I hope I go to bed a little earlier tonight. “Soy dado al trasnochar” – “I am given to staying up late.” It’s an old habit, hard to break.

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Fortunately, with my last employer I could arrive at work whenever I wished. What mattered was getting the work done, not how many hours I spent on the premises. Good thing, too. I usually showed up at ten, or even a little later. I had no problem remaining into the evening

Now that I am retired, my schedule is even more my own. I can go to bed and get up when – and if – I feel like it. Living here in Costa Rica, I feel like rising bright and early with the sun. Late to bed. Early to rise. Thank the goddess for inventing siestas! Naps are wonderful things.

Most people get up early here. Five is not unusual. The roosters begin to crow about then. By six, everyone is stirring. The horses in the field next door are full of energy. They prance across the green.

It is not easy in retirement to remember which day is what. It doesn’t matter most of the time. I can tell when it is Sunday, though. Church bells, you know. Far in the distance I can hear them calling the faithful (who are not many in Costa Rica these days – only about 70 percent of the population even claim to be Catholic anymore. The Church is going down quickly here. The daily newspaper reported recently that the Church in Costa Rica is losing on average 453 members every single day.)

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I like to know when it is Sunday, because I will walk into town (a 30-minute stroll – great exercise!). Every other Sunday at 11 a.m. I can watch the local boys, Los Griegos of the Second Division, do battle against a team from another city in Costa Rica. Football – REAL football, not the United States variety – rules here, as it does most places in the world. Our team is in the second division. The winner of the second division will get promoted into the first division at the end of the season. Vaya Griegos!

In the rainy season, it will rain for an hour or so almost every afternoon. It did not miss an afternoon for more than a month. Sometimes it was merely a gentle shower, almost a mist. Other times, it would come an “aguacero” – a real downpour. You can hear the heavy rains approaching from across the hills in the distance, getting louder as they get nearer. When they arrive, the noise can be deafening! They come complete with boot-shaking thunder and spectacular lightning, almost on top of each other! Quite exciting!

But then its over, the sun returns, the birds start singing, the butterflies begin to dip and swarm, kids are chattering down the block – life moves on.

It is time for the siesta.

This article is one in a continuing series that chronicles Lair’s move to Costa Rica from the United States. Watch for a new article each week.