The New Normal vs The New Reality

It's been a while since I written on the blog so figured now's as good a time as any to restart posting. I will first start with my latest pet peeve which is the phrase "the new normal." I really dislike the phrase "the new normal" because we are not living in normal times. Currently, most of the California is on fire or suffering with effects of fire while the rest of the country is dealing with it's own unpredictable weather. The country is also still dealing with the Corona virus killing hundreds of thousands not to mention racial unrest due to the constant killing of black people.Having said all this, I am referring to this current times as "the new reality" versus "the new normal."  

On the work front, I now start my work day by taking my temperature and then checking it off a list. If anyone's temperature is 100.4, then they have to go home. In addition to this, according to the Blueprint for a Safer Economy website, our county may be able to open at 25% maximum capacity. Although my library system is still closed to the public (and has been since the last week of March,)  I can tell that changes are on the horizon since my director introduced system-wide protocols for reopening book drops as well as a curbside/pick-up service.

Although my director hasn't given staff an official date for these new processes to begin, I think she's erring on the side of caution so we won't be surprised when the county tells us to resume library services. The biggest changes with reopening the book drops and pick up service is that staff will be wearing gloves and face shield and the length of quarantining returned library items. While we'll be happy to get our items back, I already know there will be a learning curve with sanitation process but this is something that is part of our new reality. 

On the personal front, I'm slowly finishing my two reading challenges and updating the books I've read on my two reading challenge posts as well as on Instagram and Facebook.

On the workout front, I'm keeping up with my fitness by exercising on a daily basis through doing a couple of this such as a twelve week resistance band workout program from Achv Peak as well as a 28 day body shaping program from Pahla B Fitness on YouTube. Lastly, I am doing virtual run through the Rock N Roll Virtual Run Club.  

May COVID-19 Work Chronicles

     Work life DC (during corona) is weird but has slowly become a habit. I got into work on Monday and Friday while teleworking from home Tuesday-Thursday. On the days I work from home, I answer chat reference questions, monitor our seven Facebook pages, do professional development by watching webinars and answer my work emails New changes that have occurred DC include having tons of teleconference meetings by my boss to boost staff morale and plan for the future. I mentioned in a previous posts that we're planning to have our summer reading program online.

     For the online summer reading program, since this is the first time we're doing this, staff will have to be trained on how to used the new online platform. In addition, since a secondary component of the summer reading program is entertainment, we are having to work with the performers we already hired to see if they can come to the library and have their performance recorded. Luckily, most of the performers have been willing to work with the library to make the performances happen. The biggest issue with this from the performer perspective is how long is the library going to have their video available of our social media channels since they want to keep the element of surprise when it comes to their performance. I suggested having the video available online from the time it is recorded until the end of the reading program which will be in early August but we shall see how this goes.

     Other future projects my boss wants staff to do is create content for a library newsletter, create content for our new YouTube channel, investigate establishing a book delivery service, establish ways to perform outreach during this crisis. So far, library staff have sent handwritten cards to patrons that regularly visit the library which has been well received. At our last staff telemeeting, she suggested that she may have staff call patrons to check on them. I feel really uncomfortable about doing this considering my impression is that when a person signs up for a library card, they trust that the will not be called by the library unless it is for library business. Library staff aren't social workers and as such, staff should not be put into a position where that may be told things that they can't do anything about or hear distressing information. I am proud of myself for communicating my concerns to my boss via email. 

     As time DC passes, I am feeling more and more burnt out of the public library environment because I feel like my director is oblivious to the low staff morale. Since my director is part of several Facebook groups for library directors and follows several library Facebook pages, as she's seeing what bigger libraries are doing and wants us to be doing all the things in an effort to so have "essential" the library is and instead of all the staff picking in so the whole library can succeed, this ends up falling on the shoulders of one of two people.

COVID-19 Work Chronicles Week 3 & Returning To Telework

     This week at work has been busy. My boss has had me revamp the look of our library website homepage.If you want to see my work in action, visit www.kingscountylibrary.org. Other website changes included creating online form to apply for a library card, request reference assistance., established virtual chat service, and an online application to request a book from our Zip Books program.

    The main reason my boss is pressing so hard for new online services is because this week (April 19-April 25) is National Library Week. Originally, we assumed the library was going to be open and was planning to hold fine forgiveness week. Given the current state of the world, we've decided to promote our new online services by posting to our website and social media during the upcoming week.

