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2020-03-18
Caution Slide
I saw the slide while on a walk in the morning. My local playground had been shut down and taped up to prevent children playing. I wanted to photograph it to show how the pandemic had changed even basic activities like taking children to a playground. -
2020-03-18
Middle School Shut Down
This photo show the shutdown of the schools, which for me as a student impacted me directly. It was also a striking image to me because it showed how much things had changed that the school was closed off and empty on a school day when school would usually be in session. -
2020-06-06
To enact change in the world, we must protest
The article gives an important history lesson on Civil Rights in America. -
2020-06-06
Changing Attitudes of White America
Excerpt: The big shift is due, in large part, to the changing attitudes of white people. One question, though, is what that might mean politically come November. -
2020-05-07
Humans of Covid-19 AU: Garth Davis
“COVID19 has had a huge impact on the film industry, in fact it wipes it out completely. Pretty much every production has stopped right now, which is massive, almost like the airline industry with all the planes lined up on the tarmac. Many people are doing development work to fill the time and adjusting some projects to make them simpler. Content is like fast food at the moment, people are devouring it and are addicted to it. It is likely that simpler movies, with fewer characters, will be shot sooner. This situation will also create innovation, many people are coming up with ways to direct remotely and we could see a lot more animation and visual effects. For me, films are always ahead of reality. There are so many movies about COVID19 already, look at Contagion, almost bizarrely similar - it's crazy! This event may inspire people to connect more to the story they are telling. Some of the greatest art has come from moments of trauma and difficulty. Sometimes such circumstances can push out really inventive, amazing things. This virus is a dress rehearsal for what is really coming, one of the offspring of our journey to the elephant in the room, which is global warming. We do have the capacity to act as one people and work together globally. There is hope - but we need to get ahead of this, not be reactionary.” Instagram post on Garth Davis, film director, and his experience during the pandemic, which was created by a psychology student living in Melbourne who was interested to hear about how COVID-19 was impacting on different peoples’ lives. -
2020-04-21
Humans of Covid-19 AU: Mandy Dante
“Many of the programs that we run are face-to-face and in schools. So it has been challenging to see many of our programs booked for Term 2 being postponed and there are many unknowns. COVID-19 has also impacted the business financially, our facilitators do not have opportunity to work, and for myself financially it has been tough. I’ve definitely gone through waves. At the beginning, I had this amped up energy of excitement to get creative, thinking of ways to deliver online. Then I hit a down stage. Now I'm able to be more patient with myself and am taking it one step at a time. For teenage girls, school is often seen as an escape from home life and family. It's a different world for them, and so not having that outlet and freedom is difficult. Also in your teenage years, your friendship group is like your bloodline, so lack of physical connection is definitely having an impact. It is ok to ride different emotions at this strange time. I realize that even I am on social media so much more! This, combined with having more alone time, can amplify people’s thoughts about body image and friendships. There is pressure to be constantly posting and being relatable. A huge thing people are learning is to be grateful for the small things. This period is enabling a space to develop intentional communication, rather than quick, rushed conversation. It is fostering deeper connections.” Instagram post on Mandy Dante, CEO & Founder of Flourish Girl, and her experience during the pandemic, which was created by a psychology student living in Melbourne who was interested to hear about how COVID-19 was impacting on different peoples’ lives. -
2020-04-17
Humans of Covid-19 AU: Molly
“Online schooling is definitely not ideal. I’d rather be at school with my friends. But considering it’s the only option, it’s going ok so far. The biggest challenge for me is trying to keep on top of the work, because there’s so much being thrown at us and no teacher there to guide us. I miss school a lot, especially my friends, sport and socialising with people. I find that social media is not the same as actually seeing your friends. I prefer being one-on-one with someone so we can actually talk properly. I’m a lot calmer than I was at the end of last term. Everything around me is organised and clean, so I feel a lot less stressed and chaotic. But now I'm ready for my life to go back to normal.” Instagram post on Molly, a high school student, and her experience during the pandemic, which was created by a psychology student living in Melbourne who was interested to hear about how COVID-19 was impacting on different peoples’ lives. -
2020-04-16
Humans of Covid-19 AU: Felix
“It’s strange that as days go by, I'm reminded very much of the time when I was a young boy in Shanghai, under the Japanese troops, and we had ration books. I was about 8 and I would have to wake up at 4.30 or 5.00 in the morning for sugar or rice. So there's the same kind of feelings of stress, with tension in the air. Instead of Japanese troops around, there's a deadly virus menacing us. I don’t really have to adjust to this life; it’s the young people that have to. We don’t go out that much anyway in non-corona conditions. I listened to Bill Gate’s Ted Talk given in 2015, where he spoke about precisely this, and how we were not ready to handle a pandemic. In that sense, some knowledgeable people could have predicted this. In terms of immensity, this is probably one of the biggest possible events imaginable.” Instagram post on Felix, a facilitator, and his experience during the pandemic, which was created by a psychology student living in Melbourne who was interested to hear about how COVID-19 was impacting on different peoples’ lives. -
