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Mediator is exactly
Humor
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2021-02-18
Early Retirement Reflection
While I am grateful and privileged enough to have quarantined at home with my family, it was certainly frustrating. Once I had conquered my first taste of online learning all I had ahead of me was an uncertain and potentially endless summer. As someone who is a high-risk individual, I didn't feel comfortable going back to my summer job in retail immediately. Thankfully, both of my parents were able to continue to work and I was able to stay home. Being able to stay home for the summer and relax in my hammock most days was unsettlingly different than how others experienced this past summer. I regret not better using my free time to help those that lost jobs and housing and support, while I still had mine. Shockingly the gleam of my extended vacation wore off pretty quickly with my parents. When my parents finally got fed up with me drinking an afternoon coffee in my backyard every day they told me I had better find something productive to keep busy. After sending an unbelievable amount of e-mails and a couple of phone calls with some busy executives I landed an under-the-table research internship. The only issue? Not being able to research through their physical archives. Go figure. While my research wasn't extensive it did keep me fairly busy for my remaining time at home. My early retirement this past summer was a substantial setback in accordance with my previous plans, but it was thoroughly enjoyable. -
2021-02-17
THIS IS YOUR NECK ON ZOOM
Many years ago, there was a public service ad that said ‘This is your brain on drugs.” It featured an egg cracking into a frying pan, sizzling crisply. I feel the same way about my neck on zoom. It is a horrifying sight. For many of us, ZOOM is the funhouse mirror we do not wish to look into. It has been suggested that staring at ourselves on ZOOM calls sucks the life out of our brains and that it might be better to simply not be able to see ourselves. Apparently, you can block yourself from being able to see your own face while allowing your fellow ZOOM-ers to gaze at you. Honestly, that seems worse to me. What if I look like a Salvador Dali painting? And what about my NECK? Chin high, neck elongated is my mantra. Channeling Audrey Hepburn helps. Otherwise, I look like a candidate for a Thanksgiving carving board. This is what COVID hath wrought. Not a fear of disease or death (although THAT is responsible for the extra furrows between my brows), but a conversation about inner beauty and wisdom vs. gravity and slackness of skin. For women of a certain age COVID has brought a dollop of fear, and a hefty helping of self-pity at the mere thought of newborn grandchildren we cannot hold. And it has also rendered us as insecure and self-conscious as a teenager with a pimple on the tip of the nose. The state of the skin beneath my chin should not matter, and yet it does. -
2020-06-02
Sign of the times
I would say I share the same feeling as most, in that being stuck inside has forced me to venture outside more than ever. Hiking, running, kayaking, sitting in nature has become the one place of solace in this crazy, scary world. As mask mandates began to be put in place I began noticing so many people with their noses sticking out of their masks. I can not understand what possible line of logic they were operating on but what is the point of wearing a face mask if it does not cover your face. One day I was on a hike and I noticed this sticker stuck to a trail marker, I could not help to think that it is simply the best sticker I have ever seen. -
2021-02-16
But Cellphones. . .
A meme that questions one of the fears surrounding the Covid-19 vaccine. -
2020-06
covid is the worst
Over the years my favorite part of life was hanging with people and saying hello and being with them. this could be walking driving or anything else that be a fun time. But due to COVID-19 meeting with people is not the smartest move. This did not hurt my friendships with my friends because most of my friends talk online and play video games online as well. So, my friends and I did not struggle in our relationship. the hardest struggle this pandemic had on me would be my relationship with my grandmother. She lives in a nursing home and knowing anything that the news has said is that nursing homes have been in lock downs. These lock downs are helpful for the residents that live in them but it has been almost a year since I have seen my grandmother. She has been alone for most of it due to her building having lots of cases she had to be in her room by herself for months. This strain of not being able to see her is not the best that came out of this and I worry for her all the time, but she is an iron will lady so I know she will be fine. The other relationships that have been hurt due to COVID-19 would be in the same house with my parents and sister. There is no doubt that I love my family, but it seems that since me and my sister have been in college, we have found our own ways to live life. It seems that both my sister and I have felt that our family is very pushy and that most of what my mom and dad do is still treating us as kids. this is due to our close quarters having but heads all the time. If there is an issue on someone doing something different chaos would erupt. It seems that both my sister and I are on the same page, but my parents are not really. Either on what we can do in or outside the house. So mainly what this pandemic has done for me is to put some tension on my relationships with my family but has left my friendships with normalcy. This pandemic is not welcomed and I would wish that it would go away but it seems that it is staying a little longer. -
2020
Tom n Jerry: social distance!
