Country Music Saves 99.9% of the Day in Costa Rica

After landing in Costa Rica and driving for three hours on windy, steep roads full of truck traffic and bridges only one car wide, I was near tears by the time we checked into our hotel, Leaves and Lizards, in the Costa Rican rain forest. The multitude of bugs that checked into our hotel room with us because we left a door open for too long pushed me completely over the edge.

When we sat down for dinner, alone in a large open-air dining room surrounded by the black of night, the sounds of country music were like a sign from God that things were going to start looking up and I was going to survive this family vacation.

So what were they playing at Leaves and Lizards, you ask? They had two albums on shuffle. Sugarland's Incredible Machine, and Brian McComas' 2003 self titled CD.

I had never heard Brian McComas. Now that I have, I'm 99.9% sure that his song "99.9% Sure (I've never been here before)" was the best possible song for the moment.

It ended up being a great trip, but apart from pictures and memories, the only souvenir I have is Brian McComas' almost ten year old album downloaded from itunes.

A couple days later in the dining room. All smiles.