Archive for the 'life' Category

Kitty loco and Rocky dog

November 6th, 2007 by Rena

Today I thought I’d introduce you to my two favorite fluffy friends and constant companions (besides the hubby Pedro, of course), Kitty and Rocky.

Kitty and Rocky dog

Kitty will be 13 years old this December and I have had him since he was a wee one. Kitty (the namesake of this blog) accompanied me here to Costa Rica two and a half years ago and has since grown a bit fat and grumpy. It is worth while to check out Kitty’s photo gallery, he’s a very handsome model!

Rocky the miniature pincher has been living with Pedro, Kitty and I (oh and also the two cats that live outside of my house; Little Girl and her son Panther) for about a year now. Before that he was living at Pedro’s parents farm where he enjoyed keeping the cows in line and barking and biting everyone who came too close. Thankfully he has calmed down, though he still bites the local drug addicts and drunks who live in my town.

Rocky is the first dog I have ever had. I have always been a cat-person and have had various throughout my life (along with a newt, a turtle, a couple of frogs that hopped away, some birds, a lizard, many fish and some guinea pigs), but Rocky, being quite the character he is, has won me over to the dog side.

Min pins are the perfect dog because they are cute, entertaining and the same size as cats, perfect for cuddling with! Plus they think they’re tough and are good for protection. Look at how cute and insane my Rocky dog is…

Rocky miniature pincher

IF: Signs

May 20th, 2007 by Rena

heart = love
When I was a kid I loved to play with dolls. Stuffed or Barbie dolls, it didn’t matter. My toys helped me to go into that creative happy place in my head where I was at peace. Sadly as an adult I don’t go to that place as much. So this post is dedicated to my dolls, which I loved (the heart symbol is a sign of love for all you Illustration Friday folk) so much in my childhood. And here’s a wish to all, that we can find our way to our creative happy place even once in a while :) Dolls rock!

Googlism for Rena

May 4th, 2007 by Rena

My friend Noodles pointed out this site, Gogglism. Punch in your name and get very fun results. Try it, it’s fun!

Of course not all of the following are true to me exclusively, but rather encompass the entire Rena race… I’ve moved some of my favorites and most complimentary one’s to the top because obviously I want to impress you my fellow readers.

Googlism for: rena

rena is a very beaytiful woman
rena is a young girl who feels she is different from the others in her village because she is the only one who can use healing magic
rena is a hotty
rena is the best
rena is the only authorized dealer of her patented reciprocating floats and head supports
rena is awesome
rena is still in the design phase
rena is a very powerful actor and she was the only person who i ever had in mind for the role
rena is also a much sought
rena is a mixed breed shepherd
rena is particularly interested in developing innovative and advanced conflict resolution training modules
rena is a strong magic user
rena is a pistol

Read More »

Ass-Stanking Dogs and Killer Kittens

April 12th, 2007 by Rena

Rena's leg after cat attack
Will the bad luck that seems to have befallen me end? First my near death car accident and then a nice day on the beach turned sour after my dog Rocky the miniature pincher rolled himself joyfully in feces. And finally, a half grown cat left my right leg dripping blood.

Read More »

IF: Green

April 9th, 2007 by Rena

Spring Blossoms
I can only imagine the fresh greens of spring emerging from the darkness of winter. I am missing Toronto a lot and this would be the start of my favorite time of year there. Costa Rica only has the rainy and dry seasons, and there is always green and warmth so there is nothing in that regard to miss or look forward to. So oh how sweet, I have bought myself a ticket home for one month this coming May 23rd.

I am very excited to see all my family and friends. I feel like the city must have changed so much in the year and a half that I have been living here in Costa Rica, for when I left there were huge buildings being erected or renovated and an entire area being transformed.

Car Crash Crappola

March 22nd, 2007 by Rena

I had to run out yesterday so I didn’t get to finish up about my car crash. My pal Susanna asked me some questions so I will answer them here.


Read More »

IF: Total and a Car Accident

March 21st, 2007 by Rena

Total Woman
This piece for Illustration Friday is titled, “Total Woman” because this sexy mamacita is all woman! Ok, maybe she’s a bit less woman and more of a scanned pencil crayon drawing that was altered and coloured in Photoshop.

I have a live to tell story now… muy asustado… very scary. Pedro and I picked up my parents from the airport in San Jose last Tuesday in a rental car. I was driving. This was my parents first visit to Costa Rica and their first time meeting my husband and his family…oooh scary!

The first part of the drive is up and around and down and around some very large mountains. I don’t really like driving them (being more acquainted with driving the flat landscape of my hometown, Toronto, Canada) but I just concentrate on the road ahead and try not to look to the steep drops on the side and all is fine for me. It’s always much nicer being in the inner lane next to the mountain.

An hour into our drive home I was driving down the mountain when I noticed that a push on the breaks seemed to speed up the car before slowing it and I mentioned casually that the breaks seemed a bit off. I was driving automatic car and my dad told me to put it into 2nd gear, which I did. We just came down around a curve and there was a car up ahead of me going around the next curve. The car was moving quite slow but pressing on the breaks was not stopping the car all of a sudden. I floored the breaks once before again casually commenting out loud, “I think the breaks are not working”.

The rest happened very fast. I looked to the left lane where the street was clear but there was a curving mountain and then to the right, where there was a ditch. I chose the ditch, I thought, I had better stop this car somehow, and I thought as the car was movings slowly the ditch would stop us. So I turned into the ditch and Pedro screamed out, “what are you doing? Don’t do this” and the car bumped down the ditch, flew out and crashed into a metal fence where we came to stop…phew! I had a seatbelt welt and a backache and migraine developed soon after. My dad hurt his back and my step-mom and Pedro, sitting in the back, had a few bruises. But thankfully we were alive and unharmed. Had I continued down the road we would have gone off a cliff. I don’t think I’ll drive those roads again, but rather trust the local bus.

Thankfully the rest of the visit with the parents was relaxing and uneventful.