Costa Rica has answered the question posed by my last post with a resounding yes, as Laura Chinchilla was elected decisively yesterday as the first female President to occupy the position in the country’s history.  Sunday was election day and I believe the only thing that can get the ticos more “riled up” is a Liga/Saprissa futbol match.  We (Lily and I) decided to pass the day with a drive north to the Barva volcano.  I have spent the last couple years staring out the window at the towering Barva and its tri-peaked summit (known locally as the “tres marias”), which stands as a sentinel to the north of the city (with Pico Blanco to the south and Vulcan Irazu to the east). I had always wondered what it was really like up there.  So off we went to find out.  And it was an enchanting trip. The wealth of natural beauty that this country possesses never ceases to amaze me. You can get to Barva in less than an hour…in light traffic on a Sunday, that is.  We weren’t sure what the “procedure” was for getting to the summit, so when the road turned ugly, we parked the car at a house where the owner offered to watch it for a small fee.  We began to hike up the rocky road until we reached a park station…with parking (well, next time we’ll know).  We paid the small entrance fee and proceeded to hike a beautiful trail to the crater lake and then up to a breath-taking vista of the Central Valley from 2,906 meters of altitude (around 9,500 feet up).  On the way back down the mountain it was apparent that the election was in full swing.  Everywhere ticos were parading with large banners bearing the colors of their favorite candidate and chanting and blowing their horns as if to route their team on to victory.  It was Costa Rican democracy in action.  The great thing to see and admire was that everyone was in good spirits and treating the whole affair with the degree of levity that is typically tico.  The bars were open as the government had repealed the utterly ridiculous law forbidding the sale of alcohol on election weekend.  Even so, there were no wild drunken rampages in the streets where I was, and I haven’t seen any reported on the news either.  Later that night when the results were clear, the two closest competitors gave their concession speeches and were congratulatory of the Chinchilla win. All in all the whole event gave me another reason to be proud of Costa Rica as a place where democracy and freedom is enjoyed to a greater extent than is common in this part of the world.  Costa Rica continues to be an island of peace and prosperity amidst a region often subject to anger, strife and limited freedom.  Chinchilla’s win, I believe, signals more good things to come.

The answer to that may just be yes, as the latest Unimar poll data shows that Laura Chinchilla, the PLN (or Liberacionista) candidate is showing a strong lead over her closest competitors in the days leading to the election on February 7th, this Sunday. To be declared the winner, Chinchilla would need to muster at least 40% of Sunday’s popular vote, otherwise there will be a second round of voting. This is a constitutional requirement in Costa Rica. Right now Chinchilla stands at 42%, with Guevara at 23% and Solis at 20%. Chinchilla is the PLN candidate and has the full support of popular Presidente, Oscar Arias. Arias has been busy lately cutting the ribbons to inaugurate the many completed infrastructure projects in the waning days of his administration…showing off a little just how successful his term has been in helping Costa Rica progress towards “developed nation” status. Who do I support? Well I am not allowed, as a non-citizen, to express support for any one, but I can at least inform readers of this blog the differences between the three top candidates. Let’s start with Otton Solis, the PAC (Citizen’s Action) candidate. Solis actually started his political career in Arias’ first administration back in 1986. But the two just didn’t get along that well. Solis has always been the anti-corruption champion, as well as a supporter of agriculture, unions and the environment. His wife, Shirley Sanchez, is an important environmental lawyer. He almost defeated Arias in 2006, losing by just a few thousand votes. His major cause was heading the opposition against passage of the TLC, or trade agreement with the U.S. I believe that gives you in a nutshell enough background to understand where Solis is coming from. Guevara is the candidate of the Movement Libertario. He once was a staunch advocate of the legalization of drugs, saying that money spent fighting the battle against them was a tremendous waste of government largess. He has now changed his tune, saying that he has left such radical views behind him. Ironically and perhaps a bit inconsistent with past views is his major platform for election in 2010, which is in being the candidate who will end “delinquencia,” or the rising crime rate that has all law abiding residents alarmed. Would he be able to do so? Well crime starts in the head, heart and home, which are all areas where we don’t generally like for government to intrude. In fact, a Libertarian candidate who claims to be “tough on crime,” would seem a bit of an oxymoron, would it not? Finally we have Laura Chinchilla, who like Arias, is a centrist candidate with positions that are strikingly similar in political ideology to a Barack Obama. With her election surely the country can expect four more years of the same….but is that necessarily a bad thing? No one can deny, honestly, that Costa Rica has enjoyed tremendous infrastructure improvement in the last four years and despite a world-wide economic crisis, things didn’t get too bad here as compared with many other places in Latin American and the rest of the world. The question is, are the Costa Ricans, a Latin American population that certainly has not escaped stereotypical machismo, really ready to elect a woman? Well, we will find out in just a few days, now won’t we.

