5/13/20 Yaying Zhao PD 7

May 13, 2020

Yaying Zhao

Period 7

Modern Mythology 2020, Blog #3

What is it like working from home?

I’ve found that I enjoyed working from home more because I am able to work at my own pace. I like that I can still get work done and not miss out on much even with my sleeping schedule. I also like that I can do work in my bed, wearing pajamas, and eating breakfast. One thing about working from home is that I spent a majority of my time in bed. I haven’t been outside of my room – and to a greater extent, my house – much since the quarantine began but with the nice weather that we’ve been getting I might start sitting outside to do my work. 

Comparing the time my 2nd blog was written back in March 27th to the present, a lot has happened yet nothing has happened. 2 months have passed and a lot has happened but somehow everything feels the same, I didn’t realize it was already May until the AP workloads started hitting. Back when the quarantine had just started, everyone was just happy to stay at home all day. Now that the school year has officially been cancelled, a lot of the seniors lost the motivation to do school work. 

What are the updates around the world/community regarding the virus?

Globally, the COVID-19 cases have reached 4.39 million and 298k deaths. Nationally, we’re at 1.43M and 85k deaths. And New York state has 346k cases with 27k deaths, 193k cases and 19k deaths coming from NYC. While 3 regions in the upstate are set to reopen May 15th, the city might remain under lockdown until June. Some even speculate that the next school year could start online, as the second wave of the COVID-19 should happen around then. Around the U.S., more people are starting to leave their houses again. More than half the states are planning to or have already started up their economy and relaxed their bans. This could be dangerous as our numbers are still high.

Personal feelings and thoughts about what is happening right now.

While people are missing out on milestones, celebrations, and facing unemployment, I believe this quarantine should be maintained. There are nonprofits providing food, rent has been frozen, and milestones can always wait. All of our problems should be secondary to the wellbeings of the 382.2 million people living in the US. Personally I haven’t left my house since the quarantine began and my parents only go out for groceries but I live by the beach and I see a lot of people outside without their masks. On my social media, I see friends posting about people in their neighborhood hanging out in large groups even as the cases continue to increase. I see pictures of crowds having picnics in the parks and protestors claiming the first amendment when they’re protesting about being able to get their haircuts. The people that complain about this quarantine and still refusing to the restrictions are the reason why this quarantine currently has no end date. 

Although this situation is bad, it gives us a chance to spend more time with our families – especially since we’re seniors and most of us would be going away for college. However, with the way things are looking, our first fall semester might also start at home. So far, this year has felt like the shortest year possible yet so much has happened. The view outside my window remains the same but the weather is changing rapidly. This experience has taught me to appreciate what we have, a little more.