New Decade, New Pandemic(?)
Dear Violet and Olivia,
A lot has happened since I wrote to you, and I don't just mean in my own world. If you're taking social studies or history or whatever it is called in whichever level of education you are at, you most likely have heard about the corona virus outbreak of 2020. Yes, just as we begin a new decade, a pandemic (take note: not just an epidemic) strikes our world. On top of the upcoming recession, the alarming rate of global warming, and the absent-minded actions of the bigger world leaders, a deadly virus has made such a grand entrance to the point where we have to undergo weeks of self-isolation.
It's times like this that make me wonder if the end of the world is supposed to happen at any second by now, but the fact it hasn't happened yet genuinely surprises me. What I'm about to write in the next several sentences may sound selfish, but I have to keep reminding myself that it is my perspective, and it is valid to think this way.
Due to the intensity of COVID-19 (I hate writing out its abbreviated form; it literally sends shivers down my spine), I had to go home once my 4th week of uni finished. I received the news during one of my chemistry classes that my university was having a non-teaching week, so my parents bought me a bus ticket home for the next day. Thinking that I was only going home for a week, I only packed certain parts of my study guides, clothes that I didn't need in my dorm, and my essential electronics e.g. my laptop and chargers. Mid-way through the week, I watched Ardern's announcement on T.V. that our country was going into level 4, meaning a nation-wide lockdown, meaning I wasn't able to go back to university for the meantime. I was genuinely shocked, especially at the prospect of not seeing my friends for a whole month, and not experiencing the most out of my first year.
Online school is taking a while to adjust to. I remember my first week was the longest week of my entire life, considering that throughout high school I never really studied in my own room, so to associate my room as a place of both rest and productivity was quite the process. It also takes me two hours minimum to get through recorded lectures, which made me realize how little information I actually process in my on-campus lectures. Of course there's the benefits such as being able to absorb content more thoroughly and having less social anxiety since I'm in isolation, so I guess there's something to compensate in every situation. Because I'm doing work constantly throughout the day (with the occasional break for lunch and snacks), I ensure that I'm doing non-uni things in the nighttime such as watching a bit of a movie or working out. While I love having an excuse to be physically lazy all day, this quarantine is making me realize how important it is to exercise (for some strange reason I feel like this alludes to Le Chatelier's principle. You can search it up for yourself), and how much weight I've gained over the past year (and that's on my ~~metabolism slowing down more than ever~~). Because I'm reunited with my guitar and keyboard, I've also written some songs, which has been my main creative outlet. I'm surprised I've only picked up this hobby last summer, since it perfectly blends my passions for creative writing and music. It's challenging at times but it makes the process more enjoyable.
C moved out of her hall a couple of days after I did. When she heard I was going home and that my school announced the non-teaching week, she didn't think that her university would do the same. As the days went on, the rest of our high school friend group moved back home. Each of our universities have a different approach to this lockdown. My university had their week-long closure but have kept our mid-semester break at the same time, delaying the finish of the first semester by one week; C and J's university also shut down for one week but have cut down their mid-semester break to one week; M and A's university have combined all their breaks at one time, closing their education for 5 weeks, so will have a constant flow of teaching once they pick up again with no breaks in between. The latter's approach was the other university I had in mind to study at, and if I had chosen to go there instead I would not have been able to handle that approach, which makes me a little relieved to have chosen the school I currently go to. However, that doesn't make me completely over the moon: while all the other universities have implemented a rent freeze for students living in halls, mine has only implemented a discount, so my parents and I are still paying for my room despite not using the majority of its services. People are losing their jobs and here is my university still profiting off of people not living in their rooms. My further opinions on this can be extended on another blogpost, so I'll spare you from reading about this for the rest of the post.
As you've probably noticed at the top of the letter, Allegra's name is missing and is replaced by Olivia. Yes, it has begun. I've begun changing your names. What's even worse is that it's based off one of the phases I've been going through, and that is my 'High School Musical the Musical the Series' phase, out of all the shows I have loved. As much as I'd like to avoid incorporating things from my past that I would be ashamed of looking back on in the future, I have let my guard down. Olivia is the name of the female lead in the show, and at the moment I can't get enough of her. Her acting and songwriting ability, her sense of fashion, the way she tweets, absolutely everything she has are things I find myself wanting to incorporate into my life. Usually I wouldn't pay $300 for a pair of boots, but because Olivia wears them in every picture, every tab on my browser is a link to Doc Martens, perhaps being my first purchase once this quarantine ends. I also thought the change from 'Allegra' to 'Olivia' wouldn't be a big deal since they sound similar. So both of you are now 'Liv and Vi' rather than 'Leg and Vi'. If you want, Liv, I can still call you 'Leg'? Hope my eccentric side has rubbed off on the two of you and you say yes. (If not, I'll only call you that when I get peeved off at you.)
I really hope I end up meeting the both of you. I say that quite often, but I mean it each time. This world is making me believe this reality won't exist. It's hard to maintain faith, but considering humanity has made it through so much in the past, why stop now?
