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California
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2021-07-30
Mask up!
My cousins shared this adorable picture of her masked dog on social media. Although masks are a thing of the past here in Arizona, they are still very much used in Los Angeles. People here in Arizona are dreading the idea of having to put them back on and in Los Angeles people are almost glad that they never really let them go. -
2021-07-28
A trip to Central America
My family recently went on our first trip since before COVID. My husband is an ER doctor in Los Angeles and saw how the pandemic ravished our city. Getting away was necessary for all of our mental health. We were all vaccinated and tested before going and then tested again before coming back. I remember an interesting conversation with some locals that I wanted to share with the archive. While talking about the pandemic with some locals my husband was asked about his thoughts on the vaccine. He said he trusted the work of the scientists who developed the vaccine and he trusted the CDC enough to get it. The locals let him know they were not vaccinated and were not planning on it because of the side effects they had heard of. The first being that those who were being vaccinated faced possible death within the first two years. My husband politely said he had been vaccinated and felt very much alive. The second one was that it caused homosexuality. I wasn’t sure if I should be sad or surprised at that one. Such great ignorance over a vaccine that has already saved so many lives. -
2020
H396 University of San Francisco prompt
Prompt given to University of San Francisco students in H396, taught by Kathryn Nasstrom -
2021-07
Main Campfire Propane Fire Bowls
At Camp Wolfeboro, there were no wood-fueled campfires during the entire summer of 2021. Instead, the two central campfires (the Main Campfire, and Bravo How) and the campsite fire pits had propane campfires. One of the photos is of the Main Campfire during the Monday night campfire, with both of the propane fires visible. The photo was taken on July 19 at 8:40 PM. The other photo is of the easternmost of the two Main Campfire fire pits during the day, with a container of propane right next to it. The photo was taken on July 23 at 2:49 PM. In the daytime photo, it is clear that the fire pit is a KUMA Bear Blaze Fire Bowl - 19" in black. -
2021-07-10
Moving on
I am hoping that the divisiveness of the last few years will go away. People no longer disagree, they attribute negative intentions and even criminality to anyone who thinks differently than they do. We all live in the same city. We need to pull together not tear each other down. We need to hold each other up and stop all the "us" and "them". We are Santa Monica. -
2021-07-31
My covid Story
just writing about life since it started in late 2020 -
2021-07-22T09:50
Flag Area Mask Trash
This is a littered mask I found just several dozen feet east of the flag area and the program office at Camp Wolfeboro. I had just finished my Forestry merit badge session on the Tuolumne County side of camp, when I crossed the river to head to my Shotgun Shooting merit badge session at 10:00 AM. On the way to the range, I found a mask laying on the ground. I was a bit baffled as to how this mask was still here, because dozens of people had to have walked by it that morning already, whether going to or from a merit badge class or heading back to their campsite. The mask is extremely obvious, so anyone who walked here would have seen it. The photo was taken at 9:50 AM on Thursday, July 22, 2021. -
2021-07-23T15:31
Shotgun Range Mask Trash
In addition to finding mask trash at my campsite and in the common areas that Scouts and Scouters (adults in Scouting) walk through, I also found mask trash at program areas (meaning areas where merit badge sessions and other Scouting activities take place), like the shotgun range. Like the other photos, I picked up the mask after I took the photo. I am not as disappointed about this littered mask as I am about the others because it was in a fairly hidden location under a bench and I think most people at the range wouldn't have seen it. The photo was taken at 3:31 PM on Friday, July 23, 2021. -
2021-07-19T06:58
Boucke Mask Trash
This is a photo I took of a mask littered on the ground at the Boucke campsite at Camp Wolfeboro. This is the campsite where my troop, Troop 834, stayed during the fifth week of camp, when I took the photo. I picked up the mask and threw it away after I took the photo, and I hope it wasn't anyone from our troop who forgot to pick up their garbage. I find it interesting that the pandemic prevented most human activity from taking place at the camp in 2020 and now that people have returned there are new types of trash. The photo was taken at 6:58 AM on Monday, July 19, 2021. -
2021-07
Wolfeboro PO Whiteboard
