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2020-08-25T19:40:51
During this pandemic, I have found a lot more time to myself. I got to develop skills that I had only gotten to begin before quarantine. The things I've gotten to do have helped me figure out myself. Although devastating as Covid-19 has been, I can't help but to have loved the personal development that quarantine brought with it.
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2020-06-10
I BOUGHT ANOTHER KITTEN! I don't know why but I wanted a third little kitty and now I have a hamster and 3 kitties. Clea, Pebbles, Ivan and Bananas are there names. Next on the list is a Pit Bull. I also moved to a townhome in symmes township and played lots of golf.
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2020-01-20
Even though the coronavirus had origionated in China it soon reached Washington. On the 20th of January, A resident in Washington had the first US case of the coronavirus. Eventually, the virus had gained more than 4.8 million cases in all 50 states. I remember being in school in March hearing everyone talking about the virus tht was spreading, and the stores running out of toilet paper, water bottles, and all types of foods. In April schools had finally shut down, resturants shut down and people were losing their jobs, and we were under quarentine doing online school work. Though I was very happy to be out of school, quarentine really took a toll on mine and many of my firends mental health. Not being able to see my friends and people im comfortable around (besides my familey) for a long period of time really affected me. I spent most of my time either in my room on tiktok or painting, or hanging out with my brother, neice, nephew, and sister. After a while resturants, movie theaters, ect started opening up again, but most places required masks to be able to go in. Its now August and schools are back open, its not very fun though. We have to wear masks at all times in the school, water fountins arent open, doors stay open, theres no lockers, our tempuature has to be taken everyday, and we have assigned seats. Allthough the dethe rate is low, thanks to the technology, knowlge, and nurses we have, we still have to be cautious of spreading the virus even more. Some people i knew and had come in contact with tested poitive for the coronavirus so i had to go get tested and ended up testing negative. Although no one I knew had died from the virus, many peoples family and friends had passed away from covid.
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2020-04-28
As the spread of Covid grew larger and larger, masks and face shields became the new norm at the hospital. New precautions included temperature checks at the entrances, reuse of PPE, and a completely new hospital environment. Whole wings of the hospital previously dedicated to elective surgeries were cleared out preparing for the surge. Patients were not allowed visitors and when they needed to see a friendly face the most, all they were able to see was our eyes.
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2020-07-19
My family is just in its beginning stages and with the onset of the covid-19 pandemic some of our firsts have been made a bit strange to experience. Whether it was my daughter's first haircut, her first ride in a go-cart, or getting our first doggy Lucille, we have had to make accommodations in order to protect ourselves and the people around us. In some of these instances it has been extremely difficult because we have no clue how someone is doing any longer. Gauging how someone is feeling in the midst of their first time trying something isn't very easy any longer, especially if it is extremely loud. Getting a veterinarian appointment isn't the easiest thing to do just as waiting for salons to reopen wasn't either. These experiences where you crave seeing the happiness on your loved one's face or faces has been robbed from some of us due to this pandemic.
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2020-03-15
I like anime and have been feeling depressed during the pandemic. Silly memes like these make me smile. (For reference, "weeb" is a shortened version of "weeaboo", which is someone who really likes anime). A lot of people who have nerdy hobbies like watching anime have spent much of quarantine inside indulging in their hobbies but many are wanting to go back to normal life. Some things from normal life that have been canceled due to COVID-19 is the ability to go to anime conventions and bookstores, where many weebs can hangout and meet with each other. The frustration from the "anti-mask" movement and the lack of decline in coronavirus cases has spawned many anime memes promoting mask wearing and proper handwashing during the pandemic. (The image of Unit 01 (the purple robot) "washing" their hands is currently hanging on my bathroom door at home).
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2020-08-25
A job in food service is almost never fun. However, a global pandemic tends to somehow make it worse.
