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2023-07-13
Post-Pandemic Trip to Seattle
Like it did for many people, the start of the Covid-19 pandemic canceled multiple travel plans for me. I applied for my passport in 2018 with the intention of going on a study-abroad trip my junior year of undergrad. Instead of travel memories, I have a memory of sitting in my PoliSci class and discussing the news with my classmates that the university might shut down for a few days. We didn’t go back, and I still haven’t used the passport. Once travel restrictions were lifted it still took me a while to get back out into the world. The first trip I took was in July of 2023. I traveled from Minnesota to Seattle, Washington with some of my friends from high school for a week of sightseeing. We chose it because most of us had never been to the Pacific Northwest. It was my first time in an airport since December of 2018. I remember having quite a few lingering anxieties related to Covid, to the point where I was actually dreading the trip before we left (even though I ended up having a wonderful time). I had some struggles with health anxiety during the pandemic. Before tests were widely available I remember frequently being so paranoid I had Covid that I would convince myself I did and actually make myself feel sick with anxiety. Since restrictions have been lifted this has stuck around, and now takes the form of me getting excessively anxious about getting Covid before important events (like the trip, and my wedding just a few weeks before it). I also was nervous about going to the airport because I didn’t know what to expect in regards to how many restrictions would still be in place. It turned out there were no restrictions remaining in the MSP or SeaTac airports beyond some signs reminding people to not enter if they felt unwell (I am certain most people who make it far enough to see the sign still enter). Once the actual boarding of the plane went fine, I entertained myself with anxieties about the odds of someone on the plane having Covid and all of us breathing circulated air. I actually had Covid once in the fall before the trip, and got the highest fever of my life but was ultimately okay. Interestingly, this didn’t really ease my fears during the flight. Nobody got Covid from the Seattle trip (though we were probably just lucky) and instead I got some of the most precious memories of my life so far. I also had a surprising lack of anxiety once we got there. We visited a long list of places including most notably the Space Needle, Chihuly Garden and Glass Museum, Seattle Aquarium, Pike Place Market, and the National Nordic Museum. There were no Covid-19 restrictions remaining in any of these places. I had packed one reusable mask in my backpack in case I needed it, and it turned out the one time on the whole trip that I entered a space where masks were required (a small independent bookstore) I didn’t have it with me and had to borrow one. I still thought about Covid every time we pushed through a packed crowd in Pike Place Market, but more so than being afraid I thought about how during the peak of the pandemic I was convinced it was something I would never do again. I don't believe the pandemic is truly over even now, but I drastically felt how much things had changed in that moment. The picture I included to tell my story is of my friend Carlie and I on the top of the Space Needle (I am sitting on the right). We went back twice, and spent literally hours sitting on the glass floor and watching the city go by as it slowly rotated. It's one of my fondest memories of the trip. I’ve heard some people say the Space Needle is overrated, but as small-town Midwesterners we were pretty fascinated. I’m grateful to those who spent the pandemic under harsher restrictions in bigger cities like Seattle so that I can visit these places now. It was nice to feel so small looking down on Seattle after the world felt so small during restrictions just a few years earlier. -
2022-06-04
After coming out during the pandemic, many LGBTQ+ folks look to 2022’s Pride with a mix of emotions
This is a news story from The Seattle Times by Scott Greenstone. Pride has changed quite a bit over the last two years due to COVID. For a while, Pride celebrations were held virtually. The in-person events in 2022 will now resemble what Pride was like prior to the virus. Included in this article are personal stories of people who did not come out until the pandemic, with this year being the first year they will attend Pride in-person. For some, they didn't realize they were trans until the pandemic hit. Rhys Hutton, for instance, did not know he was trans, and is also coming to grips with having autism. Hutton's story of how he came to the realization started on TikTok when the algorithm kept showing videos of trans-masculine people. This exposure helped him figure out his identity more. Stories like this are not uncommon, according to a recent Gallup poll, ten percent of Millennials and twenty percent of Gen Z identify as LGBTQ+. -
2022-05-10
Anasitasia Viatele Oral History, 2022/05/15
Anasitasia Viatele is from Kent, Washington. She recounts her life during the pandemic and the struggles she has faced during that time. She discusses her family in American Samoa and touches on their struggles as well. -
