Sabrina Zhou 5/11/20 Period 2 - Blog #3

In an ideal world I would be consistently caught up on the myriad of assignments that I have to do, and make an entry for this blog full of World War Z discussion points, without a hitch, but it is AP Week, and this is not an ideal world. 

So here I am, 10:56 pm, Monday May 11. It is a beautiful day to be alive. Minus the momentary hailstorm today and the creeping outside virions. 

Blogs are made of feelings, so here are mine. Working from home, I’ve found that I have the ability to teleport without knowing it. One moment I’m at my desk, typing up a storm for some assignment, the next moment I’ve teleported down that stairs and am standing in the kitchen nibbling a cookie, the next moment I’m in bed, at 3pm, sunshine streaming through the curtains, but lying in bed nonetheless. No, I have no idea how I got there. Clearly I must be teleporting.

It’s also fun looking on the news, since every few days the TV broadcasts an adorable celebration of an elder who beat Corona, or an appreciative party/ get-together for the medical staff working so hard. In times of crisis, people are more supportive and united. It is so sweet seeing strangers gather for the simple reason of being grateful, or happy, and celebrating. Even if being in quarantine has dulled our sense of community, it’s still there in its most optimistic forms.

A final feeling: I remember one of Andrew Cuomo’s speeches (he’s the governor of NY, by the way) — he references the pandemic as a learning opportunity. If it had to happen, we as humans must learn from it, and the next time, we won’t make the same mistakes, and we’ll recover faster. He mentions the little generation, how the kids are all small and scared, but they are now prepared for the next pandemic (which hopefully never happens, but mother nature is scary!), and that is what we must do as well. Resolve is key, guys. :)

By the way, typing up a blog at 11 pm is quite the fun activity when listening to Airplanes by B.O.B. I love that song. 

Happy Mothers Day people. Let’s all collectively wish our natural mother, Mother Nature, a happy mother’s day (ha! See what I did there? NATURAL mother? Mother Nature? No? Darn it.). With enough well-wishes, she might be in a good enough mood to rid us of corona.

5/11/20 Edmund Yuen PD 7

Edmund Yuen #33 

5/11/2020 

Period 7 

Modern Mythology 2020 

What is life like working from home? 

I already expected this pandemic to be this severe so I had already made some preparations beforehand for remote learning. It hasn’t been that different from regular work at school as we still go over the same materials, except a lot of the personal learning that we can experience from our classmates and teachers have been lost as we are generally looking at them through a screen for a majority of lessons. I have been getting a lot more sleep as classes now start at 9 and I no longer have to make an hour and a half commute so that’s one of the major pros. 

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

There has just been a major outbreak in the White House and many officials are now self-quarantining, including the leading doctor, Dr. Anthony Fauci. As states are now reopening, the death toll may rise drastically as people start gathering once again. Regions in New York State, including Rochester County, are now beginning to reopen as they now meet the particular requirements. However, a mysterious illness has been infecting young children lately and any experts believe it is related to Covid-19 and is investigating into that. 

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

I was hoping for this Pandemic to blow over quickly, and I hoped for a vaccine to be quickly 

developed. However, after over 2 months in quarantine, a lot of my regular discipline has 

disappeared. Being on the MSIT track team, we have to train daily so we can maintain our 

running physique. Even though I have been keeping up with core, I have not been able to run 

every day as I should. It’s partially because of Covid-19 and I don’t want to run around possibly 

spreading the disease, and it’s partially because I have lost all of my motivation. This outdoor 

season was meant to be our last opportunity to create new Personal Records, achieve greater 

things, and win more medals but it was abruptly interrupted by this pandemic. Now that I don’t 

have anything that I am particularly working towards, I find it hard to lace up my shoes to go on 

a run. However, I don’t think this is a valid reason for me to stop. Even though I don’t have a 

goal to work towards, the discipline running brings would be extremely valuable later on in life. 

Perhaps I’ll go on a run today after all. 

5/8/20 Alicia Yu PD 7

Alicia Yu #32

5/8/20

Period 7

Modern Mythology 2020

What is it like working from home?

