4/23/2020 Jason Chen PD1

Jason Chen

Period 1

4/23/2020

Modern Mythology 2020

What is it like working from home?

At first working from home was exciting because it would help prepare me to be more independent for college. I organized my desk and cleared out a working space in which I was able to complete work at my own pace and feel more productive in the comfort of my own home. But as time went by I started to be less motivated to work because I felt that there was nothing but work to do. Without the option of going out, I felt that every day I would just have to pass time until I’d inevitably end up going back to studying. From this, I’ve learned that working from home is effective but a change of scenery is much needed and in college, I will try to study in different places such as my dorm, the library, or even cafes.

What are you learning about your world/community based on the reactions?

Based on reactions, I’ve learned that in the beginning, not many people took the situation seriously and it shows in the number of cases in the US spiking to the top as shown on https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html. After seeing the numbers drastically rise people started to take the situation more seriously and there is a lot of worry about how long the pandemic will last. Also, I’ve noticed how badly the pandemic has hurt the economy causing many stocks to drop and businesses to close. The pandemic has caused a great panic that has pushed our economy into a recession and it is hard to stimulate the economy while also maintaining social distancing. From this, I’ve learned the importance of working together in a system to support each other, and the economy is held up by all the people who contribute and work.

Your own personal feelings on what is happening right now?        

In my opinion, this situation is very eye-opening in that this pandemic will go down in the history books and the experience that we gain from living through it is very unique. Also what I’ve thought about is how fortunate we are to have this happen in this age of social media and technology. If this pandemic had occurred even two decades before I wonder how much more detrimental it would’ve been with the technology we had back then. For example, we have Zoom and Google meets where we are able to continue learning and working from home. With social media, we are still able to connect with friends from all around the world. and now with food delivery services, we are able to have all our necessities delivered to our home. Even though the current state of this quarantine does suck I’m glad that we are able to come together and tackle a worldwide pandemic just by staying home for a couple of weeks.

Ying Dan Lin 4/24/20 Period 2 - Blog #3

Blog 3:

4/24/20 Ying Dan Lin PD2

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

New York currently has the largest number of cases and deaths in the US, with a majority of them in the New York City and Long Island area. There are over 250,000 cases and over 20,000 deaths. Some states have begun the process of reopening nonessential businesses but there are still major restrictions in place. The month of Ramadan just began but countries like Indonesia, with a large population of Muslims, are placing travel restrictions. With the coming of nice weather, many beaches worldwide and in the US are re-opening despite the warnings against it. We also see a lot of people heading to the beach despite being warned to stay away from large crowds. Just a few days ago, there were protests in 9 states against the stay-at-home order. In light of the ventilator shortage, many individuals and companies have turned to developing ventilator prototypes that are low cost or easy to access. 

What are you learning about your world/community based on the reactions?

The pandemic is really highlighting the good and the bad that the world has to offer. It’s really bringing into light all kinds of people. In my social media feed, I see a lot of racism and discrimination but I also see all kinds of efforts to quell it. Messages of support from teachers, students and all kinds of people around the world are received and shared. There are also a lot of really selfish people out in the world but I guess that isn’t surprising. In sociology, we learned about how when people feel like they are in immediate danger, they will prioritize their own and their circle of people’s well-being first. Of course, there are exceptions of truly altruistic people who are willing to help others despite putting themselves in potential danger. Those are the stories that make you believe in humanity again.

Your own personal feelings and thoughts about what is happening right now.

I really don’t like quarantine and living in fear that something will happen to my important people. I recently spoke to my grandmother in China and it left me so sad. She was telling me about how they had just recently begun lifting the lockdown in her hometown which is a coastal city on the southeastern side of China. They aren’t supposed to mingle outside but they can go out to do essential business now. My parents keep telling me stories about the harassment of Asian Americans and it makes them scared to leave the house. I’m also just really tired of staying at home. I miss going out and being able to hang out with my friends, in person. I understand that this is for the best and safety of everyone but I really hope that my senior class and everyone graduating high school this year can get to start college on time.

