Items

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  2020-03-11

  CUNY closures

  I took this photo of my friend, Sarah, cleaning everything she would be touching in March of 2020, the same day CUNY announced they would be closing due to COVID-19. I remember thinking she was silly for her paranoia. I was in denial that anything was really happening, and I think that was me trying to keep myself calm in all of the uncertainty of what was going to be happening. Looking back, Sarah was valid in her fears of this virus. The seriousness of the situation did not hit me until the announcement of the closure of CUNY schools.
• 2022-04-28

  A New Normal

  It's been over two years since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and I’m beginning to doubt that life will ever go back to what we once knew. Even with restrictions lightened, things are far from “normal”. A lot has changed in my life during this time and the pandemic has come with many struggles. One of the biggest of these for me has been raising young children in our new modern world. My kids are at a curious age where they’d like to explore their world and see new things, an age where social interaction is especially crucial. When COVID first struck I had a young son so I found myself with the concern of not only my health but his as well. In June of 2021 I had my second child, and while I am so grateful for this new addition to our family, having a baby mid-pandemic is tough. I experienced the same obvious concerns for my child's health once again. No parent wants to imagine their child with any illness. I remember feeling so paranoid that they would end up getting sick, or that myself or my fiance would catch it and eventually pass it along to them. It took two years for us all to catch it, but we did, and it sucked. In the beginning it was scary, most people had no idea what we were dealing with. The idea of a life threatening virus was horrifying and caused mass confusion. I found myself with a mask on my face and a bottle of hand sanitizer as well as some Lysol wipes in my pocket at all times. I was afraid to take my son in public because I didn’t want him to be exposed. With time, the paranoia has died down while remaining vigilant to combat germs but still I wonder if this is the new “normal”.
• 
  11/12/2020

  Kristine Benusa Oral History, 2020/11/12

• 2020-10-13

  The Pandemic Lifestyle

  When this whole pandemic started I was startled. I had to start living my life in paranoia. Everything I did had to be careful, safe, and with caution. Covid 19 has become one of the United states biggest worries. How do you know if your friend is sick?; but she is known to have severe allergies. How do you know if your father has covid?; but, he gets really bad back pains on a regular basis. All the common symptoms of covid are also regular issues in someone's daily life. Not knowing who's sick, who isn't, who carries it, who's immune to it, is very scary. Having to be quarantined for months just made me feel like I was being held captive. Not by choice but by demand. The fear of being sick and not knowing. Knowing that this deadly virus could have infected your neighbor who sleeps on the bed on the other side of your wall. This pandemic has brought me nothing but fear. Fear of dying, fear of being infected, fear of losing a loved one in the process. It all just comes down to faith. During this pandemic that's what I tried to have most of. Following precautions to avoid it, staying distant from my family, not going to the fun places i enjoy.School will never be the same. Having to do online learning is difficult. The focus is harder and understanding what's going on in class is frustrating. Not only that but civilians had to learn how to adapt to the new life. A mask became a part of everyone's daily necessities. Walking into stores without a mask is prohibited and even walking your dog now has an extra twist to it. Having to walk 6 feet away from each other has become a primary concern. While I was sacrificing my boredom other people were sacrificing their lives. Doctors, nurses, cops are all the important people who make sure our lives are safe. They put their lives in danger to protect our own by choice. While people complain about not having fun, workers are fighting for their lives everyday, and they may not even know it. They are at risk every step they take, out of their home, or office, or facility, wherever they are based. They are taking a risk to save civilians who can barely listen to protocols that are given. While people are complaining about not being able to go outside,they aren't wearing their mask. How do you expect for things to change if no one can make it better on their own? That right there, is a question you should be asking yourself.
• 
  2020-05-13

  Why can't you listen and practice social distancing?

  A personal account of the pandemic.
• 
  2020-04-15

  Paranoia

  This image is meant to convey through a horror like aesthetic the fear associated with the outside and the potential risk of contraction of the COVID-19 virus