Hey folks, Mike from the Battles of the First World War podcast here.

This quick episode will cover some bad news, some good news, and a short message.

So due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, Rob Laplander, and I have had to cancel this year's tour to the Meuse Argonne.

We had to balance between waiting to see how the global situation would develop and having enough time to act on airfare and the like.

But we have had to call it. With much of the world on lockdown, with France on lockdown, and the

U.S. largely in a similar position, and international air travel severely curtailed at this time.

We have come to the decision that the

world will not be back to the pre-pandemic normal we had in late 2019 anytime soon.

We are in communication with our tour guests and applicable refunds are being issued. This is a setback, of course, but it is

certainly not the end. Rob and I are just going to reschedule this thing for next year, 2021, and we've

got ideas for an additional IPRA to the Argon tour

where we'll visit every major American World War I battlefield in Belgium and France

over the course of 10 days.

So keep listening and we'll have some news over the next months as we develop things more.

That's the bad news.

For the good news, wow, hey, who just unofficially finished his master's program requirements?

This podcaster right here.

Yes, there's some work, a bunch of paperwork left to complete, but by and large,

that task is finished. So work on new podcast episodes has begun, and when I have a couple of them

completed, I will begin releasing new material. I won't promise any sort of regular schedule. And for that, I apologize.

But I'm really excited to get back into it and get new material out. And now for the short message.

So this virus pandemic has come right in the middle of our lives, and it of course has

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