Things people do sometimes really piss me off, you know? I can remember certain events in history that really got me mad, fighting mad. Events like the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles. When I saw those guys pull the man from the truck and smash a brick against his head, I wanted to kill those MFs. When I saw video clips of that plane smashing into the World Trade Center, I had the same visceral reaction. I picked up a book this morning by the religious writer and author, Charles Swindoll. I began to read it and quickly realized it must have been written around the time of September 11th, because Swindoll immediately launched into a tirade against those who perpetrated the act, saying that no hell is hot enough for them to burn in. But these days it seems I have learned, or I am learning, to see things from a different perspective. I guess living in a foreign country does that to you. You see, folks here in Costa Rica, while they are fairly fond of the U.S., don’t really see things the same way. For other countries and peoples, the U.S. is not the one country on this earth blessed by God and vaulted to a position of world preeminence. The fact that the U.S. has the weight of the proverbial 800 pound gorilla to throw around isn’t regarded by folks here as a redeeming quality. There are no excuses for brutal and senseless acts of violence like the two mentioned above. The direct perpetrators should be punished, no questions asked. But it is a worthwhile endeavor to try to understand the perspectives that motivated the acts, rather than just adopting the attitude that their’s (perspective, that is) is wrong and our’s is right. When the event of September 11th occurred I was on the big island of Hawaii attending an event by motivational speaker and author, Anthony Robbins. Robbins’ reaction to the event is something I will never forget. Robbins changed the format that day and instead opened up a forum where participants could express their feelings. A Jewish man from New York expressed his outrage and condemned the Muslim faith for condoning violence. A Muslim from Pakistan expressed his understanding for the feelings that would drive young Muslims to engage in such a homicidal suicide mission. Robbins proceeded to have both men come to the stage and for the next several hours took them on a journey of “out-of-self-discovery.” As only Robbins can do, he coaxed and cajoled each man into stepping into the other’s shoes. By the end both adopted a much better understanding of the other’s perpective. It seems to me that so much violence and mayhem takes place in the world due to our refusal to look at things from any other viewpoint than our own. This is especially true when it comes to either religious or political viewpoints. Instead we get stuck in this we’re right and they’re wrong sort of thinking that provides an excuse for us to try to force our way of thinking on them. It never works and usually the results of this effort are disastrous. I believe a better way is just to accept that the world is a complex and diverse place. It is simply illogical to think that any one part of it is blessed and ordained by God and the rest condemned. God created all of it. I believe if we can learn to at least try, as hard as it might be, to stand in someone else’s shoes and see things from their perspective, even though it is dramatically different from our own, we can understand them (and they us) and thus find a way to peacefully co-exist. And maybe, just maybe, the process of doing so will help us become a bit more ”perspicacious.”

I wrote a while back that we are losing our heroes. At least it seems that way. The passing of Michael Jackson was a shock because I grew up listening to and hearing news about the guy. And now I wake to learn of Senator Edward “Ted” Kennedy’s death. Love him or hate him, Senator Kennedy was indeed a champion of the left, or maybe I should say, “of the left-behind.” Kennedy was a balancing force in Congress for 47 years, the third longest run in the history of the union, behind only Strom Thurmond and Robert Byrd. I say a “balancing force” because Kennedy was always a thorn in the side of Republican administrations. He always seemed to be able to move legislation his way just enough to make sure that certain sectors of society weren’t forgotten in the rush to appease special interests. When Kennedy’s name was mentioned on the far-right, dark events of his life, such as the infamous Chappaquiddick incident of 1969, were quickly brought to memory. But should a man that did so much positive work for so many be remembered only for his failures? I hope not, because my failures have been many as well. Senator Kennedy is the only of the famous Kennedy clan that actually survived through middle age. His two brothers, former President John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy, were both assassinated in the 1960’s. The son of J.F.K. was killed in an airplane accident in 1999 at the young age of 38. The legacy of the Kennedy’s, as the royal family of the U.S., will certainly live on. Despite the many mysteries and myths that surround this amazing family, their lasting legacy should be a remarkable record of public service. A record of keeping the ideals of civil rights and care for the poor and disadvantaged alive and well. I spent much of my young adult life maligning Kennedy for his unabashed liberalism. But today I see things from a different perspective. Today labels of liberal versus conservative just don’t mean that much to me anymore. Many wear such labels as if they were routing for their favorite sports team. That politics is just a game to be played and that victory over the opposing team is all that matters. But shouldn’t politics really be about policy….that is, seeing and solving societal problems for what they really are, not opportunities to be exploited for political or economic gain, but real pain from which people, regardless of race, religion, or socio-economic status, need relief? Kennedy was a policy maker, a champion of policies that benefited the poor, the weak, the disadvantaged. Many times his policies got in the way of what others thought more important, namely private economic gain. But Ted Kennedy, the “liberal lion,” was a fighter respected on both sides of the aisle and he fought hard and won many battles in his role as champion of the left-behind. That is how he should be remembered.