Link to Article in La Nacion

Lately we have been engaged in a project with the indigenous of Costa Rica.  We are creating a web site that features indigenous arts and crafts and in the process of creating it we are visiting and shooting video of five tribes known for their art.  Last week we visited Guaitil, where the tradition of the Chorotegas is kept alive in the creation of beautiful pottery.  Previously we had visited the Maleku tribe, who are known for their carved and colorfully painted balsa masks, as well as other items.  One thing that is clear from these visits is that the indigenous really are passionate about their work.  It represents their heritage, their culture, their world view.  And they take great pride in every piece.  The families of Guaitil who make pottery in the timeless Chorotega fashion produce each piece in a meticulous manner with focused attention to each small detail of the process.  That attention to detail and the striving for perfection presents an excellent lesson for life.  Of course, perfection is unattainable and therefore a standard of perfection makes no sense and will only lead to frustration.  However, excellence is another thing.  We can at least strive for the unattainable and when we fall short, we stand a greater chance of hitting the mark of excellence.  These people, while they live in conditions that most of the world would consider impoverished, nevertheless rise each day to hone their craft to the mark of excellence.  Their motivation is not monetary, as the reward they receive for their work barely provides food, shelter and clothing.  No, it is something far deeper.  Something that is entrenched in the recesses of their souls.  Because, you see, what they create with their hands represents who they are.  And, perhaps surprisingly, it is the same with you and me.  What we do each day and the quality by which we do it represents us to the world.  And make no bones about it, the world demands excellence.  Anything short of that is, sadly, ordinary or worse.  Do you want to be ordinary?  So take a clue from the Chorotegas, the Malekus and other indigenous groups and imbue all that you do with the mark of excellence.  It’s like my mother always told me, if you’re going to do something, do it well.

Chorotega Pottery Video from Costa Rican Artisans…

“Costa Rica”  I can remember when that name carried an exotic and mysterious appeal.  Where is that place exactly?  Isn’t it DANGEROUS down there? I mean, do they have roads?  Can you drink the water?  Well, all that has changed in large part now as Costa Rica has become a new house-hold word in the U.S.  Hey were you going on vacation this year? “Think I’ll go down to Costa Rica” is a common reply.  It just isn’t all that mysterious any more.  But, be that as it may, it is still one cool place to visit, even to stay a while….maybe for a lifetime, as some folks have decided to do.  Costa Rica is changing.  We have a new “super-highway” that will get you from San Jose to the Pacific Coast in 45 minutes flat.  A trip that previously took over two hours.  We have a new airport, which I have not even graced the tarmac of since I haven’t left this place in the last 4 years, but I hear it’s nice.  We have our own imitation Cancun-Cozumel experience in Jaco beach, a town that just a few years ago didn’t even have a paved road running through it.  We have our Hollywood star sightings, usually in and around the swanky and ridiculously expensive Four Seasons Resort, as that is the only place those types can muster up the adventurous spirit to visit (with the exception of Mel Gibson who actually was sighted in Toro Amarillo…and I have a photo to prove it).  We have our own ICT-funded Saks 5th Avenue marketing campaign that is sure to bring more big spenders who are elevating prices to first-worldish proportions.  Being in the tourism business, of course I will say all of the above is good, to a point.  But behind the scenes of all of the surface noise that is readily apparent to the senses, still lurks the old Costa Rica.  The one that remains wild, exotic and mysterious.  You just have to get off the increasingly beaten path to see it.  That’s the Costa Rica I love.  That’s what keeps me here.  I just hope the other part doesn’t infringe until the Costa Rica I love disappears.  Just in case you’re interested in the “other Costa Rica,” my number is 1-866-424-6439.  Give me a shout any time and I’ll set you up. That part of Costa Rica is still here to enjoy and only one rule prevails…be a respectful guest and do no harm.