The top of the program office at Camp Wolfeboro, where the camp director and program director offices are, has a large whiteboard every year where Scouts are invited to draw anything so long as it is Scouting-appropriate. The two photos of the whiteboard were taken at the middle and end of the fifth session of camp; IMG_5768.jpg was taken on Wednesday, July 21 at 11:41 AM, and IMG_5817.jpg was taken on Friday, July 23 at 4:17 PM. In the two and a half days between the photos, there were some additions made to the board. The whiteboard includes a variety of references to recent cultural trends, some of which include: -Upper left: text reading "whats [sic] so funny about Sussus Amongus", a reference to a YouTube video titled "What's so funny about sussus amogus?", itself an Among Us parody of the Biggus Dickus sketch from Monty Python's Life of Brian. -Center left, immediately next to the edge of the board: the word "SHEESH" in orange marker, which is used to show a sense of disbelief about something, with a positive tone (similar to how "dang" or "damn" might be used) -Upper center, slightly to the right: a dark green drawing of an open eye crying laughing emoji, an edited version of the laughing crying emoji that is used in memes to signify an emotional reaction to something -Bottom right: an orange-colored set of Olympic rings, with the words "Olympians [illegible]" in blue beneath it Some of the additions between Wednesday and Friday include: -Center left: an Among Us crewmate next to a text bubble saying "SUSSY!" (a reference to the slang term "sus", meaning suspicious, often used alongside references to Among Us) Many of the specific cultural references refer to the video game Among Us. According to the program director, the massive Garfield drawing at the bottom left was drawn during the 2019 camp season but became unerasable by the time camp opened in 2021 (camp did not take place in-person in 2020). -
2021-07-29
Restaurant That Probably Spits in People’s Food Says It’ll Only Serve Unvaccinated Customers
This colorful article by Vanity Fair explores the anti-vax, anti-government Huntington Beach restaurant Basilico’s Pasta e Vino. The writer urges its readers to avoid this restaurant and its "anti science" owner. -
2021-07-29
Basilico’s Pasta e Vino in Huntington Beach
After submitting a restaurant's sign promoting their anti-vax stance I was curious as to whether or not they were still in business. It turns out this restaurant has made quite a buzz in California. They unapologetically promote misinformation and publically prefer their customers to be unvaccinated but happily took thousands in PPP funds. They have spent money on controversial billboards and are not at risk of losing their liquor license. I'm so interested to see where else this story goes. The last sentence of this article sums up the ignorance of the restaurant owner - “Our stand is for all Americans,” wrote Roman. “They can thank us later.” -
2021-04-13
Camp Wolfeboro Status Update Monday, April 13, 2020
This is a letter from Monday, April 13, 2020 that was sent out by the Mt. Diablo Silverado Council of the Boy Scouts of America outlining three possibilities for the 2021 Camp Wolfeboro season, depending on when California lifted its stay-at-home orders. The letter also discusses an online opportunity to earn merit badges that would be hosted in the summer of 2020 if camp could not occur in person or if it only occurred for a reduced amount of time in person. The letter discusses how refunds would be handled if camp was canceled. Camp was canceled entirely in 2020 because the stay-at-home order extended past June 1, 2020, which is stated in the letter. -
2021-07-13
Brian Harvey, Oral History, 2021/07/07
Brian Harvey, a Managing Director at Deloitte and Touche, discusses the changes the pandemic has caused to his job as an auditor. He provides insights into the various industries he has interacted with over the past year. -
2021-06-24
Stanislaus National Forest Forest Order No. STF-16-2021-06
The Forest Supervisor of Stanislaus National Forest issued a Forest Order on June 24, 2021 that prevented "using a fire, campfire, or stove fire" in most of the Moderate Fire Hazard Area of Stanislaus National Forest. This impacted the Calaveras County portion of Camp Wolfeboro, which is located entirely within the Moderate Fire Hazard Area. Although the Tuolumne County half of Camp Wolfeboro is in the Low Fire Hazard Area, meaning wood fires were technically allowed, the Golden Gate Area Council prohibited any wood fires at any of its summer camps for the 2021 camp season. Also attached is a photograph of a copy of Forest Order No. STF-16-2021-06 hanging at the top of the Camp Wolfeboro Program Office, taken on July 21, 2021. -
2021-07-20
Troop 621 in the Mess Hall
This is a photo of some Scouts from Troop 621, in San Ramon, eating dinner at the Camp Wolfeboro mess hall. The Scouts have masks around their necks. The photo was found on the troop's public website. The photo is identifiable as being taken on July 20, 2021 between 6:15 and 7:00, because Troop 621 attended camp during the fifth session (July 18 to July 24) and ate B shift dinner from 6:15 to 7:00, and part of Tuesday night's dinner was stuffing and mashed yams, which are visible on the Scouts' plates. -
