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2021-01-07
My Christmas During Covid
This year's Christmas was a bit different, but it was pretty much the same as normal. We never travel over Christmas break so staying home wasn't too unusual. My uncle and grandfather ended up coming over for dinner because we see them pretty often, but we still stayed socially distanced. We were extremely blessed this Christmas with an amazing meal and lots of presents to open, but it was really nice to just sit down and catch up with everyone. I realized that even though we were all in the same place at the same time we hardly knew what was going on in each other's lives, in detail I mean. It was also probably the longest I had gone without looking at my phone or computer in the last year or so. Despite not being able to see all of my friends like I normally would, I think this has been one of the best Christmas' ever. -
2020-12-22
Christmas with Covid
The coronavirus or covid-19 is what I had to live with and continue to live with. During the Christmas season covid hit hard and it prevented me from seeing family and friends. It was quite devastating that I was unable to visit my grandmother because it may be one of my last Christmas's with her. By the time covid is solved we will have arteficial hearts. -
2021-01-07
What was Christmas like for you this year, and how was it different?
Christmas was little different for me this year. Normally, on Christmas Eve, my family and I go to my Aunt's house to celebrate. All of dad's side of the family is there. This year we wanted to do Christmas Eve at our house outside so we could be social distance. But that didn't happen because the weather was very bad. It would have been cold and not an enjoyable Christmas Eve. Instead we moved it to Christmas Day, so we could have some nicer weather. It was perfect. We played lots of games and enjoy delicious food. -
2020-12-25
Christmas in 2020
I experienced a very different Christmas than I would usually know. First, my brother and his girlfriend came over in the morning and we all opened presents, but we were social-distanced and wearing masks. After that, we went to my grandmother's house and we had breakfast. We had pancakes, sausages, bacon, and orange juice. After that, we went to my other grandmother's house and we opened all of our gits from them and we stayed there a while, but we were social-distanced, and wearing masks. Then we went back to my grandmother's house and we opened the rest of my presents. It was a very different experience and I will never forget it. -
2020-12-25
Not normal not as fun
This Christmas was definitely different. On Christmas Eve I had to wear a mask the entire time and we had to eat socially distanced. On Christmas morning I could not get close to my mother due to exposure. My grandpa did not attend Christmas Eve's dinner due to too many participants. This year's Christmas was very odd, but it will always be a good story for my children. -
2020-12-25
How my Christmas was different
On Christmas day, my family usually goes over to my aunt's house where we hang out with friends and family we rarely get to see, but this Christmas was different. Instead of going to their house my family stayed at our home and did not get to see them. We where not able to see them at all until 3 days later where were able to Facetime them. Other than that my Christmas was not very different. -
2020-12-25
COVID Christmas
As a covid Christmas, we didn't go to the mall as a family to buy Christmas gifts for each other. As a result of this all out shopping was done online so there was a bigger variety of gifts. There were also alot of boxes at our door -
2020-09-06
Lonely Train Rides
In the city of Chicago on Monday morning I was used to the train being super packed. However on this Monday there was only one masked man on the whole train. So I sat and did a social distanced doodle to capture the moment. -
2020-04-10
Finding Creativity in the Times of Covid-19
This is an inspirational video produced by the company Apple. This short one-and-a-half-minute long video consists of various photos and videos filmed by people all over the world durig the pandemic. There are great displays of creativity and different forms of art in this video. For instance, the art of playing the violin, learning to dance ballet, as well as the craft of making of old motion pictures are all displayed in the source. I chose to display this object because reflects the needs and considerations of an ethical archival collection. This source assures that an abundance of different perspectives from people of many backgrounds are represented respectively. I also feel as though this archive does attempt to fill an archival silence and amplify the voices of marginalized groups by allowing for such a diverse array of people to be included in this video featurette. -
2020-12-11
Bumble's "First Moves Forever" Campaign
As I sat scrolling through Snapchat one day, I was presented with an advertisement. At first I skipped, however, when I saw the Bumble logo, I immediately went back to look at it. Sure enough, I had stumbled upon a perfect addition to this mini collection that I am putting together about dating during the pandemic. The ad was for the Bumble campaign “First Moves Forever” (https://thebeehive.bumble.com/firstmovesforever) which recaps how Bumble was used in 2020, and shares the stories of some users in an interactive way. This website may interest future historians, as it shares the stories of real individuals in relationships, and tells how social media/dating apps were used during the Covid-19 pandemic. It also gives another look into the ways that brands are now using the pandemic as a way of advertising. -