This post is a picture of paste up of well known cartoon characters Tom and Jerry. Both are wearing masks and Jerry is telling Tom, "That's one meter!" in Italian. -
2021-02-12
Mr. Carl is Always Watching
An unexpected benefit of quarantining for the past eleven months is my son has become quite the pianist. Since we’re always home, he wanders to the piano often to play his pieces - during recess, lunch, waiting for his sister to be done with whatever she is working on. Honestly, because he has endless practice time he has advanced much quicker than he would have if life were normal. His teacher and he share a dry and quirky sense of humor. My son’s favorite part of the week is when "Mr. Carl" calls for their virtual lesson. Carl noticed early into quarantine that the way the phone sits on the piano makes his picture reflect in painting on the wall. He told my son he is always watching him, and it has become their inside joke. When we put up Christmas decorations, the painting was temporarily replaced. Being a creative and funny guy, Carl photoshopped himself into the decoration and texted it to me to share with my son. Now after every single lesson, Carl texts me a picture of where he is that week. Carl’s positivity, consistency, and continued high expectations have helped my son thrive and I am so thankful for him. -
2020-03-20
Journal of the Plague Year
The Corona Virus aka COVID-19 has drastically affected my life as well as the entire world. COVID-19 first affected my life during my second semester sophomore year of college. The beginning of sophomore year was when we first started hearing about COVID-19. At that time, it wasn’t really a big deal. It was more like a myth in a sense; it was happening everywhere else but here. And then, March came. More and more reports of COVID-19 in the United States were being presented. It was starting to become a serious threat. The day after Saint Patrick’s Day, I was with some friends and we were all hanging out and getting lunch. During our lunch, we received an email saying that we had to move off campus within the next week due to the threat and seriousness of COVID-19. We were all so shocked and upset that our sophomore year was cut short. In the blink of an eye, we had to pack up our entire college lives and leave to go home. All of the memories we were supposed to make were gone. For me, all of my friends were at school so going home was very hard for me. Don’t get me wrong, I love my family but, I also want to be able to see my friends. Once I got home, I had to do the rest of school online and had to be quarantined in my house. Online school was such a new and difficult experience. I had never done online school and neither had the professors, so it was a very difficult transition. Something else that was difficult was being trapped in a house from March until May. I am not the type of person to just stay cooped up in a house. I like to be out doing things and socializing with others but, I couldn’t do that. I was confined to my house with only my family. It was hard finding things to keep us all entertained every day while also trying not to kill each other. We tried puzzles, games, family walks and hikes, movie night, and everything in between. These things worked but only for a short period of time. Being quarantined really does affect your mental health. I also had to celebrate my twentieth birthday in quarantine which was not fun at all, but at least I was with my family which made it better. Then came July. July first was when I was moving into my first house in Pittsburgh for college. I thought that it was going to be such a fun and exciting time. But it was difficult with the whole pandemic going on. It was hard to see my friends, go out to eat, and go to the bars. I was still able to have fun, but it was still difficult to adjust to a new lifestyle. Online school full time was also hard, but I got through it and figured out how to do school efficiently. Come end of October, I got COVID-19. I didn’t realize of shitty COVID-19 was and that I could even get it because I was so young. I had all of the symptoms except loss of taste and smell. I was bed ridden for two weeks; it was awful. After that things were as good as they can be during this time. A week before New Year’s Eve, my entire family tested positive for COVID-19 except me since I had already gotten it. They got really sick and I had to take care of them and grocery shop and run errands for them. That was hard for me to watch them all be so sick. But they got better and became healthy. Yes, I haven’t had this extreme story due to COVID-19 but it did affect my life in ways that I didn’t think it could. I had to change my entire way of living because of this virus. -
2020-05-06
Questioning the Future
I closed my laptop after taking my last final exam for my second semester of college. Rather than celebrating the end of my freshman year of college with friends, I was found alone in my childhood bedroom, wondering what the future had next to offer. The distraction of being able to focus on my schoolwork provided an escape from the other depressing reality that I found myself in. My parents were stressed for their own safety, and for the safety of their loved ones, as COVID-19 roamed rampant throughout the United States. My younger brother was attempting to balance online school at the young age of thirteen- stressing about online lectures rather than being able to play with friends as I did at such a young age. I felt angry and helpless that there are people in my community who would not follow preventative measures such social distancing or wearing a mask- simple actions that would be able to save countless lives. I felt frustrated that the leadership of the United States blamed other nations for causing this pandemic, rather than work tirelessly to find ways to stop the spread of COVID-19. In a time where I should have been surrounded by those who I cared