2020-06-14
Local Business Defeat
This is a picture of our venues calendar in May. All of the white out spots that you see are dates which couples either chose to cancel/postpone their wedding, or our venue staff was forced under mandates to tell them they had to reschedule. It has been a very messy battle that included two law suits and endless disappointment on our venue's end and especially on the couples end. COVID-19 is robbing people of their mile stones and we are so ready for it all to be over. This is also a good example of how detrimental COVID-19 has been on small businesses. The amount of money they have lost makes it extremely hard to stay afloat. -
2020-06-13
How the military handled Covid-19
This is a humorous tiktok showing the progression of the pandemic and how the military handled it.Initially it was put out to just be precautious and it very rapidly changed as the extent of the pandemic was grasped.For many military members it felt like they were constantly changing the level of precautions.It was initially viewed as similar to the flu by many and not taken seriously but as the pandemic progressed that changed.Although humorous this is an accurate representation of how many military members reacted during this time. -
2020-04-30
Reporting on Health: A Beat Statement
"Before the coronavirus lockdown, I was on a mission to inform readers about healthcare treatments, alternatives, and the systems surrounding them. I sought to provide solutions that would, in turn, foster self-advocacy for underfunded and under-researched chronic illnesses. " This article describes the author's change in their beat due to the pandemic and was written by a senior journalism student following a beat developed and thought about in terms of the "local" in a journalism course at Pratt Institute that was upended by the pandemic. -
2020-04-30
From Riots to Lockdown, Hong Kong to Coney Island
"The political climate of “One Country, Two Systems” of my mother’s home country of Hong Kong hit home for me as a first-generation American. A part of me resonates with student protestors resisting a communist regime such as China." This article describes the abrupt change from writing about Hong Kong and China and its protests to writing about the Covid-19 pandemic, written by a senior journalism student following a beat developed and thought about in terms of the "local" in a journalism course at Pratt Institute that was upended by the pandemic. -
2020-06-02
Rewilding (Part III)
This is my literary response to being relatively safe whilst watching Covid reek havoc around the world. -
2020-05-26
NYC Covid Photos
Kat Griffin Photography -
2020-03-20
By the time you read this, it will already be obsolete
They say in Vermont, if you don’t like the weather, just wait five minutes for it to change. I haven’t found it true of clouds or rain, but the news is on an hourly refresh: constantly changing, though never for the better. The world’s gone to dog time. Days have telescoped to weeks. Last week feels like a different era entirely, when kids went to school, businesses stayed open, you could grab lunch in town or take the cat to the vet. After days of pouring over graphs, I could redraw contagion curves from memory, but it all seems strangely theoretical. The number of reported cases in Vermont is still less than a block in Wuhan or Milan. And it’s never that busy here, so the towns look pretty much normal. Nationally and worldwide, the deaths are still lower than the flu, lower than heart disease, lower than car accidents, and yet the trajectories explode like a flushed grouse. While these fears, statistics, and calculations swoop through my brain, the real birds have returned: lines of geese, honking encouragement as they struggle against the wind; gangs of grackles, blackbirds and starlings descending on our feeders and glistening in the cloudy half-light. We should really bring our feeders in, as the warmth has awakened the bears. Last year the ground was frozen nearly until May. This year the snow vanished a few days before the pandemic arrived, winter evaporating as quickly as our former lives. My husband and kids, home all the time now, help me rake away last year’s leaves, uncovering bright shoots of daffodils, and yellow and purple crocuses already blooming. Soon the frogs will shout their odes to fertility from every pond, sending out an aural map of still water. Each time I go outside, my spirits lift, just a little, as non-human life goes on the way it always has, and the world tilts slowly toward warmth. -
2020-05-18
Purpose of COVID-19 by Jennifer Shanteau
This virus is an awakening. We saw how much better our planet is for just this short time without our usual insults. I swear the birds sing louder. We are discovering that some of us are very strong- heroes. We started to think, and create, and find ways to change, and move forward positively. We shared food, and masks, and hope. There were sadly also those who haven’t grown, and didn’t want to see the virus, so they looked away, unable to handle it, causing many deaths. These same people want everything to go back to the way it was. The way, if you are paying attention, it can never be again. They are like toddlers without their binky, having tantrums, frightened of moving forward to our inevitable new reality. We will never have an opportunity like this again to really see ourselves. We were forced to look in the mirror. We can’t look away. We have to fix our face. -
05/15/2020
Academic Analysis of Federalism during the COVID-19 Pandemic
#PSC401D #mlphelps #UNLV -
2020-05-15
Hayden and Osborn Starbucks #2
Another image advertising Starbucks’ mobile in store pick up. Otherwise, lobby is closed. Drive thru remains open to cash and card payment. -
2020-05-02
Tenants' Union Notice
A posted notice about the creation of a Mac Properties Tenants' Union with list of demands. -
2020-04-01
“You know... I've kind of given that a lot of thought..."
