Items

• 
  2021-11-14

  Emotionally Exhausted Teacher

  This item is a screenshot from a Twitter account known as the Diary of a COVID Classroom Teacher. This account's response to a picture about children with big emotions shows the frustrations that many teachers are facing during the pandemic. Many students have struggled due to the lack of routine and disruptions in their lives caused by COVID-19. Throughout the nations, behavior issues are being seen. Teachers are struggling more than ever while they try to help these students who are acting out while also staying on top of their other responsibilities.
• 
  2022-02-07T10:00:00

  Taking Covid-19 Step by Step

  My story describes the cycle of emotions I went through during the past two years of the pandemic. I try to make sense of the situation, especially with high school, and find some negative and positive outcomes from my quarantine experience.
• 
  12/08/2020

  Jackie Weber Oral History, 2020/12/08

  Jackie Weber was born in West Bend, Wisconsin. She now lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and works as an occupational therapist in one of the major Milwaukee hospital systems. In this interview she dives deep into the affect that Covid-19 has had on her workplace such as staffing issues, equipment shortages, and burnout. She also talks about the emotional weight of working in such a stressful situation and not being able to help people in the same ways as pre-pandemic. She also speaks on the ways in which hospitals are changing how they treat Covid and often cites an ever-changing set of policies. Throughout the interview she intertwines her views on policy proposals, and anti-maskers into her strong points about safety.
• 
  2021-10-04

  Ashley Pierce Oral History, 2021/10/04

  A quick comment about Law Enforcement during the pandemic.
• 
  2020-04-09

  Pandemic Dinner of Gluten-Free Orange Chicken is a Sensory Reminder of Evolving Grocery Shopping and the Effect on My Mental Health

  Pre-Pandemic, my small family of three went shopping altogether at our local Frys Grocery every Sunday. As the type of person that lives inside their head and has difficulty multi-tasking when distracted, this was usually an overwhelming experience. It involved avoiding people parked sideways in aisles, answering questions from my wife and daughter (somehow usually at the same time), and being interrupted by loud intercoms. To me it was sensorial overload every week of my hearing and vision to the point where I wanted to leave. When the pandemic really started up in April of 2020 my wife and I decided that my daughter should stay home and we would take turns shopping every week individually to decrease the chances of affecting the employees, the other customers, and ourselves. Along with this was my increased effort to come up with meals and recipes on my "turn." The recipe attached, gluten-free orange chicken from https://www.evolvingtable.com, reminds me of this interesting evolution in shopping that still takes place, as it is my turn to shop today. While my wife looks upon the idea of shopping individually as a loss and misses it...I am able to shop without being overwhelmed. Between less customers in the store (due to ordering online and pick up), the store progressing to using handheld radios, and being by myself, I can really focus and no longer am stressed and overwhelmed to the point where I just want to leave. Every time I make this recipe and taste the delicious orange flavor and smell that hot sesame oil that I had never used before the pandemic, it reminds me of how a stressful pandemic has strangely (and selfishly) made one recurring weekday of my life less stressful.
• 
  2020-03-22T12:49:00

  Overwhelmed

  When I wrote this journal entry the world was just starting to go into a panic. Mass hysteria caused every town to be placed on lockdown. Everyone was being forced to quarantine and had a curfew at 9 pm everyday. There was no explanation of what the Coronavirus was other than it was fast spreading and killing thousands of people. In March, there was still a lot of uncertainties. As a college student everything was very abrupt. Our classes and school were shut down fast following students traveling and coming back and testing positive. With being locked into a dorm where roommates left, the dorm life got very tough. Feelings of anxiety, depression, and loneliness were common to feel during this time. You go from having an active social life to being terrified to be near someone. It takes a toll on your mental health. Additionally, in this journal entry I talk about a relationship with a guy that wasn't going to work, another active conversation about how the want to see someone amidst the pandemic was not attractive and easy. There was a want to go home, but my family lived in Miami and their cases were higher than the one's on the West Coast of Florida. This entry was important to me because I thought it was a perfect description of the chaos and emotional uncertainty of the beginning of the pandemic.
• 2020-12-13

