Items
Instructional Method is exactly
University of Melbourne
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2020-07-20
A Woman’s* Best Friend
This represents what friendship means to me. My dog is my best friend and was the best supporter I could ask for during the 8 months Melbourne was in lockdown. -
2020-03-13
A toilet-paper frenzy
HIST30060 This is an image captured in a Coles supermarket of a toilet paper aisle empty as Melbournians rushed to make sure they weren't left without during the COVID lockdown -
2020-07-05
'All ears'
HIST30060 This illustration represents the importance of reaching out to people in times of need. I chose this because it was sent to me by my sister as I suffer from severe Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and during COVID my mental health measurably deteriorated. -
2020-06-19
Division is no cure
HIST30060. This is a screenshot of anti-tourism postcards that were published when Melbourne went back into stage 3 lockdown. Their purpose was to deter Melbournians from travelling to regional Victoria. I selected this source as I believed this campaign was promoting the wrong behaviour of which we should all treat each other. During COVID, being caring, kind and empathetic to one another is needed in order to get through each day, and I felt these postcards were seeking to do the opposite of what we needed. -
2020-07-16
Ten Days of Self-Isolation
The following is a reflection on my experience in COVID-19 testing and self-isolation, after returning to my home country Bahrain from Australia, where I am a student. Upon arriving in Bahrain International Airport, travellers are taken aboard buses into a giant white tent-structure. Here, my temperature was taken. Then, I was escorted to one of the desks (mostly staffed by young volunteers) where I give my personal details, including where I intend to spend my 10 days of self-isolation (the Government of Bahrain had only recently reduced the requirement from 14 days). After that, I had the COVID-19 PCR test taken (quick but unpleasant nose swab). The results are published via the “Be Aware” app within 24 hours. It was, thankfully, negative. I was also given an electronic bracelet that acts as a tracker, to ensure that I am where I say I would be. I am driven from the airport by my brother, it was decided that he would pick me up because he had recently caught the virus himself, and so, supposedly he would have developed some immunity. Spending 10 days in one’s bedroom was as boring as one might expect. My main source of entertainment would be, as it turned out, Ancient Rome. I was still taking a university subject, which was moved online the week prior due to renewed restrictions in Melbourne after COVID-19 infections spiked in the State of Victoria. I did however have to get up at 3:00 in the morning to attend classes! I did, moreover, end up gaining about 2 kilograms of weight in those 10 days. The whole experience of travel and self-isolation in the age of COVID-19 is just one example of how simple aspects of our lives (travel, privacy, education, exercise, social life etc.) were changed so drastically by the pandemic. Everything would somehow be more complicated. This reflection was submitted as part of the HIST30060 Making History project at the University of Melbourne. -
2020-03-17
Empty Pasta Shelves
When Australia first got hit with news of how devastating Covid-19, many people went onto a panic-buying frenzy, stockpiling non-perishable essential items. This is a photo taken at my local Woolworths with the pasta shelves completely gutted. Toilet paper, rice, hand sanitizer, yeast and hand soap were equally cleared out. Some stores went as far as to post signs out the front of their stores stating "NO TOILET PAPER AVAILABLE". As a young person who lives away from home, my regular diet consists of a lot of pasta (also because pasta is delicious). During this time I ended up eating a lot more vegetable soups, because ironically fresh fruit and vegetables supplies weren't particularly affected by the virus or panic buying as they wouldn't last in an impending apocalypse. It took about a month for grocery stores to re-configure their supplies, and the for the panic to die down slightly. When this first happened, the essential items were piled high front and centre at the entrance of the store: I walked in to this same Woolworths one day with a tower of 24-pack toilet pack stacked as tall as I was. This object shows how crowds can react in unexpected and instinctually self-defensive ways when threatened with a large and sweeping danger. HIST30060. -
2020-07-23
COVID-19 Contact Tracing Notice - Healthcare Worker
This was an email sent to my brother, who is a third year Doctor of Optometry student at the University of Melbourne. One of his classmates had tested positive for Covid-19, and he had been in the same lab room doing practicals together during this time. His whole class was asked to self-isolate for a two-week period, and his exams for the semester were pushed back as well. Although he does no directly deal with Covid-19 related patients, as a healthcare worker, he must come in close contact with people on a greater basis than almost any other profession. He isolated for the required period and was tested twice, thankfully with a negative result both times. Each test required 1-2 days turnaround. This object shows the steps organisations are taking to ensure proper contact tracing and in taking care both their patients and students. It also shows how healthcare workers, who come in close physical contact with others, are inherently at high risk and need to be extra careful not to catch or spread diseases. HIST30060. -
2020-07-15
Travel in the Age of Covid-19
