Items

• 
  2022-05-25

  Iko the Smooth Coated Collie

  When the pandemic hit, there wasn't a lot going on in my house. I was living at home, working where I could/when I could (nannying, dog walking) and my parents had recently retired. My parents quickly turned into stereotypical teenagers, spending all day on their phones and iPad, scrolling through Facebook and playing card games electronically. My mom got sucked into a few dog groups on Facebook as she had always wanted a dog in retirement and to train this dog to be a therapy animal. It was her dream to take this dog to schools, hospitals, and nursing homes and provide much needed stress relief and other benefits that therapy animals provided. When I was a kid, we had a smooth collie name Stormy and he was a great family pet. When he passed away when I was in high school, my parents agreed to not get another dog until retirement (mostly my dad's request, my mom could have dogs all her life if it were up to her). Then COVID and there was nothing for my mom to do besides look at dogs on Facebook, specifically smooth collies. After much discussion and pleading by my mom and probably sheer boredom by my dad, my parents decided to get a puppy from Kentucky in July. We named this little one Iko and he came home rambunctious as ever. This brought a host of new senses into the house. First was the sound. Iko was never a big barker, but he did bark as most dogs do. I never saw this as a bad thing. Prior to Iko, there was no lively activity or accompanying noise. Also came the smells of a new dog. Miraculously, Iko came potty trained at 8 weeks (over achieving puppy from the start) but Iko had lots of hair and stirred up a lot of dust, thus making the house smell more like a dog kennel than our house before that was pretty clean (because there wasn't anything else to do during COVID besides clean). The final, and my favorite, sense that Iko brought into the house was the unconditional affection. With a new dog in the house, there were constant pets and puppy kisses which added a huge sensory stress relief to what was going on outside in the world around us. Iko Brough so many senses and such life into our home. He brought the youth out in my retired parents who go on long hikes with him out in the mountains of Utah now. Iko, the smooth coated collie, saved our COVID.
• 
  2020-05-26

  Reyes_Gia_

  C19OH
• 
  03/30/2020

  Jeanie and Edward Lehew Oral History, 2020/03/30

  This is interview from Edward and Jeannie Lehew focuses on the COVID-19 pandemic experience in the United States. The Lehews, both born in the 1930s, provide an enriching interview connecting the current pandemic to past historical and personal events ranging from the Great Depression to the loss of an infant grandchild. The Lehews detail many personal life experiences and offer their opinions on the current political and healthcare issues in the United States by explaining how the current presidential administration is at fault for the lack of medical supplies in America.
• 
  2020-05-01

  My 18th Birthday in Quarantine

  This photo was taken on my 18th birthday, during my senior year of high school. I should have been in school, however the entire world was in quarantine due to the Coronavirus. I had no way of being able to have a normal birthday, so my parents decided to organize a drive through birthday party for me where my friends and family came through in my driveway and waved to me and left gifts. While very unexpected from what I thought my 18th birthday was going to be, I think it shows that despite the conditions, people were loving and passionate enough to participate in something like this for me.
• 
  2020-05-25

  COVID 19 Global Impact

  I have selected a photo of a few parents standing around the front of a school. Some were protesting and other were trying to gather information about the nyc public school shutting down because of covid 19. This photo was not taken by me but was found on the internet among other photos similar like this one. This photo shows what was going on in my neighborhood and what was currently take place at the time.
• 
  2021-04-05

  40,000 children have lost a parent to Covid-19

  (NEXSTAR) – In a grim reminder of the death toll from COVID-19, a new study published by the American Medical Association found that nearly 40,000 U.S. children have lost one of their parents to the virus. It’s a heartbreaking new angle to the number of U.S. deaths since the pandemic began – 555,273 as of Monday afternoon, according to Johns Hopkins University. “This may come as a surprise, since 81% of lives lost in the US have been adults 65+,” study author Rachel Margolis, an associate professor at the University of Western Ontario, tweeted. “However, we are also seeing high mortality among younger adults, many of whom have children under 18.”
• 
  2021-03-09

  #JOTPYSilver from Christine

  christinejwong #jotpysilver I’m grateful I got to spend more time with my kids that wouldn’t haven been possible if I was going into the office 5 days a week.
• 
  2021-01-25