  Online Learning during Covid

  In March of 2020, My school Oaks christian was shut down and moved to online because of Covid-19. At first I was extremely excited for this and thought it would be just an easy two weeks of doing online work. It was very nice and a good break to have for the time being and I did really enjoy it, I was so relaxed by it and took off a lot of stress. After 2 months that changed fast. It went from all fun and easy then to more work than I have ever done, I was extremely overwhelmed and had to do so many things and I hated it. Lucky summer break came along and I was finally stress free, That was until the school year of 2020 came up and now I am more stressed than ever. I am a eighth grader that's getting assigned high school level work at a much higher than average work load, I do hope this gets better but this is truly hard to get through.
• 
  2020-04-29

  "Reasons I Can't Do My Homework"

  This digital comic demonstrates the anxiety and fears that arose during the pandemic around April of 2020. The artists shows how they are being overwhelmed by the fears for their own life and the lives of their loved ones because you can clearly see “mom” and “grandma” in the fears scrolling through their brain. Because of these fears there is no room for “school work” and “classes”.
• 
  2020-10-27

  COVID in Rural Wisconsin

  This submission goes into detail from a front line worker on why rural Wisconsin is hit so hard when it comes to COVID, it is important because there are so few voices coming out of this part of the United States.
• 
  2020-10-15

  The Consequences of Skipping Doctor Appointments

  There are two hospitals in Duluth, Minnesota. Both are being overwhelmed with patients, but not covid patients. People who were ill, have avoided going to the doctor because they fear they will contract Covid-19. As a result, their conditions have worsened and they must now be hospitalized. One hospital is full to capacity, and the other is not far behind.
• 
  2020-07-25

  Overcrowded Hospitals

  As a nurse at St. Josephs Hospital, my sister is at the heart of this pandemic. She is watching as her workplace is overrun with patients infected with the virus. Taking every precaution possible, she is doing everything she can to help her patients and the other nurses on her unit. Since the influx of positive cases is overwhelming the hospital, nurses from other units are transferred and trained on the COVID unit. Neonatal unit nurses, Neuro-ICU nurses, and anyone else that can help is fighting on the front lines of this pandemic. This is a screenshot from her Instagram, pleading with anyone who will see it, the consequences of not taking this virus seriously.
• March 26, 2020

  COVID Share Your Story #RITtigers #14, Physics Major's Point of view

  Once we were directed to leave RIT, I was overwhelmed. Things felt so uncertain and hopeless, I was seriously considering dropping out. But after the outpouring of support from all corners of RIT, and especially the academic provost's decision to offer pass/fail options, I truly felt that things would be okay. The situation is manageable and RIT is here for us. There is so much love within our community, and I'm trying to help spread it wherever and whenever possible. Even though we're physically distant, I feel closer than ever to my family and friends. Everyone is checking in on one another and actively trying to make the day brighter. For instance, I've reconnected with many friends from high school in the form of meme-sharing and messages of support. I've even become closer to my younger sister by recording music together. We have seen examples of the world as a beautiful, interconnected community. Let's keep it going. Spread the love <3 If I could give a message to myself at the start of this semester, what would I say? Keep your room clean, keep your chin up, keep your friends close, it's all going to be okay.
• 2020

