Condominium Project for Sale
Four luxury condominium buildings (one already built). Four buildings each of three floors, total 6 condos each. Each unit has two bedrooms, two bathrooms. Air-conditioning in each room. Laundry in each unit. Terrace in each unit. Quality construction - Ceramic tile floors throughout, Granite countertops in kitchen, quality appliances. Ample cabinet space in kitchens. Granite surfaces in bathrooms. Swimming Pool, Barbecue, Spa. Rancho for Receptions. Rental Service on Site Financing available.
Pierre Auclair - Tel: 2653-6565 - Cel: 8388-6565 www.condominiotinajas.com info@condominiotinajas.com
Volume 21, No. 2
Feb 2016
Issue No. 230
Founded 1996
THE HOWLER Ced. Juridica: 3-101-331333
FEATURES
Publisher, editor and production David Mills
Howler • Mono Congo
dmills@racsa.co.cr Tel: Office - 4702-5771 Celular - 8323-2795 CONTRIBUTORS
HERBERT WEINMANN ELLEN ZOE GOLDEN JESSE BISHOP SUSAN SMITH TOM PEIFER KAY DODGE
MARY BYERLY LYNDA ESPADA SYLVIA MONGE ROBERT AUGUST JEANNE CALLAHAN
8
Dining Out
Bokas is a new tapas restaurant, with a wide selection of goodies and comfortable ambience, in Langosta.
14 Around Town
Openings, closings, parties, music. The Gold Coast has it all, and bar-hoppin’ David is in the groove.
16
Surf Report
Anthony Fillingim wins the Witch’s Rock Circuito Guanacasteco de Surf; Malakai Martinez surfs Hawaii.
34
Surviving Costa Rica
35
Les Folies Parisiennes
It’s been a long writing career for our columnist, but The Howler has kept him busy for almost twenty years.
Happy Valentine’s Day to all
our readers
Tom takes a close look at the Paris Summit on Global Warming, concluding that the laws of physics don’t care what we think.
DEPARTMENTS 12 August Odysseys
31 Word Puzzle
17 Dharma Corner
32 Yoga
23 The Doctor is In
36 Sun & Moon
28 Español
37 Shape Up
30 February Forecasts
38 Tide Tables
Cover Caption: Beach House Restaurant Cover Photo: Maureen Thompson Cover Design: David Mills
The Super Facial
Pacific MediSpa Tamarindo and Pacific Plaza - Carrillo
OxiGeneO+
Pacific MediSpa in Playa Tamarindo and Pacific Plaza - Carrillo- now offers Pollogen OxyGeneo 3-in-1 Super Facial treatment, the most advanced facial technology in the market.
The Pollogen OxyGeneo technology is a cutting-edge anti-aging solution that redefines cosmetic treatments. So gentle and so effective, OxyGeneo Super Facials simultaneously provide the essential skincare treatments: exfoliation, natural skin oxygenation, and infusion of revitalizing nutrients • Skin rejuvention and firmed complexion • Visible results from the first treatment • Can be utilized also for hands, chest and shoulders. For women and men • Special packets for weddings.
Dra. Paula Ávila Leiva Médico Cirujano Estético - Cod 11619 medicallasercr@gmail.com Playa Tamarindo above Super Las Olas 3 floor Tel: 7286-9440 Pacific Plaza Carrillo, Tel: 2667-0767
OxiGeneO es distribuido en Costa Rica por www.provellcr.com • Tel 8937-0397 • Heredia
Time to Rest In the last editorial I mentioned the changes in my life for the year 2016. One of these changes refers to the magazine The Howler. For more than a year I have been thinking of quitting the magazine and starting to travel, to visit friends and family who are scattered around the world. I think that twenty years of dedication are sufficient and I am ready to rest, travel and do other things which I have in my plans. So this is the last issue of The Howler. Enjoy it. We also include a copy of issue No. 1, published by the team of Lee Davidson and myself, and we were right when we stated “ten years from now this issue will be worth at least what you paid for it”. It was published at a time when communication in Tamarindo was non-existent – few phones, no internet or e-mail or Facebook, no television – and was the only true medium in town. I have seen many publications start... and finish. It is easy to start a magazine, not easy to continue. I have published continuously never missing an issue (except for the much-needed October break), and, believe me, it is a full-time job. Organizing writers, collecting articles, editing and proofing, production, selling and designing ads, distributing, collection of money, etc... In twenty years innumerable bars, restaurants, businesses have opened and closed. Tamarindo is no longer the humble, laid-back village we knew and loved, way back when. At that time everyone knew everyone else. It is now a thriving town, with a lot of challenges and a lot of ambition. Sell The Howler? This would involve me in continuous work on the transition. If they do a good job on it, OK; but if they don’t, my reputation would be affected. I have bought a home in Huacas, as yet a quiet town and excellent for resting and enjoying my memories, and close enough that I can reach Tamarindo in minutes. I keep a great satisfaction from knowing that The Howler has helped so many businesses grow from their investing in advertising in my magazine.
I want to thank all my contributors for the marvellous job they have done; also my advertisers, without whom it wouldn’t have been possible; and my many readers; and, of course, my printer.
The Howler forever...
Bokas is a tapas bar/restaurant with a very comfortable feel to it. We spent a couple of hours recently working our leisurely way through a few dishes, and enjoyed it immensely. The owner is Lock Cooper, well-known in the real-estate community hereabouts, and he has taken on this new enterprise. The chef is Manfred MartĂnez, although some other chefs take over at times. From the menu you can choose a variety of dishes (except mahi-mahi, which Lock considers an endangered specie). We started with a large bowl of plantain chips, a sesame-crusted seared tuna, and the most succulent barbecued ribs I have tasted. We followed these with seared spicy sea bass and a conger risotto, and finished up with mango panna cotta, a crème caramel dessert and a chocolate mousse. The menu changes from day to day, the following being a sample. Plantain chips; mango salmon tartare; barbecued short ribs; conger, lime, avocado ceviche; octopus carpaccio with chimichuri tomatoes, parmesan; sesame crusted seared tuna, mango coulis, sweet chili sauce and preserved cucumber; spicy jumbo shrimps, tropical fruits, marmalade; seared spicy sea bass, vegetables, vanilla corn puree, tropical sauce; beef filet, onion confit, herbs mashed potatoes, mushroom sauce; chicken curry, couscous, garden vegetables; conger risotto, seafood coulis; bacon wrapped filet mignon, mashed potatoes, mushroom reduction. Dessert: Mango panna cotta; chocolate mousse. An excellent way to pass an evening - and not expensive, either. Bokas on Langosta Beach, opposite Cala Luna; hours 5:30 till late; all credit cards accepted; live music twice a week; weddings catered; closed Sunday. Tel: 4700-9401; Facebook: Bokas Langosta Beach.
Don’t Be a Statistic
Learn to Identify Rip Currents
R
ip currents are the leading surf hazard for all beachgoers. They are particularly dangerous for weak or non-swimmers. Rip current speeds are typically 1-2 feet per second. However, speeds as high as 8 feet per second have been measured--this is faster than an Olympic swimmer can sprint! Thus, rip currents can sweep even the strongest swimmer out to sea. Over 100 drownings due to rip currents occur every year in the United States. More than 80% of water rescues on surf beaches are due to rip currents. How to Identify Rip Currents Look for any of these clues: a channel of churning, choppy water an area having a notable difference in water color a line of foam, seaweed, or debris moving steadily seaward a break in the incoming wave pattern None, one, or more of the above clues may indicate the presence of rip currents. Rip currents are often not readily or easily identifiable to the average beachgoer. For your safety, be aware of this major surf zone hazard. Polarized sunglasses make it easier to see the rip current clues provided above. Never swim alone. Be cautious at all times, especially when swimming at unguarded beaches. If in doubt, don’t go out! Whenever possible, swim at a lifeguard protected beach. Obey all instructions and orders from lifeguards. If caught in a rip current, remain calm to conserve energy and think clearly. Don’t fight the current. Swim out of the current in a direction following the shoreline. When out of the current, swim towards shore. If you are unable to swim out of the rip current, float or calmly tread water. When out of the current, swim towards shore. If you are still unable to reach shore, draw attention to yourself: face the shore, wave your arms, and yell for help. If you see someone in trouble, get help from a lifeguard. If a lifeguard is not available, have someone call 9-1-1 . Throw the rip current victim something that floats and yell instructions on how to escape. Remember, many people drown while trying to save someone else from a rip current.
NOAA
August Odysseys
I
Robert August
Congratulations, David
t is quite a surprise to me that this article will be my last for The Howler! Every month I look forward to it and try to come up with something fun or a good story.
