Item

Waiting for My Next Breath of Fresh Air

Title (Dublin Core)

Waiting for My Next Breath of Fresh Air

Description (Dublin Core)

The magnitude of COVID-19 has certainly changed all of our lives forever, and I can absolutely discuss the greater magnitude of the issue. However, in this archive, I will submit a more specific story of how my wife, children and I have been affected and are still affected today. Living in Arizona, there is one thing every Arizonian knows, the summers are hot! After living in Arizona for almost a decade now, my wife and I have grown to appreciate Fall, Winter and Spring because the weather is spectacular, and we enjoy being able to take a walk. In Summer we quickly learned we could enjoy our walks by window shopping in any store or mall as the air conditioning was second to none. This all came to a screeching halt in March 2020 with the declaration of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

We heeded all the orders, bypassing our Spring walks to stay indoors for our safety. My wife and children would stay in while I would make very sparse food runs to restock following every precautionary instruction given. I quickly realized what was said to be not important at first, later to be told it was necessary for basic safety measures, I would learn the “Mask” would be my greatest foe. Why? Because it makes it very difficult to breathe. As stores begun to open in early Summer, it was too hot to be outside as temperatures were topping 100 degrees in the valley of the sun. We would at least be able to enjoy our walks in stores after the stay at home orders were lifted. However, at this point mask orders were put into place making it mandatory indoors. Now faced with the choice of it being too hot outside or walking indoors with a mask where breathing is labored, gaining headaches and now lightheadedness while struggling for air.

As the mask orders continue and seeing masks of every type, people wearing them incorrectly, people touching them, raising them and removing them. The more and more people I see out and about and no significant rise in deaths or hospitalizations, I wonder what the reason for these masks can be? Right now, the only thing I am waiting for is my next breath of fresh air.

Date (Dublin Core)

October 12, 2020

Creator (Dublin Core)

Christopher Rivera

Contributor (Dublin Core)

Christopher Rivera

Event Identifier (Dublin Core)

HST643

Partner (Dublin Core)

Arizona State University

Type (Dublin Core)

Text Story

Controlled Vocabulary (Dublin Core)

English Education--Universities
English Environment & Landscape
English Home & Family Life

Curator's Tags (Omeka Classic)

Arizona
mask
air
headache
breath
assignment

Contributor's Tags (a true folksonomy) (Friend of a Friend)

Sensory History
Air
COVID-19
Masks

Collection (Dublin Core)

Environment

Linked Data (Dublin Core)

Sensory history contribution to COVID-19 Archive

Date Submitted (Dublin Core)

10/12/2020

Date Modified (Dublin Core)

10/13/2020

Date Created (Dublin Core)

10/12/2020

Item sets

Covid 19
Arizona State University

This item was submitted on October 12, 2020 by Christopher Rivera using the form “Share Your Story” on the site “A Journal of the Plague Year”: https://www.covid-19archive.org/s/archive

Click here to view the collected data.

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