I work at Wendy's along with my friend Trinity (pictured in photo #2). Working at the same restaurant before and during the COVID-19 pandemic allows us to really experience the impacts of it all, and we see the changes every day. Wearing masks, gloves, and sometimes face shields, at all times is just one example of the "new normal" in food service. The lax environment of work before the pandemic seems almost comedic compared to what is now required. However, the internal changes during COVID-19 are a drop in the bucket compared to the change in how customers treat us. What used to be a few rude customers in a majority of nice customers has completely changed. It may be the fear of the virus, or the newfound unfamiliarity with the outside world, but food/customer service has never been so taxing on workers.
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2020-08-20
Starting college can be hard at any time, and it's even harder for kids starting school during the pandemic. Since only so many people are allowed to help people move in, my brother had to pick between my mom and myself to be the last person to see him the night he moved in. He picked me, and my mom told me over the phone that she cried.
Not being able to visit him has been hard because I don't even know how he's feeling during all of this. Being seperated from him because of coronoa for the first time this summer is horrible, and I know there are so many others out there separated from their loved ones because of Covid-19, as well. My brother and I hung out in each other's rooms all day over the summer, and now we can only see each other by appointment.
I just hope my brother's first day of college was alright.
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2020-03-14
During the time of our spring break in 2020 we were headed to Florida with a bunch of friends and my brother who was in high school but got switched to online 2 days before. During that time the pandemic really took off. While we were there everything got shut down in Florida and in Ohio, nervous about if we were still going to be able to make it back to Ohio. In case of a travel band. We were confused and was kinda upsetting while we did have a pool in our back yard everything was getting shut down, the beaches, parks restaurants and basically the whole state of Ohio back home. The thing that was good to come out of this was my younger brother then a senior in high school was able to last minute come with us because his school went remotely. While we spent that whole weekend in the pool and ate the only restaurant that seemed to be running while everything was closing down.
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2020-04-23
After lockdown, I decided to pay a visit to my local bar, to finally get out of the house. I was expecting a laid back drink, but once I arrived I realized they were not following any protocols. Nobody was wearing masks and tables weren't spread out. The bar quickly filled up, and people did not take the virus seriously at all. Customers were coughing directly into the air towards other patrons. The owner didn't believe COVID existed. My relaxing drink turned into anxiety about possibly catching the disease and spreading it to my father and brother, who both have heart diseases. I haven't been inside a bar or restaurant since that day.
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2020-08-25
In some ways, the beginning of classes in this new age of ours is now all that different than in the past: we spend a lot of time going over the syllabus and being warned against plagiarism. But even in these early days of the semester, when not much of real consequence has happened, the differences are also readily apparent. While most of my professors have opted for maintaining synchronous class meetings through virtual means and otherwise trying conduct online classes as similarly to in person ones as possible, those virtual means produce a distancing effect. We may be able to see each other to a certain extent, though not everyone chooses to use their camera, but it is impossible to clearly read anyone's body language or for free flowing discussion to truly happen. We may all be in the same virtual place but we cannot truly form any sort of community under these circumstances. This is not to advocate for in person classes to resume- I fully understand the reasons for circumstances being as they are-but rather to note the loss of intangible things.
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2020-07-21
Every year since I was born my family and I would go to a campground up in Wilmington, Ohio and camp a couple weekends out of the year. One main reason we would like it up there is because at their little store they sold Hershey's Homemade Ice Cream. Ever since COVID has happened they have kept this little store closed and that meant for us no ice cream. :( COVID has changed many peoples lives, mine not all that much. I currently work at UPS so I continued to work, even though my school went to online, I still lived a pretty normal life.
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2020-08-01
We had a family funeral. Not everybody could be there, not everybody should. Our family arrived at the plot and we were reminded to keep our distance still.
A funeral has never been an overall positive experience, but the individual tragedies involved with people being unable to arrive due to health concerns makes that funeral that much more tragic.
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2020-06-06
It was by a kitty pool because the real pools weren’t open
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2020-06-02
When George Floyd was murdered, the country erupted in a way I had never experienced in my life before. I thought I had seen chaos with the multitude of protests that followed the US 2016 election, but I was wrong. People who had always claimed to not be "political" were posting, sharing stories, and there was outrage. In the first week, in Ohio, we were met with violence. Being immunocompromised, and fearful, I stayed behind when I was in Columbus. Some of my good friends got arrested downtown. Others got maced, shot at with wooden bullets with a rubber coating, and went to the hospital in an already stressful situation. When I moved back to Cincinnati, I was no longer living with 4 roommates, and I decided if I wore a mask, and brought hand sanitizer and disinfectant, and did my best to stay 6 feet apart from everybody, I needed to get out there.