I have written before about my view that “American-style” consumerism is at the root of many problems the world faces.  Often I have contrasted that with what prevails here in Costa Rica, which, comparatively speaking, is a low consumption society…although the influx of gringos the last few years threatens to change all that. Now granted, low consumption isn’t for everybody, I understand that.  But if, just if, enough people lived this way, I believe the earth would be a better place.  What exactly am I getting at with this idea of L-cubed, or a Latin Low-Consumption Lifestyle?  Let me provide some examples…and as always, there are exceptions!  But exceptions don’t make the rules.  In Costa Rica, we don’t use appliances such as dishwashers and clothes dryers that consume an inordinate amount of electricity. We use ”suicide showers” rather than energy wasting hot water heaters.  In the higher altitudes of Costa Rica, like the Central Valley, no one uses air condition, nor heat.  Down on the coast that may be a different story, at least for A/C, but not really if you live high enough to cool things down a bit while enjoying an ocean breeze at the same time (yes, there are places where you can ”have your cake and eat it too” in Costa Rica).  In Costa Rica, we grow our own fruit, or it may just be growing on its own, right in your backyard.  We don’t need to buy our fruit and produce from industrialized farms that are depleting the soil and poisoning it and us with pesticides.  In Costa  Rica we get most of our energy from renewable sources, like wind, water and solar.  In Costa Rica we generally buy used cars of the compact variety and then drive them to the last kilometer…this is in large part due to the ridiculously high cost of new imports, but it helps keep our consumption rate low compared to other “more developed” societies. In Costa Rica we protect the environment because we realize it is the main reason we get up every morning with a smile on our faces, not to mention the dollars it brings from others who would like to enjoy a similar experience.  I could go on, but you should catch my drift.  Now, mind you, those living in a place like Detroit can’t do some of these low consumption things and probably don’t even want to.  Great, as part and parcel of a low-consumption and earth-friendly attitude of life, is maintaining a non-judgmental mindset of live and let live. But those of you who are intrigued by what I am talking about, come on down, the water is very very nice!

So Obama didn’t change his colors last night and “move to the center” as many predicted in the face of relentless political pressure.  Maybe that is because he really does believe in what he is trying to accomplish.  After all, the U.S. elected him to do just that, didn’t they….that is, bring about “change.”  I am afraid what you have with Obama is a bit of a horse of a different color.  Sure he is savvy enough to know how to play the Washington political game.  But his assertion last night at the end of the speech that “I don’t quit” is telling.  More than likely it sent a shiver up the collective spines of his most stalwart detractors.  It also signals a degree of backbone that is rare is Washington, D.C. I am not talking about a tough-guy swagger that stems from an air of superiority, as in a George Bush.  I am talking about a genuine belief that evening the playing field and making things better, not just for those who already are more than well off, but for everyone is the right course of action to stick to. A belief that will not yield to political pressure from any side, left, right or center.  Because in the end that conviction is not about politics, it is about justice, social justice.  It is about simply doing the right thing.  It is about coming into office with a set of unbending priorities and seeing those through no matter which way the political winds might be blowing.  It is a rare and refreshing thing to see in a Washington politician.  Maybe, just maybe, Obama is another one of those rare politicians that appears once in a generation, usually when the nation needs it most. But, then again, we’ll just have to see, now won’t we? Just remember, Glenn Beck would have probably had even a harsher opinion of Franklin Roosevelt, maybe even of Lincoln, if he had been around at the time. Think about it.

