Diary #7:
Time this year has felt really strange. It was already eight months ago that quarantine started
and that is crazy to think about. Halloween has passed and soon enough it will be Thanksgiving.
At first I felt like this year would go by slow considering that we were stuck indoors for the
majority of it, but honestly I am in awe that the year is almost over. I feel like it should still be
March, and it is kind of hard to wrap my head around the fact that I am in college and I
graduated high school. I think this is all so difficult to take in, because all of these
accomplishments and events that have been going on have been happening while I’m still at
home, but it is absolutely insane to think about. I just hope that next year brings more joy and
less quarantine, because I really hope that as I go on to accomplish things I am able to share it
with the people that I care about.
Diary #8:
The Coronavirus has infiltrated into every part of our daily lives. Sure, it makes sense that it has
considering how scary and different it has made things, but it is also crazy to see all of the
different ways that we now see references to it. This pandemic has found its way into television
shows, social media, and basically everything we see. If you turn on the TV you will see news
stories about it and TV shows now have their characters living through it. I have also caught
myself watching old shows where people are hanging out without masks and I have to rethink
and remember that things weren’t always like this, they weren’t even like this at the beginning of
the year. Our view of the world has drastically changed due to Covid-19 and it is kind of
unsettling to think about our “new normal.” However, something interesting to think about when
it comes to what we’re all going through is that it will be highly documented for future
generations to see.
Diary #9:
In today’s society the internet has a major place in the daily lives of mostly everybody. People
will spend hours a day on a computer whether they are writing a paper or posting on social
media about what they did that day, and this will have a huge impact on how this pandemic is
recorded and remembered. There are some people who are recording their daily lives to share
how they’ve kept busy and sane when the world is currently falling apart and there are others
who have decided to start blogging or even just journaling. All of these things are first hand
accounts of this life changing event that we’re all living through, and they will be very important
for future generations that are going to just know about the pandemic through textbooks and not
through actually living during it. This is something that is unprecedented, because when we
were in high school we’d learn about events like this through black and white pictures and books
that had accounts from a few people, but soon kids will be learning with in depth records, and
from a multitude of different people who went through this in different ways.
Diary #10:
It seems as though this whole virus situation was both something that has been going on
forever and something new that just started. We have been wearing masks and taking these
precautions for a while now and with no end in sight it seems as though this is just what normal
life has become. Of course this will end eventually, but I’m sure I’m not the only person who
would feel that it was weird walking into a store without a mask now seeing as it’s been going on
for months. It has been sort of a shock to society. All of a sudden this pandemic hit us out of
nowhere, especially in the United States because of how much the president kept from us for so
long, and we just had to adapt. I think it really goes to show how strong people can be when
they need to be, and for the most part people are willing to work together to bring this to an end.
Diary #4
The whole situation with the virus has been strange, but something even stranger has been being a
college student during it. I am currently a student at SUNY Oneonta and I am fully online. Before each of
my classes I just need to roll over in bed and have virtually no prep, whereas if I was in person I’d have to
get up with enough time to make myself presentable and get to class on time. It’s a weird feeling knowing
you’re in college, but not actually being in college. Especially since I am a freshman I haven’t experienced
what college is actually like, so whenever I get to go in person it’s going to be a whole new and frightening
experience. Even though it’s nice to not have to worry about how I look, because my camera can be off in
my classes, something that hasn’t been great is how hard it is to make friends. In person it is difficult to
make friends, because it can be nerve wracking talking to people, but take that environment and make it
completely online and making friends becomes near impossible. I haven’t had to talk to many people and
that has made college so far pretty lonely, but I’m hopeful that things will get better soon.
Diary #5
Trying to see your friends during a pandemic is near impossible. March 13, 2020 was the last day that I
got to hang out with all of my friends before we were locked up in our houses for months and if I would’ve
known I think I would’ve cherished it a lot more. I remember it was one of my best friend’s birthdays so we
decided to all go out to eat. We talked about the virus and about how school was going to close, but no
one realized how serious it was yet. This was before we had to wear masks and when we could still be in
large groups and it’s hard to even imagine that right now. After that night the only time I could see my
friends for months was over facetime which I was grateful for, but it still wasn’t the same. I missed being
able to leave my house, see my friends, and just be anyone but my bedroom. Eventually the restrictions
lightened up and I was able to see them again but it was still different than before and I’m not sure when
things will go back to normal.
