Items
Item set
Brooklyn College
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2020-03-25
The life during pandemic
The life difference before and during the pandemic -
2020-01-01
The real pandemic
during the covid 19 pandemic everybody was panicking and worrying about getting a vaccine. i just moved here from another state and i left my mom and brother back home. they lived in a bad neighborhood so during the pandemic they was not only afraid of the covid pandemic but the violent pandemic that plagued the streets where they lived. during the pandemic i lost both my mom and brother to gun violence. -
2020-02-14
COVID-19: From Italy To New York
In February of 2020, from the 14th to the 22nd, I was on a school trip in Italy. It's safe to say I was having the best time of my life, until I became ill towards the end of the trip. I felt extremely lethargic and fatigued, my nose and throat were as stuffed as could be, my voice was gone, and my body was consistently hot. It wasn't until I got home from my trip that I suspected my illness was COVID-19, because I was informed that the exact day I returned home from Italy, Venice went on lockdown. I had been in Venice at the beginning of my trip. My suspicions heightened once my mother, father, and sister all got COVID-19 several days later, yet I was healthy as a horse again. In the weeks I had been quarantined with them, I hadn't gotten sick again. Now, this is my earliest memory from quarantine, and quite frankly one of the only memories since the days began to mesh together. I remember time no longer felt real, and I tried to pass it with as many activities as possible. The family began solving puzzles and playing more board games. I was playing more of my instruments, including piano and ukulele. I listened to countless albums and new artists. But, in all of the good, there still remained some low points such as overeating and inactiveness. I'm sure everybody can find pros and cons in their quarantine experience, definitely more cons for some. But, I just wanted to share what I remembered from my own experience. It's the story we always told people when they asked if we ever got infected; I'd say I'm pretty sure I came home from the best trip in the world only to infect my family and almost immediately go into lockdown. -
2020-04-10
Good Friday
It was early Friday morning and I could not fall back asleep. I kept hearing murmurs from the room next door. My stomach began rumbling and I began to worry. Something was definitely off. My feet touched the cold floor and my hands grazed the doorknob but someone else on the other side beat me to opening the door. My dad's face was covered in fear and worry. I asked him what was wrong and like parents do they shield you to protect you from bad news. He told me everything was fine and to go back to bed. Minutes passed but it seemed like hours and I still could not find sleep. My dad burst into the door and told me to call an ambulance for my mother because she was having trouble breathing. My hands began to shake, my body was trembling as I picked up my phone and dialled 911. I stood in my parents room watching over my mother and her saying her last goodbyes to my brother and I. I could not even manage the words out of my mouth as I spoke to the person over the phone. It all happened so fast. My younger brother and I were imploring my mom to hold on and that help was on the way. Within minutes the paramedics arrived. They checked her vital signs and determined my mother was fine and was having a panic attack. That was the day my life changed. Everyone in the world was going through this. Who would have thought we all would have been in a lockdown. My mother became overwhelmed with the situation. Everytime you would turn on the TV, Covid-19 was always headlining. Hearing ambulances come and go every so often right outside your apartment. Sometimes even hearing people cry at the top of their lungs because a family member had passed away. People losing jobs and not being able to work. It was hard hearing all of this. It became such a burden to her that she herself got ill. However, going through this experience helped my family appreciate one another even more. We helped each other out and we enjoyed the small things whether it was making a joke or watching a movie. Funny enough it happened right before Easter as well and my mother being religious and all saw it as a sign. In a way we did have a lot to be thankful for. A second chance to rebuild our family. -
2021-09-27
Unexpected
It's a descriptive story of how covid has affected my life and its important to me because it has a long term affect. -
2020-12-09
Life in the Pandemic
My life in the pandemic was tough. I couldn't work so I was not able to pay my bills, I like the rest of the world during lockdown had to sit at home bored out of my mind because nobody could leave. I was very scared for my mom when she got covid because she had oxygen issues and also heart issues. Going to school during the pandemic really bothered me because I lost a lot of focus and became very lazy when it came to handing in assignments. I would rather physically go onto campus because when I am actually listening to the professors' talk, it makes it so much easier to understand and to focus. -