2020-11
Working in a pandemic
This shows how it can be difficult to remember all the changes the pandemic has created. People forget things, like the new one way aisles. Not everyone has malicious intent when it comes to the pandemic. One way aisles were created in stores and such to allow for social distancing in the aisles. This is probably one of the most ignored new guidelines, but at least the effort is there. As long as people try their best to follow these guidelines it is important not to judge people to hard. It seems this generation tends to want to judge people for forgetting to follow some of these guidelines, but everyone is learning together. People should not take all of this to heart. It can be difficult to check if there is an arrow, especially since not all stores use them. -
2020-11-25
The Quiet Thanksgiving
Never would I have thought that my Thanksgiving would be like this. My Thanksgiving usually is with my whole family. But this year it wasn’t. My grandparents are scared of covid and did not come over. My other family, like my uncle, were scared to put my grandparents in danger. It was weird not looking forward to seeing my grandparents. My parents and sister decided to just eat at home together. Usually when we go to the market. It is crowded but now, no one was there due to covid. It felt like a ghost town. We enjoyed our meal and it felt like a regular Thanksgiving meal but I still had that lonely feel of my other family. It wasn’t an awful Thanksgiving, it just wasn’t the same. -
2020-10-14
My Life Before Covid
Before Covid, I was in the middle of the seventh grade. It was going pretty well considering it was the middle of the year and nothing much happened then. I wish I had known then what was about to happen because I never got to go out one last time with my friends or go to sports practice without worrying about being distanced from each other. I had gotten into the routine of normal days and repeating the same schedule 24/7, and wanted a little something to change it or make life a little more interesting, this is not what I meant at all. I remember talking with my friends every day and seeing them at school, but now we can't. Calling and texting are great and all, but it isn't the same. Not even close. Hopefully, we can go back to the way it was before Covid sooner rather than later. -
2020
My NU.in Experience
Covid caused my NU.in experience to be different than it was supposed to be. I was supposed to go abroad and experience the world in a new way. I found out in February that I was accepted into the NU.in program. I was excited yet apprehensive because of the great opportunities that had just been placed in front of me. I decided to attend Northeastern in late April so I knew that I would not be going abroad. As September approached, I grew increasingly nervous, I moved into a hotel, twenty minutes from campus, and had to follow a bunch of safety precautions. I did not expect my first semester of college to go the way it did. I never expected to be wearing a mask or be so worried about what I touched. I never imagined that I would have to be tested for a disease once every three days. I quickly grew to find my new normal at the start of the semester after finishing my initial quarantine. I made socially distanced friends over zoom calls and we met up for lunch but stayed six feet away from each other. This was how I met many of my friends. I decided to keep a journal to document everything that was happening during these difficult times. At the end of the day once I had taken my mask off and washed my hands I would write about my day and how it was different from what I had once done. Dining was an interesting experience to navigate. Only a certain amount of people were allowed into the dining hall at a certain time so there were usually long lines to get into the dining hall to eat. At first, all the dining halls were takeout only. As the semester progressed, sit down options were allowed. To allow for social distancing, signs were posted on the tables to tell students how many people were allowed to sit at each table and there were people around to enforce these rules. While waiting in line to get food, everyone has to stand on a marker on the floor indicating six feet of distance to be safe and everyone is required to keep their masks on. These experiences have shaped my time in Boston. I have been able to have a safer experience during my first semester of college thanks to Northeastern’s guidelines. I have also been able to watch out for myself and others because I know that I am being tested and those that I am around are also being tested on a regular basis. Overall, being on a college campus that is so conscientious about Covid has helped shaped my understanding and has helped me be safer as well. -
2020-11-26
Thanksgiving in 2020
It was Thursday, November 26, 2020. Thanksgiving day. It was unlike any other Thanksgiving I had ever had. My usual Thanksgiving day would be me going to each of my grandparent's houses for dinner. But this year was different. We decided to go to only one grandparent's house this year. So we went to their house and instead of walking inside and having dinner, we had to stay in our car. My grandma came out with a little tray of food and handed it to us. It had turkey, gravy, salt, pepper, and pie. It was very hard for me to do this because I couldn't hug my grandparents (or anyone for that matter) and I couldn't go inside the house. This Thanksgiving was much different than any other. -
