With the massively changing world of the year, 2020, and early 2021, many people were talking like finding a planetary option was what we needed. Ok, fine – the conclusion of this topic was universally, and without exception, the same – there just aren’t any options when it comes to planets. We’re stuck.
The next level of this conversation is a bit more pragmatic: “well then, what can we do with the one we’ve got?”
Here we enter into the spectrum of possibilities. And these, colored by one’s outlook, span from Optimistic Restoration to Terminal Pessimism, and then, of course, all points in between. For many, the idea starts with the acquisition of a property in Costa Rica. And this thought gives way to lots of questions that need answering – hence, this blog.
Costa Rica is viewed by many as an antidote to what they may be dealing with “back home”. In my 20+ years of living in Costa Rica I’ve seen this repeatedly but, never as much as recently with the effects of the covid pandemic.
What’s Wrong With This One?
Here’s the weird thing. The short answer is: nothing. This planet is miraculously perfect.
Costa Rica is a strong option for relocating to, or just simply to visit and in so doing, get a break from the lunacy that prevails in the developed world
Long answer… well, settle in, as this is what this site is all about. What can we do when we recognize that we (humans) have really messed up our stewardship of the only planet we’ve got?
Or, if you’re not all that interested in reading yet another man waxing philosophic, simply click on Blog in the upper right, main menu, to read up on various articles on the theme Costa Rica real estate.
Start philosophizing:
This planet is perfect. The problem is one of the resident species here. And, it happens to be the dominant species. The planet itself is perfect.
It is said that when Europeans discovered North America, there were 4 primary forests that covered the land.
“squirrels could travel from tree to tree from the Northeast to the Mississippi without ever having to touch the ground. In the old growth forests in the Northeast, you had hemlock that were six or seven feet in diameter, chestnut trees 200 feet tall.” said Chris Roddick, chief arborist at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in New York. “In the old growth forests in the Northeast, you had hemlock that were six or seven feet in diameter, chestnut trees 200 feet tall.”
Forest attrition distance reveals: deforestation was considerably higher in the western U.S. • Forest Monitor (forest-monitor.com)
Earth just has this one resident species that, unfortunately, is dominant and that is saddled with seeing itself as intelligent, when in fact, it is not. I know, a brazen statement. Actually, I personally know a number of really smart people. Sounds a bit conflicted, right? Perhaps it is the definition of intelligence that I appeal to. How is intelligence defined? There are a number of ways to answer this question, but I will refer to the difficulty we, as a species have with getting along with each other. With living in harmony with the natural systems here on this planet. To me, these abilities would indicate true intelligence.
If one defines intelligencce as the ability to have an algorythym that fully exploits our lizard brain tendencies such that the algorythm can keep us interested in some very low level stuff. Now, I’m not saying that the people who know how to code such things, or understand the value of said algorythms and so pay for theiir development and use. These people have a form of intelligence. However, this is the deadly cocktail: thinking one is smart when one is, in fact, not.
I am not a conspiracy theorist.
Please keep in mind that we are here talking about living as an expat in Costa Rica. For many people that I talk with, world conditions factor into the decision of whether or not they choose to do so. We are currently in an uptick of interest in moving to Costa Rica. So bear with me here.
When the pandemic began, I decided to keep track of the conspiracy theories as they popped up. And this primarily for entertainment purposes. I stopped counting at 6 but the number has gone many times beyond that single digit number. I’ll grant you that our (us human’s) abysmal stewardship practices have always left me with a feeling of impending doom. I think some of this is explained as being a “type”. For example, when I was in my teens I studied and practiced survival. I almost always had a survival kit that featured a flint and steel, snare wire, pocket knife and so on, hanging from my belt.
However, I am not a conspiracy theorist. I generally opt to take what is happening at face value. This is a conscious choice. It may well be that there is some highly intelligent, powerful and wealthy, mastermind group out there, choreographing world events. But if so, we’re sunk. Or it may be that it is as it appears and we humans just have a propensity to default to the controversial.
“In 2020, the Wall Street Journal reported that Facebook executives had realized four years earlier that its algorithms were “exploiting the human brain’s attraction to divisiveness”
Making sense of conspiracy theorists as the world gets more bizarre
By
Jon Ronson
The Guardian
Or, it is some point in between those two extremes.
So, once we’ve looked around and concluded that there simply isn’t another planet that we can venture out to, and leave the madness behind, we bring our feet back down to planet Earth. And there, with our now grounded perspective, we find the next-best thing: Costa Rica.
Specifically, the southern pacific area. It ain’t perfect, but there is an almost palpable sense of quiet, and serenity when you are in the jungles & beaches of Costa Rica’s southern pacific zone. Clearly, you feel less connected to the silliness that reigns in the developed world, but it is more than that. It may not be quantifiable. Skeptics scoff at this but, the air, or vibe, is different. I’m not aware of a metric for this thing, but it’s there, and most, if not all, will attest to it.
Unfortunately, in my years of living in this region of the planet I have witnessed what I would call a revolutionary change happen to this little country. Just since I moved to Costa Rica with my family in January of 1999, I have seen a progression from what may have been more like the U.S. in the 30’s to what is now, the current world. The effects of my home country and its oh-so contagious way of looking at things is nearly palpable and noted in most parts of this little country. (Costa Rica is the size of Rhode Island. It’s just a little place. You can fit 3 Costa Rica’s inside of Colorado). Rhode Island’s measurements: 1545 square miles and 500 of that is water. BTW, I found a nifty site that talks about Rhode Island as a unit of measure. Could Costa Rica be used in the same manner? I think so. http://howmanyrhodeislands.com/
Costa Rica is 19,560 sq. miles. 74 Costa Ricas fit into the U.S.
I think I’ll pause the philosophizing there. I’ve worked in real estate in Costa Rica for nearly 20 years and am said to be helpful for those interested in moving to, investing in, or simply just have a general curiosity in what it’s like to live in Costa Rica. Please drop me a line if you have questions. Also, I have some select properties here on my site that are here as a sort of curated offering taken from what is available out there in a bewildering array.