It’s been quite a while since I’ve written anything. I think this week is the first one in a while where we haven’t had a lot going on. We went to Cuba. Soon after, our band drummer came back and we had to quickly get back in the grove with him. The day of our first gig together my daughter and her friend arrived for a visit. Then, after a few days in Chiriqui and couple days in Panama City, we all went to the US. Along the way we both had bad colds and a lingering stomach bug. We got back to Panama just in time for another round of practice and gigs, and now here we are almost to the end this week already. Whew!!
What will you DO with yourself when you are retired and no longer working??? Ha! I don’t know how I had time to work. Even before the band I was always busy with one thing or another. Now, add hours of practice, rehearsal, driving to and playing gigs, and I never fit in everything I want or need to do. I’m sure the most listeners have no idea of the many hours of preparation that go into each and every song.
But, we have no travel plans or upcoming commitments besides the band, so maybe little by little I can do some catching up. I owe people emails and visits. I have things I want to write about. There are always chores and errands and in the dry, windy (dusty) season I could clean the house more. Mangoes are ripening, ready to cut up and freeze, and we have oranges and limons for juice to freeze. Thankfully, the dried out yard isn’t growing much but there’s lots of cleanup I could do. And, some reading and relaxing time is always good, and biking! I’ve been out a few times this week and it feels wonderful, but I’m really out of shape (I know, round is a shape 😁).
Yeah… bored…. LOL Never. I’ve had some new experiences, found a new fruit (but no new bugs recently so you all are safe there). Thankfully no Panamanians were watching the cane toad incident or they would have been very entertained. We had a big old toad in the laundry room, and they are deadly to dogs so it had to go. These two gringos had a heck of a time catching and killing a toad! We are such incompetent killing machines.
Anyway, little by little I’ll catch up on things. And now that we have the band pretty much back on track, there is a list of cool new songs to tackle.
The Panama Adventure 
Reblogged this on Blue Dragon Journal.
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About that Cane toad…Did you know that you can put it in the freezer for a more humane death? We tried it, and it worked well, but we had too many to dispose of and a tiny freezer.
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Thanks! Good idea. You still have to catch the dang thing though. Is it dangerous for us to touch? I could put my gardening gloves in reach…
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Kris if these are the same ones that we had in Australia, if you pick it up with your hands it is not dangerous but you must wash your hands with soap very well. They excrete a toxin that is like LSD which is what kill’s dogs and cats.
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These might be the same. I’ve heard some dogs have learned to lick them for the hallucinating effects. I think I’ll just avoid touching them with bare hands. Hopefully toads in our yard are rare. This is only the second one I’ve seen. Thanks for the info!
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Glad to know you are still there. I enjoyed meeting you in David. Now living in Lethbridge in Southern Alberta.
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I enjoyed meeting you too! I hope all is well in Alberta. It seems like you all have had quite a winter. I hope you have a beautiful spring very soon.
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Welcome back, Kris. I’ve been down with another bug for the last week. Last night was the worst but every sunny morning cheers me up and I try to find the energy to accomplish a few things. Looking forward to more blog posts. And I am getting excited about the mangoes ripening up.
On my walk each morning I check them out, give them a little squeeze, but nada. I guess it’s like the watched pot. A watched mango tree never ripens its fruit.
Nick
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What did you get? Glad you are getting better. We got bad colds and then a stomach bug, not sure from where 😡 But, like all things thankfully, they pass. I was just getting ready to write about mangoes! Some of them are starting to get ripe. What a pleasure. I’m finding the little yellow ones but the bigger ones shours be coming along soon.
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Kris, I saw my comment is awaiting moderation. Maybe better not to publish it 😉
Sandy
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The first time anyone comments its held for moderation just to be sure it’s not a spam thing. After that comments go right through. I like your other comment but I’ll hold it back if you wish. I think almost all expats have family and often grandchildren so it’s a common concern, how to balance it all.
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Thanks so much, Kris. That makes me feel better. I just thought it may be a little personal. I think it’s so cool you get to concentrate on your music. I majored in classical guitar but all I do now is bang around for fun, jam whenever I get invited.
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You play guitar huh? Hmmmm…. 😁. Classical guitar is way harder than anything we do!
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Hahahaha, that was in college. I’m oooooooold now. I just bumble around on guitar and piano now 🙂 I bet you guys are amazing. What kind of music do you do?
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We play a bit of everything but mostly classic rock. We are ooooold too but as long as you’re able, go for it!
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Totally! I like hip hop, Latin music, show tunes, and bluegrass. HAHAHA.
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Ha! The hubs is in a band here, and the only thing he wants to bring with us to Panama will be his guitars. 😉
Will be following you!
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Yep, same here. The guitars came to Panama. He should also bring strings, tools, parts and any other guitar stuff that he can, including amplifiers and equipment if you can. You can get it here but it costs quite a bit more and the selection may less depending on where you are.
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