately, most of the Ticos that own property can make quick money if they sell, but then where do they go? Even a few hundred thousand dollars doesn't support them forever in a city and they have few skills other than working their land. Other locals, who don't have land, don't have much choice but to work 'for' the foreigners. They can't afford to buy here. I'm betting that those with English skills can begin to think about starting their own businesses, probably tourism related, and be able to stay. They won't have to go to work for hotels for much, much less money. They are the best guides, fishermen, small restaurant owners, etc. and may have a little better chance of working for themselves if they can speak a little English.

As you can see, we've gotten pretty attached to this little 'pueblito' called Los Mogos and the Osa Peninsula. It feels more like home every day, though when we arrived we weren't entirely certain it would be forever because . . .

A lawsuit surprise
To our surprise, Gary and I have found ourselves immersed in a property lawsuit we couldn't have possibly imagined. I'll try to explain the gist of it all as briefly as possible. When we bought this piece five years ago, we made absolutely certain (through our lawyer and agent) that we were buying a 'clean' piece of land with a verifiable title. And, it was clean. Well, now we have learned that in 1996 a Costa Rican purchased a piece of land, also with a title, that includes our entire 42 acres. So, yes this property has two separate and legal titles. He has initiated a suit against us to take sole ownership of our property. We found a wonderfully bright and astute lawyer nearby and have responded with a counterattack. Because our title is older than theirs (ours was originally acquired back in 1979 two owners ago) we are completely confident we are the legitimate owners. But there's a little thing known as 'the process' that we have to go through. Besides the worrying, costs, and time, we've had to hold off construction of a home until the case settles. Luckily, our hearing takes place in October and we hope to have this all behind us soon.

How could this happen? Fraud, squatters, bad neighbor relations, poor record keeping, no title companies. Not unlike the colonization of the Wild West. We actually learned of this impending lawsuit back in August 2005, the very week that Gary and I were planning to tell our bosses of our decision to move here. So, what to do? We could have stayed in Oregon to wait it out but these cases can take many years to resolve. Instead, we took the risk and decided to come down and fight from here. We figured the worst that could happen is we'd enjoy living on our property for years and if we lost, we'd recoup costs and move on. That was the best decision we could have made! If we had tried to fight as absentee owners, it would have been very difficult and possibly less successful. We'll let you know WHEN we win!

Jungle Lessons
If I've learned anything in my life it is that nothing that I really want ever comes easy. Never! I've never been the one who has it fall in their lap, or wins at games of chance, or is blessed by perfect timing. I take the road less traveled and am surprised when the bridge ahead is out. That's just my life. Poor Gary has to suffer the same fate now as my other half. I invest when the market is peaking, sell the house when the markets sink, plan for every eventuality except the one that happens, and then figure out how to get over, around or through the obstacles. I can't complain, because it is probably this 'lack of luck' that has made me who I am. Don't tell me I can't do something or that "it's just the way it is." Nothing inspires me more! So, what's a little tiny lawsuit over the one thing we moved 3,000 miles for . . . our jungle home.

More than anything else, being here in Costa Rica is helping me to live with the core values I have developed into my adulthood. An escape - a little. But it's more of a search and an adventure in a place that allows you (heck forces you) to look at things differently. That difference for me right now is a blessing. I appreciate it very much. I don't expect everyone else (but thankfully Gary does) to share those same values and would not preach that anyone else should do as I do. It isn't about that. People have to find their own peace.

We're hoping that you too are enjoying your journeys and finding your place of peace.
We'll be seeing some of you this trip and lamenting those we can't visit. Please know that you're in our thoughts and conversations more than you could imagine.

Abrazos (hugs),
Terri & Gary & Sydney