“You know... I've kind of given that a lot of thought just because so many people so many programs I've been watching people are saying like this is a punishment or that God is trying to say something and I actually don't feel like it's impacted my faith because I've already had so much happened to me in my past with the death of my children so this is just another glitch in life I guess.” -
2020-03-12
Last Day at the Office
Two coworkers discuss the coronavirus oubreak, unaware that it will be the last day at the office for everyone before the Stay At Home order, in some cases permanently because 10% of the staff was laid off a month later. It illustrates the rapidity in which conditions can change. -
2020-04-15
NYT Story on the COVID 19 Archive
Sherri Denney was in the fourth day of quarantine in her home in Springboro, Ohio, when she thought about the toll the coronavirus was taking. She sat in her recliner chair and cried as the state’s governor checked off the number of dead and sickened, knowing there would be more the next day. Overwhelmed, Ms. Denney, 55, tried to put her feelings into words. “Wow,” she began writing on an old sketch pad, quickly realizing the precise words would not come easy. “That’s all I can say. My emotions are ranging from sadness to fear to anger.” The week before, a woman in Nevada turned to her own version of journaling. Mimi J. Premo recorded a video on her cellphone, giving voice to a kind of stunned weariness so many Americans are feeling. And in Indianapolis, in an interview recorded by two university research assistants, a man who is diabetic and H.I.V. positive talked about how the speed and unclear ways of transmission “freaks me out.” The three accounts, snapshots of intimate moments during the pandemic, are a response to a call from historians and archivists across the country to document this extraordinary moment in history. Universities, archives and historical societies, ranging from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History to a tiny college radio station in Pennsylvania, are rushing to collect and curate the personal accounts of how people are experiencing this sprawling public health crisis as told in letters and journals, audio and video oral histories, and on social media. They are inviting people such as Ms. Denney and Ms. Premo to share stories and material from the 2020 coronavirus and its aftermath in real time. The idea is to bridge communal history and offer a fully realized look at the outbreak that can help the public, researchers and policymakers better understand how the pandemic permeated our lives. ImageA journal entry by Sherri Denney. It was one of the first submissions to the coronavirus public memory project set up by Wright State University. A journal entry by Sherri Denney. It was one of the first submissions to the coronavirus public memory project set up by Wright State University.Credit...Wright State University Whether a somber handwritten journal or an endearing Instagram post, the contributions will offer a look at a nation attacked by a virus coast to coast. The stories document sickness and death. The profound disruption of American rhythms and rituals, evidenced by empty shelves and streets. The gnawing restlessness of sheltering in place. The ways people showed resilience and managed to still find joy. “What we as contributors record is what the future generations will remember,” said Mark Tebeau, one of the project directors of a virtual archive founded at Arizona State University. The team of historians and artists started A Journal of the Plague Year: An Archive of Covid-19 on March 13, two days after the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a pandemic. The name was inspired by Daniel Defoe’s novel “A Journal of the Plague Year,” which chronicles the bubonic plague in 1665 London through the lens of one man. Latest Updates: Coronavirus Outbreak in the U.S. The California State University system will not hold classes on campuses this fall. Top health experts testify that the U.S. is not ‘out of the woods’ and warn against reopening too fast. Testing becomes a flash point in the Senate hearing. See more updates Updated 9m ago More live coverage: Global Markets New York With the help of graduate students and scholars from about 20 universities, the archive has amassed more than 1,400 entries from 500 contributors across the world, including Australia, Peru and China. Mr. Tebeau, a public and digital historian who heads the university’s public history program, said they are also reaching out to marginalized communities to ensure the project is inclusive. One of the first entries came from Ms. Premo, 36, a customer service representative who lives near Las Vegas. She had not left her home for nearly a week in mid-March when she submitted the video. In the clip, just over two minutes, she wonders who might be stricken with Covid-19 next. A neighbor? A friend? A family member? “No matter how many Skype meetings I have, no matter how much I am on Facebook, no matter how much I write in my journal and try to laugh through the tears, it feels so different,” Ms. Premo said. “Living with this uncertainty is,” she added, pausing in the video, “it’s unsettling but I feel that no matter what happens, I guess it’s hope that keeps my spirits up.” Video Mimi J. Premo shared her thoughts in a video diary to Arizona State University. Last week, the Library of Congress received its first Covid-19 collection: street scenes from New York, New Jersey and California by the photographer Camilo Jose Vergara. In addition to documenting stay-at-home life, mask styles, health care workers, the economic impact and how people are helping one another. The Library of Congress is also collecting web content, data and maps. The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History deployed a Rapid Response Collecting Task Force to chronicle the pandemic. “Museum staff is working to formulate a plan that achieves a balance between the urgency to document the ephemeral aspects of the historic turning points as they happen,” the museum said in a statement, “and the need to provide a long-term historical perspective.” In response to the pandemic shutdown, StoryCorps, the story-sharing nonprofit, moved its platform online for the first time. Interviews that used to be recorded in a physical studio can now be done using video conference technology. The audio and a photo from each