A Baby Octopus Held My Hand

A baby octopus held my hand. It really did. I say “baby” because it was little—maybe it was a full-grown small variety. I don’t know much about octopus species.

We were snorkeling, and I startled it among a school of little fish. It tried to scrunch up under a rock and look like stone, but of course, as I saw it find the hiding spot, I could still see it. I watched it for a while. I motioned Hernan over to look, and after he left, I kept on watching it. The water was so shallow that it was easy for me to hold onto the stones while floating on the surface. I moved one of my hands over and let it lay on a stone close to the little octopus. I thought it would zoom away, but it didn’t. After a moment, it slowly reached out one curly tentacle toward my finger. Then it touched me. I didn’t move. It reached that snaky spiral around my finger and I felt its little sticky suction cups take ahold of my skin and it pulled on my finger just a little, as if it wanted to draw my hand closer. I didn’t move my hand. I had an idea that if the little guy discovered exactly how big its catch was, it would disappear in a second.

When I didn’t move, it let go. And lost interest and swam away. I guess it decided that while I wasn’t going to try to eat it, it didn’t want a bite of me, either. I swam away too. And was very happy and amazed. And didn’t tell anyone about it, until now.

Si Dios Quiere

In other news, my future house is still a construction site with most of the walls, no floor, and no roof. They were supposed to put the roof on two weeks ago, but the foreman left because he wanted more money and the contractor didn’t have anyone else to send. His primary team was finishing a house in Liberia that belongs to his son who is, evidently, much more important than I am. So for two weeks there has been a guy doing repello which is necessary and all but what I  need is a roof. The beautiful teak boards and posts, in the meantime, are cracking literally up one side and down the other in this fierce sun.

Last week the Liberia crew supposedly finished the son’s house and they were set to come on Monday, March 2.  Tomorrow.  But now that’s not going to happen. Because the contractor has been summoned to a pre-op appointment on Tuesday, March 3 at a CCSS hospital in Alajuela.  For a heart surgery that he has been waiting 5 years for.

Yes, you read that right.

The latest version of the tale is that, “Si Dios Quiere” he will be there at my roofless house on Wednesday with his guys to start working.  Because the heart surgery isn’t going to be immediately—it’s going to be sometime within the next 3 months. 

I’ve just started saying Si Dios Quiere, too, because I freaking give up and I’m starting to think it really must all be the doings of God.  Who just really either doesn’t want me to have a house to live in or wants to make sure it is ridiculously hard for me to get it.

I haven’t quite given up on this contractor, but I have to confess I don’t expect that, after a Tuesday afternoon appointment in the capital city, he is going to arrive with a team of workers on Wednesday.  O how I would love to be wrong.  O how I would love to know how you know when to be patient a little longer and when to give up and try to find (another) new contractor.  

Good Vibes

They say that you get back from the universe what you put out there.  Is this true?  Is it my fault I’m having these construction problems, then?  All I want is a house to live in.  It’s not a castle or anything, just a house.  I’m trying to be organized and positive and patient and efficient and realistic and grateful and all the things that, as far as I know, are right and good.  If these snarls are being created by me, I swear I don’t know how or where I am doing it.  I would like to stop, but I don’t know how.

Back to the Octopus

It’s a really good thing that little octopus wanted to hold my hand the other day. I keep going back to that moment.  How it reached out with what looked like curiosity to see what I might be.  That was pretty brave of it considering how much bigger than it I am.  That felt like some serious love from the universe. 

If a baby octopus likes me, I must be doing something right, wouldn’t you say?

Off the Hook

The cooking business is off the hook so I guess I’ve got the right vibes going out here, too.  It’s been merciless for the last few months.  I can see that my booking tactic of saying yes to every possible reservation does not serve me in the high season.  I keep telling myself and everyone else that my schedule is going to “settle down” soon.  But I’m realizing that unless I book days off the way I book reservations, it isn’t.  So I’m doing that—blocking the calendar when enough is enough.  And doing a little better at delegating.

That’s the news from here and now.  Stay tuned for more adventures with sea life, perhaps some catering anecdotes, and updates from the construction site, Si Dios Quiere.