2020-02-09
The Frantic February
Everything started out fine, but as the month progressed volleyball games got canceled, toilet paper started going out of stock, and people started going crazy for canned food. Everyone stayed far away from one another and were trapped in a prison that we call home. We all got confused as to why everyone was also going crazy over cleaning supplies. Little did all of us know that this was just the beginning of the travesty. -
2020-11-28
Covid Thanksgiving
My thanksgivings was not exactly normal however it was a holiday and a change from the normal grind of school so that was a good thing. At least I got a chance to take a small break before going back. However, with covid raging everywhere we weren’t able to have our grandparents or family over like we normally do. Instead, we decided to have Thanksgiving with a family that we are close friends with and had been exposed to. However, even that was a bit weird no handshakes, no high fives nothing that brought people too close to one antother. Besides that our thanksgiving was relatively normal except for the fact that we had planned to be outside in a well ventalted as recommended, but that changed as it was too windy to eat outside. All in all, it was a pretty weird thanksgiving, but it could have been a lot different. -
2020-12-10
Life Before "Quarantine"
In the months before most of the world shut down due to COVID-19, my life was social, fun, and happy. During January of 2020, I had recently gotten to lease a horse for Christmas. I was getting used to riding my horse and going to the barn daily while developing friendships through horseback riding. In February of 2020, I had made friends and bonded with my horse at the barn where I did not have to wear a mask or even be aware of cleanliness and sanitation. When March of 2020 came around, it became a task to be careful of who you’re around and where you go due to the cases developing in the United States. School went online around the middle of March, but my barn was still wide open and did not require masks, temperature-taking, or sanitation before entering. This made life feel normal despite not seeing school friends daily anymore. My barn closed to outsiders from April-May, but for only one month. I was able to see my friends, still without rules such as wearing masks, but only for a two-hour limit due to capacity limitations. From May-November, life was great. I saw my friends often, did well in online school, and maintained the barn as a big part of my life. Now, December of 2020, my barn requires masks, but they are not strict about it. I am still getting outside, staying active and healthy both physically and mentally, and keeping a social life. Although I am doing well in “quarantine,” I would much rather be at school in-person and be doing activities without safety precautions and limitations. Life is different, but I’ve developed entirely new perspectives and these new situations have helped me grow as a person. -
2020-12-08
Sight at a metro station
People were lining up at the metro station waiting for the next train. They strictly followed the social distance and wore face masks -
2020-12-08T16:36
COVID-19: Behind the Lens of a University Student
Each photograph was taken at random and coincidentally during different stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in California. -
2020-11-09
COVID 19 - QR Codes
The QR code is now seen everywhere after the start of the pandemic in an attempt to help stop the spread of COVID-19. It is used to check-in to locations so individuals do not have to enter the building until necessary because of the importance of social distancing. QR codes have also been utilized by restaurants for customers to scan on their phones and be directed to an online version of the menu, since menus were not allowed to be reused. Moreover, QR codes are even used to pay at stores using PayPal’s app in order to avoid handing over a card or cash and potentially handing over a virus in the process The use of the QR codes requires a mobile device, and its increase of its implementation into our society further shows how technology played a huge part in our day to day lives due to the pandemic. -
2020-10-03
Dating During the Pandemic
Being under an extreme amount of stress from trying to switch to online school or working from home fulltime, you were under more stress if you were in a relationship. If you lived with your significant other, it started off amazing. You finally got to spend more quality time and try new things. But soon after it started to take a toll on the relationship by being with only them for four months straight and not seeing other people. On the other hand, if you and your significant other did live together, the beginning was the hardest. You had no idea when you were going to see them next and your relationship mostly consisted of Facetimes. As time went on it became the new norm of dating and seeing each other in person became a once-in-a-lifetime moment. No matter what situation you were in, it really pushed your relationship to the next level. -
2020
COVID Effects on Masconomo Park, Manchester Ma.
