4 minute read
Happy 2-year Anniversary
Of what was supposed to be two weeks at home
Remember when we were going to flatten the curve through social distancing and consistent handwashing? Only frontline workers needed to leave the house! And maybe also the kids of those essential workers who couldn’t stay home alone. We won’t know for years how much damage was done to education and everyone’s mental health. The plan at the beginning of March was to quickly rehash what happened when we were more worried about a virus than World War III, but this anniversary is messy and news out of Ukraine is worse. Here’s our scrapbook about it...
CELEBRITIES
After COVID got to Tom Hanks, did they suddenly realize they were on the same level as normals?
A roundup of cringey and funny posts from people who were famous pre-pandemic. Fuel for every wannabe influencer...
@madonna
BOTH SIDES Madonna boasted that we are all equal from a luxurious bath while Vanessa Hudgens proclaimed death is inevitable.
Vanessa Hudgens
REDEMPTION? In 2020, Arnold Schwarzenegger told everyone to stay home from his jacuzzi, but in 2022 he recorded a video for Telegram and Twitter to try to educate Russians about what was happening in Ukraine. Not as profound as the work celebrity chef José Andrés is doing with World Central Kitchen, but still an improvement.
@Schwarzenegger
The desktop version includes a picture of Mayor DeBlasio with his ASL interpreter, but it's all getting sliced up in the automated upload
EVERY GOOD STORY NEEDS A BAD GUY The silence from the White House made daily press conferences with the mayor and governor must see TV. They threw shade at each other and the federal government on top of updates about case numbers and new rules. Cuomosexuality spread rapidly. Had they not been squabbling over who could make decisions about school closures and mask mandates, maybe more lives would have been spared. Of everyone pictured here, I miss ASL interpreter Jonathan Lamberton the most. -MV
DISTANCE LEARNING
When we thought schools had closed temporarily, Kal was already set up with the Chromebook his school had given him for all of middle school. They jumped right into virtual classes. Meanwhile, Boom had to check for an emailed list of things to do. Morning announcements appeared on Instagram to help them feel connected to the elementary school. Betty’s Pre-K was farther behind, though, on suggestions for what to do, so Dad school meant she had a notebook and worked her way through the alphabet and numbers.
Morning gaming that used to happen on the wait to be let into real school took place in the hall before the remote school started
Madeline Vega
Madeline Vega
SCHOOL SUPPLIES
blue light glasses
styluses
headphones
base for tablet
wifi extender
One friend has a helmet for extra protection
Madeline Vega
SOME OF THE THINGS THAT CHANGED FOREVER
THERE’S NO EASY WAY BACK TO NORMAL
TWO YEARS OF UNPRECEDENTED TIMES IS GOING TO LEAVE a mark. Now that masks aren’t required and my kids are all vaccinated, the First Grader doesn’t understand she constantly has a cold because she refuses to wear the mask at school. She’s free to touch her mouth and nose all she wants after touching other germy surfaces. Her runny nose is about the only “normal” thing happening, though.
It used to be easy to kill an hour at the library when my kids were being dismissed at different times. Some locations are hosting in-person events, but it looks like ours is still only functioning as a pick-up point for books ordered online. Which is probably okay because I don’t know that I remember how to parent in public yet.
I’ve been all for bringing the system back online slowly, but my Apple Watch has gone from celebrating that I stood up twice in one month to telling me I should complete 30 minutes of exercise 25 days in a row. Easy there, Watch. I’m still working on being around people I’m not related to for 30 minutes a day.
This group of mini figures is a throwback to when Issue 88 demonstrated population density differences
Madeline Strum Photography
March 14, 2022, is the second anniversary of the first COVID-19 death inNYC. Nearly 40,000 residents (or 126 Lego people) have died since then—more people than the entire population of my hometown (103 Lego people).