2020-03-15
A Pause on Life
It was March 2020 when the world found out about this new virus called the corona virus (Covid19). This virus hit the news, and my parents began to worry. It was still the beginning doctors were beginning to learn about it, not many people knew the much about it. On March 15th I started my day like any ordinary day. I had a salad for lunch, while eating my salad I realized I couldn’t taste anything, but I didn’t think much about it. At this time the symptom of losing taste and smell was not a symptom for Covid 19 yet. I mentioned it to my mom about me not being able to taste and she answered by saying “that’s so strange dad can’t smell or taste either.” I still didn’t think much about it I thought we both have a cold, but I thought it was strange that me and my father can’t taste or smell. I soon realized that it was a symptom of Covid 19. After realizing I panicked and called a doctor to get tested and sure enough me and both my parents tested positive for Covid 19. I was in shock because it was so early and I didn’t think that I out of everyone in the world would catch the virus. And just like that the world paused, business closed, restaurants closed, you couldn’t be around your friends or extended families, and we all had to stay home. Unfortunately, the timing was not in my favor. I was planning on getting married on June 4th, however at the time I wasn’t worried, I kept thinking to myself this virus will go away there will be a vaccine and by the time June would come and I can have my dream wedding. As time passed, I realized my dream wedding would be crushed. It was a hard time, every day in quarantine my wedding plans were put on hold and I wasn’t allowed to see my fiancé. I cancelled my invitation order and altered it to 20 invitations instead of 700. I wasn’t allowed to get my dress altered because everything was closed. My father had to cancel the venue. After being let down I came to a conclusion that I still want to get married on that date with just my close family. And so, it happened. I replanned a wedding to my grandmothers’ backyard. I had my ceremony with only my close family and afterwards my friends joined. It wasn’t the wedding I was supposed to have but it was the best wedding I ever had. At the end of the day it taught me a lesson a lesson that life isn’t about the external objects or flamboyant events, but being surrounded by the people that love and care for you is all that matters. I was so happy and so appreciative that I was able to have the most perfect wedding. I believe Covid 19 was a wake-up call for the world. It allowed people to focus and work on themselves, realize what the true important things in life are, and to understand the significance of life. -
2021-08-14
Beware a Pandemic
As we approached our second year of the Covid-19 pandemic things like mask and disinfecting door knobs just became a norm to me. Unconciously, I wouldn't think of Covid-19 as the virus Id just live life with the existence of COVID. I am known for my obsession of believing a single cough could mean I'm at a near death so mentally I was just exhausted. After some time I began to worry about my two year old daughter, she was starting school at a special needs program which I could not wait for. I knew my daughter's progression was one of my top priorities but what about her health and well being? I couldn't help but think "What if there is COVID in the school?" I kept my company very small as I lived alone with my daughter. The only time we were exposed to other people was when she visited her dad on the weekends, but he too was very cautious. A week into my daughters schooling I finally stoped worrying and celebrated my cousin's birthday with her. A day later my cousin had called me with the news that she was COVID positive. My mind raced as I graphically remembered my daughter sharing a bite of a burger with my cousin, it was almost no doubt in my head that we were infected. I got both of us tested that very day and we were negative but I had knowledge on this infection I still held my breath as I knew I had to retest in two to three days. After three days when I planned to get tested I woke up with soreness in my eyes and a headache, I explained my pain to my boyfriend and he had said that he felt that pain too. Minutes after I got tested and I was positive my daughter was already at her dads house so I told everyone to get tested and everyone else was fine. Two weeks, fourteen days in quarantine drove me mad. I suffer from depression and something about being completely alone triggered me. I could not eat my symptoms continued to change. I lost my taste and my sense of smell. I couldn't walk or stand for too long but honestly my common cold from a month back felt worst than this. The mental and emotional aspect of this situation is what really hurt me. I was so alone and