interview will be preserved in the StoryCorps Archive and with the Library of Congress. And students at Neumann University in Pennsylvania set up a series called the Coronavirus Diaries on the school’s radio station, WNUW-FM. Listeners record themselves sharing pandemic stories using a voice memo app or by leaving a phone message at the station. The diaries air hourly. Local archives are also calling for oral histories and materials. The Atlanta History Center, for example, is asking the city’s residents for digital files and physical artifacts (the latter would be collected once the center reopens). The project, called Corona Collective, lays out how seemingly mundane items — a no-frills furlough notice, a handmade banner thanking emergency medical workers — help tell the story of how daily life in Atlanta changed. Image “Goodbye,” a drawing submitted to “A Journal of the Plague Year,” an archive of the coronavirus pandemic created by Arizona State University. “Goodbye,” a drawing submitted to “A Journal of the Plague Year,” an archive of the coronavirus pandemic created by Arizona State University.Credit...Jeffrey M. Davis Similar efforts are cropping up in big cities and small towns. Sometime during spring break in March, Jason Kelly, a professor at the Indianapolis campus of Indiana University, realized the coronavirus was likely to be the defining event for generations. For a professor who teaches digital public history, it meant something else, too: How people experienced the outbreak needed to be captured and organized in a searchable database. That was the seed of what is now the Covid-19 Oral History Project, based at the Arts and Humanities Institute on the Indianapolis campus. Mr. Kelly turned to the 19 graduate students in his digital public history class and asked if they would put other coursework on hold to focus on the project, which uses “rapid response collecting” for Covid-19 lived experiences. Eventually the project will merge with the larger Plague archive Such efforts to collect memories in real time was also used by groups after the Sept. 11 attacks, Hurricane Katrina and the Pulse nightclub massacre. The page from Ms. Denney’s diary became one of the first submissions to the coronavirus public memory project set up by Wright State University. “All of a sudden the pandemic was right here and personal,” said Dawne Dewey, head of special collections and archives at the university. “We put the call out because we need stories to help future generations understand this moment in history.” The archive, partly housed on the fourth floor of the school library, includes the journals of survivors of the 1918 flu pandemic. One was written by Donald McKinney Wallace, a farmer who served in the Army. Mr. McKinney was sickened with the flu in the fall of 1918. He was quarantined in barracks, separated from others by blankets hung from a wire. He wrote about the daily meal of soft boiled eggs and cold toast, feeling weak, a stubborn fever, isolation and the deaths of fellow soldiers — an account that could have been written today. “A century ago, people told their stories in written journals,” said Ms. Dewey. “Now, we are capturing people’s thoughts and experiences through social media posts, email, audio and photographs.” -
2020-05-08
What Is Going On?
Listen…I don’t know who else can agree on this with me, but doesn’t it just feel like a light switch went on and suddenly the world knew what the Corona virus was? When I sit down and reflect on the first time I remember hearing of it, my mind draws a blank. It’s like this huge conspiracy within my own mind, that one day I just woke up and all of a sudden was in the loop. There is talk that it started in December, and there is talk of people first hearing in January, for me personally, I have no clue. This is not something any of us prepared for…parents are out of jobs, businesses are declining rapidly being forced to shut down, schools closing and children losing proper education tools. It feels like a horror story, I truly think it is, and I already know down the road in the future my kids will ask about my experience in it and how it impacted me. That is why I am trying to document everything, write journal entries, take videos, to truly remember what I felt at a time like this. I don’t ever want to forget it. But I want it to end. For the first time in my mother’s 35+ years of working, she’s had to file for unemployment. Never did I think that my mom would be unemployed. Things happen though, and since humans are so adaptable it’s been wild to see everyone adjust and learn this new normal. If you would have told me a month ago that my world would be turned upside down, I would have such a hard time believing you. I am a senior in college. I go to Marymount University, and this semester was supposed to be the time of my life. My friends and I took a history course that went abroad to Paris for spring break. That was supposed to be in early March. You’d think it was a joke that 2 hours before boarding the bus to head to the airport and we get an email that our trip had just officially been cancelled. This was so early on with the virus, no talk of quarantine, I didn’t even know what that term was at the time. It wasn’t until middle of the following week that people began discussing the possibility of it taking place. Fast forward to now, nearly 2 months later and over half of my spring semester became online, my graduation was cancelled, and almost all of my friends moved home. My internship got cancelled, and my last day as a senior just disintegrated in front of my eyes. Despite anything, I’ve been trying to find the positives in this situation and grow more so that once this is all over, I can reflect and be proud of what I did. I think it is important that everyone just does what they can to be safe and take precautions, but that they do what they need to fulfill their daily needs to stay happy. Though this has single-handedly been the worst thing to happen in my lifetime, there is a lot to be learned and improved on. But seriously…I still wonder .. what is going on..?! -
2020-05-08
Social Distancing Date
Social distancing date during Covid-19 -
2020-05-04
Journal entry 5/4/2020
