Items

• 
  2022-06-25

  To mask or not to mask

  This is an Instagram post from sandawanaspa about masking. The company is saying that you no longer need a face mask as a requirement for their services.
• 2022-06-25

  The same sort of people

  This is a tweet from Connybub. This person is pointing out the hypocrisy of the pro-choice crowd and their use of "my body, my choice" while many in this same group also wanted people to take the vaccines against their own will. This is obviously a very controversial topic, and there have been people using different aspects of the vaccine debates and the abortion debates to show which side in the correct one.
• 
  2022-05-22

  Republican logic

  This is an Instagram post from feministhood. It is making the comparison between the rhetoric Republicans have had regarding COVID versus abortion. The person writing this says thinks that it is rather contradictory. The contradiction comes from thinking that "my body, my choice" applies to masks and vaccines, but should not apply to abortion. The commonality is that both issues deal with bodily autonomy.
• 
  2022-01-09

  Dear Unvaxxed Friends: I Don't Want To Judge You, I Just Don't Want You To Die

  This is a text story by YourTango, written by Joanna Schroeder. This is a story written from the point-of-view by someone that wants others to be vaccinated. At the beginning, she brings up the feelings of distrust some have towards the government, which has been a big reason why some are refusing to get vaccinated. The author then mentions that she has been seeing an increase in patients with heart problems in the pediatric section of hospitals, with some of those cases being due to COVID. Continuing on with this point, the author mentions a peds cardiologist she has been in contact with, and the cardiologist says that there has been an increase in myocarditis cases due to COVID. Later, she says that her left-leaning friends are receptive to data like this, but her right-leaning friends are not. She then pleads that she does not want her unvaccinated friends to die, and that they have a greater chance of getting hospitalized compared to those that are vaccinated. Finally, she ends by saying to not let policies get in the way of good judgement, saying that she is tired of misinformation coming from both sides.
• 2021-11-02

  COVID-19 Pandemic

  The text story would be about my feelings toward COVID-19. It is sad that I don't remember much of what life was like before the pandemic hit. The masks, the social distancing, the looks you get when you have a runny nose. There are so many theories in regards to COVID-19 and much like anything else, everyone has their own opinion. Some revolve their lives around it, others don't care about. Personally, I'm not scared of the pandemic, I'm not vaccinated, nor do I get worried when people around me test positive for it. It is important to me because it has significantly changed our lives for the worse. We miss out on extremely important events and experiences. In my opinion, much of this should be a choice. If you want to wear a mask, wear one. If you want to social distance, do it. If you want to get vaccinated, get vaccinated.
• 
  2021-10-04

  #REL101

  This is an assignment submitted by an Arizona State University student while they were taking a Religion 101 course. In the attached document the student describes their experience with covid 19.
• 
  2021-02

  Because I can... thats why...

  At the beginning of the year, my workplace began offering free Covid vaccines and time from work to get them. I signed up because I know how important it is. Arguments about whether the vaccine should be mandatory aside, I got it because I can, and there are those that can't and this is my way of helping them too.
• 
  2021-08-22

  The choice is yours

  More and more I am seeing signs like this all over businesses in Arizona. Although the state of Arizona no longer has a mask mandate, businesses are going the extra mile to make it clear that mask wearing is now a personal choice. I liked this sign because it asks customers to be respectful of the choice to wear a mask or not now that it is no longer a requirement.
• 
  2021-08-10

  Mask Required for Service

  Signs have become so common these days that I often catch myself making sure if a business requires masks or prefers customers not to (I've seen those too). I take an extra moment to enjoy personalized signs like these. I love the solutions to the dumb questions at the end. If everyone would just wear a mask I wonder how low our numbers would be. My favorite part is the last sentence of the paragraph "Do not choose to be the reason the rest of the world is laughing at us."
• 
  2021-03-26

  Choosing between Work and Health

  This short piece shares the struggles and experiences of choosing between working as an essential worker and worrying about my family's health during the peak of the pandemic.
• 
  2021-02-01

  Covid-19 Statistics

  Over the pandemic, I've learned a lot of things about people and the world. The pandemic was a lonely time, but I think it's made me realize that you can't give up just because things get hard. I've heard a lot of teens and people my age became depressed instantaneously. Especially on social media, everyday people were only talking about how bad things have gotten instead of trying to keep their spirits up. 26.2 million people have gotten the virus, and 440K people have died, but all of us had to find a way to be happy. In our city(LA) especially, we have higher covid cases than any other place in the county. Even though things are hard now there still are a lot of exciting things to think about.
• 2020-04-09

  Life at Home

  Ever since the coronavirus epidemic, my life hasn’t quite been the same. Before governors issued the stay-at-home orders, I was working and had recently started attending college. Everything was good for me and my days were spent living a normal teenage life. Now, everything is closed and I can’t go anywhere. Despite this, I have been surprisingly enjoying my time at home. As a kid I would hate staying home and always wanted to go somewhere to do something. To combat boredom I bought myself a ps4 so that I can play video games with my friends. A lot of my time has been going to my ps4 so it was one of my better investments. Besides playing video games, I have been playing guitar and exercising. These are the fun things I do but there are also the things that I have to do such as cleaning the house and schoolwork. Everyday I balance my time by cleaning the house and doing my homework in the morning. After I finish all my tasks, I then allow myself to do whatever I feel like. I usually finish every night with some exercise and a shower before going to sleep. Staying home all the time has led me to do things I didn’t do before. One thing I have done since the stay-at-home orders is starting a routine for my everyday life. It feels good having a routine as I already know what I have to do and when I must have it done. Of course, there have been some days where I’m lazy and don’t get anything done but I’ve been trying to have less of those. Getting to see my family all the time has been one of the pluses of staying home. I’ve been getting closer to my brothers and sister as well as my father. Whenever I’m bored or can’t find something to do, I’ll hang out or do something with my family. When I feel like going outside I’ll go for a walk around the neighborhood or I’ll go on a hike at the mountains near my house. Sometimes, there's seemingly nothing to satisfy my boredom so I’ll just sleep all day only to wake up at 3 a.m, wishing I didn’t mess up my sleeping schedule. Lucky for me, I have some night owl friends so they’re always down to game or chat at an ungodly hour. It feels like forever since I’ve seen my friends. Talking with them while playing games makes me want to see them even more but it’ll be a while until then. Thankfully, none of my friends or family have gotten the coronavirus. My family and I have been taking precautions to minimize the risk of us getting sick. My dad leaves the house only to work and go shopping but the rest of my family has been isolating. I have several friends who still go out and live life like normal but I know that isolating will stop me from getting my family sick. I wish I could accept all the invitations I’ve gotten to hang out but this is what’s best. Staying at home has its advantages and disadvantages but atleast I have a good home with a loving family and plenty of things I can do to occupy myself. I wonder if when I’m older I’ll even remember the stay-at-home order and the coronavirus. Will this all be something that is mentioned or referenced in future media? Whatever the case, I’m just waiting until the day I can go out and hang out with my friends again.
• 
  2020-04-25

  Americans split by religion on who deserves ventilators amid coronavirus

  Religious views are dividing Americans of who should be given priority on receiving a ventilator.