Masconomo Park is a place where family and friends spend most time of their afternoon to interact with the public and have a healthy social environment. During the summer, the park would host bands, ice cream tables, face painting and a movie night for everyone. Many tourists would come to town to experience socially the interactions and activities offered by the town and appreciate the beauty of the harbor. During the Tuesday movie nights, a projection screen would be placed in the center of the park and everyone would bring their chairs, blankets, and snacks for a cozy movie night with family and friends. The Park was one of the most populated point of the town until the outbreak happened. Masconomo has not been the same since the outbreak of COVID-19. As you can see in the photos below of before and after the pandemic, the contrasts are enormous. The silence of Masconomo Park is louder than the fun summer nights the citizens used to have. Now the emptiness has taken over and no one can interact in the public space anymore. The park has been closed for a long period of time and citizens were not allowed to share the field for their own health safety. Once everything goes back to normal as we all hope, we cannot wait to spend engaging times at the park as we used to. For now, we just have to remain social distancing and virtually connecting for mental and physical health of the citizens. -
2020-10-23
A Distanced Reality
Instructions, requirements, and signifiers inevitably invade my sight on the once-bustling streets of Philadelphia. This is an image of a square graphic glued to the sidewalk on South Street, a historic and well-known place in Philly. This graphic has been sponsored and done by Philadelphia Mural Arts historic center was founded to help eradicate graffiti. As a design student, I quickly noticed how artists and designers were using their resourcefulness during these times of uncertainty to take advantage of their visual skills to communicate the precautions of the CDC. With technology allowing me to virtually connect better than it ever has been able in the past to my friends, family, and loved ones, I realize it cannot provide to us that tangible human connection we all have experienced before within 6 feet. Although there may have been efforts to remove and peel away this graphic there will never be a removal of the effects and tolls the Coronavirus has taken on our world, country, and beloved cities. -
2020-11-03
First Time Voter
Unlike my fellow peers, I was only 17 during my senior year of high school. The 2020 election was supposed to be my first chance to vote in person. Many of my classmates and friends were able to vote in person during the primaries or in state elections, but I did not. I started getting into politics about four years ago. Ever since then, I was excited at the prospect to make a change by voting. In February, I went to vote in the New Hampshire primary. Since I was not yet registered, I went to the corresponding line. I sat down and filled out the registration form. I asked the worker for help and she said "Oh..you're not 171/2 years old. You will need to wait until you're 18 to register". Disheartened, I left. I did not get register or vote. When I went to college in the fall, it made it even harder for me to be able to vote. Since I only live an hour from school, I planned on just coming back on election day and vote. Although, I do not have many health risk factors, I do live in a school community that could be in the higher risk category and did not want to expose anyone. Therefore, I try to limit my exposure as much as possible. With voting in person seeming too risky, I decided I should vote using an absentee ballot. When I visited home for my first long weekend, I went to the town clerk to request an absentee ballot. A few days later when I was back on campus, I received my ballot in the mail. I filled it out in my dorm room and then dropped it off at the USPS mailbox. I did not feel like I voted at all. I did not get the experience of waiting in line, putting the ballot in the ballot box, or even getting an "I voted" sticker. Even though I did not get to have the full experience of voting, I am happy I took the extra precautions during this time to ensure my safety as well as others. -
2020-11-02
Safe Shopping
This is an image of storefront posters designed by West Roxbury Main Streets. In recent years, there has been a push for shopping at local businesses to stimulate local economy. At first glance that’s exactly what these look like until you get to the third one. As per local and state ordinances, masks are required to be worn in public. With the holidays around the corner retail services will be in high demand and operating businesses safely is on most people’s radar. Last year if I said, “oops I forgot my mask,” that would not mean anything, and people would probably think I was crazy. Now that’s just the way life is and to shop you are required to wear a mask. Now, not everyone does this and not every business will enforce this, but some will. The #lovelocalsafely will hopefully be used so all those posts can be looked at in the future, but it also shows how much local businesses care about the customer. -
2020-11-11
Massachusetts School Sports Passes
Throughout Massachusetts, parents and high school students feared their sports being canceled due to COVID. The state quickly came up with guidelines that would deter the spread of the virus. The guideline that affected not only the athletes, but the family and friends of the players was the spectator passes. Two spectator passes were given to each coach and player on the team to make sure there was no crowding occurring at the games. Spectators must also wear face coverings at all times even at outdoor sports. They also must stay 6 feet apart from any other families during the game. Locker rooms are closed, and players must dress before going to the game. The players while on travel and while they are not playing must wear face coverings when with non-family members. All these guidelines were made by the state to keep the players and family members of the players safe from the virus and they allow for high school sports to continue. -