taken from journal entry: Today I woke up around 1 pm without an actual schedule to follow it feels like i have no routine.I have been falling asleep around 3 am and waking up very late. Never thought i would say this but i miss going to school and having busy days and crowded commutes. Things i would complain about i now yearn for. I went to Walmart today and looking around at everyone with their masks and gloves, i never thought id ever see anything like this. my trip to the grocery has now become one of the most exciting parts of the day. Going out now is such a hassle we put on masks and gloves and coming back we take everything off immediately and take a shower. All the groceries we brought back my mom will thoroughly wash and throw away original packaging. Later i went for a run in rock creek, there were quite a lot of people there but everyone maintains distance and has their masks on. At night i did a lot of online work i had. without going to class i barely have any motivation to do it. in one of my classes i had a 100% now i have dropped down to a 70%. Good thing we have the pass/fail option at my university, thats the only thing saving me right now. Then i stayed up with my dad binge watching series on netflix until about 2:30 am. i really hope we go back to normal, i miss seeing my friends, my girlfriend, going out to eat or to the movies. My best hope right now is that we go back to classes when the fall semester begins. -
2020-05-06
Takeover of Corona
Life in quarantine has been a unique experience. -
2020-05-04
Being an essential worker
Being an essential worker Covid-19 otherwise known as the Corona Virus, has affected almost every single life in America. I remember when the virus first started nothing really changed for me or my job at the fast food restaurant, chipotle. Then slowly but surely things began to change in my job. At first less and less people were coming in to receive food, and I was given less hours. Then we closed our dine in option as did the entire state of Arizona. Our Governor Doug Ducey then released a stay at home order, but I as a fast food employee was still considered “essential”. What this meant was that I was still allowed to work, but at what cost. For many being allowed to work can be seen as a blessing or a curse. I was still allowed to work despite all the chaos happening in the world. Everyday more people were losing their jobs or just not working, but I, being an “essential” worker was still working. Things continued to change at my job as we were given questions on Covid-19 and are now asked every workday a series of questions to take precautions against Covid-19. We also now wear masks to cover our faces. Working at chipotle or any fast food restaurant is not the same. Covid-19 has changed the way we operate for a safer environment. This can all be seen as a positive turn of events for fast food workers and other essential workers. For we are being allowed to work. Also many companies are being more precautious in the way they handle things. At the end of this global pandemic perhaps all these changes will have been in a positive light. Overall, in my point of view I see this as a disadvantage. On one hand I am very grateful that I am able to work while others cannot, but I see the disadvantages outweigh the good. For example, the hours I received were already cut and I get paid minimum wage. One of my coworkers even jokingly stated he could make more money quitting and filing for unemployment. We are going to work while this pandemic is happening and are at a higher risk of contracting the virus than others. In the end, I do not believe fast food employees should be essential. This is because the pay simply does not account for the risk these workers are taking to serve food. That is why I am profoundly grateful for the real essential workers like doctors and nurses. -
03/20/2020 to 05/01/2020
Pandemic Journey, a day to day account
Thoughts, observations, musings, some News content and every day activities of a woman from Bowen Island, British Columbia. Sue Hurn emailed to Catherine O'Donnell, who uploaded -
2020-04-26
Pizza and Toliet Paper
A local pizza place called Rosatis Pizza has begun to give out a free roll of toliet paper for every order. When my family ordered dinner from there we had no idea they were doing this. It is weird to think about how just a few months ago if a pizza place gave out a roll of toliet paper it would have been very strange, but now in the current environment created by the pandemic it is a thoughtful and appreciated gesture. It shows how values have changed during the pandemic and the importance of still trying to support local businesses as best as we can, and in return the businesses are doing what they can to show their appreciate for consumer support during the pandemic. -
2020-04-14
The Importance of Family
This is a photo of my little sister and I embarking on a 'journey' to the grocery store. Before this strange time, running an errand was something I never gave any thought. It oddly feels like so long ago: I would just grab my car keys and head out the door. Now, I need to take multiple precautionary steps before I go in public. It is still near impossible to wrap my head around the fact that the steps one needs to take (finding something to cover your face, having gloves ready or at least having hand sanitizer accessible) could literally be a matter of life and death. Not to mention, one needs to wipe down all the items that are purchased and brought back home. Now that I calculate my every move, like limiting what I touch, I realize more and more how much I previously took the little things for granted. I miss being around my friends, playing board games and sharing pizza. These are lonely times, and I could only imagine what it is like for those who live alone. I am so lucky to have my family so I don't go totally insane. This time has brought opportunities for us to have long talks that we would not normally have. This stagnant time has allowed us to discuss topics we would not otherwise dive into: topics of faith, philosophy, community, and what it means to be human. #REL101 -
2020-04-20
Trying to work from home without interruption
Picture of a family pet interrupting work. -
2020-04-12
Easter Sunday on Zoom
Danielle Gonzalez celebrated Easter with her family through a Zoom call. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she was unable to see her family for this holiday. Even though they couldn't be there physically, they still saw each other virtually and that was enough. The Zoom call was full of laughter and love! -
2020-04-30
How the pandemic changed my everyday actions.