I think working at home has been more harmful than helpful because of the way I retain information. In order for me to really focus, I would need to be in a classroom setting where I am being taught by a teacher in front of me. Although my current classes are doing online meetings, I don’t find it having the same power as learning in school. Also, since I tend to procrastinate a lot, I find it hard for me to plan my assignments to be done in a timely fashion since there are so many distractions at my disposal. 

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

I have been seeing many different reactions from all sorts of people during this pandemic. Some people continue to brush it off like it is no big deal while others refuse to step outside of their house. With many videos surfacing on the news, I have seen a lot of discrimination against Asian Americans and the presence of xenophobia in our society today. There have also been a lot of anti-lockdown protests happening right now, which I find ridiculous. These protests seem to be fueled by the president’s downplay of the virus, which I believe is not what he should be doing considering his voice holds a lot of influence towards his supporters. Also, a few days ago, I read on the news about a security guard who got shot after telling a customer that they needed to wear a mask in order to enter the store. After hearing this, I was very disappointed at what the world has come down to and I am starting to see that there are a lot more ignorant people in this world than we’d like to admit.

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

I find it crazy that just two/three months ago we were still going to school living our normal lives and now we are in the middle of a pandemic. I definitely feel like America over exaggerated their readiness to battle this virus before it hit us this hard. As of today, there are over a million cases in the US alone and I find it shocking that people still don’t take social distancing and something as simple as wearing a mask seriously. For the majority that are following the directions of social distancing, I think it is helping the number of cases to go down everyday and hopefully this can be over within the next few months. I hope everyone continues to stay safe and we can all get through this together.

5/8/20 Kenton Zhang Period 8

Kenton Zhang

Period 8

May 8, 2020

Blogger #32

Modern Mythology 2020

Write about what you learned in your online English lessons.

The most recent English lesson I had was about the historical and cultural origins of zombies. I already knew about the idea of Haitian voodoo zombies and the practice, but I never put two and two together and realized that the practice and the modern interpretation were one and the same. We were shown an article about someone who had taken a picture of a woman who was supposedly buried in 1907 and was found alive as a zombie 29 years later, and I’m very interested in this story. I want to know how it was eventually resolved, if at all, and what really happened with this picture. Was it a fake picture, or just a different person, or something else? 

Beyond that, we also learned about the impact of Night of the Living Dead on the societal outlook on the zombie medium, which is a movie I’ve personally never seen but have heard of. It’s weird to me to think about how monsters like the vampire have been around for hundreds of years, while the contemporary idea of zombies is much more recent in comparison. I really did learn a lot about zombies that I never knew before.

What is it like working from home?

I honestly like this working from home feeling. I can do my work at my own pace instead of having to do it all in 45 minute increments, I can take breaks when necessary, and whenever I’m hungry or thirsty or need to use the bathroom I can just get up and go without having to ask anyone for anything or waiting until lunch. I have a somewhat regular schedule, so I’m able to get into a new rhythm and get accustomed to this new lifestyle. Maybe this working from home has also allowed me to procrastinate more and get distracted more easily, but that’s definitely something I can fix should it become a problem, and I can hyper-focus on things well if I have to. My biggest concern is what will happen should we start physically going to school again, because it would be a very sudden change in schedule, and I’d have to throw away everything I’ve gotten used to during this time. I’d be losing over two hours of sleep as well, and neither my body nor my brain would enjoy that at the beginning. At the same time, while I am fine with this work from home schedule, we probably will have to go back to school eventually, whether it be later this year or starting in September, so I’ll have to adjust anyway.

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

I think this is pretty scary. Now that America has hit over a million cases, which is leagues beyond any other country, I’m a little unsure on what’s going to happen. We’re going to need something huge in order for this to die down, and that’s not even including all of the other countries still being impacted. This year so far has been absolutely crazy, and not a very good sign of things to come. I’m grateful that me and my family are ok, but I’m extremely worried about my family who don’t live with me, especially my grandparents. I just hope that somehow everything will turn out ok in the end, but I just can’t be sure.

5/7/2020 Kevin Wong PD 7

5/7/2020

Kevin Wong

Period 7

Hello all! I hope you are well in this strange and monotonous time as we are all quarantined at home. 