Tracy Liang 4/23/20 Period 2 - Blog #3

• 4/23/20 Modern Mythology 2020
• Tracy Liang PD2
• What is it like working from home?
• Working from home has been alright so far in my experience. Although we have more time to work on classwork and homework, I don’t feel as productive as I did in school. In school, we had rules in class such as putting our phones away and working quietly with no distractions. This allowed me to work without thinking about other things. However, at home I can tell that I get distracted more easily and nobody is telling me to put my phone away. We students also get to decide when we want to work and when we don’t want to work. This gives us a lot of power which for some people like myself might be too much to handle responsibly. On the other hand, I know a few people that have been working better at home because for them, they know themselves best which leads to them working more productively. In my opinion, working from home consistently is a struggle for many but I do appreciate how some of us are able to work at our own pace. We aren’t being rushed at home and are able to take our time to thoroughly understand the material better. 
• What are you learning about your world/community based on the reactions?
• I’m learning that the world is really unprepared for situations like these and we should take this experience as something to learn from. The USA started preparing later than other countries which led to more deaths than expected. We also had more time to prepare but many of us didn’t take the situation seriously which caused widespread panic in many medical facilities. While this may be true, I also see many communities coming together during these hard times to donate and do what they can to help people in need. For instance, I watched a video where a restaurant packed lunch to ship to a hospital and that warmed my heart. However, I noticed how some people aren’t taking the situation seriously and aren’t abiding by the rules by going outside in groups. These types of reactions cause fear in me because I see people taking their lives for granted and others’ lives as well.  
• Your own personal feelings and thoughts about what is happening right now.
• My personal feelings and thoughts are in a bunch about the situation occurring at the moment. I feel sad as a senior for my fellow seniors as we are in our last year of high school. We will not be able to get this time back and many of us want to experience the last times we will have together. While I feel that school is stressful for many, it’s also a way for us to interact with our friends and connect to others. We are stuck at home because of the quarantine and not being in contact with others causes us to realize the many things we take for granted everyday. On the contrary, I realize that many of us are still alive right now and that should also be something we shouldn’t take for granted. People in the medical field are out there risking their lives for the sick while most of us are safe and sound in the proximity of our own home. I think that we should take this time to grow as people and figure out our personal schedules that fit us best.

4/20/20 Georgiy Mamchyn PD 7

Georgiy Mamchyn Period 7                                                                       

04/23/2020.                                                                                                 

Announcements: Blog  

What is it like working from home? 

Working from home presents us with many opportunities as well as several drawbacks.

Personally, working from home has been very beneficial as i had to learn how to schedule

my day so as to be productive. Having to go to school or go to work takes up a very big

chunk of our day so when we are forced to work or study from home it opens up all that time

for us and gives us an opportunity to schedule our day in any way we see fit.

That is a huge opportunity for me as it adds around 7 hours to my day. I can use these 7 hours to be

very productive and not only do school work but also learn a new valuable skill or do

physical exercise. However, the main drawback of working or studying from home is

consistency, without consistency there is no progress. When we work from home we are

more likely to get distracted and thus not finish what we set out to finish that day. As long

as we can stay on track and be productive, working at home could be more beneficial than

going to school or going to work. The other drawback of working from home, especially

during a quarantine, is the fact that it limits human interaction which could have a big

impact on the way we act in social settings. 

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

According to BBC News there are now over 2.6 million confirmed cases of

COVID-19 in 185 counties, at least 184k people have died from this pandemic,

and at least 670k people have recovered from it. In the United States alone there are 841,056

cases of people who have Coronavirus and at least 45k people have died from it.

According to an article called “Coronavirus in New York: Latest Updates” published by

Chas Danner, Matt Stieb, and Benjamin Hart, and Adam K. Raymond In New York State

alone there are more than 260k confirmed cases of Coronavirus and more than 15k people

have died from it. 

Your own personal feelings and thoughts about what is happening right now.

As much as the situation is scary it is also at times beautiful. Seeing communities and people

come together to help one another in order to get through this pandemic motivates me

to do better as it makes me happy seeing people uplift one another rather than throw dirt

at one another.

Links to the Articles: 

1. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-51235105
2. https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/new-york-coronavirus-cases-updates.html

4/23/20 Taya Podvorchan PD 7

4/23/2020

Taya Podvorchan

What is it like working from home?

I personally don’t like working from home. I feel tired, angry, and I lack the

motivation I need to complete any schoolwork. I struggled to pick up a routine at first,

but now things are a bit better. While calculus is still a struggle (especially having to teach

it to myself), I now see a few silver linings. I’m able to work at my own pace and try to

understand the material given to me. Teachers are very understanding and I’m thankful that

they are trying to keep us positive through this ordeal.

What are you learning about your world/community based on the reactions?

