Nadine Hays Pisani

A SHOT WORTH TAKING

By Nadine Hays Pisani| 2018-04-15T18:19:57-04:00 January 27th, 2011|Categories: Nature|Tags: hummingbirds|

Costa Rica Cost Of Living Update: 15 ounce bottle of honey-$4

It’s common to wait for the right time in life to pursue one’s dream but sometimes that perfect moment is disguised by the fear of leaping out of one’s comfort zone.

I am guilty of this. When it was time to make this move I came up with ten different reasons why we should stay in the states. I detailed every hair-raising situation that could happen while living in a foreign country. And believe me, I have a good imagination.

My husband calmly listened and gave ten better reasons why this could be the adventure of a lifetime. He reminded me that my fear was change… simply that. And change is one of the strongest reasons why people don’t go out and grab the life they always wanted, often times hovering in the same place for years.

Hummingbirds are uniquely designed to hover in the air while flapping their wings up to 90 times per second. Their speed allows them to dash in and out of flowers drinking the nectar with their perfectly designed bill. They keep moving forward even after the brief seconds when they need to fly backwards, something only hummingbirds can do.

My husband snapped this picture after waiting patiently for the right moment to come. He knew it was a shot worth taking.

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ALWAYS LOOKING UP

By Nadine Hays Pisani| 2018-04-15T18:19:57-04:00 January 24th, 2011|Categories: Nature|Tags: palm trees, punta uva|

Costa Rica Cost Of Living Update: Seven ounce bottle of 15 SPF suntan lotion- $14 (Next business idea…selling suntan lotion on the black market)

There is nothing as tranquil as sitting under a palm tree, much to the consternation of my husband. Ever since I’ve known him, he has a fear of getting hit in the head with a coconut or, depending on the season, an icicle. I’ve seen him zig-zag through a bunch of palm trees like a football player dashing across the field for a touchdown.

This may stem from him growing up in New York where he witnessed people getting hit in the head with all sorts of objects, not one of them being a coconut. Here are a few highlights of the many things that my husband has seen while living in Brooklyn: person stabbed in head with screwdriver, cracked in the teeth with a wrench, hit in knee/skull with baseball bat, pummeled repeatedly with city garbage pail, and the piece de resistance of this collection, someone voluntarily being tasered for $50.

So when a ten pound coconut landed ten feet from my head and made a crater size indentation in the sand, it didn’t take long for him to say “I told you so.”

Apparently, I should always listen to my husband when it comes to getting bonked in the head with things.

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ARE YOU BORED?

By Nadine Hays Pisani| 2018-04-15T18:19:57-04:00 January 21st, 2011|Categories: Nature|Tags: sloths|

Costa Rica Cost Of Living Update: Gallon of super gasoline $4.47

People often ask me if I am bored and I never know how to answer this question. When I was working ten hour days I would have welcomed boredom. I would even have invited him into my house and made him a cup of tea. I was that anxious to have a moment that did not include a mound of paperwork or irritating phone calls.

Someone just asked me this question while at the Caribbean side of Costa Rica. There I sat, watching the ocean churn and the palm trees sway in the breeze when someone asked, “Aren’t you bored?”

I’m not sure boredom was the word she was looking for since it’s easy to make the simple things in life more complicated. It turns out that appreciating the present moment is not boredom but gratitude. And a life of gratitude feels great no matter where you live.

Later that day I watched a baby sloth climb back up a tree, ocassionally reaching out his arm as if I was his mother. It’s a memory that will always stay with me.

It was a good day. And there were no irritating phone calls to answer.

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WHY PAY MORE?

By Nadine Hays Pisani| 2018-04-15T18:19:58-04:00 January 13th, 2011|Categories: Cost of Living|Tags: taxes|

Costa Rica Cost of Living Update: Property Taxes- .25% of value of land Property Taxes in New Jersey- One Hundred Million Dollars

Disclaimer: For those of you from New Jersey, kindly grab the defibrillator before reading any further.

One great thing about owning property in Costa Rica is the low property tax. You pay .25% on the value of your property….yes….I said point 25 percent. So if your real estate cost $100,000 you only pay $250 in taxes.

Now restart your heart and consider moving to Costa Rica. You don’t get these kinds of views off Exit 15.

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CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?

By Nadine Hays Pisani| 2018-04-15T18:19:58-04:00 January 6th, 2011|Categories: Cost of Living|Tags: phone|

Costa Rica Cost of Living Update: Land line Phone Bill- $28 (includes DSL Internet)

I remember the days talking to my girlfriends on the phone while reading Tiger Beat, contemplating whether Joanie really loved Chachi or confirming that Rick Springfield will surely have a career rivaling the likes of Elvis.

Now I don’t like to talk on the phone because it sounds as if I am calling from a bunker in Iraq. My husband went out to the road and found this mess. A birds nest of wires tangled together next to two high voltage cables. He carefully stepped around the electrical lines, re-spliced the others, and gave me the thumbs up.

I tried calling my mom and was pleasantly surprised. There was only moderate interference and we had a nice conversation about how my father wants me to get the rest of my crap out of the garage. I asked her to tell him not to touch my albums, I’ve been saving that Rick Springfield one for when he makes that long anticipated comeback.

Rick Springfields Official Website- www.rickspringfield.com (It’s just a matter of time guys)

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About Nadine Hays Pisani

A SHOT WORTH TAKING

ALWAYS LOOKING UP

ARE YOU BORED?

WHY PAY MORE?

CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?

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