The protests I attended over the next two months included vigils, organizers meetings, community panels, and celebrations of Black lives. My parents were unhappy with my decision, due to the news coverage, and several people I know getting arrested. However, this was too important. Growing up, I heard the names Trayvon Martin, Eric Gray, Tamir Rice, Sam Dubose, Sandra Bland, and many more. This was the straw that had broken the camel's back. The pandemic had meant many were furloughed, and out of work, leaving more time to read the news, watch the news, and research issues. Many were angry at how the pandemic disproportionately affects Black and Brown communities, and for this blatant, act of police brutality to be filmed and shared across the world, it was too much. In Cincinnati, over 300 people showed up to hastily planned protests, and some of the more organized and advertised ended up with well over 7,000 people.
The protests themselves were nothing like what I had seen on the news. Every 10-15 minutes, a fellow protestor would offer everyone cold water, snacks, hand sanitizer, and masks to anyone who did not have one. There were always medics with a first aid kit ready for the people who overheated, twisted an ankle, or got maced. I learned the ratio of baking soda to water that many carried if people were to be pepper-sprayed again. It was a community of people who cared about each other, took care of each other, and want the world to be better.
I want that story to be told, because it never hit the media. The compassion I witnessed every single day. The groups of people meeting up every night, individuals carrying someone who was having an asthma attack to a shady area and giving them cold water, a ring of people around a young girl who stepped on a piece of glass that pierced through her shoe into her foot. Immediately, there were bandaids, water, alcohol wipes, and help to be given. The medics tent, offering granola bars, fruit, and snacks if anyone gets hungry. Food not Bombs catering many events, giving full meals to anyone who needed one. The care packs we had made for the friends who had been arrested, the community resource pages which allowed people to express needs and them being taken care of, from needing cat food to needing to pay rent. The resource guides, the calls and letters and emails to public officials.
Although this is a weird time, strangely it was one where I had felt the strongest sense of community, in my 21 years of living.
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2020-04-26
https://www.instagram.com/p/B_nwTGJJ1FA/
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2020-08-25
i went fishing
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2020-06-01
I took this picture on June 1st, 2020, on the first day I left my house since March. The COVID-19 Pandemic was still raging outside, but I felt that it was worth the risk to fight for racial justice. Thousands took the streets after the murder of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor to demand change and an end to systemic racism. My friends and I were some of them. We rallied outside the State House, only steps away from the dorm that I will be living in two weeks from now. Surprisingly, the protests gave me a strange sense of hope for our country. Despite the risk of COVID-19, all these people still collectively decided that this was too important to miss. They were willing to risk their safety to demand justice for people they had never even met. I’ve been to protests before, but this was like no other. It showed that people truly care about each other. Because of this, I believe that the US will come out of this pandemic stronger than before.
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2050-02-07
my teacher wanted me too
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2020-08-25
I wear glasses, and now i am forced to wear a mask. The mask makes the air I breathe out fog up my glasses, and then it seems as though I am looking through a cloud. I have had to deal with this issue when shopping, in school, and just hanging out at certain places.
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2020-08-20
I've been thinking about sensory history and how often it's left out of historical records. We often don't stop to comment on observations we make every day like noise of a busy street corner or the smell of muffins baking in the kitchen. I'm teaching HST643 Global history during Fall B with a module on sensory history. I'd like to ask students to add a perspective on the sensory history of the pandemic. I posted this thought in the JOTPY Slack workspace and Shanna replied with a really interesting observation about sound: “…there is an odd tension of noise inside my home and silence the second I step outside. I find myself needing a quiet space when I’m in my house. Yet the second I walk outside, it’s way too quiet that I start to feel uncomfortably lonely and in need of human connection.”