If you would like to know why I was travelling, please see this journal: https://covid-19archive.org/s/archive/item/30217 Travelling at the best of times can induce stress and anxiety. In the times of Covid-19, it is a whole different experience. I am dropped off at Melbourne Tullamarine Airport. The departure screen, usually filled with flight information, now only has a handful of flights on display. Incoming flights into Melbourne have been suspended entirely. My destination is Bahrain via Dubai International Airport. Emirates Airlines EK409 is flying at about a third of its capacity (the Melbourne-Dubai route is, at normal times, a very popular one and flights are usually almost full). The extra room is welcome, allowing many travellers to lay down and enjoy a little comfort in these uncomfortable times. Masks as well as gloves are required throughout the flight. A hygiene kit is provided. I sleep for most of the flight. When I arrive in Dubai, sitting in the terminal building waiting for my connection (which is in 10 hours because of reduced flights frequency), and as a way of passing the time, I join one of my online University classes. Three months later, in October 2020, when this journal was written, travel is still a very complicated affair. This is the worst crisis to hit the industry since the attacks of September the 11th 2001. I will not take travel for granted ever again. This reflection was submitted as part of the HIST30060 Making History project at the University of Melbourne. -
2020-03-07
End of my exchange - HIST30060
HIST30060 I was on exchange in Edinburgh when Covid broke out. My fellow Australian friends were very unsure of what decision to take in reaction to the outbreak. Most if not all of us underestimated the magnitude of the pandemic and thought that life would go on, albeit with news broadcasts talking more about Coronavirus than Brexit. Most of us hoped we could "ride it out" in Scotland and still have the holidays we had planned. There was some discussion of renting an apartment and living their together, though this was mostly just talk. Eventually, some of our Austrian friends decided to go home because they worried the borer would close and they would not be able to get back into Austria. This brought home the severity of the pandemic, and everyone was rather glum for a time. However, beer is a wonderful thing. Our Austrian friends left, and us Australians started to have serious thoughts about going home but no one wanted to be the first to say they would go because they feared this would be the straw that broke the Camel's back and their departure would precipitate our decisions to return home. I decided I would go home if one of three conditions was met, Australia announced they were going to close the border, everything in Edinburgh shut due to lockdown, or classes and student events ceased to run. Soon most student societies, of their own accord, elected to cease in-person events without official prohibition. Australia also announced a 14-day quarantine for new arrivals. Two friends said they had decided to return home, I called my mum, we both agreed there was no sensible reason for staying in Edinburgh no matter how much I might wish to stay. I thought I would leave within a week because there was much admin to be done, but the threat of their being no more flights into Australia meant my departure date became as soon as a flight could be found. One the day I went to fly home, my flight from Edinburgh to Munich was cancelled and I had to train from Edinburgh to Manchester and from there begin my airborne journey back home. Manchester Airport was the grimmest wait for boarding in my life. When I arrived in Munich nothing in the airport was open. My next flight was to Tokyo. Everything in the airport was open. I got Sushi whilst I waited. I got a lot, I was flush in the funds with 4 months worth of holiday money was no longer going to spend. I then flew to Sydney. And after that to Melbourne. Mum picked me up, drove me home and I got to see my Dog for the first time in three and a half months. This sort of but didn't quite make up for my exchange ending early. The 14 days in quarantine sucked. The documents I have attached consists of all the emails I received from the University of Melbourne regarding Coronavirus and students currently on exchange. I have submitted them because they document the way in which Covid has most effected my 2020. Fortunately, I have not suffered as have others. The phenomena of students being on exchange when a pandemic breaks out, seems one which is unlikely to have occurred before, let alone on such a grand scale. I have also attached a screenshot documenting a Twitter exchange with Melbourne uni addressing the fact that their international number was not working. -
2020-10
Small joys - HIST30060
This collection of photographs were all taken during Melbourne's second-wave of Covid-19, towards or right at the end of our severe lockdown. After a fairly miserable winter and hundreds of cases each day, the light at the end of the tunnel was often pretty hard to see - but when the announcement finally came that it was safe to start opening up, it coincided with some of the most beautiful spring weather we'd seen. The local shops on the Mornington Peninsula started sharing a countdown until we could visit them again and it felt a bit like being a kid at Christmas. -
2020-04
Birthdays in lockdown - HIST30060