deeply about, forming new relationships that would last a lifetime, and focusing on what I truly want to gain in life- I was found alone and wondering if the future I imagined would ever be possible. I imagined that I would be able to go back to school the next year- a campus that I grew up on and imagined making friends on and being social with others- with the hope that a vaccine for COVID-19 would be found. I remember my parents feeling scared about their future as educators, questioning if they would be thrown into the zoo of high school and elementary students, who may have contracted and spread COVID-19. I remember my brother being scared that if he saw his friend, he would make mom and dad sick. All of these depressive scenarios truly made me question the type of life that I was living. Before the pandemic, I remember living life freely; however, it was as if one day was simply repeated into the next, I was going through the motions of life in order to succeed and achieve the future that I desire. Being alone in my childhood bedroom allowed me to realize that life is truly precious at its core- one will never know when their path for life and their future may take a turn for the worst or run into a bump in the road. Nevertheless, spending time with my family for five months allowed me to become reawakened to the little things that life has to offer. The smile of saying hello to a friend without it being hidden behind a mask. The hug of a loved one without it being through protective plastic. Although the pandemic halted my path to the future that I imagined I would have, it allowed me to remember what life truly has to offer, ensuring me that I am still on my path to achieve the future that I desire. -
2021-02-07
To Mask or not to Mask
Perhaps, it is an American phenomenon. People refusing to wear masks in public places, even when face to face with an “essential worker.” At the start of the pandemic in the United States, when people were closing their doors and staying home, there became a flurry of conversations about essential workers, the people who couldn’t stay home, in order to keep society as we know it flowing. Hospital workers, fighting the unknown; the service industry, continuing to feed and care for people; factory workers and truckers, delivering the stuff people staying home needed, all essential. Unfortunately, there is an ongoing battle that effects everyone: people refusing to wear masks. Some in the medical industry, especially the ones helping COVID patients fight for their life, feel like it is a slap in the face. People in the service industry have to decide between asking somebody to put on a mask and risking being verbally or physically attacked by the person, or risking their own health. I have added a few sources. First, some memes and pictures, thanking essential workers. There is an article from Forbes on how to deal with customers who will not wear a mask. I’ve added a BBC article on why Americans don’t wear masks, but also an article from The Indian Express that shows anti-mask protests in multiple countries. Masks are a pretty simple addition to our lives. Of course, they take a while to get used to, and still leave me sweaty. While they are not a solution for completely stopping the spread of COVID, they do make a difference, and should be taken seriously. The sources I’ve attached tell a small part of the story of how humans have reacted to this pandemic. -
2020-12-31
The Luck of the COVID Draw
Throughout the pandemic, my family and I have been extremely careful as to not catch the virus. My mother made sure my brother and I always had little bottles of hand sanitizer with us when we went to work or to the grocery store, my mom had multiple masks in the car for herself at all times, and my dad has been social distancing from people since he was born, so he was well prepared to sit in the house in social isolation. Being in PA, Gov. Tom Wolf had just about everything shut down from December 2020 to the first week of January 2021, but despite this and all of the precautions my mother had made sure we all took, my brother had brought it home from work without realizing it. We all realized we were probably going to get it when my brother was sent home from his new job after getting tested for COVID. Honestly, we were all a bit surprised it had not happened earlier, as he used to work at a hospital, but from there, we all started dropping like flies. My mother started getting symptoms around New Years Eve and my father followed suit days later. At this point, I was terrified. All I could think of is how my mother is immunocompromised and that she had it, and that I myself am immunocompromised and I would be next. Worst of all, when I am home from college, I sleep on the couch due to damage in my old bedroom, so keeping myself away from these other people in my house would prove to be near impossible (hence the meme saying “I need to get out of here”). Even if I would have been able to isolate myself, they all felt too sick to take care of themselves or one another, so that job fell upon me. At this point, I am running around the house, trying not to breathe around my family in the last few weeks that I would be able to spend time with them before heading back to school, while also stressing about having to go back to school, as well as having to quarantine for additional time after my family’s quarantine was over. A couple weeks in I start to feel the early signs of COVID, headaches, body aches, coughing, the works. I went to get tested in an absolute panic as to what this would mean for my own health and how it would affect me going back to school, only to get back a negative test. The headaches? I have migraines. The body aches? Well, I sleep on a couch where the cushions come out from under me while I sleep, so you tell me. The cough? I have a cat and a dog that I am fairly allergic to but refuse to stay away from because they are so precious. How I, out of all of my family, was able to avoid getting COVID despite being the college kid with a weakened immune system who played nurse to 3 COVID patients is beyond me. This experienced that COVID is really a gamble. You may have everything against you and not get it, or you may have done everything you could possibly do to avoid it and still catch it. Regardless, I will continue to err on the side of caution and wear my mask and carry my mother’s hand sanitizer with me. -