2020-12-02
Food Service Workers Experience Increased Sexual Harassment during Pandemic
These are screenshots from the timesupnow Instagram page. A December 2020 report on food service workers in NY state found that they are experiencing decreased tips when they attempt to enforce social distancing rules and increased incidences of sexual harassment. -
2020-12-01
Anti-gay Hungarian MEP resigns after being found at a 25-man orgy
I hate to be the one to perpetuate the closeted homophobe stereotype, however, how could you not talk about an anti-gay politician that was found with bloodied-form running from police and a 25-man orgy, violating social distancing laws, while on drugs? Sounds like an adult-comedy bit that would make a quarter of the audience give a light chuckle to the comedian on stage! After this fiasco, they quickly resigned from their position as MEP in Hungary where he spent years writing bills and documents to actively harm the LGBTQ+ community. -
2020-12-03
Mission Hill Failure
I understand, generation Z is not the brightest, considering less than two years ago we were persuading each other to eat laundry detergent. But I never thought I would be so disappointed in my peers. COVID is all too real, and with the boom of TikTok, people can see just how terrible “the rona” really is. Yet, those I call neighbors of Mission Hill rip apart my hope for us in the future. We know there are chances of permanently losing our sense of smell or taste, but we still decide to go out and party. Generation Z may be forward in acceptance, but we somehow are still too stubborn to put a pause on the traditional “college experience” to protect ourselves and our family members from death. I am in college, but I have family who are at risk, and I am not willing to compromise them just so I can see friends and have a little fun. There are ways of having fun without risking your health or that of loved ones. -
2020-12-02
Sonja Carlson - MY COVID STORY
This is a short COVID-19 reflection on the experience of Sonja Carlson, a semi-retired craft guru. The story is written as a Word Doc. -
2020-11-24
Mother and employee
Dana Adkins is a Mother that works at a summertime resort. She discusses how the pandemic impacted her job. Also discussed is how her children handled the changes to their routines. -
2020-11-22
Wedding Delay
A notification that a wedding at which my entire family had been planning to gather will be delayed an entire year due to Coronavirus concerns. -
2020-04-14
Square dancing with social distance
Public square dancing is a exercise that is enjoyed by many Chinese seniors. This was taken in a morning in April, after the lockdown these seniors continue to practice their dance with social distancing. -
2020-11
Journal Entry: Thoughts on the first semester of grad school.
This is less of an entry and more of a summary of how my year has gone? I'm trying to write without too much filter, to really capture the raw emotions of the pandemic. It's been a weird, and rough semester. A positive is that due to the pandemic, I was able to get into a school I had been interested in for quite a while. I wasn't sure I'd be able to get in, but I had a much better chance of doing so, than I did before when online classes weren't offered for my major. I did get in, at the last minute and picked my classes the day before the semester started! I needed a laptop, which were certainly in short supply, but luckily there were some available. When my laptop was stolen, and a webcam was a more immediate option for an older computer, that was more difficult to obtain. I hadn't even considered that they were in short supply but almost every cheap to middle priced webcam were sold out. I definitely didn't think this is what my first semester of graduate school would be like when I started. One class ended in a project showcase that felt far differently than it would have had we been able to present in person. Juggling the semester and also working at night was certainly not something I expected to be doing. During the nights we (my coworkers and I) would be frantically trying to stock canned goods, paper goods, and other items in high demand, just to watch it all be bought within 30 minutes of the store opening for the day. This is also on top of trying to run the store normally. It was very surreal to go in and see shelf after shelf empty and ransacked, as if a hurricane was on the way. All in all, I'm not thankful for the pandemic, but being able to find positives, and to be grateful for the opportunities afforded me is healthier than focusing on the negatives. -
2020-11-16
Preston Potter Oral History, 2020/11/16
This interview shares the perspective of not only a college student learning during the pandemic, but also a student athlete. Preston Potter strives to maintain his job, his grades, and also stay in athletic shape, while also trying to keep a sense of team brotherhood while staying safe. We explored how he tried to juggle all of this, stay sane, and lead a normal life. Preston gives a positive outlook on the struggles and challenges he faces, focused solely on achieving a dream career of being a professional baseball player. It is a unique look into how different students are handling the many balls they have in the air between work, school and practice. -
2020-11-20
Covid-19