When the pandemic caused Melbourne to more-or-less shut in March, my year 12 brother who attends a boarding school, and I, who lived in the city to be closer to university, had to move home to the Mornington Peninsula with our parents. All four of us, and our two dogs, celebrated our birthdays in lockdown - and not just any birthdays; my mum turned 60, my brother turned 18, and I turned 21. We had high hopes for grand celebrations which were obviously not possible under the government restrictions, so instead we did what we could from home and the celebrations were very special. Even though we didn't have access to some of the things we normally do for birthdays (e.g. dinners out at restaurants, movie tickets etc.) it was so nice to see the effort we put in to make each other's day special. -
2020-04-01
Iso memes - HIST30060
This is a TikTok video created and uploaded by user @faunhub. TikTok seemed to become massively popular over lockdown, globally, with people using it make light of what was a very strange situation for everyone, as well as share useful tips and 'hacks' as such related to the pandemic. This particular video encapsulates how bizarre TikToks can get; user @faunhub is dancing tp a speech by Scott Morrison announcing the closure of recreational facilities, placed over a backing track, and making light of his mispronunciation of the word 'barre'. For me, this video and others like it helped to soften the blow of the multiple announcements of restrictions varying in severity and showed how comedy as a coping mechanism was applied in the context of this pandemic. -
2020-08
Beach walks - HIST30060
I spent lockdown on the Mornington Peninsula; when the 5km radius restriction was put in place my family and I couldn't help but laugh - most of our 5km was in the water...While there were absolutely days where I felt that my world had shrunk immensely, I was always so appreciative to have the ocean less than a ten minute walk away. I probably visited the back beach four or five times a week, finding that the enormity of the ocean put things in perspective for me and helped me to ground myself when things were overwhelming. -
2020-08
Isolation bakes - HIST30060
During isolation, myself and many others turned to baking as a way to pass time and enjoy a treat that didn't require anyone to leave the house. Perhaps more than this though, I felt that whatever I was baking was something that I had complete control over, so long as I followed the recipe, and in 'these unprecedented times' as the tag-line goes, this little bit of certainty was precious. -
2020-11-08
Old money, New money
HIST30060 It might not come as a surprise for people to learn that I, a history major, likes old things! Throughout this pandemic, I have become a frequent visitor of Etsy, searching for interesting vintage items to purchase. I have come out the other side of this pandemic with several old books, a set of 1950s cosmetic pots, a leather satchel and two old measuring tapes. Of course, in addition to things I have already collected over the years, including fossilised ammonites, more old books (including two copies of Shakespeare from the 1790s) and a pocket telescope from the 18th century. I feel like many people have indulged themselves during the pandemic, especially given the increased payments from the government allowing some people to have disposable income. And without having daily expenses such as public transport fares, for the first time I have been able to purchase some of these items without feeling guilty about myself for doing so. It makes me think about what type of things people do to cope during times of crisis. For me, clearly, it was some retail therapy, buying things that I enjoy. I am sure that many people will relate to that, considering the sheer amount of parcels the post office has to deal with from online shopping. I had always admired history from afar, but knowing that I can physically handle objects that have their own stories to tell has just reinvigorated my love for every chapter in the large book we call history. -
2020-07-26
Dogs send love
HIST30060 During COVID it was definitely a comfort for many to have their pets. Whilst the world was figuratively and literally burning down around us, the unconditional love and easy needs of caring for a dog brought a small moment of respite in the day. A dog will always enjoy a treat. It makes one think about the perspective of dogs during this time. For my dog, Goliath, he now gets to see me every single day, compared to me leaving at 7 in the morning and arriving home at 4pm (sometimes later) when I was studying on campus. And he gets more walks because leaving the house with him was some of the only times we actually got to leave the house. A dog will always enjoy a walk. Just having another creature near you who enjoys the little things and isn't weighed down by the dread and despair of the pandemic and who I get to share the company of really helps. -
2020-11-08
Masks masks masks
HIST30060 This photograph is of the variety of the face masks used by myself and my sister throughout this pandemic. I like how it shows the variation in information that was received by "Dan the Man", Premier Daniel Andrews. First, any type of mask was allowed to be used (including some single-layer ones seen here). Then the recommendation was triple-layered masks. And now, face shields are not allowed to be worn. Not that my sister or I ever actually wore the face shield - that was given to us by our grandmother. Actually, all of the masks we have were sewed by our grandmother. For that, I am grateful because it saved us from having to deal with the rush of finding and purchasing masks after were made mandatory. I like to think that if people time travelled to today from even a year ago, they would question such an odd fashion choice. And that is what they have become for a lot of people, a fashion choice. I recall seeing during the Melbourne Cup a lot of co-ordinated masks with outfits, and they have opened an avenue for people to display their interests on their face. A new and unexpected way for people to connect, even as our expressions are being masked. All I can say is that I'm grateful for the majority of Melbournians taking to these masks, and even though we had our fair share of "Bunnings Karen," we are far better off than other countries. -