I saw David’s birthday article last month and I thought, “That’s cool, he is 80! What a great guy.” But then Kristen, who helps me write these awesome article every month, informed me that this is the last one! With that, I thought it would only be appropriate to congratulate David on his tremendous work. David, congratulations on twenty years of doing a great job. Everyone loves The Howler and can’t wait to see the magazine come out every month. The Howler is part of our community. and if I had some education and wasn’t so old I might try to pick The Howler up and go for it. I would love to be part of something like that. But, you know surfboard shapers historically are not very smart so that’s all I got going for me! Anyway, David, thanks a million! It has been a great part of my life and all kinds of people’s lives. Good luck in your retirement and I will see you walking around town!
S
Tribute to Robert
David Mills
eeing that this is the last issue of The Howler, let us break with tradition by a tribute to Robert August, the man to whom is owed such a lot by Tamarindo, the man who put our little town on the map.
Robert is probably the widest-travelled person I have met, having visited Africa, India, Australia when these places were almost unknown to tourists in general, and to surfers in particular. In his youth he surfed the world, and as the star of “Endless Summer” he brought a lot of fame to the beaches he visited. As if this were not enough, he virtually repeated the trip thirty years later, and documented this in “Endless Summer II”. Costa Rica and Tamarindo were well-featured in this movie, with the results we see now in our developed little town. Since then Robert has become a resident of Tamarindo, and puts a lot of his time, and effort, into promoting surfing with his own board-shaping business. He also participates in the fundraiser “Robert August Surf and Turf”, the local golf and surf extravaganza which annually raises large amounts of cash for local needy people. On top of all this he is one of the nicest men you can meet, anywhere, humble and unaffected. I have known Robert for over twenty years, and it is always a pleasure to see him. He has a terrifc sense of humour. I have never seen him in a bad mood. In addition, he has a teenage daughter, Christine, also a beautiful person, and she is following in father’s footsteps as a keen surfer, currently in California to further her education. I wish Robert all the best in his life. May his good health persist, and may he enjoy a long and happy life.
AROUND TOWN Russell’s Steak House Bar and Restaurant is now open just South of Super 2001 (where Carlos & Carlos was), with the best Iowa beefsteaks. See ad page 2. Wonderful condo development opportunity, at Tinajas in Huacas. Three buildings to build, one already finished. Quality construction throughout. See ad on page 2. Check out Felix Murrillo’s Art Gallery opposite AutoMercado for Costa Rican contemporary art. See ad page 37. Samba to the Sea is top-quality photography. See ad page 37. Beach House Restaurant has good food, cold beer, incredible sunsets, and offers free beer with the ad on page 9. February 5 - 9 is Mardi Gras, when Flamingo turns into New Orleans, with a boat arrival, drag races, pub crawl, lots of music and the big parade on the 9th. See ad page 11. Bar & Restaurant Paradise in Flamingo is open to the public - great food, great view - come with the famiy and enjoy. See ad page 29. Western Union in Huacas is open Monday to Saturday 8-12 and 1-6, opposite Farmacia El Cruce - information tel: 4702-0075, Lianeth Ruiz. Restaurant Hotel Mediterraneus is now open to the public in Potrero - information 2654-5342. See ad page 19.
“You know you’re in love when you can’t fall asleep because reality is finally better than your dreams.” Dr. Seuss
Stop the Presses CEPIA (Culture, Education and Psychology for Infants and Adolescents) is excited to announce $17,000 was raised for school supplies, and Christmas food packages for local families living in poverty, at the Black and White Party held November 27 in Playa Tamarindo. Over 280 participates came to the event at the classy Pangas restaurant dressed in their best black and white attire to raise funds for children in need and celebrate the ten year anniversary of CEPIA. It was a fun evening of dining and entertainment. African percussionist and fire dancers Bambafoli performed an exciting show for the guests, and DJ Matos played a great mix of music that had everyone from the age 20 to 70 dancing. Pangas provided a delicious buffet served by their professional staff. Everyone enjoyed browsing the silent action table that had a great selection of items including certificates for restaurants, tours, hotel stays, and unique art and jewelry items. Another highlight of the evening was when children that have benefited from the programs of CEPIA over the last ten years spoke about what the organization meant to them. The youths mentioned receiving school supplies and Christmas presents, the sports and arts programs, psychological counseling, and after-school programs that helped get them back on track and graduate from high school. Special thanks to the event founder Caralee Burton, Geneva Garcia Ellen (Serendipity Charters) and Natasha Avrith (Surf Box) for coordinating the event, DJ Matos, and Pangas for providing fantastic food at the perfect beachfront location. We deeply thank the following businesses for their donation to the silent auction of the party: Agua Rica Scuba Diving, Allresidency, Altos de Eros, Andrea Raffo, Antares Sailing, Azul Profundo, Blue Dolphin catamaran , Blue Water Properties, Bokas, Cabaña Blanca , Cafe de La Paz, Carolina Aron, Casa Nova, Cavalini Vet, Coco Spa, Colores del Pacifico, Cosmic Sister Shop, Costa Rica Sailing Center, Delizia, Denise Varela, DESSI, Diamente, Dolores, Uluwatu shop, 70° Shop, Ecotrans, Elite Close Protection, Esouvenir, The Westin, Esquina del Souvenir, Fabian Mandrea, Finca Shambala, Freedive, Café La Paz, Girl Fish, Gracie’s Gym, Hielo Friza, Hotel Conchal, Hotel Luna Llena, KOA, La Laguna del Cocodrilo, Las Catalinas, Latitude Blue, EK Jewelry, Lilly Loves, Lo Botti Vinos, Lola’s, Buena Nena, Marika Reinke, Mermaids and Sailors, Nimbu, North Pacific Dental, Nuevo UltraLight Tour, OM Ganesha Shala, Pachanga, Page Volgeson, Panda, Shark FM Radio, Papaya con Leche, Ponte Fit, Rip Jack Inn, RPM Rentals, Season’s, Ser Om Shanti, Serendipity Charters, Sharkey’s, Sisisitours & Transfers, Spark’s Art Gallery, Super Massai, Tamarindo Catering Company, Tamarindo Shuttle, Tattooanis, Tennis Club Tamarindo, The Empower Yourself Project, The Palms, Tripart, Ricardo Ramirez, V.E Unbuando, WokNroll, Annginette Arroyo, Azul Profundo.
A
crucial stage in the production of a magazine is, of course, the printing. When I decided to enter into this career, I thought that the printing stage would be simple and straightforward, after the complications of production. I was naïve, and so wrong! The first, and nearest, printer was in Liberia. We had no wheels at that time, so we bussed to Liberia and left the disc with the printer who assured us the magazine would be ready by Thursday the following week. On the appointed day we bussed into Liberia to find a chaotic scene. Five hundred two-sheet Howlers were scattered around the floor, on tables, cabinets, everywhere. One guy would take the two sheets, fold them and pass them to the next guy, who placed them on a foam block, took an industrial stapler and stapled them. This left the staples sticking up, so he passed them to the next guy who had a screwdriver which he used to fold over the staples. About a hundred had been completed, and the only bus to Tamarindo left in 15 minutes, so my friend Lee and I grabbed the finished Howlers, the loose sheets, the stapler and the block of foam and dashed out to catch the bus. In our apartment we continued the job, until we had five hundred Howlers. Another time we had the printed product shipped to Santa Cruz, but on the bus trip to Tamarindo the rain came through the floorboards of the bus, leaving the Howlers a mess, sodden and mud-splattered. We hung them around our apartment on clothes pegs to dry. It took three days. We then tried San José, and went through about four printers in about a year, with varying (lousy) results. We tried a guy in Cartago for about a year, and he was an expert mentiroso. He had a different story every month as to why the magazine wasn’t ready on time. One month he told me “Don David, we had the magazine all ready for the bus, but that night the ladrones broke in”. “What, they stole the Howler?” I asked incredulously. “No, but they broke in through a hole in the roof, and it rained all night, and guess what was under the hole”. I called back a couple of days later and spoke to the receptionist. “Any news on the break-in?” I asked. “What break-in?” she replied. That was the end of that relationship. I eventually found my present printer, ARDU S.A., and my fortune changed. Ligia Padilla taught me a lot of things I had been doing wrong all along with the other printers, which they had never thought to mention, and I taught her that when I said “Next Tuesday” I meant next Tuesday, not a week Friday. Together we developed a working relationship which has allowed me to publish on the first of each month. Thank you, Ligia.