worried I missed my child and her dad had to take off work for a week. I barely had any money and I just felt like I couldn't reach any type of human interaction even with my electronics it wasn't the same. On my tenth day of COVID I went to retest and I was negative. The after mass of Covid took a toll on me. I lost 16 pounds and I already had issues with my weight personally. My stomach felt faint and empty for weeks after the virus was gone and I felt like I did not want to go anywhere. I decided to still quarantine for the full fourteen days just to be safe and rest. My daughter's school (which she wasn't attending due to not being home) called and said someone tested positive and that school would be closed for two weeks. My mom whom I haven't seen in weeks also called on the tenth day to tell me that she had a fever and went to get tested, another positive. I felt trapped almost as if I couldn't breathe. Getting back into the real world without seeming like a hypochondriac was so tough but just like the virus things change and I was over my anxiety. All that's left now is to worry about the long term effects... Who knows what the future might hold. -
2020-02-05
Dancing through the Pandemic
I have never experienced a pandemic like COVID-19, most of us have not. When we were told to stay home, quarantine and social distance life just became static. I moved into somewhat of a virtual reality, taking online classes and working from home. However, being home everyday without any socializing or going to the gym became really depressing and I had a hard time focusing on my work. One day my sister and I were sitting on the couch, over with pandemic life and she says "let's have a dance party". We blasted music throughout our apartment for hours and just danced all the pressure and stress out. We did this at least 3 times a week for months during the most difficult times of the pandemic. It became something we looked forward to. It was the best decision we have ever made. Not only could we destress but we had the time of our lives and it brought us closer as a family. -
2021-09-15
A Story From A Chinese Immigrant In The US
I will share my story that is about racism because of Covid-19 -
2021-03-12
A Long Week
Text Submission about my personal experience with COVID. -
2020-10
A Journal of a Plague Year
The object I am uploading shows us how fashion is also impacted by Covid, it is really interesting. -
2020-03-20
The city does sleep
At the start of the pandemic, I was facing home insecurity and was living in a shelter for three months and special housing for 6 months. The city was the most empty I have ever seen it. Ive seen so many people, homeless people, because of the pandemic and it was devastating. It isolated people. -
2020
Brooklyn College HNSC Prompt
Brooklyn College HNSC assignment prompt, taught by Margrethe Horlyck-Romanovsky -
2021-03-30
Pandemic Life
I'm going to be discussing how the COVID 19 pandemic affected me and my loved ones. -
2021-08-22
What COVID-19 Meant for My Mother: A Latina Small-Business Owner’s Experience in the Bronx.
The item I am submitting is a pandemic auto-ethnography detailing the disproportionately negative impact of COVID-19 on Latinx businesses. I do so through the narrative of my own family's experience, specifically my mother, as well as supporting academic research of general demographic trends. This piece speaks to how the pandemic, while in and of itself does not discriminate, has proportions of its impact that demonstrate a systemic bias leaving certain racial and ethnic groups less protected and far more targeted than others. The piece also connects how these discrepancies are not products of the pandemic, but rather were already systemically there and exacerbated by the pandemic. -
2020-06-04
Guerrilla Gardening in the Time of COVID-19
The operation will take only a few minutes. I don my mask and slip the gloves and pruning shears into my back pocket and take to the streets. Walking briskly, I pass a row of 1900s brownstones, each with a small garden plot in front. On this block the specialty is roses, and every home seems to have a different variety growing. Towards the corner, there is a house with its iron gate ajar, and an overstuffed mailbox by the front door. I had already removed two small bags of garbage and moldering cardboard and a crushed toy fire helmet from the front yard, and also ripped out a row of mugwort that was blocking the big rosebush. I don’t know what variety they are – a peach-colored hybrid, with massive blooms that bent the rose stalks down. I deadhead the big old roses and the stalks spring up, attempting to gash my face. One does nick my arm, and I wipe the blood off on my mask, not thinking that I have left a red splotch of blood in its center, like a tiny pair of lips. Pretty soon I have collected about thirty roses – all massive and past their prime and bring them home in a plastic bag I brought with me. I don’t think anyone would mind, and I am sure the person who planted these roses doesn’t mind. A hybrid rose plant like this needs a lot