MarieElaine

LOL! I always seem to end up behind the person who has overspent and needs to return items in order to pay.

Looks like a huge project! We need more schools and teachers in Chirqui and this will be a wonderful addition. Maybe we can keep our young people from joining gangs if we educate them better.

Mr Dog will be at ARF's pancake breakfast October 1st at the Animales building. He has some very unique things and also engraves tags at a reasonable cost.

Beautiful! Thank you.

Simple detective work could have found out where this criminal was hanging out since he did not flea the area, So why was he still at large. A shame he had to be shot to death by "rivals" when the police probably knew where to find him and could readily pick him up alive and well. In a perfect world someone with that many warrants would flea to hide elsewhere because the police were actively looking for him. I can only think that the police are understaffed, have no detectives or undercover personnel, or just don't care. I sincerely hope it is not the last excuse. I have heard so many stories like this where the police in Chiriqui have not done their due diligence.

The picture above is a watercolor. How does splashing paint tie into this pic?

Thanks for the update Jim. Useful information.

Too many changes! How do we cope? LOL

Does anyone know when the roads will be resurfaced downtown? Does the project planned to take months or years? Not being a "plumbing" expert, I have no idea if they are done in my area downtown. They cover holes then dig them up again. Very confusing.

I know this is slightly off topic, but those of us who depend on our own two feet to get around downtown want to know when the mud will go away from the sewer/water project. Does anyone know if they plan to pave/gravel the roads. All around me the roads are mud and getting anywhere is a dirty and wet process. We who live downtown feel like we are in cages.

Mr Dog alone is fun! He was at ARF's Christmas with Santa in the park last December and he has a lot of interesting things for animals in addition to tags.

I agree, they are selling a product and what profits are made and what they do with those profits is their business. As an accountant, I can tell you donations are a great way to avoid or reduce taxes. In most countries only those companies that are profitable can use donations as an expense. I also think it is a great marketing tool to let people know you will donate the profits. They may in fact change charities from time to time. ARF is the only charity I know of that gives an accounting of their expenses monthly and, under their circumstances, I think it encourages trust in the quality of their work and those who donate.

Many thanks to Gray River Farms for providing organically farmed lake trout for the children at Casa Esperanza. Any break they get from beans and rice is a delight for them and they loved the fish! Casa Esperanza is a charitable organization that serves approximately 200 finca children in and around Boquete daily. They pick these children up in their bus, feed them breakfast and lunch, take them too and from school and back home at the end of the day. They provide continuing education, help with homework, music lessons, English education and a variety of sports activities. They offer these children options in their lives in an effort to break the cycle of poverty. There are many local church's, persons and companies that volunteer and donate to this worthy cause and we thank them all.

When I went to Monica I was quoted $180 for tooth extraction. When I balked at the price she asked if I would pay $100. Gringo pricing?

The police force here is just as corrupt as Noriega's forces were. I get this information first hand from a friend who is employed by the police force. Another friend was robbed of about $3k of equipment and knew who did it because one of the bandits t-shirt covering his face fell off. Armed with a firm identification, the police did nothing. I wouldn't be surprised if the police officers confronted the offender for a cut of the action! You probably did not see it in the news but officers were caught helping to smuggle cocaine through the Darien. What good is a police force that is on the take? While I am sure there are honest officers out there, I am discouraged by what I hear about corruption at most levels of government and police bodies throughout this country. If Varela is the man to clean Panama up, he needs to do a better job with the Police. The police should be part of the government mandate and not a separate entity.

They should concentrate on controlling the corruption among the police force instead of wasting time on such trivial matters.

Good point Penny. I know in FL tips are included for larger groups. The "Crispy Garlic Shrimp" was an appetizer and is included on their main menu and not the lunch special. Since so many people ordered this plate as their main meal, we asked that either vegetables would be included or a small salad. They chose to include the vegetables. While the shrimp was cooked perfectly and had a nice crunch it certainly was not breaded as we gringos tend to believe "crispy" means. Was a great day, thanks Chicas!

Nice touch TwoSailors.

They must have a new chef because the last time I ate there it was horrible and overpriced. If it is a new chef I hope he/she sticks around.

Absolutely despicable! I hope they find this animal abuser. Even if he was "relocating" this dog because he was hanging around his home, he is just as guilty as the owners for not doing something to help the dog. There are so many people and organizations that help abused and neglected pets in Chiriqui there is no excuse for him to further neglect this poor dog.

I use the 100 mg Aspirin in Revilla in Boquete. It does not have to be the cardio brand which is much more expensive.

A wonderful cause. Those smiling faces tell the whole story!

Juan Francisco de la Guàrdia, of the Panamanian Alliance for Life and Family, said that the group would be presenting an alternative draft bill to the assembly. He said that this would focus on teaching sexual education “through training in principles and values, and not through the delivery of contraceptive pills.” Why is the group against sex education claiming that contraceptive pills will be delivered? Sexual health education is just that, education regarding sexual health and methodologies employed to keep ones body healthy. I think the two groups need to get together and talk. We discussed this subject in church and there were definitely those fanatics that believe that teaching sex ed would encourage our teenagers to have more of it! Such a narrow point of view since they are going to have sex whether we educate them or not. Obviously these people have forgotten what it is like to have those raging teenage hormones.

Controlled Flow, I get it now. All the people at the Costa Rican immigration had number cards and were called according to number for entry. I presume the same process is going on at the Darien. I presume the ultimate destination is the USA.

I saw him on Sunday. What a tragic accident. My sympathy to his family.