Surf Report
F
Ellen Zoe Golden ellenzoe@aol.com
resh off his win as Costa Rica’s Surfer of the Year--a prize presented by Surfing Republic from the program’s annual online voting--Noe Mar McGonagle heads out to the Ericeira World Junior Championships in Portugal early in January. Last year, in these championships, McGonagle finished 5th, however this year after ending up in Round 4 with 16 other surfers, he lost the man-to-man heat against Lucas Silveria of Brazil placing him in 9th. The World Surf League, however, still took note of the Pavones athlete, reporting that he “produced his signature powerful surfing.” “I was thinking that it’s quality not quantity of maneuvers, so to concentrate on two good turns seemed like a good idea and I was stoked to find the waves out there,” he noted after beating Peru’s Juninho Uricia back in Round 2. “I’m really happy to get through.” Next up, Noe Mar (photo) joins Carlos Muñoz for this year’s romp in the Qualifying Series contests of the World Surf League. New to the mix on that tour will be Jason Torres, who made two rounds of the Shoe City Pro QS1000 on the southside of the Huntington Beach Pier. Thanks to his sponsor Volcom, Malakai Martinez is in Hawaii surfing on the North Shore. What a great opportunity for this young kid, who adds it to his accomplishments within the past year.
“There is never a time or place for true love. It happens accidentally, in a heartbeat, in a single flashing, throbbing moment.” Sarah Dessen
Malakai reported that he did pretty well the first day, but fell short the next day when he was unable to land any airs. He said that the waves he seemed to pull were too hollow to launch. However, coincidentally, he won the Expression Session down there in Brazil due to a fantastic airs, landing six in 30 minutes. Martinez walked away with $1,000. Sebastian Williams of South Africa became King of the Groms 2015, after entering the contest as a Wild Card. Williams earned $20,000. “It was a really good experience,” Martinez recounted. “I learned the reef very well, as well as people I didn’t know before.” If you’d like to check out some more about Malakai Martinez, look at this link from Stab Magazine: http://stabmag.com/meet-the-worlds-best-groms-heres-malakaimartinez/#d12jOyXsOQYqIU1K.97 The third season of the Circuito Guanacaste de Surf (CGS) tournament kicked off last month with its debut in the waves of Tamarindo. Coming in first was pro surfer Anthony Fillingim, who you may recall is the Latin American surfing champion. It’s of note for CGS that an athlete of that caliber would travel from Malpais to participate in the first of this year’s five contests. These will also include Tiki Hut in Marbella February 13-14, Kina Surf in Santa Teresa March 5-6, Lola’s in Avellanas April 2-3 and the finals Hotel Playa Negra at that beach on May 14-15. At the Witch’s Rock sponsored contest in Tamarindo presented by OTIS Eyewear and Freestyle Watches, Fillingim was joined by additional veterans Maikol Torres from Esterillos and the current Costa Rica national surf champion Jason Torres competing against a total of 150 surfers from the local area and even some from Puerto Viejo. Jason, as a matter of fact, ended up in the finals with Anthony, with Thomas King of Tamarindo and Angelo Bonomelli of Jaco, rounding out that heat.
“Hawaii has been super fun and has had some great waves,” he said. “Today and tomorrow the waves are gonna be huge; today is like 20-foot and no one is surfing. The Volcom house is super cool and everyone is really nice. Like I’ve been sick with a sinus infection and everyone is trying to make me feel better and getting things to heal me!” In December, because of winning an online voting contest, he went to Fernando do Noronha, Brazil, to compete with nine other finalists for the Quiksilver King of the Groms. Known as the Brazilian Hawaii, this unusual contest had a different format, where there were four sessions a day where they fought it out for Best Air, Best Turn, Best Combo trying to accrue the most points out of 30.
Fillingim managed to obtain a Perfect Ten on one wave in the finals with a Superman air maneuver which, along with his second score of 7, pushed him to win the contest. For his efforts, he was awarded $500. It’s important to note that during the course of the two days of competition, other surfers were able to make 10 point scores. This included King earlier in the Open heats, Venezuela’s José Joaquin Lopez in the Juniors and Tamarindo’s Dean Vandewalle in the Boys.
(continued page 28)
Dharma Corner
S
Sue Smith
Things Be a-Changin’
eems as though I have procrastinated in writing this column. I think because if I write it, it will then be the last one. It has been a privilege to write about the Dharma each month for the past two and a half years. And I am grateful to David Mills for that privilege. It has become a part of my practice. A part in that it has made a space for me to stop and contemplate some aspect of the Dharma and then hopefully put it into the written word for others to read and understand or to contemplate. I will miss writing this column because of that space that it held. But as we learn from Dharma, everything is impermanent. I guess most of us never took the time to think about the Howler coming to an end. But then, all things do, don’t they?? It is just part of life...that impermanence thing. Impermanence is the only thing that is permanent. And, because all things are interconnected, this event…the final edition of the Howler…has many implications for many people. For all the writers, what will we now do with that time or space that we held for writing our column?? Hopefully something else creative. And for our retiring editor and friend, a lot of time and space...time to reflect on the contribution he has made to our community thru this publication, time to enjoy walking the beach without some deadline in the back of his mind, time to travel and space to just relax and BE in the present moment. So, many things will change in ways not thought of. Good thing, some not so good (where will I get phone numbers for things in Tamarindo without all the ads in the Howler?). Whether good or not so good is up to each person and how we chose to use this new space or time, this change. Our thoughts and feelings are what make our reality and those are up to us. So, let’s keep the spirit of the Howler going by continuing to make little positive contributions to this community. For some it may be giving information to a tourist, for others continuing to share humor and laughter and for others sharing advice. Again, thank you David for bringing all our talents (great and small) together for these many years. Like you, I think we all hope we have made a small contribution to our community. May you know peace, ease and joy as you make this transition in your life’s journey. Simply put: Happy Retirement!!! Namaste
Pura Vida Sangha is a Buddhist Sangha in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh. The Sangha meets for meditation Mondays at 4:00pm at the CEPIA building in Huacas. For information contact meditationcostarica@gmail.com.
Tamarindo Lifeguards
N
ext month, the Tamarindo Lifeguard Program will have officially been up and running for a year. Their presence has significantly increased the safety of the ocean in our town as has been documented by these men after each successful pull from the water and resuscitation. Just exactly how effective have the Tamarindo Lifeguards been on our beach? Try162 rescues or medical assists that have taken place between March 1, 2015, and December 31, 2015. Among these people—who are more than statistics—were the local surfer who severely injured himself and thought he might not be able to walk again. Certainly, the well-trained men who pulled him from the water increased his chances of leg movement, which did eventually return. Additionally, the 7-year-old Tica who drowned was rescued and unresponsive without a pulse. Our lifeguards were able to resuscitate her and she completely recovered. Interestingly enough, the majority of rescues were Costa Ricans, which points out the fact that this country needs a recognized national service at all its popular beaches for tourists and locals. Here is the breakdown of United States and Canadian citizens who owe their lives to the Tamarindo Lifeguards: Texas 5 Seattle 4 Los Angeles 2 San Francisco 1 New York 4 Denver 1 Utah 1 South Carolina 1 St. Louis 2 New Jersey 1 Unknown US Cities 20 Total US citizens 42 Total Canadian citizens 6 And the good work spreads. This month, trainees from the last session conducted here in Tamarindo organized a new lifeguard service in Flamingo. These guys will service the beaches in that area, as well as some hotels. With Tamarindo as a model, Flamingo’s lifeguards will also be funded by area businesses. Speaking of which, don’t forget to make a donation to the Tamarindo Lifeguard Program. Money is used for salaries and equipment. Contact them at www.tamarindolifeguards.com
“I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where. I love you simply, without problems or pride: I love you in this way because I do not know any other way of loving but this, in which there is no I or you, so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand, so intimate that when I fall asleep your eyes close.” Pablo Neruda
David Howler Kay Dodge I would like to introduce you to my friend and colleague, David Howler. It says something when your friends don’t introduce you by your name, but by your creation, The Howler. Twenty plus years ago, we foreign residents knew each other, the community was small, and we met often at Nogui’s for a beer at sunset to catch up, or at the local fiesta to watch the bulls. Changes have been dramatic for both the town and its people. Oh, how the Howler has changed. I have seen David’s creation evolve from a black and white publication that resembled a community newsletter, to a full-fledged, full-color magazine, as well as internet publication, and over the years David’s creation became the source of so many aspects of life and living in Tamarindo and Guanacaste. As a contributor to the magazine for over 20 years, I have been privileged to know and work with David, and I thank him for giving writers a free forum to present our many different perspectives and creative rantings over so many years. It was not always easy to sit down and write every month when there are so many distractions in Paradise, and even more difficult to come up with new materials readers would find interesting after 10 or 20 plus years. So many times, we were late and had to be cajoled to meet our monthly deadlines. And, how patient he has been us and with some advertisers that gave him more than a few of his grey hairs. (I urge anyone who is delinquent to fess up and pay.) Writers need dead-
lines, and after the story is written, photos posted and the magazine goes to press, there is a real satisfaction seeing your words and worlds in print. The Howler was David’s way of encouraging local talent and showing his knowledge and awareness of good news management. And, oh, how David has changed! Roots in England and Canada, David is after so many years a Tico, showing his love for the Guanacaste culture and people, while helping promote the ever changing and growing business community in Tamarindo and the Gold Coast. Over the years, we have shared fiestas, topes, grand openings and funerals, as well as more than our share of Imperials and fried chicken at Chilito’s. David spent many hours on his favorite horse, Rommel (the Desert Fox), always dapper in his traditional Tico sombrero. He led many a parade as Invidado Especial, until a few years ago when they both retired a little grayer, but always handsome, David is still a recognized fixture of Tico life. It goes without saying that we will miss the Howler
and its balanced editorial content, but I think David deserves a break to enjoy the end of the month. We all thank him for his talent and consistent love of the word. Both will be missed, but not forgotten….how about re-releasing the last Howlers on line, so they can be shared again. We love you David.