of tending, but the blooms are enormous. As part of my quarantine routine, I take walks in the early morning. After a while, I got tired of seeing weeds hiding the “nice” plants and began reflexively pulling them. It was fun! Especially after a rainfall, when the weeds pulled out so effortlessly. After a few minutes work I would have a sheaf of shepherd’s purse, lambsquarter and mugwort under my arm. Fortunately, there is always an empty construction yard in our rapidly developing neighborhood, and that’s where most of my weeding crop ends up, lobbed over the green construction fence. Nobody has ever bothered me, except for the times older women will ask if I eat the weeds. Since the trees planted by the city have little tags on them that give tips on how to take care of them, including one that instructs citizens to keep the tree pits free of weeds, I consider that my carte blanche. “I work for Bette Midler!” I want to tell somebody, but nobody asks. Some houses show evidence that they were owned by gardeners that took a lot of pride in their plants but abandoned them this year. I see mugwort and lambsquarter cropping up in beds of well-tended plants –gardens that might have received some care earlier in the season but, for some reason, have been untouched these past few months. I reach over and – yank –problem solved. I know they would do it, if they were able. One home I pass by regularly had an infestation of mugwort that covered some nice lilies and other shrubs. After a few days I had cleared all the mugwort out, and stopped by every so often to rip the tiny mugwort sprouts that persisted – some of the roots are tough, baseball-sized clumps that live for years, and you often find odd things wound up in them like bottle caps and corks. This past week, our local news had the notice of the death a Haitian doctor in our neighborhood of longstanding repute, who had died of COVID-19. For the obituary, they showed not a photo of the man, but of his doctor’s office, which was the old house where I had been waging my war against mugwort. So many have died in our neighborhood – so many gentle people who once sunned themselves in front of their houses and apartment buildings and maintained the cheery tradition of saying hello to all neighbors. When they moved here, Flatbush was cheap, and a family from Trinidad or Guyana could buy decent homes for an affordable price, in what was then a highly unfashionable neighborhood. The untended gardens of my older neighbors are hard to miss, when you know what to look for. “Maybe they just went out of state, you don’t know,” say my kids, when I showed them the peach-colored rose bush I had been surreptitiously tending. They were horrified, and nervous that I was breaking a law. My daughter even closed and latched the small iron gate, while sternly looking at me, warning that I could get arrested, or worse. But I’ll be back. Those roses need me. -
2021-03-26
Choosing between Work and Health
This short piece shares the struggles and experiences of choosing between working as an essential worker and worrying about my family's health during the peak of the pandemic. -
2021-04-04
LIVE LIFE
During this pandemic, being in quarantine in my house made me realize that life is really short and that you you cherish every moment you have, especially with your loved one. This showed that you should enjoy life and share it with the people around you. -
2020-03-12
Living with family during the pandemic
December 2019, I moved to my cousin apartment in the city of New York I had just given birth to my son in September of 2019 and had my daughter who was eleven at the time. I was suppose to stay two weeks upon waiting for an apartment, however it didn't work out the way I had hope and I stayed at my cousin home three months prior to the covid -19 pandemic. My cousin and her mother decided since it's the pandemic and I can't go anywhere dur to the stay at home orders I had no other choice but to stay and pay rent. It wasn't easy because I felt that I wasn't in my own element and I felt like I was a teenager again. My own family talked to me like I was a kid and I was told what to do and what not to do. I had to sleep on my cousin pull out chair for several months during the pandemic. I questioned myself why did I came here. I consistently kept looking for an apartment, which It had turn into a year living with my cousin. Apartment hunting became very frustrating because of the demands which requires getting an apartment and no renters wanted anyone who was receiving unemployment. it's the year 2021 and I still live at my cousin apartment which is frustrating because I need my own. I ask everyone I know to keep an eye and ear open for me to get an apartment. My friend call me one day in March of 2021 and said he found an apartment for me and if I'm still interested? I am currently moving out of my cousin apartment, Thank God. -
2020
The Systemic Implications of Asthma During Covid-19
Coping with pandemic anxiety as an asthmatic residing in the Bronx. -
2021-03-02
Quarantine Silver-Lining Moments.