2021-07-24
In-N-Out Touchless Drink Dispenser
On the way home from Camp Wolfeboro, it is a tradition in Troop 834 (and other troops) to stop at In-N-Out on the way home, which is often appreciated after a week of eating at the mess hall. When my car stopped at the Stockton In-N-Out to pick up lunch, I saw touchless drink dispensers that I hadn't seen before. Above each nozzle that dispenses soda there are two small bumps, and putting a finger between the two bumps, without touching them, causes the soda to flow. While we were there, we also saw some Scouts from Troop 7062, in American Canyon. -
2021-07-21
Hope Love Heal
“Hope Love Heal” is a series of 30 separate artworks. Each mail art piece was made with the hope that it would inspire the recipient to seek out mental health care as one way of dealing with the pandemic. Each artwork was hand made with love. -
2021-07-19T11:41
Trading Post Maximum Occupancy Sign
This photograph shows a sign at the Camp Wolfeboro Trading Post that says "Trading Post Maximum Occupancy: 5", with the Camp Wolfeboro logo before it. The sign also accompanies a nut allergy sign that is present every year. The Trading Post only allowed five people to enter at a time, and any overflow had to wait outside for someone to leave the building. Masks were also required in the Trading Post, regardless of vaccination status. The photograph was taken on July 19, 2021 at 11:41 AM. -
2021-07-23T16:08
Forest Service Burn Pile
These are three photos of a set of logs, located between the archery range and shotgun range at Camp Wolfeboro. In all of the photos the Handicraft building is visible on the left in the distance. According to the in-camp president of the Wolfeboro Pioneers, the pile of logs was created as a burn pile by the Forest Service. At the 7:30 Pioneer meeting on Monday evening, July 19th, 2021, a Scout proposed clearing the burn pile as part of the Wolfeboro Work Party, an hour-long work party running from 7:30 to 8:30 on every Tuesday night at camp where each Scout troop helps clean up part of camp. He didn't know the pile was made by the Forest Service, so the president said so and said the camp couldn't clear it. The photographs were taken on Friday, July 23, 2021 at 4:08 PM. -
2020-03-09
the offer of hope
I took this photo at LAX on March 9, 2020. My father died suddenly the evening before. The Coronavirus was beginning to change our daily lives. Little did I know that this trip would be the last for many months. Each day offers us a chance for a new beginning. I hope we remember the lives lost. I hope we remember the quiet beauty of an empty city. I hope we remember the gratitude we felt for all the doctors, nurses, service workers, delivery drivers, teachers and frontline workers. I hope we remember the creative outlets we found. For all the missed birthdays, graduations, anniversaries, barbeques and gatherings, I hope we now embrace one another in the joy of each new day. -
2021-07-21
2,551 cases in one day.
The Los Angeles Times reports "L.A County health officials say the number of cases has increased twentyfold over the last month." Clear evidence that we are not out of the woods, COVID is still around and people are still dying. I wonder if anyone is still paying attention. -
2021-07-19
HERMIT HERALD, ISSUE 121
Afghanistan- not forgotten? -
2020-04-19
The call has been answered
The article discusses the surge of pet adoptions from shelters during the pandemic. -
2021-07-14
Los Angeles Covid Cases Up 500% Over Past Month; Test Positivity Rises Nearly 700% As Delta Variant Takes Hold
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed 1,103 new cases of Covid-19 on Tuesday. It’s the fifth consecutive day cases have been over 1,000. For perspective, one month ago, the 5-day average of cases was 201. Today the 5-day average is 1,095; this is an increase of more than 500% in just one month. That increase has come even as testing has dropped precipitously, which means the actual rise of infections is likely much greater as there are fewer chances to identify cases. -
2021-07-12
SMhopes banners
These banners were made from submissions to the #SMhopes call on this site, and displayed around the City of Santa Monica in the Spring and Summer of 2021. Designed by Paula Goldman and supported by a grant from Art of Recovery, an initiative of Santa Monica Cultural Affairs. -
2021-07-10
Manzanar
