Here I am, on the backside of my surgery. I am happy to report that everything went well. I’ll still be in the hospital for another three days, but I count that as a blessing. My father had a similar surgery in the United States years ago. The hospital sent him home the same day, along with a bill that was many times higher than mine for four days of care. Here in Costa Rica, care comes before insurance company profit.

But wait, you say. I thought you said Costa Rica has public health care. Why are you paying anything? The answer is because the country has private hospitals as well as the public system. Many expats and even Ticos make use of both. For what is defined as an elective surgery like mine, even though it really wasn’t, I get to pick my own specialist at the private hospital. Interestingly, most of the specialists work in the public system and maintain private practices as well. So, in reality, the doctors are usually the same people. It comes down to whether you want to make your own choice of physician and set your own schedule.

Now, before you think that is a huge advantage for the U.S. system of profit-before-care, let me point out the last time I had a surgery in the U.S. I found myself at a very large hospital. When I was told I needed surgery, I received several recommendations from friends. When I told the doctor that I wanted to explore some of those suggestions, he bluntly said that if I was going to get the surgery on schedule in that hospital, “You’re stuck with me.” Fortunately, he was a good surgeon. But he moved on shortly after my surgery and I got handed off for follow-ups. Not a good feeling.

One last point on that experience. I had top-of-the-line health insurance, for which I paid several thousand dollars every month. Being freelance means you don’t get insurance as an employee benefit. Yet, even with that Cadillac policy, my after-insurance bill for the procedure was significantly more than the total bill I am paying here for care that exceeds what I received in the U.S.

I’m not interested in getting into a big discussion of this, though. There are pluses and minuses to both systems. That’s what I like about here. We get the best of both worlds.

The whole point to bringing this surgery stuff up is that I’m going to find myself leading a very sedentary life as I recuperate for a month or two. As one of my esteemed readers, you know what that means: A  new book! The manuscript returned from my editor on the same day I went into the hospital. His perfect timing means I’m going to rip through the next few revisions in record time.

I won’t tell you what it’s about just yet, but I will drop a few hints. Our good friend and favorite FBI Special Agent Dave Walters again plays a leading role. This book takes place before Breaking the Weak Link, making it a prequel to the book you either just read or must read next. You might recall that in Breaking, I alluded to some previous cases Walters had solved. This book is one of those cases. As in all of my crime novels, this one is loosely based on a true-life crime.

In terms of long-range plans, I have also begun writing the book after the upcoming novel! Also based on a true crime, this one takes us down the path of a darkly-disturbed man in a psychologically twisted thriller. Will FBI Agent Dave Walters appear in this book? Truthfully, I don’t know. I have, thus far, written the first four chapters. Based on the true crime, I know how and where this book will end but I still have no idea how it will get from here to there. You see, my books aren’t mapped out when I sit down to write. The stories write themselves and I am often as surprised about the path they take as you dear readers are.

The only thing I can tell you for sure is; Buckle up kiddies. This is going to be one hell of a ride!