2022-05-04
Erika Groudle Oral History, 2022/05/04
Erika Groudle is a resident of Monroe, Washington. She lives in a tiny house with her partner on her mother’s property. In this oral history interview Erika discusses working with kids during the pandemic and her opinion on how they handle mask wearing. Additionally, Erika discusses her “pandemic garden,” caring for her grandfather, staying connected to friends and family during the pandemic, how she first realized the pandemic was close to home, and the realities of living in a state that not only had the first case and death of COVID-19 in the United States of America, but also highly publicized protests in Seattle. Interviewer: Jason Inskeep Interviewee: Erika Groudle -
2021-03-31
Pandemic Object: My Movie Ticket
My pandemic object is a picture of the first movie ticket after the lockdowns of March 2020. Godzilla vs. Kong was meant to release in May 2020, but due to rewrites and the pandemic, it was pushed to November 2020 then to March 2021. Since the Godzilla franchise is my favorite movie franchise, it was only fitting that this was the first movie in theaters in a pandemic world. My dad, brother, and I traveled to the more comfortable Queensgate theater in Richland, Washington on the movie's premiere night. While I found the movie had some pacing issues and missing plot elements, I think that people needed an action-packed, fun monster movie to escape to. Two giant monsters fighting and destroying cities can be easier to deal with because we know it is not real, but they are tangible, we see the monsters. COVID is the opposite, it is real, but also an unseen threat without certain technologies. Godzilla and Kong have human characteristics we can identify with while COVID feels inhuman and impersonal. This is just something that I have noticed. -
2020-07-03
Bad science, bad business practices
The attached article is about a plant nursery in Snohomish, Washington that banned its employees from wearing face masks on June 3, 2020. This business did not take safety precautions for its employees seriously, and actively encouraged and promoted unsafe practices. This is something that is worth being documented in the JOPTY due to the fact that the stereotype of Western Washington state is that it is very liberal, very progressive. But there are still many pockets of areas that still are not. It’s important to remember that this stereotype isn’t true. I think this is also something that is another example of the general public not taking the lives and significance that service industry/customer service workers seriously. -
2021-01-28
Freezer Failure
January 28, 2021, around 11 PM one of my friends called me, we normally don’t talk on the phone so I assumed something was wrong. I could tell that she was driving and her voice was shaky. She told me that a freezer had failed at her mom’s work and that around 1,300 vaccines would be expired by 5 or 6 AM. She was told to try to get anyone she knew to get to the hospital in order to reduce the chance of wasting such a hard to get thing. This was prior to my state lifting restrictions on who was eligible for the vaccine yet. Not everyone could get it, just certain people due to age, pre-existing conditions, and career. The clinic did a good job at still trying to make sure that people who were eligible got to the front of the line, but they knew that they needed to make sure every vaccine was used. My girlfriend and I would not have made it there in time since we were over 3 hours away, but her family all lived within a 30-minute drive. We started calling her parents and brothers to wake them up and get moving. Her mother, oldest brother, and soon to be sister-in-law were all teachers and were going to have to start teaching in person again. None of them would have been eligible until a month or more after going back in person, and they were all decently nervous about being in person unvaccinated. Her family got lucky and was able to get vaccinated that night. I cannot thank my friend enough for calling me to keep the people who have become my family safe. -
2021-10-07
Covid Vaccine Reminiscence
This is a recording I did of myself where I reminisce on my Covid Vaccine experience and the feelings it brought -
2021-08-13
Covid Safe Activities
My dog, Via, was born the year before the Pandemic began. Almost two-thirds of her life has been spent with both her people home all the time and she enjoys it. One of our favorite Covid safe activities is driving out to the beach early on a Friday or rainy weekend when we know nobody will be out on the beach. Via can run for hours and the beach is her favorite place to do it. She loves to dig and find crabs or look for birds on the horizon. I don't feel comfortable taking her out in public because of Covid and I don't want strangers coming up and asking to pet her so she mainly lives a solitary life now with her family. I don't know if that is good for her or not, but I constantly worry that Covid is messing up her life and her socialization. -
2021-08-11
Hobbies and Quarantine
