Lo Que Hay - It Is What It Is

It took months (or was it years) before I finally explained the title of my We Can Only Speculate Peace Corps blog. So let’s not tarry with an explanation of this blog's title. Lo que hay . . . let's use it in a sentence. My cat wants to drink from the faucet and will not be dissuaded . . . oh well . . . lo que hay.

Lo que hay, depending on who is translating into English, varies a little. You’ll get: What is, or what there is, or there’s/it’s what there is.  But in Samara, Costa Rica, be ye German, French, Canadian, or Texan, it means It is what it is. Everyone know that lo que hay has that specific meaning. Our favorite beach restaurant/bar is called Lo Que Hay! So in this blog when you see lo que hay, just think it is what it is. Well . . . perhaps, think it with attitude! And its pronunciation? Simply low kay I.

So where are we in this process of becoming expats in Costa Rica? Well, I'll say this: it's not, as I so naïvely believed, all falling into place -- it's way too much work and making me c-r-a-z-y. We purchased the home and 1.65 acres, more or less, of our farm. We say finca. True, not everything in the purchase contract was completed by our builder at the time of closing, but this isn't a worrisome issue. How can we purchase a home that is thousands of miles away, from a developer/builder whom we barely know, and trust that everything will be completed? How can we sleep with so much that was specifically outlined in the contract yet unfinished? Drugs? Adult beverages? Well, perhaps not. It's a matter of trust, though well-earned trust. Our builder and his architect wife possess integrity. Not only will everything be completed, it will be beautifully constructed . . . and this delay actually works to our benefit. Let's review:

• The refinishing of the under-story fascia on the exterior of the home is not complete. But every month that this is delayed (until we move-in, of course) buys us an extra month for which we won't need to refinish said fascia as owners. It rains six months of the year in this land, so home maintenance will be a semi-annual issue. Ah, the joys of home ownership.
• The placement of our irrigation system won't be complete until the yard around the home has been re-graded for the pool. And what's the status of this re-grading? It will fall into place when Lubos deems it appropriate. No problemo.
• Where are our eight (8) fruit and nut trees? Well, as it's currently dry season in Samara, why plant trees? Why plant anything? Planting will occur as rainy season begins, at the same time that the irrigation system is placed . . . about the time we'll be moving. 
• Gutters and downspouts must be installed. Again, in dry season this isn't an issue . . . and it provides a few extra months for our rain-chain design(s).
• We don't yet have a dryer vent. But why have Lubos install the dryer vent when there isn't a dryer yet? When our dryer arrives, its vent will be perfectly placed.

On with the how-to-move-abroad process. All it takes is money. And we're broke! As in Ramen-noodle broke (you know what I'm sayin'). And I want patio furniture, and a hanging pot rack, and two ladder-style bookshelves (surprisingly, none of these things come for free), and I want more . . . . gimme, gimme. Now it was always our plan to sell on eBay as many of our possession as we could . . . our erroneous belief being that eBay would fetch higher numbers than a garage sale. The reality? Not so much. More importantly, every single penny from garage and eBay sales were to be ear-marked for living in Samara. The reality? We need money to pay for Ramen noodles. OK, it's not quite that bad, but close. Every month that we remain in Texas is a month that we could be saving on living expenses in Samara . . . with the warm Pacific, the monkeys & bats, and my new pool furnishings.

As for our progress? Our household goods are indeed packed, for the most part. When our Texas home goes on the market later this month, every single item not needed for staging must be out of here and into a storage shed. I think we're gonna need a bigger shed. So our DFW home is presently staged with boxes going to the already-overflowing storage shed; its rooms are full of garage sale items and with areas of items listed on eBay. Trust me, our guest bedroom pictured here is off-limits . . . one can barely open the door due to boxes going to a shed and ultimately on to Samara.

We live in Samara. It sounds a bit odd. Finca los Jalapeños has yet to grow on me . . . though yesterday I did color a toucan with a jalapeño in its beak. Sometimes I miss calling our home little Lot 6. But for now and evermore it's Finca los Jalapeños . . . and lo que hay.