60 thoughts on “Blog #128 – Your take on the coronavirus pandemic”

1. Jonathan Sheyngauz May 19, 2020 at 2:08 pm

   1. Just as many others, my family stayed at home as much as possible in the first few weeks of the stay-at-home order. As the stay-at-home orders began to ease restrictions, our lives began to return to a new normal. I now have little free time with the extra hours I am now able to work as a direct result of the pandemic. Additionally, as a result of the pandemic, I am now being paid more than before due to the added risk of working in such a setting. Some measures of the CARES Act that are meant to provide support to Americans seem to provide benefits that seem unneeded for many, including myself. I have been able to collect money from the government as a result. The strangest thing to me is just how busy I am right now while everything seems to be shut down.

   2. I am typically not one to judge whether any protest demands are ‘reasonable’ as long as they are legal and the protest itself is legal. In this case, wanting to reopen the state is very reasonable, but how it’s done and how quickly is where the controversy arises and I do not know enough on the subject to make a properly informed decision.

   3. While mask requirements in stores and other places do have their benefits to help protect many groups of individuals, they are by no means a solution. As the weather gets hotter, masks become unbearable to safely wear for hours on end. As anyone who has worn a mask for a long duration of time surely knows, masks can shift on your face to get in your eyes, make your nose itchy, and can fall below your nose. Once these things happen, it becomes almost inevitable to need to adjust the mask using your hands which just adds danger and seems to defeat some of the purposes of wearing the mask in the first place. As I have personally noticed, people who choose to not wear masks in public tend to be less responsible overall and sometimes cough and sneeze without covering their mouths, scratch their faces, and get too close to others. Therefore, while I don’t necessarily support the requirement to wear masks in many places, they do help in several ways–one of which being to help others feel comfortable in public. Temperature checks of customers to establishments, though, do seem a little over-the-top. While shortages of necessary supplies do exist when talking about retail consumer access, commercial suppliers have worked hard to help reduce those shortages for businesses and other large customers. These overall measures are not enough to prevent a potential “2nd wave,” but are (in part) effective at helping slow it.

   4. Assuming we can return to school in the fall, I predict that we will be required to wear masks at all times except for lunch. There may be measures in place to encourage social distancing, but it would be almost impossible to enforce effectively. I also think that temperature checks would be introduced as a requirement upon entry to the building.

   Side Note: Any lack of details in response to question one should be assumed as intended.
2. Nolan Lamphere May 20, 2020 at 12:36 pm

   1: How has the pandemic affected me and what is the strangest thing about it?

   Obviously the biggest thing has been no school. I think I’m pretty lucky that I’m not a senior because I’d hate the miss out on all the end of the year stuff they don’t get to do now. I can’t do spring water polo which sucks, and now it’s looking more and more like I won’t be able to do swim team during the summer. Normally for Groves Water polo we go to a week-long camp during the summer too. This year’s camp is supposed to be in pepperdine, california. We got an email from them saying as of right now camp is still on, but I just don’t see how that could happen. They claimed there’s going to be daily temperature and symptom checks for all the campers, and if you’re diagnosed with corona you’ll be quarantined in one of the dorms until your parents come get you. Now that might work for the kids at the camp who are from california, but I don’t think my parents will be flying from michigan to pick me up, and if they do, flying a sick person on a plane with 100+ other people probably isn’t a good idea. So yeah I guess that might be the weirdest thing that’s happened so far. I also got a letter saying I’m temporarily fired from the gym I work at, so that’s pretty strange too.

   2: Thoughts on the protests?

   I was pretty surprised there isn’t a law about having guns in the capital, and I think it’s kinda weird how they don’t consider them a “threat” if the guns are on a sling and pointed down or however they classify it, because all you have to do is lift it up and then you could just start shooting so it seems pretty unsafe. The other thing with that is it should be a peaceful protest, and even if you aren’t using the guns, I feel like just having them makes the protest inherently violent, plus the risk they’re putting themselves and plenty of others at by being outside protesting. I understand they want things opened back up and feel constricted by not being able to go out, but it’s selfish to think just because they can’t get a haircut or whatever they have the right to put everyone at risk, and by protesting they’re going to make quarantine last longer, preventing what they want. There’s definitely better ways to go about this.

   3: Thoughts on how other states and companies are reopening/resuming?

   I understand that we can’t stay closed and there’s some things that need to stay open, but I still think it’s too early to just start opening everything back up just because there’s been a slight dip. The dip we’ve been seeing is because closing things down is starting to work, and so if we want to keep new cases at a minimum we need to keep things closed until people are recovering faster than new ones are being infected, or until a vaccine is completed. Those might be unrealistic goals, but I don’t see how else we can expect to get through this without a ton more deaths.

   4: How do you think school will be different in the fall?

   Unless the situation drastically improves between then and now, I don’t think school will start at the normal time. Whether that means more classes online, or limited classes in person, I’m not sure. It’ll also be interesting to see whether we sports are allowed to resume if school isn’t in person, or if it is if we won’t be allowed to do sports. Again I think it’s too early to know for sure, but it will definitely be interesting to see what happens.
3. Neely Allen May 21, 2020 at 10:36 am

   The Pandemic has affected my life in many ways. A few weeks into the pandemic my dad got the virus. It was a difficult time for me especially because of my parents. I feel I’m closest with my dad, as his parenting is less radical than my mother’s. There were days where I felt the need to prepare myself if he didn’t make it. I checked on him constantly to make sure he was breathing, and eating. My dad is a stubborn man, who didn’t want to take the measures he needed to be healthy again. He didn’t want to take medicine and he doesn’t like drinking tea. It was a scary time. I even began fasting in hopes that god would hear my prayers. Eventually he was cleared and he’s now recovered but during the time he had it, life was flipped upside down.
   I feel that the protests are insensitive and that those protesting have trouble seeing beyond themselves. They don’t follow the 6 feet rule when protesting and often compare the quarientene to horrible things like slavery, which is completely offensive and ignorant. I understand the rush to get things opened, but I feel that it would happen faster with people respecting the rules in place. It’s a reasonable thing to want, but unreasonable and rude to demand. It puts others at risk, and adds stress on those already working to keep us safe.
   I’m not sure, I hope it is enough. I think that it’s great that places are preparing to open up and I think that these adjustments will lead to a lot of opportunities for companies to improve. I also think that some of these precautions about still travelling less are great for the environment. I can only hope that this prevents a second wave. I’m hopeful for the good things it will bring as well, such as talks of another renaissance or another great movement inspired by this pandemic.
   I do see school being different. Just as I typed this, a notice was sent out about new steps that will be taken at school as safety precautions. I feel that social lives will suffer the most as we lose things like spirit week, lunch, and football games. I’m heartbroken for the experiences I’ll lose, and all the things that will be sacrificed. A lot of things are up in the air right now. I have all AP and honors classes next year, will they be easier online or am I a student who learns better in traditional settings? These are things that concern me. In addition to that, I’m worried about my sport. Losing a sophomore season is easier to get over than my junior season. I have scholarships and opportunities I’m hoping for. I can only hope that things work out.
4. Hope Sherwood May 21, 2020 at 11:07 am

   Covid-19 has not directly impacted my family, but my dad had a really big heart surgery two months ago, and overall has some health issues. Therefore we have had to be a little more careful than some others, especially because my dad is a veterinarian which is counted as “essential”, so his practice has had to change. The way it’s affected me is I have had to spend so much time with my family ( more than I’d like lol), and I also have gotten to see my friends a few times but socially distanced which was definitely weird and unusual and definitely kind of sad.
   I think the protest are SO stupid. It defeats the purpose of everything we are trying not to have happen right now. Because it’s many people, who most have not been quarantine together, gathering together, definitely not six feet, and protesting to stop quarantine, but they could just be spreading the disease and if they just stayed inside we could get out of quarantine quicker.
   I think the precautions some states are taking, make sense and I’m glad they aren’t fully jumping back into normalcy but I don’t think the conditions of corona are good enough right now to be jumping even into the second wave. Because we have seen some cases rise in some states and we haven’t really seen any decreases. So I don’t think any of the precautions will truly stop the spread.
   Next year I think school will be really weird, if we even have it. And I think there might be a possibility that we will have to do some more online school. I hope not though. And I’m sure we won’t have our fall musical which is super sad. I really have no idea how school will go, but I’m very curious to see what will happen.
5. Anwen May 21, 2020 at 12:23 pm

   This pandemic hasn’t ruined my life, but it has made things more complicated. When my dad was less than a week old, he got pneumonia, which caused later health issues so he’s at high-risk for catching Covid-19. Because of this, my family can’t make contact with anyone outside of our own family. My brother ended up moving in with his girlfriend because they may move to Lousiana eventually, so he left home to test if they could handle living together. The only time I get to leave home is to either pick up dinner or drop off groceries/medicine to my grandmother. The only time I’ve seen anyone outside my family was on my birthday when I saw my aunt, cousin, and best friend, all who stayed in their car with masks on while I talked to them from my front steps. Even after that, I still had to wash my hands and throw away any packaging to make sure my dad didn’t catch anything.
   I don’t believe that they should even be referred to as protesters. They are a danger to our state and have taken unnecessary measures to try and intimidate our government. They bring weapons to their “protests”, making them even more dangerous and technically they should be called terrorists. They need to stay at home and it’s so irresponsible of them to become a danger to everyone in the state just because they feel inconvenienced. We are all on lockdown because it is the safest way to handle this disease right now, but they’re too focused on their fake oppression to realize that they will be the cause of more deaths and the inevitable spike of diseased people.
   I think the second wave of this virus is inevitable, but if we take certain precautions it may be less severe than the second wave of Influenza during 1918. Before, the second wave was about 5 times more severe, but certain state governments are doing better at handling this situation. I don’t think restaurants should open up yet, but it may be a good idea to open up some of the religious places. It’s completely possible to practice your faith at home, but some people rely on a church or temple to follow all aspects or rules of their religion. Everyone should wear a mask when outside of their homes, and if you plan on touching stuff you should also wear gloves.
   School will be very different in the fall, and it may even have to be online still. If we do get to continue our education inside of the building, I think we’ll have to wear gloves and they may lower class numbers to prevent crowded rooms. They might even make more lunch periods because typically one lunch period is crammed and there can be ten or more people at one table. Cleanliness will also be more valued, and classrooms/bathrooms might be cleaned more as to kill off any bacteria that could spread diseases.
6. Drew Weider May 21, 2020 at 2:58 pm

   This pandemic sucks. The most notable things that affect me and that I miss are not being able to go to the gym, not seeing friends at school, having to wait over two months to get my drivers license, and not getting to enjoy the nice weather with my friends. A lot of the day is spent with me just not being really happy, and the happiest I am all day is when I workout with my friend at a field. Starting in September 2019, I got a gym membership to get in shape but it turned more into a lifestyle after a few months. I find myself very anxious all the time about me getting out of shape and not looking as good as I did a few months ago. Also, I just miss being in the gym because I now realize how happy it made me. At my home, it’s just me, my mom, and my dad, with our 2 dogs, so it’s not that crowded. We socialize with each other a little bit more than we used to. For example I watched the “The Last Dance” documentary with my dad and other old sports events. I also cook 2-3 meals per day which I will continue to do after quarantine ends. Other than that, I play a lot of video games. Nothing really strange has happened to my family. As far as the protests go, I think they’re pretty unreasonable. I get that everyone wants to go back to normal, and I do too, but guns, confederate flags, and not social distancing is not the solution. Since a modern pandemic like this is unprecedented, I think all of the political divide was expected due to not knowing how to handle the pandemic. Some people want everything shut down for a long time, and others want you to be able to open up as a choice. I don’t know where I stand because there’s no proven way to do it yet. I think that the U.S. lagged behind other countries to prevent the virus, but I think we’re headed in the right direction with mitigating the virus. It’s very weird how companies are making ventilators just like companies made military weapons during WW2. I have no clue if a second wave will happen. I’m hearing that it’s possible our school schedule could change for the fall. I hope everything is better by then so it doesn’t change, but I don’t know. I don’t think school will be all online thought, there will be at least some physical learning. At some point, I think we need to weigh the risk of going back to school. From what I’ve heard, the likelihood of my age group dying from the virus is incredibly small, but teachers are at risk depending on their age.
7. Alex Warren May 22, 2020 at 12:29 am

   1. Luckily, my family has not been hit hard by the pandemic compared to others. While my cousin and his girlfriend suffered from coronavirus symptoms during the beginning of the national shutdown, they lived in Arizona rather than a hotspot and were able to recover without any major difficulty. I’m very fortunate that my parents work in stable jobs and have been able to continue working. My dad runs pre-trials and criminal calls from inside our home office a few times a week, and my mom works full time out of the house because her line of work is classified under “critical infrastructure” (her company branch sells human cells to hospitals for research, and is currently working on developing antibody testing for Covid-19). I think the strangest thing that has impacted my family is that my dog was supposed to get groomed the day after the stay-at-home order started, and now he is completely shaggy and needs some serious help. He despises being brushed, so I had to shave down the fur on his paws so he wouldn’t get mats on them. We call him “chicken legs” now.