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2020-08-19
One of the many issues brought by the COVID-19 pandemic was the postponement and cancellation of many events. In late January my favorite artists, BTS, announced a worldwide tour that was planned to start late April. Fans became excited as concerts not only allow them to see the artists but also interact with other fans and feel a sense of community. Sadly, as the number of COVID-19 cases grew throughout the spring and public safety became of increasing concern, both BTS and their company decided to postpone the tour until further notice. While I am extremely happy the health and safety of both the fans and the artists were prioritized, it does very little to lessen the sadness that haunted fans as they no longer knew the next time they’d be able to see their favorite artists.
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2020-06-10
so it all started when Bill Gates met the lizard people when facebook stared poping off. Mark Zuckerberg formed a plan to hand the human race over to the lizard people. This of course was a long term plan since the needed 5g technology wasn't around yet. Fast forward to 2019 and 5g starts to roll out as more towers are built and then 2020 come around and they try and convince us theres a virus and we should wear masks. Do you think a mask can save you from 5g? NO!! once the 5g mind control takes over Bill Gates will take over as the human representative for the lizard people. "covid 19" is slowly turning us over to the lizard people as we flawk to hospitals where they place microchips in the back of necks. Before you know it there will be lizard money everywhere and human life as you know it never be the same.
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2020-06
I've kept myself busy during the quarrantine by making fun videogames come to life through the scratch website.
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2020-08-25
Ever since the pandemic has started, nobody I knew as had been seriously close to death because of the virus. That all changed last night. For the first time of 2020 I am afraid for life of a loved one. The virus never felt super real sine I hadn't had any true experiences with it and now it feels like my it has a grip in my life and I'm afraid that it'll never truly let go. Only time will tell in this situation and that may be the scariest part of it all.
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2020-08-24
In my opinion, teens and students around the United States were excited to take a one-two week break from school, and experience what it's like learning at home. Many memes and jokes were posted, and at the beginning, they were interpreted as funny. However, as the situation got worse and when we went into full quarantine, the constant jokes and excitement of having a longer spring break started to not be funny anymore. What we thought was ok to laugh about soon became upsetting, especially for people like the class of 2020 who was missing out on Senior year activities and proms, and when people around the world were dying.
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2020-08-20
This image represents the project I focused on during the pandemic. A few friends and I helped my mom and her visiting nursing company fill over 1500 bottles of hand sanitizer that went to the nurses that served over 22,000 visits a week 52 weeks of the year global pandemic or not. We use the gallons of hand sanitizer given to us to fill small travel-sized bottles that we got from Dollar Tree. Although our project wasn't anything complicated, I still hope then it made a difference to that company to make their days and their jobs easier. Do your part and stay safe.
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2020-03-03
i submitted the video because i think its cool to watch it to know about how to prevent covid and what it does
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2020-03-24
When first in shut down I made this video for my classroom facebook page.
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2020-08-21
After a few days of online schooling, my daughter had a breakdown. She was trying her best and feeling frustrated. Her breaking point was finally accomplishing her task and not being able to get her teachers attention because of technical difficulties. Her teacher was congratulating all her classmates and recognizing their work but she didn't. She felt defeated and wanted to quit. I tried to console her and blamed the computer and not her teacher. She then decided to crawl under the table and cry of frustration. This picture is important to me because it describes how remote learning is going in our home. I have tons of pictures of her in front of the computer doing well in class, but this is a moment that happens a lot that I rarely document. My daughter knows she cant go into school because of Covid and understands as much as her five-yar-old brain can but she is without a doubt struggling. This photo reminds me that children are suffering just as much, if not more, than adults are during this challenging time.
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2020-08-20
There's so much that Peru is doing right in terms of public health measures. This campaign is one more example, "Primero mi salud," (First my health), which is encouraging people to wear a mask and face shield on public transportation. The Ministry of Health has done a great job of creating campaigns and promoting sound public health measures. A commentator says...and people should wear them in markets, and everywhere, which is true. Infection rates will go down if more people follow these protocols.
