www.CostaRicaTicas.com

I am at the Hilton Doubletree Puntarenas as I write this. I carried my long time amiga and her 12 year old son for a holiday. They are poor people but so very proud. The manners they show are so unlike many rich or middle class Americans I know . Most of all the 12 year old boy. He just pulled out the iron for his cloths before we go to dinner. He ironed them himself. He has no money in his pocket but he wants to look good. The Ch*ldren around here are all so well behaved. American parents have done a terrible job in comparison. Just my personal observation. Have a great evening guys. Uncle H.

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Always nice to wake up and see what will happen today

Estoy de aquerdo contigo mi amigo.!

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Providing humanitarian assistance to self employed chicas, one cash grant at a time.

la verdad, nuestro tío

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The difference between a Sea Story and a Fairy Tale is that a Fairy Tale starts out 'Once Upon a Time..' and a Sea Story starts out 'This is no Shit...'

(export version only, some restrictions may apply, some assembly required, not valid where the sun don't shine...

if you live in the states of Poverty, Darkness or anywhere outside of The Blessings of Civilization Trust, Inc...other rules may apply)

Yes, I agree. The Ch*ldren in Costa Rica are such a "refreshing sight;" well mannered, well groomed, polite and respectful to elders. I am very impressed with them. While traveling on one of the buses, a boy of about 10 years of age, traveling with his mother, asked if he could practice his English with me. His English was exceptionally good. When he had to get off the bus at his stop, he said to me....."Sir, it was a pleasure to meet you. Thank you for talking to me."

"...We're definitely not in Kansas anymore."

Thanks for a refreshing topic. As a teacher about to leave the profession, it´s not the K*ds but the parents and general attitude of admin. Many US parents should abdicate their position and sign it over to the teachers. We spend more time with them.

As for Costa Ricans, I teach them English for the pure pleasure of teaching. They make it soooo enjoyable.

I think that most parents in the US today assume that they have already done this. After all, it's the school's fault, not theirs, when li'l Johnny graduates from high school but cannot read or write!

I agree with the behavior of Tico chicos. My novia has a teenage hija. (In the US, a recipe for estrogen charged disaster!) She is the calmest, most courteous and plesant to be around girl her age that I have ever seen! If any of you expats have a teenage son or neighbor, she would like to have a gringo boyfriend!

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Women are like beers. I've never had one that I didn't like. Just some that I like more than others! --Western

as my 8th grade teacher taught us, and i will never forget i love all people , i just do not love some peoples actions

You aren`t talking about the ones hawking the sidewalk between the DR and Morazon are you?

As the world grows smaller, as it is, I can only hope that the bad habits of "developed nations" do not infect the countries where people still have the values we in our nations once had.

I think it's a sad state of affairs to think that the world we live in ( in developed countries I should say) has become less and less a place to be civilized towards others, regardless of status.. but it has. It all starts with good parenting, and somewhere in the last decade or two it has gone off track. I'm not ever having K*ds, but I would like to think my nieces and nephews will be among the few of the coming generations who will show common courtesy and respect.

We aren't in Kansas anymore is right, and we probably aren't ever going back. But it seems that places far from there may still be getting it right.

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Enzo

Now in High Definition!

I truley appreciated the manners of a young girl a few years ago while riding the bus.
There were no seats available so a few of us had to stand. The girl (10-11 years old) sitting next to where I was standing stood and offered me her seat.

A lovely jesture indeed however in my mind I feel as though I look about 40 and would never be confused for a senior citizen.

I was ruined for a day or so but the politeness remains and I have returned to my fantasy

Here is my perspective (it's very simplistic and could be flawed):

In the US, parents work like crazy and K*ds are often ignored; in Costa Rica, K*ds are raised by their parents or their grandma.

In Costa Rica, parents can "discipline" their K*ds; in the US, the K*ds will be calling the cops!

Good parents = good K*ds.

Raising Ch*ldren takes a tremendous amount of time and effort. It also requires you to remember you are the parent. They are not equal; they are not your friends; and what you say is law. We made it clear, it was not a democracy it was a dictatorship and we were the dictators.

I have seen a lot of families in crisis where the K*D was the dictator and it should not surprise anyone that those K*ds more often then not end up in jail or dead.

My Ch*ldren used to say they didn’t like me. Quite frankly I didn’t give a s*it if they liked me or not. They had clearly defined responsibilities and we followed up to make sure they fulfilled their responsibilities. If they didn’t they we punished, not rewarded. Follow through and consistency.

There was plenty of whining, crying, you hate me, you don't love me and on and on. We ran household more like a military squad as opposed to a Leave it to Beaver household. But that is what I knew.

The other thing is we spent time with them; went to their sporting events, recitals, dances, parties, etc. We also ate together, seated at the table where they were expected to act civilized and use proper manners. We checked their homework and my wife, who is a clean freak, would frequently search their rooms. No freeking 4th Amendment rights in our household. They were our K*ds and we took responsiblity for them. If they went bad we believed we would have failed.

Success in my work took second place to raising the offspring. I once read a statement by someone that really stuck. He said that no success in life could compensate for a failure in the home. We took that seriously.

It really took a LOT of effort to follow through.

One time, #3 daughter went to a party at the local Holiday Inn. About 30 minutes after it started, my wife and I showed up at the hotel just to make sure everything was on the up and up. My daughter was embarrassed but she and the other siblings all knew from that time on, we might show up anywhere, anytime. She still remembers that incident today, but instead of saying how embarrassed she was, now that she is a mother of two and an officer in the military, she says thanks for caring.

Once my wife was disciplining #2 son. She wasn’t thumping on him just chewing him out. He proudly announced she was guilty of Ch*ld abuse and if she touched him he would call the police and have her arrested.

I went into a rage. If you are a Marine, imagine Gunny Ermey one inch from your face screaming and spitting all over you. I explained to him at about 100 dBA that if he didn’t straighten up I would fly his little ass back to Costa Rica, beat the sh*t out of him and then fly him back to California. Back then CR laws were far more lenient toward corporal punishment.

To some it may sound harsh. Indeed it was a blending of midwestern and Costarican values which were remarkably similar.

With all our yungens, at that time six of them spaced two years apart, they all turned out to be good men and women who have taken on the responsibilities of adulthood very well. They are all productive members of society, many of them vets including service in both current active theaters. They aren't a drain on society, they are contributors. They will never set the world on fire. They are solid productive members of society.

The only one I am disappointed in is son #2. I am not sure what I did wrong with him. He is studying to be a lawyer. (All you barristers, only kidding )

That's a hell of a story.... the kind many miss because they have never once been on a bus or outside a 4 block radius of the HDR. It reminds me of a trip where I rode the bus out into the sticks. The driver tells me this is it and I say I want to go back to SJO. At that moment he knew I was no Tico. I taught him a little English on the way back in and when we got back he stood up from his seat, thanked me and shook my hand. I love getting out and having those kinds of experiences as much as the hookers.

Berk....

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FRUITCAKE... and you thought it was something you eat! Not on CRT!

Yes Berk these experiences last longer than those of HDR. I love the true nice natives in CR...so many to meet & so little time.

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"Run silent, run deep"
Spunk glazed Chicas are the building blocks of the universe!