   2. I believe that the state protests are reasonable in concept, but unreasonable in execution. That said, others are being quick to judge protestors. I’ve heard many claims that they are being unreasonable and protesting because they “want a haircut” or “want to go out to eat”, when I believe that the main issue they have is that they are unable to work or have access to crucial parts of our economy. A lot of people in our state rely on in-person individual/ small group work which cannot be replicated in a virtual setting e.g road construction, landscaping, plumbing, electrical, etc. While many other people in our state are able to work from home, these groups are being temporarily fired and/or going into debt due to executive orders banning their work, even though these industries can operate with social distancing measures and proper PPE. My family has personally felt the effects of this ban, as during the beginning of the shutdown, both our washing machine and dishwasher were broken, and although the order allowed for electrical companies to come out and fix the appliances, no company was willing to work due to the vague government guidelines for their industry. Luckily, our appliances were fixed a few weeks ago after more explicit guidelines were given by the governor allowing lawn services and road construction to continue; but the initial shutdown of every industry that was not considered “critical” economically ruined many in our state, some of whom will never recover. I support those who were in the initial group of protestors: the workers in “safe” industries who could work alone or in small groups without being near each other. These protestors were represented in the first protest at the state capital and from my understanding stayed inside their cars and honked instead of meeting in person. This form of protesting is completely fine in my opinion as long as they don’t leave their cars, but the new wave of protests has gotten completely out of hand. I believe that the protestors that we’ve seen recently at the capital are despicable in their actions, and are only putting more lives at risk by not social distancing and refusing to wear face masks, especially during “operation haircut”. I support protests, but only if they are safe. For the people who meet at the state capital in person and in close proximity to one another, I support their cause and sympathize with them but I urge that they work on compromises and reopening their industries through petitions and letters to their representatives or governor rather than by their current ways of protest.
   TLDR: The original group of protestors was fine with me because they worked in “safe” industries, but I don’t support the efforts of new protestors who don’t do social distancing and want to reopen “unsafe” industries.

   3. I support the reopening of public recreational spaces (golf courses, parks, etc) almost completely except I have an issue with allowing people to rent golf carts and use playground structures due to sanitation concerns. I don’t have an issue with restaurants reopening for limited seating, but I only support efforts that utilize universal/almost universal outdoor seating as opposed to indoor seating due to expert opinions that the virus spreads much less easily outdoors. Places of worship is a touchy subject, because while I believe people would be much better off watching mass online, many churches do not support that kind of worship, and only “count” in-person service. I don’t have much knowledge on places of worship and their infection rates, so I’d have to look further into that before I form a concrete opinion. The biggest problem that I have with airlines is ventilation. No time in the near future should airlines be offering full/ near full capacity. Instead, I promote an increase in car travel to destinations, but I know that won’t be an option for everyone. With the current state efforts that I’m reading up on, I believe that our current policy and speed of reopening will be enough to prevent a second wave of infections. However, with other states where shutdowns were late and cases are increasing rapidly right now e.g Texas, I believe that they will be seeing a second wave, along with Florida, if they do not take substantial action to limit the activity of “unsafe” industry workers.

   4. I have no real expectation for what school would look like in the fall, but I’ve read some policies from other U.S states and foreign countries that I believe would be helpful and efficient. The first policy that I believe could be implemented involves all (minus students who require an in-person aid) middle and high school students staying home in the fall and working online, while the elementary students are spread out among district buildings. The thought behind this is that elementary students benefit much more from in-person learning compared to older students. This plan would be successful because the class sizes would be split which allows for greater social distancing, but an issue that would arise is how to teach the students because more classes equals more teachers (unless the school day is shortened and teachers move from one group to another). The plan which I ultimately think will be used involves all students learning from home and only coming in for certain days of the week/ certain hours of the day. With the latter, the hours that would be taught in person would include math classes and science classes, which educators claim are much better to teach in a physical class rather than through a screen. I would not be upset if either of these plans are put into place, as I work well online. But, I really hope that our district does not go completely online come fall, due to the needs of those younger than us who struggle with online learning, and those with additional educational needs that cannot be met through a screen.
8. Ellie Deighan May 22, 2020 at 12:10 pm

   My family and I have been affected by the virus in various ways. First of all, my parents are working from home. My mom is an accountant so her business is not suffering too much and always worked partially from home, so the pandemic did not change much for her. My dad is an insurance agent and he is not making nearly as much money as he did before because people aren’t buying new cars and houses right now. He also has never worked from home but he is now. The biggest change for me and my sisters is obviously that we aren’t going to school. I personally like school so I am pretty upset that we aren’t going but I am thankful that I am not a senior and missing graduation, or a junior and having to take multiple ap tests online. Also, everyone in my family is usually very busy all the time. Everyday, my sisters and I have at least 2 and a half hours of a sports practice, so we are never really home unless we are sleeping. This is a huge change to be at home all the time and I have never experienced this much free time. Obviously I am very upset about all of the sports being cancelled, especially because our whole polo season was over within a week, and my last gymnastics season ever was cancelled, so that is probably the weirdest thing that has happened for me.
   I can understand why people are protesting if they have a small business that is being shut down, but some of the reasons like that they can’t get a haircut are kind of stupid and they are going about it in an unsafe way. They do have a right to assemble and protest, but if they wanted to do so, they should follow the 6 feet apart rule.
   In theory, the new safety precautions are smart and could be helpful, but a lot of the things that people are doing, are not even effective. Masks can not prevent you from getting the virus, but can only slightly help you from spreading it if you have it, it’s not a guarantee. Also, wearing gloves does absolutely nothing because you are still wearing those gloves to touch everything so it is essentially the same as wearing nothing. The only way to fully guarantee that the virus doesn’t spread is to distance. These precautions could help to postpone a 2nd wave, but personally I think that it is inevitable, though these things could help to make it less deadly.
   If we even have school in the fall, I hope that things can be as normal as possible. Temperature checks and mask requirements are probable. I really hope that sports will be able to resume because missing a junior or senior year season could make scholarships extremely hard to come by. My sister already missed her finals for this year and missing a whole season would severely limit her opportunities for the future.
9. Grace Alkatib May 22, 2020 at 2:00 pm

   Covid-19 has not directly impacted my family but has made life different then before. The strangest thing that I have had to encounter during this time is the eerie feeling I get every time I go out. Seeing everyone in masks, very distant and silent. Even driving on the empty roads, or going to the market where there was no communication but only distance between everyone and myself. Not only was the outside world changing and becoming more and more frightening but so was the online world. As far as shopping for essentials, most were sold out, leaving people in need empty but people who bought had bulks of items. Not only did we see fear in everyone but we also saw that the world was changing and would be in the state of change for months. At the beginning of the pandemic, my brother was very sick and me and my family were very scared because not much was said about the effects of covid at the time. My family and I were locked in our house for about 3 weeks and my mom and dad were not able to go to work due to my brother being sick. When my brother got tested the results came out negative. This was really interesting to me because he seemed like he had all the symptoms and tested negative for flu and strep among many other things.

   The protests are irresponsible in my opinion but I also understand where the protesters are coming from. I don’t think it is right for the protesters to put themselves in danger as well as many others by going out in large crowds and demanding to reopen the state. I understand that the state has closed many places that were non essential, even though it may be essential to others. In order to come back from covid strong , we need to stay safe and at home as much as possible and the more and more people go out and put themselves in danger the more that we will suffer in the end. I understand where the protesters are coming from but I believe there is a better, more safe way of voicing your opinion during this time.
   I think that it is very important that when we reopen everyone is still taking extra precautions and making sure that if they go out, they are not sick. I think that the temperature checks are important but it also isn’t bullet proof because there are asymptomatic people. I think that the limited seating capacity is also very important and should help to limit the outcome of a 2nd wave. Overall, I think it difficult to distance people from one another and say that it will 100% stop the 2nd wave from happening, but in order to open up and start acting normal again we need to start somewhere.
   It is very early to tell if school will even be happening in the fall. If covid is still increasing then we will obviously not be going back but if it begins to decrease then that is a different story. We may have limited school days, like West Bloomfield has planned, or we may just stick to online school. Unless covid clears up fast and well then I’d say it is unlikely that we will have school like normal in the fall.
10. Rachel Akaba May 22, 2020 at 2:06 pm

    The Corona virus Pandemic has made life very foreign for me. I’m not used to not waking up early in the morning, not seeing my friends, peers and teachers everyday, and not being able to go out to eat regularly. I think the strangest thing that has impacted me is being around my family all day, everyday, 24/7. Typically my parents would be at work several hours in the day, me and my brother would be at school, and my sister would be away at college. This has changed because now everyone, besides my mom who is a nurse, is working from home. Before COVID-19 my computer was used largely for entertainment purposes, but now it has transformed into my own personal school.
    I think it is ludicrous how people want to risk their lives just to get a haircut. These protesters are overlooking how these rules and regulations are being put in place for their own protection, and so hospitals aren’t continuously overwhelmed with lack of equipment, and more and more patients. This state opening demand is unreasonable and could cost more unnecessary lives if it were to happen too early. I think our governor is being fair with the extended stay at home orders because it has proven to be effective to an extent because the number of cases growing in Michigan everyday has dropped.
    I think companies are being smart with their new regulations as they reopen. However, I don’t think rules and cleanliness alone can completely eliminate the chances of having another wave. Until a cure or vaccine is found, we might be at risk for a long time.
    I think school will be very different in the fall. I think classes may be smaller in order for people to be a safe distance apart. This might mean that students will be limited to physical group projects. I don’t know how our big assemblies, like the ones for spirit week, charity week, and the MLK one will happen. I think everyone may have to wear masks to school, which might be uncomfortable to wear for 7 hours of a school day. School dances and other events like sport games with a large crowd may not be allowed. I also think we may have online school a few times a week or a few times a month depending on if the Corona virus has died down or not.
11. Eric Heifler May 22, 2020 at 3:13 pm

    The pandemic is affecting my life predictably. On a personal level it has its ups and downs. I miss human contact with people outside my family, but I’m happy about the time I’m given to do things I enjoy. Everyone in my family pretty much spends their days in their own places in the house doing work. My oldest brother has autism so my mom, other brother, and I try to do activities with him for exercise or to stimulate his mind. For instance, we play a lot of Wii Sports.
    I find the protests to be racist, political, and just stupid. At least people are recognizing Michigan’s proud southern heritage (ha ha). The people protesting because they can’t go get a haircut are disgraceful. They don’t understand what sacrifice is. In WWII, the factories stopped making consumer products and instead made weaponry for the war, but they can’t put on a mask when they leave their house! I also find it borderline facist that people are willing to kill millions of citizens to help the nation’s economy. That hatred in the protests, and its affiliation to the alt-right is vile. Then there are the people blocking the paths for healthcare workers. WTF, are these people now protesting the people trying to save lives. I get why they’d protest the capital, but that is just stupid. I am happy with the way Governor Whitmer is handling the protests though. I think she’s being level headed and doing what it takes carefully.
    I’m all for states with lowering infection rates to open slowly, but there are places that are still climbing up that haven’t flattened the curve that are opening which is ridiculous. I think people should be wearing masks in public. I think curb-side pickup is best for restaurants right now, while I think planes should take temperatures of people before the board, as well as space people out. I don’t think places of worship should open. Maybe there could be one of one with the priest, pastor, rabbi, imam, etc, but not a whole service. It’s just not practical. I do think there are creative ways to do religious services but I don’t think places of worship should open its door like ussal. I think a 2nd wave can be avoided with proper precautions and rapid testing.
    I have no clue on what school might look like in the fall, but I know something will be different. I don’t think having people come two days a week would be smart because there are still a bunch of kids in school at the same time. But dividing the school so there are some classes in the morning for some, and classes in the afternoon for others would be the smartest way.
12. Macy West May 23, 2020 at 1:29 am

