4/15/20 Colleen Jiang PD 7

Colleen Jiang

Blog #3

4/15/2020

Modern Mythology Period 7

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What is it like working from home?

Working from home is not what I expected it to feel like. Physically being in school and doing

work at home gave me more of a schedule and purpose. Even with times set in place for certain classes

to take place from this time to this time, it’s hard to follow. I think working has home has honestly

made me fall into bad habits and not like work in general. Having school from 8 in the morning

till 2 in the afternoon every day didn’t feel repetitive like the days do now. I’m more of a visual

learner and liked sitting in a classroom and learning. It’s hard to really take anything away and

feel like what we are doing has a purpose with everything that is going on. Every little thing

distracts me or I feel like I’m doing work to pass time and not feel bored. There are no class

discussions or questions asked because of remote learning. Learning now feels monotonous because

everyone just does the work to turn in homework and not get a call home or anecdotal. Even with

AP tests coming up, I feel no motivation to study or think about them. I liked having a routine

working at school but working from home feels strange. Personally I think younger me in either

elementary school or middle school would’ve found remote learning to be a dream come true

but being a senior makes it feel like a major loss. It’s strange to see my siblings doing their

work on their devices and then going about their day doing whatever to pass the time. I miss

seeing my classmates’ faces and doing group work in person or even discussing answers. 

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

Currently, there have been 1,981,239 confirmed cases in the world and the United States has

the most in the world surpassing China and Italy. The U.S. has 614,180 confirmed cases and

sadly New York itself has 202,208. The death toll in New York has gone up to 10,834. With

the numbers rapidly increasing, the PAUSE was extended to the end of this month. Our

president has also decided to cut the U.S, funding to the World Health Organization which is

causing a lot of backlashes. Our first responders are at increasingly high risks of contracting

the disease with our NYPD at 2,232 uniformed members and 568 civilian members. The

CDC has also reported that 9,282 health care professionals have contracted it since April 9th

and so far 27 have died. 

In my own community, a lot of grocery stores have shut down in fear of contracting the

disease from customers. My workplace has also decided to shut down and food is increasingly

hard to get for the elderly. The borough I live in has reported the 2nd highest amount of cases

in New York. Additionally, De Blasio has announced that schools will be shut down for the

rest of the year but Cuomo said it was not his choice to make and has yet to decide.

My own personal thoughts and feelings on what is happening right now 

Honestly, I am extremely upset and frustrated by the situation right now because of how

late NYC was to act. I think the numbers would’ve been way less if the quarantine was more

restrictive and taken more seriously. My parents are the only ones allowed to step foot out the

door and only to buy groceries when we run out of food. I haven’t stepped foot outside for a

little less than a month and I can feel myself losing my mind. Just a month ago, we were all

in school and excited about our senior year. I’m sad that we will most likely miss important

moments we’ve been looking forward to for 4 years but I am also upset because I most likely won’t see some of my family until we are off to college if we even get to go for first semester at

this point. I think there are too many people ignorantly going outside for no purpose but to see

their friends. Social distancing has been misinterpreted as a green light to go hang out as long

as you’re 6 feet apart. I think it’s extremely irresponsible especially because these 2 weeks are

when the peak will happen and determine if we can go outside after May. I want to be able to

see my grandma before I leave for college. Two of my aunts welcomed beautiful baby boys

into the world literally the week before quarantine but their boys won’t get to see the actual

world we live in because people can’t stay inside. It also breaks my heart that people are using

COVID-19 as an opportunity to harass the Asian community and be extremely xenophobic. I’m

afraid of what life will be like even when it is safe enough to go back outside because of the

ignorant people in this world. I don’t know how anyone is supposed to feel safe being on a crowded bus or train or even eating in a restaurant with people you don’t know less than a foot from you.

Senior year was finally coming to a point where the things we worked hard for were being

rewarded with us committing to colleges and finding roommates but honestly, nothing feels

enjoyable because of the surreal reality we live in. Even with all this being said, I am extremely

grateful that I am lucky enough to be in quarantine with shelter, food, water, entertainment,

internet, and my family.