We’re entering Month Eight of lockdown in California. The fall semester is over halfway through. The skies in Berkeley changed from blue to red, to blue again. A new President has just been elected.
Much has happened but the daily grind often remains the same. In this fourth edition of Quarantine Diaries, we’re sharing reflections from some of the newest ERGies — students, faculty, and staff — collected earlier in the semester. Here’s how they’ve been practicing everyday life.
Youjin Chung, faculty member
Tell us a bit about yourself and your quarantine situation. Where are you joining us from?
My partner and I moved to Oakland over the summer from central MA and we are settling in well. We are both working from home these days and we have our work stations set up in the living room. The space is cozy and there are certain perks to working from home, e.g. unlimited access to cat cuddles! But there are challenges, too, such as having to coordinate our Zoom meeting schedules, feeling over-Zoomed, and being unable to engage or make sustained connections with a diverse range of people and programs on campus.
What has a typical day of the fall semester been like for you?
I feel as though most of my time this semester is spent figuring out how things work at the departmental level (in both ERG and ESPM/S&E) as well as at the college and university levels. There is so much learning on the job. My goal this semester was to set aside 5 hours a day for uninterrupted writing (ha!), but I am lucky if I can get one or two hours in between meetings, administrative tasks, responding to emails, taking care of myself and the family, and running errands, etc. especially during the week. While I work most weekends, I have been trying to be better about spending time with friends and family (nice to have my sister’s family only an hour away), doing little things that bring me joy (cooking/baking, taking care of house plants and a community garden we share with our neighbors, walking the cat, reading for fun), and discovering the Bay Area.
How have you been connecting with the ERG community?
I have been connecting with the ERG community primarily over Zoom via recurrent department and committee meetings and office hours. I am sad I haven’t been able to attend as many ERG teas as I would have liked, but hope to join more sessions in the coming months. I can’t wait to meet everyone in person though… hopefully soon (knock wood!).
What’s a piece of art that captures how you’re feeling?
I think some might appreciate this….
Jessica Craigg, PhD student
Tell us a bit about yourself and your quarantine situation. Where are you joining us from?
Due to equal parts COVID, cost of living, and nostalgia, I am still living near my previous institution in the post-industrial hellscape (I say this fondly) of Worcester, Massachusetts. I live with two roommate-friends and their cats in a small ‘triple-decker’ home where I’ve lived for the past two years. We have been quite stringent about COVID and as a result have not left the house much since March, but as three cook-it-at-home, video-game-and-movie-inclined introverts, we have been getting by okay.
What has a typical day of the fall semester been like for you?
That said, my routine this semester, like many people’s, has been derailed a little; although lately, instead of fighting this, I’ve been trying to roll with the new rhythms of life and work when I can. It may sound crazy, but often this means working from around 4-8am (when the world–and my mind–is quiet) and resting in the early afternoons. Lo-fi has kept this routine sustainable for me, helped me focus: soft enough to not be distracting, yet syncopated enough to keep me awake and alert. Other than that, video games (Supergiant’s brilliant new Greek mythology-based Hades, at the moment), the Great British Bake-off, and my own stress-relief cooking have been life-savers this fall.
What’s a piece of art that captures how you’re feeling?
A song that’s kept me going, not only this semester but through previous ones, has been Radiohead’s ‘Optimistic.’ I can’t say the title sums up my general attitude particularly well, but the lyrics have reassured me: “try the best you can / the best you can is good enough.”
Charmae Wang, DEIB Student Assistant
Hi! My name is Charmae and I am an undergraduate sophomore majoring in Political Science and minoring in Public Policy. I was born and raised in the East Bay, specifically Lafayette, CA, but I am currently living in Berkeley in my sorority house, Alpha Phi. It’s been great hanging out with my friends everyday, studying for our online classes together, and watching the newest season of the Bachelorette.
A typical day of fall semester for me has been rolling out of bed 10 minutes before my zoom calls, getting work done with my new position here at ERG, and occasionally stepping outside to get some fresh air and exercise by hiking on the Fire Trails.
I just joined the ERG community so I have only been able to attend one Erg Tea meeting, but I definitely plan on joining more Tea talks and other ERG events to get closer to my fellow ERGies!
One song recommendation I have is West Coast Love by Emotional Oranges. This song doesn’t necessarily capture how I’ve been feeling during quarantine, but rather encapsulates what I would love to feel everyday. It’s a great feel-good song for whenever you want to feel like you’re living your best life at the beach.
Sean Kelly, Masters student
Tell us a bit about yourself and your quarantine situation. Where are you joining us from?
My zoom room is essentially a gear closet. It gives me some inspiration that one day I will liberate my surfboard from its chronic dormancy. My partner and I live in the UC Village in Albany and we’re quarantine gardening a fair bit. Oh yes, I did build a tiny house and outdoor shower with my partner and some friends in San Diego over the summer. Twas an adventure, particularly the incinerating toilet we installed!
What has a typical day of grad school been like for you?
My typical day includes a lot of reading, writing, grappling, and you guessed it, zooming! While I’m starting to be fairly intentional about including some of the restorative things, like nutrition, meditation, and general healthy movement, it’s a gradual process.
How have you been connecting with the ERG community?
Connecting with ERGies has been great so far! We’ve had a mix of socially distanced gatherings at parks, trails, and open-air residential spaces. It’s great to feel the support of the community despite the challenges involved in facilitating in-person meetings. I’d love to be doing more, especially outdoors, but hoping that’s on the not too distant horizon.
What’s some music that captures how you’re feeling?
Ok, I’ve always loved Sam Cooke. His music only gets better with age and it was gold from the start (e.g. Good Times). It gives me some perspective if I ever get to thinking that things are irrevocably upside-down.
Banner image by Melinda Young Stuart