    1.
    The pandemic has affected everyone, and I’m very thankful to be affected in only social ways for the most part. My family has been very serious about social distancing since the day school was cancelled. I haven’t been within six feet of someone since May 19, which was only to go to Walgreens for ten minutes and my mom made me wear gloves (this was before the CDC said wearing masks was for everyone). My summer camp has been cancelled which has been upsetting but not shocking, because it would be my last chance to experience such a special program to me. I haven’t seen someone not directly related to me since my birthday in early april and it was just one other person more than six feet away, which was really special. Speaking of my birthday, I was supposed to get my license and I was looking forward to it for so long because driving is probably one of my favorite things. I even passed my test almost two months early because I had been ready for so long. I’ve watched so many shows on Netflix, and spend most of my time in my room because my parents use the rest of the house to go on unusually loud phone/zoom calls. I miss my friends and facetiming has never been my thing so that’s an issue. But truthfully none of that really matters because my family is all healthy and in a financially stable place. The only thing I find myself really complaining about are the people who continue to go out together without masks and post about it. It’s of course their lives so they can choose to live it however they’d like but I’d really prefer it if they wouldn’t show it off, because it’s frustrating to those who aren’t seeing their friends and probably even more to those who are losing the ones they love or those who will lose their homes once this protection from eviction is no more.
    2.
    In my opinion, I can understand why some people may be protesting, we do have the right to do so. However, the ways in which people are doing it, and some of the reasons it’s being done are unreasonable and upsetting. To start off, some people will experience and are currently experiencing major financial problems and this is due to the order. I understand some people protest to let it be known that this is severely affecting them in dangerous ways. The problem is, they are not doing it in safe or reasonable ways. Bringing guns, confederate flags, and signs with swastikas is unrelated to the things in which they are protesting and in my opinion is very ignorant and offensive. I mean we live in Michigan, we weren’t even part of the confederacy so how does one even justify that without being racist. And obviously I have a problem with the “heil whitmer” signs that include the swastika because what we are experiencing is nowhere near as heinous as what the millions of Hitler’s victims experienced. And the stay at home order has absolutely nothing to do with guns, and I think the protesters are just making their cause seem less important by bringing their guns. Also the fact that they are not even close to social distancing during these and not wearing masks, in my opinion is just putting their lives in danger that will ultimately increase the effects of Covid-19
    3.
    I think no matter what we do a second wave will happen, this does not mean I think that we can do whatever we want just because it’s inevitable. I think this needs to be a slow process so we can save the most amount of lives. So I am for things like limited seat capacity and sports leagues playing with no audience, and I know the masks can be difficult, but I think they will help.
    4.
    I’m not sure school in the fall will be any different from the school we are experiencing right now. If this is the case, maybe the difference will be that the curriculum will continue as normal with school everyday and the same things taught but at home, now this sounds a bit like torture, but I think it’s entirely possible. If not that, we might have it so we only go to school in person for certain classes that are much harder to do at home (apparently math is something people want to prioritize for being done in person). There is also talk of having times or days where some people go in and others don’t to minimize interaction. I really don’t know what will happen, because I don’t know how bad the pandemic will be by the fall. It would be dope if everything would be normal but i’m not that optimistic.
13. Draque Williams May 23, 2020 at 6:26 pm

    1.) I feel like this pandemic affected a lot of things in my life. For one online schooling is becoming a blessing and a curse. For some of my classes it’s becoming easier to get done and have more time for other things but I still feel like I’m missing important information that you can only get from being in person. My family and I have also taken time by bonding a lot of playing a lot of games. Usually everyone is working or I’m at school so we don’t do a lot of stuff but now I have more time to interact with them and have more memories.
    2.) I think that the protests are a little bit unsympathetic. I get what everyone who wants to rush this stay at home order feels although I still don’t think people understand that this is a life or death situation. I would personally love for everything to open but I would still feel guilty if opening up our state puts everyone we care for at risk and starts a 2nd wave for the virus. I think we should take our time to slowly integrate into our old lives so everyone can be safe.
    3.) I think states and businesses reopening gives people hope that we can get through this pandemic, although I do feel that this can be a little rushed since most states reopening are gradually getting more cases. But I do understand that these businesses and states are trying to reopen the economy and try to get people into their daily routines. When it comes to these new rules and policies that we have to follow I think it’s necessary. I think that when we don’t wear a mask it can still but someone at risk when wearing one lowers the possibility of the spread. I also think that necessary items should be limited to how they are doing only 2 per person because it gives a chance for others who don’t have something to get it when it’s needed.
    4.) I think we will have school reopen late but continue our online classes. I say this because having a public or private school when you’re used to doing everything in person might affect the learning. So making our way gradually into school would probably require us to wear gloves and a mask to school. It would probably even extend towards if you feel any symptoms of a cold you have to miss out on school for a week and do online work. We might even have to have mandatory hand sanitizers around the classrooms and school so that everyone can have a sense of protection.
14. Connor Mueller May 23, 2020 at 7:12 pm

    1 For me, the pandemic mostly affected my school life. I was extremely excited for the third tri because I did not have band class second tri and was unable to see some of my friends that did not take honors classes like me. At the beginning, when I only thought this was going to last a couple weeks, I was fine because I thought I would be able to see my friend relatively soon, but now I miss my friends and really want that human contact.Being stuck at home also dramatically affected my work. With the separation between work and rest blurring, I found it harder to do my assigned work. The pandemic also affected my father’s work a lot because he had just gotten promoted to a global position in his company with his boss and employees in Italy and employees in China right as the pandemic started.

    2 I think the protests are stupid. I can see where they are coming from; It would be nice to go out again and get my hair cut, but the wellbeing of the people of this nation depend on staying home and being away from others and going outside puts yourself, your family, and others in danger. Their demands are completely unreasonable.

    3 Wisconsin reopening is a bad thing. Cases of COVID will skyrocket and it has already started to do so. I like that some stores are requiring people to wear face masks. This allows people to get the things they need while minimising the risk of infection. I think that a second wave is unavoidable. With everyone wanting stores and other businesses to reopen, they will most likely reopen at the earliest possible moment the government allows and that is probably not when we know the virus is definitely gone.

    4 When school reopens, I think that it will function similarly to what we are doing now, except our biweekly meetings in person with masks on. It is also likely that students will have to use hand sanitizer before entering school and when leaving. If students have to eat lunch at school, then they probably will have to eat it in the classroom because large communal spaces are dangerous. For the same reason classes will be much smaller than before. I believe that fall sports will still happen because they are smaller groups that always have the same people.
15. Rhyan Hurns May 24, 2020 at 2:26 pm

    The pandemic has affected my family greatly. My sister, a graduating senior, has missed out on most of her senior year. Both my parents work so most of the day is filled with hearing my mom’s meetings, my dad’s work calls and my siblings and I doing online classwork. Not only has the pandemic affected my immediate family but many of my family members have had the virus. My mom’s cousin was the first person in Michigan to die of the virus and they weren’t able to have a funeral for him.
    I think the protests about trying to reopen the state are acts of selfish behavior. People shouldn’t be protesting during a global health crisis that is killing tens of thousands of people per day and affecting millions. You have to be able to sacrifice for the better of mankind. The demands of the protesters are unreasonable right now because everything the state government is doing is for the safety of the people living here. The governor is only doing her job and the protesters are making it seem like she is purposely trying to ruin their lives.
    The slow opening of business is a good idea but only in moderation because if they open too many things at once it could trigger a second wave faster than we could prepare for. But if we have rules and regulations with the opening of a small amount of businesses it will maintain the safety of the public. Requiring masks for everyone and smaller groups of people are a great way to start but we have to remember that people are getting irritable inside their houses so this could cause people to ignore rules and put people’s safety at risk.
    If we don’t have a cure or vaccine for the virus by or before the fall school year starts there will be a dramatic difference in how we learn. Elementary school kids are very likely to get the virus and it can lead to other illnesses so the prospect of wearing masks and being six feet apart would continue if we went back into the school building. I know that some private schools have said they might continue online learning at home. I have also heard that we might have school in the building only twice a week and work at home the other three days.
16. Josh Moore May 24, 2020 at 7:49 pm

    1)The whole epidemic really sucks. It is forcing my family of six to stay crammed in a house together which gets very annoying. There has been a growing tension in my house do to the lack of personal space and everyone being sick of staying home. At the beginning of all this I didn’t think that it would be so annoying to stay home for so long with my family. A lot of this is because of the lack of personal space and also everyone is tired of not being allowed to leave the house
    2) I feel like the protests are a bit selfish because the corona virus hurts elderly people and people with underlying health issues mostly. So protesting is basically saying those peoples safety doesn’t matter. The virus can also kill people and due to how contagious it is its still dangerous to everyone. I think for the safety of everyone we should play it safe and stay quarantined for as long as needed. It may not be fun but it is for the safety of everyone.
    3) i think it’s a good idea to reopen some things to cool out the protesters but personally I think we really have to ease into reopening things. Companies should definitely take it as slow as possible if we want to prevent the second wave. I think it will be difficult to prevent the second wave without a vaccine due to how easily this virus spreads. For example restaurants should only allow small amounts of people into them and not increase capacity until safe. This should all depend on how the city is doing. So if case numbers are declining then the capacity could start going up but if there cases start to rise again i think the restaurant should close again.
    4) I think only time will tell when it comes to what will happen next fall. Schools like West bloomfield have already said they will have an altered schedule next fall but idk what will happen. If there is a wave 2 and it hits michigan hard I can see schools closing. But at the same time there is a chance we can have a normal fall if by some miracle corona is gone. Corona is also an issue for sports in the fall like football and soccer. If these sports are cancelled then the seniors dont get to experience their senior season which would be horrible.
17. Nathan mueller May 25, 2020 at 11:39 am

    One effect of the pandemic is that I have gained a little weight. Walking to and from school and in between classes was like my daily exercise. I am now fifteen pounds heavier than Connor. Also I am now home with my dad every day. Usually he leaves for work before I’m up and gets home by dinner. Luckily his job is not in danger and he can do most of his work at home. My mom works for a hearing aid company and they claim to be essential even though hearing aids clearly aren’t. I miss my time at school with my friends and away from my parents. As this is memorial day, I am sad that there is no parade. I was looking forward to performing in it with the band. It was something I enjoyed last year.

    These protests are quite stupid. I heard of one that tried to get gyms to open up. They did exercises outside of the Clearwater courthouse in Florida to protest. But by doing this they proved that you don’t need a gym to exercise. People have also said things like quarantine is communism, and go to China if you want communism. These people clearly don’t understand that the U.S lockdown wasn’t as severe as other countries. America didn’t go into complete lockdown like many European nations. These people don’t realise how easy our lockdown is.

    I don’t know much about other states because that doesn’t have anything to do with me. One thing I do know though is that Florida’s beaches are open and attracting many people. I don’t think this was a smart decision. Beaches often have large groups of people especially this time of year. I doubt people will social distance while swimming. I think the strict guidelines places are taking are good. My church can only allow seventy-five people in and you have to reserve your spot. I hope these precautions are enough; I would really hate a second wave.

    I think we will see small classes with students spread apart. Masks may be a mandatory thing during school. Groves will most likely cancel some events. Already summer activities through July have been canceled. It is my hope that things will clear up enough to have a relatively normal school year. We may continue online classes, but I really don’t want that. Online classes just aren’t as good as in person classes. I believe things will get better in the next few months and school will only be slightly different.
18. Emma Schardt May 25, 2020 at 1:02 pm

    How had the pandemic affected your life, your family, your home? Explain. What do you think has been the strangest thing that has impacted you or your family? Why?
    The biggest impact which the virus had on me, was the cancelling of my varsity tennis season which I had been looking forward to all year. I also had been training since last year’s season for my position as a single’s player and right before the lineup would’ve been announced, school was cancelled. My mom has continued to go to work during this whole pandemic since she’s an essential worker and there has been no one else in the office for the majority of the pandemic. At the very beginning, I still trained with friends but as the restrictions increased me and my family only went out as needed. However, as the restrictions continue to be loosened we are taking advantage of the ability to gather with people and go out. We try to leave the house once a day, if it’s just for grocery shopping or taking a walk around the neighborhood. I think the biggest impact which our whole family has experienced is the uncertainties about international travel since, we only see our family once a year but the restrictions in Germany and Europe as a whole are being reduced as well so we’re adapting with every new change. We also had to cancel our trip to China, which was for the best, but it was upsetting, of course, since we had been looking forward to it for a few months now.
    What are your thoughts on the protests demanding that the state open up? Does this seem like a reasonable or an unreasonable demand? Why?
    I’m not usually one to judge whether a protest should be deemed ‘reasonable’ or not, however I do understand where many people are coming from. The First Amendment grants the People of American the freedom to petition and assemble and as long as no harm is being caused I don’t see a problem. I, as everyone else, want the state to be re-opened and for life to return back to normal, now I can’t say if it’s reasonable to protest it especially since many protesters are more radical and dangerous than others. I must say that I understand the anger towards the fact that our basic freedom is being limited and restricted by the government, but by harming others and protesting in the ways some are, it might just extend all the restrictions and then the protests aren’t worth it or reasonable.
    What are your thoughts on some of the things that other states and companies are doing as they reopen – restaurants and airlines and places of worship w/ limited seating capacity; required mask wearing in public spaces; possible temperature checks; shortages of essential items – and do you think these things will be enough to prevent a 2nd wave?
    Given the fact that I am still planning to see my family this summer, I do think it’s a good thing that these companies are reopening and I support the fact that they are making sure that social distancing is being continued by limiting seating capacity. By continuing the mask wearing orders they are ensuring the health of others by still providing the opportunity to restart normalcy in people’s lives. I can’t for sure say that all of these preventions and precautions will prevent a second wave but I do think they could limit how many people it affects and therefore limit how severe the second wave would be. I believe that everyone should be careful given the severeness of the virus, but I also think that this virus shouldn’t take over our lives and affect everything we do. I think that these companies are doing a good thing, because the economy is definitely benefitting from it and helping prevent an economic crisis and they are presenting a sense and hope of returning to normalcy again.
    How do you foresee school being different in the fall? Why?
    I’ve been in contact with many of my friends in Germany, and they have returned to school wearing masks and social distancing themselves during lunch and breaks. I am not positive how it is in the classrooms but from what I’ve heard and seen they are sitting in rows and having as much space between the seats as possible, to ensure that no one is sitting directly next to them. This makes me think that there is a high possibility that we will also return to school with the requirement to wear masks and maybe having the classrooms set up differently. My cousins’ schools are having the students come every week but switch the days they come in, meaning that one week they come Mon-Wed and the next week Thur.-Fri. This might also become a possibility that we switch the days or times we come in however, with our population of students I don’t think it would work quite as well. I definitely think that it will take a while before life returns to the way we knew it just a few months ago.
19. Owen Peake May 25, 2020 at 2:47 pm

    1. My family has been doing pretty well throughout this pandemic. Being in such close quarters every day with the same people has taken a toll on everyone but we have managed to get through it pretty well. My sister was mad that she had to leave her apartment at college but after some debating with my parents she is ok with the situation. One disappointment is that my parents are building a home that they will move to after I graduate, and the construction on that was stopped which will greatly increase the building time as it was supposed to be done around mid-summer. The strangest thing for me is that there is now so much free time every day to do things but I still feel like everything is going by very fast.