Never in my life have I been more grateful for living in a gated community. Our

whole community, which feels more like a family, has been helping me through this transition.

I am lucky enough to be able to see my close family friends and be able to take walks with them

since none of us have left the gate. I spend hours on roofs, watching sunsets, and listening

to the ocean. Our small little gate grocery store, which before was just a place for kids to buy

snacks, is now well stockpiled and makes sure everyone has what they need. When my

mother needed cardamom for special Easter cakes, the lovely owners made sure they had

what we needed. My neighbors, who have a dance studio, allowed us to come and film videos

that I needed for dance auditions and scholarships, as long as we cleaned up after ourselves

and wore masks and gloves. I learned that all the stories about animosity towards others

during a crisis are false. I am thankful to my community and its people for helping each

other and making sure we are all getting through this.

Your own personal feelings and thoughts about what is happening right now.

As a senior in high school, this is obviously a difficult time. I feel like I am being selfish

by being sad about missing prom and graduation because people are dying. When I cried to

my friend about how my parents would never get to see me graduate high school after they

moved to America, she laughed and said there are bigger things to worry about in the world.

I think seniors are allowed to feel upset at all that is being taken away from them. We’ve

heard for many years about how amazing prom is, how liberating it is to throw your graduation

cap, how exciting it is to show up to Decision Day with your future university, and now that

it’s all taken away from us, we are supposed to be okay with it. Some seniors couldn’t play their

last season or sing or dance in their last show. I feel upset at myself because I could have it

much worse, so I should be thankful.

4/21/20 Kyle Chan PD1

Kyle Chan

Period 1

4/21/2020

Modern Mythology 2020

What is it like working from home?

Working from home is slowly becoming more and more challenging, mainly due to me personally being someone who likes change and not sticking to a routine.  Everyone in my family is currently working from home so there are a lot of calls and silence that has to be kept in order for everyone's work to be respected.  I enjoy having a teacher's input into discussions because by myself, I may not see the full picture and teachers bring up valid points that could further discussion and thought.  This repetitive cycle of work that we received has become tedious and being at home constantly doesn't make it any better.

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

Currently, masks are being required to be worn at all times when they are outside.  Social distancing should be practiced, people should wash their hands and be very cautious about germs, and people should try not to horde resources.  The coronavirus can stay in the air for around 3 hours, more than enough time to spread to other hosts.  It can also stay on different materials for various amounts of time so we should all sanitize anything that has interacted with the outside.

Your own personal feelings and thoughts about what is happening right now.

Personally, I feel disgusted at what is happening.  I want to see my friends and I want to go outside and have fun, but because I want to keep my family safe, I cannot.  Being stuck at home is not that bad, but actions get repetitive and tedious.  With the social distancing rule in place and it being enforced by the police, I was disgusted to see a group of around 5 people walking around my neighborhood without masks, right next to each other.

Fanny Li 4/22/20 Period 2 - Blog #3

What is it like working from home? 

Working at home has not been the most exciting thing to do. Before social distancing started and we were confined into our homes, I thought that we would be stuck inside for maybe 2 months. It seems great to wake up at any time I want to and get the work done from each class before the deadline. There is more time to do each assignment which is the benefit of working from home. However, I would much rather learn in a classroom setting because I want to hear what everyone has to say about the reading that we had to do for that day and what Ms. Fusaro has to say. Working from home is not terrible but I would choose to go to school over it any day.

What are you learning about your world/community based on the reactions? 

In our world/community, there is a great amount of us who are staying home and respecting the orders that were given to us because we want to help. However, there are also a lot of ignorant people gathering in public spaces and in large groups because they either don’t care or don’t think it would affect anything. Currently, there are people protesting against the stay at home laws and fighting for their freedom. I think this is very unnecessary and they are doing it for selfish reasons. All of us want this to be over and for the world to get healthier. The best thing to do would be to stay home and practice good hygiene. 

Your own personal feelings and thoughts about what is happening right now. 

I personally feel that with everything going on in the world right now, we have to be there for each other through it all. The world is a scary place right now and there are a lot of people dying or infected. I think that in order to help, we must stay inside unless it is absolutely necessary for you to go outside for whatever reason. I do hope that after this is all over, the seniors will still have time to hang out with their friends before college starts. I feel upset that this is happening this year, the year that we were supposed to go to prom and graduate, but the best thing that we can do right now is to be positive and hope for the best.