Our final construction photos… A job well done.
las palmas ecuador
Casa Azul: Our Race Against the Clock
The latest visuals on Casa Azul. Just click on the link for all the new photos.
My Strategic 99-Day Packing Plan
Two people. Three months. Four carry-ons and two bags to check.
Never before have I been required to pack so strategically as for an upcoming 99-day trip to Puerto Cayo, Ecuador beginning one week from today.
I’m typically a throw-it-in-the-bag-the-night-before-the-trip kind of guy, but that won’t work this time. There’s a house to furnish, a business to set up and hopefully a little fun to be had in the midst of it all.
It reminds me of the old trivia question – If you were stranded on a desert island, what’s the one thing you’d take with you?
Six days out, here’s my strategic packing plan.
CLOTHING – Shorts and jeans, mostly pullover short-sleeved shirts, two pairs of boots (one for dress, one for work), running shoes and shorts as I plan to be back in half-marathon shape when we return in April, and plenty of hats and caps for protection from the sun.
TECHNICAL: Two laptops, Kindle Fire, Nano, lots of jump drives and memory cards, two cell phones, my new Nikon D-3200, and Rosetta Stone which I’ve hardly used to date.
BOOKS – My New American Standard Bible, and The Prayer of Jabez.
TOOLS – A few screw drivers, hammer, measuring tape, flashlight, bungee straps and zip ties.
HOUSEHOLD ITEMS: Every kitchen utensil that will fit in every available nook and cranny.
MONEY – Several thousand dollars, mostly in $20s and under. Hundreds don’t spend well in Latin America.
LEGAL: Passports, birth certificates and marriage license.
ENTERTAINMENT: A collection of 80s music CDs from my favorite artists, and a nearly a hundred movies on DVD.
INTANGIBLES: A willingness to unlearn my cultural biases, hopeful desire to learn how to chill out more often, and an adventuresome spirit. And a new golf swing I hope to perfect in the southern hemisphere summer that maybe, just maybe, might put me in the high 70s.
INSPIRATIONAL: A small desk moniker that reads: “Never, never, never, never give up.” It got us this far, and I hope it will take us a bit further.
-30-
Casa Azul – Maybe our Final Update
This may be our final visual update before departure a week from tomorrow. Dana wanted a blue tile shower, and she got it.
T-17: More Color at Casa Azul and the Clock is Ticking
More color at casa azul. Click on the link above to see all the photos.
Puerto Cayo House Update
Just click on the link above to see the photos. A visual update on our Puerto Cayo construction progress. Primer going on with paint to follow this weekend. 30 days to wrap-up. It’s gonna be close.
Expat Prep: Our Checklist
Making a list, and checking it twice…
When you do something you’ve never done before, sometimes, you just have to “feel” your way through it.
And it’s one thing to buy a new house, or a car, or change jobs where you are, but when you’re preparing to do all those things in a country 6,000 miles away, the concept takes on a whole new meaning.
Today, Dana and I find ourselves 42 days out from a move that includes all those things and much more.
For the last five months, we’ve worked long-distance with Gary and April Scarborough at www.laspalmasecuador.com to buy property and build a home from the ground up in Puerto Cayo. It’s a matter of days now, before the home is complete, and for the most part, it’s been easier than building a house where we were on site.
Funny thing is, the house building was the easy part. Now, with 42 days and counting…
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