Selected Poems from “Tell me about the Telaraña” by Diana Renee who will sing for you who will find you and take your hand who will wait a thousand years until morning who will climb the trees and bring you birds?
escuché la eternidad en la lluvia que caía como un río entre tierra y cielo acurrucados como gatitos miramos el baile de las hojas bajo las líneas curvas de agua que se tiraron del techo de zinc la noche tan profunda y tan cálida como el mar se tragaba las palabras y nos envolvía en su inmensa manta negra escuché la eternidad en la lluvia contigo y conocí siempre siempre siempre
giant bugs like the devil’s butterflies come up out of the ground after the first rain
“Tell Me About the Telaraña” is available at www.amazon.com Read Diana’s blog at dianarenee.com
Misting
Make Your Outdoor Space Dr. Herbert Weinman, MD, MBA thedoctorisinsharkfm@gmail.com
the coolest place to be
Avoiding Jet Lag Jet lag has ruined many vacations, has been a significant factor in international athletic competition, and the reason for many upset business meetings. To help combat this malady, a handful of scientists are specializing in chronobiology - the study of how time affects living organisms. The speed of travel and the distance above Earth that we fly have nothing to do with jet lag. Neither do typical in-flight symptoms such as ear popping, dehydration or motion sickness. It is strictly a phenomenon of long-distance, rapid travel into a new timeframe. North/South travel does not produce jet lag. Jet lag is a consequence of crossing time zones in East/West flight.
Misting is a quality service every home owner, business operation, commercial developer and agricultural producer is choosing to have as an investment as part of their day to day operations or life.
Every creature on earth is equipped with innate measuring systems traditionally referred to as the five senses. Chronobiologists tell us that actually three more abstract, but equally important “senses” exist: the senses of place and time, and, as a byproduct of both, the sense of well-being.
But what we can do is ask you to visit our web site and or our Facebook page as they will answer all your questions. If you are not able to find the answers, I am available for your calls or emails.
It can take from two days to two weeks for internal biological rhythms such as sleeping, waking, digestion and elimination to “reset”. The question is how to speed up and ease this process. Using artificial and natural light helps to synchronize the wake/sleep schedule. Essentially you trick your body by pulling down the shade of a window seat when it would be nighttime at your destination even if it’s daytime in your hometown. If it is your normal bedtime, but still light at your new destination, don’t revert to your old timeframe and take to bed. Rather flood your eyes with daylight. Don’t even use sunglasses. Help your body reset its internal clock. You can get a jump on jet lag even before you leave home by retiring later and arising later for three days before traveling east to west. Retire earlier and arising earlier traveling west to east. High-protein foods such as fish, fowl, eggs and meat stimulate the adrenaline pathway and give you up to five hours’ worth of long-lasting energy. In contrast, a meal of high carbohydrate foods such as pasta, cinnamon rolls, sugar sweetened beverages and rich desserts, give you a surge of energy for up to an hour, but then actually encourage sleep. If you’ve traveled from New York to Los Angeles and need to stretch out your day to fill a longer period of daylight than what you are accustomed, a high protein meal will help. Conversely, if you have traveled east and nightfall is earlier, the sleepiness brought on by a high carbohydrate meal can make a significant difference on how you feel. It’s also important to avoid artificial stimulants and sedatives such as caffeine and alcohol to reduce the incidence and effects of jet lag.
How do you get all the information of what we can do in this article? We can`t.
Q - Water, water, water…how much? A - Typical home misting for 5 to 6 hours will use the same water consumption as a shower. Q - Biggest benefits of the misting systems are? A1: Warrantied and Guaranteed. A2: being able to sit in comfort on your patio any time of the day enjoying the views . A3: is the savings on electrical monthly costs. A4: mortality rate in agriculture is decreased. Q - What else can ProTech Misters provide? A - Along with our misting systems that are used for residences, industrial, commercial, agricultural, marine vessels we are also experts in Irrigation Installations and repairs. Understanding water restrictions is key and knowing how and when to maximize the water available is what we do for our clients. My name is Steven Faux and I am the owner of ProTech Misters and my family and I are in your community. Muchas Gracias and Pura Vida
Tel: 8565-5405
www.protechmisters.com protechmisters@gmail.com
Surf Report
(from page 16)
After all the accolades, Fillingim (photo below) described his feelings about the contest and CGS. “It was good out there, “he said. “I like the CGS better than the national contest (Circuito Nacional de Surf) because this one has got better beaches.”
At the same contest, there was very good news for Zulay Martinez who after a few years of running the CGS as well as the Circuito Nacional de Surf finally copped her first win in the Women’s category. “I’m super happy to win my first Open, and better because it came in my home of Tamarindo.” Two new procedures were implemented at the Witch’s Rock CGS. First, there was a wave priority board set up on the beach—the first one of its kind in Costa Rica. And now, competitors may register for the contests in advance. (For details check out Facebook Surf CGS). For 3-days in April, the annual Robert August Surf & Turf Charity Challenge returns to the Tamarindo area. Once again August will gather his friends and open up the event for participants to compete in a surf contest in Avellanas and a golf tournament at Hacienda Pinilla. Here is the schedule: April 15k—opening ceremony and dinner; April 16—golf scramble and surf tournament; and April 17—closing ceremony party. (continued page 33)
“Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.” Robert A. Heinlein
Cámara de Comercio y Turismo de Playa Tamarindo The Camera de Comercio y Turistica (cctt) and the Water Supply Institute (AyA) have agreed to develop a campaign to promote the reasonable use of water in Santa Cruz canton. By agreement of Sandra Salazar, executive president of AyA, in the next weeks they will initiate a process of visits – business and communites – with a view to identifying the most effective strategies for avoiding the waste of water. “We have to change the way people think about saving water. The changes in infrastructure must be accompanied by help of the population, such as not watering streets to keep down dust, watering gardens and washing cars”, said Salazar. The job of AyA includes avoiding leaks, using technologies to preserve water, protecting the aquifers, educating the public about water saving, and distribution of informative materials to businesses in the tourist sector, such as hotels and restaurants. Hernan Imhoff, president of cctt, affirmed that his organization would support the distribution of information regarding water savings. “We are in an age when it is crucial to generate jobs in the region to handle a large quantity of tourists”, he said. “For this reason, we must help to send the message to combat the waste of water.” During the past September Grupa Diria has loaned to Tamarindo a well with the capacity of 5 litres per second, until next November. This action has permitted the reduction of the deficit of water from 7.5 litres per second to 2.5. AyA and CCTT will organise a technology fair at the end of February which will display alternative devices to save water, such as toilets and washbasins, which operate on reduced levels of water. “These types of solution are very successful and economic, because they save water and reduce user costs,” said Imhoff. As well as promoting the installation of these technologies, the organisations hope that the taxes will be removed from these types of equipment. Tamarindo Chamber of Commerce and Tourism is a group of businessmen with the view of developing the town in a sustainable manner to support the many visitors who form its economy. Contact:
Luis Castrillo Marín servicios.periodisticos07@ gmail.com Tel: 7108-5868
On the deck outside Aqua Disco
Que es la hidroponía?
What is hydroponics?
La palabra hidroponía deriva de dos palabras griegas - hydro (agua) y ponos (trabajo), es decir - trabajo con agua.