2020-04-30
(HIST30060) Zoom University
(HIST30060) As a result of Victoria going into lockdown, classes at University of Melbourne went online, with lectures and tutorials being delivered via Zoom. Through both semesters, many technical and other issues have occurred as we've all learned how to use Zoom and gotten used to online learning. This post reflects what I'm sure many people experienced while on a Zoom call; for me, it was my mother walking in on my countless times, forgetting when I would have class, while she also worked at home, and both of us wearing something nice and presentable on top with our athletic/leisure wear out of shot. -
2020-11-05
Church in Williamstown, Victoria, Australia
The Williamstown Church of Christ put up a sign on the front fence to advertise food hampers and online services that are being provided during the lockdown. On the right of the image, in front of the reflective building, you may be able to see a grey box. This is a pantry where members of the public can leave their groceries for others to collect. 37°51'17.8"S 144°53'50.5"E HIST30060 -
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. -
2020-04-17
(HIST30060) Quarantine Beauty
(HIST30060) With lockdown lasting for many weeks and hairdressers and beauty salons being closed (even for a while as restrictions were eased), people's well-kept and manicured looks went out the window, being replaced with long, untamed hair and eyebrows and tracksuits. We went from looking like Princess Mia to ordinary, bushy-haired Mia as in the image. Many people resorted to giving themselves and family haircuts at home (I cut my hair twice and fringe multiple times throughout lockdown), which had varying results and became an essential covid experince on social media. -
2020-04-08
(HIST30060) lockdown lasting much longer than two weeks
Back at the start of the pandemic, everyone thought we would locked down and at home for about 2 weeks, and then things would start getting back to normal. Little did we know that 9 months down the track would countries still be going into lockdowns and others having lighter restrictions. As the weeks went on and the case numbers kept rising, the level of restrictions increased as did the number of weeks we were in lockdown (Melbourne is just now slowly coming out of a 15 week lockdown, one of the longest in the world). -
2020-11-05
A Thriving Glass Factory, Melbourne
The glass factory is in the middle of Spotswood, a suburb close to central Melbourne. The factory produces glass containers for many products including baby food, vegemite, beer, wine, jam, and kombucha. They have been very busy this year, thanks to panic buying. One staff member stated that production had been high since March 2020, just like it was in Christmas 2019, the peak season for glass production. Glass bottles are made around Australia as they are quite difficult to transport, so they cannot be outsourced to overseas manufacturers. This facility has around 100 staff. In these images you can see some staff having a break out the front of the business. They are wearing masks in accordance with Victorian (state) laws. In the other image you can also see that the workplace is taking temperature checks to reduce the risk of virus transmission. 37°49'49.5"S 144°53'30.5"E HIST30060 -
2020-11-05
COVID Recovery for Local Hospitality - Victoria, Australia
Metropolitan Melbourne is emerging from its second lockdown. Here you can see workers laying artificial turf out the front of some hospitality venues. The turf covers car parks, but it will increase the outdoor seating capacity of these venues. This will stimulate the small businesses and reduce the risk of virus transmission, as customers will sit outside rather than inside. I believe that the approach here is modeled on the Open Restaurants initiative of NYC, USA. 37°51'47.5"S 144°54'17.0"E -
2020-03-23
(HIST30060) 2020 in a nutshell courtesy of The Office
(HIST30060) This video was posted about the time in March when most of the world started going into lockdown and Covid-19 cases were increasingly rapidly everyday, particularly in Europe at that time. At uni, we'd just started online classes as Victoria went into lockdown. The video is great at demonstrating the chaos that existed as the situation became a global pandemic, when nobody knew what was going to happen the next day or really how to deal with what was occurring. -
2020-11-04
Happy 21st
HIST30060 A person’s 21st birthday (whilst not as big a deal in Australia as other countries) is still considered an important milestone. I, like many other people in Melbourne, had the pleasure of experiencing my 21st birthday in lockdown. Friends were not invited. Family could not visit. Instead, I spent the day at home with only myself, my sister and my dog. I feel like this picture accurately represents what the time was like. Dead. Not literally, of course, but life had grinded to a halt during this period. And yet, that day was one of my happiest. Maybe because it gave an excuse for people to contact me. A theme I think runs through a lot of the pandemic. Because we could not meet physically, social interaction through technology became a lot more prevalent. And who doesn’t love being sent cupcakes? -
2020-09-28
Noticing the little things