As a historian, US History teacher, and mother of two Asian-American children, I make a point to expose my children to all aspects of America’s history: good, bad, and ugly. Thanks to COVID, we had the opportunity to show the kids one of the country’s ugliest moments - Japanese internment. The desolate desert in the middle of our home state is an area I had never driven through before COVID, despite having lived in CA my entire life and being (supposedly) 8th or 9th generation Californian on my dad’s side. However, there is no way I’m putting my family on an airplane during a pandemic, which limits vacation options. So into the car for an eight hour drive to Tahoe. A drive that goes right past Manzanar, the Japanese American World War II concentration camp. Unlike last year, when we made the same drive for the first time in my life, the exhibits, buildings, and visitor center were open with masks and social distancing. As we stood in the barrack in the 106 degree temperature, I told my kids to never forget how uncomfortable they felt and to consider the fact that they were feeling awful from the heat as tourists. I told them to imagine living in this heat as a prisoner though you committed no crime except having ancestors from Japan. They may be young, but they are old enough to understand human rights. Visiting Manzanar was overwhelming. I am not a very emotional person, but I was taken aback by the fact that this history is so recent. My best friend’s dad was born in Tule Lake, where Japanese-Americans who refused to take the forced loyalty oath were sent. That is only one generation before mine. Seeing and experiencing second hand through family and friends the hatred directed toward Asian-Americans during this pandemic made the experience in Manzanar extra raw. Though I refuse to thank COVID for anything because I think that’s a bit tone deaf for all who have lost and suffered during this pandemic, I am grateful that the circumstances that led us to drive to Tahoe instead of fly led us also to a place of reflection on prejudice and race, especially in the climate of today. -
2020-03-18
OCHS Alumni Provides COVID-19 Information In Mayan Mam and Spanish Video
Oakland Charter High School alumni, Gerardo Jeronimo Lorenzo, creates crucial COVID-19 informational video for the community. Gerardo Jeronimo Lorenzo, OCHS alum and Medical Translator II at Alameda Health System, enlists the help of Dr. Kate Kasberger and Amalia Pablo Pablo, Mam interpreter at the San Antonio Neighborhood Health Center, to provide vital COVID-19 information in Mam, an indigenous Gautemalan [sic] langauge [sic]. AMPS is so proud of our alum, who despite these tough times, is reaching across the divide to support his community. Go Matadors! -
2021-07-05
Gonna Dolly Myself Up
For the past year, I cycled in and out of a few uniforms. At the start of the pandemic, when the weather was warm, I wore a simple, roomy, tan linen dress that could have fit in at a nice restaurant for lunch, if I'd dressed it up with accessories. A chic friend recommended it over a Zoom call as her Amazon "find". During a year of lock-down, it became more of a "housecoat" than a chic dress and I wore it a lot, usually barefoot. If I wasn't wearing the tan housecoat, I wore the green or black one. (I'd bought three at my friend's exuberant recommendation.) As the weather changed, oversize jeans (my husband's hand-me-down) and my favorite navy sweatshirt from Paris became my go-to. This outfit coincided with learning how to clean the house (nobody was allowed to come inside, not even our cleaning ladies). I got a bleach stain on the sweatshirt and eventually a hole formed at the elbow. It's still my favorite. Another pair of loose jeans and a couple of other sweatshirts bought on Amazon got me through the rest of the winter. Socks were usually all I put on my feet. The weather is warming up and I've started shopping again, in-person! I've bought a few wide-brimmed hats, a couple of skirts, and even a silk blouse. I'm eyeing some nice sandals. I won't be cleaning the bathrooms in these new clothes. I'll be wearing them out to museums, to lunches with friends, to dinners on new outdoor dining patios, and maybe even on airplanes. I'll be mixing and matching, accessorizing, dolling up and down. When I'm home, though, I'll be back in my uniforms. I've grown to love them. -
2021-03-18
Oakland clinic offers Mayan interpreter for COVID-19 vaccinations
Oakland clinic offers Mayan interpreter for COVID-19 vaccinations La Clinica de La Raza is targeting Latin Mam or Mayan-speaking community with translation service Thursdays OAKLAND — A new COVID-19 vaccination clinic in the Fruitvale neighborhood is offering interpreter services for the Latin Mam or Mayan-speaking community. This month, La Clinica de La Raza began offering the community-targeted vaccination service at 32 locations across the Bay Area, including ASCEND Elementary School on East 12th Street, where Latinos who speak Mam, K’iche ‘and Q’eqchi’ can get translation help from appointment to inoculation on Thursdays. There are over 22 different Mam dialects spoken primarily by people of Guatemalan and Mexican descent. According to a recent UC San Francisco study, Mayan people with Guatemalan roots are the fastest-growing ethnic group in Oakland. “I’m here to support my community, getting them the service that they deserve,” Brenda Sucely Perez, the on-site interpreter at ASCEND, said last week while about 