William Samuel "Bill" Sloan

We made it to New Delhi on 12 March and India closed down visas on 13 March. We are currently in Jaipur, south of New Delhi, trying to find flights home before everything shuts down.

Diana M. Codling (Reed)

Bill, will keep you and Margie in my prayers for a quick, safe, and healthy return home.  Our stresses waiting to return home from Lake Tahoe are miniscule compared to yours!

Diana

Richard Marcum

Well, today President Donny Johnny prohibited my trip to Rosarito Beach, Mexico.  So, I am a tidbit p.o.ed.  But life goes on and I hope he made this declaration today based on science versus that all intelligent gut of his.  If the intelligence of one's gut is based on its size, then Pres. Donny Johnny is bound to be a genius.

So, our next vacation needs to be domestic.  I was thinking of Yellowstone N.P.  Anyone have any other ideas?

Rick

Laura Anne Knight (Atkins)

Rick we are going to Yellowstone July 22 with some friends. We were there three years ago with our grandsons and had a great time. Are you an opera fan? You could come to Santa Fe July or early August. I hope this darn virus doesn't cancel the opera. Meanwhile, everybody try to stay well. Laura

Richard Marcum

Laura, my daughter, Megan, and her husband are in Santa Fe right now.  Here is a picture of her with me at a book signing in Lewisville, Texas.  (God, my gut stuck out so much that day.) 

William Samuel "Bill" Sloan

Greetings from New Delhi. We are celebrating a nationwide curfew from 7:00am to 9:00pm. Our hotel has a minimal staff for a minimal number of guests but the staff is supportive and friendly. We enjoyed seeing temples and forts in Delhi (new and old), Jaipur, and Pushkar. At present (fingers crossed and knock on wood) we will return to the U.S. Sunday March 29th. We might drive to Agra Monday through Wednesday to take photos of the Taj Mahal from a hotel balcony, as with most of the world, significant tourist sites and memorials are closed.  My question is our flight from Delhi is scheduled to land at JFK Intl - does this mean we will be redesignated as high risk visitors when we try to leave JFK? We have enjoyed the 1st 10 days of our visit and we will just wait out the next 7 days. Food is varied and breat tastes from mild and exotic to usually spicy - I learned to ask for medium spicy. Wishing all of you the best.

Laura Anne Knight (Atkins)

Rick that's a nice picture. Your daughter is pretty. Do they live here or just visiting? I get caught on camera with my gut out too sometimes.

Margaret W. "Peggy" Ware (Koger)

We were lucky enough to have a visit with Laura and Jesse Atkins in January!  Here we are having a beer after our trip to the Musical Instruments Museum in North Phoenix .  Love this couple! 

Karen McCarty (Messina)

Hi Peggy!  What a nice picture of you all!  I love the MIM in Phoenix. We went several times while we lived there. It takes quite a while to go through 3 stories ( or is it 4stories?) of musical instrument displays. At any rate, we discovered they were always changing the displays and adding new ones. Then they had musical events that were fun to attend too. I never tired of it. You are living in such a wonderful area with so much to enjoy!  

William Samuel "Bill" Sloan

We are in India - with over 1 billion population India has only 400 confirmed cases of COV19 so we are not in a Level 3 country (yet).  Waiting for a flight our previous hotel closed so they moved us down the street from an almost 4 stars to MAYBE 2 stars.(Photo below)) Tomorrow we move to the airport Radisson. Just keep smiling! 

Laura Anne Knight (Atkins)

We had a blast with Peggy and Fred. Glad we got to go before things shut down. Bill I hope you get home safe and well.

Richard Marcum

Laura, 

First, let me say thanks for the nice compliment regarding my daughter.  And second, FYI, you do NOT have any gut.  Look at the picture again at me...now that's a big gut.  

Megan lives in Lewisville, TX another suburb of Dallas.  She is a school teacher in Lewisville and was just in Santa Fe for a week of spring break.  She is a fanatical horse-whisperer and she loves Santa Fe.