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2020-08-24
Like most people, I have discovered an interest in hobbies that I never really had the time to indulge in prior to the pandemic. I was living in San Francisco, beginning the end of my college years and looking forward to what the future held for me and my beautiful, and not at all expensive, B.A. in philosophy that I was to receive in December 2020. Most of my friends were graduating in the Spring and I was so envious... that was until the pandemic hit.
Everything moved so quickly. I had only 3 days to move out of my apartment, say good-bye the the people closest to me, and leave the city I've had the privilege of living in for the last three years. A city where I've scattered memories all over the place, danced through the streets with kindred spirits I hadn't met before, and developed a fierce love for my first home as an independent young woman. All stripped away from the palms of my hands, and in a matter of days it was the end of an era. It was the beginning of a global pandemic, something barely anybody had experienced before.
The world seemed to only inhibit negativity and death, a cocktail very few people could take, and that's including a chaser. Sadness filled the air and polluted social media platforms. We all felt uncertain, scared, and alone. These feelings crept up, and leeched onto us. But one thing was absolutely certain, I had all the time in the world. There I was, 22 with no job and nowhere to go. There was nowhere I could go. So I did what any ordinary person would do in this situation, and I taught myself how to function the way humans did before social media and the internet.
I learned to do some of the things that were once taught to young women in school with the intention of making them a qualified wife, but I called them hobbies. I learned to knit, embroider, sew by hand and by sewing machine, thoroughly clean a bathroom, and I also mastered the art of Mediterranean cooking. In the photo I have a attached I am showing off a scarf that I made in the first couple of weeks in quarantine. I playfully boasted my finished craft to my philosophy of nature class, and we all had a laugh. I miss that group of people.
I do, however, find some happiness in being able to take a step back and slow down. The only reason I was able to do so was because I didn't have a choice in the matter. The world was crashing down right before my eyes and I couldn't do anything to stop it aside from staying home and staying away from others. What I think this narrative has to say about the pandemic is that people actually have the capacity to entertain themselves outside of the internet. Growing up I was always using the internet. I went from selecting my Top 8 on MySpace to watching prank videos on youtube to having class virtually. I have become sick of screen time that I have no choice but to pick something up to stay interested in the ordinary day to day. I've developed skills that could help me out in the future, if I could be so brave to assume there is a future of course. It is important for me to find some light, to find some joy. I giggled before this global pandemic, I've giggled during, and I will giggle after. Heck, I giggled while writing this personal narrative called an assignment. I have to giggle, it keeps me young and alive. It is important to find some light in all the darkness, and I think that's one of the most important things I've truly learned through all of this: To be the light you so desperately want to see.
I've called that scarf my quarantine sqarf, and I can't wait to wear it for the rest of my time and then gift it to someone I love one day when I am old and saggy, if I am so lucky to get there. Stay safe and wash your hands.
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2020-08-24
The eerie and empty streets of downtown San Francisco shows social fears and ultimately the decisions to stay home amid the pandemic.
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2020-08-21
During this pandemic, I have felt loneliness, I have felt very very lonely. I have felt confusion, fear, and loneliness. When I was stuck inside my house during quarantine, I thought that it would all go away, that everything would be back to normal and that it would be ok. But no, instead this pandemic has prevented me from seeing my friends and has prevented me from seeing my grandparents who live right down the street who I see every day. This virus has definitely taken a toll on me mentally and personally. My mental health during this pandemic has been like a roller coaster, it has been out of control and it has caused me to just wanna see one of my friends and just hug them, but because of social-distancing and since the virus can literally kill anyone, I couldn’t. I love hugs, but for the past 5 months, I couldn’t. I can't feel the amazing feeling of embracing another person, the warm hugs are just one of the ways that make me feel a lot better when I'm sad, or happy, or simply just having a hard time. Now I’m in college, taking half of my classes online, and wondering if there would possibly be an outbreak at my university. The thought of something like that happening scares me but doesn't surprise me either. Me not being able to sit next to someone, or hug someone, or hang out with someone, or swing on a swing with someone, is just the main reason why I have felt severe loneliness during this pandemic.
