Cindy Hewett

Finding a Needle in a Haystack (by Cindy)

I was getting ready to go out to dinner a few weeks ago. We were meeting an old colleague of John’s that happened to be in town for a business conference. Our first US visitor! I pulled on a pair of my favorite slacks and took a look in the mirror. Hmmm, something didn’t look quite right with one of my pant legs. I bent over and examined it. Uh oh – the hem on that pant leg was unraveled. We needed to get going, and everything else I had ironed and put on worked with those slacks. I MacGyver’d the pant leg with scotch tape and hoped it would hold through the evening. (Yes, it did, thankfully…)

Cata Capers (by Cindy) (Working Title per John – Dante’s Inferno part dos)

We’ve been looking for cookies for a quick dessert or snack, and not finding exactly what we wanted at the places we usually shop – Walmart, the grocery store we sometimes frequent, or Pricesmart. It dawned on us that we could make cookies ourselves! After all, we’re retired and have made cookies before, so why not try?

Staying Out of Hot Water (by Cindy)

Our hot water heater … isn’t. We only have a few but necessary uses for hot water – taking showers and doing dishes by hand. You could also throw in laundry (please!). When we turn on the hot water in the kitchen sink or in our showers, we have to turn the temperature knob all the way to the red dot, to get what we would consider even close to hot water.

Shopping Experiences … Walmart (by Cindy)

Our furnished apartment in Escazú Village came with a random assortment of home goods and small appliances. For example, the dinnerware consisted of 3 white plates and 1 bowl. We also were given 2 platters, one pan, and 1 small cooking pot. For some reason, though, there were 14 glasses (made of glass) and 2 stemless wine glasses. Based on a subsequent discovery of balloons and birthday candles in a kitchen drawer, we think that the “new” apartment was used at least once for a party before we took residency.

Day 2 – We’re going to need a bigger TV (by Cindy)

Our furnished apartment in Escazú Village came with one 50-inch smart TV located in the main living area. After a single night of viewing HGTV (a station we were able to get in English from our Costa Rican cable provider), John decided that a 65-inch TV was needed to properly view house hunting and renovations across the 11 foot distance between the TV and the sectional where we sat.