  My boss informed library staff was on Friday that we're going to have to start teleworking again in an effort to promote social distancing and reduce the total number of staff inside the library at any one given time.I'm planning to be in the library Monday and Friday then work from home Tuesday-Thursday. At least I'm fortunate enough to has a job that makes it easy for me to work from home by providing remote access to my work desktop and files from home so I can update the library's website, answer chat reference and watch webinars to meet professional development requirements.

COVID-19 Work Chronicles Week 2 & Birthday In the Age of COVID-19

  This week was the second full week being back to working inside the library building. The week start of well in that I was notified that after several years of being the project lead for the library's Career Online High School program and having 7 people not complete the program, we've had our first person finish! Although we are currently closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I have let the student know that once we reopen, we will hold a graduation ceremony for her as soon as it's acceptable to do so. We also have two other students who are well on their way to finishing their respective programs so it's an exciting time in the library.

  Tuesday was an uneventful day filled with doing webinars and ordering books and DVD.The most memorable webinar I watched was presented by the California State Library regarding preventing and treating compassion fatigue with self-care.

  Wednesday was special because it was my 41st birthday and ironically, this was alaos the first day that everyone in the county where I work is required to wear masks when at work. Here's a photo of me wearing a surgical mask while at work.

   After getting home from work, hubby made me dinner of my favorite cuisine which is Asian food.

     Once dinner was done, hubby gave me birthday gifts of two journals since he knows how much I love to write down my feelings in a journal. In addition, he also got me a copy of "Well-Read Black Girl" which is a book I recently really enjoyed reading and mentioned how much I loved this book.  

COVID-19 Work Chronicles Week 1

  Yesterday marked my first full week back at to work inside my library building. Although the library is closed to the public, all library staff are permitted to come into work since we're viewed as "essential" employees. The library was closed to the public and staff last week but as I mentioned in a previous blog post after meeting with my boss on Saturday, all staff were instructed to return to work on Monday morning. For the foreseeable future, I will be working Monday-Friday during the day until we reopen to the public after which I will return to working on the occasional Saturday.

     When I arrived at work Monday morning, I initially, thought that having all staff (seven people) in the library at the same time could work as long as staff practiced social distancing. Not to long after my first workday started, I realized that I would have to protect myself from possibly catching COVID by doing my own social distancing from co-workers.

     The second workday back, I could hear two co-workers sneezing and coughing in their respective work cubicles. Although they didn't cough or sneeze near me, I began to worry about catching whatever they have. My anxiety level increase even more this day when both of the aforementioned co-workers left work early for doctor appointments. By the end of my second workday, my nerves were shot.

     By my third workday, my husband strongly recommended that I wear a surgical mask to work since co-workers were not practicing social distancing, are coughing and sneezing. Here's a surgical mask selfie.

   
   As a part of part of my work duties, everyone now has to complete an hour of staff development training a day.To this end, I attended two virtual meetings this week: The Art of Gathering in the Time of COVID-19 presented by the California Center of the Book. This webinar was informative in that the presenters discussed how libraries will need to look for unconventional ways to met in a time when meetings are discouraged due to the current COVID-19 pandemic.

     The second webinar meeting I attended focused on creating a virtual summer reading challenge using Beanstack program presented by ZooBean. This webinar is important since I'm 100% sure that this year's annual summer reading program is going to have to be restructured and things are going to have to be scraped such as paper summer reading logs, giving out physical prizes to kids and the biggest change will be regarding the weekly programs we usually have. Considering that large social gatherings are breeding grounds for COVID-19, we may have to look at alternative ways for the library to engage the community in addition to what I currently do through the library's website and social media. 

   

Quarantine Life On Hold Heading Back to Work

    On Friday evening, my boss called me and asked my to meet with her and my colleagues on Saturday regarding reopening the library to staff. During the meeting with my boss, she said that the library shouldn't sit and so nothing during this crisis. To that end, she directed me and my colleagues to be back at work starting on Monday. Although we will still be closed tentatively until Monday, April 13, we will be open to staff starting Monday.After the meeting on Saturday, I had to call the two employees I supervise and inform them that they are expected to be at work Monday morning.