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2020-08-22
It’s really interesting to me that this recent public health promotion is advocating for nursing and responding to your baby’s changes. The parents are wearing face masks, so it’s clearly tying into the Coronavirus pandemic and larger public health concerns. From the Instragram account of the Ministerio de Salud del Perú.
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2020-08-24
I created this sweet (as in cool) poster to promote the JOTPY Internship and recruit more participants for the fall semester. I love the imagery of hand sanitizer as liquid gold. The fact that it a public mural makes it even more compelling.
I started off with 9 students enrolled in the fall internship. This internship is open to ASU history graduate students. Yet, slowly that number dropped down to four. I’m not sure why. I don’t think that there’s a better opportunity out there right now. Nowhere else can you complete a remote internship on the scale of the COVID-19 archive. This archive is magnanimous, it’s important now, but it will be remembered as a watershed moment in public history projects.
I do recognize that people are busy, and the fact that the internship goes beyond the normal 7.5 week session is an extra piece to juggle, but in my mind anyone who wants to do public history or gain a serious skill set needs to be part of this project. I hope I can convince more people to join.
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2020-08-22
Do I have what it takes to homeschool my kid? I never thought I would consider homeschooling, though I find myself in this unusual position. I am working from home, teaching online, and the current online curriculum isn’t working for my daughter. So after talking to one of the ASU JOTPY interns (Chris Twing) who also homeschools her kid I had the chance to look at 3 different homeschool programs she sent me.
In the end, I liked the curriculum from Blossom and Root. It seems to encourage creativity and individual expression, and I love that. The math will require a supplemental program, but if she wants to go back to the bilingual school she’ll have to pass a math exam in Spanish anyway. So, either way I’ve got to come up with a Spanish math plan.
This picture shows one of the activities from the literature lesson. We read two stories from The Meadow People, the “Selfish Caterpillar,” and the “Lazy Snail.” She had to make characters out of clay and retell the stories in her own words. It was honestly a lot of fun, and much better engagement. I love working, but this is helping me see a way to support by child and connect with her through education.
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2020-08-18
Sitting next to my 6yo while she sits on Zoom for 5 hours isn’t working. The teachers assume that a parent is there ready to jump in at any moment, and if we aren’t problems bubble up. For example, I was working on Maya’s second day of school and I missed that she took a bathroom break and missed that her teacher scolded her for taking one.
I emailed the school’s principal, because while I really, really want her to attend the bilingual school, I don’t think it’s possible with the current set up. I wrote an email and asked, basically, what would happen if she unenrolled and came back.
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2020-07-07
My experience is a firsthand story about my 14-day quarantine after I was diagnosed with Covid-19. I do not want to talk about the physical aspect of quarantine because I was asymptomatic. I want to touch on the mental wear and tear one can go through while isolating alone. No human interaction, for me, can take a toll on me because I am a very social person and can fall into a rut if I do not have social interaction. The first thing that is lost during isolation is routine. Life comes to a standstill and because there is little obligations, your mind allows you to get out of habit. The second thing that goes is a purpose and a motivation to do tasks that are typically part of your daily life. Although life is going on in the outside world, that perspective was not there for me. The last thing that goes away is your energy, not just physical energy but mental energy. My mental energy started to lack because I have a hard time being confined and I like to recharge by doing activities outside. Isolation was not just a physical challenge but a mental challenge.
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2020-08-24
At the age of 18, never did I expect that the end of my senior year of high school would be plagued by a global pandemic that has tested this world's ability to adapt and innovate on the go. On March 12th, 2020, was the last day of high school for me at Westwood High School in Westwood, MA. My fellow students were aware that Covid-19 had begun to take its toll on America. We heard rumors that the school administration was planning on taking a one week breaks to assess the situation at hand. I remember some students being excited that they would have a one week "vacation" and others being more aware that this one week break was really just a way for the school to say that school would be conducted remotely for the rest of the year. As I returned home that Thursday, I received an email from the school announcing that there would at least be a two week hiatus to deeply clean the school and plan for the future. At that moment, I knew my school year, spring sports season, final prom, and my summer were seriously altered. It is what it is. I am not a selfish person, so yes I was upset, but I knew these changers were for the better.
