Tag Archives: Costa Rica

Random Stuff…

  • Friday’s Mega Millions is up to $179 Million! So spend a buck and if you win, remember I only need a $1,000,000 tip for the suggestion. For a second million I’ll build a computer lab at an underprivileged school and teach (volunteer) their computer classes (this is in the vicinity of where I retire from the first million, probably Costa Rica). It’s only $110 million if you take the cash option, so take away the taxes and it’s a measly $70 million dollars…
  • Torchwood is on tonight and it’s by the same writer as last week’s “Meat” episode! More secrets of Captain Jack’s past…
  • I really need groceries, but I don’t feel like going shopping. Anyone want to run some errands for me?!?
  • One of my best friends, Melissa, landed in Costa Rica a few hours ago and I’m SO jealous!!
  • Spring Cleaning

    I’ve been trying to filter out some of the “stuff” at my house that I don’t use any more, today was the clothes closet. Some stuff will be bound for Goodwill / Salvation Army, some for the trash and a few things for the vacation pile (clothes that I take on vacation but don’t bring back).

    What I really hate getting rid of is shirts with stuff printed on them for several reasons. One, I probably paid more for them. Two, I didn’t pay anything for them but they’re pretty unique. (But) Three, I rarely wear them. Some of it’s a mish-mash but today I noticed a bit of what I had in odd quantities:

  • Apple Computer T-Shirts (5): Most of these I got as promos or won at a conference but they’re all to small, it’s either all they had or it shrunk the first time I washed it. I keep hoping they’ll magically it some day, but…
  • Tori Amos (5): A few from concerts or that I found at a music store. I’ve got one that I got autographed at a concert.
  • Indigo Girls (6): Mostly from concerts, something from an on-line group and an autographed one that a friend bought for me at an fund raising auction.
  • Domestic Violence (7): I either purchased these at an event, they were given to me for volunteering at an event or came in a ‘thanks for donating’ package.
  • Costa Rica (1): I’ve been there 4 times and only ended up with one shirt from my first trip (from one of the Zip Line through the Cloud Forest adventures).
  • Blogography (3): Cool shirts that Dave from Blogography created.
  • Sandman related (6): Shirts inspired from the Neil Gaiman Sandman series (I think they all have Dream, Death or Delerium or some combination of them).
  • Tech Shirts (10+): Other tech shirts from vendors, tech conferences (part of registration or gift for presenting), organizations or something or another.
  • My job (6+): Shirts that one of the departments printed up for work or some kind of fund raiser event.

    I so rarely wear them out (in both interpretations), I usually just wear plain (colored) shirts. If I’m changing into something to wear after I come home and shower I’ll throw one on but wearing one out and about just doesn’t happen so often. Actually, other that wearing a music one to a concert I think the only ones I’ve worn outside in the last year is probably wearing a few of the shirts that Dave made. Continue reading

  • I found my ring!!!

    I found it! The ring I got in Costa Rica was buried in my luggage! I was showing Mark the cool features of my new security backpack and out it popped.

    Cr2007RingIt wasn’t even anything very fancy, it was just one that I liked. I picked it up at a store in Jaco called Guajira, the word Guajira means a few different things so I’m not sure what the name means, they’re right on the main strip so you can’t really miss it.

    As I said before, it was the only souvenir that I had picked up (besides my peanuts) so I was extra disappointed that it hadn’t even make it home. So I’ve been wearing that this weekend so I’m a happy camper :)

    Local Waterfall Diver Jumps

    I hiked back up the Montezuma Waterfalls Monday. I made good time since I remembered the route better this time. Some local Ticos were jumping from up high, the jumping wasn’t so dangerous as the climbing up the front of the waterfall, that was pretty amazing. Puts where I was jumping from to shame, but I still had fun jumping and swimming (and that’s the point, right?)

    ZumadiverThis guy jumped from a higher spot but I missed the shot, I couldn’t get the camera out fast enough, the video of this jump is still pretty high though.

    At the upper falls I started chatting with a few groups up there so I didn’t stay long and headed back with them since they wanted to try the way I was going to leave by. I was going a bit different direction since it was supposedly more direct back so I had to make some of it up as we went along (they knew this). It was certainly an easier way back (although you don’t se any of the falls) and I saw a few animals and a few sights I hadn’t seen before. I did get to see a huge iguana, an odd bird, and a monkey of some kind that I hadn’t seen before (a howler?).

    And of course there is a sixth set of photos to see (with some labels too!).

    Blog Advertising

    I have started running some Text Link Ads on the left side of the page. I apologize that I ‘sold out’ for that, but I’d much rather have someone else pay for my hosting than pay for it myself :)

    Most of the other ads on the site I pick what goes where, but I make so little on those, most will be gone soon. Most of little bits of money I make from ads are from Google or Amazon (and the Amazon ones are really hit or miss). Many times when mention a book or movie or something and you follow the link to Amazon or Buy.com, Wal-Mart or iTunes and you shop there, I make a few pennies (or more) from your purchase and you shouldn’t have to pay a penny more. Not all of the links are affiliate links, just when it’s something at one of the places I’ve signed up with, otherwise it’s just regular link.

    I’d just love to figure out how to make enough on-line from ads while sitting on the beach in Costa Rica. So consider these part of the “Gary Should Move to Costa Rica Fund”!

    Actually, if you’re shopping this holiday season and are going to shop at any of the above stores anyways, just follow any of my links to get to the only store of your choice and you can support my Costa Rica fund instead of letting Amazon (or one of those other guys) keep that commission?!?

    I lost my ring

    I purchased a ring in Costa Rica, I really liked it too. That was really the only souvenir that I picked up while I was there :(

    About an hour from the hotel yesterday I noticed I didn’t have it on, but I did have my other ring on, so I’m confident that I put it on and it wasn’t in the car. My hope is that it’s buried somewhere in my luggage/dirty clothes but I’m not hopeful. It’s probably in the hallway in the hotel, where I was wrestling with my luggage early in the morning, most likely in the stairwell since that was the biggest trick (it’s an odd, steep stairway) everywhere else I was just pretty much rolling it along…

    I’m Home!!!! (from CR)

    I made it home, I was up at 4:30 am and I’ve been traveling (car, boat, car, plane, plane, car) since 5:30 am. I’m just getting home at 1:00 am Detroit time (but it’s just Midnight Costa Rica time.

    I’ve got a 5th set of Costra Rica photos up, mostly of the area where I drove around the Southern end of the Nicoya Peninsula (a few have labels). That’s assuming all 19 photos upload properly, I’m not staying up to see….

    A Whole Row to Myself!

    I can’t believe how empty this plane is! It’s the plane from Costa Rica to Atlanta. I had an emergency row seat with a little more legroom (but it’s got the funky trays and they seats don’t recline), so I ended up moving and have a whole row to myself. I put up the armrests and stretched out, that’s enough legroom for me!

    Now if I only had kept that old pillow that I brought with me and discarded back in Costa Rica…