  From Italy to London to Guatemala

  During the spring of 2020 I was a student in London for a program abroad called the NCH 2020 Global Quest Program, I was part of this program and fell in love with it. Living in London taking the tube every morning as well as participating in different classes was a world class experience for me. Coming from Guatemala having the opportunity of being in London a world class city and learning everything it has was amazing. Over time during the spring break I decided to visit my friends in Florence and Venice Italy as its one fo the places that I have close to my heart. That week in Italy was the same as they had been the moment I lived there a year ago, I would drink coffee in the small bar next to my old apartment and eat my breakfast and in the afternoon I would meet with my friends and have a stroll close to the Arno River as well as walking with my friends near the Piazza san Marco in Venice. The moment I came back from Italy immidialaty i noticed the situation changed where I received an email from the University stating that any student in Italy had to quarantine if they showed symptoms for COVID-19, the first week was perfect for me I had not felt anything the problems occurred when I actually started to feel many symptoms for the virus and was self quarantines in a isolated room for the weekend based on what the NHS had told me. As well luckily only a few days after i felt fine again and the NHS told me that I was able to leave the room with no problem so I did. Two weeks after this incident I was told that I had to leave London sadly the moment president Trump imposed boarder protection from the European Union so that day at 3am I packed and I took a flight to Miami and then to Guatemala. When I landed in Guatemala I was sent home without any problems but still I had to self quarantine at my room for 15 days before I was left out. Currently my country is still closed and I have been in almost 120 days in quarantine by the time of this post. I cant believe that I was still able to go back to Italy and travel to London but this experience has personally changed me in the way I know think of the virus and the way it has affected me in my life.
• 
  2020-03-21

  The Remote Learning Experience

  Story about the pandemic
• 
  2020-04-07

  COVID-19 College Kid Starter Pack

  Very relatable meme. As a fellow college student, I have just been sitting around my house in pajamas. I have been eating a ton of popcorn and ramen. I drink alcohol with my roommate to try and avoid boredom. I find the news so overwhelming, scary and depressing so I've hidden the news app and Twitter on my phone so I'm not tempted to look at those and make myself feel worse. I stream shows and use social media to distract myself. The meme also shows the experience of a group that was hit very hard; the college students. As a senior, I had so much taken from me and I am being forced to move home instead of pursuing my post-grad plans. Me and my friends got no closure for college and didn't get to say goodbye to each other. We didn't get graduation, or many of the senior sendoff plans that many of us had in our campus organizations. The students in years below me have to worry about school being online next year and housing problems/work issues that might accompany that.
• 
  04/19/2020

