Greetings from Idyllwild, California — my home. Our response to the corona virus pandemic has been to cancel all our trips and stay home. We are so lucky to live in a beautiful place and are very happy to be home, for a change. The last several years, we’ve been away from home most of the time, so this is a wonderful change. I’ve gotten out my paints, my mahjongg tiles, my guitar, my cookbooks and have been busier than ever. We are very fortunate to live in a very quiet place with miles of trails and almost no people.

Our dogs Cory and Abby are delighted we’re home and are wonderful companions. This is Cory posing for a photo.

This is Abby. I’ve been doing Pilates on Zoom — Abby likes to keep me company.

We were supposed to be in Svalbard right now on our favorite expedition cruise line — Lindblad Expeditions — watching the aurora borealis and spotting polar bears on the coastline, but that trip was cancelled. It’s okay. The lights will be there when we eventually get to visit, and hopefully a couple polar bears (though they’re disappearing fast). Right now I’m enjoying watching all the birds at my feeders and the sunshine of Southern California. It’s a beautiful place.

I hope everyone reading this is safe and healthy. We will get through this difficult time.

Namaste!