It is quite obvious that the Class of 2020 all share a collective disappointment with graduating via zoom but I personally had no problem with it. I honestly believed that it was a blessing in disguise, I didn’t have to sit in the hot sun and wait for my name to be called, wait there awkwardly as the teachers give an mediocre speech about me, and lie to all my classmates face when I claim that’ll I miss them and promise to keep in touch. In the beginning of Virtual Learning, I was the happiest I’ve ever been, which was due to the majority of my teachers teachers that were having a difficult time adjusting to online learning and were only able to assign one work sheet per week. During the first week of the pandemic, I was able to actually find my true self, my dislikes and likes, my ambitions, and my fashion sense. Although it got tiring staying home for the majority of my time, I still preferred to stay home and keep my safe from this deadly virus compared to actually having a social life, I learned that I appreciate my company and being alone more than I thought. As some may find quarantine completely damaging to their mental health and are unable to spend their days inside, it did the opposite for me, It improved my mental health drastically and gave me time to begin my journey of self-love and because of this I honestly would not mind if New York implemented yet another lockdown. I believe it would be beneficial to everyone because it would not only flatten the curve but it could potentially allow us to have less restrictions during the summer. -
2020-03-13
my covid experience
My covid experience this year is probably a lot like others. I've lost family members to this pandemic my close friends lost loved ones as well. There are a plethora of people I know who have lost their jobs, gained severe diagnosis of anxiety and also depression. Being stuck in the house for all those months with family was a very strenuous task and it was also very debilitating as well. While the covid outbreak started my family and I were sent into a frenzy mentally and physically. My mother lost her job due to the pandemic and I had to pick up more hours at work and do other side jobs to somewhat help with the expenses as well also during this pandemic i was also in school. Attending Brooklyn College during the pandemic was a very difficult thing to do especially due to the fact that we had transitioned to online learning, something I or my teachers haven't really done in some time. The social distance learning that was implemented was a very difficult concept to grasp because one day we go from attending class everyday to the bombardment of information being thrown at us and us as students expected to keep up and also the teachers having to make sure they kept up with the requirements. School, going to work and worrying about the well being of others and myself put me into a state of worry at all times sort've giving me mild ptsd. I hope that this time next year this covid situation will be gone and we can go back to living the way we were. -
2021-01-25
My Covid-19 Reflection
I caught COVID-19 in January 2021 after being around a family member who was positive. The trail of transmission could’ve been my aunt to my cousins to my mother then to me and my brother but it is still unclear. I firstly got a headache one night then went to bed. I woke and felt my throat feeling tight and dry and had a very bad headache, with congestion, fever and body aches/pain all over. I did not want to eat, just wanted to stay in bed and sleep. It was very difficult because it was also my brother and mother who were sick with the virus as well. I tried to make as many herbal remedies as possible for me and my family. I made teas that helped expel mucus from the lungs and throat as well as garlic, honey, elderberry, zinc and vitamin C, B-12 & D. The first two days that I was sick, my fever was over 100 degrees and I had to take Ibuprofen. To help with my body pains I tried to stay out of the bed and keep my body moving. I lost a lot of weight from not eating as much and my body working hard and using energy to recover. What was very interesting about this experience was that I would feel empty even after I ate food. This strange feeling lasted few days after my COVID symptoms were over. It was discouraging because I got my regular appetite back and could not smell or taste at 100%. Everything tasted very plain no matter the amount of flavor. During this experience I was not very worried. I just knew I would get better quickly and remained positive. -
2020-03
My 2020
This is a story about how my life was during the pandemic in 2020. It tells the story of how isolated everyone was because of social distancing. A whole year just went by but I still felt like my life was a standing still. It was my first time being in the city since the lock down and it was scary to see how empty Times Square was. -
2020-03-12
Empty shelves during the beginning of the pandemic
I am sharing a video I took at the beginning of the quarantine period. People were panic buying food and other necessities while leaving empty shelves for others. I remember entering whole foods to pick up some bread, pasta, beans, and non-dairy milk because I can't have dairy. As soon as my cousin and I entered Whole Foods— the baked goods were fully stocked but the non-perishable foods were almost gone. I remember turning to my cousin in shock because the fresh fruits and vegetables in the lower level were fully stocked. I asked an employee where the bread and non-dairy milk was and they said, "I don't think we have any more bread. I stocked it a couple of hours ago and when I went back o check there were a few bags left". The employee guided us to the bread section and it was indeed empty. I thanked them and decided to look through the other aisles and the aisle that was the most apparent was the one I recorded. There were people with professional cameras taking pictures of this aisle and others (such as myself) with our phones recording. So many people were just as taken aback by the lack of food in many of these aisles. I already knew that this virus was serious but when I saw the number of people buying food and toilet paper and paper towels in bulk, I felt worried and nervous. I knew from the media that people were stocking up on non-perishable foods and that supermarket lines were really long. But seeing it first hand and seeing people coming to the aisle expecting to see a can of beans available or a bag of bread, only for it to be empty. This is a moment that I won't forget and the overwhelming feeling that this virus could affect anyone. -