Like many people, I've been spending a lot more time in my back yard this year. Once the weather started getting nice enough our household and the neighbours all seemed to have the idea to start barbequing, just for something different to do, and we often had barbeques going in three back yards along at the same time. One such day I spotted two baby wattlebirds in the tree. I spent a good few hours that day, and the next few, just watching them and their parents feeding them, I even saw their first flight. It's something I never could have imagined spending so long doing before the pandemic, so I guess you could call that a positive of the experience. (HIST30060) -
2020-09-28
Reunited at last
Once restrictions started to lessen in Victoria following our second wave, it became common to use sites that calculated the radius we could travel from our homes to figure out if we could meet up with friends outside or walk somewhere different. In the later part of September in Melbourne, our permitted radius was 5km and we could meet up in groups of two for exercise or leisure outside for up to two hours. They had also just announced we could exercise within the same radius of our workplaces (if you were a 'permitted worker') which meant one of my circles overlapped with my best friend. This meant I could finally see her in person for the first time since June and the second time since March. (HIST30060) -
2020-03-16
Virtual Campus
I first heard my university would be transitioning to online teaching through the uni magazine's Facebook page on the 16th of March, an email from the uni following soon after. This felt appropriate for a time when decisions were being made in a seemingly hectic fashion and there was still so much speculation about how worried we needed to be and what measures needed to be taken. There had been 14 new cases of COVID-19 in Victoria on that date and the total number of cases in the state was 71. The photograph is of the deserted University of Melbourne campus in September when we were into our second semester of online teaching and Victoria was in it's second wave of the pandemic. It was eerie to see this area of the campus, usually filled with students socialising on the grass, so empty. (HIST30060) -
2020-05-08
Neighbourhood entertainment
Early in the Covid 19 lockdown I found these notes posted on telephone poles along my path to the train station. I later heard a rumour that they'd been sighted all the way along the local bike path. Whether the story they tell is real or not I love that someone in the neighbourhood was providing a story for the community to follow on their daily walks. It felt like following an old fashioned newspaper serial. We've all had to find new forms of entertainment, and since gyms shut down and people started working from home, people seem to have been taking up walking like never before. (HIST30060) -
2020-11-05
Lethargic Lockdown
HIST30060 - In reviewing this 'plague' year, I feel that there can be no simple way of explaining the whirlwind of emotions that seemed to fluctuate just as readily and sporadically as our daily covid- case numbers did back in April and May. My first uploaded image is a photograph I took of a note that was found in our letterbox in Balwyn, which we received on the 7th of April. Later we discovered it was made by two younger girls who lived at the bottom of our street, who had been writing similar letters for all our neighbours too! I felt it was very important in this unprecedented time to cherish the small acts of kindness, particularly given the emotional state of lockdown. Despite their relative insignificance, it is these small communal acts which I will cherish, which keep us connected to those around us, while ironically social distancing at the same time. Similarly, the young sisters who made the card are the same age as my niece, 9 years old. I often look at this card and think of how their youth has been irrevocably changed in this pandemic. My second image is a photo I took of Mills beach in Mornington on the 31st of July. I think it will always remind me of the occasion where I snuck down to the Beach, on the premise of doing some 'maintenance' at a family property, which was what I explained to the police who were patrolling the highway. My father has had his bouts with pneumonia in the past, so the family decided that if he could conduct his work from home, then it would be best to get of Melbourne. So my mum and dad were staying down the in Mornington from late March and came back to Melbourne around the start of November. Although we would routinely call eachother on zoom, this photo in a way commemorates the time where I had to sneak down to the beach in order to see them. Though a beautiful sunset at mills beach, there also is a sense of morbid beauty and unease to the photo. It was the only time I think I have ever seen such beautiful weather and calm water, with no boats or people in sight. The third image is a screenshot from a facebook invitation to a party which was created in early March. The guys that made the group event had originally planned to host a get together by December. I think in a sense this does give some explanation in regards to the expectations of corona, and the hysteria that was surrounding it in early March. I think as explained in the screenshot, although we didn't know what to expect, all we did know was that "the next few months are gonna be very long." Recently they updated the invitation from a party that will maybe happen in March next year. Although it may be some form of normality to look forward to, I think that this year more than any other we have learnt to prepare for the worst. Though it is currently listed to go ahead around March next year, part of me thinks it will be delayed again. My fourth image is a screenshot I took from an instagram page called "melb_lockdown," which was created in early April this year. It is an instagram page that features many artful collections of the Melbourne CBD area in black and white photographs. As one who often indulges in photography