Susan Picks her First Pineapple in Costa Rica

Forced to eat this great salad of fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, onions and smoked gouda with Tom's garlic dressing. Punish me now and again, This is great.

Don't forget the deep rich coffee with the fresh fruit.

Susan and I walked up her driveway and picked her first pineapple today. She planted it a year and a half ago and it took five or six months for it to ripen. We have not eaten it yet. It was kind of one of those religious experiences I missed. The pineapples I have tried here at Vista Val Verde are the best I have ever tasted. They do not make my mouth pucker. It is sweet and ripe.
So you see we planted several from recycled and eaten pineapples from the market. Stick the tops in the ground and be patient as they grow, repeat.
I will take pictures and post them of pineapples in the growing process tomorrow.
Fruit is not the same here. Who needs candy? Those are special words coming from a person with a sweet tooth. Can you believe the fruit is better than candy?

Mangos, avocados, papayas, cucumbers, onions, tomatoes. Cover them with a wonderful homemade dressing with way too much garlic and enjoy! The third world with friends is the place to be!

Being Grounded and Making Things Grow

Big bags of Chicken Poo, mix it with the dirt!

Susan and Tom work on an irrigation system and and fertilizing the soil.

The rewards of the garden

Rocks to line the driveway

The beginning of growth

A dear sweet friend who had been through a very intense experience of a dying father, finally had to let go. The father had lingered and held on to her and finally when friends forced her to leave the room and take a short break, he died. She had to let go as well. Her friends took her outside and sat her in a lawn chair, removed her shoes and put her bare feet in the grass. This experience did in fact, ground her. She found the strength to continue with her life.
Planting and flipping dirt may help many of us get grounded. Whenever I lose a friend I want to plant something to prove life continues and to see things grow.

Those feelings also happen while working in clay, dirt. A friend of mine whose beautiful young daughter died “grounded” herself by learning to make pots. The pain never totally left but it did significantly ease the pain.

My students get their hands busy and all of a sudden they relax and with the sensuousness of the pliable clay in their hands they go into the zone. They will work through the stress of the day as they slam the clay down on the work table to remove its air bubbles and begin to tell me their life stories as well. “Clay talks.”
The creative experience grows as the hands work the clay. You just can’t help it. So, get grounded

Quotes on creativity and San Ramon Costa Rica Fruit Market

From wisdom quotes, these two caught m eye.

Henry David Thoreau:

The world is but a canvas to the imagination.

Buckminster Fuller:

There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it's going to be a butterfly.

Costa Rican Dreams and Adventure to the Woods

"Do you like an Adventure?" Ron asked. I said. "Sure." and we hopped in his newly acquired land rover.
Ron is from Templeton CA and bought 50 acres here where he plans to build a few houses and live. Barely off the plane we headed for his new land. He had not driven this old land rover before but it is his now and in 20 minutes he new how to drive it and we soon found ourselves on crazy dirt sort of roads on his property.
It was a pleasure to see his eyes light up as he described his project. "The guest house will be here. That is an artesian well. That is where Michele and I will have our main house." And, just like Tom's place, it has a great view of the ocean below. One of the joys of this trip was to meet Jeimy and her family. She is supervising his project and lives in a house he built for her with her family. After we ran around in his land rover following roads unknown and always finding a turn space we joined her at her table for coffee and cake. The kids showed us their new baby chicks and the husband showed us his new drainage and water supplies from town and the river. Ron has the sense to not overbuild and enjoy the Costa Rican land as is.

Farmer's Market in San Ramon on Friday

Luscious experience. And oh that pancake filled with cheese. Cannot think of the real name for it. It is like a cross between huraches and pancakes. This fruit tastes unbelievable. Smooth and sweet with no acidic undertones. Yum.