2020-07-20
Staying Fit & Eating Healthy During This Pandemic
This pandemic has been one of the hardest things I ever had to go through. I think its safe to say that most individuals across the world have been negatively impacted by COVID-19. I personally found it very hard to eat healthy & remain fit. When COVID-19 began to grow to pandemic proportions, the world shut down. Communities full of small business that were once booming began to close down temporarily while others dissipated as the pandemic continued throughout the entire year. As the gym’s began to close and supermarkets became congested to apocalyptic proportions, I found myself inactive at home for weeks trying to eat whatever was most convenient at the time. This meant heavily modified and processed foods like cup noodles and mcdonalds through a delivery app. Overall, I found myself weighing about 20 plus in less than 3 months. As I looked at my body in the mirror, a fire lit inside of me and motivated me to do something about my current living situation before its too late. I began to workout at home shadow boxing while lifting a 60lbs sack of rice as well as cooking some of that same rice soon after. If there was no rice left, i’d use a huge cat litter sack. I believe that home cooked meals and home workouts has temporarily caused me to go back to the BMI I had before this pandemic took a toll on me as well as millions around the world. I look forward to becoming a Phys-Ed and Health teacher in the future because this pandemic has thought me how important being healthy is as well as how it may impact the wellbeing of millions around the world. If I can promote healthy behaviors that my potential students can follow for the rest of their lives, then I feel like my job is done. I support the idea that in 2020, In specific COVID-19 will go down in history as a tragic event much like the Spanish-flu. Millions were left without a job fighting to pay rent while balancing school as well as the wellbeing of their children. The homeless population and obesity increased. To me this is a crazy time we are living through but I will keep my head up and bare for what may come soon after since I'm confident this is not the last time we will go through a pandemic. -
2020-04-12
Living in a pandemic
Losing opportunities and losing family makes us think about many emotions and things that should be cherished. -
2020-06-11
Taking Charge
COVID has definitely impacted all of our lives. Despite all the damage it has caused, the virus had some positive consequences. Some of us developed closer relationships with our families. Many of us found new hobbies and developed new passions. For myself, I found a passion for healthcare. Hearing stories and watching news reports on the chaos occurring in our hospitals, made me feel impotent. So, after 3 semesters away from school, I decided to come back and focus on finishing my bachelors so i can enroll in a nursing program. -
2021-02-12T12
The Celebration of Chinese New Year
I photographed this picture at the time of Chinese New Year. Even though we all live in Brooklyn, we reduce the time of visit because of the high infection rate. Finally, we got a moment to sit together and chat about the things that happened this past year (After making sure everyone is safe to attend this short and small dinner time). -
2020-03-11
just as you thought things will continue the way you want it to be for your entire life comes a new disease that could change everything within our daily lives especially students who are doing all that they can to reach that Goal for it to be accomplished. with covid 19 being the forefront of not only this country but around the world it can our sense of normal can be in danger.
my experience when dealing with the pandemic is something new that i didn't think it can occur within a lifetime based on how it's being portrayed by not only in the media but how it's describe from doctors and experts within the health field in which in thend makes it confusing for the majority of individuals. because when covid 19 first hit the U.S last year that is when everything change especially with schools because instead of going to school in person which this is the place where we go to meet people face to face including professors and others in different departments we transitioned online. my experience with being transitioned to online was a bit challenging because this is something that i feel would take time to adjust to the new form of learning regardless of the circumstance that is not in my control especially since i'm a returning student at brooklyn college who is very used to doing it the old school way which is in person learning -
2019-04-16
The one where we were quarantined
quarantine has truly been an experience like no other although there has been plenty bad there has also been some good I enjoyed being able to be home with my family more and get to bond on another level much like how we did when we are younger we got to do things like bake, tie dye and watch movies I do wish it was under different circumstances but none the less I am happy I was able to be with my family. -
2020-03-28
B.I.G Changes
During Quarantine, I began my online small business. I took this opportunity to share my art with the world and make it accessible to people who are looking to buy. I started with this painting that was immediately sold and that is what made me start my own art page. -
2020-04-09T13
Adapting to New Life Style
