Costa Rica Cost Of Living Update:            Garbage Pick Up- $6/month

We wake to our alarm going off.  My husband jolts up ready to surprise an intruder, grabbing an assortment of weaponry he keeps just for this occasion. However, there was no bloodshed, no fisticuffs, no fight to the death.  Our interloper was this little guy, caught red handed eating a banana.

He got up on our table, knocked down our security camera, and watched as we took a photo shoot of him.  Similar to Barbara Streisand, he only allowed us to photograph his left side.

And just to show us who’s boss, he defecated on our terrace as he left.  And just to show him who’s boss, I stepped in it the next morning.

My guess he is some kind of opossum. A banana stealing, alarm smashing, terrace pooping opossum.

Costa Rica Cost of Living: Can of Friskies- $1

We are all used to little critters crossing the road.  Growing up in a urban area I’m used to skunks, raccoons, and opossums. 

In Costa Rica you get treated to more diverse animals.  One morning our outdoor sensor went off alerting us to something in the backyard.  I grabbed a bat my husband keeps by the bed, opened up the curtains, and saw a horse staring back at me.

My cat went to investigate, gave a quick sniff, and found our new neighbor was not that interesting to him.  He quickly returned to sleeping in the sun and pretending to chase lizards. An activity he seems to have perfected since moving here.

The horse stayed for a week before a teenage boy came and escorted him back up the mountain. I wished he stayed longer; a beautiful surprise and wonderful addition to my life in Costa Rica.

Costa Rica Cost Of Living Update:  Can of mace-$20

It was a dark, windy night.  The kind where the leaves rustle into mini cyclones before scattering away.  I was quietly writing when I heard a tap at the window.  I looked up, saw nothing, and went back to my manuscript.

The sounds got louder from the window so I crept closer but couldn’t see past the darkness.  I reached for the camera, snapped a picture, and this is the image I saw for a split second while the flash went off.

What followed was a long and animated bout of screaming that all but proved I have not acclimated to living in the rainforest.

I have more pictures of this animal attacking another window in my Gallery or at my Facebook page Happier Than A Billionaire.