I have been lucky in this pandemic. My partner was able to keep his job and with the pause on student loan payments, we were able to save enough money to put a downpayment on a house. Quarantine and working from home have allowed the both of us to explore hobbies we have always wanted to have but couldn't because of the time spent commuting or lack of space because we were renting. I was able to start my own herb garden and it flourished. I have learned a lot about myself during the pandemic, and one of those things is that I love gardening and working with plants. I know we have been so much luckier than so many people and that often creates feelings of guilt in me. I don't like sharing my happy stories because so many people are having a hard time right now. I do think the good stories are just as important as the stories of hardship. I don't take what I have for granted and my partner and I still try to donate and help out where we can, but nothing has brought me happiness like my herb garden. -
2021-10-08
Idaho and the Overrun Hospitals
Idaho hospitals are so overrun with Covid patients and so understaffed that they are drowning. Idaho has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the nation and many people are getting sick. Many hospitals on the border Idaho shares with Washington are choosing to send their sick patients to Washington. This in turn is adding to the burden carried in Eastern Washington. Many healthcare workers in Idaho are burnt out and they are helpless because of the divisiveness caused by politics and Covid. -
2021-08-17
Vaccine Rates and Covid in Gray's Harbor County
Grays Harbor County is having a Covid spike that is mainly affecting the unvaccinated population. This is adding stress to the testing facilities in the county and causing issues with hospitalizations. -
2021-10-03
The First Game Back and the Last Game of the Season
This was a photo from my seat at my first mariners game back since the beginning of Covid and the last game of a great season. IT was an emotional game because they lost their wildcard spot, it was probably Kyle Seager's last game as a mariner after 10 years, and it was my first time in the ballpark since 2019. It feels like we are getting back to normal even though I am still hesitant to jumping back in. -
2021-10-06
The Fifth Wave and it's Strain on a Small Costal Town
The coastal town of Elma, Washington has been hit hard by Covid. The smaller-sized hospitals are overrun with Covid patients and the burden being put on healthcare infrastructure in the area is massive. People are having to wait hours for care at local hospitals and chances are if you call an ambulance, it will not be able to take you to a local hospital. The extra driving is eating up the EMS system's time and causing issues with getting care from emergency services. -
0017-01-17
A new idea of delicates
Finding humor during the pandemic has been hard, but we still find our way. Washing delicates turned into washing masks during the pandemic. -
2021-04-15
At least 5,800 Americans infected despite vaccination; California, Washington open up vaccine eligibility
At least 5,800 people who were vaccinated have contracted COVID-19. Of the 5,800, 400 were hospitalized and 74 died. Since the vaccines are only 90% effective, such infections were expected. The use of the J&J vaccines has been suspended until research into a rare blood-clotting side-effect is complete. -
2021-03-29
Justice for Sofia Ramirez
Photographer Malcolm Dole has been documenting street art during the pandemic. -
2021-04-02
Malcolm Dole captures street art in Seattle, Washington
Malcolm Dole captures street art in Seattle, Washington. This piece shows a masked face perhaps layered over other art or perhaps an intentional effect. -
2020-06-07
Faith and Values: A Buddhist Response to the Coronavirus Pandemic
This article speaks to a specifically Buddhist response to the pandemic. The monk in this article offers ways to deal with the pandemic from a Buddhist perspective. While Buddhism is a specific worldview, the advice given in this article can be used by all people. Thinking about questions concerning life and death should be confronted and asked rather than cowering away. From the response given, the pandemic should teach people to love and care for all, even in the midst of a deadly virus. -
2019-03-17
The Smell of Bread
I have uploaded a story of scent. During the first part of the stay-at-home order in Washington state, March 2019, I baked fresh bread daily to help my family during the food shortages. The amazing aroma of bread filled my home and brought hope to my family that everything would be well. -
2020-12-09
Covid-19 Statistics for Western Washington Counties (Olympic Peninsula)
I live in a rural part western Washington about one hundred miles from the initial outbreak of the Covid-19 in Seattle. Even though I live in a county that voted Republican in 2016 and 2020 (the first time Grays Harbor County voted Republican for the first time since 1928 when Herbert Hoover was elected) people took the restrictions seriously. As we hear about the supposed difference in Covid-19 outbreaks between Red and Blue parts of the country I thought it would be interesting to show the county-by-county numbers for Covid-19. The file attached shows the health department web pages for each county. This shows how serious this region took the outbreak. The file is static, so anyone interested should follow the web addresses to see current numbers for active contact tracing, active Covid-19 cases and Covid-19 deaths. -