What is it like working from home?

I’ve found during this quarantine that I have a hard time working from home as I often want to just sit back and relax. You may also be feeling this way too. 

This is most likely because of our brains associating the comforts and confines of our homes as a time to unwind. When we have our normal schedules, we usually come home and maybe do some homework before having a time of rest.It’s why it feels much harder to go on 4 or 5 hour long work sessions at home than outside. That’s why I go out and read a book in my backyard sometimes. It helps me revitalize myself before working again. 

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

While I am very unhappy at how other states are handling things, I am glad that Governor Cuomo is handling New York’s situation carefully. With all of the conspiracy theories that are being cooked up from this situation being caused by 5g to it being a scam and not actually existing, it makes me wonder how uneducated some people are on the whole situation. The ignorance of others makes me worry that everyone will pay a price because of it.

I also have a newfound appreciation for all the social gatherings we have in NYC. I feel isolated and distant from all of my closest friends, even though we talk daily online. Humans are a social species and these quiet and separate times makes me love my community so much more. I can’t wait till we can all come together and meet up again. 

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

With 43 states reopening or planning to reopen soon, the country will either start to rebuild the economy, or coronavirus may start spreading again, creating a setback to our economy. While I do understand that the U.S. needs to kickstart the economy, I worry that many states are reopening early. With so many states reopening all at once, the virus may spread even more with mass opening of so many states. New York plans to not reopen until certain guidelines have been fulfilled, and Mayor DeBlasio said that NYC may not even reopen until September. 

Selena Zhong 5/8/20 Period 2 - Blog #3

Selena Zhong

5/8/20

Period 2

Blog #3 - Blogger 33

1. Write about what you learned in your online English lessons.

Before reading the article “A Zombie is a Slave Forever” as a part of the May 1st Lesson for the Day A schedule, I had thought that zombies were a result of a wish for perfect immortality gone wrong, or was synonymous with a relentless plague of sorts.  I learned from the article that the idea of zombies first came from a strategy used by Haitian slave owners to use the slaves’ West African/Voodoo spiritual beliefs to keep them in line.  They spread fear amongst the slaves that committing suicide would not allow the slaves to return to heavenly Africa like they had hoped for in death/the afterlife, but instead turn them into eternal mindless laboring zombies (forever trapped as slaves under their cruel masters).  Overall, though, the main message that has gone unchanged to this day about the modern zombie is that you should never want to become one because then you would no longer be in control of your own being and suffer forever (monstrous urges to kill/eat humans, etc.).  Nowadays, zombies hide in plain sight of society in the form of repetitive workers who seem more like emotionless machines than vibrant free people (underpaid menial workers, certain citizens of authoritarian entities, even people who are “slaves” to their obsessions like to their jobs/phones or social media, etc.).

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

According to the Worldometer, there are now almost 3.9 million cases of COVID-19 globally with nearly 270,000 deaths and 1.3 million recovered (as of May 7, 2020).  Since mid to late April, China has begun reopening businesses and returning to normalcy by restarting schools, gradually allowing people to return to work, etc.  However, numbers of confirmed coronavirus cases in other parts of the world elsewhere are only rising, with the United States and its epicenter New York at the top (1.28 million nationwide and 319K in N.Y. with 178K in NYC alone).  As cases increase in the U.S. and other Western countries, social problems have also begun to come up about disagreements regarding social distancing, demands to reopen the economy, blame for the coronavirus, etc. 

