Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Dust in the wind

When the winds pick up in December and January, it’s cause for celebration: rainy season is on its way out and the sunny, beautiful dry season has arrived. (I blogged about this last year, mentioning how noisy and dusty life is during windy weather.)

Eventually the gusts subside and the valley is left with the gorgeous weather people dream about. Normally. This year, however, it's been much cloudier than last season and the wind isn’t letting up. It's been blowing like mad for weeks, making it hard to sleep some nights and frustrating on those bright, clear days when we want to play and swim outdoors but get blasted by blowing dirt and dust. I’d love to spend dinner out on our patio, enjoying the optimal temperatures and a beautiful sunset, but it would be futile. Too darn windy!

Not long ago a new billboard went up along the highway not far from my house—a big one on a fat, steel post. Enter the crazy winds, and after only a week the billboard had crashed. I got a few photos of it (evidence, you know) the morning after it happened.


Perhaps the most frustrating thing about this wind is that we can’t keep our windows wide open, which is something we normally love about living here. There is so much pollution in the air—dust, dirt, pollen, ash (lots of controlled and uncontrolled fires during dry season) and who knows what else blowing around—and it comes right into the house. I can dust the furniture, open the windows, and a couple of hours later run my hand over the table only to find brown dirt and grit on my palm. I’m serious about this—no taking literary license here. We can look out our back window and see stuff whirling in the air—and then I think about us breathing all that in. It’s disheartening.

The other day the DJ at a local radio station played Dust in the Wind by Kansas. I think he was having a poke at this crazy Costa Rican weather.

4 comments:

Justine said...

Well, thank goodness for a/c then, eh? And on a bright note, that billboard looked like a piece of crap anyway. Glad it's gone! LOL

Justine :o )

Four in Costa Rica said...

We only have a/c upstairs in the house but we never run it because electricity is very expensive here. Plus it's frustrating because the outside temperatures are terrific!

You can't see the image on the billboard in my photos; it must be on the other side (I think they had only finished the one side at this point). But yeah, billboards are always ugly, right? The post is still there so I expect they'll put up another sign soon.

Christine

Jill said...

Now that's pretty darn windy. I am not much for fresh air anyway unless it is nice and cool out. I like the a/c! I wish I was in your place right now enjoying a different place than here. You are so lucky! Enjoy this time.. and keep the pictures coming!

Shelli said...

OK can get like that too. I'd open the windows for a couple of hours and then everything would be covered in red dirt. It's like you're getting exfoliated every time you walk outside. But it makes for interesting kite weather. You should buy a stunt kite and make the most of it.