    2. While I do not know everything about the protests and about the numbers in Michigan, I think that the protests are a little ridiculous. I think the fact that people are bringing other rights into this like the second amendment is pretty crazy. The demand for the state to open up is somewhat reasonable. People demanding for a hair cut is stupid, but I do believe that something needs to happen to help the massive number of unemployed people and for the economy.

    3. For things like restaurants and airlines, I think they need to be open to some extent. I know there have been many domestic flights running and I think that that should stay open because there are many important reasons why people need to get places across the country. For restaurants, people need food, not everyone can afford to get good food from a grocery store every week. Many people will have to buy cheap unhealthy food, but if some restaurants are open they would be able to get a better meal there. With places like churches and religious places, I don’t think they can open up. Even with the 6-foot restriction, there have been many studies showing that if someone is sick 6 feet away, it won’t necessarily help stop the spread. I hope that many precautions like mask-wearing and social distancing will work, but with the current predictions, I don’t know if it will be enough to prevent a second wave.

    4. If this continues and/or if there is a second wave I think that school will either be entirely online or mostly online. I think having all the students in the school would be very dangerous as many desks are no more than 2-3 feet apart. Sports will also most likely be canceled or switched around to a latter time.
20. Maya Gratch May 25, 2020 at 4:23 pm

    The pandemic has mostly made me realize that I really hadn’t spent that much time with my family before everything happened. Now that I’m around them 24/7, I’ve realized that the little bit of time I spent with them before the pandemic is nothing compared to the amount of time I spend around them now. My mom, brother, and I mostly just keep to ourselves, we all have work, school, etc so we’re all pretty busy. My mom and I are getting a little cabin-feverish but my brother is content to never leave the house again, so he’s right in his element.
    The protests demanding that the state open up are completely unreasonable. Even though other states are beginning to open up and infection is slowly beginning to plateau, it’s still just as dangerous and just as easy to catch. There’s no reason to protest the stay-at-home order because it’s what’s keeping us safe. Being able to get a haircut or go shopping isn’t a valid reason to protest and ending the stay-at-home order would just result in more cases. Eventually we’ll be able to go back to life as it used to be but doing so prematurely would make the situation worse.
    I think that in theory the limited-seating capacity, requiring masks, etc, is a good idea but how do you enforce it? People could decide to group together or take off their masks and there’s not much that could be done about it. I think in states that haven’t had a large amount of cases it could work, but I think that as long as there’s no vaccine there’s still a risk. Also, I read somewhere that while in passing the 6ft distance keeps you safe but if you’re with someone for an extended period of time who’s infected that distance doesn’t apply. It’s not going to be completely safe to do anything in public until there’s a vaccine and until then I think that regardless of the state, we should all sit tight.
    I think that opening school in the fall without a vaccine will be really difficult. It’s not just me trying to get more time at home, because if I’m being honest, with online learning I feel like I’m not learning anything, I’m just doing busywork. At school, we sit in desks that other people sit in, eat lunch with our friends, and walk in cramped hallways with hundreds of other people. It’s impossible for us to stay 6ft apart from other people and there’s not enough room in most classrooms to support desks 6ft apart and 30 or so students. The district will have to do a lot more brainstorming of ideas to keep us separated if the idea is for us to go to school in-person next year, otherwise I think we’ll continue online.
21. Brennen Vechazone May 25, 2020 at 4:49 pm

    1)
    The pandemic hasn’t really affected my family at all. The only worry is my dad who has still been working and helping the elderly for their therapy. The only scare that came to us was the fact that he had come face-to-face with one of his patients who had Covid-19. Thankfully, no one in our family got it and we followed strict guidelines and procedures not to contract it. That was the strangest thing but the thing that affected my life the most of my whole baseball season was cancelled. We were supposed to go to Canada and Lansing plus playing against new and old teammates. That was probably my most disappointing thing about the whole cancellation.

    2)
    All the protests at the capitol and demanding the state to reopen is honestly the dumbest thing people could have done. It was supposed to be peaceful and people just stayed in their cars. Instead, people decided to wave flags and block the street for hospital workers and vehicles. On top of that, most of the protesters didn’t even wear mass and this in the middle of the huge spike. The whole situation about the protests are unreasonable but respected at the same time. Whitmer was supposed to only order the stay at home order until the curve has been flattened and not for finding a cure. The second thing is that she reopened northern Michigan but is going and eating lunch and having her daughter’s graduation party in Traverse City and not fair to the rest of Michigan.

    3)
    I think the new instituted orders will help prevent a second wave. I also think more businesses and a lot more things should reopen to help boost the economy even more but everyone who enters the store must have a mask. By these standards, everything will hopefully die down and life will finally go back to normal.

    4)
    For the future of next fall, I have seen and read reports of schools being blended or continuing to be online. I hope this whole mess is done by then and everything will be back to normal because I don’t think anyone wants to start the school year off being online even more. Something that could help would be just having kids wear masks during the school. All in all, I’m hoping for just a normal school year and everything will go back to how it was before the shutdown.
22. Lara Ringey May 25, 2020 at 4:57 pm

    Thankfully, my family has not been majorly affected. However, it is a bit difficult because my mom and I are usually the ones helping take care of my grandma since she still lives alone. Thus, we have to be extremely careful when we get groceries and give them to her. Other than that, my family has been blessed. The weirdest thing is pretty common for a lot of people, which is no school. I wasn’t involved in any spring sports or anything, nor am I a senior, obviously, so I’m glad I’m not missing out on too much. However, I do really miss school despite how much stress it gives me only for the social aspect. It’s odd not being able to see all my friends’ faces daily. The world feels like it is in a weird limbo state right now, and to be honest I’m still trying to get used to it.

    I understand the grievances people have, but I believe that the execution of it has been extremely in poor taste. I’m mostly referring to storming the capital armed. Many have understandable reasons for their desire for the shutdown to end, as many have lost their jobs and are suffering financially. There are many who are protesting for what I believe are more shallow reasons, and I do believe that these protests are a major hazard, I can understand why many are so anxious for the state to open again.

    I do believe that the way we are approaching slowly reopening is well. However, I believe that enclosed spaces are a bit risky, even with limited capacity. I don’t want to restrict people from being able to worship especially, but in my opinion it does raise some concerns as the virus spreads more easily indoors. Airplanes I for sure am against however, as that to me appears too risky and I’d advise people to try to drive as their travel method. Wearing masks in public for sure is good, because it does aid in helping prevent someone from spreading it. However, at the end of the day, I’m not sure if we’ll be able to safely 100% ensure that we won’t suffer through a 2nd wave, especially once the weather returns to cooler temperatures.

    At this point, school in the fall is still up in the air. As much as I’d love to be able to go back, as I cannot stand online learning, I’m not sure if it will be possible. Even if schools do open in the fall, I believe that the schooldays will be extremely different from what they have been. I truly hope that we will be able to, but at this time, I’m not sure what is going to happen.
23. Ben Glick May 25, 2020 at 6:10 pm

    1. My life hasn’t been affected that much. For me, the only major difference is online school. Online school isn’t ideal, and I find it harder to learn new concepts in some classes, but it isn’t that bad or weird. When it comes to seeing my friends everything is really the same. Before the virus, I didn’t really go hang out with friends very often, and it was more likely I’d talk with them over discord. Life for the rest of my family is definitely a bit different. Luckily, my parents are able to get work done from home, in both of their jobs they would usually meet people face to face, but to me it seems they are still able to get lots of work done. The strangest thing is how often I see my family. I don’t think I’ve ever interacted with my family this much.
    2. I don’t think the protests are great, but I think i can see where the protesters are coming from. I think having a lot of people be around each other protesting isn’t very smart, and I think that re-opening would probably make us have to deal with the virus longer and probably cause more deaths. On the other hand, I think I can see where the protesters are coming from. A lot of people are losing their jobs and can’t do things that they normally are able to do, and if we reopened there would probably be more available jobs. So I don’t think what they are asking for is reasonable because it would likely make the pandemic worse. I think it would be more reasonable to protest the government to get more assistance.
    3. I think the things states and companies are doing when they reopen are very smart. I think a lot of them are good ways to minimize the spread of disease. I’ve read about things like restaurants using parking lots as dining areas so they can space people out. I think a lot of the methods are smart ideas. I’m not sure if they will be enough to prevent a second wave. I genuinely have no clue, and I’m not an expert. I could make a guess about whether I think it would be enough, but my answer would mean nothing. For the sake of the question though, no? I really don’t know.
    4. I think school may stay online at least for the fall. I don’t know if this will go away over the summer, and even the debate team is preparing for online debates. It really depends on how quickly it begins to fade, and how governments react right after it fades. I imagine even after the cases begin to slow, we will continue what we are doing for a bit to prevent another spike in cases.
24. Nick Lurz May 25, 2020 at 6:14 pm

    1: How has the pandemic affected me and what is the strangest thing about it?
    The pandemic has been very strange for me. It has brought me many valuable opportunities to do more and be more proactive at home. I began to spend more time with my siblings, I became more creative and worked on some art and spent more time outside. The things I miss the most are the gyms being closed and I also don’t get to see my friends. I like having school because during the spring is when school is about to get out and it’s the best feeling. The strangest thing is that it is like summer but it isn’t.

    2. I think the protests are unreasonable. With the number of cases and the number of people that have died and are still dying, why would you want this to continue? These people think they are doing justice but they are really making it worse. They are standing outside the capitol building without masks and gloves and just holding guns, it makes no sense.

    3. I support the reopening of golf courses and parks. The biggest problem that I have with airlines is ventilation. No time in the near future should airlines be offering full/ near full capacity. I think people should be traveling more by car. With the current effort by our state, I believe that our current policy and speed of reopening will be enough to prevent a second wave of infections. But, with states reopening while their cases are rising, they are bound to have a second wave of infections. Florida hasn’t been taking substantial action and has been reopening, they are also beginning aau sports where the virus could easily spread.

    4. I’m not sure how school will be any different from the school we are experiencing right now. If this is the case, maybe the difference will be that the curriculum will continue as normal with school every day and the same things taught but at home. I would not wish to continue on with school in this manner but it’s not my decision. I think by then though times will have changed and we will be able to go on normally with our lives.
25. sydney taylor May 25, 2020 at 7:21 pm

    1 The pandemic had affected my daily life from me going to school with my friends to being in online classes and not being able to see my friends.the strangest impact it has had on my family so far is that my sister is back home because the doors at her school are closed so she’ll be staying at home till it’s over. The other impact on my family is I don’t get to see my cushions or my grandparents to keep from getting them sick. Especially My grandparents because the virus is more deadly to old people.

    2 I think it’s a very unreasonable demand. I don’t think that the people protesting realize that that could be devitasting and whip out a lot of people in our state. Reopening would just make the virus spread faster than it already is and then that could mean a tone of deaths. People need to stay home and be safe. A boom in the cases could be very deadly to us as a whole because as it is I don’t think there is enough reason to open the state back up.