2021-01-29
Coronaland
With Carnival parades cancelled, somebody had the bright idea to start the Krewe of House Floats to (a) make up for it and (b) to possibly offer work to unemployed float artisans. The results have gone beyond everyone's wildest imagination with 5,000+ people signing up in New Orleans, surrounding parishes, and around the world. This is a detail of an installation that shows how many people are feeling these days, “Cuckoo from COVID” -
2021-01-29
Coronaland
With Carnival parades cancelled, somebody had the bright idea to start the Krewe of House Floats to (a) make up for it and (b) to possibly offer work to unemployed float artisans. The results have gone beyond everyone's wildest imagination with 5,000+ people signing up in New Orleans, surrounding parishes, and around the world. This installation, shows how many people are feeling these days, “Cuckoo from COVID” -
2021-01-20
Bernie Sanders During the Pandemic
During the pandemic all events where canceled, I found myself staying home everyday and isolating myself from all friends and work since I have family members that have underlying medical conditions and have weak immune systems. During the pandemic many people have stayed home and entertained themselves with memes. One very popular meme that recently spread through the internet is with Bernie Sanders at the inauguration ceremony. I created a picture/meme by cropping Bernie Sanders in a bed, similar to how I have been during the pandemic. -
2020-05-15
German cafe tells customers to wear pool noodles to enforce social distancing
I love that this German café found a way to inject some humor into social distancing. It is absolutely hysterical and provides much needed levity during this stressful time for so many. Of course, my brain immediately went to wondering if the café re-uses those hats. Although customers may not catch COVID-19, they could catch lice. Eeeek! -
2021-01-29
Keeping Alberta Rat Free
Alberta has been historically known for two things, number one being the oil and gas industry, the second being Alberta’s lack of rats. Alberta historically prides itself on being a ‘rat free’ province through extermination campaigns throughout the whole province in order to maintain the mantle; and to protect Alberta’s agricultural sectors. Because of this legacy, Albertan pandemic skeptics on my home town’s Facebook page posted this meme in reference to people reporting large gatherings, and businesses which violate quarantine restrictions. Underneath this photo, many people who thought alike had a good chuckle and patted themselves on the back for keeping Alberta ‘rat free.’ However, these pandemic skeptics forget that Alberta became ‘rat free’ by people reporting sightings of rats, using the local 310-RATS hotline which alerted exterminators to the presence of rats throughout the province. This item matters to me in that it is how pandemic skeptics impose falsified history, and possibly Albertan nationalism to justify their own behaviour as somehow patriotic. I know I’m reading into this too deeply, but I find it somewhat funny how ignorant these people are to the true reality of our ‘rat free’ title, that we achieved it by reporting sightings of rats which posed a danger to our entire province; just how these people are posing a threat to the health of our entire province by opening businesses and getting together in large groups. This is mainly supposed to serve as a window into the Albertan experience of the Pandemic, with specific interest to the anti-masker’s opinions and thoughts on social media. I want to similarly point out, that I wasn’t the only person who noticed that Alberta was made ‘rat free’ by ratting on rats in this photo’s comment section. -
2021-01-29
Four Wensdays in January
This is a meme my friend shared in our discord, it recounts the absolute insanity that was January of 2021. The first image is of the failed coup attempt by enraged Trump supporters, white supremacists and fascists; who all stormed the capitol building with little to no resistance. While inside, they defaced the building, broke into offices and hunted for Vice President Mike Pence to hang for ‘betraying’ Donald Trump. The second photo came in response, depicting speaker of the house Nancy Pelosi holding the article of impeachment for Donald Trump. While it was argued that this was a pointless endeavor as Trump was virtually leaving office in a week, the main goal for impeachment was to prohibit Donald Trump from holding office ever again. The third image is the inauguration of Joe Biden as the 46th president of the United States, this event was made possible by the presence of the national guard, where 21,000 soldiers were deployed to make sure nothing as similar as January 6th could occur. The streets were empty as roadblocks and military utility trucks cordoned off the area, massive fences were erected surrounding the structure and soldiers patrolled the area. Largely, it was believed there was going to be nationwide attacks on several capitol structures throughout the nation in response – yet nothing of substance happened. The final image, and my favorite, would be the assault on Wall Street. This is an insane story, so I’m going to be a little less formal but this is an incredibly significant event, it is an instance of effective class-warfare. I’m not going to explain stocks, but essentially what happened is hedge fund investors made a bet that GameStop would fail, they took several ‘shorts’ out on this company to profit from this bet – however, redditors on r/wallstreetbets caught wind of this and thought “what would happen if their bet was wrong,” they began investing heavily into the company, raising its value, and as a result, costing the hedge fund billionaires thousands. These thousands in losses became millions, then billions, as more and more working class and middle class people threw themselves onto the market, to eat the rich. It wasn’t about profit, about making a return, it was a message. Eventually, this fiasco showed Americans that there essentially is no such thing as the ‘free-market,’ as these large hedge funds began blocking people from purchasing stock, forcibly selling peoples stock, using their own funds to facilitate an artificial ‘scare.’ People lost so much after the initial manipulation, but it proved that the market was only free for the rich, that once anyone else began to emulate the fraudulent strategies of the wealthy elite, they would be struck down. This is currently on going, but I cannot stress enough – it is not about money, it’s about sending a message that people are done. It’d be funny if the federal government intervened on behalf of wall-street by bailing them out, before sending out those measly 2k stimulus cheques. For the archive, this photo represents the pace in which everything moved in 2021, and the absolute absurdity of where we are today. To think, when this began we were planning on a few weeks at home, we’d make sour dough bread, then we began missing our friends and family’s – then we were in the streets marching for civil rights, and the ability for people not to be murdered by police because of the colour of their skin, fascists stormed the government, the ex-president is being impeached, again, now we’re trying to destroy Wall Street, this pandemic is absolutely wild. -
2021-01-29
Nostalgia in the Pandemic
For those who have been on the Internet for longer which is the norm, many will remember what memes were in their early days. This Twitter has been working on showing them off to cause both nostalgia and a tinge of nausea from things that have been sleeping deep in the back of some people's mine, including my own. -
2020-01-28
COVID Testing Troubles
I needed to submit a negative COVID test in order to go back to my apartment, so I went to a free drive-thru COVID test at my local community college. The lines were long, but surprisingly quick. However, I was surprised that I was not given a straw to spit my saliva into the tube with. In my previous COVID tests at my college, a straw was given. I had a bunch of saliva saved up in my mouth in anticipation, but I when I got my tube, I spit saliva on everything but the tube. My pants were drenched in my own spit, it was nasty. It was also kind of hard and awkward to drive through the line and spit at the same time. However, I was really impressed at how fast and efficient the testing process was. I ran into another issue later, when I got my test results via text but not through my official patient portal. I had to wait on call for around 20 minutes to request that my results be uploaded so that I could send proof of a PCR COVID test to my university. Despite these mild hiccups, I encourage people to get tested regularly if they think they have been in contact, or have symptoms. -
2021-01-26
Anti-maskers vs. The Scroll of Truth
This is a simple meme I created using the scroll of truth template in order to convey how I feel about those who seek to end the pandemic but refuse to wear masks. -
2021-01-25
COVID-19 STATISTICS AND MY THOUGHTS
When I first found out that COVID killed more than 2 million people and 100 million infected, I was so shocked. This realization made me extremely scared, and I vowed to be a better listener for COVID 19 guidelines. I also searched up how many people die in a year, and I was "relieved" to find out that 55 million die every year. This made me think about how little the death toll has changed, and this is good, because it means we can still recover from the virus. -
2021-01-24
Welcome to My Non-Smelly World
I am currently in the midst of a once in a lifetime experience that I never thought would occur. First, allow me to lay the foundation for this submission. I was born with a condition called Isolated Congenital Anosmia. In laymen's terms, I was born without a sense of smell. This is a rare disorder that affects between 1%-5% of the overall population.* I rarely volunteer that I cannot smell as it involves laborious conversations answering questions as to why and how it could have happened, what foods I can taste, or if I am sad or angry that I have this condition. People are well-meaning, but it gets old repeating this conversation multiple times, so I avoid it like the plague. Wait. Too soon? My preference to keep this close to the vest changed with the arrival of COVID-19. Those who have still not regained their smell after recovering from the virus are now temporarily just like me. It is surreal. Not so secretly, I admit I feel a tiny bit of satisfaction that they are experiencing a glimpse of my day to day life. As a result, I am now feeling the odd desire to tell anyone and everyone about my condition. I feel compelled to share advice and comments with this segment of society while wearing a hat bearing the words, "Welcome to my world!" Also, ideas of creating a Zoom course titled "How to Survive the No-Smell Apocalypse!" frequently come to mind. I can include concepts such as enlisting close friends or neighbors whom you force to smell your house before having people over, obsessively take the garbage out since you do not know if it smells, or the joys of surviving a dutch oven with zero consequence. Also, I will share my list of candle scents that anyone would enjoy smelling in your home. Hint: There is only one, vanilla. Trust me. I have tried them all using my family as guinea pigs. Finally, I feel