I am looking a Yellowstone and it appears to be open, but having some issues with the roads.  I may look at going there sometime in June.  How did you book your trip there?  And what all did you do and see.  It looks very cool.

Take care and stay healthy.  I have never washed my hands this much in my entire life.  But when I hear about those dying...the age of 72 keeps echoing.  However I am going to bounce it off the boss.  She loved Grand Canyon and all of Utah, so you just never know. 

Rick   

William Samuel "Bill" Sloan

Dear Friends and Neighbors - okay none are neighnors but I wish you were!

I am going to blow off a little steam so please bear with me. While in the Marine Corps I spent 7 years planning for the evacuation of Americans and twice evacuted several hundred. We are currently in Delhi, India with a very large international airport. I am not saying we need a U.S. military evacuation as we are not in imminent danger.  BUT- we spent 4 hours last night trying to get on an Air India plane from Delhi to JFK,NY. No Air India staff, much less an airplane, showed up. So far Israel has been permitted 1 flight of Israeli citizens out of Delhi, Lufthanza has flown 5 flights of Europeans out of Delhi, Japan Airlines has flown 5 flights to Tokyo, and last night while we we twiddling our thumbs a special flight for Iranians (several hundred) were flown to Tehran. And the U.S. State Department says "we're working on it."  Give me a break!

Now the reality is we are in a very nice Radisson at reasonable cost (room and 2 meals a day at about $100 USD). We could order more but as we can only walk laps around the hotel compound a 3rd meal would not  help my Garfield figure! Meanwhile, from our hotel window, I see Indian day laborers walking from Delhi (with no more jobs) back to their home towns 200 to 300 kilometers away. Remember our blessings more than our minor discomforts.

Deborah Pike

Bill,

As usual you have brought my spirits  soaring (course the Scotch didn't hurt) I have discovered the wonder of ancient TV programs and movies from the dark ages but they are easy to lose myself in. YouTube and AmazonPrime are saving my Daughter and Granddaughters' Lives.

By the way, I forwarded the reason for the run on the TP to my girlfriend in France, it should be showing up in Tokyo by now..

So far we are all OK   It is like sitting on a big barrel of  gunpowder with a loooooong fuse that is lit. I don't like captivity....What will I do if I run out of  Scotch? I guess I'll have to switch to Sake!

Hope you are doing well and are eating and resting. 

Take care and keep the laughs coming.

Best Wishes to all and good luck to all of us old farts!

Debbie

James A "Jim" White

Robin E. Lostetter

So, I'm preparing to do my first funeral while in quarantine.  Dear old man died alone in the hospital - not of COVID-19, but isolated because of the damn virus.  He had a loving active family of 4 generations, and not one could be there. My calm has been disturbed.

Dwight Hardin

Bill, regarding your question about re-entering the USA. I just returned from a volunteer assignment in Haiti and our port of entry was Miami. Other than routine immigration and customs checks there is nothing else, not even suggested guidelines for self isolation. Did not even check for fever which the Haitians did a month earlier. I know your pain and frustration of trying to get a flight out. No flights in mean none out. The airlines (not state department) worked a deal to let empty planes in last Monday and Tuesday and made it back. Fortunately we have a getaway house in central Oregon where I am in isolation while Kate recovers from the cvirus in Portland.  Today she is finally symptom free. Good luck!

Beatriz Valadez (Ferreira)

Hola Fellow Coyotes & Goddard friends!