Every day, I cook (kitchen not pictured but in the same room), work out, study, relax, and work from home all in the same room. This goes to show that even though the world is changing in huge ways during this time, every day actions such as going to the gym have had to transition into the home. Small changes like this show how we have had to adapt routines that we wouldn't normally give a second thought to. #REL101 -
2020-04-30
A new normal
I titled the image “A New Normal” as the Corona virus pandemic has forced us into a a different way of life. It used be where if we went out of the house to go to the store all you usually needed was your car keys and wallet or purse but now it is much more than that today. Today, because of the corona virus , there much more that you need to help protect yourself from the corona virus before going out. The everyday carrying of items such as latex gloves, face masks and hand sanitizer have become an everyday necessity for some because of corona virus and have become the new normal. -
2020-04-29
One College Student's Experience During the COVID-19 Pandemic
As I imagine it is for many other people in the United States, particularly in the northeast, the emergence of the Coronavirus, and the subsequent panic and declaration of a global pandemic, was surprisingly quick. The first that I heard about the virus was from a news article during Holiday Break. At this point, my thinking was that because it is in China, it was not that big of a deal. However, the picture of doctors in full protection gear carrying a body bag was disturbing. Being a person with contamination fears that accompany my obsessive-compulsive disorder, I immediately Googled the symptoms of the disease. I was slightly comforted that one of the symptoms was not nausea and vomiting because my main phobia is vomit. A few weeks after this initial introduction, I was back at Bates College for my Winter Term. Coincidently, I was enrolled in a course called “China in the World.” Part of this course was to analyze media relating to China and connecting it to our core concepts. The first week that we got into small groups to share our individual pieces of media that we chose, most of my classmates choose news articles about the novel Coronavirus. In the weeks following our initial discussion about COVID-19, the virus was present on everyone’s mind, but it did not seem as an eminent threat. People would bring it up in conversation, but we were told not to worry. We had our winter break during the week of February 16th, and many people traveled with friends or went home. I went back to my home in Connecticut. Being that we live an hour away from New York City, my dad commutes into the city every day, and we visit the city often. My mom planned for us to go into the city and watch the Broadway show, Hadestown, before I left to go back to school. At this point, I saw some people taking precautionary measures, but the majority of people did not seem to be worried. My sister brought hand sanitizer, and we all used it before eating and after touching handles or anything else. After break, I headed back to school. During the next two to three weeks, the nation saw the confirmed cases of the virus rapidly increase. Once it became prevalent in the Boston area and colleges started to shut down, it was only a matter of time before Bates closed. The last week before we were sent home—the week of March 8—things started to change each day. Each day brought cancelations, new dining protocols, and a lot of uncertainty for both students and professors. I found it hard to concentrate on getting the work I needed to accomplish completed. By the time it got to Thursday, the high school in my town—where my sister is a senior—had moved to remote learning, the preschool that my mom works at had closed down, and many other colleges and universities have sent their students home or asked that they stay home after spring break. Thursday, I tried to spend a good amount of time with my friends, assuming that we were going to be sent home and not going to be able to see each other for an unknown period of time. Friday morning, around 10am, Bates College President Clayton Spencer announced that we would need to pack up all of our belongings and leave school by the following Tuesday. Subsequently, we would begin remote learning. My 11am class was canceled and very few people showed up to our last in-person China in the World class. During this time, our professor put up the live stream of President Trump’s address to the American public declaring a national emergency. We all sat there pretty quietly. The whole situation still felt so surreal. One invisible entity was causing mass destruction around the globe. My sister and my dad drove up to Maine and picked me up Saturday the 14th of March. It was quite difficult to say goodbye to all of my friends, especially since I wanted to give them all hugs. I said goodbye to the vast majority of people I wanted to see and we headed to Portland for the night. It occurred to me as we were driving by the historic quad a Bates that this would be the last time I would be there for a while; I was planning on going abroad in the fall before the chaos of the virus. Arriving at the hotel, I was feeling pretty down. I am such a homebody, so I never thought that leaving school and spending the rest of the semester at home would be upsetting. It truly was. The week after being sent home, I got an email saying that I was exposed to the one individual who had a confirmed case of the disease on Bates campus. It was a little alarming feeling like I might have exposed my family to the virus. However, my sister happened to be talking to her best friend that night and her friend confessed that her whole family had the virus. Therefore, we had been exposed to the disease twice. We all quarantined for fourteen days, and luckily no one developed symptoms. Over the last month, I have been trying to stay busy and focus on my schoolwork. As more and more people perish from disease, it has been difficult to get up each day not dreading the worst. I have tried to limit the amount of news that I have watched in order to decrease my anxiety. I have tried to ignore some of the “news” presented on social media sites that provide misinformation about the disease. I wish I could help with the crisis more than I have already because, honestly, it feels like staying home is not enough. It has helped to talk to my friends and family over Skype, Zoom, or FaceTime. Now that school is over, I am going to focus on doing things for my mental and physical health. As I mentioned before, having contamination fears during this pandemic has been challenging. Through therapy, I have been taught to limit my hand washing and other compulsions having to do with my phobias. During the pandemic, though, it is necessary for everyone to be extremely cautious and wash their hands pretty constantly. All of the precautionary measures have been triggering, but I am proud to say that I am handling the pandemic a lot better than I would have imagined I would have a few years ago. I am extremely grateful to be able to be living at my family home safely, and having access to food and other resources. I feel extremely privileged being in the situation I am in, and sincerely feel for others who may not find themselves in a similar circumstance. -
2020-04-30
It does not affect you until it happens to you.