like the art of 'fake smelling' is underrated and must now be remedied for society to interact with some sense of normalcy during this otherwise chaotic time. I will demonstrate the proper and accepted social reactions when smelling various odors such as used diapers, spoiled foods, lotions, perfumes, or (insert all world smells). The creme de la creme is learning how to emote false elation at the announcement of another semi-annual Bath and Bodyworks candle sale or when Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Lattes come around again. The ability to avoid drawing attention to yourself via 'fake smelling' cannot be underestimated. In conclusion, this pandemic has provided a unique opportunity for others to experience life through my nose. It is not something I would ever wish permanently on others, yet knowing that it is a temporary condition, I have found it to be a bit of respite in a dark year full of so many unknowns. Now can someone confirm whether my Jeep honestly smells like stinky teenage feet or if my husband is messing with me again? *Disclaimer: This measurement may not still be accurate but comes from articles and journals I have read over the years. -
2021-01-22
The Biggie Chungus
Funny meme that has two songs to go along with it. -
2020-11-10
Made the worst discovery of my life
Woman works with covid patients and wakes up one morning to discover she can no longer smell. In the video she goes around the house trying to smell different items. Her face becomes more distraught as she realizes she is not smelling anything. This is a popular Tic Tok video type right now. Many people's first sign that something is amiss is the loss of smell and taste. -
2020-12-01
Funny, First dose of vaccine side effects
@vivi.karkasi enters her home after getting her first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine. She notices some funny side effects. -
2020-12-24
Brother Says He Lost His Taste To Covid-19
Funny video by Makenzie McClure on Tic Tok. She says her brother claims to be unable to taste anything due to Covid-19. So she makes him what looks like a pumpkin pie, but she uses beans instead of pumpkin. Yikes! If this isn't sibling love I don't know what is! -
2020-01-20
Deep Clean the White House
A cartoon shows a masked President Biden and Vice President Harris in front of the White House with a clean up crew of sorts. -
2021-01-21
How We Lost the Summer
I used a meme for an item to describe my Quarantine and I thought it was a good example of what quarantine was like for me since I don’t like showing others especially my parents that I’m having a hard time even when I’m really stressed about so many things at once. 2020 in five words is boring because nothing new was going on since we had to quarantine, lonely because I couldn’t hang out with my friends, slow because every day was pretty much the same and it felt like it wasn’t going to end, different as well as frustrating because we had to learn in a new way and it’s not something that I’m really comfortable with especially with our wifi sometimes being really slow so it makes the meeting laggy. The holidays were barely any different from a regular day except for the fact that there was more food and on Christmas, we had gifts to give and receive. My workspace isn’t really much, just a desk with my school books and binders on the side, my computer in the middle, and a snack for the day in front of my black table lamp on the other side with my school supplies in the drawer. Three things I would include in a quarantine survival kit is my phone/book so I have something to entertain myself with, fuzzy blankets since they’re really soft and I like being cocooned in it and lastly is a bunch of boxes filled with snacks since I like to eat when I watch or read something. -
2020-01-12
Clean bum
Everyone needs to get a bidet! That is my pandemic hack. While everyone was out panic buying toilet paper me and my family were sitting pretty. A few years ago, I was invited to a symposium in India. My dad came with me for his first trip after retirement. I had never seen a bidet in my life and I sure as hell was not about to try it. But by the third day we were there, my dad confessed to me that he had been using the bidet and he loved it. I figured if my dad was willing to try it and admit to me that he tried it, I might as well try it out myself. Let me tell you! This invention is not common in America. I went forty years without ever even seeing one. By the time we left India I was hooked. A clean butt every day all day! Yes! I procrastinated on buying one when we came home but eventually, I ordered two. They stayed in that Amazon box until… that is right. Until the great toilet paper shortage of 2020. We watched on the news of mayhem at the grocery stores and fights over TP! Getting close to our last few rolls we decided it was time to break those bad boys out and install them. Ahhhh heaven. Warning though, teaching kids how to use this is a learning curve. Some minor flooding was involved. Once the shelves were stocked again, we did end up buy a huge box of toilet paper for the boys. But toilet paper still disappears from the store shelves whenever there is a new shut down. We are pretty proud of ourselves whenever we can’t find any toilet paper! -
2021-01-06
COVID-19 potato story crizmiz christmans story christmas
my crizst maz chenge because insted of meeting with FAM i was VIbiNG AT HOME and that was diff 😂 lmao. Another thang that changedddddddddddddddddd is i had to vibe at hawm insted of going to somewhere like hawai wheir it is hawt. ThIs was very unpoggers and was not epicnessPOG. -
0021-01-04
My experience in 2020
Well when I am sad I usually watch Mr. Beast's Gaming video's and that makes me laugh and smile especially when Karl gets banned from the servers. -
2021-01-04
Stuck at Home
There is a lot of free time, cant decide what to do, be lazy or be productive? -
2021-01-04
covid 2020