During this pandemic people have lived their lived completely different because we have to stay home and limit ourselves to going out and one of the biggest things is wear a mask. I don’t have much stories to tell because I usually stay inside a lot especially during weekdays and don’t do anything. One things I did a lot during quarantine was workout a lot more. -
2020-11-13
Full-Virtual Work in the Middle of a Pandemic
This document was created and shared by myself and some coworkers in the History department at my university, St. Mary's. This document was the result of a project we were all assigned to work together on regarding researching the African-American community in West San Antonio, Texas. The work was not easy. Being separated from each other meant coordination and collaboration were very difficult, and actually accomplishing much in the way of actual work was slow going, with few of us actually being able to work together at the times the others were available. Not helping in any way was the fact that working remotely left us with almost no oversight from our supervisor, who was also in charge of several other projects in the department. Our research also took many different forms before settling on the one it ended up in, and it suffered most greatly from most of the workers assigned not being in the city we needed to be in, not having access to any traditional resources like proper records or non-digital resources that might have gone into the detail that we needed, and of course being unable to properly help each other. Despite this however, when we finally were able to coordinate a time to collaborate and work together, we surprisingly were able to unearth the aspect shown here, the resurrection of the Keyhole Club by noted Jazz musician Don Albert, famous for being a fully racially integrated nightclub during a time when such a thing was unheard of, and was challenged. Despite some serious challenges of our own, my coworkers and I were able to emerge successful after all and provide some much-needed information to the assignment. -
2020-10-20
University Campus Dining During Covid-19
With many indoor restrictions and social distancing rules to prevent the spread of Covid-19 cases, this year students have been choosing to dine more frequently outdoors rather than indoors. This photograph highlights how freshman year dining looked for me at Northeastern University during Covid-19. Although students are not allowed to be in large groups or eat in large groups indoors, many of us chose to eat just right outside of the dining hall. Luckily at Northeastern University's main dining halls International Village, there is a small green space park for students to gather, socialize, and eat together. This year Covid-19 has presented many difficult challenges, especially towards the reintroduction of education and a college school year. It's already hard to meet and make new friends as a freshman, but we try as best as we can to socialize wherever we can. In addition to eating, many activities and socials are also done outdoors to recreate the typical college experience in a safe manner. I'd say as students we are responsible or at least most of us try to be responsible because we are all looking forward to the day we can just be normal college students and get that normal college experience. -
2020-11-17
Bandcamp Offers Artists A New Paid Livestream Platform
Bandcamp, the popular indie music streaming platform, has offered musicians a new revenue stream to replace in-person live shows. Fans can buy a ticket to access the show and purchase merchandise at the "virtual merch table". As the music industry has been turned upside down due to the end of touring and live shows, this offers another way to supplement the income of artists. -
2020-11-20
Mental Health in the Winter of a Pandemic
Every winter there is a rise in anxiety and depression. Shorter days, colder temperatures, and staying inside all contribute to a widespread worsening mental health. The pandemic has already had a drastic affect on mental health but most of the pandemic has been during the spring, summer, and fall. Now that we are entering the final season of the year and COVID cases are rising, we are in for a tougher winter. Shutdowns are happening again and people are having to go into more intense quarantines again will will have large effects on people's mental health. -
2000-11-20
From Norway to Boston
I am currently a student in the NU.in program in Northeastern University. Originally I was supposed to go to Montreal, Canada to do my first semester abroad at McGill University. However that quickly changed as Covid-19 spread throughout the world. As I am an international student from Norway, Covid raised several different challenges. Not only was Montreal cancelled, but I also had to acquire a visa to enter the US. Understandably, the US closed its borders and its embassies respectively. This meant I had no way to get a visa, and I prepared to do the semester online. It was an annoying time, because not only was Montreal cancelled, but travelling to the US instead seemed impossible. I signed up for the Online-program at Northeastern, until one day in late July. The embassy had re-opened and was now allowing Students visas. I was incredibly lucky that Northeastern offered in-person teaching, as this was a required for me to be allowed entrance into the country. Some of my friends at home were not as lucky, spending their first semester at college from their home in Norway. I was so happy, and when I finally arrived in Boston I felt a huge sense of relief. Although most of my classes now are online through Zoom, I try and focus on the fact that I am incredibly lucky to be allowed to be here and meet my fellow peers. -
2020-11-16
Small Gatherings and Daily Activities are a Growing Risk
