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Yesterday afternoon, our room phone rang, and I paused when I heard the voice of a lovely-sounding woman introducing herself as a “friend of a friend.” Then, it dawned on me that a dear reader, Caro, had sent me an email saying I may hear from a woman also in lockdown in India.
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| Closeup of our toad peeking out from a hole in a decorative mask. |
This intrigued me. Having an opportunity to share our woes about India’s lockdown during the pandemic with a local person in isolation similar to us was fascinating.
In a matter of seconds, we were both engaged in lively and enthusiastic chatter, sharing our worries and concerns, our solutions to problems, and our realities during this time of Covid-19, as restrictions seem to tighten each day.
As it turned out, Kalindi and her husband also live in France and often come to Mumbai for her husband’s business ventures. They own a home here but not close to where we are located. They can cook their meals and enjoy their home here. But, like us, no socialization is possible.
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We laughed when she said how wonderful it would be if they could invite us to dinner. And, I replied how delightful it would be to visit them and bring along a few bottles of wine. Ah, the simple things we so much enjoyed in times past.
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| “Retired Generals,” cape buffalo males who hang together after being kicked out of the herd when they lost the battle for dominance and the right to mate. |
Each time we receive an email message, I make every effort to reply to each one. But, at times, there are so many, it’s impossible to respond to each one, and I may refer to a “thank you” in a post.
We never feel alone with all of you ‘traveling with us,” especially now in lockdown and also as we’ve traveled throughout the world. At any given moment, I can check my email to find several of you “there.”
Never for a moment do I feel overwhelmed by the number of messages and my genuine attempt to reply. If I don’t respond, please don’t feel singled out. I could spend 12 hours a day replying to messages. I do my best.
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| Eventually, we stopped giving mongooses whole eggs and beat up the eggs in the dish. That way, there would be enough for everyone. |
You’d think that now in lockdown, I’d have more time to reply. After all, I don’t cook or clean. We hand wash our clothes and our flatware after each meal, and I spend approximately half of each day preparing a post, conducting research, and going through past photos.
Although I am no longer posting commentaries about Covid-19, I am still busy researching any relevant information that may be useful for us in moving forward. In addition, as an information junkie, I spend the better part of each afternoon, after the post is uploaded, researching topics that appeal to me: science, health, wildlife, nature, culture, and the universe as a whole.
Now that we have NatGeo on the TV, we may keep this in the background throughout the day, continually striving to learn more and more about wildlife and nature. As for Facebook, I don’t spend more than 30-minutes a day checking on posts from family and friends.
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| Big Daddy, of whom there are many, came to call on a sunny morning. |
I haven’t made an effort to add more “friends” to my presence on Facebook to avoid spending more time there, especially after becoming more aware recently of their ramped-up censorship. However, I often post the link and a photo for the current day’s post. Otherwise, I am relatively silent on Facebook other than “liking” posts of friends, family members, wildlife, and nature.
In any case, the days are full. Yesterday, I spent no less than two hours attempting to get a refund from Kenya Airways for the flight we had booked to fly to South Africa on March 20th when we were turned away at the Mumbai Airport.
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| A leopard tortoise visited our garden. |
Between Expedia and Kenya Airways, they are each denying responsibility for the refund. Today, I’ll pursue the credit card we used to see if they can help. This will be another two-hour ordeal.
Tomorrow, would you like to “take a walk” with me? Please check back to see what that is all about.
Photo from one year ago today, May 10, 2019:
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| Tom’s favorite, Ms. Bushbuck, is comfortable near him. For more details, please click here. |