The word derives from two Greek words - hydro (water) and ponos (work), that is to say - working with water.
Es una rama de la agricultura que utiliza el agua como medio para la siembra. Esta siembra usualments se realiza en interiores tales como: salones, cuartos, casas de habitación, bodegas, sótanos, invernaderos, entre otros.
It is a branch of agriculture that uses water as a growth medium. This growth usually occurs indoors such as: salons, rooms, living spaces, storage rooms, basements, greenhouses, among others.
La hidroponía permite sembrar en otros sistemas distintos al suelo, ya que utiliza diferentes medios de cultivo inertes (inactivos), que imitan las condiciones del suelo como sustrato para que las plantas tengan protección y anclaje, desarrollen raíces, crezcan y que generen frutos. Algunos de estos sustratos pueden ser: fibras, turba, arenas, espumas, piedras, geles, lanas, aserrín, arcillas y cascarillas. Esta tecnología imita las mismas condiciones que se presentan en una siembra convencional (la cual se hace el aire libre), pero presenta la gran ventaja de que estas condiciones son completamente controladas. De esta manera, se puede “jugar” o manipular factores básicos para el buen crecimiento de cualquier cultivo, como por ejemplo la cantidad de alimento (fertilizantes) que las plantas requieren, la cantidad de agua a consumir, la humedad en el ambiente, el grado de acidez y alcalinidad (pH de agua), la temperatura deseada, y las horas luz diarias (fotoperiodo). Se elimina el riesgo de muerte de las plantas que puede ocasionar la exposición del cultivo a eventos extremos, tales como el exceso de agua (lluvia), falta de agua (sequías), vientos fuertes, plagas, enfermedades, etc; lo anterior incide directamente en los rendimientos de cosecha que se pueden esperar, y por lo tanto en las ganancias que se pedan obtener.
Ventajas: Uso más eficiente de insumos • Retorno rápido de inver-
sión • Menores riesgos de erosión y contaminación • Uso más racional del agua • Mayor precocidad de las plantas • Mayor producción de cosecha en menos espacio • Reducción de plagas y enfermedades • No requiere el uso de maquinaria agrícola.
PACHAMAMA Indoor Farming Culture Carrillo - Do-it Center - Tel: 2667-0882. San Pedro Tel: 2234-7884 / Santa Ana Tel: 2203-5307 E-mail - info@costaricahydroponics.com
Hydroponics allows the growth in other systems than soil, and uses different media of inert material which imitate the conditions of soil as substrate by which the plants have protection, anchorage, develop roots, grow and produce fruits. Some of these substrates can be fibres, peat, sand, foam, stones, jellies, clay, wool, sawdust and husks. The technology imitates the same condition found in a conventional outdoor growing space (fresh air), but presents the great advantage that the conditions are completely controlled. In this manner, one can “play” or manipulate the basic factors for the best growth of whatever plant, as for example the quantity of food (fertilizer) that the plants require, the quantity of water consumed, the humidity of the surroundings, the degree of acidity or alkalinity (pH of water), the desired temperature and the hours per day of light (photoperiod). All the above factors together produce in less time than the conventional agriculture, in a minimum of space, plants more vigorous and healthy, optimizing the use of consumibles during the life of the product. It also eliminates the risk of death of the plants which can happen due to exposure to extreme conditions, such as excess of water (heavy rain), shortage of water (drought), strong winds, pests, sickness, etc. the above facts bear directly on the quantity and quality of the expected harvest.
Advantages: More efficient use of consumibles • Faster return on investment • Less risk of erosion and contamination • Better use of water • Better harvest in smaller space • Reduction of pests and sickness • No need for agricultural machinery.
National Football - Summer Season February 3 Liberia Belén Cartagines Herediano UCR Carmelita Saprissa Perez Zeledon Alajuelense Santos Uruguay Limón February 10 Herediano UCR Belén Limón Saprissa Uruguay Perez Zeledon Cartagines Carmelita Alajuelense Santos Liberia February 14 Cartagines Saprissa Limón Santos Alajuelense Herediano UCR Perez Zeledon Uruguay Belén Liberia Carmelita February 17 Perez Zeledon Alajuelense Carmelita Limón Santos Belén Saprissa UCR Cartagines Uruguay Herediano Liberia February 21 Belén Carmelita Uruguay Santos Liberia Perez Zeledon Limón Herediano UCR Cartagines Alajuelense Saprissa February 24 Limón Saprissa Uruguay Carmelita Belén Perez Zeledon Alajuelense UCR Liberia Cartagines Herediano Saprissa February 28 Perez Zeledon Limón Herediano Belén Cartagines Alajuelense Carmelita Santos UCR Uruguay Saprissa Liberia (for more information, see www.unafut.com)
Scott
Windows Touch Up
Windows Washing - Final Cleaning Touch Ups - Gutters Cleaned Skylights Cleaned - Machinery Cleaned and many others... “Looking through the windows as without them”
A treatment as good as the service
All over Guanacaste
Owner: Henry Méndez Pérez windowstouchupcr@gmail.com Tel: 8969-7154 / 8718-4429 Fb: Windows Touch Up
Español
Yoga for Your Brain There was a famous show any geek would know that said “Space, the final frontier” and at the time, when the show had come out, it was. Some twenty years ago neuroscientists from around the globe declared a similar statement “The Brain, the final frontier”. They wanted to help us laymen understand the daunting task of trying to understand our noggin, they wanted to give us an idea of the vastness of what we need to know. Our knowledge on the subject has grown exponentially, much like it did with space since we first stepped on the moon. The human being is truly amazing when guided by intention and desire. Scientists have begun to focus on the brain in relation to being human, to conscientiousness and to learning. I sat in a classroom in 1995 with a neuroscience professor who looked like a beatnik, and fell in love with the brain. I began to study on my own, since this fateful class was my last semester senior year of university. When I went for an advanced degree in education I was already teaching children about the brain and making hypotheses about how learning could be enhanced with brain research, I based my thesis on it and it was all very exciting. Now I teach children and adults to speak Spanish but behind that is my own agenda, to teach people how to improve learning through the knowledge and understanding their own cerebral matter. After many years of research we know now that this approach works, when we learn about how we learn we learn better. (Say that 10 times fast!) Becoming a polyglot is the single most powerful supplement you can give your brain. Language and math engage your whole brain; they are like lubricants for the motor that is our thinking. The cerebrum is efficient, kind of like my dad when I was a kid with the lights in the house. He would go around the house shutting off every light in the house that wasn’t in the room we were in. The brain does the same thing, if you don’t use it, it turns it off, it is a way to use its power more efficiently. You give the brain a directive like “I want to learn to speak Spanish” and it begins activating the parts necessary for the task. As we get older and more set in our thinking and activities, these parts we haven’t used in a while begin to atrophy, shrink and develop cognitive deterioration. Second language learning kick-starts the brain; it activates the recesses and helps it grow again. What, stop! The brain grows? Some twenty years ago, around the time my beatnik professor was blowing my mind, there was a theory that the cerebrum reached an optimal potential in adulthood, that you were somehow given a certain number of neurons and if you played your cards right you could keep them. It dictated that the neurons were like sand in an hourglass that could be accelerated with each vice. Nothing could be further from the truth. Learning is about synapses and connections; as you make more, that grey matter continues to grow. Whole-brain learning and in turn second-language learning can be thought of as the fertilizer for cerebral growth, so much so that cognitive deterioration, diseases and ailments can be improved and, more importantly, staved off by learning a language or math. I love science!
(continued page 29)
Español... (from page 28) The greatest misconception we have about the brain is memory. I work with older adults that assure me on a daily basis that they are losing their memory and they tell themselves that it is the natural outcome of old age. As we age we expect to begin losing our memory and our mind to falter. This may be the single most detrimental thought a human can have. Remember the brain will take on your directive, so if you tell it that it is supposed to get stupider, it says “OK boss” and starts slacking off. It is not that you are losing your memory, it is that the bank is full. On the contrary your brain grows when you learn and learning should not be exclusively memory-based. In reality, it should have never been in the first place; that was another outcome of a misunderstanding of how the brain works. The idea of rote memory was always faulty, we should be learning in patterns. Memory is cast by a number of things and repetition is surely one of them, but for truly lasting memory we need extra stimulus; emotion, extreme experiences and intent. When we want something the brain stores things differently, as if to make a file for it. When we learn another language we must create a new database of words and connect that file to all the sections of our brain, hence whole-brain learning. There are a lot of reasons to learning a second language; it is fun, you meet new people, you see another face of the world and you improve your native language at the same time. There is one, much more important, reason to keep learning anything, it keeps your brain growing and working properly. One thing we were told is true, the brain is a muscle, the more you use it the firmer and stronger it gets. Second-language learning is the best workout your brain could ever want. Like yoga for your brain. Polyglot - Someone who can speak more than two languages.
