Living in Puerto Rico- Paradise Tax Revisited

This little rant is aimed at those who might consider retiring to Puerto Rico. I did, it’s not that bad. Really.

Pesky tasks that demand your attention-

Among those-

Replacing the leaking hot water tank in the passive hot water system up on the roof.. adapting a standard hot water heater to what was already in place.. trying to determine why we have such ridiculously high water pressure and eventually replacing the water pressure regulator up by the water meter were ALL exercises in frustration. It resulted in the water being shut off at the meter for a couple days while I did some trouble shooting. I still have to go back up on the roof and replace the other pressure regulator (which protects the passive hot water array) and tank and add insulation to the exposed copper. Once it stops raining, of course.

Did I mention I’m almost 60?

In the process of installing the new tank, I did manage to burn my finger real good with the propane torch while sweating copper joints. Should have been using the new gloves I had been saving for photo-trips (thanx Margie & Jerry). Old ‘fingerless’ gloves simply don’t cut it.

Nor is the weather cooperating… it’s been kind of wet here. That is good for the garden, but now I have lots of grass to cut. It sounds like I’m complaining, but I’m not. These things simply take time, lots of it.

Burning my finger was just plain stupid.

The water pressure issue is probably related to the fact that there is a community cistern, a half block up the hill from us.  Replacing the water pressure regulator seems to be an ongoing issue. Ever see the needle on a 200psi gauge jump to the end and break off? I got it down to a steady 45psi now. I will eventually mount two pressure regulators in parallel to split the load.

Here and Back, the Woes of Ordering Online-

Suffice it to say..
it’s a major pain.

Most sites quote free or very cheap 2nd day delivery, but 98% of the time, its for mainland US only, via one of the big 3 air freight shippers. What’s more, most do not support USPS. Did I mention there are US Post Offices all over PR? Those companies NOT offering a USPS alternative are losing access to 3.725 million Americans in PR, 710,000 in Alaska (an upscale economy) and 1.36 million living in Hawaii. Those are NOT small numbers.

Let me state clearly- I ALMOST NEVER SHIP UPS, FEDEX OR AIRBORNE since the cost is ridiculously high.  USPS please.

Yes, if I lived on the mainland, it would be no big deal. I had the same shipping issues back in Alaska. I have been doing mail-order since I was 12. How else was I going to get my model rocket kits and engines from Estes?

A real example:
Since me First Mate was making the switch to Mac, we needed to score a copy of WindozeXP to run via Parallels. Having found what we needed on Amazon, we tried to order it, but were faced with the fact that this particular dealer would not ship to Puerto Rico. Our solution- Have it delivered to her sister on the mainland and then have her forward it to us. It took forever to show, but we finally got it. This would not be near so silly if the software in question, were not in fact, prepared and packaged IN Puerto Rico for distribution in the US and Canada.

No kidding!

I hoist me cup to sites like B&H Photo who permit USPS shipping AND recognize Puerto Rico as part of the US.

Too many companies think Puerto Rico is a country. It’s a territory of the US, organized as a commonwealth.

Idiots!

Moral of the story- Stay on good terms with family on the mainland. You may need them!

Most of this is a consequence of living in PR.. what us folks originally from the mainland refer to as- ‘the Paradise Tax’. The ‘little’ inconveniences you put up with to live here. Yes, it IS worth it. Though you could buy a condo and avoid ‘owner maintenance’ issues, you would be stuck living in town. Not too many condos out in the country. Self-sufficiency is the key to success.

Where else can you be on vacation 24/7/365?
Hawaii is simply too expensive for my blood.

Then there is me Garden-

If it did not rain the day before, I spend a couple hours in the morning, running around watering everything. I have to get up early to do this on the days we head off to explore a new place.

Don’t those bananas look great?

That is about a third of the whole bunch.  I have about 30 banana and plantain plants I look after. I eventually plan to double that. Then we would have bananas and plantains for cooking almost year round.

My Puerto Rican (Mexican) lemon tree is full of immature fruit at the moment. They are a perfect match to me Rum ‘n Diet Cokes. Arrg!  I am working on a small collection of local citrus I have started from seed. A couple of this and a couple of that. Yes, they are a ‘few’ years off from producing anything, but its hardly cost me a dime… only my time. Citrus grows well here.

The local Mango Bobo trees have just finished dropping their fruit all over the ground. They easily grow to over 45 feet. Mango Bobo literally covers the island. They grow everywhere. They are not that popular with the locals since they have such a big seed and the bugs love them. Swarms of fruit flies work over the fallen fruit. While they are still hanging, we use them for pellet gun target practice in the evening.

It is possible to spot a good one. They are very sweet and juicy when ripe.

I’m surprised no one makes brandy from them. It would be very easy to do. We have several Mango Bobo on the property. The big one in the back is partially covered in Parcha vines (Passion Fruit). The Parcha are in full bloom now and will start dropping fruit, any time. There are many varieties of Mangos in Puerto Rico, some of which are exported to the mainland and Europe. We have one hybrid cultivar I watch after, keep fertilized, but it only fruits every other year. This year being the year!

Same for the big Avocado tree. It normally only produces every other year, but this year, it has about a dozen fruit developing. That is a fraction of what it normally does in a good year. As they mature and ripen, critters start helping themselves to MY avocados… frustrating.

That prickly looking thing is a Guanabana.  They make fantastic juice.

Lush and Green

The Orchid Trees out front are in full bloom as well. They attract hummingbirds and bees much like the Parcha. They are absolutely beautiful. Something kind of interesting- when the seed pods of the Orchid tree dry-up at the end of the season, they literally burst open with a twisting action. This flips the seeds a good 18 feet (6 meters) in all directions. I have found these seeds on our 2nd level deck. Plus once they start going off, you can hear them pop from inside the house. There is a little puff of dust too. Since each tree can bear hundreds of seed pods and there are a dozen+ trees, it’s hard to miss. It’s also a very invasive species since it spreads its seeds so far and wide. Our yard is covered in sprouts. Ants love the seed pods so you have to be careful when collecting them from the trees. They climb the trees to get at the pods.

In another month, the Flamboyans will be back in bloom…
A very good time to be in Puerto Rico.

Paradise Tax? No big deal.