  Journal Entry

  Saturday 4th of April I was lucky to muster the motivation to rise from the Persian straw mat, with a yoga mat on top, my makeshift bed, at dawn. The usual sense of grogginess was absent despite the consumed quantities of alcohol the night before. It was the spirit of red wine, the viral of red liquid swimming in the aftermaths that remained in the back of my breath, and triggered a memory that was now the time to take advantage of the time. To walk the dogs, in the cool of dawn. The air was fresh, the streets were quiet. I walked to the city and back. Upon returning the motivation continued and I went into meditation, practicing the Kundalini technique ‘breath of fire’ I’d learnt during my travels to Thailand and my days at uni, going to yoga classes in my breaks. This set me up for a productive day. I watched two films with Jeremy, Ernest and Celest, an animation about a bear and a mouse, and an animated sci-fi, ‘The battle for Tera’, a futuristic film, set on an inhabited planet called Tera, where the humans and aliens came into conflict. Left over south Indian curry, ordered the night before, from the local ‘Saffron’ restaurant in Parap. Then an afternoon spent cleaning, and de-dusting the bedroom and re-arranging the furniture. Sunday 5th of April Up early again, walking the dogs to the city and back. Upon returning I was delighted to have breakfast and coffee prepare for me, which I eagerly took to the front porch and watched the dark clouds loom over with occasional thing and rain. I then returned to meditate, stretch and breath as I continue to practice the ‘breath of fire’. The rest of the day was a haze, until I decided to go for a run and exercise at the park nearby. A fairly uneventful day. As Covid19 takes hold of the community I spend more and more days inside, and thus the urge to write. It’s not only that, economic recession, social distancing are other measures bearing down upon us. News, media, the radio present us with a range of mixed messages, forecasts, warnings, pointing the finger, statistics and stay safe messages. It can be rather a lot to take in. Monday 6th of April The distaste on the tip of my tongue. 1.5 m social distancing, that’s the policy being implemented around the world as the global pandemic, covid19 spreads. But my own supervisor, a head of English at Palmerston seemed to fail to understand. Creeping closer, as if it was a game to get close. Look, I’m not one to take the high horse, but there better be a damn good explanation as to why she was purposefully, nauseatingly, distastefully inclining closer as we went over possible applications for online learning. Maybe she was obtuse, unknowingly breaching the rules, either way it was perverted. The rest of the day I spent plodding away, establishing online communication with students and coming to grips with the impact of covid19 and all its affiliating consequences. 7th of April The coronavirus, also known as covid19 looms on, with work limited to preparation, planning and online communication taking place of normal school day activities. Another early start, but also an early finish as the realization of working from home sets in, the workplace seems to become a place that once was. Still early days, and prepping to be in the best possible position in the scenario of a school wide lockdown takes priority. The small differences begin to accumulate, and life is certainly changing direction. Home by 11 and the rest of the day was spent on my laptop as my son scooted around on his Heely’s, as well as transitioning to online learning. A fairly uneventful day, with the radio news repeating the same issues over and over again, the dogs lazing on the cool floor and my robotic vacuum doing the rounds. 8th of April The day ended dancing in the quietened library room to music video’s showing choregraphed moves. It was a great way to let things go as tension builds up daily, making this relatively unbearable. I begin to question whether covid19 is not a front for something else that is going on in the world. A complete day off, spent at home with Jeremy, as I completed Task 1 of my masters degree. Whether it was building a Lego tower, learning online or watching him Heely around the house, spending time with Jeremy is food for my soul. 9th of April Today we erected the 8man tent in our backyard in anticipation of the Easter weekend. Government restrictions meant we would be doing very little over the long weekend. The tent was like a makeshift covid19 hospitalisation space, for anybody turning up with symptoms. The start of the day was keeping up to date with colleagues at school and then rushing home in the morning to ensure our home delivery of groceries would be put away before it was too late. Then I knuckled down and completed my unit outline for my flailing year 11 English class, a lot that have yet to be sparked by the thought of finishing high-school forever. I am at a low point with them, unable to switch their minds on, and turn their hormones off. The rest of the day was filled with snippets of covid19 newsbreaks and a dinner in the tent. Meatballs in sauce a la couscous! 10th of April I’ve just about had it. It’s not just the coronavirus, it’s the claustrophobia, the media and screen time, and most of all, it’s my god damn finances. The last point makes the situation a dire straits. They say 6 months, but that’s just the virus. The reality is, it’s unlikely the economy is going to recover. But, that’s enough. Today, Good Friday, was at home, making simple Easter crafts, reading short stories playing in the tent, trying to fix holes in a blow up mattress and not much else. Most of the day was spent thinking about lost things from the past. A weird strategy my brain uses to keep itself occupied. It’s quite annoying. Tomorrow, let’s see, better things could be on the horizon.
• 
  2020-04-19