450 eligible people were vaccinated. Staff at the Fruitvale site have administered roughly 2,000 Moderna vaccines per week since opening on March 4, according to La Clinica officials. Salvador Garcia, an Oakland firefighter, volunteered at the vaccination clinic. “Coming to get the vaccination is a good thing because it would help prevent the spread,” Garcia said, adding that it’s especially important given how close relatives in the Latino community live. “When you’re around people in such tight quarters around here, the way the families live with each other, it’s just good to have the preventative measure of the vaccination.” It’s also one of the reasons the nation’s first and strictest stay-at-home orders proved ill-suited for the hard-hit Latino community, a four-month Bay Area News Group investigation found. That analysis showed case rates for the region’s Latino residents are nearly four times higher than White residents, while the Latino population has fared worse against the virus across California. During the fall case surge, economic pressure to keep working outside the home became another major factor in the Latino community’s higher COVID-19 positivity rate in the Fruitvale neighborhood than the rest of the state, according to a UCSF study conducted in September. The results of that study found that antibody-positive prevalence was 9.8% overall among people who live and work in Fruitvale, a predominantly Latino neighborhood. The number spiked to 26.8% among the Latin Mam, or Mayan, speaking community, USCF [sic] researchers noted. The COVID-antibody test shows that someone once had coronavirus. -
2020-07-05
Painted rocks on Iron Horse Regional Trail
These are a series of photos I took on July 5, 2020, of a set of painted rocks I found on the Iron Horse Trail in Danville. The rocks say: "BE KIND" "STRONGER TOGETHER" "DANVILLE GOT HEART" "WHEN THERE'S NO PEACE ON EARTH THERE IS PEACE IN CHRIST" "SRV '20" (in reference to nearby San Ramon Valley High School) "SMILE! 🙂" "EMBRACE THE PAUSE!" "count your BLESSINGS" "Learn from Yesterday" "LOVE has many COLORS" (with a painted Pride flag in the background) "TOGETHER we will PERSEVERE" The rocks are all positive in tone, with a rock celebrating the recently-graduated seniors at the local high school, a rock advocating for queer people, a variety of rocks with generic inspirational messages, and a message urging others to find solace in religion. There is also one rock that references Danville's community explicitly. -
2020-11-14
Diwali rangoli at City Center Bishop Ranch
This is a photograph of a rangoli at City Center Bishop Ranch I took on November 14, 2020. That date also happens to be Diwali, a Hindu holiday on which some people make rangoli. Rangoli are made of various dyes and powders. -
2020-07-12
Whole Foods cash register
This is a photo I took on July 12, 2020, at the local Whole Foods, of a cash register. There is a plexiglass shield at the register, and a sign announcing a change in hours. The sign also promotes a biweekly special shopping session for the elderly and those at high risk for COVID-19. -
2021-06-25
English, Spanish, Mandarin, Tagalog COVID signs in SF
On June 25th, I saw this set of posters next to a bathroom in Japan Center, a Japanese shopping center in San Francisco. The posters are in English, Spanish, Mandarin, and Tagalog. -
2020-06-26
From Noise to Silence
The Pandemic impacted everyone in different ways. Everyone's life changed in one way or another. For me, my life went from hustling and bustling to peace, silence, and alone time. Before the Pandemic, my daily routine was driving 45 minutes to work daily, frequent trips to Mexico, and I was constantly on the move. A full-time student, and part-time tutor, I was continually helping students and finding study time at my local Community College. Also, I would frequent local Starbucks often to work on my reading and writing assignments. However, when the Pandemic hit, everything changed for me. Now, instead of driving to work daily and visiting Mexico, I found myself working online, studying in my room, and not seeing anyone face to face except for immediate relatives. For the majority of the Pandemic, I did not go anywhere as I previously did. In other words, the hustling and bustling of the highway now turned into silence, the continued camaraderie between students and cow-workers now turned into silence, and just like that, my life altered to a new dimension of silence like have never experienced. -
2021-06-19
Museum of the San Ramon Valley