Sylvia Monge owns Spanish for Expats (spanishforexpatscr.com) and thinks the brain is ridiculously cool. She uses her knowledge and study of the brain to make learning Spanish and English easier, more entertaining and engaging. She dreams of a world where brain potential is finally realized.
“Love never dies a natural death. It dies because we don’t know how to replenish its source. It dies of blindness and errors and betrayals. It dies of illness and wounds; it dies of weariness, of witherings, of tarnishings.” Anaïs Nin
Bar and Restaurant open to the public
Your Stars in February
Aries: 21 March - 20 April
Libra: 23 September - 23 October
Taurus: 21 April - 21 May
Scorpio: 24 October - 22 November
You are in much better shape this month as your ruling planet, Mars, is traveling in the middle of Scorpio, a sign it rules and behaves well in…that is as long as you have lots of activities that can totally involve your passion, power and physical acumen! Look for something that you can really get committed to. Aries likes action so get busy with something meaningful! Best days are the 11th and 12th. With Venus now transiting the sign of Capricorn and approaching a conjunction with Pluto and Mars in Scorpio, there’s more than a bit of intensity surrounding close personal relationships. Do your best to be practical as well as passionate with your partner and get clear about your respective roles and expectations. For all Tauruses money matters, so don’t be extravagant at this time. Your stellar days are the 13th and 14th, Valentine’s Day, how perfect is that?
Gemini: 22 May - 21 June
With the Mercury retrograde recently over on January 25, the little dude will be moving through the degrees it retrograded over until February 14th. Saturn is in the middle of Sag, opposing your sign so that indicates a period of reflection about the direction life has taken for you over the past year. If you are not happy, then do something to alter your course to get you to the place you want to go. Good days for asking for what you want are the 15th and 16th.
Cancer: 22 June - 22 July
You have more relationship drama coming this month as Mercury, Venus and Pluto transit your solar seventh house of partnership. Valentine’s Day is likely to be passionate and dramatic! For those solo Cancers, with Mars in Scorpio transiting your solar fifth house of love, fun, and creativity you can use this energy to find someone to date! Your best days are the 17th and 18th.
Still a bit of a tangle with money as Mars passing through your solar second house creates some additional unplanned expenses. It’s true, you have been particularly battered by this Uranus/Pluto square, but it is waning now. So you are once again entering new territory but you are resilient enough to get through it. The 25th and 26th are your best days, but if you can, just take some time off on the 26th when the moon is void all day. Recharge your batteries! With Mars in your sign, you feel almost invincible now. There’s a certain confidence manifesting within you now about how you want to direct the affairs of your life. Still with Saturn in Sag and your solar second house, money is tight and you have this feeling of lack regarding resources. Jupiter in your solar eleventh house brings you in contact with powerful and resourceful people. Your days to shine are the 1st, 27th and 28th.
Sagittarius: 23 November - 21 December
This is a bit of a stalled time for you as Saturn in Sag is squaring Jupiter in Virgo. You just can’t get ahead and are tired of the game and of treading water. Well, buck up; be prepared to just keep the status quo as this square continues through July. There are limitations you need to honor, possibly with your own body right now. Take the time to follow up on any medical issues that you’ve been avoiding. Best days are the 2nd and 3rd.
Capricorn: 22 December - 21 January
Leo: 23 July - 23 August
With Mercury, Venus and Pluto in your sign most of the month, there is a willful intensity to your personality. You may be less tolerant of those who don’t go along with your agenda. What you really want right now is commitment from others to do what they say. You have a lot of passion this month and want others to also be on the same level as you are. You are still very powerful and can get your way on the 5th and 6th of the month.
Virgo: 24 August - 22 September
With three planets in your solar twelfth house for the first two weeks of the month I would recommend a retreat, vacation or a solitary venture somewhere. You need some time to get clear on what your want to accomplish next in your life. With Jupiter and the north node in your solar eighth opposing Neptune and the south node in your second, there are financial concerns heavy on your mind. Get some professional advice about this. Best days are the 7th and 8th.
With the Sun now in Aquarius, the sign opposite yours, there are matters to compromise on. Mars in Scorpio squaring Leo makes you less likely to want to do that. Makes the best deal you can and know that you can always renegotiate later when the planets get into more favorable signs for you. Saturn in Sag, another fire sign, says that there are valuable lessons to be learned. Days where things go your way are the 19th, 20th and 21st. Jupiter is retrograde in your sign, traveling close to the North Node of the moon all month. This is significant time for all Virgos as they need to align with their highest values and not muck around with people who are not of their word. Easier said than done in much of the working world! No harm, no foul, there’s just no energetic match-up, that’s all. Your best days of the month are the Full Moon on the 22nd and the 23rd.
by Jeanne Callahan jeannecallahan007@gmail.com
Aquarius: 22 January - 19 February
Pisces: 20 February - 20 March
With Saturn in Sagittarius at the top of your chart in the tenth house, you are likely to have to take on more responsibilities in your professional life. Say yes to it all, as this is a time of culmination and recognition for your efforts. It’s slow and steady progress for both you and your spouse as the demands of work are at the forefront in your lives through July. Best days are the 9th and 10th.
Namasté Visit Jeanne’s site at CelestialAdvisor.com
Word puzzle Miscellany
All words from the list below can be found in the word block on the right. Answers may be forward, backward, upwards, downwards and diagonal. annually aumento borracho button carretera catastrophe colon communicate ejecutivo extricate founding futura highway inauguracion increible
invertir mesonero mezcla palabra pensar pertain pugilism reunion servicio suddenly taller tantalus televisora tension waitress
Now Begins the Study of Yoga
Love
In this final yoga column, in sadly, the final edition of the Howler, let me start with a deep bow of gratitude to David Mills, who has put his heart and soul, and then some, into the publishing of this magazine for over twenty years. I saw my first Howler magazine in the Remax office in Tamarindo back in 2001, as my partners and I were searching for property to create our yoga retreat, Panacea de la MontaĂąa. Chris Simmons handed us a couple copies of recent ones, saying that if we wanted to be in this area, this magazine would help us find out all that was going on. Ten years later, I started writing this column, glad to be a part of it. David, you have always worked to give every business here the opportunity to be known through the Howler, and for this I am grateful, as well as for the opportunity to share my passion for yoga every month. In this last Howler, I think it important to cut to the chase and share what is the most important benefit of yoga. This is the secret of all yogic traditions. Yoga is really all about love. I know, some of you were thinking the most important benefit of yoga was the yoga-body, some of you were convinced the most important benefit of yoga was becoming the super-bendy Instagram yogi, and some of you were thinking it was a great way to meet nice people while wearing lycra (we are all a little concerned about this last group.
Mary Byerly is one of the owners and the yoga teacher at Panacea. An oasis of tranquility and health 10 minutes from Tamarindo. Discover Paradise and Bring a Peace Home www.panaceacr.com • 2653-8515
While all of those things can be wonderful side benefits of this practice, yoga is about connection. The word yoga means union, and the practice is about uniting with our true Self, the divine within us. From the physical postures, to the breathwork, to the mantras, to the meditation, yoga is designed to bring you to the deepest, best part of yourself. When we find the bliss of that union (Samadhi), we unite with all things. We realize oneness. That oneness, its essence, is love. It is the feeling at the end of a great class that opens and connects you with your body/mind that is love. It is about being so present on our mat, that we are present for ourselves and others after we come off of our mat and into the rest of our life. It is what keeps us coming back to the mat. It is the ways in which these practices ground us, move us mindfully, challenge us, and still our minds. In our stillness, we find ourselves, we find that light of love within, and everywhere else around us. So to me, it is all about love. And this is how I wish to finish my last and final column for the last and final Howler. With love, for this community, and for the yogi/ yogini in each one of you. The light in me recognizes and honors the light in you.
Namaste, Mary
Surf Report
Te amo para amarte y no para ser amado, puesto que nada me place tanto como verte a ti feliz.
(from page 24)
The Robert August Surf & Turf is one of the primary fundraisers for CEPIA, the local organization that assists at-need kids and families of the area. For more information, contact Kristina at CEPIA.SurfandTurf@ gmail.com.
