It sounds so much more dramatic with that title, doesn’t it? In reality, my partner and I have decided we’re going to voluntarily self-isolate for a while (not from each other, just from you people). We’re trying for a month, and this is the second day. Honestly, I don’t expect it’s going to be that hard, because we’ve been online shoppers for quite a while, and know of various grocery stores and others in this city that have had online shopping for years.
Are we being paranoid? Maybe a little. But I read the news about what’s happened in Italy and it just seems responsible to do our part to ensure that we don’t add to the burden on the health care system at all. “Flattening the curve” as the meme goes. Neither of us is ill (yet), and if we just stay home and don’t come into contact with anybody, the odds of it staying that way are much improved.
So today is the second day since we decided we aren’t going anywhere for a month. We’re decently stocked (albeit without buying any toilet paper—at this point, it’s the principle of the thing, we’re simply refusing to buy into the buying panic) and the latest Doom video game has just been released so, irony of the title notwithstanding, we’re ready for a long haul. It helps, of course, that we’ve both been working from home for years.
In fact, most of us as AU students have an advantage in that respect. We understand already what it’s like to work from home, the challenges that many people don’t understand of maintaining focus, overcoming procrastination and distractions, and, equally as important, being able to set the work down to maintain some sort of life balance. For many other people, this is likely going to be a significant challenge. Maybe take some time to help your friends and family who aren’t familiar with it. Give them a call and some tips on how you’ve managed to do it with your courses over the years.
Then, since you’ve got the time in your bunker, come on back and check out our feature article about the cuts to education budgets that have been happening in Ontario and Alberta. Natalia Iwanek gives us a great backgrounder on all you need to know about what’s going on in the intersection of provincial governments and post-secondary funding and actions. Including an update on Ontario’s “Student Choice Initiative”, which is currently struck down by the court; the Ontario government has appealed the decision, however.
Also, this week a new writer and trained chef has come forward to give us all a bit of help when we can no longer get out to the restaurants. Missing your Friday Night Pizza? Not any more! Read Chef Corey’s article “Homemade is Better” so you can get your pizza fix fixed up! And Francesca Carone looks at the issue of how do we speak about people with disabilities these days? It’s an issue of respect, and she’ll help you with it.
Plus, of course, news, reviews, advice, and other articles to keep you amused while you help flatten the curve yourself! Enjoy the read!