The title adequately describes my state of existence for most of this year. There is something awfully constraining about tough financial times. They tend to make me feel as if I am in a box, unable to think clearly outside of it. This “in the box” thinking doesn’t go so far in advancing me towards fulfillment of my life’s goals. So I just succumb to the idea that I have to be “hunkered down” for a while, until the economic storm clears and the waters are once again conditioned for smooth sailing. But are they ever really? I came up with an acronym recently to help me find a way out of this motivational malaise I have been experiencing this year. The acronym was to “SCORE a change.” The letters stand for change in terms of my Spirituality (relationship with God), physical Condition (health and fitness), Occupation (particularly sources of income), Recreation (how I spend my free time), and Environment (specifically my living arrangements). Problem is that mentally I can’t get past the idea that before I can score a change I need to score some “change,” money, that is. No this post is not headed in the direction of “asking for a donation.” Although maybe that is not such a bad idea and I certainly won’t turn it down right now. But it is a little funny, ain’t it honey, how we let problems with money cloud our days that should be sunny. Days when we spring up out of bed and attack life with fearlessness. I just haven’t felt that way for quite a while now. But is the problem really money, or my view of its role in my accomplishing things? Rather than trying to “bribe” my way out of my box, I could find a better, cheaper way that would at least let me carve out a little hole to let in some fresh air and light and allow me to see opportunities clearer. Maybe then I could see that there really is much more room to maneuver. That there is a way to get it done if I can just free my mind from this economic prison and partake in that age-old activity called “thinking.” But thinking that is out of the box, because the form of thought that has been occupying the grey matter inside my skull lately would better be described as “worrying.” Worrying never accomplishes a damn thing. Worrying is what puts you in the box in the first place. Worrying takes problems that can easily be overcome with a little creative thought and turns them into giant insurmountable obstacles. So if you can identify with my state of being “hunkered down” here’s my advice for both of us…..stop worrying and start thinking like Houdini, who never found a box from which he couldn’t escape. With a little creativity and ingenuity, we can too.

