I'm writing on Friday evening. Outside it's probably the worst thunderstorm since I arrived. It's the first time I've had to come in from the porch because of the rain. It was being blown across and I was afraid for the laptop. The weather was beautiful earlier. I was out and had to come back to put the suncream on my head. When I was back here and writing on the porch when I saw the storm approach across the ocean. It was like a white curtain coming across. I could see the clear horizon left and right of it. But as it moved closer it took more and more of the view. About 5 minutes before it arrived all the trees around me started rustling. Then the torrential rain. Then the thunder and lightning.
I'm reading again this week. And although I found the reading deprivation week very interesting, I can't explain the joy and relief of getting back to reading this week. I won't be doing that again in a hurry.
The pic of the week is of a stick insect. Not the same one as was on my headboard the other night. But he's the spitting image of him. I suspect they're related.
First fall
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The other day I had my first fall. I'm amazed I've gone so long without one. The mud is so slippery everywhere. And the hill down from the casita is so steep with very loose stone and I've lost my footing so many times. On Sunday I was walking down a new route to the beach. At one part the mud was completely slippery. It was not unlike walking on an icy footpath. In your flip-flops. As you do.
Anyway, I thought I was through the worst, and I guess let my guard down. The next thing my legs went completely from under me. I fell to the side, mostly on my bum, but I also put out my right hand to break the fall. My bum was well able for it. But I sprained my right wrist badly. It's much better now, but I couldn't use a door handle, write longhand, or brush my teeth with my dominant hand for most of the week. Thankfully typing was no problem. But it's really interrupted my prospective juggling career.
Critters
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It's absolutely incredible the number of different types of insects there are here. There is, of course, an amazing diversity generally, with monkeys, squirrels, lizards, geckos, crabs, iguanas all visible just around the porch area. But the sheer variety of insects, millipedes, spiders, caterpillars and just general creepy-crawlies is amazing. There are so many different types and shapes and sizes. I would love to throw open the double doors of the casita during the day, but it would be impossible with all the insects that would get inside. I have to try to get in and out as quickly as I can, particularly at night. All the windows have a mosquito netting so none of them can get in that way. We have come to an agreement. Outside is their space. Inside is mine. They can kill me outside. I can kill them in here.
The other day when I was putting out the rubbish - I keep it in the surf board storage thing - and a big black scorpion scuttled out.
Out on the porch at night there are huge numbers of critters, mostly flying erratically around the lights, with the geckos waiting to pounce at all times. I have discovered that I'm much less likely to have them bashing into me if I don't sit near the lights. At the beginning I was getting bashed into on a regular basis. And big moths were constantly landing in my beer. Even now I get the odd little thing flying into it. I've had to introduce a 5 second rule. I have a spoon, and if I can fling him back out within five seconds I keep the beer. Otherwise I'd be throwing it away by the bucketful!
The other night I must have left the door ajar as I came in and out during the evening. I noticed a fairly big green creature up in the rafters. It's one I see regularly, I think it's some sort of a cricket, but I'm not sure. (Even as I'm writing I've just noticed a big moth up there now!) He was too high to reach, so I pushed him with the fly swatter, and he flew to the mosquito screen on the window. I could catch him from there in a pint glass, and was able to release him outside safely and unharmed.
Later on the same night, I had got into bed and read my book, and was ready to turn off the light. I turned and immediately saw a stick insect, exactly like the one in the pic of the week, just sitting right beside me on the headboard. He was looking straight at me. Mind you if you look at those eyes - the whole face just seems to be eyes - I guess you'll always think they're looking at you.
Now, I couldn't even turn off the light with that big of a critter in the room, let alone go to sleep. The length of his body, I guess, would stretch between my outstretched thumb and index finger. So I got out the pint glass. I really did try to catch him, but he went down behind the bed. I had to pull the whole bed out, but he was very evasive. It ended up that it was either him or me. And I'm afraid he was the victim of a vicious fly swatting attack.
A howler
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The other day I was doing the dishes and I looked out the window over the sink, and there was a howler monkey out in the tree straight across from the window. He seemed to be looking straight at me. I must be getting paranoid. I think they're all looking at me. There was a group of them off to the left. It was the first time I've seen them so close to the casita since my first day here.
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Well, that's it for this week. My wrist is almost back to normal, so the juggling can recommence shortly. I'm down in the internet café tomorrow. Wednesdays and Saturdays are internet days. I go down to a local café that no-one else seems to know about. There's rarely anyone else there. It's cheap, about 85c an hour. But all connections here are so incredibly slow. I'm usually there for about 3 or 3 and a half hours. I could easily do it in 1 hour if I had broadband. When I get back I'm like a child as I sit down to read my emails. Because I only get them twice a week I look forward to reading them so much. I used find emails and replying to them a chore, but now they're a highlight of the week.
Outside the rain has eased off slightly, but the lights are still flickering as the electricity reacts to the lightning.
So until next week,
Chao (and up the Dubs),
Éamon
Today's Headline in La Nación: Weak Control of Public Funds in Red Cross
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