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  2021-08-06

  Emily Brignone Oral History, 2021/08/06

  While working from home I started snacking a lot as I frequently missed breaks and lunches due to the increased workload I also tended to work later than before so while I had no commute I stopped working around the same time I would have gotten home if I had been in the office most of June and July. I found snacking was a way to stay present in the physical world while living almost exclusively online during work hours and frequently replaced or at least supplemented some very hurried lunches. My favorite snack I had never tried before but it was suggested to me by someone who later passed from Covid and so now reminds me not only to be grounded but of them. My favorite snack is really simple but was new to me: wheat thins with light veggie cream cheese. It tasted like what the summer should have been instead of what it was. It was also a shift for me since I didn't eat a lot of convenience foods before COVID I took the time to make food so the idea of creating little snacks to replace generally more nutritious and regulated food was new to me.
• 2020-10-15

  Covid-19 in One Word: Present

  I was on Spring Break during my senior year of high school when my school closed because of covid. They said it would be closed for one week, then two, then a month, then until next fall. No one knew what was going to happen. How will classes work? How will finals work? Will we have graduation? Can we go to college? What's gonna happen? The virus itself is scary and intimidating, but arguably more so is the uncertainty it brought to everyone's life around the world. No one could answer all of our questions. No one knew what would happen, and still, no one knows what the future holds. This uncertainty caused fear in almost everyone. Not knowing what will happen or how things will turn out, is a very uneasy feeling. This also caused fear. Now, this was a dangerous thing; fear weakens the immune system. As soon as I understood this, I realized I could not live this way. I needed to change my perspective or I would fall into the dark hole of fear of the unknown. So I decided to accept what was, let go of what was not, and be what is. I decided to focus purely on the present. This did not come quickly or easily. Honestly, I am still having to choose daily to focus on what I can control in my life at this moment. Every day is different. Some days I smile into the sun without a care of what the world will throw at me. Other days, I sit in bed wondering what could possibly go right. But despite it all, I remain in the present, the only place to truly be. This is why instead of thinking of everything covid has caused me to miss or how long it will last, I am focusing on the opportunities I have now, the new connections I can make, and the ways I can live in spite of this pandemic. That is why my one word for Covid-19 is present. Although covid may be horrible, it offers us the gift to learn how to live in the presence of uncertainty.
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  2020-03-21

  Socially Distanced Birthday

  My birthday fell just before the height of the pandemic. While staying at home was not yet mandatory, social distancing was starting to be brought in. Luckily, some of my amazing friends dropped off this birthday present and left it outside my door.
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  2020-04-22

  Finally Getting to that 1,000-piece Jigsaw Puzzle of the Battle of Trafalgar

  Now that we are well into our second month of social distancing and isolation at home, we need to look for new ways to amuse ourselves during down-times. I'm getting tired of television programming and streamed videos. In our household, we've found that working on a jigsaw puzzle is a good way to relax for a few minutes between work, chores and other activities. I got this puzzle for Christmas a year or two ago, and it was forgotten in a closet until I discovered it and put it to use the other day.