The Museum of the San Ramon Valley is well on its way to being back to normal. On June 15th, California officially reopened, which amongst other things meant there were no restrictions on how museums could operate. This means we can finally operate at full capacity. Even when we could only operate at 25 percent capacity we never hit our upper limit of guests, so capacity wasn't ever really a problem. That is something that concerns me as the museum reopens; that we will have low attendance. I was able to work at the museum a few times in the middle of the pandemic, and I never worked a day where we had more than thirty total guests (including people who were merely looking for a restroom or asking for directions to something, who did not pay to look at the exhibits - we had probably no more than 20 or so paying customers per day). We also don't need to impose mask mandates as of June 15, but the museum's board of directors decided to keep our mask mandate. However, if someone comes in without a mask and doesn't want to take a free one then we will still allow them into the museum. I am not concerned by this because I am vaccinated, and even if I wasn't there is a very low likelihood of getting sick. We have not done any exhibits related to COVID yet. Starting last year and continuing this year we have an exhibit on the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, with a focus on our local area. This is in addition to our regular exhibits. Starting today (June 19) we also have our train exhibit for a month, which is a model train display with models of local historical buildings (and other things, like a UFO and more non-history-related things). The model train exhibit always brings in little kids with their families, so hopefully that improves museum attendance. Most of our attendance comes from families with little kids, older Baby Boomers, and the elderly. The museum needs to improve on attracting people in their teens and twenties in order to earn more. Hopefully, a COVID exhibit can do that by making history more personal. On our website, we have a story collection form for people to share stories of COVID, much like JOTPY, but I do not know what we will be doing with those responses. When I physically work at the museum next I have a bunch of items from last year (inspirational painted rocks, city council and school board campaign materials, masks) that I will donate, and hopefully, those and other items find their way into an exhibit. -
2021-06-12
Mask trash Golden Gate Bridge Park
Several disposable masks littered the grounds around the Golden Gate Bridge Park on the north end of the bridge. This photo shows a blue disposable mask near a lookout. -
2021-06-12
Mask trash San Francisco
While visiting the Golden State Bridge, I came across this blue fabric mask with a penguin print. -
2020-06-23
SRVUSD Budget and Reopening Protest Photographs
These are unpublished photographs I took while reporting for my school's newspaper, The Californian. These photographs show the people who attended the protest, including a mixture of students and parents. There are also a variety of signs showing various motivations for protesting. This entry is connected to the "San Ramon community protests SRVUSD spending and issues with remote learning" submission. -
2020-06-29
What should the school year of 2020-2021 mean for Cal High’s students?
This is a set of three articles from The Californian, the student newspaper of California High School, each one arguing in favor of a different stance regarding the reopening of San Ramon Valley Unified School District schools. In the articles one can see the concerns that motivated high school students (well, three students in one high school) to form opinions about various forms of learning during the pandemic. One article argues for fulltime in-person learning, one article argues for completely remote learning, and the third argues for hybrid learning, a mix of the two. An illustration also accompanies the set of articles. -
2020-06-27
San Ramon community protests SRVUSD spending and issues with remote learning
This is a news article I wrote about a protest for my school newspaper. The protest was convened to support the ability for students in the San Ramon Valley Unified School District to be able to return to school for the 2020-21 school year, and to oppose raises for district management and certain purchases made by the district. The protest occurred on June 23, 2020, at the SRVUSD offices in Danville, California. -
2021-05-27
Slower Pace of Life
It’s probably a bit tiresome for my best friend when I say “oh man, we haven’t been there in over a year” because for our family, that is everything. Every week, we open up a little more, cautiously, as our case rates continue to decline (under 50 new cases in our county today!) Disneyland, our go to hangout is still out of the question, so we returned to the beach. It’s crazy to think for over a year, it sat 20 minutes away, so close but so far. I feel like COVID not only has made us more appreciative but has also helped us embrace a slower pace of life. Two years ago, a weekday would have seen me at school AP reviews or department meetings, my mom and I coordinating pick up and drop offs for Kumon, gymnastics, piano lessons. I would have squeezed in a Pilates class before picking up my daughter from the gym. My husband wouldn’t be in the equation at all, April and May are full travel months - we barely see him. But here we are. Our pace of life is much slower. My husband is still working remotely, and will probably continue to for at least half the week for the rest of the foreseeable future. Kumon and piano seem simpler to do now that we’re all home. Even gymnastics seems less stressful. If everyone is home on a weekday at 3, why not hit the beach? I know our lives will inevitably speed up. That’s the rat race that is Orange County and I do love our lives. We like being busy, why else would someone live here? Yet, I hope the togetherness we’ve had in the past year and the realization that maybe we should just take more time to run around the beach, get excited at finding a Sea Hare, and just watch the waves without an agenda or a clock will last beyond this pandemic. -