A personal account of how COVID affected their family. -
2020-04-23
“Porch”rait Photo
One of the things I love to do is travel so in 2018 I created a vacation board of the places I’d like to travel to over the next 5 years. Well, COVID-19 changed my plans for 2020. #REL101 -
2020-04-28
music bringing us together
An account of how a local church is helping with the pandemic #REL101 -
2020-04-28
A brief memoir written by a trapped Chineses student at ASU
It is the third week after transition of classes started in ASU. My life started to become monotone after the spring break which was 3.17. Dining hall did not allow dine-in anymore. The chairs inside the nearest dining hall—Hassayampa, were all put away and sanitized towels were placed in bowls on tables. The dining hall staffs began to provide us with disposable plastic boxes to fill the meals and they even wore glosses to prevent spreading epidemic. The transitioning of classes announced by ASU was said to maintain for two weeks, but it was extended through the semester at the end of the first week after spring break. My first roommate decided to go back home right after the new policy, and my second and third roommate moved out during the second week, which left me alone in the dorm. My daily routine is: wake up--breakfast--online classes--dining hall--dorm--online classes--dining hall-- dorm--homework or video games. It was not as monotone as weekdays during the weekends, since I could spend more time on leisure instead of studying. In the light of the epidemic, I was discouraged by myself as well as my parents and the local government to do any social contacts. But thanks to the virtual technologies, I use zoom to make video contacts with my friends and Wechat to contact with my parents. They worry about my safety in U.S. because they are mostly back in China where the epidemic is approximately purged; in the contrast, the cases in U.S. are increasing. They fear the public order here are disrupted and urge me to hoard food in case that the dining hall might close or something worse happen. Most importantly, they all ask me to wear mask if I am outdoor. In U.S., I barely see people wearing masks outdoor, which is greatly opposite in China. Here is a fun fact that can explain why CDC does not recommend people wearing masks: Half of the production of masks among the world are in China, which explains why CDC does not recommend wearing masks while purchasing masks from other countries to meet the need of medical staffs. CDC may explain that no empirical results prove wearing masks can prevent the spreading of virus, but if it really can’t, then the epidemic in China will not get better than it used to be with the help of masks. Few people wearing masks in U.S. is my greatest concern, because it cannot efficiently slow down the spreading rate of Covid-19. Based on the status quo of epidemic in U.S., cases will keep growing and need time of months to see the turning point. And even now, the travel level for China is still “4”, which means Chinese are not allowed to enter U.S. Because I bought the flight ticket to China at the end of this semester, I am afraid that I will be declined to reenter U.S. even during August. I truly wish the epidemic around the world will stop in the coming months and the vaccine for Covid-19 can be successfully produced. Stay healthy, wash hands frequently, keep social distances and wear masks if you can. -
2020-04-28
REL Arizona State University Ghost Town
I work at the Sun Devil Card Office a the Memorial Union on the ASU campus. These are the signs that are on every door of the MU that has been closed. Usually, the Memorial Union is filled with people at the food court, dining hall, or just studying, but now there is nobody but the 10 employees that still clean/ roam the building. The virus has made this lively campus a ghost town. Students and faculty haven't been on the campus since spring break. This shows you just how serious this pandemic is. Usually, around this time, students would be studying for finals in the MU or the library, but now there is no one studying here. -
2020-04-28
REL_Life During a Pandemic
This is a short story about how my life has been effected by the COVID-19 Pandemic. -
2020-04-28
A Personal Reflection on the Pandemic
In early March of 2020, it was business as usual. I had a full schedule that included a 50 hour a week job, classes at Arizona State University, friends to socialize with, and of course, my family. As the next fifty-five days (and counting) marched on, everything changed. First, my workstation, a nice area with two large monitors, printer, and scanner was reduced to my kitchen table. There I had the luxury of no commute, but I was relegated to a small ten-inch laptop and none of the other accoutrements of my office. I realized that my breaks, often taken outside, had been taken for granted all these years. More importantly, I missed the social engagement of my colleagues and supervisor. School work was the least impacted by the pandemic. I was already working on my curriculum online so there was little impact. I did miss having the option to study in a public forum, as all public areas become vacant. I think the biggest change and challenge from the current two-month quarantine revolves around my family and friends. My husband and I use weekends and vacations to go to the lake, ride motorcycles, and meet friends for dinner. Birthdays and Easter rolled by without the usual gatherings and celebrations. Churches gathered online for services; a major shift from thousands of years establishing a place for worship. Social media played a larger part in my life, but there really is not a substitute for human interaction. There is an emotional gap that is lost when the interaction is two dimensional on the phone or computer via FaceTime and Zoom Meetings. I believe that much will change once things return to “normal”. It will be commonplace to see people wearing medical masks. Social distancing (staying six feet apart) will be marked in supermarkets and malls going forward. People, homes, cars, and offices will be cleaner on a daily basis. The most positive change, hopefully, will be the inclusion and follow up on our elderly friends, family, and neighbors. Many will have similar difficulties getting out, even after the quarantine is lifted. Our newfound awareness should impact all mankind, as we work harder to take care of one another. -
2020-04-28
Barbie is a Masker
Watching the daughter of a friend of mine design an outfit for her Barbie doll. She cut up a glove to create a top, added bright pink feathers and used the eye mask...as her face mask. -
2020-04-26
COVID 19 Abandoned Building
This picture was taken at an abandoned building along Highway 905 in Longs, South Carolina on my drive home from work. Being out of work for over two weeks made me eager to get back to work as a pet groomer achieve some sense of normalcy. Work can often be fast paced and the new requirement of masks and curbside-only pick-up made things a little different, but I looked forward to the drive home, which I usually use to clear my head and unwind. Seeing this made me realize that no matter where we go or what we do, COVID 19 will have a lasting impact that we may be reminded of in the least expected places. Hopefully this can be painted over in the future with something far brighter and encouraging. -
2020-03-10
Is coronavirus coming between people and their faith?