George Sand Chirinos, Leonardo Calvo, Zulay Martinez, Paula Durate, Joseph Mendez, Oscar Urbina, and sooo many more to fill the shoes of those who move from this country’s competitions to those around the world. Now that The Howler is wrapping, I do not want to stop following the surfers of this great country. I’ve accrued an enormous amount of information and I want to continue to share that. Therefore, I have started a blog called Costa Rica Surfing World, where I will carry on reporting about Tico surf here and everywhere. Check it out starting this month at CostaRicaSurfingWorld.blogspot.com Thank you, David Mills, for this great opportunity. I know sometimes you’ve pulled your hair out wondering when my column would arrive via email. Hopefully, you found my contribution worth the wait and I eventually understood the concept of a deadline. And all of you real surfers, I send you great appreciation for allowing me to tell your story all these years.
Back in the late ‘90s, when I wrote a record reviews column for The Howler, I started working with the fledgling Federacion de Surf de Costa Rica. I had already met the legendary Robert August, who arranged for me to get my first surfboard. The sport hooked me both in and out of the water. Around the same time, the infamous Surf Patti (Sharpe) used to knock on my door after every Circuito Nacional de Surf date and ask me for the results to print in her column for The Howler. When she left in 2001, Howler editor David Mills asked me if I would like to write about surfing in the magazine. Thus began my real Costa Rican writing career, which eventually expanded to include Tamarindo Talk, surf and other articles in the Tico Times, travel stories in Nature Air’s Landing magazine, a variety of pieces for the Tamarindo News (which I founded with Juanita Viale in 2003) and more surf stuff for Surfos Magazine. Writing about the surf scene in Costa Rica has been amazing. Not only have I been able to follow the young kids growing up to become seasoned veterans on the international stage, but I made some amazing friends in the surfing community, many of whom have tried valiantly to help me improve my own paltry level of the sport. I’ve watched as Costa Rica’s surfers become well-respected around the world, and even go on to earn the coveted gold medal at last year’s World Surfing Games. Names like Andrea Diaz, Diego Narajo, Álvaro Solano, Lisbeth Vindas, Gilbert Brown, Carlos Muñoz, Leilani McGonagle, Anthony Fillingim, Jason Torres, Danny Bishko, Edith Garcia, Maikol Torres, Jair Perez, Noe Mar McGonagle; gosh, so many more I cannot even keep naming them. And always new youngsters coming up like Malakai Martinez, Valeria Sulestri, Aldo
Witch’s Rock Circuito Guanacasteco de Surf December 12-13, 2015 - Tamarindo Open 1. Anthony Fillingim 2. Angelo Bonomelli 3. Tomas King 4. Jason Torres - surf
Girls 1. Calenderia Resano 2. Valentina Resano 3. Serena Nava 4. Coral Wiggins
Women’s 1. Zulay Martinez 2. Valentina Resano 3. Coral Wiggins 4. Serena Surfergirl Nava -rags to riches
Groms 1. Kalani Abrahao 2. Tiago Leao 3. Axel Castro Bolivar 4. Valentina Resano
Masters 1. Ian Bean 2. Christian Boos 3. Freddie Wiggins 4. Fabian Sanchez Juniors 1. Jose Joaquin Lopez 2. Joseph Mendez 3. Tiago Carrique 4. Dean Vandewalle Boys 1. Joseph Mendez 2. Francisco Coronado 3. Tiago Carrique 4. Oscar Urina Abarco
Dolphins (Assisted) 1. Maxima Resano 2. Pietro Garroux 3. Jeremy Lopez 4. Max Babyak 5. Sol Diaz 6. Julien Michaedeau Longboard 1. Alex Gomez 2. Noldan Zuniga 3. Robert Twine 4. Keiner Lopez
Surviving
C Final Chapter
O
What A Long Strange Trip It’s Been (Grateful Dead) or My Life as a Howler Magazine Columnist
COSTA RICA
n our first serious attempt at the idea of living in Tamarindo, probably 1998 or so, it’s all a little hazy, we became aware of The Howler Magazine and its editor David Mills. It was done on your basic printer stock in black and white and was the only English language publication around. Actually it was the ONLY publication around……period. It took a while to become “Howler worthy” in the eyes of the editor and if memory serves me well (which it normally doesn’t) my first contribution was rejected... probably for a good reason. It wasn’t until I put out my CD “A Gringo in Costa Rica” that I finally gained acceptance. David’s companion Lee had taken a liking to the CD and memorized most of the lyrics. She’d then go to a gig and correct me on all my mistakes. I soon found myself composing a column on an 8½ x14 yellow legal pad and whatever writing utensil I could find, usually five or six pages of indecipherable script after which I’d hike up to the Editor’s abode to edit and then type it onto his computer, basically a nineteen fifties approach to journalism except for the computer part. Eventually it became evident that my column should have a name, which the editor provided in his Liverpool/RAF/Canadian fashion. I soon found myself writing a column called “Musings”, veddy British but not exactly what a Rock and Roll type from Texas would picture. I eventually took matters into my own hands and dedicated a whole column to a search for a new name to use in the Howler. My loyal devotees were soon sending suggestions like “Inane Drivel from Jesse Bishop” and “Uninspiring Transcribing”…. just to name a few. To my relief 2004 Nobel Laureate in Literature Gunturu Seshendra Sarma wrote in and suggested the title “Surviving Costa Rica”, which it has remained until this very last printing.
Our eventual relocation to Costa Rica full time has coincided with the growth of the Howler. The black and white printout was upgraded to full color and magazine quality paper as David began his never-ending exacerbations with the San José printing establishment, while Susan and I bought a house and began our new lives battling the elements and the Municipality of Santa Cruz. David is now on his ninth and final printer while the Road to Langosta remains in the same teeth-jarring and suspension-killing condition we’ve all come to expect. Perhaps one of the least-known facts about the “Surviving Costa Rica” column is that it’s supposed to be funny. On more than one occasion the editor has been stopped in a local supermarket and threatened with bodily harm over something I’ve written. He could usually avoid violence by explaining that I really wasn’t a member of the Brooklyn chapter of the Ku Klux Klan and was just kidding when I suggested the invasion and annexation of Saskatchewan. His assailant was usually lucky not to provoke our esteemed Editor, who, while serving in the RAF as the cornet player in the elite SAS marching band, learned over ten different ways to kill with only his spit valve I remember one attractive young woman who was very incensed when I related a story about waking up in Texas to a roof full of Mexicans. I guess she would have preferred roofers from Syria… and there are still a group of very attractive Argentinean women who are still pretty sure I was dissing their country when I mentioned the absence of Argies in my old home town of Port Aransas, Texas. The disturbing thing here is: if there’s one group I’d rather not be ostracizing its “attractive young women”. Over the years I’m afraid I haven’t been a good role model for beginners who one day might aspire to writing in a magazine the
Story by Jesse Bishop owlhumm@hotmail.com
caliber of The Howler. On way too many occasions I have waited way too long to get my copy to press. If I can be blunt… yes, this, the final and last column I’m writing for David…. IS LATE! At least it was kinda obvious what I would write about when I finally got around it, not like many times in the past when the progressively angrier “where’s my copy” e-mails were flying and I still had no idea what to write. One time the dog really did eat the documents file after I had come up with a masterpiece, and on several occasions my wife has distracted me and then deleted whatever I had written. Under this kind of pressure I sometimes managed to come up with articles I’m very proud of: “Watching the Grass Grow” a three-part series from 2007; 2009’s “Staring into Space”; and the numerous interviews with our late great Shar Pei Sun Tzu. The Howler has seen countless other publications come and go over the years. Some have been obvious copies while others soon found out that it’s not so easy coming out with a magazine every month, which our esteemed editor, and my good friend, David Mills, has managed to do for over twenty years here in Playa Tamarindo, even during some pretty serious health issues. David is now headed for his ninth decade on this planet, he’ll be there in ten years or so and he now plans to put his baby, The Howler Magazine to rest. He’ll be doing some traveling, visiting his sister in Italy and brother in London and I’m sure we’ll eventually see him back in this neck of the woods drinking an Imperial beer with ice and looking for a horse to ride in a tope. Thanks for taking me along for the ride.