  Covid statistics and how they effect me

  During the past few months, I have learned a lot about viruses, especially covid from the news, my parents, and science class. When someone gets covid they usually recover in about 1-2 weeks which from my friends and family who had it seems right because that's how long it took them to recover. Right now the death rate according to a site is less than 1% in America and 1 per 800 people who had it have died. I personally don't know anyone who died from it but I pray for all the people who have lost friends or family because even though it's less than 1% it can still affect people very negatively. There have been roughly 24 million cases so far and I hope it gets better.
• 2021-01-25

  Covid Statistics

  Overall, I believe that my brother's (unconfirmed) case and my history teacher are the only people I personally know who got Covid. The high number of cases has my parents worried and all the social distancing and mask protocols in place. Also, the times people my parents know got Covid line up with the spikes on the graph during holidays and such. At the beginning of Covid I was rather happy to get to be at home all day but now I'm sick of it and the fact that I can't meet with people.
• 
  2021-01-11

  How I Learned My Parents Were Getting the COVID Vaccine

  This is the way I learned my parents were scheduled to get their COVID vaccine. I don’t know what one they’ll get - and it doesn’t matter to me or them. They are 65 (66 in February 2021). My dad has a heart condition. I am deeply relieved that they were able to be scheduled to get one!! I am so grateful!
• 
  2020-09-09

  Pregnant in a Pandemic

  This photo was taken by me in the hospital elevator after leaving the OBGYN, this was the first visit I was allowed to be accompanied by my partner. I wanted to share it on my instagram story. Due to Covid-19 Chris would have to wait in the car while I would go in alone. We are finally far enough in my pregnancy that he can come and assist me. The photo I’m holding up is the ultrasound of our baby girl, we just got it printed at the appointment. And my partner is smiling with all his excitement, but it is under his mask. This item demonstrates the significance of couples becoming parents during this pandemic generation. It’s very regulated, restricted, hidden by masks, and constant changing hospital policies.
• 2020-12-15

  COVID😢

  My Thanksgiving was different from other years for many reasons. For example in previous years all of my family will meet at someones house and we would have thanksgiving there. While this year I was only able to have thanksgiving with my mom and dad.
• 2020-11-26

  My 2020 Thanksgiving

  This year has been really crazy and hectic for everyone. With Covid-19 going on, the holidays sadly have to be downscaled. So this year I had Thanksgiving with just my household. For dinner we had chicken instead of turkey because of late planning hoping for a change to be with our entire family. I spent most of Thanksgiving alone in my room just playing video games by myself because I was sad that my younger cousins and the rest of family. Overall we still had a great Thanksgiving and had a delicious feast.
• 2020-11-20

  My experience with airplane travel

  Flying during Covid I have needed to fly for family emergencies four different times since the pandemic began. The first time I felt uneasy but the fact that they seated us with an empty seat between each person and the requirement of face masks made me feel more comfortable. The second flight, however, was crowded with a woman sitting right next to me and turning her fact to talk to me 6 inches away – without her mask on!!!! That was nerve racking. But the last two flights were spaced out and everyone wore a mask. EXCEPT – the irony is that when they pass out the snack bags everyone on the plane removes their mask at the same time to eat. I simply choose to hold off on eating my snack bag for a half hour and wait until I see that people are done eating. There hasn’t been a big outbreak traced back to airplanes so I will continue to fly when my aging parents need help. And to keep others safe, each time I return from a trip, I quarantine and get tested.
• 
  2020-09-16

  The Crushing Reality of Zoom School

  This article is a candid look into how doing school online through Zoom has proved to be an exhausting challenge for children, teachers, and parents.
• 
  09/20/2020

  Maria Simpson Oral History, 2020/09/20

  This interview is conducted by a college freshman who interviews another college freshman about her experiences during lockdown. It covers how she dealt with isolation, how her high school experience had changed, and all the emotions and nuances that came with this strange new COVID-19 reality.
• 
  2020-05-01

