Mysterious Mrs. McHenry

A funny thing happened last Sunday. While our kids were up at the cabin with Neni & John, I was simultaneously convalescing and trying to get errands done for the week. Our phone rang. Not the ominous sort of ring you get from a school when you know your kid is either throwing up or full of lice. It was a friendly sort of ring.

Our neighbors, Bob & Mary, who live around the block from us called to tell us they have a duck in their back yard. Well, naturally, why wouldn't you call us with news like that? They are well acquainted with our kids and back yard menagerie. Mary said she woke up to quacking that morning and they've been trying to catch this seemingly flightless duck all morning. I said I'd gladly come over and try to help them catch the duck but I was trying to do some cooking for the week (lunches and dinners). Anyhow, I sent Michael round the block to check it out. His firm response was, "We are not getting a duck!"

About thirty minutes later, Michael pulls up with a duck in the back seat of Old Bessie. I was so thrilled! A duck!!! I hear they are great for gardens. Supposedly they eat all the slugs and snails and weeds and do not eat up your food and till it under the way our naughty chickens do.



We put Mrs. McHenry in the garden with a big bowl of water. She looked a little curious about her surroundings. My garden does resemble a bit of a jungle at this point. There are winter squash vines crawling all over everything, including the tomatoes. Our chickens peered at her with that sideways glance that chickens give. Mrs. McHenry washed her bill and began snacking on weeds. I couldn't have been happier.



Soon Michael and I had to begin our journey up the mountain to pick up the kids. Of course the battery in the newly serviced van exploded in an attempt to thwart our efforts. But that's another story.

Once up at the cabin, we gleefully showed pictures of Mrs. McHenry to the kids and grandparents. The girls were thrilled. The grandparents shook their heads at yet another animal in the yard. Poor Rex didn't want to have another pet because it was just going to die like Turbofluff. Who came blame the kid for being gun shy? But soon he warmed up to the idea and was quite excited.

We arrived back in Chico at 10pm to find Agnes, our "Good night Chicken" by the back door. She never made it to the safety of the coop before the photo sensitive door shut her out. And Mrs. McHenry was waiting for us by the back bedroom door.

We put Agnes to bed in her coop and we put Mrs. McHenry in the coop formerly used by the younger chickens. I felt good that they were all safely put to bed.

At 6:30am the next morning, I saw Mrs. McHenry crane her long duck neck out of the coop and look around. She flapped out into the yard where she was promptly chased around by Lucky. (Lucky is the lowest on the pecking order, so she was a little excited to have a new kid on the block). Mrs. McHenry waddled around quacking her head off. I brought out a big bowl of water and pondered getting a used kiddie pool for her. We sat there and looked at each other for a bit. Then she flapped her wings broadly and took off in the great wild yonder at approximately 6:50am.

I mean, that duck didn't just hop the fence into the neighbor's yard. She flew up, up and away.

I was a little sad. No duck. Good-bye Mrs. McHenry.

I went back inside to make breakfast and pack lunch for Rex. At 7:00am Rex jumped out of bed and ran to the back yard to look for Mrs. McHenry. Well, I suddenly felt very guilty. I had to inform him of the situation. Apparently we are only an Inn on the great duck highway. She was not a pet after all.

Well, I figured that was the end of the story. But on Wednesday my neighbor from across the street, Terri (Valerie's piano teacher), came over to use the phone as she'd locked herself out of her house. She said as she stepped inside, "By the way, you guys haven't seen a duck around the neighborhood, have you?"

We had to tell her the tale of Mrs. McHenry. Apparently Terri's sons found the duck out near Highway 32 and noticed she couldn't fly. They were worried she'd get hit by a car, so they brought her home. Terri put her in the backyard. Evidently she'd hopped the fence Saturday night into Bob & Mary's yard behind Terri. The rest, as they say, is history.



The mystery of Mrs. McHenry solved. I suppose she's off looking for a Mr. McHenry at this very minute.

Above is the name of the best restaurant in the city of San Ramon. Our driver Alex and his friend Eduardo (seen below with Michael and the kids) brought us here on our way back to San Jose from Arenal. Oh, and Alex wanted me to know that he's not "just a driver" but THE BEST driver in Costa Rica. We had a fantastic Arroz con Pollo with fried yucca, plantains, etc. It all came attractively displayed on a banana leaf. We were too full to try any of their amazing fruit smoothies in such exotic flavors as guanabana, cass and tamarind.




Here you see the kids with Senor Tucan out front of our lodging at Los Lagos Hotel in La Fortuna.



Our room looked upon the Arenal Volcano which was delightfully active and rumbly. We would wake in the night to hear the rumbles and hear rocks and stuff clattering down the side of the mountain.





One of the features of Los Lagos was the hot springs and water slides. These and the swim up bar were enjoyed daily.





Los Lagos also sported a menagerie. Here you see one of the crocs. It was a little odd to look at all the butterflies, frogs, etc. in a zoo format after seeing them in the wild. But we were happy to see the crocs with a barrier between us.




Directly across from our room was not only the volcano, but a beautiful hillside with these painted horses grazing and scampering around. We often sat on the porch outside our room listening to the calls of tucans while watching the horses and the steaming volcano.





Before we came to La Fortuna/Arenal tourist haven, we were still enjoying the wild Osa Peninsula. Here you see Rex with a butterfly and the lush flora behind him.



Also on the Osa we played at Playa Preciosia and stayed a couple nights at the Iguana Lodge. They had boogie boards for use.



This is a moment from our stay at the Lapa's Nest House (just after the Tree House). You can see the amazing panorama with rainbow on this day. We were treated to fantastic animal shows (tucans, macaws, monkeys) and lightening shows at night. It was very peaceful and just what you imagine a tropical vacation ought to be.