myself, I think the artist behind the instagram page is always trying to send a message with his work. I think what strikes me most is naturally seeing images of one of the 'most liveable' cities in the world, which is now devoid of the very things that have have given the city it's -claim-to-fame.' The once frenetic energy and vibrancy of the busy Melbourne CBD is now lifeless, colourless, and painfully mundane. My last image, is a meme that a friend of mine sent me. Similarly it is a an Instagram page called 'Covid 19 Funny Memes.' Though very funny, it also highlights a lot of the communal attitudes that have fluctuated and changed through out the pandemic. In late February/ early March, I believe that because it the pandemic was largely still a distant story that was affecting Europe more readily and Australia, it was something we really engaged in a kind of hysteria with. Because we hadn't experienced it, it was something we couldn't truly understand. Certainly these sought of humorous memes were not being created back then. But now I feel having lived with the pandemic for the last 8-9 months, people's attitudes have altered so much. I think because we are now more prepared to satirise, mock or create humorous memes is not to suggest that we have become apathetic towards the pandemic, but I think it shows that we are 'over it.' I think now living with this shadow over our lives for 8 months has taken its toll, and humour may be one way we can attempt to disassociate ourselves from this monotonous cycle. -
2020-03-28
Bass Coast: Beaches Closed
For part of the pandemic I spent time living in the Bass Coast Shire in South Gippsland. My friends and I often like to go for walks on the beach or go swimming. When the first announcement was made on March 28, we were still allowed to do these things. However, by the time Easter came, the shire was worried about visitors and social distancing, so they closed the beaches to all people for every purpose. As much as I understood the necessity of these actions, to me the beach is a good way to get some exercise and take care of my mental health. So, naturally I was quite disappointed when the beaches were closed. HIST30060 -
2020-08-29
Building of the house next door: progression
These are two images of the house being built on the block behind us. Due to us being home all of the time, we have been able to see the slow progress of the house being built. I was looking at this house being built so often, to the point where it wasn’t until two months later that I actually noticed just how much progress had been made. To me, these photos signify the daily repetition of our lives during the pandemic, especially during the lockdown periods. The picture showing the least amount of progress was taken on August 29, 2020 and the one showing more progress was taken on October 30, 2020. HIST30060 -
2020-10-29
Kmart Online Booking System
My housemate and I looked in to opening hours once the stage four restrictions were lifted and retail could reopen. We were surprised to see that we could book online to get first preference in entering a Kmart store, which is a feature completely non-existent before the pandemic. Although necessary to ensure social distancing, booking online to enter a store further digitises our everyday lived experiences. This may not be an issue for people with access to the internet like myself, but it has the potential to further ostracise people with limited or no access to technology. HIST30060 -
2020-09-24
Adopting Nugget the Pug
This is my housemate’s dog, Nugget aka Nug. Despite my housemate wanting a dog before the pandemic began, she realised that between working and being a fulltime student that she wouldn’t have the time to train a puppy. However, due to the pandemic we have spent more time at home than we ever have before, meaning we could train Nug without worrying about leaving him alone while we were at university or work. Nug has brought joy to our household, providing lots of laughs and endless cuddles. He has also made being at home every day far more bearable. HIST30060 -
2020-03-19
The Glass Den, Save Hospo
This image represents hospitality venues in Melbourne struggling to make ends meet earlier in the pandemic, before they were closed due to restrictions. The hashtag #savehospo trended on Instagram, being used by hospitality venues to ask for continued support from the public. This image is important to me as I am the worker in the background of the image. For me, the image represents my personal journey during the pandemic, where I lost my job and was unable to apply for Jobkeeper benefits as I got the job three weeks before restrictions were enforced. This photo gives insight into the struggle that a lot of hospitality venues and workers are going through during the pandemic. HIST30060 -
2020-11-04
A Puzzling Distraction
HIST30060. Millions of people picked up hobbies during their respective lockdowns, mine happened to be puzzles. A few in this photo I had before lockdown, but most was bought in the lead up to, as well as during. I bought my first colour puzzle about a month before lockdown started, when I first discovered the board games store Mind Games in Melbourne's CBD, though I did not touch it until study at home began. These puzzles gave me something I could be good at, with only one still incomplete months after I first got it (in my defence, it changes colour). They allowed me to multitask, I would watch movies for university while I had a puzzle in front of me, I discovered so much music through my Spotify recommended playlists that have become solid favourites, I've caught up on podcasts that were usually relegated to my daily commute to university. They gave me something I could control, in a time of change and confusion, a welcome distraction from everything happening outside of my house. -