Les Folies Parisiennes Life is short. Talk is cheap. Don’t be makin’ promises that you can’t keep. (Mose Allison)
F
ans of the reality-twisting TV series, the Twilight Zone are probably the best equipped to deal with the convoluted Kabuki theatre of current international events. The takehome message: things are not always what they seem. In fact, my reference in a recent article to the “jihadi attacks” in Paris aroused the ire of one reader who took me to task for not calling a spade a spade and spitting out the truth of the matter. For him, this was obviously a “false flag” operation along the lines of Operation Gladio, the subject of an excellent BBC documentary and perhaps the best-known example of barbaric, secret agency skullduggery on European soil. In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if the whole bloody tragedy was a false flag deal. But that article was not dedicated to governmental deception. This one, however… More recent events in Paris, specifically the IPCC meeting, you know, the international organization that is basically tasked with trying to keep our collective asses out of the frying pan, seem to have borne out an observation made by George Orwell a long time ago: “Political language... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind.” So, the much-ballyhooed declarations out of Paris, greeted with sighs of relief, celebrated in the mainstream media as a sure-fire guarantee to keep our planet inhabitable for ever, were, as it turns out, a classic ‘psy-op’, destined to look solid, but, in Orwellian terms, “pure wind.” Renowned climate scientist James Hansen bluntly updated Orwellian slang and called the whole shebang “bullshit.” The problem boils down to the fact that all the countries at the table agreed on doing everything necessary to keep global temperature rise below 2 degrees C., and to leave all fossil fuels in the ground. But there’s nothing binding, no ‘teeth’ in the agreement, no enforcement mechanism, it’s all voluntary and not until 2023 when countries bring their first set of revised voluntary targets to the world’s follow-up to the Paris Agreement will we see whether governments are living up to their promises. In terms of global dependence on fossil fuels, Paris was like an AA meeting with all the recovering addicts swearing they’re committed to kicking the habit while crossing their fingers behind their backs. Oh, yeah, and, if you think that actions speak louder than words, less than a week after the Parisian carbon-free Fantasy Land, the US Senate is expected to rescind the ban on crude
Tom Peifer
petroleum exports and Canada is still looking to export facilities on both coasts for both LNG and oil from tar sands. Not to be outdone, India just announced that the ‘deal’ in Paris will not affect its own plans to double the output of coal production. Am I the only one who detects a pattern here? Not to mention the slight detail that in the US of A, climatologists are currently being subjected to a McCarthy style witch-hunt before a committee of the Republican controlled Congress in an orchestrated effort to intimidate scientists from putting the hard data and the peer-reviewed seal of scientific certification on what is increasingly happening in everybody’s front yard. I venture to doubt that even Rod Serling, the Emmy awardwinning genius responsible for many of the Twilight Zone’s weirdest episodes, could have envisioned a scenario where the governor of a state—Florida—would prohibit state employees from mentioning climate change while at the same time property values are starting to decline in areas increasingly subject to coastal flooding. It’s not hard to imagine the rest of the world trying to decide which is worse, the racist buffoonery of leading presidential pre-candidates or the fact that the party in control of the House and the Senate seems to have missed the boat once christened as the “Reality Based Community.” So, while the US at least faces an entrenched and very wellfunded opposition to both acknowledging and complying with the “non-binding”, voluntary, pie-in-the-sky scenarios for curtailing fossil fuel consumption, developments on the international trade front threaten to throw yet another wrench into the works. Under the rubric of expanding “free trade”, the Obama administration has been hammering away at the passage of the Trans Pacific Partnership. The precise details have been uber secret, but multinational corporations are salivating over the prospect of speedy ratification. Unlike the Paris Agreement, the TPP has teeth, and while climate pledges have no power of law to back them up, the TPP has the power to override national laws. This will be the largest so-called “trade” agreement of its kind, and it will obliterate sovereignty entirely by permitting corporations to overturn any law that any signatory nation tries to pass that might negatively affect profits in that country. For Costa Rica, this could lead to a severe case of déjà vu.
(continued page 36)
February ( a l l
t i m e s
Sun
2016 l o c a l )
1st - rise 6:06; set 5:48 15th - rise 6:03; set 5:52 28th - rise 5:58; set 5:54
New: 1st quarter: Full: Last quarter:
Moon
7th 15th 22nd March 1st
8:40 p.m. 1:47 a.m. 12:20 a.m. 5:12 p.m.
Les Folies Parisiennes (from page 35) To refresh your memories, in 2014, Infinito Gold, Ltd., a Canadian gold mining company, filed a Request for Arbitration with a World Bank court in its protracted dispute with the Costa Rican government over the canceled Las Crucitas gold mining concession. Costa Ricans screamed bloody murder over the deforestation, the dangers posed by cyanide-laced wastewater ponds, the loss of habitat for the endangered ‘lapa’ parrots, and the suspicious granting of the concession by former president Oscar Arias. Originally, Infinito Gold claimed $1 billion in lost profits, but the British Columbia-based enterprise backed away from that amount in the lawsuit and lowered the claim to a mere $94 million. As it turns out, the lapas got the last laugh. Infinito went belly up, the lawsuit was scuttled and all that’s left is a scar in the forest. Notwithstanding the happy ending to the saga of the Las Crucitas gold mine, the sordid affair is no doubt a harbinger of things to come when the efforts of sovereign states to mitigate and adapt to climate change come into conflict with the profit motive of large multinational corporations. Some will see it in terms of ‘good vs. evil’. I simply see different survival strategies at work. What works to survive in the current economy may not be a viable strategy in the natural world. Heck, even Pope Francis got himself into hot water for daring to point out the conflict between economy and environment in an encyclical. Ultimately, the years of diplomatic efforts which culminated in the Paris accords, and the coming decades of jawboning over who is to blame, who has to pay, how much of which stuff we can or can’t burn, all these negotiations are, as James Hansen’s put it: “bullshit.” The real deal is a negotiation between human activity and the laws of physics, and the laws of physics don’t actually care what we think and won’t be negotiated with. Nature doesn’t compromise. And nature, like the lapas in Las Crucitas, gets the last laugh.
Alcoholics Anonymous Schedule of Meetings
Flamingo
Tuesdays: 5:30 - 6:30 pm (open) Fridays: 5:30 - 6:30 pm (open)
Tom Peifer is an ecological land use consultant with 20 years experience in Guanacaste. 2658-8018. tompeiferecv@ gmail.com El Centro Verde is dedicated to researching and promoting sustainable land use, permaculture and environmentally sound development http://www.elcentroverde.org/
Location: Hitching Post Plaza Unit 2, Brasilito Contact: Don H. at 2-654-4902
Tamarindo
Saturday: 10:30-11:30 - Open General Meeting Monday: 5:30 - Open Meeting Wednesday: 10:30 - Open Meeting Thursday: 5:30-6:30 - Open Meeting Location: Behind Pedro’s Surf Shop Contact: Ellen - 2-653-0897 / Steve - 8377-1529
Duda que sean fuego las estrellas, duda que el sol se mueva, duda que la verdad sea mentira, pero no dudes jamás de que te amo. William Shakespeare
Shape Up! Be Healthy and Well Lynda Espada
A
s I write my final column for The Howler, I hope you all will to continue to make health and wellness part of your everyday life. Just one small daily choice can lead up to lifelong of very big changes. So I leave you with a few simple, do-able tips that are affordable and absolutely life-altering when all combined. Physical activity is more important than ever. And that does not mean you need to join a fitness center or take fitness class. Physical activity can be anything from surfing, to taking a walk on the beach, or working outside in your garden. Try to do at least one physical activity that is convenient and you enjoy three to five times a week for at least 20 -30 minutes. Be sure to eat, drink and be healthy eating a variety of foods. Try to eat foods containing healthy fats. They are some of the most important things to include in your diet to promote a healthy mood (and a balanced metabolism). Healthy fats also promote good heart health, reduce cholesterol, and contain none of the harmful side effects associated with animal-based saturated fats. Go for raw coconut, avocados, almonds, walnuts, flax seeds, cashews, hemp seeds, chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds or tahini, and olives. Many of these are also packed with protein, B vitamins, and magnesium to enhance brain health even further. Make it a habit to always check food labels to avoid unnecessary chemicals added as a food preservative. And limit your use of sugar and salt. Sugar and processed foods upset insulin levels and can interfere with optimal hormone function. Eat whole and unprocessed foods whenever possible. Nuts, seeds, leafy greens, vegetables and fruits are some of the best foods you can give your brain on an ongoing basis. And lastly, always be seeking out new adventures. Try a new activity once a month or even just a couple times a year. Our schedules can turn us into creatures of habit. We can easily just start going through the motions but this can also make us bored, unhappy, and possibly lose our passion for things we care about such as being active, our jobs, and even our healthy eating habits. Make a list of all the things you have always wanted to learn or try, then pick out something that is feasible now. Make a conscious effort to build both exercise and healthy eating into any travels you indulge in. Clearly, it does not take a lot of money or major planning to be healthy and well. Remember, wellness is merely a gift you choose to give yourself that begins with one simple choice after another. Start your health and wellness journey today!