Many people are getting infected by COVID even at small gatherings with friends and family. Now that COVID is basically rising everywhere in the United States, the risk of getting infected at what would seem to be safe gatherings are now a potential risk. The article from the Wall Street Journal shows several accounts of people who were with 2-3 people not in their immediate household and contracted the virus. -
2020-11-19
The Holidays Will Be Different This Year
The New Mexico Department of Health, created a short video encouraging people not to gather for holidays such as Thanksgiving. It is said that large gatherings increase the odds of transmitting or getting the COVID-19 virus. The video clip shows a family gathered for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, however they are communicating through their online devices. The conversations have not changed, just they way they interact. Every year my family gathers to enjoy a meal with one another. Holidays will be differnt in 2020, we will not be gathering but we can still speak and interact online. -
2020-10-06
How acting changes during the age of COVID
This document is a list of requirements and guidelines for the attendance of a an acting workshop I was a part of in October of this year, as a part of a larger project the Drama Department at my university, St. Mary's was and is attempting to create a new and safer theatre experience for the coming semesters. The workshop we attended was, of course, created with the intent for attendees to participate in-person. Despite this, however, as the requirements here show, the fact that that was impossible, or at least very ill-advised, not only wasn't enough to prevent it from happening, it may have helped it in a good number of ways. For a first example, the individuals in charge of the workshop, affiliated with The Tectonic Theatre, were situated in New York, as opposed to my university being located in San Antonio Texas. The fact that the workshop was held virtually actually made it much more realistically approachable as otherwise the distance would have complicated matters considerably, which was taken care of in that way. In the same vein, as the requirements hint at with the items that are required, is that each person who participated was able to use their surroundings, almost exclusively their own homes, which they were of course very familiar with, to great affect for the exercises that were given to them. In fact, despite the initial misgivings that many of us-myself included-initially had, the workshop was able to take place not only just as well as it would have had it been in person, but in my personal opinion, it might have gone even better. All in all, the workshop was a pretty impressive look at overcoming complications from this pandemic and working around them to make the virtual experience lose nothing from an in-person experience. -
2020-11-19
New Mexico Governor's COVID-19 Update
New Mexico's Governor Michelle Lujan-Grisham, gave her weekly update regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. The Governor addressed the rising number of COVID cases and deaths in New Mexico. She ordered a two week "reset" to lower the number of cases. This means that shopping centers, gyms, unessential stores, indoor dining, museums, group sports, etc have been closed for two weeks. The Governor has been facing a lot of backlash because of her COVID-19 mandates and policies. These new closures have upset the people of New Mexico further. I personally see them as a means to stop the spread of the virus and keep people healthy and safe. Yes, I do miss sharing a meal with friends and family, visiting a museum, watching a movie and just living a "normal" life. However, I understand that I need to be safe not only for myself but for my family and community as well. It is not about my needs, I need to consider others as well. This is not a time to be selfish and ego driven. -
2020-11-19
British Columbia Introduces Mask Mandate and Lockdown
The province has introduced sweeping measures in order to curb the rise of Covid-19 cases. This has included a mask mandate, which is a reversal from previous policy. Other restrictions introduced encompass lessening the time spent in public indoor spaces or events. -
2020-09-01
St. Mary's Mask Squad
A feature story in the lifestyle section of The Rattler student newspaper is about the St. Mary’s Mask Squad, a group of student leaders from different RSOs on campus promoting safety and Marianist values. The job of the mask squad is to not only promote proper mask wearing but find ways the campus can improve on safety for its students and staff. This promotes our Marinist values by caring about other’s safety and health and making sure our actions are aimed towards protecting those around us. -
2020-09-01
Resources and Tips for St. Mary's Students
This is the center spread graphic of the first issue of the 2020 fall semester—the first semester where many students on the St. Mary’s campus have gone to primarily remote learning. This center spread is meant to bring awareness to the resources students have available to help them through unfamiliar times: the resources listed include the business office, the office of financial assistance, the student health center, and the student counseling center. Also included are tips from fellow classmates on how to stay engaged and succeed and helpful apps that may help them stay organized throughout online learning. -
2020-08-10T15:06
Work Studies Begin Working Remotely for Fall 2020
When I got the email saying that as a work-study student at St. Mary's University I was going to be able to work from home for the semester I was extremely excited. Before the pandemic, we were only allowed to work in-person while on campus. In March all work-studies were told that they would not be able to work at home, so it was stressful waiting to hear if we were going to be allowed to work. Being able to still work on the projects that we are assigned during this pandemic is a nice escape from reality.