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toilet paper
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2020-03-17
Video - Toilet paper fight erupts at Coles in Melbourne
HIST30060 I have chosen to upload this article because I distinctly remember when the public fights about toilet paper begun to surface on social media. Initially, I found it hilarious. And then scary. And then kinda sad. And then eventually some combination of all three, alongside a healthy dose of embarassment at the fact Australians would behave in such a way. While I personally never felt the panic that led to hoarding goods, I know many people who did, and I also remember my housemates and I resorting to using paper towels as toilet paper for a short while because it was impossible to find in the shops near our house. -
2020-03-25
The Battle of Costco
HIST30060 - submitted as part of a history assignment. Again, like many other memes I encountered, this one comments on how the events of this year will be studied, but more importantly how they will be remembered (as emphasised by the almost commemorative nature of the statues). Humorously depicting parents and two children racing with an overflowing trolley full of food toward the check-outs as though it were a battle scene, this meme seeks to ridicule the absurdity of purchasing and hoarding mountains of food during the lock-down period. It suggests that violence in the isles and the toilet paper crisis that saw people literally fighting each other in order to obtain toilet paper will not be looked upon favourably by future historians or students. The way that the figures are carved in stone and the title of ‘The Battle of Costco (2020 A.D.)’ positions the audience to view the image in reference to other major historical conflicts and to find this one, humorously, falling short. -
2020-03-21
(HIST30060) Empty Footy Games and Empty Supermarket Shelves
(HIST30060) As an avid footy fan, it was upsetting and very strange to see the 2020 AFL season starting without being able to attend the game at the MCG, or there be anyone in the seats when watching it on tv. This post reflects this strange moment in AFL history, but also the coinciding rush on supermarkets, particularly toilet paper, leaving lots of shortages and empty supermarket shelves. I still don't understand why seemingly everyone in Victoria and Australia decided they needed to stock up on toilet paper, but it was definitely an aspect of a very strange and stressful period at the start of the pandemic. -
2020-07
Jewish Melbourne - my Facebook profile picture for the lockdown
I wanted to convery my feeling when the Victorian government told us we are going back to lockdown again. I made this from my youngest daughter's toys, including a mock mini toilet paper distributed as a promotion by supermarket chain Coles. -
2020-04-16
Humans of Covid-19 AU: Jesse Burns
“Broadcasting is classified as an essential service, so we still have to work as much, if not more, as before. COVID has changed the entire way we approach stories; in particular, we can’t be close to someone when we interview them. Without being able to shake hands, the interactions can be quite awkward. At first, I think people were struggling. The bushfires were all about a team effort, and that was so fundamental to getting everyone through. But with corona hitting, and the toilet paper saga, it was each man for themselves. This was a big blow to a lot of people. There have been some really somber days, with huge numbers of people losing their jobs overnight. We all felt it. A reminder of our sympathetic, compassionate nature as Australians.” Instagram post on Jesse Burns, journalist, and his experience during the pandemic, which was created by a psychology student living in Melbourne who was interested to hear about how COVID-19 was impacting on different peoples’ lives. -
2020-05-27
Cat Playing in a Box
My girlfriend was housesitting for a man who was unfortunately on a cruiseship when coronavirus hit, and he had to be quarantined on Rottnest island. This box was ironically holding toilet paper, but we repurposed it to be a cat café and wrote that he was only serving us takeaway due to COVID-19 restrictions. -
2020-03-29
Pandemic Monopoly
HUM402 The image depicts the creation of Pandemic Monopoly by a Hobart resident. The homemade board game uses toilet paper as currency, referring to the toilet paper shortage seen across Tasmanian supermarkets. The board game presents players with the opportunity to 'own' key Hobart locations. However, instead of mortgage, houses and hotels, the game allows players to buy hospitals and clinics to place on the properties. Centrelink, the Australian governments social security service, features heavily on the board game, indicating the rise in unemployment due to the pandemic. Whilst being used for comical purposes, the game also critiques the Tasmanian governments early handling of Covid-19 crisis via a chance card, which states "You have a fever, dry cough and Pneumonia to boot but despite having all of the symptoms, you haven't knowingly come into contact with a known carried so they won't test you for Covid-19. The Royal Hobart Hospital sends you home. Get out of iso [isolation] free." This refers to the Tasmanian government in early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic refusing to test individuals who had not been in contact with a known case, or had not left the country. -
03/24/2020
Alexander Oral History, 2020/03/24
Alexander describes how his life has changed in the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic lockdown. Some of his challenges include teleworking for a new job, watching over his kids now that they can’t go to school, and coping with shortages of necessities and lack of normal entertainment such as sports. He talks about how he thinks it is a good thing that his kids are not at school, as primary schools are known to be germ spreaders. Alexander conveys his hopes that the lockdown will end soon and normal life will be able to continue. -
2020-03-04
Single toilet paper roll sells for $1000 as coronavirus panic-buying reaches new level
A commercial news website reports on the panic buying of toilet paper. URL for full article here: https://7news.com.au/lifestyle/health-wellbeing/single-toilet-paper-roll-sells-for-1000-as-coronavirus-panic-buying-reaches-new-level-c-729542 In Australia, supermarket shelves were stripped of many essential items once people understood how serious the pandemic was, but the one that became a national obsession was toilet paper. People were filling trolleys with packs of toilet paper as soon as they realised lockdowns might be ordered. Major supermarkets eventually instituted 2 packs per person limits. A black market emerged online. There were many many memes, videos, articles, as well as serious analysis of this phenomenon. The irony is that toilet paper is in fact produced in Australia, so it was never going to run out. So this was an opportunity for us to think about human irrationality and panic; local and global manufacturing (and ignorance of this); enjoy humour as a response... and so much more. Also an opportunity to think about what people used before toilet paper was the norm - squares of newspaper, leaves etc! Suddenly ads for bidets appeared in our newsfeeds as well! -
2020-03-09
The Ballad of the Dunny Roll
The video satirises the 'Australian spirit' and the panic buying of toilet paper which is still - 23 March - a feature of the response to the Pandemic in Australia -
18 March 2020
Trolley wipes
We can wipe our trollies, but no toilet paper.