because it shows how bad covid was -
2020-12-25
Nicola Sturgeon defying everthing meme
Nicola Sturgeon showing what she thinks of covid mask wearing and brexit -
2020-03-01T05:00:00-06:00
how my personality changed over quarantine
when I was in sixth grade, my personality isnt like how it is now. I got more confident, intelligent, and have tried making my parents proud while having some traumatic experiences during quarantine. This is important to me mostly since I relate to this character on a personal level and hes helped me out a lot. -
2020-12-18
Life of A Schoolboy
The picture I uploaded is just a meme about 2020. But the schoolboy is not dead, I am the schoolboy. And sharing my life here has no purpose besides doing the assignment I was given. -
2020-03-27
Alberta health minister ‘needs to step down’ after angrily confronting doctor over Facebook meme: analyst
Political scientist Duane Bratt says Alberta’s health minister needs to resign from his position, or be removed from caucus, after it came to light he and his wife went to a doctor’s personal home and angrily confronted them over a meme. -
2020-12-14
Pink Bean
This Image that I put of is related to this topic because even now when life is hard as these times, but there is always a way to solve these problems. -
2020-12-11
Flu Files: Globalization During a Pandemic
This assignment for my media class aimed to develop our historical analysis skills as well as apply them in our research. In my interpretation, I pick up on globalization during the pandemic of 1918 which compares to our current pandemic in the way that highlights its impact in prolonging its stay. Like everyone who has been in some way affected by COVID, it is frustrating to see the many ways that we could collectively fight it yet are prevented for one reason or another due to more "pressing" issues which overshadow it. In some ways, I hope that my analysis shows the way globalization has evolved throughout history and continues to influence decisions which cost the lives of many in times like these. -
2020-12-11
When I Figured Out That Life Might Not Be Normal Soon
Before COVID I didn't really like my life. That was mostly due to lack of sleep and the fact that I had been spending way too much time analyzing the social hierarchy of my seventh grade class. I felt alone at that point in February. Now I laugh at that feeling, because I didn't know the true meaning of alone. In early February I had started practicing for the track season and I was acing all of my classes. The closure of everything and the cancellation of sports was made worse by the fact that my high jump coach had told me that could potentially jump 5' 5" this year (that easily qualifies you to go to state championships in high school). Right before Kobe Bryant's death I first heard the word coronavirus. I dismissed it knowing that I never knew anything about current events and that it would pass. The week after the basketball legend died in a helicopter crash, I heard that unfamiliar word again. This time I asked what it was, and nobody could tell me much. All I got out of my friends was that it was a flu-like virus that was tearing through China and soon after that, Italy. My first inkling that this virus was going to be a big deal was when my best friend's mom went to 3 different stores to get 20 bottles of hand sanitizer. Of course it was a joke at that point, but after that the 'jokes' came fast and furious. First, panic over a group of students that went on an art history trip to Italy. Next, one of my classmate's parodies to the song "Break My Stride" based on the coronavirus (he sang it during English class and our teacher seem rather unnerved by it). After that, the first documented cases in the US and the beginning of the toilet paper shortages. Then, a joke about the coronavirus solving the problem of overpopulation in Asia. All of this leading up to a phone call in which my family was informed by a doctor that our school would be closed down within the next two weeks. -
2020
The Pandemic Shown Through Spongebob
This particular screenshot of an episode shows Squidward looking through his blinds at Spongebob and Patrick as they seem to be enjoying themselves and having fun. So, the reason why I decided this best expressed my experiences during the pandemic is because it shows mine and many others efforts to stay-at-home to lessen the spread of COVID-19. I remember the first time when the pandemic affected me. I was a member of the Ventura College History Association and we were having a meeting around mid-March of 2020. There were rumors that the college was gonna shut down due to the pandemic worsening, even some of my professors warned us about the potential of having to switch to online classes. So, during the meeting, the advisor of the association received an email stating that the college was indeed gonna close the campus and switch to online classes. This was the moment when I first realized how serious the pandemic was getting. So of course from this point on, many people and I have been adhering to the guidelines and restrictions that have been placed to stem the tide of the outbreak. Meanwhile, those who ignore the guidelines go outside and sometimes don’t take the necessary precautionary measures like mask wearing or social distancing risk getting infected with COVID-19 and risk infecting others who may be at a higher risk of the disease. I’ve personally only met with friends about twice during the whole duration of the pandemic when it was a bit safer to finally hang out with them, albeit with social distancing and mask wearing of course. Now with the rise in cases going up exponentially, especially as the United States is entering winter which could potentially increase the spread of the disease, we have been issued a new stay-at-home order here in our region of California. But again, the cycle of those adhering to the guidelines and those who don’t has been repeating again. -