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2020-08-24
I typically play Dungeons & Dragons with a few people every other week. As things have been a constant roller coaster for many conflicts are always on the rise. Having to change everything from in-person games to fully online was quite time consuming in the beginning. Unfortunately, quite a few people had to drop out entirely due to having to find new jobs. I have been told that they look forward to the games and feel everything isn’t as crazy when they can spend a few hours hanging out and enjoying time playing together. I found myself with a lot more time on my hands recently with everything still dragging along and put in a lot of work to make sure the games are still available if the group finds they will be able to participate.
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2020-06-01
These photos portray the heightened social and political tensions that occurred after George Floyd's death. Systematic racism, marginalization, and police brutality sparked an increase in civil unrest, resulting in a mandated curfew in San Francisco. Floyd's tragic death caused rioting, protesting, and looting nationwide, concurrently taking place during the worsening pandemic of COVID-19. As many businesses closed their doors, many closing for good, few essential businesses such as Safeway stayed open. Strict policies in regards to wearing faces masks, social distancing as well as more intensive cleaning measures, were enforced to ensure the safety of the community at large. In short, the photos of store policies depict the rapid changes that were implemented in response to COVID-19. The rest of the photos show how our store took cover during the intense rioting that spiked in late May and early June. A few depict the aftermath of the looting at a local Safeway branch; the store that I worked at was not unscathed in the looting scene. I hid with a couple of employees in the manager's office, on the phone with police, as people broke in. This is just a small glimpse into a larger event that reverberated nationwide, sparking massive outcry, and hushed voices to rise as many sheltered during this pandemic.
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2020-04
The modern day photo, the one quivocating social distancing to Communism, I first stumbled upon on social media. The photo instantly made me think how paranoia has always played a part in the American attitude towards the government; Americans have always been quick to assume that the government isn't being straightforward with them and that there's a conspiracy afoot. That conclusion leads me to the second photo, taken in August of 1959 in Little Rock, Arkanasas, was the response to school integration that allowed African-Americans to go to formerly White-Only schools. As you can see, it's a mirror image of Americans forming conspiracy theories or general paranoia that is usually scapegoated onto Communism.
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2020-05-01
This is a diary of 8-week quarantine. Coming back from another country at the beginning of pandemic, hospital, some sad thoughts - it is an unfinished diary. Life continues and we should get used to the new world so I stopped this diary. Although in my home country, Belarus happens worse things that I described in a diary. We have revolution right now, people die, peaceful protesters are bitten, tortured, and gotten to prison. But it’s a whole another part of my life, which I could not even imagine at the beginning of a pandemic. So enjoy the diary of innocent and naive Yana from the past.
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2020-08-22
The COVID 19 pandemic is devastating to even to a small community like my own. People continue to live in fear of the virus and it is only worsening for my own small community. This picture helps to show one of the positives of this devastating disease which is being able to get closer to my family members. During isolation I ended up spending a lot of time with my grandparents and we were actually able to get closer. I feel this says a lot about the pandemic. It shows that times are tough to people and this disease has got everyone concerned. During these harsh times it is now more important than ever before to have a good support system. The support from families and friends I feel is what kept me going and a lot of my other colleagues felt the same way. Through COVID 19 then I was able to get closer to my own family and I think this one positive despite these difficult times helps to make my time during this pandemic a little more manageable. I think both this picture and story helps to document both the effects of COVID 19 on a small town and one way that people have adjusted to the new environment.
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2020-03-30
Let me share with you the story of my COVID-19 outbreak in the United States. The outbreak in the United States came after our school's spring break. At that time, we were instructed to attend classes online, and we were unprepared to the rest of the semester. And it has also been accompanied by the cancellation of many campus activities. The quality of the course is compromised. Both professors and students are severely tested because the new teaching modality has never been used. The professors ponder how to teach and design exams online, and the student tries to adjust to the new studying environment. What'sWhat's more, as students, we lost all kinds of group discussion activities, presentation and face-to-face experience in class. Online courses are always less convenient than face-to-face ones. But as students, we have to overcome it.