Diary #6
I remember a few months after being in quarantine me and my friend decided we were finally going to see
each other in person. We both knew we were taking the necessary precautions to avoid the virus and
neither of us had symptoms or knew anyone with it, so after months we actually got to hang out in person.
I went over to her house and we went into the backyard and sat at opposite ends of the table. We were
six feet apart which is something I never thought I’d have to be from my best friend, but it was so nice to
actually see another person and be somewhere else other than my house. We talked about everything
and anything which was kind of crazy, because it’s not like we went these months without talking, we
facetimed and texted everyday, but it’s different being in person and we had no shortage of things to say.
We had lunch and coffee and I can honestly say it was the nicest day I had had in awhile. I missed seeing
her and even though we had to take precautions such as staying outside and staying far apart we were
actually hanging out which is something we both really missed.
Diary #1
The year 2020 has not been for one second what I expected. It was supposed to be a great thing,
something I had anticipated for most of my life, but it turned into a great mess. I am a part of the class of 2020.
- Senior year is the best year of all, or at least that’s what they tell you, but rather than going to prom
and walking across the stage at graduation in front of my family and friends I had to sit in my bedroom
and do school through a screen. Sure it may not seem like that big of a deal, because most kids go
through their school day wishing for it to be over, but once it actually is you realize just how much you
miss it, because if I would’ve known that March 13th was the last day I would ever go to high school I
probably would’ve cherished it a lot more. This whole experience has made me think about how much we
take for granted like going to concerts or even simple stuff like hanging out with friends. It’s hard to
imagine a world without those things until all of a sudden they go away. Now we’re all just waiting. No one
knows what to expect in life, but I think right now the whole world is on the same page which is we have
no clue what will happen next. All we can do is hope that everyone cares about getting back to “normal”
life enough that they’ll make the necessary sacrifices in order to have this virus end as quickly as
possible.
Diary #2
Quarantine is the kind of thing you hear in movies and tv shows about the apocalypse, but never expect
to see firsthand. That’s kind of what this whole experience has felt like, a horrible movie that doesn’t seem
to have an end in sight. It is the most peculiar thing when you’re walking around a store and you see that
everyone is wearing a mask. It really makes you think how did this become our new normal? It seems so
foreign, but at the same time it would feel just as weird to see people not distancing or wearing masks. It
is something that I’ve struggled to get accustomed to as I’m sure everyone else is as well, but it is slowly
becoming less scary. I currently have a collection of different masks all with different designs on them,
and that is weirdly enough something I’ve enjoyed about this experience. I try to look at it as just another
accessory or part of my outfit and that has definitely made it more fun. It has become hard to imagine
things going back to the way they were, and I’m sure even if they do it won’t be for a while. Right now I’m
attending a college that is hours away from where I’m writing this and I’m not sure when I’ll be able to
actually go to school. I’m hoping that I am able to experience college at some point, but for now I am just
going to continue working as hard as possible while at home in order to ensure that when we all get to go
back to life I am ready.
Diary #3
Music is how I have gotten through this pandemic. It is the one thing that I can always count on. I am
writing this as I’ve just found out my favorite artist is coming out with another album and that has made
me realize just how important music is to me. Music has many different emotions and without fail helps
me when I am feeling anything whether it’s good or bad. It allows you to travel into another world and all
of the struggles you face just melt away. This pandemic has been filled with stress and chaos, but music
has helped all of that get just a little bit better. It is something that is hard to put into words, but listening to
music is probably the most freeing thing you can experience. For that moment you are able to just live
and listen, and it is almost like the artist is speaking just to you. With all of the craziness going on in the
world and how unexpected everything is it is so important to be able to just relax and calm down which is
something I couldn’t have done without music. I am so grateful that I live in a time where I have access to
my music whenever and wherever I want, and I know that without it this pandemic would’ve been even
harder to get through.