2020-11-19
43 Days left...
It has been a long year, but the ending seems so quick... -
2020-11-17
Zoom calls with strangers a face with no makeup, these are a few of my favorite things
A Tik Tok video covering so many changes that have happened with the pandemic, an original sound by Nina Nesbitt. The video makes fun of zoom calls, not wearing makeup, and ordering food and other items online. It definitely captures how challenging it is to stay home, the struggle of interacting with other people, and the tendency to give into vices as a coping strategy. -
2020-03-25
The Battle of Costco
HIST30060 - submitted as part of a history assignment. Again, like many other memes I encountered, this one comments on how the events of this year will be studied, but more importantly how they will be remembered (as emphasised by the almost commemorative nature of the statues). Humorously depicting parents and two children racing with an overflowing trolley full of food toward the check-outs as though it were a battle scene, this meme seeks to ridicule the absurdity of purchasing and hoarding mountains of food during the lock-down period. It suggests that violence in the isles and the toilet paper crisis that saw people literally fighting each other in order to obtain toilet paper will not be looked upon favourably by future historians or students. The way that the figures are carved in stone and the title of ‘The Battle of Costco (2020 A.D.)’ positions the audience to view the image in reference to other major historical conflicts and to find this one, humorously, falling short. -
2020-11-10
Repetition of Plagues
HIST30060 - submitted as part of a history assessment. Many of the memes, like this one, comment on the cyclical nature of history and the inescapability of the repetition of disasters. By drawing attention to other plagues of the past - all of which occurred during the 20s of their respective centuries - the image preempts the current ‘plague’ or pandemic. The accompanying image taken from the 2014 film ‘Big Hero 6’ and the comment ‘I have some concerns’ (an understatement to say the least) add an amusing note to the alarming message. Much of the humour found in these memes and images contained words ‘read’ in a deadpan or resigned tone - or otherwise the voice of one who is no longer surprised by the current turn of events. Again, there is a resounding feeling that this year has been a strain as one disaster after another occurs. -
2020-05-31
The history book of 2020
HIST30060 - submitted as part of an assessment for a history subject. A significant number of the memes I found commented on the incredible number of ‘disasters’ or disruptions that have had a global impact this year (suggesting that this number is far more than anything to occur in the last decade). The disasters referenced in these memes concern a range of instances including the Australian Bushfires, the “threat of World War III” (with the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani by drone strike), the Covid-19 pandemic, the American Murder Hornets, the explosion in Beirut and the American bushfires. The ‘disasters’ or global events that feature in the memes span almost every continent and every sphere from environmental (e.g. the bushfires), the social (e.g. the American race riots), the economic, the political (e.g. the explosion in Beirut and subsequent investigation into corruption) and health (e.g. the pandemic). This particular meme suggests that the study of this year will be an arduous task for history students of the future. -
2020-08-07
Everyone Needs a Mask!
My mum sent me this very adorable photo of my dog wearing a face mask to gently remind me to wear a mask while in public to keep me safe from COVID-19. In Victoria, masks have been mandated in all public areas since July, regardless of social distancing. My mum sent this photo to some of our friends and family too, to cheer them up during the difficult times Victoria was going through at the time with a strong rise in cases. She had also reminded me, like with how our dog Snowy was wearing it in the photo, to make to cover both the mouth and the nose for the mask to function properly. Snowy did not much like wearing the mask, but he certainly looked extremely cute in it! Although at the time when my mum sent me this picture she had meant it as a joke, unfortunately with the new strain of the COVID mutation rumouring to originate from minks in Denmark, the possibility of dogs or cats contracting COVID-19 perhaps isn't so far-fetched. Remember to wear a mask and stay safe! -
2020-11-08
Opening Up the Economy During a Pandemic
The government tried to open up the US economy too early, which led to more cases and slower progress in preventing the virus than in other countries. -
2020-11-07
Something Simple For You, Something Big For Me
This image is not the most extravagant or inspiring, yet the implications that someone having troubles with travel plans due to COVID-19 affects my life enough says wonders on how everything is changing and we as people need to adapt. I am a blooming adult like many college students and like a college student I have my fees and tuition and books that need paying. Fortunately, I have a loving mother who tries to support me as best as she can, and that involves helping me pay for thoses fees and other living expenses which I can never be more grateful for. Unfortunately, my mother works as a maid for the local Four Seasons Hotel, and is a damn good one at that, but due to COVID-19 hotels closed or have limited staff including limited bookings and guests. People cannot or will not travel due to essential factors caused by COVID-19, the hotel is closed or has limited capacities or has regulations that a surprisingly amount of people do not want to conform too. This makes people lose jobs, this had my mother laid off for months but luckily there are still people who travel and hotels are starting to reopen, so hopefully things can get to a place where no one has to get laid off and depend on government money. -
2020-04-01
Iso memes - HIST30060
This is a TikTok video created and uploaded by user @faunhub. TikTok seemed to become massively popular over lockdown, globally, with people using it make light of what was a very strange situation for everyone, as well as share useful tips and 'hacks' as such related to the pandemic. This particular video encapsulates how bizarre TikToks can get; user @faunhub is dancing tp a speech by Scott Morrison announcing the closure of recreational facilities, placed over a backing track, and making light of his mispronunciation of the word 'barre'. For me, this video and others like it helped to soften the blow of the multiple announcements of restrictions varying in severity and showed how comedy as a coping mechanism was applied in the context of this pandemic.