2020-12-09
Covid-19 Statistics for Western Washington Native Tribes (Olympic Peninsula)
This is a collection of all of the western Washington Native American tribe’s Covid-19 information. Unlike other parts of the country, western Washington tribes have a low Covid-19 rate. -
2020-03-13
The great costco chicken shortage
My partner and I went to Costco to do regular grocery shopping for the week when we stumbled on the emptiest isles we have ever seen at any Costco. I remember turning to my partner and saying “This feels unreal. I have never seen a store this empty and I don’t think that I ever will again”. It was still March, and my partner was just told by his job to stay home and that the office would be closed for a while until Covid was under control. We didn’t know at that time seven months later he would still be working from home. It was eerie being in a store that was so empty and it is hard to explain what it felt like to see that. It was at a time of high panic for others but I hadn’t felt that same panic until that moment. I was very worried we wouldn't be able to get chicken for the foreseeable future and I didn’t know what we were going to do. I panic purchased a five pound bag of dry pinto beans that are still living in the back of a cupboard in my kitchen, unopened, on that trip. I think of my quarantine experience in multiple stages, the first to being before Costco, and after the great Costco chicken shortage. I think other people felt the same way I did; After they saw people panic buying, they started panic buying or fretting more than they may have been in the months before quarantine. The beginning feelings of panic did do good for me though, they made me more conscious of what we are eating and how much food we actually buy. I feel like the changes have benefited me for the better. Arizona State University HST485 -
2020-10-13
Finally moving to Phase 2
Wenatchee has been in lockdown and stuck at phase 1.5 for months due to an inability to get the virus under control. We finally received word that we could move to phase two and reopen things like the museums and library in town, which have been closed for 7 months due to COVID. This reopening means that many public services like computer use at the library and wifi for those who do not have access to it at home will be open and able to be used by those that need it. It is an important to compare where we are at to other places that moved into new phases much quicker, some of which had spikes because of it. I personally have not been able to leave and have been stuck at my house for months. I used to go to the library three times a week for school and to get out of my house but with a pandemic, I have been spending more time inside. I do not feel comfortable enough to go to the library yet, but am excited that the option is now there. Back to normal is still not an option though, and I worry that this will cause more cases in my area. This whole experience has been eye opening for how much I did unplanned, now I have to plan everything I do so I can keep myself and my family safe. -
2020-03-20
Fresh Air, But For Only So Long
During the pandemic, specifically between March and June, there wasn't much for me to do with work. I would help my Dad with his now unfamiliar school work. I did play games and watched the entirety of Parks and Recreation, but couldn't stave off the boredom. I needed to do something. So, I would go on walks. Sometimes I would go by myself and sometimes I would take my dog Carolina. She loves taking walks and it was something new for her with every walk. I lived in a rural part of town and the air was fresh. The smell of flowers drifting in the air, while also smelling cow manure as well. All I could hear was the sound of the birds, neighbor dogs and the farm animals. Carolina would stare at those dogs or animals, but never approach them. It was wonderful to breathe in the warm air. Cars were a rare sight and sound when I would walk along the asphalt with no issues. It was so quiet. It was nice to have the road to ourselves. Prior to COVID, people would be driving along our road frequently and we could hear them even from the end of our driveway. There seemed to be less garbage in the ditches too. Sometimes, I would see whole families walking along the road, probably wanting to inhale that fresh air that I was enjoying. Mid to late summer though, the air became thick with smoke. The fires around Washington, especially from nearby Selah, were suffocating and my walks stopped. There was even a fire on the ridge behind our house and I was worried that we would have to evacuate. The sky was muggy and the area was too warm, thankfully, since we all started wearing masks, we could cope with the fires. Mostly, I was disappointed that the fresh air I breathed towards the beginning of summer was gone. The picture I chose to share was a picture I took of the fire that started on the ridge behind our house. It's not the best quality, but that smoke was what closed out the summer. There was a lot to deal with this summer; COVID and fires mostly, but somehow, we made it. *Photograph, this is something that I took myself.