Captain’s Blog – April, 20 2016

I am not predisposed to become involved in the climate change debate, but I am curious how California can be in a serious drought, while at the exact same time, Texas is underwater. At the very least that does not seem fair. The brilliant physicist, Michio Kaku, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michio_Kaku is fond of using a planetary scale of evolution first proposed by Soviet astronomer, Nikolai Kardashev, to explain the level of development of a civilization. He assigns a number; either a 1, 2 or 3 to indicate the development or advancement of a planetary civilization. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kardashev_scale It turns out that the earth is a 0 (zero) on this scale. That puts us just a short distance past the Stone Age.  Ouch!

Even as a young person, I can remember that I wondered why we can’t control the weather. Maybe I will live to see the day that actually happens. According to some folks, we are already doing it, but apparently not for our benefit. That is a topic for another time. Right now I am concerned that the rainy season will commence in Costa Rica, and be adequate for the farmers this year. Last year was a little lean, so maybe this year will excite the men and women who grow the crops, and raise the livestock. As for me, I am looking for the return of the deep green fields, and hill sides.  I want my videos to show the real beauty of tropical Costa Rica.

The term rainy season is often incorrectly interpreted to mean the monsoon season. There are days in October where parts of Panama, and Costa Rica must look as if they are experiencing monsoons, but in the main, the rainy season is simply the time of year when it can rain–usually from Mid April (now) until the end of November. However, the last couple of years saw some rain in December, and even January.  Is this due to Climate Change?

My wish is that we get plenty of rain this year, but I want it to come in storms that are fairly evenly spaced and not all at once. I like the tropical rain, and I must confess that I do like a fairly strong storm from time to time. Technically, Cost Rica does not get hurricanes, or tornadoes. Nevertheless, there have been times when local winds were similar to a tornado. I am not sure that there ever was a tornado, but if it looks like a duck, and it walks like a duck, then…

I grew up in the USA, and in the course of my life I have been very close to seven tornadoes, or was that seven ducks? I try explaining to my Central American wife what it is like to be in or near a tornado, but without an example at hand, it is hard to convey the true essence of the experience.  I finally gave up, and opted instead to show her the movie Twister.  She is watching it even as I write this. I just now realized that some of the sound effects that I am hearing are coming from her as she reacts to what is happening on screen.

I like living in Costa Rica, and I no longer miss the four seasons. In Costa Rica there are only two seasons–winter and summer. That translates into wet or dry, or in reality, to mud or dust. I still love the fall in Michigan, where for a time, the trees turn bright colors and look as if they are on fire. Thankfully, I can always see this in the beautiful 4k photos posted on the Internet.  I sure don’t miss the traditional Michigan cold winters, or the snow (except maybe on Christmas morning.)

Warm Tropical Wishes to you, and let the rains begin.

–Jim