2020-11-04
Cover Up
HIST30060. When masks became mandatory, my family, like many others I assumed, scrambled to get some in time. Our first lot was made from fabric scraps by a clothing brand my mum liked, our second batch was made by a family friend before it was mandatory, and then from that point they came from all different places. I got some from my partner who had bought a few, my brother got one from school with "Class of 2020" when he finished his year 12 classes, my mum got some from work which are surprisingly soft. Masks seem to be a touchy subject among people and though I am not a very confrontative person, I will glare and stare at anyone not wearing a mask or wearing one incorrectly. They can be a bit constraining yes and if one has to wear it all day it would most likely be tiring and probably sweaty. I'm somewhat thankful that we had our lockdown largely during winter, when people weren't as itching to get outside as they are now that it's becoming warmer. If COVID-19 was at it's height during summer, I imagine a lot more people would have suffered, cause who would want to wear a stifling mask on 40 degree day. I don't know if masks will become a staple of winter times in Australia as they are in countries like Japan whenever cold season begins again, but I'm curious to see if all these masks were just for a pandemic people will only care about the next time a similar one occurs. -
2020-11-04
A Rainbow
HIST30060. The only time I would frequently leave my house during lockdown was to go and see my partner. I saw him for absolutely none of the first lockdown in Melbourne but would often see him during the second lockdown. He was only a quick train and a short walk away, so I consider myself lucky that I was able to see him at all. I pass this house every time I walk to his and it encourages children and adults alike to count all the rainbows. It became a part of my routine, each time I would go to his I would pass this house and would feel my day get just a little bit brighter. It was only recently that he told me there are other houses around his suburb like this, aiming to give children a little distraction if they happen to pass by. The lockdown was long but necessary, so it shows me that there's hope that there's still some good in this world, with strangers hoping to give one another a distraction and a smile with a rainbow. -
2020-10-28
First Day Free
HIST30060. The first day out of the second lockdown in Melbourne, Australia, I got invited to a picnic with friends from high school. We went to a park that was local to everyone and no one at the same time, having been going there for parties and gatherings for the past six years. This photo is of a café local to Yarraville in the western suburbs of Melbourne, Alfa Bakehouse backs right out onto the train station where I get off and the only reason I went passed it was to check if a froyo place I loved had yet reopened with other retail and hospitality businesses. To see this many people together was both exhilarating and uncomfortable at the same time. Knowing that freedom was finally in our grasp but the overlying fear that we could easily return to lockdown if we are not careful. I made my way to my friends shortly after this picture was taken and talked and ate for hours, even getting a sun burn, and it reminded me how all that time in lockdown was worth it if people can see one another again and enjoy their time together. -
2020-10-31
Eagerness to Celebrate
HIST30060. My first journey to the city after months of staying within 5km of my own home, you begin to take for granted the daily trips to university, the train and tram rides, and being around other people. I got to go to shops I haven't been to before and have discovered during lockdown as well as food that I have missed dearly and was a welcome change after so much monotony and repetition. These places were bouncing back after months of hardship and everyone seemed so keen to participate in society again. It's a first step towards normality, and I believe nothing speaks to that greater than seeing Christmas decorations on Halloween. It was October, and there was a giant Christmas tree in QV. Not many superficial things cause me to seethe, but it was over 50 days until Christmas. However, it's an annoying but nice way to demonstrate that there's a level of hope among everyone with the December holidays being a point in the future that everyone in Victoria holds dear. We hope that we will be able to travel interstate to visit friends and family for Christmas, that we can have gatherings at home around a BBQ celebrating Christmas and the holidays, but also the love we share for one another and the joy at being able to be together again. I believe this year will be the only one where I will not mind as much to see these decorations so early, as they demonstrate hope and a return to everything we know and love. -
2020-07-23
HIST30060: 12 Apostles Great Ocean Road
HIST30060: This photo is remarkable because of the tranquility it boasts, in contrast to the usual palooza of tourist buses and clicking cameras. Taken a few days before the second hard lockdown in Victoria, this photo is a tribute to how different this year really was. As my friend and are marveled at the rock formations for 30 minutes, we did not see a single other person. The car park built for hundreds was empty, visitors center closed indefinitely and the sound of our footsteps echoing as we passed under the multi-million dollar underground walkway. This year has been a major challenge for everyone, however has granted (or forced) a new perspective on life which perhaps makes every experience more impressive. -
2020-04-03
HIST30060: It's still May?