  The Effect of the Coronavirus on Hospitals and Doctors

  This picture resonates with me for a number of reasons. Firstly, both of my parents are cardiologists and my grandmother is a nurse practitioner, meaning that they have had to deal with the effects of the virus up close. This has put a new reason to worry as my parents and grandmother could be at risk for contracting the virus should something go wrong. This picture says a lot about the severity of the pandemic. Life-saving and even basic medical equipment, such as the ones utilized in the photo, are in short supply. Doctors and medical personnel are called upon to risk their health to help save that of others. Hospitals are plagued with the sea of new patients flooding in, so much so that, overcrowding has become an issue in some hospitals. This picture is important to me because it demonstrates what our medical workers and hospital staff are sacrificing in order to help combat an enemy that surrounds us.
• 
  0020-08-23

  Five Months At Home

  When COVID-19 began, I was in San Francisco with my roommates. The stay at home order seemed to come so suddenly; our families told us domestic travel may be shut down and encouraged us to fly home. So, I packed up a single suitcase and flew home to Colorado the next day, not really expecting that I would be home for the next five months. It was a relief to see my family, but it was strange spending so much time at home after being in college in another state for the better part of two years. What happened the week before I went back to San Francisco seemed to be a sign that it was good that I had been able to be home with my family for a while. In Colorado, I live with my parents, younger brother, and yellow lab Sundance. We got Sundance when I was 8 years old, and he has been my best friend for the past 12 years. He has had epilepsy and arthritis from a young age, so I always knew there was a chance he would find his way to doggie heaven while I was away at college. Because of this, every time I went back to SF after visiting home, I'd have a small talk with Sundance, telling him to hang on until the next time I saw him. I had this talk with him a few days before I planned to start my road trip back to San Francisco. I told him I was leaving, and that I knew he could hang on until I got back. The next day, Sundance couldn't get up. We brought him to the vet, who told us he had bone cancer in his elbow, causing him too much pain to want to put any weight on it. Sundance was 12 and a half at this point, so an amputation would do more harm than good. Since he couldn't do anything on his own - go to the bathroom, get up to eat or drink, or get up to greet us, we decided it was his time to go to doggie heaven. My mom said he knew I was leaving, and he wanted his "whole pack" to be there when he had to move on. It's always too soon to say goodbye to your best friend, but I think that this was true. After all, he did wait until I was back home again to say goodbye. Quarantine has been hard, but it gave me time with my family and my dog that I will forever cherish.
• 
  2020-08-17

  Missed Opportunties

  2020 was supposed to be a year of exciting events for my family. My brother and I did not get to experience what formal graduation would feel like. A milestone in our lives will forever be missed. My sweet and loving grandfather said to me “I am trying to stay alive to watch you walk across that stage”, did not get to witness his youngest son’s kids graduate high school. On top of that, my parents were broken because they did not get to see their only son and daughter walk the stage. When I say COVID-19 has really impacted my family emotionally, it really did. An opportunity to say to my family that I am so thankful for them for being super supportive and being able to hear them cheer for me as I walk the stage will forever be missed. I remember the moment I received the email that I had gotten accepted into Suffolk. I had just got out of work and in the car on the way home I showed my dad the email and he was jumping with excitement. Due to the pandemic, my parents and I were not given the opportunity to attend a face to face orientation for Suffolk and not having the opportunity to tour Suffolk to be able to get to know my way around the school was really misfortunate. Hopefully, as time goes on and when there is no more COVID-19, we will get a chance to get to know home for the next 4 years.
• 
  2020-04-11

  Group Video Phone Call – Northborough, Massachusetts

  My parents joined by up to 20 other Deaf friends form a massive group Video Phone call all simultaneously using American Sign Language to communicate. There are no overlapping voices to make it impossible to communicate, and the calls last hours on end. My parents and other Deaf people have used this technology for years but are seeing its use become invaluable during the pandemic.
• 
  May 3, 2020

  Plague Journal, Day 51: CoronaWorld oral history, 3rd-grade teacher

  I'm keeping a Covid-19 journal. In the latest entry, I interview a third-grade teacher at a bilingual third-grade class at a public grammar school (K-6) in the Bronx.
• 
  07/17/2020