For myself, I have seen the news about discrimination and violence against the Asian-American community and many other minority groups, especially those that are still working (because they’re essential workers) during this pandemic.  Asian-Americans have been receiving a lot of hate and racist crimes like their businesses being vandalized/robbed or individuals being assaulted in public spaces because fear drive people to blame the minority for bringing/spreading COVID-19 to entire communities, etc.  If that wasn’t enough, now there is speculation by media and others that China (the first country with recorded coronavirus cases) was hiding key info about the virus from foreign countries, thus implying malicious intentions.  Anti-lockdown protesters in states like Colorado and Michigan have also been targetting nurses and healthcare workers (who counterprotest) because of some claim that the death toll and seriousness of the coronavirus pandemic is all a lie and not enough to allow infringement on their personal freedoms and livelihoods.   Many protesters against stay-at-home orders issued by the state governments seem to be avid Trump supporters, white supremacists, and those for the 2nd amendment (right to bear arms/guns).  Overall, all of the news related to the coronavirus now seem grim and negative to me as I see people turning against one another due to different beliefs regarding how to deal with the pandemic.  Republicans versus Democrats is still an ongoing political battle with the presidential election of 2020 still scheduled for November (and with Trump’s recent inactions to address the coronavirus such as supporting the anti-lockdown protesters, indirectly suggesting people intake disinfectant chemicals to get immunity to the virus, etc., dissatisfaction with him or strong relentless support for him are dividing the country).  Basically, even in this time of crisis, I see that people are still quite vocal about their feelings on certain issues and everyone has different opinions that some are willing to use extreme force to make happen (Ex. a security guard at a Michigan Family Dollar store shot because he refused service to a customer who was not wearing a mask OR Ex. McDonald’s employees shot & hurt in Oklahoma City after telling a customer to leave due to coronavirus restrictions).  Shaking my head at all this….

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

Being a young Asian American teenager who is about to turn 18 (and who is currently living in heavily coronavirus-affected NYC), I am not very optimistic about future prospects.  I sometimes fear that my parents who are the only ones in my household who go out to buy groceries or essential items/work will become infected & fall deathly ill or face discrimination from strangers outside despite us living in NYC my entire life.  It has already been nearly 2 months since schools have closed down and I’ve last stepped outside of my house (and I’m pretty sure I’m not alone in this).  I’ve committed to my chosen college already, but right now I don’t even know if I can even go experience college life I had always hoped for anymore.  Although the occasional news or videos I see on Youtube about people giving back to one another or supporting/applauding healthcare workers and each other (acts of kindness in this time of need) do cheer me up, the reality is that a vaccine for the coronavirus, probably the greatest and most absolute solution the problems we are seeing now, won’t be ready for administering until mid-2021 (18-24 months from now as predicted by experts).  Everyone is surely thinking the same thing as me right now: How the heck are we going to hold on and keep our sanities until then?! 

5/7/20 Leyao Yang Period 8

Leyao Yang 

5/7/20

Period 8 

Modern Mythology 2020

What is it like working from home?

As a person that likes to procrastinate, working from home hasn’t been much of a pleasant experience. Many of my teachers are working hard to organize online meetings and materials to post online, making learning at home more bearable. However, this whole remote learning gave us so much power over our time, deciding when to start or stop working, that it’s very difficult for people that lack self-control like me. I’m definitely learning more about time management as we go, but keeping the motivation to work at home became another challenge. 

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

This pandemic truly opened my eyes to how big and how different our world can be. We see essential workers and our medical staff working hard to combat the outbreak, but we also see constant hate crimes and racism towards Asians. With increasing numbers of protests to reopen our economy, we’re seeing the selfish and ignorant side of humanity. It was shocking to see the picture of city parks from a few days ago, closely gathered humans having picnics, sunbathing, vast majority without masks. Personally, I empathize with those that need the economy to open for money to survive, but to see those so privileged putting the wellbeing of everyone at risk for sheer entertainment was ridiculous. In addition, propaganda really showed us its power during this outbreak. Being exposed to both western and Asian media, I’m once again shocked at how different the reactions are. I think it’s quite interesting to see how this contrast reveals the different beliefs and culture that they have. 

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

The reality of our current situation is hitting harder than ever, yet it’s hard to believe due to how ridiculous this entire year has been. In the beginning, it was me that worried for my mother and my extended family in China, but now, it’s them that are worrying about us. Being quarantined really forced us to face our inner thoughts and emotions. I am so thankful that I’m privileged enough to be able to stay home without having to worry about food or money. 

With all the free time we now have, surfing through the media for an entire day became the norm. However, I don’t like to constantly check for updates because of how easily one can drown themselves into negativity. There’s not much we can do but stay at home and hope for the best. Therefore, I just take a quick peek everyday, and try to find something fun I can immerse myself into. But most importantly, I hope everyone is staying healthy and happy.