    3 I just think that the places should have kept being closed. The mask can only prevent so much. Also with the temperature checks only tell if a person has a fever from the virus. A person could be carrying it and not have a fever. To be honest I don’t think the United States is doing a great job to prevent a 2nd wave. Most Likely there will be a 2nd wave and it will probably be worse than the first one. There should also be a set limit on home many essential items a family can have for a time to prevent shortages in the community. So overall I believe the places should stay closed for the better.

    4 The school year in the fall will definitely be different from how it was. To prevent kids from spreading germs to one and other more restrictions have to be made to keep them safe. I do think they might even keep ups to learning online rather than having students possibly expose each other to covid. Then along with parents not wanting their children to get infected at school and bring it back home and get everyone sick. Many things can be put in place to prevent the spread but it doesn’t mean it won’t happen. I don’t think the schools should take that risk.
26. James Hailer May 25, 2020 at 8:59 pm

    The coronavirus has affected me and my family more than I could have ever imagined. The biggest impact that the coronavirus had on me is that I had my entire lacrosse season canceled. This is very disappointing as now I only have 2 years left to play lacrosse in highschool. Some ways that my family was affected is that we could no longer leave the house for simple tasks like going to the store to buy groceries. A second way my family was impacted was that both of my parents had to work from home and my sister had to come from college. This caused lots of stress for my parents because it’s not easy trying to work from home while also taking care of other things. I think that the strangest part was when we could no longer go into the grocery store to buy food without worrying about wearing a mask and making sure to not touch things.

    my opinion on the protests for the state to open up were reasonable but i believe that the protesters went about it in the wrong way. I think that no matter how many people went to lansing to protest our governor would not listen to them. I understand why people would want to protest the stay at home orders but i just don’t think that what they did or protesting at all would have helped.

    I think it’s a very good thing that businesses around the country are beginning to reopen. With unemployment rates skyrocketing I don’t think that we could stay locked down for very much longer without seeing results much worse than the virus itself. In my opinion it is foolish that you still cannot go to church or any place of worship right now. I don’t think the government should be restricting people from practicing their religion. I definitely think that if we ease back into regular life it will prevent a second wave because we will be taking things very slowly.

    i belive that the way school will go in the fall just depends on how bad the virus still is in your area. If you live in a place where the virus is pretty non-existent right now like Florida I think that kids will be going back to school as it normally was. If you live in a place like new york city where the virus is still rampant then i think that students may have to stick to online school for a while. I think that in michigan we will probably have a schedule where tuesdays and thursdays we do school in person and the rest of the week we do school online.
27. Clarice Kim May 25, 2020 at 9:30 pm

    1)My family has, very fortunately, not been as negatively impacted by this pandemic compared to other families. The main way (and perhaps the most obvious way) that the pandemic has affected my family is that we are all now required to be at home pretty much 24/7. Our family unit was pretty close before, but is closer now. We have daily walks to release some steam that comes with being cooped up all day. I must say, the first few weeks of quarantine passed by really slowly, but now time is flying by. Or rather, sometimes it feels fast and sometimes it feels very slow. I guess we have all become better at cooking now that we have to do it more often?

    I can’t really think about a strange phenomena that has occurred to my family since COVID. All families at this time-I would think-would be quite isolated from any weird outside activity. I think the strangest phenomena of this time, within our family, is how we try to keep in touch with others. For me personally, I sometimes feel “too tired” to socialize with someone virtually, whereas perhaps a moment later, I just feel the urge to be in the presence of people (not even having to talk to them). My parents have been interacting with their friends through zoom parties and phone calls, but I don’t know how they feel about their social activity.

    2)Personally, I don’t agree with the government opening up, as historically (like with San Francisco and the 1918 Flu), when the government opened up too soon, more casualties have occurred as a result. Since the world is far more technologically advanced today than a century ago, I do not believe that herd immunity is the fastest and safest option to getting over the pandemic. Let me explain some more: while I realize that people need to work and the economic situation is really bad, if many more get sick (like in the Spanish flu), there won’t be enough people regardless to run businesses (as stated in the PBS Spanish flu documentary). To reach herd-immunity, there will be so many people dead that there will be orphans roaming in the streets (see the death toll of the Spanish flu, and how it affected Americans). So what other option do we have other than stay at home? Instead of protesting that the capitol should open, why not (digitally) mobilize some more volunteer forces/funds to help the unemployed and struggling?

    In terms of reasonability, I feel that protesters can more or less be split into 3 categories (this is an overgeneralization): those who feel that opening things will help the economy/help unemployed, those who feel that the closure is a violation of American citizens’ rights, and those who want the state to open because of convenience. I do understand how a plunging economy/depletion of jobs can make people panic (especially if they face homelessness/starvation/etc.). However, I still feel like lifting the lockdown for the sake of the economy is short-sighted and will do more harm than good. Next, the closure is not a violation of American rights. During a state of emergency (war, or this, which also has tons of casualties), the government has the ability to extend supreme power (as seen in the past). Finally, for the people who want the state to open up because of convenience: Why? People are dying. This motive to open the state is the most unreasonable of all.

    3) I do think that some activity can happen using safety precautions. The 6 ft rule has proven itself, and there is knowledge/preventative techniques regarding the virus that we know today that we had not for the past epidemics. That said, I am a bit cautious as to what extent activity can happen, especially if we cannot trust the enforcement of these measures. Airplanes, I feel, are still risky (since you have people in a crowded space, and who knows how clean the seats are). I don’t see the need for airlines beyond absolutely essential travel, and people should not use airplanes for vacation purposes. Masks should be worn in public because it has been proven somewhat effective at stopping the spread of the virus. Temperature checks are good for airplanes, but do not detect carriers that are asymptomatic. So, in conclusion, even with the implementation of some of these measures, the general public still must be restrained from going about to avoid a second wave.

    4) To be honest, I don’t think that life will be back to normal in the fall. If we do resume school, it is going to be so tempting to hang out in groups and not keep distance. Not only that, but huge assemblies such as the one for field day won’t take place, so it won’t feel like the regular school fall season. I have heard that maybe classes have to be outside for the time being, or we will have to be half online and half in-school, which will also be an added challenge. Technically, life won’t go back to normal until a vaccine is distributed.
28. Sydney Jones May 25, 2020 at 9:34 pm

    1. The pandemic has not affected my life much. Since school ended because of the pandemic, I had flown out to California, as I had seen it as a chance to see my dad as well as my two younger brothers; at the same time I was leaving my mother in Michigan. I believed that I would be coming back to school when the “break” was over, I assumed it would be just a few weeks. When I arrived on the plane, there were quite a lot of people wearing masks, although not everyone, it still felt more than strange. I’m still in California, only phone calls and text messages between my mother and I. I didn’t mean to stay as long as I had, but it seemed a better choice not to be at an airport. She didn’t expect me to be gone as long as this either, so she’s having a glimpse of what it’s going to be like when I’m at college in the future. I have to remind her that I’m coming home in June, with Nico (my older sister) as well, so it’ll be a full house when we return. Fortunately, my father still has his job and works on the air force base, so he has not been affected by unemployment. When I left Michigan there wasn’t a guarantee that they were going to be refusing visits to the nursing homes, though since my grandmother resides in one, they had warned my mother and gave her a comforting possibility. They had offered to set up a schedule where my grandmother and my mother would be able to facetime while this pandemic happens, but as time went, they were not able to fulfill the offer as money was tight. My mother has not been able to see her mother since the beginning of the spread of chaos into America and as I haven’t either, I feel as though this is the strangest thing.

    2. I believe it is an unreasonable demand, as the way the virus had been shared is because there were people moving from one place to another while showing symptoms of sickness. People with the virus, who don’t know they have it, have more of a desire to ignore such symptoms and travel, as they have been in quarantine for so long. If people are dying of a disease, I think people should wait a bit longer to see the results instead of believing that quarantine isn’t working just because they want to hangout with others.

    3. I have a biased perspective on the airplane controversy because I really want to go back home and see my mother which requires me having to take a plane. I definitely see the fault in the idea, air is circulated over and over again with large amounts of people in a small confining area, which then lands and those people who have shared each other’s germs for more than an hour disperse into different places and meet others to continue the germ chain; the worst thing to be done in a time like this. I declare it as a bad idea and completely selfish on the companies as this is just a way to gain money and disregard the consequences of it, especially restaurants as most are able to give take-out; though there are many different aspects they could be suffering from. I do believe the requirements such as masks are needed and are a good idea. I do not think that it will prevent a second wave though, as many people are refusing and it’s just not efficient enough.

    4. I predict that school is going to be exhausting as I will still not be used to it, even with this fall as a preview. In-person school would be less stressful as there will be a set schedule and pressure to accomplish assignments as well as different human interactions around every corner.
29. Nicolas Coignet May 25, 2020 at 9:53 pm

    When the stay at home order started, I felt the same as almost any other student. I thought about school canceling and what was going to happen with the end of the year, if we ended up coming back. I haven’t been as much affected by the virus as other people, but I think it has a toll on everyone. In the first couple of weeks of the stay at home order, my family came closer together. Recently, it’s been tough to make sure everyone is still taking the correct safety measures, especially with my grandparents. The strangest thing that has affected me during this time, is what I took for granted. For example school, seeing my friends everyday. All of this takes a toll on our emotional side and our well being.

    I was shocked to see people protesting these things, knowing what could happen. Governor Whitmer is trying to help the people and keep them safe. I know it’s a lot to ask from people, but we should listen to her because she is doing these things to help us get out of this global pandemic quicker. I think the protests were unreasonable, especially when the protesters brought weapons. If the protest had no weapons, and followed the guidelines like staying 6 feet apart it would be reasonable. I understand that there are many people suffering from these times, but protesting with weapons at the capitol, building and blocking routes to hospitals isn’t a way to fix anything.

    I think that these steps are obviously a good sign, but we can’t just jump into it like nothing happened, because something did happen and it’s going to affect us until researchers and doctors find a vaccine. I honestly don’t know if it’s enough to stop the second wave, because viewing historic events with diseases, the 2nd wave is almost always greater than the first and deadlier. I’m happy we are starting to open again, but we still have to be smart and safe.

    In my opinion, I believe that we will possibly start school later. I don’t believe we are going to have fall sports, and if we do, they might move them to the spring. School wise, I think that the school is going to split up the students into 2 groups, half of the kids attend class Monday and Tuesday, and the 2nd half attend Thursday and Friday. This makes it where there are less students in the class at one time and a break for the teachers to be safe as well. This might not be the case of course, but it is just an idea. I heard that West Bloomfield was thinking something along these lines as well, but I’m not sure.
30. Jack Handzel May 25, 2020 at 9:58 pm

    The pandemic has, overall, had a relatively neutral effect upon myself and my family (both close and extended). While there are difficulties associated with the confinement of quarantine, and many workplaces are suffering difficulties with their employees, my family has adapted to cope. As a matter of fact, I’ve spoken with my extended family in this month alone on Zoom calls than I typically do in a year, and it has been a decidedly positive experience, and though the loss of the majority of non-familial connections I previously enjoyed at school is annoying, I feel this newfound familial connection has more than compensated for it. Additionally, both of my parents are fortunate enough to be employed in positions where telecommuting is a feasible option, so myself and the rest of the family (including my siblings) are occupied, either with work or schooling. Overall, the strangest thing which occurred was that my dog began to nap a lot more. I think we’re beginning to wear her out by being with her 24/7.
    I believe that the protests to open the state up, while normally a perfectly reasonable action in accordance with Constitutional rights, are entirely too dangerous as large gatherings which could spread the coronavirus known as COVID-19. At this point, I believe that while certain businesses do have a right to open up, those businesses which could endanger the health of their customers through their very modus operandi should not be opened up at this moment regardless of the number of protests which occur. Therefore, this is an unreasonable demand.
    I do believe that the mitigation which other states are doing to ease into normal routines will be enough to stop a second wave of COVID-19, but I also believe that the number of fatalities during the first wave and its aftershocks will increase as a result of the lack of a definitive stance which is being taken by those states.
    I foresee school being very different as a result of the coronavirus, with such measures as staggered classes with low sizes, masks being required attire while at school, and an increasingly lenient sick policy for individuals who may have coronavirus either as a carrier or as a symptomatic individual. I believe that this will be occurring because both the state and federal government seem to be extremely concerned with the infection of individuals by COVID-19, and the public school is fundamentally a governmental institution.
31. Evan Meinel May 25, 2020 at 10:26 pm