Love,
Maui
A lot has happened since I wrote to you, and I don't just mean in my own world. If you're taking social studies or history or whatever it is called in whichever level of education you are at, you most likely have heard about the corona virus outbreak of 2020. Yes, just as we begin a new decade, a pandemic (take note: not just an epidemic) strikes our world. On top of the upcoming recession, the alarming rate of global warming, and the absent-minded actions of the bigger world leaders, a deadly virus has made such a grand entrance to the point where we have to undergo weeks of self-isolation.
It's times like this that make me wonder if the end of the world is supposed to happen at any second by now, but the fact it hasn't happened yet genuinely surprises me. What I'm about to write in the next several sentences may sound selfish, but I have to keep reminding myself that it is my perspective, and it is valid to think this way.
Due to the intensity of COVID-19 (I hate writing out its abbreviated form; it literally sends shivers down my spine), I had to go home once my 4th week of uni finished. I received the news during one of my chemistry classes that my university was having a non-teaching week, so my parents bought me a bus ticket home for the next day. Thinking that I was only going home for a week, I only packed certain parts of my study guides, clothes that I didn't need in my dorm, and my essential electronics e.g. my laptop and chargers. Mid-way through the week, I watched Ardern's announcement on T.V. that our country was going into level 4, meaning a nation-wide lockdown, meaning I wasn't able to go back to university for the meantime. I was genuinely shocked, especially at the prospect of not seeing my friends for a whole month, and not experiencing the most out of my first year.
Online school is taking a while to adjust to. I remember my first week was the longest week of my entire life, considering that throughout high school I never really studied in my own room, so to associate my room as a place of both rest and productivity was quite the process. It also takes me two hours minimum to get through recorded lectures, which made me realize how little information I actually process in my on-campus lectures. Of course there's the benefits such as being able to absorb content more thoroughly and having less social anxiety since I'm in isolation, so I guess there's something to compensate in every situation. Because I'm doing work constantly throughout the day (with the occasional break for lunch and snacks), I ensure that I'm doing non-uni things in the nighttime such as watching a bit of a movie or working out. While I love having an excuse to be physically lazy all day, this quarantine is making me realize how important it is to exercise (for some strange reason I feel like this alludes to Le Chatelier's principle. You can search it up for yourself), and how much weight I've gained over the past year (and that's on my ~~metabolism slowing down more than ever~~). Because I'm reunited with my guitar and keyboard, I've also written some songs, which has been my main creative outlet. I'm surprised I've only picked up this hobby last summer, since it perfectly blends my passions for creative writing and music. It's challenging at times but it makes the process more enjoyable.
C moved out of her hall a couple of days after I did. When she heard I was going home and that my school announced the non-teaching week, she didn't think that her university would do the same. As the days went on, the rest of our high school friend group moved back home. Each of our universities have a different approach to this lockdown. My university had their week-long closure but have kept our mid-semester break at the same time, delaying the finish of the first semester by one week; C and J's university also shut down for one week but have cut down their mid-semester break to one week; M and A's university have combined all their breaks at one time, closing their education for 5 weeks, so will have a constant flow of teaching once they pick up again with no breaks in between. The latter's approach was the other university I had in mind to study at, and if I had chosen to go there instead I would not have been able to handle that approach, which makes me a little relieved to have chosen the school I currently go to. However, that doesn't make me completely over the moon: while all the other universities have implemented a rent freeze for students living in halls, mine has only implemented a discount, so my parents and I are still paying for my room despite not using the majority of its services. People are losing their jobs and here is my university still profiting off of people not living in their rooms. My further opinions on this can be extended on another blogpost, so I'll spare you from reading about this for the rest of the post.
As you've probably noticed at the top of the letter, Allegra's name is missing and is replaced by Olivia. Yes, it has begun. I've begun changing your names. What's even worse is that it's based off one of the phases I've been going through, and that is my 'High School Musical the Musical the Series' phase, out of all the shows I have loved. As much as I'd like to avoid incorporating things from my past that I would be ashamed of looking back on in the future, I have let my guard down. Olivia is the name of the female lead in the show, and at the moment I can't get enough of her. Her acting and songwriting ability, her sense of fashion, the way she tweets, absolutely everything she has are things I find myself wanting to incorporate into my life. Usually I wouldn't pay $300 for a pair of boots, but because Olivia wears them in every picture, every tab on my browser is a link to Doc Martens, perhaps being my first purchase once this quarantine ends. I also thought the change from 'Allegra' to 'Olivia' wouldn't be a big deal since they sound similar. So both of you are now 'Liv and Vi' rather than 'Leg and Vi'. If you want, Liv, I can still call you 'Leg'? Hope my eccentric side has rubbed off on the two of you and you say yes. (If not, I'll only call you that when I get peeved off at you.)
I really hope I end up meeting the both of you. I say that quite often, but I mean it each time. This world is making me believe this reality won't exist. It's hard to maintain faith, but considering humanity has made it through so much in the past, why stop now?
Love,
Maui
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