Should Have Named Him "LUCKY"

This is Ike. He is a stray cat that came with the property when we were building the guest house. At the time, he was just a half grown kitten. Ike had 7 brothers and sisters that we caught, then took to the vet to get them fixed and found homes for them. For some reason that I can't remember, Ike ended up staying here. He hasn't caused any problems for us in spite of being a little wild. Our dog Abby is always chasing him up a tree. I don't know why the cat just doesn't turn around and swat her across her nose and she would never do that again, but I think that he just likes to get chased by Abby.

This has been a very bad year for this poor cat. Earlier in the year, he was bitten by a snake. Then about 6 weeks after that, bit in the head by another snake where his head swelled to about twice it's normal size. Now, we are not talking about any snake here, we are talking about a Fer de' Lance. One of the most dangerous snakes in the world. If it would have bit Abby or us - we would have died. But, for some strange reason, cats are not affected that way. Our gardener Noel told us "just let him go and do what he needs to do and he will be ok in a couple of weeks" - Noel was absolutely correct.

Well, if the snakes weren't enough, it seems that Ike was recently hit by a truck. Although he lived through it, the inner side of his right rear leg was scrapped down to the muscle. It was not a pretty site. We had to catch him and take him to the vet where he ended up staying for several weeks - at a cost of $20 per day. This was because the only place we had for him at the time was the great outdoors and the vet was highly concerned about infections and the possibility he would lose his leg. We tried taking him home to take care of him and he escaped , but came back the next day. Then one of the apartments came available for awhile so he stayed in the Meow Hilton for about a week. Then he had to go back to stay at the vet's for another week. - He is now finally better and the leg is looking pretty good. The pictures here are both after all this has happened.

They say a cat has 9 lives. Well, it is an obvious observation that this cat has definitely used up 3 of them. Many of my friends say that we should have named him "LUCKY" - That is about as correct as you can get.

Don't look at me like that - I was just joking

He really is a great cat and good friend. And, believe it or not, Stef & I never really cared much for cats before, but things change.

Guess Who Had A Birthday?

August 9, 2012

Is a very special day for us. It marks the beginning of a new year for Stef because this day is her Birthday!!! As you know, this girl loves to party especially when she is celebrating a special event. This year, she did it in two stages - All in One Day!! - Keeping this in mind, I am going to separate this posting into two parts:

Stage One:
Since around the first of July, we have been honored to have the "Sisters in Transition" stay in one of our apartments while they are waiting for their permanent residence to be ready. Judy and Roxi pulled up stakes in the US, and decided to settle down in Atenas. They are a couple of great gals who are a lot of fun and we are rapidly becoming good friends.

Well, the morning agenda had Stef, Judy & Roxi, and Stef's good friend Cathy scheduled to run some errands in San Jose and Escazu. They ended up having lunch at our favorite Indian Restaurant - the...

As you can see there was some celebrating going on with the girls.

Starting on the left and going to the right around the table, we have Judy, Stef, Roxi and Cathy - Kind of looks like they are having a good time.

This is a sample of some of the food David had prepared for them, and they said it was wonderful.

And now, the Birthday Girl wishing all of you the best!!

Stage Two:

Now you didn't think that I wasn't going to help her celebrate did you? Well, I have got to tell you that with the help of our dear friend Mercedes, we had a pretty big dinner bash for her hosted at the Guanacaste Restaurant. I have to tell you that Mercedes went all out to make sure it was a big success.

We are very fortunate to have her as a friend

I sent out invitations to a bunch of friends and everyone I invited said YES, we are coming. It turned out to be about 30 people in total and Mercedes made sure the guys at the Guanacaste were prepared and had things set up. This event turned into a really great time. Click the arrow to check it out

Then there was the cake Mercedes baked for Stef - The kind our friends often say 

"This is the best cake I have ever put into my mouth"

And, there is me saying some nice words about my lovely wife.

WE HOPE THAT YOU HAD A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEETHEART

LOVE YOU!!!