    The pandemic has affected my life quite a bit. My family dynamic hasn;t really changed. To be honest this pandemic has brought us closer together. We are sending a lot more time together as a family. Doing more activities together. My parents definitely had chores for us to do daily. Our house is sparkling clean. Me personally, school has been kind of a bear to deal with. During the day there isn’t much structure. It’s nice some days, but others I just feel like I didn’t do anything at all. I much prefer being in school. It was way easier being taught in person and not over a video call.
    I personally think that the protests are not a good idea. The purpose of the protests is to reopen the state. If you reopen the state the virus is just going to spread even more. That means more time that life will not get back to normal. We need restrictions on what we can or can not do. If there are no restrictions the virus is going to get out of hand again. I think Michigan is handling it pretty well. Having restrictions in place. Then slowly lighten the restrictions as the cases of the virus go down. We can’t go on a complete shutdown because the economy would just go to ruins.
    Georgia completely reopening is just not smart to me. By completely reopening the state, the virus is going to spread. That means more people are going to do it because the Georgia government thought it was a good idea to have people free roam and spread the virus. Restaurants and airlines should not reopen. Restaurants can have takeout and things like that but dining in is not a good idea. That is just an easy way to spread the virus. Airline shouldn’t reopen either, that is also an easy way to spread the virus. Everyone should be required to wear a mask. Masks truly help prevent the spread of the virus.
    The pandemic is going to have a major impact on how school is going to happen in the future. I heard this idea where half of the kids go to school on Monday and Tuesday, the other half goes on Thursday and Friday. I also heard that fall sports will flip with spring sports, because sports like football there really can not be social distancing. School and all of the extracurricular activities will be either stopped or very limited because of this global pandemic.
32. Alex Hamze May 25, 2020 at 10:35 pm

    1. This pandemic has affected my life, family, and my home greatly. It has made my life more cautious than before. It has made my family a lot more paranoid. As for my home, we have set new rules for leaving the house and coming back in. The strangest thing that has impacted my family is the fact that we can’t spend time with friends, or visit family members like grandparents, cousins, and aunts/uncles. This has impacted us greatly because since we are such a tight and close family, it is hard not for us to be together with cousins, aunts/uncles, or grandparents.
    2. I believe that the protests demanding that the state open are arrogant, foolish, and not reasonable at all. These are unreasonable demands because if we jump the gun and open up now, it will prove to be a fatal error, not only will there be more deaths, but the virus will spread even faster. The practice of social distancing has proved to work time and time again, and it is working now. We already have the blood of over 100,000 innocent Americans on our hands, why add more?
    3. I believe what is going on in states like Georgia and Florida and cities like Las Vegas are fatal mistakes. I believe that take out should be the only option for restaurants, as these are the biggest germ cesspools, so opening them will be a big mistake. Opening up casinos, barbershops, and houses of worship is a horrible mistake simply due to the fact that it’s just not safe to go to these places because these are the biggest germ cesspools and will only increase the spreading of the virus rather than flattening the curve. Of all these, I believe opening beaches is the worst of all, as these are a horrible example of social distancing and are also a magnet for germs. I believe that required masks in public places is a good rule, as wearing masks has proven to block contact of the virus. I believe if we keep the required mask rule, and leave businesses and other non-essential places closed, this will prevent a second wave.
    4. I foresee school being very different in the Fall. There will probably be required masks, and a lot of events will for sure be cancelled. I’m sure there will be a required distance of the seating for students, and I have no doubt that lunch will be different either.
33. Ben Roman May 25, 2020 at 11:17 pm

    The pandemic has substantially altered the way that I live my life. Not being able to leave my house, I started spending less time outside and had too much free time on my hands where I was bored out of my mind. I quickly grew tired of the few hobbies that kept me busy during the weeks of quarantine. I didn’t even see my friends until a couple days ago, and even now we still have to stay apart and stay outside. I have however gotten some quality family time out of this quarantine. We also got a new puppy because we thought what better time to do so then when we are all home to be with the puppy. This was a burst of joy in a time when everyone else in the family is dragging their feet around the house. The strangest thing for me has been the online school and learning, I often have a lack of motivation to log on and do the work. Although I enjoy the flexibility of the online learning, I hate not being able to go to school. It is also harder to absorb information from videos than from an in-person teacher.
    I understand the anxiousness to open up the state, but I believe we must be as careful as possible with the process because lives are at stake. I have heard a lot about the manner in which the protests are occurring and that people are bringing guns to the protest. I entirely disagree with these tactics. At this point I definitely don’t think we are ready to open the state completely up. We have to take it slowly. I also understand the economic consequences of the quarantine, which puts many people into tough situations with unemployment. This makes the quarantine more complicated.
    I think that taking steps for safety instead of reopening everything at full capacity all at once is a good thing. I think more testing to track the spread would be helpful in containing it. However, without more information and background I cannot be sure how effective these measures actually are. I also think that the effectiveness would probably be limited by a lack of following these procedures as I’ve noticed increased ambition to break out of the quarantine in recent weeks.
    I foresee at least some changes to how we are used to doing school in the fall, the extent of which will depend on where we are at that point. I do think that we will have some sort of physical attendance at school. The days and hours that everyone goes to school might be staggered to limit large gatherings. To make up for the hours lost, I think the school will try to keep as much of the courses online as possible. I also foresee lunch at school and other large gatherings such as spirit week not happening next year. We might even wear protective masks to school to avoid the spread. Of course, procedure at school will change as students and staff must be conscious of cleaning and distancing.
34. Gillian Emerick May 25, 2020 at 11:29 pm

    1. How had the pandemic affected your life, your family, your home? Explain. What do you think has been the strangest thing that has impacted you or your family? Why?
    Thankfully the pandemic has not directly impacted my family’s life. My parents are both working from home now, and the transition to working at home wasn’t too bad. The strangest thing for me is definetly not being able to see my friends in person and not going to school. The activities I was looking forward to in the spring have all been canceled which sucks but really isn’t surprising. Some of my good friends turned 16 in the past couple of months and it was super weird not being able to celebrate with them. I think onlone school is both a blessing and a curse. I like being able to space out my work how I want to, but I find some subjects harder to understand when they are taught online.

    2. What are your thoughts on the protests demanding that the state open up? Does this seem like a reasonable or an unreasonable demand? Why?
    I think the protests are really stupid and unreasonable. I guess I can see where they are coming from. I miss seeing other people that aren’t my family and my brother would really like a haircut, but their protests are selfish and doing more harm than good. People really need to understand that this is a life threatening situation and staying at home can help get rid of it faster.

    3. What are your thoughts on some of the things that other states and companies are doing as they reopen – restaurants and airlines and places of worship w/ limited seating capacity; required mask wearing in public spaces; possible temperature checks; shortages of essential items – and do you think these things will be enough to prevent a 2nd wave?
    I think it is important when places start reopening for us to take extra precautions. Limited seating and capacity are definitely important to places like restaurants. When it comes to masks, I think they are important but definetly not a solution. While they are helpful it is important to still keep strong guidelines in place. This might not completely get rid of the possibility of a 2nd wave, but possibly lower the chances.

    4. How do you foresee school being different in the fall? Why?
    While I hope that by the fall we will be going back to school normally if the situation doesn’t get any better we might continue school online. If we do go back to school in the fall, classes might be much smaller than they usually were. My mom is a preschool teacher and shes convinced that if we go back to school we will have to all wear masks. While I hope this doesn’t happen, it’s definitely a possibility.
35. estelle vedie May 25, 2020 at 11:32 pm

    Give me your thoughts on the following questions

    Luckily, Covid-19 has not directly impacted my family in any drastic ways. Like most others now, my family and I stayed at home and only went out to walk our dog. We ordered all of our groceries and everything else we needed, and both of my parents worked from home. I had a lot of free time during the first few weeks because there were no classes, but I had to help my little sister with all of her school work. When online classes started I liked it a lot more than regular school, because I got to do everything when I wanted and in the order that I wanted to complete them. I like the freedom and i honestly don’t want to go back to school when they open back up because of how much i’ve got used to this.

    In my opinion, the protesters are dumb and irresponsible. they’re putting everyone in their lives in danger because they don’t want to stay at home during a GLOBAL PANDEMIC. it’s an unreasonable demand, and what they’re doing is unfair to those who actually stayed at home and respected the law. they’re a big part of the reason the stay at home order keeps getting extended and more cases are being formed. i understand that it is their right to protest and i usually don’t really care about whether or not people do, but in this case i really think they’re being stupid and inconsiderate.

    I believe that no matter what we do or what measures we take, a second wave of covid-19 will happen and it’s inevitable. I think we could do all that is in our power to make the second wage weaker, but it’s still definitely going to happen. I support the slow opening of places and events like professional league games playing with no audience. I also think we should all wear masks and social distance as much as we can.

    If we really will be able to return to groves in the fall, I think that we will all have to wear masks at all times. I think that there definitely will be some measures put in place to enable social distancing, but i don’t know how the school would manage to make it work because i think it would be almost impossible to enforce it effectively enough with such a big group of people.
36. Charlie Cusimano May 25, 2020 at 11:51 pm

    My family has been slightly affected by the COVID-19 virus. We are very fortunate that my Dad still has his job. He now does his work from home, which consists of many phone calls to customers and conference calls within the company. My mother is a preschool teacher and she is lucky enough to continue to get paid for this time even though she does not work on salary. We have had to accommodate for each individual’s situations and needs that they require. Two of my brothers have finished their semester at the University of Michigan. This required peace and quietness throughout the house during time of study. Our house was supposed to endure a renovation and addition that we have patiently waited for, but this has set back the timetable of this process to late summer. I think the hardest part of this for all of us has been the ability to fill time with entertainment. My Dad has picked up an interest in typewriters. My mother and I have volunteered for an organization that saves food to give to the less fortunate.
    Although these protesters have the right to peacefully protest the government, I disagree with their actions. These people are not following the safety guidelines that have been put into place. This spreads the virus and makes this last longer. I also am against their tactic of guns to implicate fear among government officials. I think it is unreasonable because they are not doing it for the reasons they say they are doing it. They have brought in several different hateful messages that do not involve the issue being protested. This exemplifies the society we live in where no matter what the opposite party does, the people are against it. This culture is too political and cannot make decisions for themselves.
    I think some of the states have opened things prematurely such as gyms and restaurants where the virus spreads with ease. Other states have taken precautions to limit the exposure of human interaction which is key to slowing the spread. I think the things listed in the question are all good ways to keep the public as safe as possible. These actions themself cannot stop the 2nd wave. Many factors play into the numbers and it is essential to do more than just that. Continuing to social distance and stay at home when possible is very important to stop a second outbreak.
    Schools have already put into place plans for the upcoming school year. I think these guidelines will somewhat make the school environment paranormal. School has been a significant place to each student’s adolescence. With the new rules it will change the school experience that we have gone through our entire lives. With time, students may get used to it, but it will definitely be a challenge at first. Many students have different beliefs regarding the virus. This concerns me because these beliefs will clash in the actions taken by an individual. Some will not respect the rules, while others go about their day in fear of the virus. This is new to us all, so experience will shape the best way for schooling.
37. Sara Smith May 25, 2020 at 11:51 pm

    At first I thought this would be something a lot smaller, but then I realised that this was going to be a while before I got to return to normalcy and what was familiar to me, but it is now may almost june and that hasn’t happened yet. Things that I wanted to do didn’t happen, such as me completing my drivers training, however now that we are in a worldwide crisis, I wasn’t able to do that, which is upsetting because I wanted to relieve some of the driving my parents had to do. This has affected my family both positively and negatively. In my immediate family we have grown closer, and we spend more time together ( not that we have much of a choice) . This is one of the first times in my life that we have eaten together so often. However in the larger part of my family, we don’t get to see them, and if we do it is always with masks and gloves, this is one of the first Mother’s Day that i haven’t seen my Grandmother, and it breaks my heart. The strangest thing that has impacted me is the mental shift towards life’s actual priorities. Before all this happened the world seemed so self centered and materialistic, no one cared what happened to anyone else but themselves and everything was about a financial gain, however now, i seem to have veered off and thought about the things that matter the most, such as mental health, spirituality, and how to fix problems.
    I think that the protests have some rationality to them, but the protesters are not thinking about the downsides of opening up the state. It is a reasonable demand, however Gretchen Whitmer, is doing her best to try and keep us safe. From an economical standpoint, this is too long of a shut down, but however, online delivery business is thriving right now. I think if the state were to open up too soon then a second wave would be inevitable. Also my experiences going to the store shows me that not enough people wear masks and do not care about the 6 feet rule and probably never will.
    I think that these companies are doing what is best for their business, and all we can do is hope that they care enough for their employees’ safety. Some states began to open businesses that had nothing to do with the survival of the people, such as nail and hair salons. This will not be enough to prevent a second wave. Temperature is truly not a telltale sign of having COVID-19, it is well known that you can carry a disease or virus in this case and be asymptomatic. Also knowing what happened in the past with required masks, i think there will definitely be retaliation from certain people, and some people just don’t care enough about anyone or themselves for that matter else to obey these guidelines
    I think that we will have a hybrid between online school and in class learning, with much smaller classes. Personally I think it would be a great idea if schools had half days where half of the school comes in in the first half and half in the second. I am sure that masks will either be required or strongly advised. Even though having lunch at school is a necessity for some, it isn’t that safe, in order to maybe resolve that, students that are able to have their own lunch eat at home, and others who can’t eat at school.
38. Elsie Meilinger May 25, 2020 at 11:53 pm