I rarely participate in this Forum.  But, in lieu of the Covid-19, and time, due to our Governor's Stay at Home Order, I had to share a powerful perspective from Bill Gates about Covid-19.  His words remind me of my own Faith. I discovered the Baha'i Faith in 1986.  Simply stated its Principles evlove around the concept of "One God, One World, One Famly".  Discovering the Baha'i Faith,  was extremely comforting to me because as a young person, I viewed myself as a global citizen.  As a  human rights and business lawyer, it is crystal clear to me that neither barriers nor walls make sense.  "...Justice for all." applies to all.  And, business is global.  Undoubtedly, creating barriers and buiding walls are useless and only waste enormous resources that could better be put to use in Education, Housing, Health Care and Peace building efforts!  The Berlin Wall caused so many young lives and so much grief for so many families.  The best thing that happened to Europe, despite it's adjusting challenges, was becoming the European Union.  We didn't have to deal with long lines at every border every two or three hours, just to visit friends or family for a couple of days!  Now the train ride from Frankfurt to Berlin is so much shorter and so much more enjoyable than taking a troop train through East Germany and having to stop for periodic inspections by armed military folks! My 2019 visits to Slovenia, Austria and Slovakia went  smoothly!  

Covid-19 gives many of us time to think about what really counts in life and what is  important for a healthy and happy global family! Many of us are so much more fortunate than too many others. Today, I am a little more hopeful for humanity having received news that a federal judge issued an order to realease all the unaccompanied children and those children who were separated from their mothers and fathers and placed in wire cages over a year ago!  Some of the children have tested positive with Covid-19. Sadly, its victims are not limited to the elderly! 

I do want to thank all of you who promote the positive and optomistic!! And, Robert, my husband, and I really enjoyed all the "sexy" quotes.  He especially liked the one with the Mercedes 280? Mil Gracias Hombre! 

WISHING ALL OF YOU A SAFE,  HEALTHY AND HAPPY LIFE!!                                                                                                         Beatriz Valadez Ferreira, M.S., J.D. 

*What is the Corona/ Covid-19 Virus Really Teaching us?*  Bill Gates. 

I’m a strong believer that there is a spiritual purpose behind everything that happens, whether that is what we perceive as being good or being bad.
As I meditate upon this, I want to share with you what I feel the Corona/ Covid-19 virus is really doing to us:

1) It is reminding us that we are all equal, regardless of our culture, religion, occupation, financial situation or how famous we are. This disease treats us all equally, perhaps we should to. If you don’t believe me,
just ask Tom Hanks.

2) It is reminding us that we are all connected and something that affects one person has an effect on another. It is reminding us that the false borders that we have put up have little value as this virus does not need a passport. It is reminding us, by oppressing us for a short time, of those in this world whose whole life is spent in oppression.

3) It is reminding us of how precious our health is and how we have moved to neglect it through eating nutrient poor manufactured food and drinking water that is contaminated with chemicals upon chemicals. If we don’t look after our health, we will, of course, get sick.

4) It is reminding us of the shortness of life and of what is most important for us to do, which is to help each other, especially those who are old or sick. Our purpose is not to buy toilet roll.

5) It is reminding us of how materialistic our society has become and how, when in times of difficulty, we remember that it’s the essentials that we need (food, water, medicine)as opposed to the luxuries that we sometimes unnecessarily give value to.

6) It is reminding us of how important our family and home life is and how much we have neglected this. It is forcing us back into our houses so we can rebuild them into our home and to strengthen our family unit.

7) It is reminding us that our true work is not our job, that is what we do, not what we were created to do.
Our true work is to look after each other, to protect each other and to be of benefit to one another.

8. It is reminding us to keep our egos in check. It is reminding us that no matter how great we think we are or how great others think we are, a virus can bring our world to a standstill.

9) It is reminding us that the power of freewill is in our hands. We can choose to cooperate and help each other, to share, to give, to help and to support each other or we can choose to be selfish, to hoard, to look after only our self. Indeed, it is difficulties that bring out our true colors.

10) It is reminding us that we can be patient, or we can panic. We can either understand that this type of situation has happened many times before in history and will pass, or we can panic and see it as the end of the world and, consequently, cause ourselves more harm than good.

11) It is reminding us that this can either be an end or a new beginning. This can be a time of reflection and understanding, where we learn from our mistakes, or it can be the start of a cycle which will continue until we finally learn the lesson we are meant to.