Another thing that is affected by the epidemic is the mindset. I can imagine the COVID-19 will break out in the United States because it's a very contagious virus. It isn't the flu, but it is a virus. In the early stage of the outbreak, many people had very wrong misconceptions about the coronavirus. This misconception is more deadly than the COVID itself.
When I walk down the street, most people don't wear masks because they think they don't need to wear masks. One passer-by even told me that masks were useless for the virus. I am so shocked by their mindset. It is the first time I can actually feel that the COVID is less lethal because people who don't believe masks can save a life are really trying to challenge COVID with their lives.
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2020-07-20
It is my last year of undergraduate studies and a really crucial year for the transition into Medical School. Experiencing such a thing as this pandemic at such a momentous period in my life was intimidating at first but gradually transitioned into a much required reflection. The lockdown had started at the end of the Spring semester and the importance of school and studies started to fade away into what seemed like a never-ending holiday. The semester then ended and summer seemed like an extension of the holiday even though entrance exams were just around the corner for Medical School. Two months went by in a flash and nothing but a lazy attitude was accomplished. I then recieved this letter in an email from my grandfather who was half-way accross the world. The letter was a short story about his life and the educational aspects of it. He was clearly reliving some of his memories from when he was my age and wanted to impart some much needed advice onto me. Without knowing my mental state at that point, he knew exactly what I needed and could somehow sense my cowardice. His letter gave me a "kick in the butt", which was much required. From the letter; arose in me a certain kind of motivation that had escaped since the start of the lockdown. The letter is a small example highlighting the privilege of an education. It exemplifies the importance of learning, which can be useful for every student. The yearning to learn must never stop, especially at a time such as this.
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2020-08-24
It is the health code that is required for every Chinese citizens to enter public buildings and use public transportations. It proves that you have not encountered any one who has been tested positive nor did you traveled to a high-risk area in the last 14 days; you would only be allowed to go into the public if the health code is green. It has become a daily essential for me, like face masks and hand sanitizes.
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0020-08-23
When COVID-19 began, I was in San Francisco with my roommates. The stay at home order seemed to come so suddenly; our families told us domestic travel may be shut down and encouraged us to fly home. So, I packed up a single suitcase and flew home to Colorado the next day, not really expecting that I would be home for the next five months. It was a relief to see my family, but it was strange spending so much time at home after being in college in another state for the better part of two years. What happened the week before I went back to San Francisco seemed to be a sign that it was good that I had been able to be home with my family for a while. In Colorado, I live with my parents, younger brother, and yellow lab Sundance. We got Sundance when I was 8 years old, and he has been my best friend for the past 12 years. He has had epilepsy and arthritis from a young age, so I always knew there was a chance he would find his way to doggie heaven while I was away at college. Because of this, every time I went back to SF after visiting home, I'd have a small talk with Sundance, telling him to hang on until the next time I saw him. I had this talk with him a few days before I planned to start my road trip back to San Francisco. I told him I was leaving, and that I knew he could hang on until I got back. The next day, Sundance couldn't get up. We brought him to the vet, who told us he had bone cancer in his elbow, causing him too much pain to want to put any weight on it. Sundance was 12 and a half at this point, so an amputation would do more harm than good. Since he couldn't do anything on his own - go to the bathroom, get up to eat or drink, or get up to greet us, we decided it was his time to go to doggie heaven. My mom said he knew I was leaving, and he wanted his "whole pack" to be there when he had to move on. It's always too soon to say goodbye to your best friend, but I think that this was true. After all, he did wait until I was back home again to say goodbye. Quarantine has been hard, but it gave me time with my family and my dog that I will forever cherish.
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2020-07
As a prospective law school applicant, I took the LSAT (Law School Admission Test) this past July in an online proctored format. Far from what I expected for such an important career-altering test, taking it in my bedroom in a household with five other family members was definitely unprecedented. The comfort of home allowed for me to be less nervous, but required me to think about the test will scared that any noise made by my family would result in a disqualification of my test. Overall, I’m grateful to still have had the opportunity to take it, although definitely under very different circumstances.