This article speaks to the actions that major religious groups are doing around the world. We see how Christiany had to change up a lot of touching and huging to stop the spread. They also had to do more onlice services as well. We go to Islam and see how they closed down the Kaaba and stopping people from other countries from coming into Mecca and Medina. We look at the Hindus and how they still do Holi but they are asked to take more steps to be careful like wearing masking. Finally we see how Judaism trys to stop kissing and touch many things in order to slow the spread. -
Diana Arzamastseva
Как бы это удивительно ни звучало, но моя жизнь никогда не была столь разнообразной. Хотя первые несколько недель новости о изоляции и вирусе повергали меня в уныние, хотелось лежать, смотреть сериалы и унывать. Но потом я поняла, что это надолго и я трачу время, которое стоило бы тратить на развитие. Раньше я много путешествовала и работала, дома только ночевала. Моим любимым занятием был макияж и подбор наряда каждое утро. Теперь же я всего этого лишилась и постоянно хожу в пижаме. Идея собираться и сидеть так дома, якобы это помогает настроиться на рабочий лад, явно не для меня. Когда ко мне пришло понимание того, что моя жизнь это теперь вот так (последняя из стадий принятия неизбежного), я смогла начать работать, писать диплом с невиданной доселе концентрацией. Более того, в освободившееся время я наконец-то начала читать образовательную литературу, рисовать, ухаживать за телом. Словом всё то на что не хватало времени раньше. Вернула домашние тренировки. Сделала квартиру уютным домом. Много готовлю и у меня это начало получаться, хотя раньше - никогда. -
2020-04-26
Corona Virus Summer Meme
This meme plays up the possibility of the COVID-19 pandemic lasting into the summer. It light-heartedly explores a way to still do a summer activity, like tanning. It highlights the human condition of still wanting to try regardless of circumstance. #VART3030 -
2020-04-25
"A Blessing in Disguise“
I’m a freshman at Arizona State University, which was a big jump since I started off my life in a small town in Ohio. But I was ready for an adventure.College just finally started to get good. I was making some really good friends, enjoying work on campus, and doing well in my studies. And then it hit. COVID-19 hit. My job closed down, my friends moved back home, and school went all online. I was distraught. How could I do this on my own? How will I mentally get through this? But my community built me up. Zoom classes turned into a Zoom get together‘s with my classmates and friends. My teachers were understanding and even more helpful during this time. My coworkers and I grew even stronger bonds through this. At the beginning of this worldwide pandemic I thought to myself “how will I manage”, but now I am here to say we have gotten through the bulk of it and it has not only made me a stronger person but a stronger friend and student. All in all, though I thought this would have been the worst thing that could ever happen I’m here to say I’m more confident my studies, I know I have amazing friends and mentors to back me up, and I know any day now things will go back to normal and we will all be grateful and cherish how lucky we are to have the things that we have and to attend a university as amazing as Arizona State. #REL101 -
2020-04-09
During coronavirus crisis, Congress’s first caucus for nonreligious belief seeks a larger role in promoting science
"The nation is growing increasingly nonreligious. Last year, the Pew Research Center reported that 26 percent of Americans now say they are not affiliated with any religious tradition, compared with 17 percent in 2009. Many of those unaffiliated Americans still believe in God and incorporate spiritual practices into their lives. But the share of atheists has doubled, from 2 percent of Americans in 2009 to 4 percent in 2019. An additional 5 percent now call themselves agnostics, compared with 3 percent a decade earlier." -
2020-04-24
Corona Virus Lack of Taste Meme
This meme plays upon the double meaning of the word 'taste'. This type of meme that makes fun of people's preferences in terms of food/products has become very popular. It has been used in reference to drinks, clothes, technology, food, and more. It is a very light hearted form of humor, and distracts from the severity of the pandemic. #FordhamUniversity #VART3030