12) It is reminding us that this Earth is sick. It is reminding us that we need to look at the rate of deforestation just as urgently as we look at the speed at which toilet rolls are disappearing off of shelves. We are sick because our home is sick. 

13) It is reminding us that after every difficulty, there is always ease. Life is cyclical, and this is just a phase in this great cycle. We do not need to panic; this too shall pass.

14) Whereas many see the Corona/ Covid-19 virus as a great disaster, I prefer to see it as a *great corrector*

It is sent to remind us of the important lessons that we seem to have forgotten and it is up to us if we will learn them or not.

Bill 

Sent from my iPhone

Deborah Pike

Robin,

I am sorry to hear about your friend. I hear stories like that from my daughter who works in a nursing home. So far we have had no deaths on Mauii. But people in her place cannot see their friends and family and are really suffering. I hope that this is over soon.  It is hard to keep in mind that we are not free any more. Maybe this viris is to remind  us that freedom is a gift and not a right.i

Take care everyone.  Wish I was there!

Debbie

Deborah Pike

Bill, 

You've don it again......... I am laughing again

Thanks'

Debbie

Robin E. Lostetter

Beatriz, what a thought-provoking post.  I admit I know nothing about the Baha'i faith, so thank you.  And what a remarkable life you have led as a global citizen and world traveler!  I applaud your work for justice.  Thanks for sharing.
Be safe, stay healthy -
Robin
 

William Samuel "Bill" Sloan

Margie and I are back in Lakeland, Florida thanks primarily to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
(I'll shorten to Church for this post.) Why thanks to the Church? They decided and were determined to bring home 40, mostly young men, missionaries from India. After asking for contributions and receiving great response from their members, they chartered an EgyptAir Boeing 787-9 with passenger capacity of 250 (mas o menos.) They chartered the wide body to reduce refueling stops Delhi, India to Salt Lake City to one (Cairo, Egypt) and avoid getting governmental approval for landing and takeoff from only the minimum amount of countries. After charter arrangement were complete, the Church contacted the U.S. Embassy Delhi and offered up at no cost the remaining 200 seats to Americans needing to fly home. So, that is how we were able to get home. Thank you generous members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints! (and by the way we were required to sign a waiver stating the Church did not require or solicit reimbursement for the trip.)

For Beatriz: While in Delhi, just before the nation-wide lockdown, we were able to see from the ouside the Baha'i Faith Lotus Temple. The Temple, like many crowd attracting facilities throughout the world, was closed to avoid crowd communication of COVID. The Temple had a beautiful and unique design of huge white lotus petals forming the shape of a lotus flower. And thank you for sharing.

For Dwight and all:  While in lockdown at the Radisson, Gurugram we went out twice a day to walk around the enclosed complex - one lap 1/3 mile. Each time we re-entered the facility our temperature was taken. Then each evening staff came around and took our temperatures again.  When we met at the U.S. Embassy for the flight home we had our temperatures taken and again at Indira Gahndi International by airport staff. At Customs Salt Lake City no temperatures were taken and we filled out only a one page "health" form stating whether or not we had traveled to China. South Korea, Europe, U.K., Ireland and maybe a couple of more countries and whether we had fever, cough, trouble breathing. From a country where 90% wore face masks we returned to a country where maybe 10% wore face masks. India, population 1.3 billion, has confirmed COVID positives less than 5,000; U.S. positives?? Just saying...

William Samuel "Bill" Sloan

From sister Linda's husband Jim:  "So - Mormon patrons chartered a Muslim plane to pickup their missionaries in a Hindu land and some Episcopalians got to tag along!"

William Samuel "Bill" Sloan

For Bill Leggett, Thank you for all you have done. Wishing you all the best!

Diana M. Codling (Reed)

Bill Sloan:  welcome home!

Bill Leggett:  Thanks for all your work on the site.  Hope you will continue to "drop in".  Your laugh postings would be missed too much!