Back in the mid-90’s, when the Internet revolution was just beginning to take hold, many foretold that this wonderful and nebulous concept known as the “world wide web” would transform the way business is done. That in the future all commerce would be transacted via the computer. Well, “they” were wrong. People still like to touch and talk before they take the plunge and buy. In my business of arranging Costa Rica vacations, I could never sell anything if I wasn’t prepared to spend a lot of time talking (via email or phone) and catering to the concerns of would-be customers. In reality, the Internet has become something dramatically different that what was envisioned. Rather than a place of commerce (which, of course, it is to some extent), it has become a place for sharing of information, insight and ideas. The most recent development, the so-called Web 2.0 evolution, is all about that. And I can think of no better example than the weblog. Nowadays blogging has become a household word and the blogosphere has exploded like a supernova across the entire fabric of the world wide web. Social networks have followed closely behind. Most recently we have the advent of Twitter and ”micro-blogging.” The whole thing is a bit confusing, but I believe very productive. You see blogging gives ordinary people like you and me a forum to share our ideas with the world. The social networks and especially Twitter, which to me is a hybrid between social networking and blogging, give us bloggers a great platform to get the word out about our stuff. But it seems that many are still stuck in the Internet commerce world and view these new innovations as just another way to shamelessly self-promote. That’s not what it’s about, I don’t believe. The Web 2.0 innovation is about sharing value with others….it is about giving rather than persuading, or selling. I believe if you approach blogging, mico-blogging and networking, with the true motivation of giving something of value, for free, then you will achieve much more success than if you are simply trying to sell something. The by-product of that success may very well be more sales for your business, but it is a collateral effect. People will get interested in you because you have something of value to share…and if they are interested in you and like you, then maybe, just maybe, they will buy from you. I make no bones about the fact that I arrange Costa Rica Vacations and conduct Costa Rica real estate tours. I even slip in a link or two to my web sites related to those topics. However, I get a real kick out of sharing information about Costa Rica and about life in general to anyone who might be interested. From that perspective blogging and networkng is much more enjoyable because I am really not that concerned about the “marketing success” of what I am doing. To me what is so cool about all this is that I get to share my unique perspective as an expat in Costa Rica and a person with varied life experiences. The new metaphysics claims that thoughts and ideas are “things” and that on the sub-atomic level these ideas, that is, every idea that has ever existed or will exist, are lurking in some sort of “primordial soup bowl” of knowledge. We all have access to this reservoir via our subconscious minds. To me the new Internet evolution provides a way of releasing those hidden ideas into the physical realm, where they are readily accessible to us all. And that makes us all a lot smarter. I guess that’s what Web 2.0 is all about…..making us dummies a little bit more intelligent via the exchange of ideas and insights.

We live in a highly dysfunctional world, so it shouldn’t be surprising that most families possess their inappropriate degree of dysfunctionality. Well maybe not your perfect family, but everyone else’s. We human beings are amazingly flawed creatures, despite our highly evolved problem solving abilities. Why can’t we solve the problem of dysfunction? Because while we are very good at recognizing the flaws in others, we really suck at admitting to our own. Ask any member of a dysfunctional family where the fault lies and you are more than likely to get a “well it certainly ain’t with me” type of answer. What is the real truth that is at the heart of dysfunctionality? Is it not our inability to be accepting and compassionate towards a “loved” one even when we feel that their behavior is wrong? Even when it hurts us? Instead we allow things to get so out of control emotionally that we just retreat into our own world and stop recognizing the value in others, especially in our own family members. I know because I am there. In that place you develop a keen inability to see things from any other perspective than your own. You’re right and they’re wrong and that’s it. But is it really? No it’s really not because for as long as you allow dysfunction to reign in your life, the rain will never stop falling on your parade. There will always be that bitterness that you feel towards those who have wronged you. That bitter taste will linger and life will never again have the same sweet savor as it did when times were good and everyone was happy and in love. Remember those times? I do. They are not a dream. They really did exist. To anyone who might stumble upon this post who is experiencing the distress of dysfunctionality, I am with you in heart and spirit. Even though the solution may not lie completely in your hands, there is something you can do. You can learn to love unconditionally in spite of the pain. Agape love usually is pain inflicting because it is the choice to love even in the face of rejection or retaliation. We have a perfect model of this type of love in Christ. Despite the fact that his short life was marred by rejection and retaliation, even by his own people, he chose to love them and to take painful action on their behalf. Would you be willing to do such a thing? It may not be the ultimate solution to your experience of dysfunctionality, but I can guarantee you that it will be at least a step in the right direction. Because the ultimate solution is to somehow persuade families who are swiftly moving apart to reverse direction. Even though it may seem like turning the proverbial battleship on a dime, someone still has to take the helm and make that move in the opposite direction. Might that someone be you, or me? Costa Rica has in many ways been my retreat in the face of dysfunctionality, but there really is no escape. The distress of dysfunctionality will follow you no matter where you try to hide.

Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers all wrongs.