2021-05-10
Universal Hopes
This work was done as an assignment for Paula Flynn's Fifth Grade class at Franklin Elementary, in Santa Monica, CA. Hogwarts soaring above my head, the ecstatic Harry Potter fans walking around, amazed seeing their favorite book come alive. Hagrid’s roller coaster, and the long-but worth it 4 hour line to ultimate Harry potter ride The sunlight shining down on Hogsmeade, the fake snow shining bright The sound of chattering people, and the whoosh of the rides The excitement bubbling up inside me, this is my dream, being in Hogwarts When can I go back? -
2021-05-22
POST-PANDEMIC IDENTITY
See file uploaded "Post-Pandemic Vision" -
2020-11-30
Only 2020
Andrew Brandt Date: 11/30/21 New Orleans, LA Only 2020 Article 1: California surpasses 18,000 coronavirus deaths, nears 1 million cases It feels like it was not long ago, March 13, 2020. On March 13th, 7 people in the United States had died. Now, just in California, 18,000 people have died. On March 13th, 536 people contracted COVID-19. Now, just in California, we have 1,000,000 cases. We got here by the government and the president downplaying the coronavirus since it first entered the United States. “It will disappear when it gets warmer.” - Donald Trump. It did not disappear when it got warmer, it got worse. Over 250,000 Americans have died of COVID-19. This was a complete failure on the part of our government and our health agencies. Hospitals will be overrun by the end of December. America is now averaging twice the amount of total cases in China a day. China was the epicenter of the disease. America is the laughing stock of the world right now. Article 2: Experts say you shouldn't expect a coronavirus vaccine before December Pfizer announced encouraging news today, but we should not get our hopes up. Most scientists say that a vaccine will not be available to the general public until April-May of next year. This would mean that this entire school year would be plagued by the pandemic. We will be in these masks for a while longer. I hope that the vaccine will come sooner, but it seems unlikely that a vaccine will be approved, much less distributed by the end of December. At least my first year of high school will be semi-normal, but from now on, nothing will ever be normal again. -
05/03/2021
Jeff Foster Oral History, 2021/05/03
Elizabeth Hathorn interviews Jeff Foster, a college student and member of the U.S. Army. He discusses the effects of COVDI-19 on college classes and on military training. He also touches on a few other aspects of life during the COVID-19 quarantine. -
05/03/2021
Josiah Collinge Oral History, 2021/05/03
The interview describes the life of a young adult before the pandemic and how it changed during and after the pandemic. It also discusses the significance of the pandemic to him and those around him. -
2021-05-03
Hope for a normal life
This was written as an assignment for Paula Flynn's fifth grade class at Franklin Elementary School in Santa Monica, CA. I hope that after covid i can live my normal school, spring, fall, winter, and summer life including: playing with my friends, doing sleepovers, going to the beach/playground, eating at a restaurant with no mask, summer camps. -
2021-05-03
Vaccines for the world
This was written as an assignment for Paula Flynn's fifth grade class at Franklin Elementary School in Santa Monica, CA. I dream for Covid to end and for everyone to be given the vaccine. The world has taken a heavy hit from covid and I know that we can come back from it. Covid has affected many people from around the world. I hope that we are able to all stay safe during this pandemic. -
2021-05-04
When will this dream come true?
This was an assignment in Paula Flynn's 5th grade class at Franklin Elementary School in Santa Monica, CA. People hugging having a good time without a care in the world.No masks close together. Like before. A beautiful ray of sun beating down on there faces. Sharing it’s warmth with them.Casting shadows of them. The shadows black against the colorful world. I hear laughter, joy and relief, almost everyone is happy. Leaves are rustling in the wind as if dancing to a beat. Happiness, Laughter, Grateful When will this dream come true. When can we live like this again. Joy Joy Joy