It’s a Friday evening. About a week before my house sitting gig at Cortney’s and Rosemary’s garden spot in the Drago was to come to an end. I had joined my friends Jay and Danica for dinner at the Calypso Cantina at the Bocas Marina. We were sitting at a big round table with a couple from one of the other yachts in the marina enjoying an adult beverage. Or two… A few moments had elapsed when a gal known to Jay and Danica arrived with a girl friend of hers and was asked to join us.
As fate would have it, or was it strategic planning on my part, there were only 2 chairs left at the table and they were next to me. Kim sat down next to me with her friend to her left. It was one of those times when you meet someone and it’s as if you’d known each other for a long long time. We had great conversations and at some point I learned that Kim and her husband, Bryan, owned a condominium complex right next to the only gas station on the whole island. Since I was soon to need a new place to crash for about 3 weeks before heading back to the States for the Christmas/New Year’s holiday season, I naturally asked Kim if they had any vacancies. “Yes, as a matter of fact, I have a one bedroom unit that is available until December 25th.”
The next day I met Kim and Bryan to check out the unit. Wow! This is nice. First floor, no steps to climb. Out my front door, well, the only door actually, only about 50 yards away, lay the beach of the Caribbean Ocean with waves lapping the sand 24/7. It was quieter than down town where I had previously rented space. The Panamanian folk do like to play their music loud. And… since the aforementioned gas station is the only gas station, all of the taxis have to come out here. Getting a ride to town would be no problem. While I had been house sitting I had the use of the owner’s Toyota Land Cruiser, but soon I would be without wheels. My killer bicycle had not arrived yet, but that’s another story.
As fate would have it, or was it strategic planning on my part, there were only 2 chairs left at the table and they were next to me. Kim sat down next to me with her friend to her left. It was one of those times when you meet someone and it’s as if you’d known each other for a long long time. We had great conversations and at some point I learned that Kim and her husband, Bryan, owned a condominium complex right next to the only gas station on the whole island. Since I was soon to need a new place to crash for about 3 weeks before heading back to the States for the Christmas/New Year’s holiday season, I naturally asked Kim if they had any vacancies. “Yes, as a matter of fact, I have a one bedroom unit that is available until December 25th.”
The next day I met Kim and Bryan to check out the unit. Wow! This is nice. First floor, no steps to climb. Out my front door, well, the only door actually, only about 50 yards away, lay the beach of the Caribbean Ocean with waves lapping the sand 24/7. It was quieter than down town where I had previously rented space. The Panamanian folk do like to play their music loud. And… since the aforementioned gas station is the only gas station, all of the taxis have to come out here. Getting a ride to town would be no problem. While I had been house sitting I had the use of the owner’s Toyota Land Cruiser, but soon I would be without wheels. My killer bicycle had not arrived yet, but that’s another story.
Kim and Bryon Stratton - New Friends in Bocas del Toro
We agreed on a price which was more than fair and the next weekend I showed up with all of those worldly possessions mentioned earlier. And one workbench. Knocked down, it isn’t readily apparent just what function these five pieces of wood would fulfill. “What are those?” “Oh, those are the parts to my workbench/table saw. I build things”. “Really?” “Ya”. The next day Kim says: “We need to replace the seat bases on 6 deck chairs. Is that something you’d be interested in doing?” Having no idea what was in store for me, I answered with all the confidence I could muster: “Sure. No problem. I can get started on it tomorrow.” The chairs themselves were in good shape but the plywood the seat bases were made with had not been treated to resist the hot and humid climate here and were badly delaminating. The next day Bryan presented me with a new piece of threated ¾” plywood and one of the old bases to use as a pattern. Once the bases were done they would have a local person reupholster the bases with new foam and fabric. I set up my workbench on the porch of my unit and started laying out and cutting out the seat base blanks with my upside down sabre saw/table saw. Next I screwed on the “Power Sander” and trimmed the blanks to shape. To make sure my handiwork would last, I gave them 2 coats of primer and turned them over to Kim and Bryan to send out to be upholstered.
Seat Base Blank
Sorry for the blurry picture but it’s the only one I have.
As payment for my labors, Kim and Bryan invited me upstairs to their place a couple of times for some delicious home cooked meals. Apparently, I had managed to impress them with my wood working skills, because we started discussing the condition of the railings that encircled all the patios and decks of the four units in the complex. The building, which was only 6 years old, was built well and was in great shape. The railings were quite the opposite. The wood had not been treated against the elements and the construction was sub-par. And I’m being nice. “Do you think you could replace the railings?” “Oh ya! No problem”. So before I headed home for the holidays we discussed designs and I spend several evenings running over ideas in my head about how I was going to pull this off and what new tools I would either need to buy or make to do what was needed. It was exciting for me. My mind went into overdrive sorting through and revising ideas on how to do this, that, or the other thing.
Though there are places in town to buy hardware and tool items here in Bocas del Toro, there is nowhere near the selection we’re used to in any major city in the USA. I spent some time online, mostly at Amazon.com, and ordered tools and supplies that would be delivered to my daughter’s home on Whidbey Island, ready for me to pack up and bring back with me after the holidays.
I left Bocas on the afternoon flight to Panama City on the 21st. Spent the night in Panama City and left the next morning headed to Austin Texas where I spent a wonderful Christmas with my sister, Barb and her daughter, my niece, Chris. Then on the 26th I headed for Whidbey Island to visit my daughters, their significant others, and grandchildren and of course friends. And pack up my $800 worth of new tool toys to bring back to Panama. What a load! It cost me an additional $200 in airline over weight charges. But I guess that’s the price to pay to live in this paradise. But it’s worth it.
Stay tuned.
Though there are places in town to buy hardware and tool items here in Bocas del Toro, there is nowhere near the selection we’re used to in any major city in the USA. I spent some time online, mostly at Amazon.com, and ordered tools and supplies that would be delivered to my daughter’s home on Whidbey Island, ready for me to pack up and bring back with me after the holidays.
I left Bocas on the afternoon flight to Panama City on the 21st. Spent the night in Panama City and left the next morning headed to Austin Texas where I spent a wonderful Christmas with my sister, Barb and her daughter, my niece, Chris. Then on the 26th I headed for Whidbey Island to visit my daughters, their significant others, and grandchildren and of course friends. And pack up my $800 worth of new tool toys to bring back to Panama. What a load! It cost me an additional $200 in airline over weight charges. But I guess that’s the price to pay to live in this paradise. But it’s worth it.
Stay tuned.