  Kiersten Camby Oral History, 2020/07/17

  This is an interview of Kiersten Camby about her experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kiersten is a fulltime wedding planner. She lives with her fiancé and two German Shepherds in Spartanburg, South Carolina. At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, Kiersten was temporarily furloughed from her job and spent most of her time in self-isolation. Her fiancé is an officer and continued to work. Kiersten was able to return to work 3 months after being furloughed and was able to slowly return to full-time status. During her time in self-isolation, Kiersten continued to be able to see her family to enjoy dinners and at-home movie nights. Kiersten and her family have taken the precautions to remain healthy and she hopes that life will one day return to normal.
• 
  2020-07-25

  Break the Union

  Recently my school district announced that we will begin the school year with remote learning. While many members of the community were in favor of remote learning, many were also incredibly vocal about their wish for a return to full in-person learning. This does not surprise me. There will always be multiple perspectives and positions on any major decisions that need to be made that impact large groups of people. Some individuals in support of full in-person learning have taken to social media and have begun attacking district teachers blaming them and their union for the district's decision to start the school year with remote learning. There is an aggressive tone to many of these posts. As a parent of children that attend school within the district, as well as teacher within the district, I worry about the environment that teacher's are going to be educating children in this year. With remote learning, we will literally be teaching in the homes of parents that are openly demonstrating hostility toward teachers. This brings a great deal of worry and anxiety as I prepare for the upcoming school year.
• 
  2020-07-17

  "Every Parent Online"

  A meme the caption to which reads "Every parent right now" followed by three identical images of an SNL performer dressed as a middle aged women with large hair, looking horrified and/or disgusted. Under each image is a caption, they read "STARTING SCHOOL IN PERSON," "STARTING SCHOOL ONLINE," "HOMESCHOOLING" This is a reference to the inconstant ways in which boards are choosing to run schools in the fall, all of which have different opponents. Many boards have changed their plans several times over the summer as the number of cases in their areas have changed and they have received feedback from parents, teachers, and health professionals.
• 
  2020-07-08

  School openings and working parents

  This story highlights the struggles of working parents during the Pandemic.Children are suffering and parents have to choose between their jobs and their children's education. Many do not have a choice due to their finances or the measures taken by their state regarding their children.By opening back up the economy the working class and poor are suffering.The federal government is less than useless in regards to helping the majority of the population and passing the buck to the state and local governments who choose the safety measures for their local population.It's a disgrace the way things are being handled.
• 
  2020-05-01

  Social Distancing Neighborhood Train

  This is a cute video of how one neighborhood was able to see each other and have some fun while social distancing. The families attached little cars. wagons, small trailers, etc, and drove around their street in a parade formation. So cute!
• 
  2020-06-11

  Parents to COVID-19: We’re taking back our weekends.

  Excerpt from article: Weekends used to have a rhythm that worked for Ezina LeBlanc, filled with adventures for her 19-month-old twins in Calabasas, California. “Every Saturday, we’d be off to the beach, hiking, a picnic, a museum, a theme park, or even up to Mammoth Lakes to ski,” she recalls.
• 
  2020-06-11

  We Told Our Son Not to Protest. He Did Anyway. Now What?

  An advice column asking how to handle a young adult who defied his parents to protest.
• 
  2020-06-17

  Covid-19 in Bhutan

  experience of E-learning
• 
  2020-04-11

  School Picture Day--At Home

  During the quarantine period, schools were closed and parents were thrown into new roles as teachers. Most parents didn’t even understand 4th grade math or how to deal with all of the curriculum thrown at them literally overnight. This meme deals with one aspect of school life—the school picture day which is a special day where photographers come in and everyone in the whole school has individual portraits done along with the group class photos. The humor here is that quarantine and home schooling was hard on everyone and so many of us were stressed and pushed to the max—including the kids. So by dressing up in his finest and announcing it was time to take the school photo, either the kid was very sweet and trying to recreate his past life, or he was cracking under the pressure—like his parents were on the brink of doing.
• 
  2020-06-09

  Journal Entry- June 9, 2020

  I'm a nursing student living at home on the family farm and I'm struggling to get a job. I've been sporadically journalling throughout the pandemic. This entry looks at what my day looked like an some thoughts about the current situation.
• 
  2020-05-29

  Give Kids a Break

  This is a message to parents about what their kids are going through. As tough as things are in quarantine, parents must be mindful that it is equally as difficult for the children.
• 2020-04-17

  Divorce in Quarantine

  A personal account of the pandemic.