  Journal

  Saturday 4th of April I was lucky to muster the motivation to rise from the Persian straw mat, with a yoga mat on top, my makeshift bed, at dawn. The usual sense of grogginess was absent despite the consumed quantities of alcohol the night before. It was the spirit of red wine, the viral of red liquid swimming in the aftermaths that remained in the back of my breath, and triggered a memory that was now the time to take advantage of the time. To walk the dogs, in the cool of dawn. The air was fresh, the streets were quiet. I walked to the city and back. Upon returning the motivation continued and I went into meditation, practicing the Kundalini technique ‘breath of fire’ I’d learnt during my travels to Thailand and my days at uni, going to yoga classes in my breaks. This set me up for a productive day. I watched two films with Jeremy, Ernest and Celest, an animation about a bear and a mouse, and an animated sci-fi, ‘The battle for Tera’, a futuristic film, set on an inhabited planet called Tera, where the humans and aliens came into conflict. Left over south Indian curry, ordered the night before, from the local ‘Saffron’ restaurant in Parap. Then an afternoon spent cleaning, and de-dusting the bedroom and re-arranging the furniture. Sunday 5th of April Up early again, walking the dogs to the city and back. Upon returning I was delighted to have breakfast and coffee prepare for me, which I eagerly took to the front porch and watched the dark clouds loom over with occasional thing and rain. I then returned to meditate, stretch and breath as I continue to practice the ‘breath of fire’. The rest of the day was a haze, until I decided to go for a run and exercise at the park nearby. A fairly uneventful day. As Covid19 takes hold of the community I spend more and more days inside, and thus the urge to write. It’s not only that, economic recession, social distancing are other measures bearing down upon us. News, media, the radio present us with a range of mixed messages, forecasts, warnings, pointing the finger, statistics and stay safe messages. It can be rather a lot to take in. Monday 6th of April The distaste on the tip of my tongue. 1.5 m social distancing, that’s the policy being implemented around the world as the global pandemic, covid19 spreads. But my own supervisor, a head of English at Palmerston seemed to fail to understand. Creeping closer, as if it was a game to get close. Look, I’m not one to take the high horse, but there better be a damn good explanation as to why she was purposefully, nauseatingly, distastefully inclining closer as we went over possible applications for online learning. Maybe she was obtuse, unknowingly breaching the rules, either way it was perverted. The rest of the day I spent plodding away, establishing online communication with students and coming to grips with the impact of covid19 and all its affiliating consequences. 7th of April The coronavirus, also known as covid19 looms on, with work limited to preparation, planning and online communication taking place of normal school day activities. Another early start, but also an early finish as the realization of working from home sets in, the workplace seems to become a place that once was. Still early days, and prepping to be in the best possible position in the scenario of a school wide lockdown takes priority. The small differences begin to accumulate, and life is certainly changing direction. Home by 11 and the rest of the day was spent on my laptop as my son scooted around on his Heely’s, as well as transitioning to online learning. A fairly uneventful day, with the radio news repeating the same issues over and over again, the dogs lazing on the cool floor and my robotic vacuum doing the rounds. 8th of April The day ended dancing in the quietened library room to music video’s showing choregraphed moves. It was a great way to let things go as tension builds up daily, making this relatively unbearable. I begin to question whether covid19 is not a front for something else that is going on in the world. A complete day off, spent at home with Jeremy, as I completed Task 1 of my masters degree. Whether it was building a Lego tower, learning online or watching him Heely around the house, spending time with Jeremy is food for my soul. 9th of April Today we erected the 8man tent in our backyard in anticipation of the Easter weekend. Government restrictions meant we would be doing very little over the long weekend. The tent was like a makeshift covid19 hospitalisation space, for anybody turning up with symptoms. The start of the day was keeping up to date with colleagues at school and then rushing home in the morning to ensure our home delivery of groceries would be put away before it was too late. Then I knuckled down and completed my unit outline for my flailing year 11 English class, a lot that have yet to be sparked by the thought of finishing high-school forever. I am at a low point with them, unable to switch their minds on, and turn their hormones off. The rest of the day was filled with snippets of covid19 newsbreaks and a dinner in the tent. Meatballs in sauce a la couscous! 10th of April I’ve just about had it. It’s not just the coronavirus, it’s the claustrophobia, the media and screen time, and most of all, it’s my god damn finances. The last point makes the situation a dire straits. They say 6 months, but that’s just the virus. The reality is, it’s unlikely the economy is going to recover. But, that’s enough. Today, Good Friday, was at home, making simple Easter crafts, reading short stories playing in the tent, trying to fix holes in a blow up mattress and not much else. Most of the day was spent thinking about lost things from the past. A weird strategy my brain uses to keep itself occupied. It’s quite annoying. Tomorrow, let’s see, better things could be on the horizon.
• 
  2020-03

  Breaking

  In March, the pandemic was getting very serious, and people were feeling overwhelmed with the constant new information on the virus
• 
  2020-03-27

  College Student Challenges

  As a student I have suffered a lack of motivation and a difficulty focusing. Receiving a flood of emails from both professors and school administration was overwhelming. Having started online learning for classes that I had originally had in person I have lost hope in effectively learning and now I'm just hoping to pass my classes. All of my classes have reorganized and changed their assignments putting leaving me unprepared for these new tasks. The office I intern at also closed so as of now I'm also out of work. The combination of not being at work and being schooled at home leave me with many distractions that make it difficult to focus on anything really.