356 24 26018 https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/7b8242ba913e8de80b04ad217a285fe7.pdf d4f60e91b9bec13eec148c83cc260094 PDF Text Text Going into 2020 all the talk that was going on was that 2020 was going to be the best year yet. After Kobe Bryant passing away in January, I knew this year was just going to go downhill. Although I didn’t think 2020 would be as bad as a virus that is making everyone sick, killing many loved ones of people and the whole country being on lockdown. COVID-19 was a huge adjustment that everyone in the world has to adjust to. I was not expecting this all to happen at all, due to the fact that I am not a person who watches the news often. Coming back from spring break and hearing about the virus and people talking about how classes are going to switch to be online, everyone including myself was happy. Of course, everyone was happy, not having to wake up early and walk to classes. Little did we know how serious this virus was, and now everyone is complaining that they are bored and can’t wait for this virus to be over with because everyone is sick of being on this lockdown and everything being shut down. I lived on campus, so when campus sent out the first message saying that classes are moving to online, I was in my college algebra class. Since this happened three days after spring break, I was still all packed up from that week of being home. Right when I got home from class, I packed up my car and went home right away. The thing is I didn’t know that I wasn’t going to live there ever again, so I didn’t grab everything, like my TV, kitchen stuff, entertainment center, etc. A week following moving classes onto online, the campus decided that we were going to stay online for the rest of the semester, yet we as the students didn’t know that. Randomly before the stay in order by the government, I got an email saying that I need to pick a date to move out. What surprised me is that we weren’t even informed that we were going to continue online classes for the rest of the semester first, instead I was just informed that I needed to move out ASAP. Luckily I got to move out all my stuff before the stay at home order rather some people, their stuff is still up at school and they aren’t allowed to go and get it until the stay at home order is done with. Ever since this virus happened it feels like the world is ending. The grocery stores were completely empty with no toilet paper, cleaning supplies or nothing essential at all. Finally the companys realized that things needed to be changed so that everyone had the ability to get what they needed, like changing the closing time so that they had time to clean and restock everything by the next morning, when they opened. Practically everyone is laid off work and is receiving unemployment. Sadly I am not, so I am just relying on my savings, due to the fact that I only work in the summer and not during school because my schedule is always too busy to allow me to. My parents are still getting paid by their company that they work for even though they aren’t working, but recently their last two pay checks were only half of what their salary usually is, which was something their boss did not tell them, so they weren’t expecting that at all. Companies are still trying to pay their employees because if they do, then at the end of all of this, they get a really big tax break. Everyone just seems so stressed out and their mental health is just deteriorating. I feel so bad for ones who are lower class and that �were already struggling to feed their families with their normal pay checks and now they are laid off, relying on unemployment. Also the unemployment offices are so busy, my boyfriend's mom was on hold for four hours, and it took them ten day just to get back to her. Everything is just a mess and it's just straight up scary. Seeing everyone with masks and gloves is something that I never thought I was going to see in my lifetime. Some people don’t even touch their mail for days, like my dad, due to the fact that my grandmother lives with him and he doesn’t want any risks at all to give the virus to her. It is hard to keep a good mental health during all of what is happening around us in the whole world. I personally only know one person that has coronavirus and that is my best friend's grandpa. Yet, we truly don’t even know if he has it because the doctors wouldn’t test him. He has diabetes and lost one of his legs, so he had a therapist that came in everyday and moved him around so that he would lose blood flow to his other extremities. Comes to find out his therapist had COVID-19 and my best friend's grandpa started feeling super sick, to the point where he kept peeing and pooping on himself because he couldn’t control his body. His wife, who is also older called the ambulance to her house to come and test him and she thought they would take him to the hospital to take care of him, yet that didn’t happen. His wife explained to the paramedics how his therapist had it and the paramedics refused to test him and just said that he probably has it and it's best for him to just stay here quarantined. Now not only does this put my best friend’s grandma at risk, it also puts her in a position to take care of her husband and clean up after him after he poops and pees on himself, which is very hard for a person's mental health. It puts a lot of weight on her shoulders, but of course she is going to do it because that’s the love of her life that needs her. This makes me think about how many other people did the paramedics turn down the test to the people in the city of Detroit that probably has it, but were told just to stay quarantined in their own home while infecting everyone else who is in their household. This all also makes me think, is this ever going to end? From the looks of the stats that are updated everyday, on click on detroit, it shows how many cases per day appear positive, how many deaths per day, etc. The stats show how it will go down for two to three days, but then just spikes back up like nothing. This whole situation is scary as hell and I hope the best for everyone and their family. I am grateful that no one in my family, yet, has caught the virus but I am praying everyday on this. 2020 is a year that I will never forget, sadly it's not in the way that I was hoping for. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-26_ANON_024 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Anonymous Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-26 Title A name given to the resource 2020 the year no one will ever forget Description An account of the resource Journal of an anonymous GVSU student during the COVID-19 pandemic. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/9e29aba9fd95d8f32d7287369733923e.pdf b5f67674f724d2b18ce1ea5bb60747c7 PDF Text Text COVID-19 has changed my life in a lot of ways. I work in health care, and I am thankful to keep busy with that during this stressful time. Although, I feel that my constant exposure to the general public dooms me to eventual exposure to the virus. I am young and healthy and know that my body could fight this, but it is still terrifying to think about. I am trying everyday to be grateful. In some ways, this virus is my worst nightmare. I am extremely extraverted, and I am also clinically depressed. I thrive from connection with my friends and family. On a normal day, I leave my house early for work and do not return except to eat or freshen up, spending the rest of my day with my friends or family. I know though that it could be so much worse, and stay thankful for my safe home environment and try to stay positive. I have been keeping vey busy, making art and watching various shows and movies. Zoom and facetime have become my safe haven, thriving from speaking with my loved ones, but wishing I could give them a big hug. Yesterday, my friend came over and sat on my porch while I sat inside and we spoke through the door. It was so nice to see her! I have always lived with my parents, but now I have reawakened a deep appreciation for all that they do for me. While my mother is an essential worker like me, my dad has been off of work for at least 4 weeks now. He, like me, struggles when he is not kept busy. This has led him to make large improvements on the house and start many projects. For this I am thankful, and yesterday I helped him paint. I am also very thankful for my coworkers. Together, we stay sane and keep each other company. While we focus on keeping others separated by 6ft while in our building, it is nearly impossible to distance from each other. This has led us to band together to stay sane. I feel that our conversations have become far more intimate and meaningful, I feel very united with them and am thankful to be part of such an amazing group, working together to make the world healthy again. Overall, I will get through this. The hardest time for me was the initial couple of weeks. Now I know how to handle negative thoughts, and how to keep busy and cope healthily. Honestly, just writing this journal has helped clear my head, and I have plans today to make art and enjoy the sunshine. Thank you for reading. Grace Catherine Glemboski 4/26/2020 � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-26_GlemboskiGrace Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Glemboski, Grace Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-26 Title A name given to the resource COVID Journal Description An account of the resource Journal from GVSU student Grace Glemboski's experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/b20a9ac8c910dcd0cdcf9fc907ef1059.pdf 86439b88499f21a3d184b09b5d2ae6ee PDF Text Text Faith Vulcano 04/25/2020 COVID-19 Journaling The COVID-19 pandemic took almost everyone by surprise, especially those attending colleges. It had spread rapidly from country to country making its way to the United States. Right during Spring Break is when it made its appearance heavily in the U.S. and considering most students were away on vacation, it was the easiest way for it to be spread. Once colleges started switching to online and forcing those who lived on campus to go home, people began to take it a bit more seriously. I was one of the more fortunate ones, I had a lease off campus which meant I could stay in Allendale. I lived on the East side, which is where a majority of the COVID cases were and going back there would have given me a higher chance of contracting the disease. I was able to still do my online classes in the safety of my home. At the beginning of switching to online classes, everything was a bit rocky, professors didn’t exactly know how to handle it, especially labs that were never meant to go online. It took some time for everyone to get somewhat used to the new layout of how everything would work and eventually it became easier. The online downside I saw online was my drive to actually do the work. Most of the professors would not have homework or other assignments to do and would make most of the exams open book open notes, which means I did not study as hard as I would have in class. Many of the professors made extensions on things if you asked for it because it is difficult for some students to switch completely online, some need that person-toperson contact to understand the material. I know some people who dropped their grade drastically because of online classes. Once the colleges closed, a good majority of people went home. At my apartment, it’s just my roommate and I because we’re both health care workers, so we couldn’t exactly go home when we were needed more than ever. Life has been hectic it seems like, everywhere you go people look like they’ve just seen a ghost. They’ve taken all the toilet paper, gloves, masks, any type of sanitary or disinfectant. It’s making it hard for those of us in the medical field to have the supplies that we actually need to stay safe. At my work, we have to reuse our masks until they’re practically falling apart because there is just not enough for us to use. It’s unnerving to know that this disease is wiping out all age groups and that my generation is still not taking this as seriously as they should. I still see people in larger groups hanging out outside or drinking inside. The Coronavirus pandemic is scary for a majority of people, but I do think we’re taking it a little too far in this lockdown. I’ve already heard of so many adolescents committing suicide because they’re stuck without socialization that many of them need to live. Grocery stores have started taking supplies and putting them in the back for the elderly to use, since everyone else is taking them as soon they’re placed out. I have a good feeling that this will blow over once summer hits, but I also feel that COVID-19 is something we’re going to have to deal with every year just like the flu and common cold. Hopefully we have a vaccine by next winter, because that would help settle everyone's nerves. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-26_VulcanoFaith Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Vulcano, Faith Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-26 Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journal Description An account of the resource Journal from GVSU student Faith Vulcano during the COVID-19 pandemic. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/15cd0cbe42109960fcb270e4e4d2f32d.pdf 08e1867834acb831bc45557c7854390f PDF Text Text After the shutdown of Grand Valley for the safety of staff and students due to COVID-19, the transition to online classes was pretty seamless for me. In fact, I did much better having the classes online that I was doing with in person lectures. It has been a struggle for me though since I am a parent to a kindergartener, and I had to juggle helping him with him online work while doing my own and working in the healthcare field. As far as my work goes, we have cut down on the amount of staff we have in the office. I work as a registrar for Spectrum. The family practice in my building has switched to mostly video visits and is only taking sick visit patients in office that they would not be able to diagnose over a video chat. We haven’t had issues with PPE in registration, though we are not currently allowed to wear homemade masks, they have to be medical masks. We have to be screened before every shift for symptoms before we are allowed to show up to work. Those of us on my team who had high enough seniority got to stay in our office with an adjusted schedule, while others were either redeployed to register in the Emergency Department or work in other departments. As far as shopping has gone, my mom is the one who does that. Somehow, she always managed to find all of the products that we needed. We’ve never had to worry about running out of cleaning products or toilet paper, which given the hoarding of the toilet paper has been a miracle in itself. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-26_OhmanCourtney Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Ohman, Courtney Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-26 Title A name given to the resource My life during COVID-19 Description An account of the resource Journal from GVSU student Courtney Ohman during the COVID-19 pandemic. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/fd4c5a62e263a4d084175f75a65c35f5.pdf 2206fec0d383f22f34f04d0539feb39b PDF Text Text COVID-19 Journaling Bryson J. Pacheco In this unprecedented time, many changes have occurred in my life. Classes have gone online, work has been extremely busy, and life plans have been put on hold. Personally, I have found that online classes are extremely hard for me to keep my focus. It seems that most of my peers feel the same way. In the age of social media and the internet, distractions are abundant. On top of that, my family has also been a distraction. They think online classes should be easier and that I have more time. However, it is quite the opposite. I have hours of recorded lectures, homework assignments, and quizzes. Being a senior, this is my last semester at Grand Valley. I have missed the opportunity to wish my friends of four years goodbye. Most of them are starting graduate programs in the summer, and we are going our separate ways. I am filled with sadness that I will not see them again for a long time. On top of school changes, I have faced even more changes at work. Several of my coworkers at Meijer Pharmacy have taken personal leaves due to the fear of contracting COVID-19. This means that we are extremely short staffed. During this pandemic, I have been working 40+ hours per week due to the high demand of patients needing their medications. Patients have been extremely grateful that I am working, and I am able to find a balance to working and making sure all my schoolwork is completed. We are required to wear facemasks for the entirety of our shift. I have not had any trouble obtaining PPE at work, it is supplied. One interesting change I have experienced at work is mandatory health assessments before starting every shift. We are asked questions and people take our temperatures every day. So far, my store has not had any cases of COVID-19, but I know other Meijer stores in the area have. During this time of uncertainty, I have seen the extreme panic shopping that people have done. In the stores, before a limit was set on high demand items, people were hoarding items that they did not need. I had a patient cry to me, stating that her unemployment check wouldn’t come for another week, but she was scared that items would not be in stock for her family. I know friends who are using paper towels and napkins for toilet paper. The selfishness that people have been showing has been shocking. This selfishness was also seen in protest around the state. Some people have no respect for the sacrifices frontline workers have made to keep everyone healthy. Overall, this pandemic has been an eye-opening experience. I know that I will never take online classes by choice. I have learned that people are selfish, and I have solidified that going into the healthcare field is the right choice for me. I have a desire to help people in this crisis, and I am doing my part, and will continue to do so. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-25_PachecoBryson Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Pacheco, Bryson Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-25 Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journal Description An account of the resource Journal from a GVSU student Bryson Pacheco during the COVID-19 pandemic. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/a502633915da26190bd1ab73bfbe578d.pdf a2f9cbb08eaae88c97b0326ac8124f91 PDF Text Text April 24, 2020 Today is April 24, we are on lockdown day number 33 and a new extension has been set in place today, lengthening the stay at home order until May 15. This all started very quickly and unexpectedly the week that I got back from spring break on the 2nd of March. I had vastly heard of COVID-19 and the effects that it had in China; however, I had no idea the extent that this pandemic could reach. That Monday the 2nd of March, I had heard of 1 or 2 cases that had reached the United States and the scare that the media was spreading. I still wasn’t able to understand the actions that would soon take place. Within the next couple of days, with a couple of confirmed cases in Michigan, Grand Valley transitioned to online classes for the next two weeks. Within the first week of online classes, I received an email that informed students that classes will continue online for the rest of the semester. This transition was very difficult to deal with, especially handling school. Although many of my teachers were working very hard to make this transition as low stress as possible, it was challenging to keep on top of all the changes. I started receiving 5+ emails a day from some of my professors with updates and new information on everything that was changing. For example, in one of my classes, we had no online course, so our entire schedule for the rest of the semester was altered. We were originally supposed to have our 2nd exam the week that class was online, and I had spent a lot of time studying for it. Later however, I found out that our exams were cancelled, and we would have to right a long paper instead based on a different topic related to the class. During the semester, I often find myself getting into a system, knowing when everything is due and also having a schedule of the assignments that I have to do every week. This sense of comfort was completely taken away, as classes were drastically changing their syllabus and new assignments or quizzes were due during the weeks. Ultimately, the uncertainty of online learning brought with it a lot of stress as I always felt like I was missing something. In addition to the changes based on curricula, altering to online learning in it of itself has proven a difficult task. I am currently living at home with my parents and 2 siblings who are also in college. Both of my parents now have to work from home, so there are constant video meetings, phone calls, and recorded lectures going on, making it impossible to find any quiet time in the day. Also, because of everybody streaming and using the internet, it was sometimes difficult to connect to my collaborate sessions and would have to reconnect multiple times throughout classes. This made it challenging and stressful in taking exams especially. Another part of the online learning that was difficult is staying focused on the task at hand. My siblings have also been struggling with staying motivated throughout the weeks. Throughout the first couple weeks of the lockdown, certain items were hard to find. The biggest shortage that I have noticed is toilet paper. My dad would go to Meijer during the senior hour at 7 in the morning in attempt to find some toilet paper to buy. After the first couple of weeks, it seemed easier to find items including toilet paper, soap, and hand sanitizer. However even now, 33 days in, I still run across not being able to find certain items when I go to the store. Also, the atmosphere of shopping at grocery stores has altered since the pandemic started. Overall, it is very nerve racking to walk around the store and see everybody with masks and gloves and to have to stand on the taped lines 6 feet away on the floor. The realization really hit me the first time I went shopping at how serious people are taking the COVID-19. Sadly, it seems that the lockdown has brought out the worst in some people. During the beginning of the shutdown, my grandma’s purse was stolen in a Meijer parking lot during the senior citizen hour. Sadly, I realize the desperate situations many people may find themselves at this time, leading to more uneasiness when I leave the house. �So far, I have not heard of anyone that has been confirmed with the virus around this area. There have been a couple of distant acquaintances that I have heard of having similar symptoms including coughing, headaches, and/or shortness of breath but were either unable to be tested, or were and resutled that they did not have COVID-19. It is hard for me to understand the extent of the issue when what I am hearing about everyone I know around me and the media’s response does not seem to match up. In the way the media is portraying COVID-19, I would expect to be hearing of more cases around where I live in Michigan. In the beginning of the lockdown, my family had the news on constantly, trying to gather information of the state of the country and the responses that everybody was taking. However, this quickly got exhausting as everyday it seemed like there was new information on the virus and different approaches to combating this pandemic. Also, the news sources goal was to instill fear into the people watching, exaggerating the necessary response.. Rather quickly, we decided to limit watching the news throughout the day, turning it on for updates on the stay at home order and other issues of the world. Another area of frustration that this pandemic has brought upon deals with the way the Michigan governor has been handling the situation. Although I realize that drastic steps need to be taken for the safety of the state, the stay at home order has overreached into our livelihood. By picking and choosing what businesses and activities we can participate in, there have been discrepancies seen throughout the stay at home order. For example, all non-essential businesses were shut down, so a family friend of mine has a lawncare service and even though they are able to conduct their business without contact with other people, they are unable to work. Also, other rules were made including not allowing us to buy paint or flowers at stores and not being able to operate a motorized boat. Not only do we as a state have to deal with the scare of the pandemic itself but of our freedom being limited. On Thursday, April 15, there was a protest that occurred in Lansing, Michigan called Operation Gridlock. This was a protest against the stay at home order and all the activities that Michiganders are no longer able to do under this order. With thousands of protesters, Operation Gridlock seemed to be a success. However, in response to this protest, Governor Whitmer stated that this was strictly a political motive and not about her orders. This response made it clear that those who don’t agree with her decisions are unheard. I feel that the future of Michigan relies on our decisions today, and although these laws make us all be very careful, it will cause lasting damages on the economy and specifically on the lives of the people unable to make a living anymore. Before the lockdown, I was involved in a bowling league as well as leading a youth group. Both of these activities were shutdown rather quickly into the pandemic. Other youth groups at the church have continued to meet virtually, however my group consists of middle schoolers, so we decided that online learning would be difficult and opted to end meetings for the year. During the summer, I will be going to school full-time therefore I have not been affected by the lack of jobs. However, my boyfriend was supposed to start his first co-op for engineering this summer and found out today (April 24th) that he will not be able to work there. He recently quit his other job before the lockdown because he was planning on the co-op and now is struggling to find work for the summer. Ultimately, the lock down has drastically changed the way of life spurring up many conflicting emotions and concerns about the future of the state and the country as a whole. Even though these changes have been difficult to handle, spending more time with family is the positive impact that has come from the COVID 19 pandemic. When I go for walks, its refreshing to see all the neighbors outside playing with their children and I can see a beneficial aspect of the lockdown. In conclusion, many changes have occurred, causing daily adjustments of life, but I hope for the end of quarantine and look towards the rejuvenation of the country. �� Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-25_ANON_023 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Anonymous Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-25 Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Response Description An account of the resource Journal from an anonymous GVSU student during the COVID-19 pandemic. Response on how the lock-down and COVID-19 pandemic has altered their way of living. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1ec8338fceace97497a75ecfb1b2e7f4.pdf 35b869d61b7ced594c4f9d35cc9ac3e2 PDF Text Text Megan Wallace 4/25/2020 COVID-19 Journal My Experience In the Pandemic When this COVID pandemic first became relevant to me in late February and early March, I did not think much of it. I realized that it was affecting thousands of people in other countries than the United States. Being at school, I did not watch the news in my apartment or anything. The only news I would see regarding the coronavirus was on Twitter. As more days went by in March, there were more cases found and more people dying. Especially knowing that there were cases in our country, I was more aware of how serious this virus was becoming. Towards the end of March when we got the email about transitioning to online classes, My roommates and I started to pack some of our things to go back to our permanent residency. I stayed for a few more days after the email got sent to us so I could have time to pack some of my clothes and other essential things I needed to bring back home. My roommates and I are living in the same apartment we were in this school year next school year also, so I did not have to move every single thing out. I stayed long enough to eat the rest of my food that would go bad and packed the rest of my bags to go home. The semester was more than half way through by the time I came back home for online classes, so I was basically starting to study for finals coming up and I was nervous for how they were going to be since they were not going to be in person. I had a course this semester that was a hybrid, so I only planned to meet with that class in person for a couple exams and the rest of the class was taught online. That was the only class relatively similar to what the rest of my classes were going to be like until finals. Being at school and attending each of my classes on �campus everyday meant I had a set schedule. Knowing I was just going to be on my laptop all day for every class at home made me lose motivation to get things done early like I would at school. Even my sleeping and eating habits were off. I still had reminders set in my phone each day to get notes done and finish homework assignments but, I was more likely to just ignore them because I knew I was just stuck home and I would tell myself “I’ll do it tomorrow”. One class I did not enjoy online was my anatomy lab. That is normally a class I look forward to because it is a hands on course and it helps me understand the material better that I am learning in lecture. Having it be online was just not the same I did not get the best experience I could have. None of my courses were the best experience when everything was online, it just makes school less intriguing to me. And I really enjoy school, especially when everything I am learning is beneficial to my future career. Coming back home wasn’t bad because I love hanging out with my family and dog but after a few weeks, it gets hectic in my house. My three younger siblings can be loud and obnoxious and there is never a time when it is completely silent in my house. As you can imagine, I got annoyed quickly especially when I was trying to do my school stuff and I could not concentrate half the time. And with a pandemic going on and social distancing in place, I could not exactly leave my house. Over time, I was able to cope and get my assignments done. My dad has been working from home since the stay at home order was in place, but my brother and mom were still going to work because they are part of the essential workers. My mom is a labor and delivery nurse, so she is in a hospital more than three times a week and my brother works at Ace Hardware. With them being out around other people, but wearing masks, they do not know who they could be around who might have the virus or if they might have the virus and not be showing symptoms. It is scary to think that they could end up getting the virus and bring it �back into our home without even knowing they might have it. We have been washing our hands and keeping good hygiene while being at home. If we do need to leave our house for groceries or other necessities, my mom and sister had sewed a bunch of masks for us to wear for protection. It is very important to try and take things like this seriously in our lives. Events like this will go down in history because of the enormous impact it has made throughout the whole world. People need to make sure they try and listen to the orders of social distancing and staying home because if they decide to go around with friends, not washing their hands as often as they should, and or not wearing a mask to protect themselves and others, the curve will never flatten. Life will never be the same again because of this virus and most people know that. But everyone should do their part to try and get life back to normal or close to it. No one wants to live like this and see loved ones and others mourn from the losses of those who lived near and dear to them. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-25_WallaceMegan Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Wallace, Megan Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-25 Title A name given to the resource My Experience In The Pandemic Description An account of the resource Journal from GVSU student Megan Wallace during the COVID-19 pandemic. Describes "What I have experienced at home and after leaving school." Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/a68cc87a96c0dd9b169b0185d37da44c.pdf 411aa92b8286ea14cafbd5a745f117ef PDF Text Text Covid-19 Journal Hello, my name is [redacted] and I am a student at Grand Valley State University. I am going to begin talking about my personal experiences so far of being in the middle of this pandemic as a college student.Throughout this pandemic, everyone (including myself) has had to experience significant changes in our daily lives. Although most of the students at GVSU have moved off campus and back home, I am still at my apartment due to my job at a nursing home. Having to work during a time like this can be a bit stressful. Although having to suddenly adjust to online classes in the middle of the semester was a little confusing, the professors and the university did an outstanding job on helping us students adapt to the immediate change. Students adapt differently to situations like these which explains why some students may be struggling in their classes. However, I am doing well in all of my online classes. My home life at my apartment is pretty boring when i'm not working or doing homework hence the fact that nobody can go anywhere unless it's a necessity. To keep myself occupied, I have built puzzles, played video games, went on bike rides, and discovered a few new interests. To stay safe from covid-19, I have made sure to stay up on keeping my hands clean and not surrounding myself with groups of people. Although I have to wear a mask while working, I don't wear a mask when I get gas or go to the grocery store. Although I have seen a good amount of people wearing masks at the grocery store, I just wear gloves and make sure I don't touch anything of mine until I take the gloves off. If i'm out in public, I also try my best to stay at least 6 feet away from people. I made sure to stock up on essential items like toilet paper early, although many people I know have experienced shortages with essential goods. Currently, I don’t personally know anyone that has been infected from covid-19, although many people in the state of Michigan have been. Times like this are very hard on people but the most important things to do are staying clean, isolated, and aware. I hope everyone stays safe and we can get through this together! � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-25_ANON_022 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Anonymous Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-25 Title A name given to the resource Covid-19 journal Description An account of the resource Journal from an anonymous GVSU student during the COVID-19 pandemic. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1e6c71f1d895087fcc682304164ca17a.pdf d8ab380cfd8bf4cf373980d08542c843 PDF Text Text 4/21/2020 COVID-19 Journal With the rise of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) in the United States many individuals have been uprooted and displaced. As a college student, I myself have had a few experiences as such. I was lucky enough to have chosen this year to live off campus, so I was not forced to move off campus and back home like many others. This did affect other aspects of my life such as my education, organizations/ extra curriculars, and job. With my education I was put in an exceedingly difficult predicament surrounding the coronavirus as I am a science major. I had two 4 credit courses which included labs this semester: anatomy and physiology, as well as organic chemistry. For me I have an awfully hard time concentrating at home doing schoolwork, so I often do it at the library or between classes. This was EXTREMELY difficult for me, especially the chemistry class because that was my hardest course this semester. Losing the in-class time and face-to-face instruction caused a noticeable drop within my GPA and has made this time even more stressful that it was before. My daily life has changed extremely as well. Since Covid-19 has hit my friends who are seen as essential workers and live in other cities and/or states have been displaced by the university and are staying at my apartment with me and one of my other roommates. Within my family I lost spending time with my mother for her birthday and the upcoming Mother’s day holiday. I also was not able to attend a funeral for my grandmother who passed in the beginning of March. I am considered an essential worker, as I work at a plasma center off campus. Our company hours and the hours I work are still the same and majority of the workers have stayed. We have lost a handful that were students and others who were immunocompromised. We are not hiring many people or having our annual audits and other normal business meetings until the virus subsides more. We have PPE available to us and receive a new disposable mask each and every day. The virus has affected much of my life such as school, work, and family. It has been extremely stressful and hopefully it comes to an end soon. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-25_ANON_021 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Anonymous Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-25 Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Description An account of the resource Journal from an anonymous GVSU student during the COVID-19 pandemic. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c8f96483039a3b75cdd215870d0daf81.pdf 17bb79371963a0d636ded55eb5d52c9b PDF Text Text The isolation that came with this virus has obviously had a toll on everyone. For me it has been a rollercoaster. My roommates moved out taking everything in our apartment including my food, my toilet paper, the dishes and the microwave. I had basically nothing and was living off of dry cereal. Because of this state-wide quarantine, I don’t leave much and I don’t do much, other than schoolwork (which, as much as I would like to deny it, is really the only thing keeping me moderately sane). I am very fortunate though. I have been going back and forth from my boyfriend’s apartment. He is the only person I have interacted with since beginning of march. We are able to order food online and now that both of us aren’t working were very lucky to have our parents helping support us financially. Seeing him and facetiming our families have also helped our mental health as much as it can, but obviously, we both are still struggling with it, as is everyone else. He helps me when I have my mental break downs and I help him with his and that’s what everyone needs. When I go back to my apartment building later in the night, where only three people (including myself) live, it’s like the apocalypse and its haunting to live on your own at a young age, not able to go home. In the past I have suffered with hardships, physical and mental health issues, and I have a psychological disorder. I have a psychological disorder commonly known as ADHD. Because I have ADHD, I am unable to focus well in school, and I take medicine to help with that. A side effect of my medicine is depression, and lack of appetite, so that doesn’t really help the situation. Because we are doing remote learning, school has been very difficult for me at this time, and I have had an anxiety attack almost every day, but I think I had finally figured out how to keep up and roll with it. My daily routine is to wake up take my medicine and start working on my homework for hours at a time with no stopping. I tend to miss meals, but I just keep working until my medicine wears off 12 hours later. Because I have no distraction from people, I feel like a robot that is stuck in the same routine, day to day. After my schoolwork is done all I really do is go on social media. I’ve seen a lot on social media about corona virus and since this stay at home order. There’s so much negativity in the world and, you feel like there’s no way to escape. Similar to how some feel about depression; some feel like there is no way to escape. In this case there isn’t a way to escape, it’s like outside world depression, which definitely can have an effect on people. There was a girl a few years younger than me who I went to elementary school all the way to high school with, that had recently committed suicide because the selfisolation was too much for her to handle. I’m sure she had some underlying mental health issues, but because of quarantine, she wasn’t able to get the help she needed. Understanding how depression feels, she had two things that she wanted to escape from which was clearly too much for her mind to handle ending in a very sad way. Everyone needs to come together and be positive and up lifting during this time. Politicians need to put their personal issues that they all have with each other aside and deal with the situation at hand. Those protesting need to listen to authority, because they are trying to protect us. I truly believe with everything going on, everyone needs to come together and put their selfish needs behind them and we all need to work together so we can all solve this problem faster. Us Americans, are extremely fortunate to have the access to water and food and shelter, and people all around the country are protesting against our lockdown because they don’t realize all they have, and they can’t stand to not stay inside, making everyone at risk. They need to notice that everyone in the world is going through this and some in worse circumstances than them. I know people in Arusha Tanzania, Africa that are way worse off than us. A friend of mine that I met while spending time in Tanzania, reached out to my mom and told her that he is scared. He wasn’t scared about getting/dying from the corona virus, he said he is scared because they are at a significantly higher risk of dying of starvation, than the corona virus. Their grocery stores and markets are either bone dry and they don’t have any access to food or �because of quarantine they can’t work and make money to buy food. “We work today for our food today.” The people there, don’t have enough money or resources to stock up on food and supplies like us, they literally have to keep working to just to have food for that night. That’s what we are taking for granted. All of the extra drama that is being caused because of arguing between people or politicians is childish. Obviously, none of us want this, none of us like being locked inside, but we need to do it and follow the rules in order to protect our loved ones and ourselves. We will get through this. Instead of bashing and hating on everyone and everything we need to be praising those who are working 60-70 hours a week trying to solve this problem or save people’s lives or finding a vaccine. It’s hard to find positivity with everything going on, but we need to keep trying because eventually the light at the end of the tunnel will be the only thing keeping us going. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-24_ANON_020 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Anonymous Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-24 Title A name given to the resource U.S. Isolation Description An account of the resource Journal from an anonymous GVSU student during the COVID-19 pandemic. Describes "How Im personally dealing with Covid-19 and how my friends and family are being effected, and what society as a whole needs to do in order to help get rid of the virus." Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c909e929c006b44ef37d7f5ee1fec2df.pdf d472a2a9a31c50db6ff273387e483ab6 PDF Text Text Day 40 by windoworks It is another sunny day here in West Michigan. Yesterday Craig planted the strawberry plants that arrived by parcel post a couple of days ago. It is absolutely amazing what you can order through the mail. We now order sliced sourdough gluten free bread. You can buy it in 3 packs, 6 packs or 12 packs. It comes in 3 flavors: regular, french or rosemary and yes, you can order a mixed pack. I have no idea where it comes from in the States, but it is a very efficient company and the bread tastes really good. Two days ago I cleaned my mothers silver tea service. I am thrilled to own it and it reminds me of her whenever I look at it, but it is a chore to clean. I wonder about a silver plating service and whether that would bring back its sparkle - but that will have to wait until the isolation order is amended. And I have begun redesigning areas (in my head) some areas of the house that annoy me. I haven’t actually moved any furniture yet but that may come. Yesterday I expounded my idea for the lawn in the back garden to Craig as (lets be honest) he’ll be the one doing it. As the snow melted and the grass re-emerged, the areas where Murphy pees have become glaringly obvious. I think its time we gave up and instead sowed all those packets of wildflower seeds that we have. Craig could put a path around the area but I think a back yard that has vegetables, herbs and a meadow area would look wonderful. I am also saving up to replace the double kitchen sink with a farmhouse sink with a faucet with at least some water pressure. Our brand new faucet (we replaced the old one because it had become so blocked and only a trickle of water came out) is now mimicking the old one. Is it me? I wonder. Here are the stats for yesterday (Sunday). Michigan: cases - 31,424, deaths - 2,391. Kent County: cases 503, deaths - 25. And apparently some people are getting very lazy during the lockdown and one police chief (not in Michigan) posted “Please put pants on when checking your mailbox. You know who you are”. In other news: animals are now appearing in urban areas - because they can. There has been a marked increase in squirrel activity locally and we have seen flocks of wild turkeys in parks and between houses. Last week we saw a herd of 10 deer in the large backyard of a house and then there was that photo of a pride of lions lying sunning themselves on the asphalt highway in South Africa. In New Zealand, native eagles have been spotted in the downtown areas on the tops of high rise buildings. And in the ‘I really didn’t need to know that’ category, in New York City rats have begun eating each other as the scraps from restaurants have dried up. In London England, the pigeons have begun attacking unsuspecting people as no one is feeding them anymore. In our own animal news: Murphy has finished her giardia medication (honestly that dog will eat anything if you coat it in peanut butter) and that means that today is a bath Murphy day. I don’t know why, we’re just following the instructions that came with the tablets. Unfortunately, she is too big to fit in the �laundry tub in the basement and the local pet stores have closed their dog washing facilities, and we don’t have a bath, so it is outside in the back garden with a bucket of soapy water and the hose for rinsing off. She’ll be thrilled. And then the next thing is to trim the hair around her eyes and clip her nails. I can hardly wait. ���These photos are just meant to make you smile, because: kittens and cute children. The top photo needs no explanation but the bottom one is of Oliver finger-painting with a strawberry. And to today’s flashback. After we went through the Mount Blanc tunnel we drove to Chamonix. This is one of the oldest ski resorts in France and was the site of the first Winter Olympics in 1924. We stayed there for 2 nights in a lovely wooden chalet style hotel, so that Craig and David could do some mountain hiking. Jack and Cynthia also went hiking in the lower hills, but Chardi and I did some washing and then went shopping in the very expensive tourist shopping area. We ate lunch at a nice little cafe but we really didn’t buy anything. ��Two photos from the downtown area. �David on the Montenvers rack railway which runs from Chamonix to the station near the Mer de Glacé glacier at an altitude of 6.2 thousand feet. ��The top photo is of the Mer de Glacé and where Craig is standing is where it used to reach up to in 1990. Bear in mind that this was 10 years ago and I can only imagine how much further the glacier has retreated since then. The bottom photo is of the famous Mer de Glacé ladders that hikers must climb down to reach the Mer de Glacé itself. I’m pretty happy that I saw this photo of the ladders after Craig and David had climbed down them. �After we left Chamonix we drove on into Switzerland and went up to the top of the Simplon Pass between Switzerland and Italy. The Stone Eagle was built during the Second World War by the Swiss Military as a reminder that in order to protect one’s freedom, you have to remain vigilant. What is intersecting about Switzerland is that they remained neutral during both world wars but when you drive through the valleys you can’t help but notice the artfully concealed airplane hangars (grassed over) and then you spot the runways beside them. And if you look carefully at the cliff walls beside the valleys you will see huge doors. I imagine thats where they keep the tanks etc. So, neutral but prepared for anything. Tomorrow we’ll look at our next stage of the journey - Milan Italy. Well thats it for today. Be careful, be sensible and be safe. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-20_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-40 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-20 Title A name given to the resource Day 40 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e22a830780ec2ea6893f800b03c7dea5.pdf 92c6786076e39cbc4d67c7f4a2a5b82f PDF Text Text Day 39. by windoworks Today I thought I would start off with the negative stuff and get that out of the way first. Stats: Michigan 30, 791 cases, 2,308 deaths. Unfortunately in Kent County the numbers are continuing to climb - 460 cases and 23 deaths. But this was the reality check for me this morning. I read WaPo (Washington Post) and they ran an article entitled ‘Will I be trapped inside my house forever? The answer: nobody knows’ and at the end of the article was this fact. “Experts believe that fewer than 5 percent of the more than 330 million people in the U.S. population have already been infected”. So that leaves approximately 90% of the population as vulnerable. Are Craig and I in the vulnerable category or are we immune? Have we had the virus already? Going forward I have to operate on the ‘I don’t know’ theory until I am able to be tested and perhaps vaccinated. Our son Zar, the journalist, had a long FaceTime with Craig and I last night. He lives with his wife in Auckland New Zealand where their government has imposed the strictest lockdown imaginable. They can walk outside around their neighborhood but can only drive their car to the grocery store. Any driving anywhere else is likely to be stopped and challenged by police. If you persist, there are substantial fines or imprisonment (if you continue to flout the rules). Unlike here, there are no order and pick up facilities such as restaurants, fast foods, bakeries, coffee shops, greenhouses etc. If it isn’t available in a grocery store, then it isn’t available. Now this sounds truly draconian to me, and yet its making an enormous difference. At this moment New Zealand has a total of 1,098 cases and 12 deaths. Of course it is a small island nation with a 2020 population of 4.8 million, less than half the population of Michigan. Their restrictions are at Level 4 which is technically what our restrictions are but really we’re at Level 3 and we have allowances that New Zealanders can only dream about. Their Prime Minister is considering taking the country back to a Level 3 restriction where they still won’t have access to a coffee bar (and New Zealanders love coffee and all the coffee choices) but they will be allowed to drive through MacDonalds - and MacDonalds has cappuccino! It puts our situation in to sharp focus. We are locked down but we still have access to so many things. We can still drive to the lake, we can visit some bakeries and restaurants as long as we order ahead and pay for our food online, and pick up outside. At a local greenhouse you can collect your plants and seedlings etc in the parking lot. These privileges are unthinkable in places like New Zealand and England. And with the weather warming up, people in our area are starting to come outside and walk wherever they choose with no social distancing and no masks. Friends are starting to visit other friends houses, all the while ignoring the fact that they might be asymptomatic. This morning I read a post from a woman who was shopping at the grocery store with her mask on and another woman walked past her in the aisle and as she drew level, she coughed so hard with no elbow use and it ruffled the writers hair! Now, this �other woman might have a smokers cough or an asthmatic cough - but how would the writer know? And for me, thats the point of wearing a mask - its not to protect me from you, its to protect you from me, because I don’t know - do you? Well that turned out to be more of a rant than I intended. So the bear hunt is still in progress. If you look closely you can see as well as the big bear there are a number of smaller ones too. ��Here is Oliver attempting to befriend Archie the cat. Good luck with that! And today’s flashback. After Genoa we drove out of the city on that precariously high road viaduct (Polcevera Viaduct). Part of it collapsed 8 years later during a rainstorm and 43 people died. It is a part of the artery linking Italy and France. After driving north we came to Courmayeur, an Alpine resort at the foot of Mt Blanc. We stopped in the town square for lunch. Because food is very important in Italy, especially lunch! Earlier that day we had been driving as usual in tandem with Craig and I and Jack and Cynthia in the lead car and David and Chardi following. It had been this configuration since the beginning of our trip in Rome as Craig and I were the de facto tour leaders. So on this morning, imagine our surprise when Chardi drove happily past our car and took the lead. Now 10 years ago there wasn’t the ability to use your cell phone overseas and none of us were adept at texting, so we just had to follow her and wonder what was wrong. She finally pulled over at a convenient spot and we all tumbled out and asked “WHat’s wrong?” She explained that in an almost trance space she got tired of following the slow driver in front and sped past. Suddenly she realized she had lost sight of our car and woke David (who was napping) and said: “David! I’ve lost Craig!’. “No”, he said, “he’s behind you”. We laughed and laughed and laughed. I don’t think she’ll ever live that down. �Approaching Mt Blanc. The road takes you under Mt Blanc into the Chamonix Valley in France. The tunnel is 7.2 miles long and it takes you 17 minutes or so to drive through. It has a very checkered history because there have been a number of accidents in the tunnel, including one where there was a huge multi vehicle pile up with a resulting fireball and many deaths. When we drove through, an overhead sign flashed at you if you got too close to the car in front of you. We also had to wait our turn to enter the tunnel and there were police everywhere. I was really glad when we came out the other end. 17 minutes is a long time deep inside a mountain. Chamonix tomorrow. Till then, stay safe. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-19_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-39 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-19 Title A name given to the resource Day 39. Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/d6ef0f9b6a82b5788ea658f609b20192.pdf e71519c4a1b0112e0dfe6a4f8f24a551 PDF Text Text Day 38 by windoworks Well its finally starting to happen - my roots are growing out and its not pretty. If you see me outside from now on I will probably be wearing a hat. Craig keeps offering to use his hair clippers on me but I’m not that desperate yet. And in other household news: Murphy Brown has contracted giardia, and apparently she got this from licking the grass when out walking with Craig and I. She doesn’t lick the grass when she’s walking with Craig because he walks too fast. So she isn’t allowed to walk with me in the meantime. We discovered she had this after she pooped on the floor in the spare bedroom four nights in a row. Craig took a stool sample up to our vets yesterday and it was very cloak and dagger. You have to call first and ask for May - no just kidding, but you do have to call first and prepay for the stool sample diagnosis. Then someone comes outside to you and takes the sample back inside. Then they call you with the results, you prepay for the medication, go back and wave at them inside to get someone to come out and give you the drugs. This morning Craig and I were reading an article about life after Coronavirus. And I wonder. Will we ever shake hands again? Will masks become an accepted item of clothing when outside? Will we always feel most comfortable 6 feet away from non family members? How scared will we be on a airplane? How long before we will feel comfortable visiting other countries? Some friends here who own small businesses have not received the funding they applied for and I have seen stories in the media which suggest that chain restaurants have gobbled up the emergency funding for all restaurants, cafes etc. We live in an area with a large number of independent, interesting restaurants and some of these may not survive. Some others have been able to switch to take out only and have adapted their entrances and exits so that the customer never sets foot inside. Our favorite bakery closed at the beginning but then after a huge outcry, they reopened one of their stores (luckily the one close to us) and they take phone orders and curbside pickup. Now they are sold out most days. The other big thing that is beginning to happen is a small group of people who feel as though this shutdown (lockdown, social distancing, mitigation - whatever you want to call it) is a personal punishment and infringement. Having been told for almost 4 years by the President and various cohorts that news is fake and science isn’t real, they feel perfectly confident that this is being done to them as spite by the liberals or just a way of controlling America by the Democrats. It seems insane to me that they feel that instead of staying home and keeping their families safe, it is their job to go out into the world with no masks or gloves and stand or sit closely together to show what a lie we’re all being fed. So last Wednesday they turned up in their cars and trucks at our state capital. They were supposed to keep inside their vehicles - but that didn’t happen. Instead they got out, with flags and automatic rifles and very offensive placards. Now this was a huge inconvenience to the nearby hospital and a massive �embarrassment world wide for Michigan. There were other protests in other states but nothing as big and obnoxious as the one in Michigan, so the news cameras concentrated on us. The President then tweeted Liberate Michigan. This has been a source of great entertainment to our international family members and quite a lot of sympathy. Now as they apparently didn’t get the result they wanted (one man attended because he wasn’t able to fertilize his lawn, yes, that was his reason for attending. I don’t know how anyone could tell that to a reporter with a straight face). Anyhow, to continue, they are intending to do it again on Wednesday and this time they mean business, while they didn’t fire their weapons, this time they might. I can’t even. Bill Schuette, the former Republican Michigan State Attorney General, who ran against Gretchen Whitmer for Governor and was beaten by a landslide, has taken to the media to say this is the perfect time to dismiss Governor Whitmer as her restrictions are draconian and possibly Hitleresque. And I do have to share 2 things from last Wednesday in the ‘You can’t make this shit up’ category - 1) a Republican congressional candidate took a selfie of himself and a group of others before the protest. He has since tried to say he was photobombed by a man wearing a Michigan Proud Boys mask giving a white supremacy hand signal. (Look up Proud Boys). I think he is watching his political career go down the drain. And 2) a city commissioner for Royal Oak (in the Greater Detroit area) with 20 new deaths reported on Wednesday and 273 new cases (Royal Oak is part of Oakland County and all counties in the Detroit area have been extremely hard hit). Royal Oak alone has seen 14 deaths. Anyway Commissioner Gibbs felt it was her duty to be there and she said (and I quote) “I’m not a doctor, but my personal belief is that the people who got it or are going to get it, have ready gotten it, so lets get back to work”. And if that wasn’t stupid enough, she then said: “When you are out in the air, the air disperses it. I didn’t feel in danger”. Possibly not Kim, but you were observed by the media constantly trying to jump out of the camera frame, but stupidly you were wearing bright red coat which made you very easy to pick out. Not surprisingly, the Mayor of Royal Oak has asked her to consider resigning, but just in case she doesn’t want to, he has asked the city attorney about removal, recall and censure. Lastly for those who follow our stats, yesterday Michigan recorded a total of 30,023 cases and 2,227 deaths to date. Kent County recorded a total of 430 cases and 20 deaths. We continue to be carefully looked after from the Governor down to the Kent County Health Department and then down to the City Of Grand Rapids and finally down to the Eastown Community Association. Now to the flashback: After we left Rapallo, we drove north along the coast to Genoa. It’s a port city and the capital of Italy’s Liguria region. It is mostly famous for its maritime trade over many centuries. It was also the birthplace of �Christopher Columbus and there is a replica of one of his ships on the dock at the harbor. I took a photo but its too dark to see the ship. Genoa is also famous for focaccia and pesto. Who knew? So we drove into Genoa which was confusing by itself and then Craig and I had a loud argument as to which way it was to our hotel. After I finally convinced him we were driving in the opposite direction, we turned around and then eventually found it, but you had to go up stairs from the street to an elevator to the reception desk. It was a beautiful refurbished hotel and after we had settled into our rooms and David and Craig had parked the cars in an underground facility around the corner from the hotel, we all went back downstairs to ask at the desk for somewhere to eat dinner. He recommended his favorite seafood restaurant and after we had walked past the door twice and after a passing stranger took pity on us and showed us the door, we entered and had yet another fabulous dinner. Once again we might have drunk too much wine so it was fortuitous that we were walking back to our hotel. ��Genoa in the early morning - an interesting mix of old and new. Part of a Roman temple close to the old town area. People had said Genoa was not a safe place but that wasn’t our experience. ��This is Oliver looking very happy at visiting his house. Zoe and Oliver went over to Balmain yesterday to get flu shots and they spent a little while in their apartment and catching up (at a proper distance) with their neighbors. It’s hard to know how long it will be until they can safely return to live at home. So, keep safe, stay home, and start that project you’ve always put on hold - you’ve got plenty of time. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-18_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-38 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-18 Title A name given to the resource Day 38 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/10e508d3ceb3fb3b1db86a8b3f80223a.pdf 009c355335fdf65bda120fac6330e86a PDF Text Text Day 37 by windoworks This morning Craig asked me what I would write on Day 70. Well its only 33 days away and I’m sure I’ll think of something. And on that note, here are the stats: in Michigan we had a total of 29, 265 cases (confirmed new cases yesterday: 1,204) and a total of 2,093 deaths (172 new deaths yesterday). In Kent County, my favorite, Dr London, told us that we must do more and isolate very carefully. Yesterday (in Kent County) we recorded 382 cases ( a jump of 30 new cases from the day before) and 17 deaths (2 more than the day before). So wondering why Dr London was using this tone with me and all the other people watching, this morning I looked up what is the projected peak for the virus in West Michigan - and its not good news. Here in Kent County we’re about 4 to 6 weeks away from the projected peak. Thankfully our Governor (I love that woman) has joined with the governors of Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Kentucky and Minnesota, to plan to reopen the economy. This plan will be based on at least 4 factors: sustained control of new infection and hospitalization rates; enhanced testing and tracing capabilities; adequate health care capacity to respond to a resurgence and best workplace social distancing techniques. There are 2 other coalitions of governors on the west and east coasts. It seems people are looking to their state and local governments more and more for reassurance and competent guidance. So yesterday it snowed a bit and was bitterly cold and then the sun came out later in the day and the snow melted, and we all thought thank goodness thats over. But no, its snowing again, because Michigan. Oh and I nearly forgot. I do research items, but yesterday I posted about big box hardware and garden stores being closed. As my friend Paul so correctly told me, big box stores are not closed, just stores that are over 50,000 square feet have some sections cordoned off. This is to stop people browsing and loitering in any area of the store. I am confused as to why you are not allowed to run your motor boat with an engine - I’m not sure what that restriction is about but honestly as I don’t own a motor boat (not even ON my bucket list) I might dare to say I don’t care that much. And anyway - its snowing! Has anyone else noticed an amazing number of people running? And an even more extraordinary number of people walking dogs? Dogs that are absolutely hopeless at walking or really angry and fierce? Is this a new part of being in quarantine? You can’t just go outside and walk, politely distancing yourself well away from everyone else, you have to run and pant very heavily (NOT WEARING A MASK) as you pass me, or struggle valiantly to keep your aggressive dog away from my gentle one. Just because we’re outside doesn’t mean the virus doesn’t hang in the air for some seconds as you pass me. I feel a number of the foolish �people at the protest in Lansing on Wednesday might be finding that fact about airborne transmission out in a day or so. It would be so much easier to understand if COVID-19 came with big red spots all over your face and body. Also, and this is embarrassing to admit, I assumed because it is called COVID-19 that it is the 19th version of a COVID virus. No, it first appeared in 2019. And another thing: if you joking call it Rona, then to me you’re making it sound somewhat cool and groovy and after the daily posts from ICU nurses and doctors and the new information that its not just the compromised lungs that kill you but the kidney failure and the liver function failure and so on, there is nothing groovy about it. In other news, I have managed to find my embroidery frame, the silks and a large canvas that I put away some years ago. I have finished the edges on my first jigsaw puzzle and I am beginning on the middle. And I resurrected my coloring books and pencils, so I have quite a busy day. I strongly recommend coloring books, its very calming in these anxious times. I have yet to take up bread baking - partly because I am concerned that might lead to weight gain and I’m hovering on the edge as it is. The strawberry plants arrived 2 days ago but we’ll have to wait for the snow to end before we can plant them. We are still waiting for some vegetable seeds that were on back order and I have purchased some clothing online, coffee beans and meat from our local butcher - so I’m doing my bit for the struggling economy. So, today’s flashback. The next day we traveled along the Ligurian Sea which is part of the Mediterranean Coast of Italy. We had originally wanted to visit Cinque Terre which is a National Park and includes 5 seaside villages. However there is only a coastal path and you can visit the villages but you have to drive directly to one village and park behind it. This was August and high summer and everywhere was overrun with tourists and vacationing Italians, so we drove on to a seaside village further up the coast, called Rapallo. �This is the view as we walked down to the beach. We had 2 cars and Craig and David dropped the rest of us off and then drove back up the steep hill to spend some time searching for available parking spaces. In the meantime, the rest of us found an inviting restaurant where we could sit out on their verandah and look over the beach below. When Craig and David eventually joined us we had a fabulous seafood lunch. Well I love all Italian food and this trip was a gourmet extravaganza. �After lunch we wandered around and looked at the next beach. Then we sat on the beach (no sand just big black pebbles) and watched the locals swim and sunbathe. The man next to me changed into his speedos without single blush and there were a number of topless women who I think might have regretted the lack of sunscreen later. As the day drew on we walked the long way back up to our cars and drove on to Genoa - but that’s tomorrows story Stay safe, stay well, and keep smiling. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-17_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-37 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-17 Title A name given to the resource Day 37 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/e868424053eb03b2234000db30d42210.pdf 8be07ec942d8884e272ebfa37d9b015f PDF Text Text Day 36 by windoworks You do know that I have to keep looking at the previous day’s post to see what day we’re up to, don’t you? The other day the board of the Women’s City Club held a virtual meeting on zoom and towards the end our president said: lets meet again on Wednesday week. Does that work for everyone? And my friend Wendy said: wait while I check, and she made a great show of picking up her planner, opening it to that date and then exclaiming: oh look! Yes I can make that! We all laughed and laughed. Many years ago a colleague and I were sitting in the teachers staff room and she was telling me about her failed marriage to a wealthy Saudi Arabian, and we were laughing about something that happened with her mother-in-law, and the Principal overheard us and said: how can you laugh about such terrible things? And we said: because if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry and laughter is better. I think about that day often now. Yesterday it was supposed to stop snowing about 9am but it snowed on and off all day. Craig and Murphy walked to Reeds Lake in East Grand Rapids, and I think Craig takes Murphy there because of the ducks and geese. ��Craig teases her by quacking and honking and she gets very excited and looks frantically to see the birds. Craig said that in East Grand Rapids the benches and tables all have signs on them now saying ‘These benches and tables have not been sanitized’. Remember I told you that in Sydney Australia you are not allowed to sit on park benches and you could be fined $1000AUS? Well now you can’t sit on the grass in the parks. The police will move you on. I know that these measures might seem draconian to us, but in New Zealand and Australia, these measures are making a big difference in contagion rates. In New Zealand a group of singers got together online to record a song - Tutahi (Stay). You can find it on YouTube. I would try to include it here but it often doesn’t work. Also in Auckland New Zealand, Fall is approaching. Thanks for the photo Zar. �Another exciting event happened yesterday. Here is Craig’s before shot: ��I actually think he pushed his hair up to make it look worse. ��Here I am helping with the hair at the back of his head and yes, I’m still in my pajamas. ��This is the finished product. Using electric hair clippers is not as easy as you might think. And there was a lot more hair on the bathroom floor than I was expecting. My hair salon posted yesterday that they were hoping to reopen on May 1. That’s literally 2 weeks away! How are they intending to dye and cut clients hair and yet keep to social distancing rules? It might be a long time before I am brave enough to go into a hair salon or a nail salon for that matter. The other day I got a letter reminding me it will soon be time for my annual mammogram. I have this picture in my head of me positioning my boob on the machine while the technician stands 6 feet back saying: a bit further in, dear. Now wind the knob down further, further, just a little further... I think I might have to wait a bit longer for that appointment. So here are yesterdays stats: in Michigan, cases: 28,059 and deaths: 1,921. In Kent County, cases: 354 and deaths: 16. During the afternoon yesterday, a large group of people created a traffic gridlock outside the Capitol Building in Lansing (Michigan’s State Capitol). They were protesting the restrictions, mainly because Governor Whitmer closed all the big box gardening and hardware stores over a certain square footage (although plenty of smaller garden and hardware stores are still operating). Also I think it might have involved protesting golf courses staying closed. In the footage and photos on FaceBook some of the protesters got out of their vehicles and stood in close proximity on the Capitol Building steps. They were carrying guns, Confederate flags, but not a mask in sight or protective gloves. Apparently someone handed out candy to accompanying children - again without gloves. And worst of all, their gridlock closed all access to the nearby hospital and an ambulance was stuck in the middle trying to get through. I even saw a photo of a doctor from the hospital, gowned, gloved and masked, standing in the middle of the cars and trucks, pleading with the drivers to open up access to the hospital. I was watching Governor Whitmer give a video update as the protest was going on and she was very concerned about the possible contamination for the protesters and the consequences for health workers and the shutdown continuation. A Republican State representative posted the first photo I saw, stating: this is what Freedom looks like! No, thats what stupidity and selfishness looks like. Now to today’s flashback: ��The next stop on our Italian adventure was at Carrara in the mountains of Tuscany. This area is famous for the marble that is mined there. For Michelangelo this was the marble of his dreams and he journeyed there to look for the perfect piece of marble. He would hang by a rope sling on the marble face and instruct the quarrymen to chip out the exact piece he wanted. He sculpted his slaves series and the Pieta in St Peters from Carrara marble. There are a number of marble mines in the area and they all use huge heavy machinery now to extract the marble and ship it all over the world. It was a hot day, and we ended up covered in white dust. I just remember it being an astonishing dazzling white as the sun reflected off the walls. Many thanks to all those who commented on yesterday’s post. I will let you know how Elaine is doing when I hear from New Zealand. Here’s hoping that all your friends and relatives are well and safe at home. And remember : laughing is always better. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-16_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-36 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-16 Title A name given to the resource Day 36 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/4e683a63b502c9dfffa176508454d660.pdf 4a34fa4b0b5f78110a9427b2fdf3d975 PDF Text Text Day 35 by windoworks This morning I woke up to - more snow. It snowed on and off yesterday and quite a bit overnight and now it is snowing again. To be fair , it is April and I have known years when it has snowed heavily for a day in May. Well fortunately we didn’t get the grill out of the garage and although Craig did put the table out on our back deck, he didn’t put the chairs or umbrella out yet. Tradition says that nothing should be planted before Memorial Day at the end of May. This is because by this point the ground should have warmed up enough for seedlings to survive and grow. This year is different. Because it kept freezing, snowing and then warming and melting, the ground didn’t freeze as solid as it usually does. Could this be global warming/climate change? I debated with myself whether to include this next bit, but here goes. Yesterday started off pretty well in that when I woke up my first thought wasn’t to pull the covers over my head and just stay in bed until the pandemic was over (yes, there are more mornings like that for me than I would like to admit). We had agreed to go shopping for groceries and in line with the item I read about not using your cell phone in a grocery store, I had written a list on a piece of paper (I know, very retro!). So we drove to one of our local grocery stores that is not a megastore, thinking less customers, less contagion. When we get there we see that they have taken the Governor’s Executive Orders seriously and they have closed one of their two entrances. So far, so good. We get inside and Craig cleans a cart for me and I set off for the fruit and vegetable section. Two workers are repacking the shelves, chatting and not moving out of Craig’s and my way, which is irritating but okay. Then as I look towards the garlic display in the middle of the section, on a flat top table with many different vegetable sections, one of the workers takes off his mask, leans down to the table top, and heartily blows the detritus high up into the air. I stand with my mouth open in shock, which you can’t see because I’m wearing a mask. And it wasn’t a dry blow, it was a juicy, spitty blow times three. I ask; Why did you do that? And he says: What? And then I explain to him exactly what I saw him do and I tell him to go and get a spray cleaner and paper towel and clean that area thoroughly. He says: I forgot, and sheepishly walks away to get the cleaner. So although I am hysterical, we finish our shopping. Then, to add insult to injury, our cashier ran half my groceries through onto the tab of the man in front of me. So that meant half my groceries were handled 3 times - once by mistake, once to refund and once for my account. After this I went to the service desk and told the service manager what had happened in the produce section and said I would not be shopping there again. And I won’t. I can’t cope. Craig will do all the shopping from now on. My anxiety levels are high enough. �So the rest of the day is okay. I cut my nails really short because without shellac they revert to their soft, easily torn state. I resurrect my coloring books and pencils and I make a little headway on my jigsaw puzzle, both calming activities. I make phone calls, and I have my first video counseling session. After dinner Craig and I are about to watch a new cooking show from my favorite Southern cook Vivian Howard called Somewhere South, when I see that I have an IMessage from my nephew, the doctor, in New Zealand. He is writing to say that my stepmother who is 94 is in hospital (not with COVID-19) but because she had a fall. I begin to write back when my brother Allan calls from Vancouver Island. He had just been speaking to our nephew and he was calling to explain what had happened to Elaine. My stepmother Elaine sold her house last year and moved into an apartment at a really nice retirement village. A couple of days ago (I think) she fell and hit her head and suffered a small bleed into the brain. She is recovering nicely and they have discovered that she has some heart rhythm problems that is causing dizziness and falling, which they are putting her on medication to correct. So all good, but here’s the thing: not one family member can visit her and when they allow her to return to her village, it is completely locked down and no one can go to see her. My nephew lives further down the North Island and he can’t drive up to see her (or his mother for her 80th birthday) because driving long distances is currently a fineable offense in New Zealand. Today was the day Craig was going to drive me to Chicago so I could catch my flight to New Zealand for 3 days to celebrate my sister’s birthday and then fly on again on Monday to catch up Zoe and Oliver and all the other family members. I’ve told you this before but today is that day. I think that what I am taking from this is that there are so many people in the world who are really ill and perhaps dying and they are doing it entirely without family or friends. It’s not so much about dying because we will all die sometime - its doing it alone, really ill and afraid. And its even the same for patients with other diseases or medical emergencies. They’re probably alone too. I think this is the scariest aspect for me and thinking of my stepmother soldiering on by herself breaks my heart. Today I have read of 3 countries who are beginning to experience the second wave of infections. How troubling is that? Some experts are saying that we will have to maintain some sort of social distancing for the next 2 years. So maybe today will be the day I pull the covers over my head and wait patiently for it to be all over. And maybe not. Lets go to today’s flashback because that always makes me feel better. Thank goodness for photographs which make us remember happier days and smile. ��This is Lucca in the Tuscany region of Italy. It was a Roman colony in 180 BCE and you can still see the grid formation of streets in the town center. We stayed in a B&B up 3 flights of narrow steep stairs. But once up there in the beautifully renovated apartment you could look out at the street below. Our landlady sent us to a private club for dinner under the Renaissance town walls. We had to join the club to eat, but once we were seated outside under the grape arbor, we had a delicious dinner and way too much wine. These are the famous Renaissance walls. You can actually walk around the top for some distance and we all did. Here is Craig on our way to dinner. �The next morning our landlady rode in on her bicycle to bring us our breakfast including a cake her mother had baked. Very few cars are allowed within the walls of the old city. I loved Lucca and then we returned to Lucca 2 years ago while on a cruise. The weather was not as nice as our first time and the highlight of the second trip was a drive up behind Lucca to a winery in the hills where we sampled the wine and wandered the the vineyard in the sunshine. Just lovely. Well that’s it for today. You know the drill. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-15_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-35 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-15 Title A name given to the resource Day 35 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c38cb1ce2cfcfef15607496109b4adf0.pdf e71b910e238ba9792f20ce6cfe3819eb PDF Text Text Day 34 by windoworks Some days I have to decide if this blogpost is a fluff piece or is it a vehicle for how I feel. Today you get both. And first up is how angry I am. Here I am staying at home, wearing a mask if I go out to walk, staying more than 6 feet away from everyone else except Craig, letting Craig handle the mail and the unpacking of the groceries etc. As well as that, I worry about all my extended family in England, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, some of whom have compromised immune systems and have to be extra careful at this time. My sister-in-law got a very sore throat and scared us all for a few days until she began to recover. But nothing is certain anywhere in the world . And yet a portion of our population in Michigan feel that the Governor, who is doing her best to keep us safe and fighting hard on the open market to find and purchase PPEs for our hospital workers, is doing all this for some mysterious personal gain and even more importantly: closing all garden stores so we can’t buy seedlings AND even worse, not allowing the golf courses to open! So, in retaliation, they are planning a traffic jam around the Capitol Building in Lansing tomorrow, so that she will sit up and take notice. Governor Whitmer said: go ahead, but please don’t get out of your cars and then endanger the lives of the police or the first responders. Of course there’s no one in the Capitol Building except security. Everyone else is staying home just as they are supposed to. But I find it really hard to understand why some people see this safety precaution as a personal affront and see no reason to stop themselves from endangering others. If I am positive but symptom free and I go out and mingle with just 2 other people, and they mingle with 2 or 4 other people each and then - you can see the easy and quick contagion rate. And then 10 of us go to the hospital and 6 of us need to be placed on a respirator but uh oh, the hospital only has 10 respirators and they’re all in use right now. Do I have to wait for (a) someone to be taken off the respirator because they’ve recovered enough not to need it or (b) the respirator is free now because someone died or (c) while waiting for the respirator, I die? Which part of this do the people protesting being unable to buy seeds or play golf, not understand? If I can’t go to the mall for a shopping expedition and a nice lunch in the middle of the day - then no! You can’t play golf. Moving on. My friend Merrilyn sent me these photos last night. I think the Bear Hunt has become a Bear Escape. �Or a Bear Relaxing �Yesterday we were promised strong winds and so Craig and I organized coffee and a snack and drove out to Grand Haven to look at Lake Michigan. The wind was blowing strongly across the lake and when we got to the main parking lot, there was a line of cars all pointing out to the lake. We all sat and watched the waves pound in and the few hardy surfers. ��And here is Craig, taken out of the windscreen (I’m not going out there, it was very cold - even if Craig was just wearing shorts). �I didn’t post any stats for the day before in yesterday’s blogpost so here they are for yesterday. In Michigan state there were 25,635 positive cases and 1,602 deaths. In Kent County, as of 2pm yesterday we had 311 positive cases and 13 deaths. Bear in mind that the positive cases both for the state and the county only account for those tested. The true number is probably 10 or 20 times greater. Also, the deaths are only those recorded in hospital - there are probably more deaths at home. Today’s flashback: ��When we left Orvieto we drove on to Siena and arrived close to lunchtime. In this photo you can see the Siena clock tower behind us. This is the view from inside the clock tower looking down at the interior courtyard. There were beautiful frescoes inside the tower which is part of the town hall. There’s another story about Chardi, our companion and artist, describing what was happening in the religious frescoes - but you had to be there. �This is the fan shaped square in the middle of the medieval city called Piazza del Campo. The city’s 17 historic districts spread outward from the piazza. Siena is famous for the Palio, a horse race held twice a year on July 2 and August 16. Ten horses and riders, bareback and dressed in the colors of 10 of the 17 districts (wards) circle the square, on which a thick layer of earth has been laid. It’s only 3 laps and lasts about a minute and a half. Sometimes riders fall off on the sharp turns - and there is a slope on the square a bit like a velodrome. The first horse Palio took place in 1633. If you look carefully in the above photo you can see booths selling district flags. Our visit was a few days before the August Palio. After we had explored the city, Chardi remembered a restaurant down a side street that she had visited many years before. After a couple of false starts we actually found it and went in for lunch. From memory we were the only customers and they made a fuss of us. First we had housemade bread with oil and herbs then salad and then handmade pasta with sauces. It was delicious! And then we asked for the check. They were horrified - what? No meat? No dessert? No we said. It was wonderful but we’re full. We were to learn later that lunch in Italy is a very serious affair and takes at least an hour or so and includes several courses. I still have my district flag on the wall in the basement. �So, stay well, stay inside and practice smiling every day. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-14_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-34 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-14 Title A name given to the resource Day 34 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/ab7f0b66778e098a9c6dc9363ead0f87.pdf be83f40db132c0bd16684091345027df PDF Text Text Day 33 by windoworks Sometimes it takes me a while to think of how to begin a post and sometimes I write and discard the first paragraph a number of times. Today is such a day. It has been pointed out to me that identifying family members and friends by their initials can be extremely confusing for some readers. I have always done this because I thought it impolite to publish people’s names on what is essentially a public forum. So beginning today I will just put a person’s first name and if that person has a problem - please let me know. Yesterday (or the day before - who knows? One day is much like another) I lost my hairdresser. No its not that I can’t find him, its that he emailed me to say that this seemed like a good time to hang up his scissors. I’m really sad. He’s a great hairdresser and always makes me look terrific (well the hair part anyway), but he’s been such a treat to spend time with every 5 weeks. We’ve shared stories, laughs, photos and recipes. I’m really going to miss you Ben and I will go to the person you’ve recommended but it won’t be the same. And speaking of hair, Craig’s hair clippers arrive from Amazon tomorrow. He’s very excited about cutting his hair and he keeps offering to cut mine. I’m not quite that desperate yet. We are shopping for food about once a week and its always so irritating when you come home, bring it all in from the car, unpack it all, wipe it all down and then put it all away - and you realize that there was 1 or 2 items that you completely forgot to get - like small onions. It’s so nerve wracking going into a grocery store. Are the aisles wide enough? How many people are in here with me? How long will the germs stay on my debit card? I am that odd person - a grocery store browser. I really enjoy wandering around, looking at new products, thinking about what meals we will have this week and so on. To wander in the store now would be completely irresponsible and anyway Craig is a ‘get in, get what we need and get out’ kind of guy even in non-corona times. When this is over will I return to browsing? Who knows? I remember my aunt telling me a story about shopping for clothes with her husband. She said he was a patient man and so much so that when she was trying on an outfit in the fitting room, she could feel his patience seeping in under the door! My uncle was a Presbyterian minister and my aunt said she thought the phrase “poor as a church mouse” was coined just for them. My friend Merrilyn in Perth so liked my towel photo that she sent this one back. �This is a pair of swans on their hotel bed in China (sometime ago - don’t panic). So clever isn’t it? And a small correction to the photo of Oliver and Zoe and all those eggs that I posted yesterday - they weren’t ALL for Oliver. Craig and I have begun going through an old thumb drive of mine and his online photo collection and yesterday we looked at our trip to Italy in 2010. We met up with 2 other couples at Rome airport. We had come to Italy to attend a meeting of Big Historians at a tiny village called Coldigioco, in the Province of Macerata. It was more or less abandoned by the 1990s and so the Geological Observatory was established there and gradually the houses were purchased and refurbished by professors of geology. It has been in operation now for over 25 years. Anyway, the 6 of us met at the airport and then spent a week traveling up the west side of Italy, into France and then back down the east coast of Italy to the village. We actually missed the turnoff to the village several times - but thats another story. So Craig had planned the itinerary and after we picked up our 2 hire cars, off we set in tandem. We were all tired and hot and all the way to our first hotel Craig was worrying that we wouldn’t like the hotel where we were spending the night. Eventually we left the freeway and drove around a roundabout and then turned down a dusty driveway overshadowed by cypress trees and pulled into this parking area: �We all got out of the cars and wandered into the gorgeous 16th century baronial hall with hand painted ceilings and lovely wooden floors. We ate a fantastic dinner and then fell into bed. The next morning Craig asked me if I thought it was a good choice and I said that he had us with this first night - we could sleep on camp beds now and be happy. Of course every other night was just as fantastic. �That first night was in Orvieto and this photo is of the medieval town high on the hilltop (great defensive position) and was taken early in the morning. Our hotel was close by on the flat and we did explore the town before moving on. Tomorrow we will explore the next place on our journey. So, stay a velociraptor or 2 hoop skirts apart (you choose) and chin up, buttercup! � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-13_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-33 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-13 Title A name given to the resource Day 33 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/1601b14317ebf11ce45f22e712bc18f6.pdf abd4c8b00a153b064569dd78319cdde8 PDF Text Text Day 32 (but also Easter Sunday) by windoworks So here we are. I feel like I should ask you all if you slept well! I read an article this morning that explained that the daily anxiety is what is causing those really peculiar dreams we’ve all been having. Oh well thats a relief - both CB and I have been having quite unnerving dreams. Yet another thing to blame on COVID-19. This is the weirdest Easter I can remember. In Australia Easter is a really big deal. I think a lot of it is about the chocolate. And to give you an example, here is OB’s chocolate haul for Easter. Yes, you heard me correctly - this is all for OB who has (a) never tasted chocolate as far as I know and (b) probably won’t be allowed to eat any of it anyway. �Easter is, of course, a religious celebration and one of the bigger days of the year for going to church for a lot of people. This year the churches are closed in most states, but with technology, many congregations are able to worship online. And speaking of online, we were FaceTiming with AB the other night and he said he thought that workplaces may change dramatically when the lockdown abates as many people and companies have discovered how successful everyone is becoming at working from a virtual office. Here’s a thought: I have never been to the Monterey Bay Aquarium and I will probably never visit it in reality, but I can visit it online any time I want to. And the same goes for the Vatican Museums in Rome, the Louvre in Paris and so on. I can also watch whole Broadway Musicals at home as well as enjoy �musicians like Yo Yo Ma play wonderful music under the banner ‘Songs of Comfort’. The list goes on and on. In Canberra Australia, my mother-in-law FB reads books, sits and looks at her beautiful garden, watches movies on tv, plays Solitaire on her new computer and is always ready to FaceTime with us all. Recently she taught herself how to forward on funny memes she gets on email. And back to OB who wondered where his blue duck sticker went to. Naughty Great Uncle DB! ��From Perth Australia, my friend MM sent me these photos: This is a Kookaburra and yes, he’s eating a snake (well a little one) �And here is a bear in a tree, ready for all the little bear hunters. �This is Reeds Lake in East Grand Rapids in the early morning yesterday when CB and Murphy Brown went for their morning walk. What a gorgeous day it was. So here are the stats for Easter Saturday (the new stats are posted at 2pm each day) Michigan cases - 23,993 and deaths - 1,392. In Kent County, cases - 270 and deaths - 13. Most people here are doing their best to comply with the Executive Orders except for few on FaceBook who feel that their constitutional rights are being withheld. I have no idea what to say to them. I think the problem is that it is such a silent disease. There’s no way to tell who is asymptomatic and who is not. Added to this is the fact that is so hard to grasp: humans have NO immunity to this disease at all because we’ve never encountered it before. In Australia there is talk that Australians may not be able to travel abroad until the very end of this year. I am not sure how long the ongoing restrictions might be here in the US. In 3 days time I was scheduled to fly out to New Zealand from Chicago and help my sister MH celebrate her 80th birthday. Then a few days later I was booked to fly to Sydney Australia to catch up with ZB, OB, AB and all the family in Sydney and Canberra. And then on May 13, ZB, OB and I were flying home here to Michigan so everyone could see ZB and OB for 2 weeks or so. �Poof! Gone! Oh well, I would rather we were all safe and well. Flashback of the day: This is the first cruise that CB ever lectured on. It was a Scientific American cruise, that is, a portion of the 2000 passengers had paid extra to have a series of lectures onboard from scientists and historians. Here we are docking at Nga Trang in Vietnam. We had sailed there from Hong Kong which was also somewhere I had never been before. This was the first port of many exciting ports. I had never been on a real cruise before (we sailed from Sydney Australia to Auckland New Zealand one Christmas, but that was just 3 days at sea). I did not have these photos on my iPad and CB has begun sending them to me. I will have more of Vietnam and other places over the next few days. This was the first time I encountered the nightly towel animal on our bed. Holland America is famous for them and they even have an instruction book you can buy to make towel animals when you go home. This was our cabin attendants version of Poochie, my travel companion. �I see that a large number of crew are stuck on some cruise ships as they are unable to get home to their own countries. I believe that there are still cruise ships trying to get the last passengers safely off the ship and into quarantine before they can go home. In a recent photo I saw airplanes with big red covers over their engines, I imagine it is so animals do not get inside. It is hard to imagine how travel will begin again and what restrictions there will be to keep everyone safe. will they now take our temperatures as we go the customs and immigration? Will we have to have an annual travel pass which shows that we are healthy? The hardest part to wrap my head around is that this virus has reached every continent except Antarctica. I can hear you all saying: well that’s why it’s called a global pandemic, Pamela. So thats it for today. It’s another grey day with more rain forecast. I plan to read more of the strange book that ZB chose for our second family book club book. So far, of the 4 of us who have begun reading it, its a strange one! So, stay home, stay healthy, stay 6 feet away from outsiders (1 velociraptor, remember), try to control your chocolate intake and keep going. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-12_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-32 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-12 Title A name given to the resource Day 32 (but also Easter Sunday) Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/82486245d3b31c62b1ab376577e0e3b0.pdf 39a6c7f3a2727d8c30babc854dca2b20 PDF Text Text Day 31 by windoworks It’s another lovely day here in Grand Rapids although that may not last. The temperature is supposed to climb to 59F and after the last 2 days of freezing winds and occasional snow showers, I’ll take it. All around us people are mostly tucked up in bed by 10pm and most sleep in late. We, on the other hand, wake up shortly after 5am and make ourselves snooze until at least 6am. It’s a long day when you’re awake at 5am and I find I do tend to nod off in front of the tv just after lunch. We have been watching a lot of different cooking shows and I notice that we are both slightly adjusting our cooking techniques. We also routinely make enough dinner for 2 nights and sometimes we don’t have a new meal to eat for days. One note about gluten free pasta - it tastes indistinguishable from the non gluten free sort but when you reheat it, it becomes mushy. Luckily it still tastes good but the texture is markedly different. In family news, my two brothers-in-law have established a daily email thread with each one trying to outdo the other in humor. As they have very different senses of humor, each one is excellent and lends a very cheery note to the start of my day. Yesterday we spent some time driving around trying to find the other end of our favorite trail. Just as we were about to give up, we came across it by accident. The start of the trail at this end is boardwalk over a wetland area, complete with Murphy’s favorite types of bird - ducks and geese. ��Here she is staring intently at This - a very bold bird who actually waddled towards her. We had to pull Murphy away and continue our walk. ��And yes, it was REALLY cold and my mask makes my glasses steam up as I breathe. But it is nice outside in the clear, fresh air and there’s usually very few other walkers. And here is Oliver to cheer us all up: ��Is this somewhere exciting? No, just a little bathroom I think. ��And what about here? Is this where I can play with water? And how did I get up here in the first place? ��Oh Great Aunt B - how did you know I love a bright screen? In other news, the case rate in Kent County is rising faster and the death rate is increasing too. The whole Detroit area is struggling with cases and deaths accelerating. They have asked us all to wear masks and some people are complying and now they are restricting the number of people in grocery stores quite significantly. At butchers and other speciality stores such as the Cheese Lady, you must order and pay online and then pick up outside the store. At least these stores are continuing to operate in a limited way. The first beer pub and brewer in our local shops is closing today. They have been offering take out pizza and beer supplies but this week they decided that they couldn’t continue to place their employees in harms way. Other local restaurants (and we have a lot) are gradually shutting down also and each day the area looks more and more like a ghost town. Unemployment is climbing as I am sure it is doing in your corner of the world too. In Australia and New Zealand it is the Easter long weekend with Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday. It seems to involve an enormous amount of chocolate, more so in Australia, and mostly huge chocolate eggs with other edible treats inside and humongous chocolate bunnies - like this. ��In England they go outside one night a week and clap for the nurses, doctors, grocery store workers etc and then they chat briefly to their neighbors. Where my niece EB lives they’re not very chatty at all. I try to call at least one friend a day and catch up on how they’re doing. CB does most of his catching up through email. ZB FaceTimes each day with OB and BB and DB (who nearly always shows us the vegetable garden). Sometimes we FaceTime with ZL and AW in New Zealand and yesterday we had a long chat with AB in Melbourne Australia. I remember as a young teenager living in New Zealand that we would call my brother AS and his wife in Vancouver Canada at Christmas. This involved getting up in the middle of the night (during the day in British Columbia) and each person speaking for a minute at most. Your mind goes a total blank when you know (a) its costing a fortune and (b) there’s a line of other people waiting to speak after you. It is always amazing to think that you are sitting in your house talking to people on the other side of the world in real time. I mean, you can see their lips move in tandem with the words you are hearing. It allows us to see and hear ZB and OB going about their daily routine. We’re almost there. So, todays flashback. I wanted to show you a photo of some very cute little Pre Colombian statues but as neither of us could remember the name of the museum or the actual origin and time period of he statues, I decided to post this photo instead: �Every day in Berlin we walked through a large park called History Park Cell Prison Moabit. No really, thats its literal translation from the German. It was a state park and the site of a former prison with a reproduction of one of the cells. Standing inside the cell you could hear prisoners talking. It took 25 minutes to walk along the streets, past the little home gardens (complete with sheds) and then 10 minutes through the Prison Park. Then across the Main Street to the train station - the Hauptbahnhof. Other days we went up our street to another park on our way to the Hauptbahnhof, which was made from mounds of rubble that were constructed after the Second World War by women laborers. This park wound its way past a kindergarten and beside several hills and forested areas where Berliners often walked their dogs and their children. The dogs were almost never on leashes and never strayed from their owners sides. There were an astonishing number of preschool age twins seen in this park and apparently IVF was popular 10 years ago. This photo was taken late one afternoon when we arrived back by train to the Hauptbahnhof and as we walked through the huge station with 5 levels, we came across this impromptu tango demonstration on one of the main levels. We all stood and watched the dancing and it was a welcome surprise at the end of another tiring and exploring day in Berlin. �Thats it for today. Stay healthy, stay optimistic and stay in touch. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-11_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-31 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-11 Title A name given to the resource Day 31 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/c345538a4319baf11454a45797dc7f23.pdf 21c7030b1ccf6e27723e668c8373d4ef PDF Text Text Day 30 (and almost halfway to day 70, the Governor’s preferred lockdown period). by windoworks And, I think we could do it. I mean we’ve done 30 days, how hard could 40 more be? Will we all reach a moment when we won’t want to come out? I was thinking of wild animals that have been injured and wildlife workers catch them and take them into a facility to be operated on and then nursed back to health. Then one day the decision is taken to return the animal to the wild and they drive them caged in a truck to somewhere near where they were found, and they open the cage door and the animal looks at them as if to say: “Really? You want me to go out there where I’ll have to find food and shelter and safety? Don’t I already have that here safely with you?” That could be me. Just sayin’ In the daily news roundup, two days ago Governor Whitmer took her lead from New Zealand’s Prime Minister, Jacinta Adhern, and declared the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny essential workers. Our block is doing a virtual egg hunt and I have already placed some wooden eggs in the tv room window. I believe that children are going to decorate our sidewalks with chalk if and when it stops raining or snowing. Governor Whitmer also came online yesterday to extend the Stay Home, Stay Safe executive order until April 30 and she also mentioned that this might not be the last extension. Governor Whitmer also advised all 60+ citizens to stay home, only 1 person to go grocery shopping and we may still walk outside but at least 6 feet apart and always wearing a mask. We are gradually seeing more masks and she also advised us to wash them daily. There are many ideas on how to sanitize mail, parcels, groceries etc. and honestly you just have to work out the best system for yourself and your family. But I’m not putting my groceries in the garage for 3 days before unpacking. Oh, and I will not be the designated grocery shopper, CB will. There are many many stories coming out about tracing cluster outbreaks to one mildly symptomatic person who attended church, birthday parties, weddings etc and the catastrophic results. I watched Chris Cuomo (CNN) talk about his experience with COVID-19 and how a pulmonologist called him and made him get up out of bed, stretch his arms over his head and hold his breath for 10 seconds, all painful and difficult things Chris didn’t want to do but which are now emerging as the best way to fight the virus no matter how bad you are feeling. Statistics say that up to 80% of patients put on ventilators will die anyway and those who survive need months if not years to recover both physically and emotionally. I have found some days to be more of a struggle than others and last year I saw a counselor weekly. I am thinking of contacting her and seeing if she is doing video counseling from home. I want to say to everyone reading: be sure to ask for whatever help you need. These days are so far beyond our experience we need to find our best way to cope. And speaking of that, Ina Garten the chef posted a very funny video �of herself making the biggest Cosmopolitan cocktail I’ve ever seen while assuring us that any time was cocktail time now. All right Ina! ��So this is what “The basketball court is closed” looks like. Here are ZB, BB and OB doing Pilates from home. As they couldn’t get the Pilates lesson video to run on ZB’s laptop, they ran it on ZB’s phone, propped on OB’s green and white bouncer. If you look carefully you can just see the phone propped sideways. ��And here is OB practicing standing up while hanging on tight. He’ll be walking soon. In Melbourne Australia AB and his friends had fun at brunch on Zoom. ��In Finland Spring is on its way. Thanks AS for the gorgeous photo. While in Perth Australia, my friend MM found this cutie in a bucket outside her house. In Michigan our numbers keep climbing and in the last two days, our numbers in Kent County are starting to escalate: 233 cases and 9 deaths. Kent County is 872 square miles and has an official population of 648,504. We are doing our best to stay at home etc but there were gatherings and parties held as late as last week, so I’m not confident that we are flattening the curve. Flashback photo; now I just wanted to say that I have a bazillion photos on iCloud but usually they just have the date at the top. Now this is very useful for knowing when the photo was taken but not so useful for knowing where. So this morning I instigated a new procedure - CB and I look through the photos before he goes out to walk the dog, so I know where we were as well as when . So here goes (oh and this is one I didn’t need to ask him about, this is one we came across together and remembered ) �This is Dhobi Ghat in Mumbai. It is a 140 year old open air laundry which services a large number of hotels and businesses each day. This is a labor intensive job, the washing is soaked in soapy water and then beaten on a flogging stone, hung out to dry and then ironed and packed for delivery. It developed in to huge area with the Dhobis living in among the laundry facilities and it turning into a massive slum. I think that shortly after we visited the area and stood on the nearby bridge to take this photo, the city left a portion of the Ghat but pulled down the slum area for redevelopment. Of course there are laundry machines for doing this job now. And, like everywhere else in the world the Dhobi Ghat in Mumbai is temporarily;y closed due to COVID-19. One last staggering statistic from India seems to remain the same: 70% of all households don’t have access to toilets - they have to defecate in the open. This statistic dates from 2016 but I am not sure things have changed significantly since then. On our tour that day we did hear about a bride who was insisting that there would be no wedding until the groom’s family had built a proper bathroom inside their new house. I’m not sure how that turned out. Well, stay safe, stay inside, wear a mask outside and remember to wave to your neighbors. �� Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-10_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-30 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-10 Title A name given to the resource Day 30 (and almost halfway to day 70, the Governor's preferred lockdown period). Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/8fc8dee29aff4aca6cbf4ea8d0d9cb0c.pdf 86e195060993ea18af9da172e59bb311 PDF Text Text Day 29 (of the Pandemic Diary) by windoworks I have taken to checking the title of the previous days post so I don’t get any more mixed up about what day it is. First the stats for the day: Michigan recorded 20,346 cases yesterday and 959 deaths. Kent County has 207 cases and 8 deaths. In the US there are 434,791 confirmed cases as of yesterday and 14,802 deaths. These US stats are staggering - almost 3 times the number in Spain which is the next affected country after the US. Here in Michigan, Governor Whitmer is to give another update today and the speculation is that she will extend the ‘stay safe, stay home’ executive order to April 30. She would like to extend it to the end of May but the state republicans are fighting against it. It seems a bit of a cleft stick: stay home and the economy tanks, go back out and the population dwindles and the economy tanks. Certainly the governor, the county administration and the city administration are doing their best to assist those on low or now no incomes. The food banks are working hard, there are numbers to call for assistance and yesterday 3 local institutions banded together to offer counseling services via phone. But yesterday Wisconsin held its May election for some state and local seats and the democratic and republican primaries. The Governor wanted to delay the election and offer access to more absentee voting but at the eleventh hour (literally) the Wisconsin Supreme Court overrode this and insisted the election go ahead. So, in Milwaukee instead of 130 something polling booths there were 5 and in Green Bay there were just 3 polling booths. Even so, the people rugged up, donned their masks and gloves and stood spaced apart in line for 3 hours or more to vote. The results will not be known until Monday 13 and then I suspect they will be challenged. Every other state has delayed their primaries and in Michigan we voted just before the shutdown. In other news from yesterday: Bernie Sanders suspended his presidential run. I’m not sure why they say suspended as opposed to finished or ended. Here’s hoping that all his supporters will get behind Joe Biden now, especially as it appears Joe is incorporating many of Bernie’s platforms into his campaign. On a totally different subject, yesterday CB finished taking out the lilac bush in our back garden. It had been quietly dying for a couple of years and even though it had rallied this year with a show of new buds, it had to go. CB had already chopped one side of it back hard after our home insurance company said it posed a threat to the garage (??). Well, you can’t argue with home insurance companies, you either comply and get insurance or you don’t and you won’t. We also received half the vegetable and flower seeds we ordered and the others are on back order (which is better than All Sold Out). �Yesterday we drove downtown to walk. We were going to walk at Riverside Park but apparently a lot of other people thought that was a great idea as the parking lot was almost full, so we drove downtown instead. I am too nervous to walk with lots of other people, I prefer lots of empty space around the 3 of us. ��Here we are walking around the GVSU downtown campus. ��We walked past the Burger King and this sign appealed to CB. This photo is courtesy of ZB and comes from Balmain, Sydney. When I was there last year this was my favorite donut shop as everything they sold was gluten free and delicious. Here is some Easter kindness from Nutie Donuts. And today’s flashback: �This is Highclere Castle in Hampshire England, which is the setting for Downtown Abbey. CB took this photo of me as we were walking in for our ‘private’ tour of the castle and afternoon tea. This is the scene from many episodes as the cars drive into the abbey. It is a huge sprawling estate. The house was built in the 19th century in the Jacobean style (I’m not quite sure what that means), but the original house dated from 1679. The park around it was designed by Capability Brown who was a famous garden designer in the 18th century. It is owned by the Carnarvon family and the present owner is the 8th Earl of Carnarvon. We toured the first and second floors but not above those which is where the family lives and we were not allowed into the basement where the original kitchen is located. We did see the stairs to the basement which were extensively used for filming the staff going down and coming back up, but the kitchen scenes and downstairs staff offices were all filmed at a studio. We did go through the sitting room, the library, the main entrance and the dining room etc. and they all looked exactly as they did in the series. Afterwards we went outside to what was the stables and now the tearoom and the major domo welcomed us in for our afternoon tea. I was sure they would have nothing for me but they had sandwiches and cakes specially gluten free for me. Delicious! The major domo told me that the tv series had been the saving of the house as it paid for the reroofing of the entire house - several million dollars. And of course, because of the tv series and the recent movie, the tourist influx pays to keep the house and estate in good running order. �Downstairs in a part of the basement we were allowed into, there is an extensive display of reproductions of artifacts from Tutankhamen’s tomb (ah yes, I hear you saying: that Lord Carnarvon). Most artifacts are housed in the British Museum but there are some items that Lord Carnarvon hid in the upstairs doorways in concealed cupboards. I loved the whole experience and I see that it is temporarily closed to the public now like most other places in the world. One last word: I often wonder who is reading my posts and if they are enjoying them. I feel that in this difficult time that this is something I can do, introduce something of interest in people’s day. I have heard from friends that they are reading it and yesterday my neighbor said every morning she wonders if I am awake yet and have I written the days post. Thank you to you all. I hope you are enjoying reading these as much as I enjoy writing them (and researching the flashbacks to make sure I don’t write any misinformation). Ah, the sun is shining (for the moment) which lifts my spirits. Stay safe, stay home, video chat with friends and family and remember: chin up, buttercup! � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-09_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-29 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-09 Title A name given to the resource Day 29 (of the Pandemic Diary) Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/95614cc8f1fe76a43c2854d8346b3095.pdf dc608d500a5f97097d5be1d0420a0a2e PDF Text Text Day 28 by windoworks A month! A whole month has gone by! It’s Wednesday, right? The sun is shining this morning (no, gone now) and the leaf buds are just starting to appear on our neighbors maple trees out front. Yesterday the temperature reached 72F which was pushing ahead of a severe thunderstorm. It wasn’t too bad for us but other areas around us had hail as well as strong winds. The moon last night was gorgeous and when we woke at 6am this morning it was still huge and beautiful in the clear sky. Yesterday the Michigan State Health Department advised everyone to wear masks when outside. I have friends and neighbors who are making masks by the truckload and I know people are getting them, but when CB and I are outside walking, we don’t see very many. Also yesterday, the City of Grand Rapids closed all playgrounds, sports grounds, drinking fountains, sports courts etc. You can still use trails and parks but with masks on and maintaining at least a 6 foot separation , or as I like to say, one velociraptor apart (velociraptors measured 6 feet from nose to tail). Paris, France closed all sidewalks yesterday. Obviously they are desperate to contain the spread. In New Zealand where they are under some of the strictest restrictions in the world, they are more than flattening the curve, they are crushing it. I think big props go to Jacinta Adhern their Prime Minister who has remained absolutely resolute about continuing this lockdown for at least 4 weeks. And the other plus factor: they have substantially increased aggressive testing for the virus. There is a big lesson to be learned here. On a much lighter note: every day somewhere around 6pm, we FaceTime with our daughter ZB and her son OB. While they were still living at home, she would often put him in the high chair and feed him breakfast and CB and I would watch as he ate and banged his spoon on the tray. Two days ago she had him on her lap and after he squirmed and wriggled and lay on his back with his head hanging down backwards, ZB put him on the floor so he could play with his toys. After a while he crawled under the dining table which has a double strut between the two legs and OB decided to crawl over them. By this time ZB is siting on the floor under the dining table with him, with her phone and we all watch as OB gets his foot stuck in the middle of the strut and has to get his mother to extricate him. It was almost like being there. Then yesterday while we were chatting with ZB and OB he kept grabbing the phone to look behind to see where we were. ZB kept saying: they’re IN the phone, not behind it. Does he think we are miniature people who live in his mother’s cell phone? �Yesterdays’s walk with mask. �Last nights full moon about an hour after the thunderstorm. not a cloud in the sky. Flashback photo of the day: �When we were living in the South of France in a tiny village called La Bastide de Bousignac we would go walking every day. Sometimes we walked along old disused train tracks called the Voie Verte (Green Way). These trains originally ran all over the region where we were living, but for some reason they fell into disuse and so then they were torn up and miles and miles of trails for walking, biking and horse riding appeared in their place. We would drive to a small parking lot, get out and walk to the next parking lot and back again. The trails wound through farms, woods, villages, beside rivers and streams, and up and down hills. This photo shows me walking through a disused train tunnel which was part of the Voie Verte. As you walk through the overhead lights switch on and as you leave the tunnel they switch off again. Sometimes there was horse poop in the tunnels. Perhaps the tunnels made the horses nervous. So, stay safe, stay well and if you live in Michigan - wear your mask outside! � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-08_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-28 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-08 Title A name given to the resource Day 28 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng https://digitalcollections.library.gvsu.edu/files/original/19220a2637457eff740d2f68c69d23ba.pdf 3d86f0d4c6cdf65f362e2bf1452280db PDF Text Text Day 27 by windoworks Three days ago I decided that it was time to take the shellac nail gel off my fingernails as my nails needed trimming and the polish was just starting to lift. I had been thinking about this for a week and CB and I had made a visit to our local CVS to purchase the necessary tools etc. So I sat down at the dining table, surrounded by various bottles, tools, cotton balls, tinfoil etc and realized that this was going to be even harder than I first thought. When I got to the bit where you dip the cotton ball in acetone, place it on your fingernail and then secure it with a square of tinfoil, I realized thats why I am a nail salon devotee. Luckily CB abandoned his academic writings and came down and finished securely wrapping each fingernail for me. So then all I had to do for the next 10 minutes was figure out how to turn the page on my ebook on my iPad. To cut a long story shorter, scraping the polish off each nail turned out to be even harder than the wrapping bit. So now I have short plain nails with just a hint of the sparkle polish left in little crevices. I’ve gotta say its exhausting trying to do all these things for myself and I have no idea of what to do in 2 weeks time when my hair color starts to seriously grow out. CB and I are also wondering what we are going to do about Miss Murphy Brown Benjamin whose coat is gradually getting tighter and curlier and who no longer fits in the sink in the basement for a bath. Also I think her toenails might need trimming and I don’t know if we can manage that. They are advising us to stay home and keep car trips to a minimum. Yesterday we went to the grocery store armed with a list, gloves, masks and hats. Grocery shopping is surreal. You’re nervous and everyone around you is nervous too. Some people wear masks and gloves and some people shop oblivious to any threats. I am astounded at the amount of money we spend once a week. I’m not sure that we used to spend that much before. We do seem to have enough food to keep us going and the only item we are running out of is Swiffer duster pads, but if needs be I can improvise with an old face washer. Yesterday there was news of a handful of grocery store workers dying from COVID-19. And although there were Perspex screens in front of each cashier yesterday, none of them looked happy to be there. Well, I wouldn’t be happy either. However none of the staff were wearing gloves or masks and really, I think they should be. In the pharmacy area there is a Perspex screen and both staff (pharmacist and assistant) were masked and gloved. There are so many different instructions or advice on how to best sanitize anything that you bring into the house. Some suggest leaving all groceries in the garage for 3 days (why?), others tell you to wipe everything down with bleach, and then wipe the kitchen countertop with bleach when you’ve put everything away. Other advice says just unpack it all and then wash your hands. After years of telling us �to take our own grocery bags to the store, we are not allowed to bring them inside as they may be contaminated (and really, we should wash them all before storing them away). Our compost collection service has been suspended and the company may not survive. The county recycling service has stopped due to the danger of the virus and if you put your recycling bin out the city will take the contents to a local incinerator. We might have to reinstate some sort of compost bin in our backyard if this continues. If you have one it should be secure and covered but as wild animals are running unchecked in urban areas at the moment, compost bin security might be a moot point. Our mail deliverer is still working without gloves or mask and this makes the fetching and the opening of the mail a bit of a fraught daily exercise. And, in a totally unrelated thought - I just realized I have not used any toilet facility except those in my house for over 4 weeks. It’s the little things, really. Todays’ flashback: ��While we were in Rotterdam to attend the North Sea Jazz Festival, we took the train out to the coast at Scheveningen. As you can see from the top photo it was a wild and windy day but that didn’t stop people from visiting the beach and even a few hardy souls swimming. And not in the photo, but there were windsurfers further out at sea having a fantastic time. The bottom photo is inside the pier. It is a long pier stretching out into the sea and it has an odd collection of shops, cafes and restaurants. This is the first time I experienced fries with mayonnaise ( a European tradition) as opposed to ketchup - and I am now a lifelong convert. And now something to lift your spirits on this overcast day. ��OB reading a book with his great aunt in the early morning while his mother sleeps in. So, stay well, stay home, stay safe and chin up buttercup. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource COVID-19 Journals Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Grand Valley State University. University Libraries Description An account of the resource This collection of journals and personal narratives was solicited from the GVSU community by archivists of the University Libraries during the events of the 2020 COVID-19 global pandemic. During this unprecedented crisis the university closed suddenly, following federal and state guidelines of social distancing to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus. The university closed its campuses on March 12, 2020, and quickly moved students out of campus housing. Faculty swiftly transitioned to fully-online teaching for the remainder of the Winter 2020 semester, and all campus events, including commencement, were cancelled. The purpose of the COVID-19 Journaling Project was to document the individual and personal experiences of GVSU’s students, staff, faculty, and the wider community during this time of international crisis. Some project participants were university student employees who were compensated for their journaling. Other participants were granted stipends or extra credit for submitting entries to the archives. Still others participated without any compensation or credit. The University Archives remains grateful to all who submitted journals, for helping us to understand the impact of this crisis on our community. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Subject The topic of the resource Epidemics Grand Valley State University College students Personal narratives COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University. University Libraries. Special Collections & University Archives Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Identifier An unambiguous reference to the resource within a given context COVID-19_2020-04-07_BenjaminPamela_PD-Day-27 Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Benjamin, Pamela Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2020-04-07 Title A name given to the resource Day 27 Description An account of the resource Daily journal entry of Pamela Benjamin, spouse of GVSU history professor, Craig Benjamin, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally self-published on WordPress. Subject The topic of the resource COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 Epidemics Grand Valley State University Grand Rapids (Mich.) Personal narratives Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived University Archives. COVID-19 Journaling Project Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Grand Valley State University University Libraries. Special Collections and University Archives. Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource <a href="http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/">In Copyright</a> Type The nature or genre of the resource Text Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource application/pdf Language A language of the resource eng