    This pandemic has had an interesting impact on my family. My family is very social. We don’t usually have a ton of free time, with all of our sports and extracurricular activities. It has been a very difficult switch to have five people in the house at all times, we usually don’t get enough time to eat together. My brother Charlie is more conscious and nervous because of his asthma, but my family isn’t freaking out, but we are still careful and respectful. It’s been weird for my family to function twelve hours a day as a unit, and there never seems to be enough WIFI.
    The protests I see stories about on the news or on social media platforms have been portrayed as ridiculous and selfish. I think that these people need to sit back and think if a haircut is really worth the risk of threatening the lives of so many. It is unreasonable for part of the public to believe that their daily routines shouldn’t be interrupted by the government trying to protect them. What they are after is not necessary to everyday life. Try buying a pair of scissors and giving yourself a haircut.
    I think reopening certain businesses has been beneficial to the public. It takes a little edge off of the people who cooped up, and also gives people the opportunity to start feeling like their life is getting back on track. The precautions taken in these places are completely justifiable. Masks, the taking of temperatures, and the act of social distancing is extremely beneficial and it makes the certain people who may be paranoid or nervous feel a little more comfortable. What makes me nervous is the shortage of supplies. I truly believe if another wave hits, we won’t have what we need to act on it productively and be able to keep the public safe.
    I was looking forward to so many things this fall, like marching band, watching Groves soccer, and the fall musical. I think we have successfully been able to be productive with the learning process online, but the loss of extracurricular and school events is fifty percent of your high school career. I don’t think it would be difficult to be online during the fall, but missing out on the activities during the fall would be twice as hard. But if we did have activities with things like social distancing and masks required, it wouldn’t be the same experience.
39. Margaret Anderson May 26, 2020 at 10:37 am

    1.)
    The pandemic meant that both of my older brothers were suddenly coming home from college. Most of my plans for the summer, such as lifeguarding and college visits, have been cancelled and so was my water polo season. With none of us going to school or work, the house is a lot more crowded. One of the strangest things that has happened was when my oldest brother came back from college and my parents made him quartenine in his bedroom. He wasn’t allowed to come downstairs and we had to bring him all his meals. The pandemic has meant that I get to spend a lot more time with my brothers which is good because we are usually all so busy.
    2.)
    I understand why people are upset about the shutdown and are protesting it. The shutdown is causing a lot of people and businesses to struggle and is affecting everyone. However, the way they are protesting isn’t the best method and makes it very hard to take them seriously. In the videos on the news, it shows people without masks or social distancing. That isn’t good because they are just putting themselves at unnecessary risk. I think there are more responsible ways to handle this situation because it doesn’t seem right to be protesting for a haircut when people are dying.
    3.)
    I think that it is good that some businesses, such as golf courses and restaurants,are now being allowed to reopen. They need to keep being strict with their policies otherwise there could be a second wave. It does seem like some states are rushing to reopen more than others. I think we should continue to be considerate of others and give them space when we are public. I’ve noticed that some people don’t care as much about social distancing or wearing a mask anymore, but other people still do care and we should respect that.

    4.)
    I think going back to school in the fall will be somewhat different. If things continue going the way that they currently are, then there would be social distancing rules at school. It will be very interesting to see how that would work considering how many people there are at school, which would make it hard to spread everyone out. I think that fall sports will also be different. If we are able to have sports teams they would be severely limited because they probably wouldn’t want the teams traveling to different schools and tournaments.
40. Lexy Rosenwasser May 26, 2020 at 11:37 am

    1. There is no aspect of my life that has not been affected. I now attend school online, along with every other kid in the country. My brother came home from college early. My other brother, who is in 8th grade, grudgingly does online school. My mom teaches from home, which has given me a window into all of the very difficult work that teachers have been doing. And my dad is on countless phone calls every day trying to make the seemingly impossible decision of whether to open up Camp Michigania, the summer camp that he runs, and that I have been going to my whole life. I think the strangest thing that has happened to my family is my grandpa getting covid-19. He was in the hospital for 2 weeks and it was extremely scary. I don’t think people realize the severity of this disease until they experience it or have a family member experience it, because I know I didn’t. After 2 weeks in the hospital he was moved to a rehab facility and has been there for a little over 3 weeks. On May 22nd he celebrated his 90th birthday. My whole family sang to him from outside of his window. Who would’ve thought that this would be how we celebrate now.

    2. The protests that are occurring seem unreasonable. People say that if you are compromised or sick then you should stay home and the rest of us will go on with our lives, but the problem is you may not even know if you are sick. I have even heard that 1 out of every 3 people who get corona is asymptomatic. With all of this still being so unknown, I think it is safer and smarter to stay home and continue social distancing. This way, we will hopefully have less of a second wave, and we can learn more about this disease and eventually develop a vaccine.

    3. This is a crazy time and with that there are some crazy things happening. On the news, I saw a bar in Wisconsin that was completely full and no one was wearing masks or gloves. I heard that a store in Kentucky won’t let you go in if you are wearing a mask. We also hear about basically every other country except America handling this extremely well, and being almost done with it. If states begin to re-open like Wisconsin and Kentucky I don’t think we will be able to prevent a second wave. I think unfortunately we would have to keep social distancing until there is a vaccine to truly avoid a second wave.

    4. I think in the fall there will be a mix of ideas about going back to school. It may be that only kids who are comfortable being at school will go and everyone else will continue online learning. I also think that there is no way school can be at full capacity, some kids may have to come in the morning and others in the afternoon. It will be interesting to see what happens.
41. Ella Plumstead May 26, 2020 at 12:05 pm

    1. The Pandemic has certainly affected my sports life, as my soccer season was completely stripped away, but it also has affected my family life. This is the longest I have gone without seeing my grandparents, so this is very hard. I also normally see my friends everyday, such as at school, so that was very hard to process as well. My life is normally jam-packed and full of running from one event to the next, so slowing down the pace has been quite an adjustment. When I was busy, I had always wished that I wasn’t, but now that I am not so involved, I regret feeling that way and miss having so many things to do. I am very concerned as to how summer will play out, and I am hoping to be able to get my drivers license on time. Even though fun trips up north and soccer camps likely won’t be as dominant in my life, I feel very fortunate to be able to see the people closest to me finally. That being said, it is challenging to follow distancing guidelines and just to wrap my head around the idea that there are rules to things that made me feel free.

    2. I understand the need to not feel restricted, as Governor Whitmer has been especially strict, however I feel the violence associated with carrying massive weapons and guns was certainly not needed. I think the situation could have been handled better, but I would not bash people exercising their rights. It reflected poorly on our state about the gun presence, so I think next time if some feel the need to stand up for what they believe in, it should be done without rushing the capital with weapons. It also startled me that the protestors blocked an ambulance from entering the hospital, so that could also be handled better as well.

    3. I feel it’s hard to completely block another outbreak. Its effect however can definitely be reduced and slowed down if precautionary measures are taken. I think ideas being put out into the world to lessen the risk of being in a public area and catching the virus are well thought out, but I think some people in government are moving too fast to start them. Everyone is desperate to seek their old life before COVID, but it will take patience and time to re-enact that feeling.

    4. I think school will be extremely different in the fall. I don’t know how present students will be in the actual school, but I think the aid of distancing for so long will allow some students at a time to receive in person instruction in a classroom. The ones not physically in the school will likely continue to work online, until they have the chance to go in the school. I think masks will also be needed inside the classroom, as well as temperature checks possibly.
42. geoffwickersham (Post author) May 26, 2020 at 12:07 pm

    Due to this pandemic my family has had to hunker down in our home. Being a family that is always busy in one way or another be it swim, dance, school, water polo we are always moving and with this pandemic we have to sit down and take a step back which is something we are not used to doing. My house has probably never looked this clean because that is what our jobs are every day, we just finished the basement, a bathroom and the yard/garden. We spent weeks in the basement just when we were cleaning it all the way out to make room for us to even move down there let alone build, and paint. We also have the calls everyday for at least one person in our house. With my sister in middle school, me in high school and both my parents being teachers we are always on a call. The weirdest thing that is or has happened probably the fact that I have played dnd over a call which was an experience.

    With the pandemic happening and all the deaths and cases I partially agree with the protesters but I do not think that we should just go back to the way things were even if that is what I really wanted to happen. I realize that people are catching the virus and that may increase the fatality rate and nobody wants that to happen. I believe that the way that things are going on is good and I think that Governor Whitmer is handling this better than anyone expected.

    In my opinion I think that essential airline travel is ok but restaurants and places of worship should be closed down for a little while longer. I don’t think that the mask requirement and temperature checks will stop a second wave. We don’t know how this virus is passed on and we need to keep safe and cautious.

    I think that school will start over with zoom but that is just a thought. My hope is that we will be able to come back even if we still have to wear masks. We still do not know how the next week might look so I can only hope that we will be back in school. If not we probably will have the same exact thing that is going on right now with the zoom calls but they will probably be for longer and mandatory.

    Jack K.
43. Elodie McLaughlin May 26, 2020 at 12:30 pm

    1. I feel very lucky that my family has not been seriously affected by COVID-19. Obviously, life is a lot different than it was before. With both of my parents working from home and having my sister and I do online school, all of us have felt like being inside all the time has taken a toll on us. With sports being canceled, both my sister and I were unhappy. Sports are a big part of both of our lives and having them cancelled has been challenging adjustment. Online school is also difficult for me because it is harder for me to motivate myself to do the work, and I have been procrastinating a lot. I personally like school, and am sad that we can’t learn in-person. Also, I miss my friends. Usually I spend a lot of time with my friends, and this pandemic has made it very hard to see people. Even though I saw a few of my friends recently, it’s not the same because we have to social distance and stay outside.

    2. I understand the complications with opening up the state. I think it is important that we are careful when doing so. I also understand the reasoning behind these protests, and that people are exercising their freedom of speech. However, I completely disagree with the way in which the protests are being executed. I understand why there are groups of people who want to protest, and sympathize with them. However, the protests seem to be getting much more unsafe, which I completely disagree with because they are putting the lives of more people at risk.

    3. I believe that it is hard to determine whether these restrictions will prevent a 2nd wave. I think that taking steps to make these environments safer is a positive thing and could possibly limit the spread of COVID-19. However, I think it would be extremely difficult to completely prevent a 2nd wave.

    4. I predict that in the fall, school will definitely be different than normal. I think that we will have to wear masks to possibly avoid the spread. I also think large events such as spirit week, charity week, and even lunches will not happen next year. I also think that there will be online school next year as well as some form of class in-person. If things don’t drastically improve by now and the school year, it might be even longer before we actually physically attend. Also, I am interested in what schools are going to do about sports. I am curious to see what will happen.
44. blair chernow May 26, 2020 at 1:28 pm

    This pandemic has had major impacts on my life and my family. In the beginning of the quarantine I was energetic and was always coming up with new projects to keep myself busy. I would bake, make bracelets, watch movies, organize my room, and pretty much any other activity that would pass time. As the weeks went by, everyday was a struggle and my whole family became so annoyed with each other and by the fifth week we were all ready to rip each other’s hair out. This quarantine has definitely affected my mental health, I am a very outgoing, social person and I love to be around others. Being alone all the time has been hard for me but It didn’t get really difficult until I had to spend my birthday in quarantine. This was sort of my breaking point and although I always try to be positive and optimistic It’s become harder to be productive.
    I think these protests to open up the state are not necessary. The thing that annoys me the most is the people in denial of the seriousness of this pandemic. Protesting to reopen the state won’t do any good because as soon as it reopens everyone will disregard social distancing (like some people are even doing when the state is closed) and the virus will spike back up in Michigan bringing us right back to where we started. I think it’s best to just stay in lockdown to ensure that the virus is stable and won’t spread quickly when we begin to open things up again.
    I think these new rules or ideas are a step in the right direction for our country, things may not go back to normal for a long time and it is a good idea to brainstorm new ways to make people’s lives feel as comfortable and normal as possible. So if making new creative ways to ensure that everyone can still enjoy the things we had before this virus, I think that is a great idea. It may or may not prevent a second wave of Corona (which only time will tell) but it will return some normalcy to peoples lives which I think is just as important.
    I think school will be different because we can’t experience football games, school dances, lunch periods, assemblies, field day, spirit week, and many other activities that make highschool so fun and enjoyable. These experiences, however, aren’t essential to school and they are privileges that we may sacrifice in order to receive a normal education. Although it isn’t ideal, I think the academics need to trump the fun activities and the new school method will be fine in the long run.
45. Ty Kennedy May 26, 2020 at 2:58 pm

    1. The pandemic has definitely made our family way more paranoid than they need to be. Many items we bring into our house we cannot touch without washing our hands afterwards. This includes even some of the items that don’t necessarily require washing hands, such as brand new packages. Our family never leaves the house really, and the only time we do it is for food. The strangest way the pandemic affected our family is that one of our family members got it before it was a headline. Back in late November, our aunt had all of the symptoms of the virus and had to be airlifted to a hospital. It was strange because the doctor said it was like she had a flu but worse.