Proverbs 10:12

I first got a little taste of that island magic when I visited the island of Eleuthera back in the early 80’s. Eleuthera is an island in the Bahamas group. One of the first things I noticed upon landing is that these people drive on the wrong side of the road. The taxi driver quickly informed me, island style, that you better “stay left, or you dead right, mon.” Costa Rica has its own island flavor and that primarily exists over on the often forgotten Caribbean side. I visited the beaches of the Southern Caribbean over the last couple days and I can report that while folks are suffering from the economic malaise that grips the world these days, in the words of Bob Marley, things are still “jammin.” I seem to always gravitate towards Cahuita, as I have written about formerly here, but this time I also explored points further south. Of course there is the bustling Puerto Viejo, what I refer to as the “Jaco of the Caribbean.” But if you trek even further towards Panama you can discover some real gems. Places that perfectly define the phrase “laid-back.” I am talking about Cocles, Playa Chiquita, Punta Uva and Manzanillo. The “naturaleza” of this zone is spectacular. And it is well known as having some of the most beautiful uncrowded beaches and crystal clear waters in all of Costa Rica. For nature lovers I especially recommend both Cahuita National Park and the Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge. In these protected areas you can find an incredible array of marine life, flora and fauna. These coastal areas of Costa Rica contain some of the country’s most important coral reefs and are very popular for divers. But the most striking thing to me about these areas is that visiting them is like being transported to another country. They are a testament to the amazing diversity of Costa Rica. The people are predominantly black and of Jamaican or African descent. English and Spanish are widely spoken. The food is different, the culture is different and the “look and feel” of this part of Costa Rica makes it unique as compared to other areas. It really has that rasta-style island vibe, as if the ghost of Bob Marley blew a “shotgun” over the place and everyone began “talking reggae.” But really the Caribbean side has a little bit of it all, but outside of Puerto Viejo (which I personally recommend for visiting, but not staying), don’t expect the crowds and commercialism that are often encountered on the Pacific. It is a place to retreat, relax and reflect….and there is plenty of “greenery” to help you accomplish all of the above.

In da Caribbean they be Jammin mon…..

Well seems I just passed the half-way point for 365 Reasons I Love Costa Rica. Writing these posts has been quite a journey for me. Within the previous 183 one can find information about Costa Rica (what the blog was originally supposed to be), my frequent political rants, bouts of self-loathing, as well as a panoply of predilections related to my love of Costa Rica and its people. Who knows what might lay in store for the next 181 posts. You might be wondering what is the end game to all this? Where are you going with this thing Costa Rica Guy? I mean what happens after you reach the coveted 365th Reason? That my friend is the $64,000 Dollar Question. And if you think for a moment that I would cheapen myself by divulging the answer in this post, well, ain’t gonna happen. I have lived here in this “last country created by God” for quite a few years now and I still can honestly say that, yes indeed, I do love Costa Rica. My hopes and dreams for the future continue to lie here, even though the current economic crisis seems to have tossed the proverbial “monkey wrench” into the machinery of my aspirations. But then again, life always has its ups and its downs and I guess in many ways that makes it more interesting. There is nothing more stifling to one’s creativity and drive than a prolonged stretch of “smooth sailing.” The water does remain quite nice here in my beloved Costa Rica, despite the upheavals the world seems to be experiencing these days. Being here is sort of like living in a comfortable cocoon with a small window through which I am able to peer out and see the rest of the world. I am sure my vision is clouded by the fact that “seeing” and “experiencing” are two quite different things. Its hard to know what life in the U.S. is really like right now because I am not there, physically, even though the problems being experienced there have seeped into my supposed peaceful existence in Costa Rica. It seems that being in the tourism business makes you vulnerable to just about any economic event that occurs in the world, probably because a vacation is the ultimate discretionary expense. But oh well, at least I get to travel around this place really really cheap….a luxury I sorely need right now since the reluctance of you people in the U.S. to spend a dime on a Costa Rica vacation these days has me flat broke most of the time. But I would rather be flat broke here than anywhere else any day. So I will keep on writing and suffering under the illusion that there might just be someone out there who is actually reading and maybe even getting some enjoyment out of my daily posts that are, at least peripherally, related to the Reasons I Love Costa Rica.

