Hey folks As this quarantine goes on and as we all get used to this new reality, and as we all wait to see when things will finally go back to "normal" I can't help but think about the things that I hope are never the norm again. Things that I was getting sick of or frustrated with before and the things that I'm sick of or frustrated with now. So I have started a list and here's a few things from that list. 1. Cell phone and social media use
Half of this didn't post. Sorry lol Hey folks As this quarantine goes on and as we all get used to this new reality, and as we all wait to see when things will finally go back to "normal" I can't help but think about the things that I hope are never the norm again. Things that I was getting sick of or frustrated with before and the things that I'm sick of or frustrated with now. So I have started a list and here's a few things from that list. 1. Cell phone and social media use Everybody is depending on the internet and social media to keep in touch during all of this but the hope is there that social media and cell phone use doesn't become more of a nasty habit than it already was before Covid19. I can't speak for everybody but when this is all over, I would love to never see the internet again and would gladly give it up all together if it could end all of this faster. I miss social gatherings far more than I'm ever going to miss the internet and I desperately want back the time I spent talking to the top of everybody's heads. Hopefully the future will bring more social gatherings and less social media gathering because nobody will miss the internet nearly as much as we miss people. The internet is getting all of our time and money right now. I would prefer to spend that time and money in the public places I miss right now. 2. Online dating While we are all spending more time on the internet right now, some of us are spending more time on dating/hookup apps waiting for dating/hooking up to become an option again. When this is all over I hope we all dedicate more time into going out and meeting people in person. I know online dating is supposed to be easier and more convenient in theory but most users can agree that it has led to significantly less actual dates and considerably less connections with people. So I hope we all realize that we will not miss messaging on dating sites... nearly as much as we miss meeting new people in public. I plan to spend far more time in public with people and deleting the apps. 3.Bad Parenting Before this all started, parenting was lacking. And the results were speaking for themselves. Now that all of these rude, disrespectful kids are truly their parents problem now. I hope parents learn to step up more. Parents who are enjoying their children being at home right now, there's a reason for that. Parents who aren't enjoying their children being home right now, there's a reason for that. I'm hoping parents realize that the people their children are/going to be is their responsibility. And I hope parents spend less time on their phones, work, partying, relationships and more time teaching their kids the things that they need to learn. Things like accountability, responsibility, discipline, concern for those around them. Teach them how to deal when life gets hard. Tell them no and mean it so that they'll be able to say no when they grow up. I hope to see better behaved children when this is all over. I hope parents aren't too busy on their phones to pay attention to their kids. I hope to see less concern for your social life and more concern for whats going on with your childrens lives. These are a few norms that I don't want to go back to. What are some of yours?
I hope companies that were previously resistant to working remotely realize that it actually is a valid option, especially for people with disabilities that would greatly benefit from working from home. My company in particular doesn't allow working from home because upper management doesn't trust us to continue to be productive. I hope this is an eye-opening experience for them.
Big changes happening after this. We’ve all had time to reflect on our lives. Expect the birth and divorce rates to go up, the environment to improve and hopefully you can work from home xxx
I really hope that education takes this as a breath of fresh air to realize that some of the ways we established weren’t working. In the end, it wasn’t standardized tests or common core standards that kept our students learning and engaged. It was the teachers that completely went off the rails and threw the playbook out the window. I also really hope it’s been an eye opener for parents as well who were suddenly faced with the task of teaching their own children.
I hope traffic stays lighter, it is so much easier to get delivers done in a semi truck with less traffic.
I am hoping that people - especially policy makers, and those that have an influence on policy makers, pay a lot more attention to the environment as the reduced economic and human activity has shown the impact that we are having on the air we are breathing, and the larger environment. We have the technology to bring about cleaner ways of doing things, having economic growth, and reduce emissions. I also hope that societies start reinvesting, or investing as the case may be, in health and social services. If anything, the pandemic has clearly demonstrated the cracks and fault lines in health care systems and social services as well as start ensuring that the inequalities between countries and regions of the world, are addressed in a meaningful way as everything is interconnected.
Like many others said, more concern on our environment, social services is crucial. Also, seeing some industries nearly close down due to economy crashing....it kind of made me wonder if so called "growths" are even necessary. I mean we probably do atm, but we will eventually have to give up on certain previlages, to be sustainable at all.
Traffic. The best thing about my city being deserted is no traffic. People have started coming back and the roads are already a mess again. I got so used to the leisurely driving being the only person on the road that I nearly got into about 4 accidents in less than 5 minutes once everyone was back due to forgetting other cars exist still....
THIS. I follow authors, literary agents, and editors on social media and the biggest gripe is how publishing is mostly centralized in NYC so people like me who can't afford to uproot their lives and move to NYC to get a job in publishing. Completely agree! I have juniors and seniors right now and most of them are sad messes because their year is just over. I've had a lot of them reach out and thank me for giving them a steady pace of work but also flexibility because...crazy lives. I've started to talk to some parents and they've been really appreciative. I'm hoping that this helps make my school's admin realize that eliminating our 7th English teacher (my current temp position) is an awful idea. Right now they're refusing to give us a "yes" or "no" on if it's staying and being filled or not, but the other 6 teachers are practically drowning in assignments and the only reason I'm not is because 1.) I'm not trying to kill my seniors with assignments and 2.) half my regular day is actually supposed to be spent in the library.
Yup, I know the feeling. We just found out that our school year is down for the count, and we might not even be able to do our graduation ceremony in May. It’s still very much up in the air. Jr/sr prom cancelled, spring formal was canceled, and for many of our student athletes they’re at risk for not having scholarships next year because their seasons were shot. No idea what they’re going to do about that. The band’s trip was canceled, and I’ve just today approved the scholarship checks for the seniors and put everyone else’s away for next year. I miss my students, and I’m worried about all of them, some more than others. Some don’t have great home lives, and school/band was an escape. Yeah I’m still giving private lessons via video chat, but it’s not the same. On the plus side, I’ve got so much new material for the band for stand songs next year it’s ridiculous. So much extra time I’ve been arranging stuff like crazy. I could basically take their entire flip book, toss all the music, and completely replace everything.
Yes. Yes. Yes. There is literally no reason publishing needs to be centralized in NYC. I could have a whole rant about it right now, but I'll just say that I totally agree. I hope publishing especially learns from this experience and really considers whether the jobs they have available can be remote.