From my experience it seems that as soon as you feel satisfied with the status quo, that things seem to be “running on all cylinders,” suddenly and unexpectedly weird things begin to happen.  It seems at times that these random events derive from forces that are conspiring against you.  Investing in the stock market is a good example.  Sometimes it seems that a stock goes down in price simply because I chose to buy it!  In science and mathematics, “chaos theory” states that “small differences in initial conditions (such as those due to rounding errors in numerical computation) yield widely diverging outcomes for chaotic systems, rendering long-term prediction impossible in general.”  This is known as the “butterfly effect.”  An example would be rolling a ball down a steep hill.  Where it ends up depends on very minute differences in its initial positioning.  Lately at work things have gotten a little chaotic.  Although I am not sure if my business meets the literal definition of a “chaotic system,” it certainly seems apt to widely divergent outcomes that defy the ability for accurate prediction.  That can be very frustrating. What is the answer?  Well according to the theory one has to look closely at the “initial conditions.”  How things are initially set up seems to go a long way towards establishing and maintaining order in the system.  I, being a “loosey goosey” or “fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants” sort of bloke, often experience chaos in things I initiate.  Therefore, I believe the answer lies in initiating them more wisely by establishing systems of order that work to combat against the inevitable chaos.  A very simple example is a checklist that is consistently followed.  Ensuring that things are done the same way every time, much like a Tiger Woods golf-swing, helps keep the ball on an even and straight trajectory.  Problem is that no one likes a checklist…they are boring.  But the results of allowing chaos to reign on your parade can be far more painful than enduring a little bit of boredom.  What does all this have to do with Costa Rica?  Well Costa Rica is a place where chaotic forces work overtime.  In a place so overwhelmingly “natural” that should not come as a surprise.  The natural world has always mystified us and usually does defy accurate prediction.  But if you look closely there is amazing order and purpose in the behaviour of ecosystems, much more so than in us humans who often do things for wacky or utterly senseless  reasons.  An it is in our erratic doing that we often become undone.  Intermittent bouts of order and chaos are contrary forces that we are destined to experience and I believe it is a great lesson of life to learn to manage them wisely.  To go through life suffering the illusion that “it is all under control” is the height of arrogance and delusion…it isn’t (at least not under YOUR control) and admitting as much can serve you well.

You probably don’t know this, but Costa Rica is on the verge of electing its next President.  One of the candidates, Luis Fishman, who entered the race to replace Rafael Ángel Calderón Fournier, who was convicted in a corruption scandal and is now under house arrest, has adopted a campaign slogan of “menos malo,” which basically means I am less bad than the others.  Still bad, mind you, but less bad.  That is kind of like when you hear someone say it’s the “god’s honest truth.”  Well, what other kind is there? And all those other things you said, I guess they weren’t?  I am not too keen on this Fishman guy, who is about as environmentally savvy as, say, Donald Trump.  The prospect of a Fishman administration (which will never happen as his ridiculous campaign slogan has made him a virtual joke among the ticos), inspires visions of Costa Rica becoming a tropical parking lot, with a few trees left standing to give it that rain forest feeling.  I am not going to pick sides (although I do have my favorite in the race) because not being tico, nor a resident, I actually am not supposed to.  But I will use this absurd attempt to get elected to point out my disdain for politicians who run more for the power than for the people. The big news in the U.S. is the election of Scott Brown as the first Republican Senator from Massachusetts in a long time (I think like 40 years).  Brown seems like a nice enough guy (and, hey, he does drive a truck).  But what’s funny, no actually cynical, is the media’s reaction (primarily Fox News) to the whole thing.  Boy the Democrats are in trouble now.  Health care reform has been declared “dead on arrival” because after the Brown victory politicians will be deathly afraid to touch it and spoil any hopes of re-election.  Well, that assumes that getting re-elected is more important than actually accomplishing something.  It appears that Obama is taking the Brown victory with a grain of salt and nevertheless pushing forward with the idea of health care reform.  Is he nuts?  No, he is just determined that his administration will be more about doings things that matter, than it is about staying in power.  Health care reform has never happened before because there was no one willing to take the heat from opposing forces.  Forces that don’t care if the poorest have access to the finest health care system on the planet, but are more concerned about avoiding any pinch to their purse strings in order to fund a massive government program.  Of course it would be massive, the country is massive and massive solutions are needed to cure massive problems.  I hope that Obama continues the course and does not take the road of “menos malo.”