Give a man a fish and you’ll feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you’ll feed him for a lifetime. Ever heard that one? It sounds real good as long as the powers that be (the “teachers”) have left a few fish for the rest of us poor saps to catch. I was listening to some U.S. Congressman or Senator talking about the subject of health care reform and he mentioned that a solution should be limited to what fixes the real problems that everyone agrees exist in the system, while at the same time being compassionate towards those that have less than adequate care. When I heard that, the idea hit me to question whether this guy (a Republican) is really talking about “compassion” or just “pity.” You see the people that are so staunchly opposed to the idea of a federal government health care overhaul are those who already have adequate access to health care. They don’t want anything about that to change and they certainly don’t want to be taxed to help pay for others who don’t have it. So this Republican was saying in effect, hey, show a little compassion here! As an expat I can tell you that I have no access to U.S. health care….zero. I am also not covered here in Costa Rica either. God forbid that some terrible disease would befall me, but if it did I guess I would be screwed. But don’t think for one moment that I would ever want your compassion? You can take that and stick it where the sun don’t shine. Because to me this whole idea of compassion is just a disguised form of saying, okay I guess we should show some pity to those who aren’t as fortunate as we are. So let’s do something, as long as that something doesn’t entail too much pain and certainly so that it does not interfere with my sterling health care coverage one iota. So the haves get to applaud themselves once again for extending a limp hand to the have nots. Many countries of this world, developed ones and many of the not-so-developed (like Costa Rica), have chosen to extend health care coverage to all their citizens. Are those systems perfect? Of course not, but at least they do accomplish a fundamental value and that is to recognize the intrinsic worth of every human being, regardless of what socio-economic class they might belong to. Obama’s grand idea is that the U.S. is powerful enough, successful enough and rich enough that it can also adhere to this fundamental value. And for that he is being lambasted, even to the point of pointless comparisons to Hitler. If the Republican idea is to tinker with the system and to promote compassion (pity) to the poor uncovered, then in my opinion the poor uncovered should arise in unison and say….we don’t want your pity! What we want is the same access to health care that you have…end of discussion. What has made health care unaffordable to many is greed. Greed of tort lawyers who are less concerned about making folks whole as they are about getting filthy rich. Greed of insurance companies who run their businesses like Vegas gambling casinos where the “house” always wins. And, yes, greed of many doctors who enter the profession for “status” as opposed to a genuine love of preventing and curing illness. Don’t let them turn this debate into a discussion of “compassion” when those who feign a desire to “teach us to fish” know full well that the water in that hole is stagnant.

For those of you who have raised children you know what a good old-fashioned temper tantrum looks like, right? The screaming, the kicking, the complete out-of-control behavior are all part of the repertoire of the typical two-year old tantrum. They usually always engage in this in a public place in order to maximize the humiliation to the parents and also to have the greatest manipulative effect. Watching the news reports of the recent “town halls” on the topic of health care reform, it is remarkable to me the similarity of the outrage of many to the two-year old tantrum. I mean there is a lot of the same indecipherable screaming, crying, kicking and ranting. These folks I guess want to convey some idea, but it is difficult to understand exactly what that is when they are screaming and drooling like an out-of-control toddler who just got his lollipop taken away. I guess all this bizarre behaviour is meant to cause maximum humiliation to the poor Congressman or Senator who is trying to provide them with a public forum to express their views. And there are credible reports that much of this is staged manipulation towards the predetermined end of defeating Obama’s effort to reform health care. When our children behave in this way, they should get punished and they certainly should not get their way. That just reinforces more of the same bad behavior. In the case of the screaming geriatrics and others who are showing up at these town halls, should they be given what they want? What exactly is it that they want? It’s hard to tell because most of what they are saying is lost in the volume of their unintelligible ranting. What is all this anger about anyway? Everyone agrees the U.S. health care system has serious problems. That in the country that leads the world in terms of economic development almost 50 million of its citizens do not have adequate health care coverage and face the threat of complete financial ruin if a catastrophic illness were to be suffered. Instead of throwing temper tantrums because you don’t like someone else’s idea, why not try calmly and intelligently expressing your opposition and, even better, your own ideas for how the problem should be fixed. Otherwise, you just deserve to be sent to your room. Oh and Nancy Pelosi is dead wrong about this behavior being “un-American.” In a country that always demands to get what it wants when it wants it, these tantrums are certainly as “American” as mom’s apple pie.