HIST30060: I came across this cartoon on the Instagram story of Melbourne writer Zoe Foster-Blake when it felt like we were in our 5-thousanth day of April. Like historians summarize months, years and decades of time into short essays and books, movies condense long periods of time into montages. However, this past year I have really felt every minute of what would normally condensed. -
2020-05-06
HIST30060: Trying to create a Place of Greater Safety
HIST30060: I read this quote during the first Victorian lockdown, and I completely resonated with it. The isolation of lockdown had somehow made the biggest event of my life, and possibly the century, feel repetitive, mundane and even boring. It was strange to me that I could accurately describe a crisis atmosphere as dreary, in a way I would never before have been able to understand. -
2020-11-02
HIST30060: QR Codes
HIST30060: The introduction of QR codes into our daily lives has been just one adjustment into our new COVID normal lives. Previous fears of data security has been exchanged for the chance to socialize and eat out. As the pandemic continued, our priorities changed, and our normal changed, however our need to connect and socialize did not. -
2020-10-24
HIST30060: Corona Cup
HIST30060: The Richmond Tigers mean so much to my family, and this year, being able to turn on the TV and continue to watch the footy gave our week some sort of structure. What this object says about the pandemic is a testament to continuity: what continues and what stops during a pandemic is crucial to understanding what is important to our society. -
2020-07-17
Blue sky from drive in regional Victoria
HIST30060 This photo was taken at a rest stop i stopped at when I drove from Melbourne to Wodonga to pick up my mum, during the start of our second quarantine (in July). My mum, who had spent the past year living in the South of France, had been completing her mandatory quarantine in a hotel in Sydney for the past two weeks, and I offered to drive up to pick her up. However, due to the reintroduction of restrictions and the border closure between Victoria and New South Wales, I was unable to drive all the way to Sydney. To make up for this, she took the train from Sydney to Wodonga, where I then picked her up. I was very concerned with my drive, as I was unsure with the new restrictions if I would be able to drive from Metro Melbourne to the border, however, as this fell under compassionate reasons, one of the 4 reasons you were able to travel under those restrictions, I was able to complete my journey, and reunite with my mum who I had not seen in over a year. -
2020-06-02
Blackout Tuesday
HIST30060 Despite the global pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement saw a resurgence after the murder of American George Floyd in May of this year. Protests were sparked all over the world, pushing for the action to end the systematic racism experienced by people of colour (POC) and indigenous people all around the globe. I took this screen recording on my phone when, on June 2nd of this year, people all over the world participated in what was called ‘Blackout Tuesday’, where they would post black squares to their instagram account in an effort to project the voices of those who experience the systematic racism. I follow many celebrities on instagram, which you can see in this video many participated in the movement. However, the effort was quickly criticised, as the masses of posts featuring the black square began to dominate the Black Lives Matter (BLM) hashtag on all social media, an important tool that had been used by many to organise and publicise protests all over the world. Instead of the intended goal of projecting black voices over their white counterparts, the black squares instead silenced the important information that was being spread through the hashtag, doing the opposite of the intended effect. -
2020-07-03
Filling the time whilst working in fast food
HIST30060 During this year, I was luck enough to still be able to work in my fast food job due to the JobKeeper program, which saw the government paying the wages of part time and full time staff, as well as certain casuals. I would work 2 to 3 shifts a week in the city, which allowed me time to get out of the house and socialise with my coworkers. Restrictions meant we did not receive many customers, with our main source of income coming from the delivery platforms my boss installed. Despite this work, it did not mean I was able to escape the boredom most faced during the prolonged periods of restrictions, as there is only so much cleaning you can do in the periods where we had no customers. To fill the time, I began recreating famous paintings I could find online in miniature form, using the materials I could find in store, such as white board markers and receipt paper. Pictured here is my attempt at recreating Vincent Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’ (bottom left), the ‘Great Wave off Kanagawa’ by Hokusai (right), and Edvard Munch’s ‘The Scream’ (top left). -
2020-07-10
Decorating Ubereats bags
HIST30060 Restrictions meant many food shops in the city, like the one I worked at, received barely any customers during the harshest periods of quarantine. The 5km rule meant not many people had access to our location, whilst most of our customers who usually worked in office jobs in the city were also tasked with working from home. Our main source of income became the multiple delivery platforms my boss installed in our store. To both fill the quieter periods in the store, and to show the customers who ordered via these delivery platforms how much their business meant, my boss tasked everyone with decorating Uber bags and writing nice messages to customers. In this photo, you can see a design my colleague drew on an Uber bag, which was later used to carry Gilbert’s food. This small act connected both customer and business and showed our appreciation for the customers support of our small business.