Yesterday I spent the day at the Maleku Indigenous Reserve in Guatuso.  My guide for this adventure was a Maleku Indian with the Spanish name of Elias Elizondo Castro, but whose Maleku name is Jaquima, which means lover of nature.  And Jaquima really did love nature.  He took me on a walk through a nature preserve that the Malekus are trying to reforest and restore to the condition that their ancestors enjoyed.  Jaquima was able to explain the medicinal and dietary qualities of a whole host of plants.  The Malekus are a tribe known for their love of nature.  There are only about 650 left in Costa Rica.  They are extraordinary artisans.  At the end of the visit, Jaquima and other members of his family put on a ancient ceremonial demonstration.  It was a ceremony in homage to the natural world that sustains them.  At the end Jaquima made a little speech, in Spanish, that basically points out that all humans are basically the same…the only difference is what we hold in our hearts and heads.  The truth in that simple statement startled me and made me think.  All the destruction that takes place in this world at the hands of human beings really does come down to differences in the way we think, doesn’t it?  The way we think about politics, or religion, or our different customs, habits and traditions.  We don’t like people who think differently and often that dislike manifests in an attempt to either change those thoughts, by force or persuasion, to be in conformity with our own, or to just eliminate the difference altogether.  The fact that there were once thousands of Malekus and now only a few hundred is a testimony to that.  The fact that the virgin forest they once hunted and gathered in is now gone, is a testimony to that.  A pattern of thought and action that is both in harmony with what we all have in common and in harmony with the natural world that sustains our very existence, may be a better way than a competitive pattern that proclaims “fall in line, or be defeated.”  For the truth is when one group of humans suffer defeat at the hands of this Draconian drama of life that we impose upon ourselves unnecessarily, we all suffer.  In the little village near Guatuso, the prophet Jaquima speaks words of wisdom and harmony that should resound in the hearts and minds of a divided and defeated humanity.

Maleku Video from CostaRicanArtisans.com

My very first post to this blog was on July 3, 2008, over a year and a half ago.  With this post I begin the last 100, the march towards completion of my 365th reason! Writing this thing has been a real labor of love for me.  It has kind of morphed into something I never intended it to be.  I started off with marketing ploy visions dancing through my head, but as I began to write the exercise turned into one of personal catharsis.  Sure I could have made it more marketable and likely have attracted more readers in the process, but you know I am happy with what I have done and I think that’s more important.  One thing I will “pat myself on the back about” is that what once was an idea actually became a reality….and that is sometimes a rare thing, especially for me.  I wrote a daily distinction today that addresses the long list of things I have thought about doing, but just never quite seem to get around to…it goes like this: Great ideas without follow through aren’t worth the paper they’re written on AND are a waste of the “grey matter” that conjured them.  All too often I am much better at thinking laudable thoughts than doing laudable deeds.  Ever get that feeling?  Wonder why that is?  Certainly doing generally entails a certain amount of perceived pain…be it fear of falling flat on one’s face, or some other conjured calamity.  But achievement without action usually just doesn’t happen in the real world we live in.  If it does happen for you, the results are usually a bit fleeting and certainly not very rewarding (take a look at what happens to most lottery winners…they end up poorer than they started).  So I hope (no, I expect) that in 2010 I will stop thinking so much and begin doing a little more. Oh, what will I do once I reach the 365th reason, you ask?  That’s for me to know and for you to find out!  How’s that for a marketing ploy?