    2. The protests demanding to open up shops are honestly so stupid. I sincerely apologize for the rant, but honestly, how dumb can you possibly be to demand shops to open up under such harsh conditions? It’s honestly hilarious that the leader in the protests tested positive for the virus. It’s stuff like that that honestly makes America such a wack place to live in. It is so unreasonable to protest this because, I mean, why is it the business’ fault? They’re trying to keep people safe, but people find a way to make it dangerous for themselves either way. Yesterday, I watched a video of some woman threatening to sue Gelson’s because she couldn’t enter without a mask. At what point do we just throw the whole country away?

    3. Honestly, safety is the number one priority businesses should follow. However, it’s still highly possible, even with all the new regulations businesses are implementing in the work/consumer environment, that a 2nd wave can happen. This is because people such as aforementioned protesters did not follow all these rules and therefore have a higher chance of spreading the virus among people. However, keeping people further apart in stores, etc. can help at least reduce the chances of the virus spreading more than it already is.

    4. Going back to school will be a bit hard to get accustomed to. I imagine that we will have to stay a certain distance apart from each other in classrooms. I also assume going to our classes will be divided up into groups to keep physical contact to a minimum. To be honest, I’m not looking forward to school next year if these are the changes. I understand that they are kind of necessary, it’s going to be a lot harder to enjoy school without as much interaction with friends.
46. kieran kamish May 26, 2020 at 6:32 pm

    First of all, I am super tired of being in my house and watching all the empathetic commercials on TV. So I am not going to use any pandemic related words such as “essential”, “frontline”, or “We’re in this together”. Because none of those words and phrases solve anything, nor do they bring hope to anyone.

    1: As you can see by this last statement, I absolutely despise what’s going on right now and I hate even more the effects it has on my summer, and oh by the way, summer is the one period of the year where you’re supposed to get outside, be with your friends and enjoy your 3 months off of school. And the governor has gone and taken it all away. Like Mr. Wickersham said, we are STILL waiting for her little “order” to end while the warmer weather comes and people are still inside. And if they’re not inside, god forbid they walk 10 feet out their door without a surgical mask on. Now I’m a huge believer in free will, and the whole mask thing is a violation of free will. If someone wants to walk into a grocery store without a mask on, then they should be able to do it. And yes, there is the liability aspect but that’s an entirely different story. As far as the cancellations go, this is what stings the most. If you’ve known me for quite some time, you’d know that i’m into aviation and I’m currently training to become a pilot. Since Covid 19 hit, I’ve had 3 school visits cancelled heck, at WMU I was supposed to get a couple of flights in on their planes. Also, since last June, I’ve been waiting for a Pilot expo in Phoenix that was supposed to happen in July. That has since been moved to July of 2021. I was also supposed to go to Los Angeles for a family event. Cancelled. I had 2 summer camps that I love going to. Cancelled. As you can see, my entire dang summer is cancelled because of a Chinese flu. Currently I’m waiting on my church’s decision to let the high schoolers have summer hangouts. Which is another huge part of my summer since my friends from church are some of the only real friends I have. However this pandemic does give my family an excuse to fly out east to New Hampshire to spend time at the lake up there. We will most likely be staying for an extended period of time due to the reasons I’ve mentioned, and since New Hampshire has done pretty well in containing the virus, so a lot of things there are open such as restaurants and bars.

    2: I believe there is good reason for protest against what Governor Whitmer is doing about the crisis, but the extent to which they are being carried out is ridiculous and shouldn’t happen. Confederate flags and AK-47s are not the right way to solve it. I’ve even come across people on twitter who photoshopped the Governor’s head onto Adolf Hitler and saying she’s acting like a nazi. All of that is complete bullcrap and there’s better ways to solve these issues. The people who have the confederate flags and the guns need to get back to raising the cattle and getting the field ready for planting (lol). The proper way to do this is to write to your state senator about the matter. Now, should the state open up? Absolutely. It’s about time that things get back to normal around here and we can have a summer again. Let’s face it. People will die of Covid 19. I think the part that Gov. Whitmer doesn’t realize, is that the stay home order is all but prolonging the time when people are gonna get coronavirus.

    3: As i said, all of these measures being taken are trying to slow down the virus until a vaccine is hopefully created. Today, Gov. Whitmer said that she had been extending the order because she is trying to prevent Michigan from experiencing a second spike in cases. That is unrealistic, as coronavirus is out there, and people are gonna get sick. I think it is a hard thing, as governor, to realize that the people in your state will get coronavirus, and that more people in Michigan will die from it. What she can enforce is that people wash their hands, and disinfect any virus prone surface to protect yourself as much as possible from the coronavirus.

    4: I think that we will have school as normal, but with the stupid mask rule thing. As for sports, i really don’t know how they’re gonna pull that off since it’s really hard to social distance when you’re squeezed next to other people in bleachers. I’m gonna hope for the best, but people are gonna be really ignorant about letting people go back as normal because Covid 19 is gonna be in people’s heads for at least a couple of years.
47. Stavros Panos May 27, 2020 at 12:08 am

    1. This pandemic has affected my family and I’s life drastically. First off, I was not able to run track this year, which not only ruined my competitiveness for the spring, but also prevented me from continuing my speed training for football. It has also affected me working out with my team, and has affected the camaraderie. My family has also seen affects to their life. For example, my mom owns the Ramshorn Restaurant, this pandemic has affected her business greatly. She was required to shut down her restaurants, which resulted in paying her employees more. This all resulted in loss of business. Me and my brother both have also been affected with the school system, although this has affected every student around the country.

    2. I feel like this is an unreasonable protest in my opinion. I feel this way because the state of Michigan and the governor is just attempting and doing everything in her power to keep us and the states safe. If this means to close down more public locations, then I agree with those decisions she is making. I understand if people are mad about these moves by the governor because they affect every person’s life, by losing money, losing jobs, and issues with going places, or especially a haircut. As you have seen with the haircut protest, I don’t think that is an essential thing to protest for, especially because you can get a haircut from a family member. Therefore, I don’t believe these protests are the correct thing to do, because it could also upset the governor, and result in worse punishments and setbacks from her.

    3. I do think what other companies are doing is the right thing to keep their businesses successful. Especially being in the environment of my moms business, I understand that they need to do everything possible to keep their business successful, especially during this difficult time. These businesses are doing everything in their power to remain in business, while still maintaining safety. Although I still believe there will be a second wave of this virus. But not from the businesses opening, I think it will come back due to civilians hanging out with peers, assuming nothing bad will happen from this. Even though I really don’t want the virus to come back, I still believe there is potential of it returning due to people not taking it seriously.

    4. I really hope that we are all back in school in the fall. Although I feel like there will be adjustments with the school system. Possibly limit the amount of students at a single time. For example, Freshmen and Sophomores go to school different days than the Juniors and Seniors. This will limit the capacity of students at a single time at school. This will result in having a more suitable and safe learning environment for the students. Also, hopefully this will result in having fall athletics because technically we are still in school.
48. Noah Drake May 27, 2020 at 6:36 pm

    . this pandemic has affected me in several ways. One such being i lose out on the summer season which would not be ideal. I am missing out on club water polo season. but its mostly affected how my family gets along, because before the pandemic we would rarely all be in the house together, so spending the last few months all together has gotten interesting. the strangest thing to affect my family is that we just for once had literally nothing to do, my mom didn’t have to work, my dad was at home and my brother and I didn’t have to go to school or practice for anything.
    2. i dont particularly agree with the protests that were going on against the governor and the virus itself. Because when it comes down to it they are just going to help contribute to the spread of the virus even further. I understand why they are demanding that everything opens back up, because the people need to work. But demanding that things that really do not need to be opened up is unnecessary. personally i see this is as an unreasonable demand because there is no way you can open up the amount of stuff that people want open, without spreading the virus like wildfire.
    3. No I dont think this will be enough to stop a second wave, but I dont think the US needs to prepare to stop a second wave I think they need to spend the summer upgrading hospitals in order to hold more people on ventilators. Because if you can take people who get sick with corona virus to the hospital quicker, the spreading over all would go down, because they have less time to contact other people. In reality if you go near someone with corona virus even if they dint show symptoms your still going to be at risk of getting it. as its transferred as easily as breathing.
    4. I am not sure what is going to happen in the future regarding school, i think there is a possibility school remains online, if the second wave of the corona virus is strong and the states haven’t prepared for it yet. I also dont know how this is going to affect summer and fall sports, two things that are important to me. If there isn’t school athletics in the fall its going to be a depressing time first trimester.
49. charlie pesek May 27, 2020 at 7:30 pm

    The pandemic has put a lot of stress on myself and my family. My dad manages a restaurant and usually works night shifts, however due to the restaurants closing he has been home a lot more lately. It was hard for my family to adapt to him being around constantly but we are figuring out how to get through these tough times. Nothing strange has happened to my family, it has just been a bit stressful because we are not used to being around each other constantly. Both my parents would work alot and I would have school activities, so having all of that change has been something we had to adapt to.
    As far as the protests go, I believe what the people are asking for is reasonable, but they are going about it in the wrong way. Gathering a bunch of people in one place isn’t helping, but we can’t stay inside forever. Eventually people have to go back to work and begin living normal lives once more. But I think the porteste are doing much more harm than good. Granted, I don’t know of many other efficient ways to tell the government how we feel as a whole, but in the end the proteste are doing much more harm than they are doing good.
    I do agree with the idea of slowing opening things up, like movie theaters, restaurants, salons, but having them open at a lower capacity. However, there is always the concern of these places being flooded with people and creating a massive crowd of people. This could lead to traffic jams and more angry patrons. I do like the idea of people wearing masks but I don’t think it will be effective enough to stop a second wave. If not everyone wears masks, then they just end up making themselves feel safer, while not actually protecting them. But it could be an efficient way to make people feel better about leaving the house again. However, without a vaccine I believe there will be a second wave. After the second wave if there is still no vaccine, I believe it will continue to come back. Eventually people will build up immunity and ways to prevent getting the virus will surface, but I don’t think we will ever truly get rid of COVID without a vaccine.
    I would like to believe that things can go back to normal by fall, but that may just be wishful thinking. I think we will end up opening but only having school certain days with certain grades. Possibly having the upperclassmen on mondays and thursdays, and the lower classmen on tuesdays and fridays. Wednesdays and the weekends would be used to clean and disinfect the school. On the off days for the grades there will most likely be online work.
50. Mitchell Greenberger May 29, 2020 at 4:26 pm

    The Global Pandemic has affected me and my family in many different ways. First both my parents are first responders that have to go to the hospital every day. My dad is a lung doctor and was the head of the Covid floor at Beaumont. The beginning of April he got sick and spent 5 days in the hospital with Covid 19. This was pretty difficult and scary for my family, but thankfully he got better and made a full recovery. Once both my parents tested positive for antibodies everything went pretty much back to normal. The hospital is pretty much empty now with Coronavirus cases down, and people being too afraid to go to the hospital. the strangest thing is probably no sports, right now would be the NBA playoffs and its very strange that the only live sport going on is Korean Baseball. Another way my family has been affected is my sister is a senior and won’t get a graduation, and is unsure about whether her class will be online in the fall.

    I believe that the people protesting have the right to be angry but the way they are going about it is not smart. If they are mad that their businesses are closed Because of the spread of the virus it doesn’t make sense that they’re doing something that would help spread the virus. Even though I agree that we should try to open our buisnesses safely with social distancing considered, as soon as we can before irreparable damage is done to their businesses I don’t know how. I know they wanted to be heard, but gathering in a large crowd during a pandemic shouldn’t be the best way to be heard.

    The practices that business are taking to prevent the spread when they eventually open up such as limited seating, required masks, Temp Checks, etc, are definitely neccesary when we first start to open up, but that’s not the only thing we need to prevent a second wave. The only way that we can prevent a second wave with no vaccine or cure is widespread testing and contract tracing, because without that there is no chance of stopping a second wave with how contagious of a virus Covid-19 is.

    I definitely foresee the possibility that school will be much different in the fall. I think it is possible that we wouldn’t come in every day to minimize kids in the building, and making social distancing possible. I have also heard that there’s a huge possibility that some fall and spring sports are switched.