Costa Rica, We Hardly Knew Ye....

I'm officially in my post-vacation funk. Sometimes I wonder if it is even worth it for me to go on vacation because of the inevitable depression that follows. So let me recount the ways I have to wallow in my bitterness!

This was me PRE-VACATION - on my way TO my vacation....It was such a happy, innocent time....back when I thought life was good, back before I returned to stupid Virginia and snow, and phone calls from work! Uggh!!!! For the record: WORK HONKS! To all you rich people who do not have to GO to work and get to do whatever you want: I HATE YOU.

(In case you were unclear.....just so you know.)

Costa Rica was sunny and 80s or 90s every day....it pretended like it was going to rain on the morning we were leaving, but I think it was just trying to make us feel better about the whole situation. However, Costa Rica is clearly lazy, because it gave up after about 7 minutes and then went back to being sunny and lovely....

Here is a pic of Josh in the rare "still" state, a state not usually found with Josh.....

Let the record relfect that I am not a narcissist - (you will soon note that there are only pics of me here....) Josh just won't let me post any pics of him on this blog. I even had to go back and delete the one that I posted previously. Sorry Josh's family!! You will have to rely on HIM to give you pics of him. I've been denied!!

Here is a pic of the view from our room (which was AWESOME!! Seriously, why on earth would you ever not upgrade to a better room??) However, I'm now frightened because - just like the business class dilemma I am currently facing every time I have to fly and actually pay for my own ticket and, therefore, am forced to sit in coach... (Don't these people know whom I think I am?!?!) Once you have had a kick-ass room, it is UNPOSSIBLE to go back to a regular room with scratchy sheets and no hot tub on the balcony!

Also attached are pics of me in my scuba wear (with the same damn side neck roll, maybe I actually walk around with a side neck roll!! Maybe it's my natural state?? Maybe my mother just gave up trying to take a pic without one?...its kinda sad, really...) Also, note to self: Scuba is not flattering!

And meet my other scuba buddy: We called him Jelly!

I do not like Jelly.

Jelly and his gang of friends stung my face and neck(roll) - coincidentally the ONLY place on me not covered in nature protective gear). I need to go back to check and see if they have some sort of a face protecting helmet for diving.....

And for those of you who saw my wedding photos, I adopted the same stance when faced with an opened bottle of champagne... Charming. However, in my defense, it was an all inclusive resort! i had to get my money's worth!!! We're in an economic slump people!! I can't waste stuff now!!!!

(ummm...Tina! We got some arm work to do here!!! What the hell is that?!?!)

Meet Joe! Joe was our new best friend, probably because I gave him fruit every morning -- which I KNOW I'm not supposed to do, but that first day I had some fruit and Joe was coming right for me....The boy likes his fruit. It was me or the grape...I like me better. Then, after that, it just seemed cruel to deny Joe his fruit.

And for those of you who may think I was still cruel for giving Joe the fruit, here is a pic of Joe when Joe doesn't get fruit!!! There is a REASON Joe wears a mask - he'll flat out take that crap from you if you don't give him what he wants....Seriously! DO NOT MESS WITH JOE!

My one regret on this vacay was that we didn't get to see any damn monkeys!! Every time we were on the dive boat, we'd meet someone (usually Canadian! Seriously! What is up with all the Canadians headed to Costa Rica - as Josh noted, it was nothing but Maple leaves and hockey pucks as far as the eye could see!) they'd comment on how funny the monkeys were and how they were just out there playing in whatever location I was not at that morning. Honestly!! Would it kill them to have the courtesy to show up in the location in which I was currently located?? Can a motha' F-er see a motha-f'in monkey up in this place!?!?!? Alas, no pics of monkeys.

Diving was Stupendous. The dive shop we used was GHETTO!! However, the dive master was fab!! There was this Canadian guy (go figure) Michael we met who had rented equipment for the dive from the shop and it seriously looked like it might have been from Jacques Cousteau's throw away bin. The BCD (vest) wouldn't even inflate. Poor guy had to kick to stay up top! I would have helped him, but he was waaaay over there, and I was concentrating on making sure that Nature was not going to touch me when I wasn't lookin. (he did live though, in case you were wondering....nice guy). Josh and I kept going WWJD? (what would Jeff do - our scuba instructor who was a nazi about rules and regs).

We saw some fab fish and stuff - huge mantas (bigger than the two of us floating over top of him) and all kinds of other rays as well. Tons of fish, Octopus, starfish, seahorse (i didn't get to see the octopus or seahorse, only josh did...he is dead to me!). Even though the shop was ghetto, the dive master was really good and it was not crowded -- which i wasn't truly thankful for until we pulled up to a dive site and saw these other dive boats that looked like a Cuban refugee ship, it was sooo crowded with divers!

There are more photos, Josh will upload them to the Kodak account for you guys. (although, there are certainly a few that will NOT go into that account!! I have a new found respect for anyone who is photographed in a swim suit and does not look like the Michelin man). All in all, we had a great time - and after returning here to a big ole snowstorm, I am more than ready to head out to Sudan!!!