I was one of those people that when the warnings of a virus was coming I did not think much of it, and me being an only child, my parents were always concerned about my safety. They made me wake up early in hopes to catch a bus with less people to go to school, made sure I washed my hands for 20 seconds every time I came back home. I still always went out with my girlfriend and hanged out with friends. Luna Park was also reopening and I got an invite to work there again. I was really excited and then we hear the news that quarantine has begun. I decided to not take the offer even when they send the email that they promised great care for the staff. Most of friends and their parents got sick and I started to take it seriously when my best friend's father died. It was a big group of friends that knew each other for a long time so it was a very sad time for all of us. Later however my mother did get sick but she did recover quickly and me and my dad were lucky not to get sick. We were not able to return to work however our church did help us when it came to food and our landlord was very understanding and allowed everyone in the apartment to pay rent until 3 months. It was difficult to make that money. Things have progressively gotten better and I've always been much more careful outside especially with me having asthma effects of the virus could be much deadlier to me. These experiences made me learn to take the pandemic more seriously and take care of myself and my family -
2020-07-04
Podcast In a Pandemic
During the pandemic, I've decided to create a podcast with my friends discussing relationships and social issues relating to men and women in their 20s. The idea came to us after we decided to turn our daily debates into content -
2021-02-28
When The Impossible Becomes Real
The item I am submitting is about how I saw things changing during this pandemic and how it affected me. -
2021-02-28
Surviving the pandemic
It is my personal experience of the pandemic. It's important to me as I've fought my inner insecurities and battles. I'm still coping with the stress caused by this pandemic, but it is getting better and I hope it gets better for everyone else too. -
2021-02-28
Me Versus covid
This is a short written by myself, it expresses the pain and emotion that emerged since the beginning of COVID-19. Although the poem contains a lot of humorism it captures raw expressions, raw emotions all the same time. -
2020-12
Black New Yorkers within the Pandemkic
The piece is detailing the real experience of Black New Yorkers specifically Black immigrants within the pandemic and the lack of governmental support afforded to these marginalized groups. -
2021-01-20
By Any Means
I lost a father figure during the pandemic who also happened to be undocumented. I connected his life and experience to the overall struggle that undocumented people have been facing due to the pandemic. I also emphasized on their perseverance to survive the COVID-19's financial catastrophe by using one of the few options that they have available: street vending. In general, it reveals the systemic denial of the resources that are essential to surviving the pandemic to undocumented workers, even if they are tax-paying individuals. -
2021-02-14T07
The Covid-19 pandemic
The document that I uploaded is about my personal experience with the COVID-19 pandemic and my feeling about it. It is important to me because I think these experiences will be record in the history, I believe in the future the COVID-19 pandemic would be wrote in textbooks -
2020-05-07
Screen Grab English 7800 Spring 2020
This screenshot shows three students and their instructor in a moment of silliness on Zoom, where we attempted and mostly succeeded at engaging in rigorous academic work while keeping one another sane and grounded. -
2021-02-14
Essential vs. Expendable Workers
When the pandemic broke out, I was caught in the whirlwind of being an essential worker. I was a manager at my local McDonalds, so I've seen just how cruel people can be, and how corporations have continued to neglected their workers. Many people are minimum wage workers, and its frightening to know that such a large population is suffering so much, only to receive little appreciation and change. Through my personal story, I hope to have readers step in the shoes of a minimum wage worker than a pandemic, so when they step out, they'll raise awareness on the issue of lack of support and care for minimum wage workers. -
2021-02-14
My Story: I Got COVID-19 Because of ICE
I am sending a diary style writing where I share my experience during the pandemic. I focus on the issue of ICE during the pandemic. Before the lockdowns, my uncle was detained by ICE and was deported during the pandemic. My uncle has been living in the US for 25+ years and Mexico, my uncle's home country, has changed a lot since he last lived there. For that reason, I went to Mexico to take him home. This made me get COVID. -
2020-03-15
Remorseful Disaster
This story is an ongoing experience for me as my family and I try our best to continue bearing with the lockdown. I wanted to share how things are at home because not every family is taking this situation with the same positivity. -
2020-03-24
Covid-19 affected my life on eating habit, sleeping habits, and emotional wellness
When the pandemic started, it affected my life. Before the pandemic, I attend class on campus from Monday through Friday. I will have to wake up super early around 7 am or 8 am to get ready for class. After class ends, I will rush to my part-time job and begin working. This is what I do every day and I feel like this is what life is supposed to be like. After the pandemic started, I needed to stay home and attend an online course. When attending online courses, it gives me the anxiety of worrying whether I will pass the course or not. It is my first time attending the course online and I’m scared that I might not catch up with my education. I lost my part-time jobs and my parents stopped working due to the pandemic. I started to worry about the family income and planning to get a job. However, it is hard to find jobs during the pandemic and it is too risky for going outside. I started home every day and felt bored to the point I felt emotional numbness. My eating habits and sleeping habits change. I sleep almost the whole day at home and it causes some aches in my head. I often feel like I am lacking energy and easily tire. I also lack the motivation to do anything and think that the world is boring. I sometimes skip breakfast and lunch when I wake up at 4 pm when I sleep too much. These eating habits and sleeping habits are bad for my body. I decided to change a little to fix my health and I will start from sleeping and eating first. I feel like I need to find a goal or something to do in life to keep my motivation. -
