En Serio? (Are you serious?)

Sorry I haven’t posted; I’ve been traveling.
So, last we posted, I found a great house in Grecia.  However, since the one constant in every experience in Costa Rica is the are-you-kidding-me-with-this factor.
Last Wednesday, I went out to the house to measure and see what I needed to purchase in advance of moving in.  First, I noticed that I had miscalculated the environments which I need in my home; one of the three bedrooms is actually a tiled garage.  Ok, so I’m going to need to reconfigure.  However, that wasn’t the memorable part.
While walking through the house, my new landlady, an amiable Tica (Costa Rican), said, and I quote:  “Oh, by the way, whenever there’s lightning, you need to unplug all electronics and not walk around barefoot.”
Huh?
I don’t know why I didn’t see that coming; I guess I’m easily surprised.
Upon further questioning, she told me that she had lost two cell phones, which were fried during a lightning storm, and my new unmet neighbor Bob had lost a printer.  She also claimed that they had done all appropriate grounding, but it didn’t work.  At a loss for words, I said that it sounded odd and I wasn’t sure what I could do about that.  I then started thinking about researching what kind of technology might remedy the problem.

When I got home, I spoke to a local handyman who said that in Grecia, due to its proximity to a volcano, had extreme and different type of lightning.  I couldn’t, and can’t, imagine that everyone in this sizable community, which includes expats, unplugs everything whenever there is lightning.  (Let’s not forget that it’s Costa Rica and there’s ALWAYS lightning.) And what about when one is away from home? I went online and started looking at how to properly ground a house.
I even, no kidding, thought about the necessity of stable energy.  Even where I am now, power goes out frequently, if briefly.  However, as I consult with clients via Skype, I can’t cancel or interrupt meetings during storms. Also, I paid mucha plata (a lot of money) for my home entertainment center.  I can live with outages, but not damage.
So far, I have found surge protectors which actually insure electronics plugged into them if they get fried.  I have learned about joule limits.  Also, how many do I need?  Do I need battery backups as well?  And I composed and sent a polite and upbeat email to my landlords, explaining that this could be a deal-breaker, and, had I known before signing the lease, I would have insisted on fixing the problem first.  My email was very positive, saying how much I loved the house and how can we work together to make thing right.  I have yet to hear back, but I’m hoping for a reasonable resolution.  If not, I need to get out of my lease, which could get unpleasant.
So, pray for me. And remember: If ever house-hunting, for rent or purchase, don’t forget to ask about lightning.
(And why shoes?  The floors are tile!)