Middle of Pacific in Midst of Pandemic

Hanalei Bay, 8:30am, March 4, 2020

"Welcome home."

The words of my pal Rick here on the north shore of Kauai when I walked through the gate to our private swimming hole yesterday.

I had to check my thoughts. Home, yes, my second home. Could it be my first?

The question invariably arises when I'm on the island. Could I stay here indefinitely?

With the Covid-19 delirium run amok, the answer could be moot.

Covid-19 sounds much scarier than Coronavirus, which could be mistaken for the after-effects of too many Corona brewskis.

"No cases yet on the islands," said the governor of Hawaii on this morning's TV news, speaking not of cases of Corona beer. Then he added, but it is inevitable, given where we are. 

That would be midway between Asia and North America. Yikes! Pray for fly-overs. No island touch downs, please. But, of course, "live aloha" while you fly by. 

A cruise ship made a recent stop at Nawiliwi Harbor here on Kauai. Visitors browsed shops for souvenirs before departing. Stay tuned.

Checking "Hideaways" below

My gravest thought is being quarantined with the virus. Not the beer. Sounds claustrophobic, especially stuck in a hospital. A friend here pointed out that she would much rather be in a small hospital on the island than in a major city amidst millions of people.

It's always a game of numbers, isn't it?

Rick says the staff at Wilcox Medical center on Kauai, where he spent the day recently, is full of aloha. 

"They were relaxed and laughing."

He had experienced a false-alarm spate of coughing. 

Good news! They told him.

"You're as healthy as a wild pig."

We arrived Monday on Alaska Airlines. The plane was about two-thirds full, one person was wearing a mask. Everyone tried to stay as far away from that guy as possible. He looked like one of those adventurers from Antartica, covered head-to-toe in heavy garb a la the Abominable Snowman.

Luckily there were vacant seats throughout the cabin. The mask keeps one from spreading the virus, not getting it.

Once on the ground we received our grandparent orders for the following day, which we gladly accepted, to watch Viva, 8, and Mystiko, 1, while Mama took care of business. 

By the end of the first day -- a long one that started some 16-hours earlier -- which included a supply stop at CostCo, we crashed at our little condo in Princeville.