2021-02-19
Looking back at 2020 - A COVID 19 infested year
As a student in my last semester in Brooklyn college, I was looking forward to an easy semester with electives since I was done with all of my major classes. However, a downfall for me was that there was a very interesting internship which I wanted to proceed with but couldn’t because the program was no longer available because of budget issues that were caused by the coronavirus. This internship was going to provide me with an insight of what my career will look like but that never happened. As an employee of the city of New York, I was still required to work in some form. For example, instead of coming to work physically we transformed our workplace to “zoom” meeting where our work would be done in 2-4 hours and we would still get paid for 8 hours. I saw this as an opportunity to take advantage of since I heard other employees who requested to still show up physically and were dropping like flies with the corona virus, one after another. However, mid-year, around June or July, employees were required to help out in other agencies such as the 311 center because of the increase of food shortages and other aid citizens needed. Eventually, in September we were allowed to go back to work physically – something I was looking forward to since I was more comfortable being where I knew the place and the people. Mentally and physically, COVID 19 prevented me and many others from staying physically active which led to me gaining unhealthy weight. It was a nonstop binge of eating and just sitting down. Granted, there were opportunities to go out for a walk or work out in the park – but those were chances that I wasn’t going to take because I knew I have a mother with underlying conditions which I had to do everything to prevent her from getting the virus. One thing that I did learn to do during these times is to cut and trim my own hair. Also, this was a perfect time for me to enhance my skills in freehand sketching since thats something I'm good at. Nevertheless, COVID 19 was an experience like no other that everyone had to grow through, and we continue to just learn and grow from it. -
2020-04-05
New York Through the Pandemic
I am uploading pictures during the pandemic that I took. It shows how empty the streets/bridge were that are normally crowded with thousands of people and cars. -
2020-12-01
Senior Year mixed with Covid-19
In 2020, I was a senior in high school receiving my high school diploma and my associates degree. I worked so hard for 4 years, taking so many college courses and pushing myself so hard at a young age to get both degrees. I was very upset when I had my senior year taken away from me. It was like I didn't know what hit me. March 13, 2020 was any normal day until we find out that was the last day of high school and seeing our friends for a while. I still tried to make the best out of the situation. My year was ruined and to top it all off I couldn't even enjoy time with my friends due to lockdown. Up until the summer if 2020, everyone was very cautious, but then people acted like the outbreak didn't exist. Sadly, I fell under that category of people. My friends and I decided that a good way to celebrate graduation would be going on vacation to Mexico. Of course with my luck guess what gift I came back to NYC with? YUP, covid! I'm not going to lie it was the scariest days of my life. I never took anything so seriously until after I had it. I was apart of the lucky people who had slim to none symptoms and only for 2 weeks. Ever since then I have been extremely cautious and paranoid of getting sick again, even going to the supermarket I'm paranoid. This was covid-19 experience so far and hopefully epidemiologists can put an end to this outbreak soon. -
2021-02-16
My Covid-19 Experience
The emergence of Covid-19 definitely took me by surprise. I remember discussing in one of my classes on the Brooklyn College campus of how potentially serious the virus was in early March of 2020. The majority of the class agreed that the virus was probably not going to get out of hand and it was just being over-covered in the media. Then a couple weeks later, we were stunned of how quick the situation surrounding the virus in the U.S. became which lead to Brooklyn College shutting down the campus and going virtual online. It was an overwhelming and challenging experience adjusting to having five classes from in person to online. What made it more challenging was contracting the virus myself in April where I experienced extreme fatigue, chills and a fever a couple nights, and lost of taste and smell. Through it all, I kept my faith in Jesus and trusted Him to heal me from the sickness and get through the semester. Thankfully, I passed all of my classes at the end of the semester and recovered fully within a couple weeks. My entire family was infected with the virus including my parents but they overcame it as well. Lastly, seeing all of the death totals on the news and staggering scenes such as freezer trucks taking bodies from hospitals to be buried or cremated were both alarming and saddening. What gave me hope was the general high survival rate despite the high number of reported infections and my faith in Christ who warned us in through the Bible (Mathew 24:3-8) that perilous times would come in the last days, including pestilences. As the pandemic continues to evolve, I continue to pray for those who lost loved ones, our country and the world that we would all become stronger, wiser, and closer to Jesus after this unfortunate experience.