     At this point, according to our county health department website, there have been 88 samples collected, 77 negative tests received, 10 people are being monitored, and 2 confirmed cases.Since the reality of things is that I'm going back to work, I'm praying daily that no one at my job is sick and asymptomatic and that when I get COVID-19, it will be mild and I'll recover.

     On the exercise front, I'm been really enjoying virtual runs on YouTube. Since the half marathon I was planning to do today has been postponed, I decided to complete a virtual half marathon at home and below is a photo from the race route. Since there's not a large place for me to run, this is a nice alternative.

          In other news, I've been making some headway in reference to completing the two books challenges I'm doing for the year. This is the latest book that I've read for the 2020 Popsugar Reading Challenge which is a wonderful read since it focuses on black women, the importance of seeing yourself reflected in books and the desire to create your own story when you don't see it represented in literature. I enjoyed this book so much, I'm planning to buy my own personal copy and plan to use this to create my own reading challenge for next year. I plan to create two new blog pages with the two 2020 reading challenge I'm currently doing so this can help others discover new books to read.

       

      Lastly, I had a nice convo with my mom today and was happy to hear her voice on the phone. It's comforting to know that even though I'm living on the other side of the country, my mom still thinks about me and prays for me, hubby and his family. Our conversation was good and mom said that she's using this current time as an opportunity to strengthen her relationship with God. I couldn't agree with her more and am also using this time to look back at the past by reading my old journals as well as reorganize home and throw old junk away. During this crisis, it's important to focus on today and not try to look too far into the future since it's uncertain. Stay safe & well!

Update during COVID-19 California Lockdown

     I have decided to no attempt to update my blog everyday but to instead provide updates as I get new information. Since COVID-19 has gotten more widespread, I've been checking our local county health department website for updates on how many samples have been collected, negative test received, how many people are being monitored and have many cases have been confirmed. Up until yesterday, our county and one other county (Mariposa County) has had no confirmed cases. Unfortunately, as of today, our county how has two confirmed case of COVID-19. According to the local ABC news website, one patient is a Kings County resident and is quarantining at how and the second patient is a non-resident but they're being treated in Kings County. Me and hubby were not really surprised by this news in that given the global reach of COVID-19, it's not a matter of if your county gets it but when it will get it.


     In reference to work, my boss has requested than me and co-workers send her a weekly write up of any work from home things we do (regular duties as well as covid related duties.) Luckily, I have been writing down everything I've been doing so this will definitely make writing the report easier. I am still scheduling social media posts for our seven Facebook accounts and one Twitter account. To create a better work/life balance, I have decided to do work during the usual hours when I would be at work during the week.In addition, I am still sticking to eating at my normal work lunchtime as well as taking a walk break everyday.

     Life wise, I have been doing well by keeping up a daily routine by exercising daily, writing in my journal then reading a daily bible devotional before starting my workday. Working out everyday has been a surprising godsend and have been extremely helpful with stress relief. While being quarantined at home, my and hubby have been taking daily walks to a nearby park or around the neighborhood. I have also discovered and rediscovered my love of YouTube exercise workouts. Below are three of my favorite Youtube workouts I have done lately from Jessica Smith TV, City Walks virtual walks and Phala B Fitness. Stay safe & well!

Day 5 of COVID-19 California Lockdown

     Yesterday was day 5 of statewide self isolation and me working from home. Started the day with doing a workout followed by getting a phone call from my dad calling in Alabama to check on me and hubby. It was nice to hear from him and how he's holding up given the current circumstances. He talked about how much he misses sports and he's annoyed cause he can't walk his dog due to rain.He's planning to have a family reunion in Texas in June and after talking to him yesterday, it seems as though he's still planning to make that happen.

     In reference to working at home, since I work as digital services librarian, I'm still working and my boss is keeping me busy by sending me things to post to our social media accounts in addition to posts I've already pre-scheduled.I'm working hard to balance working from home and not feeling stressed by all things my boss wants from me. Being candid, The stress from working at home has led me to revert back to stress eating as a coping mechanism. Although I have still been following a daily fasting schedule (14 hours fasting and 10 hours eating,) today I am recommitting myself to taking each day as it comes, taking breaks during the day and remembering that I can only do one thing at a time to the best of my ability. 

     Initially I was planning to write a blog post each day but since I haven't figured out the best time to do write posts or I feel like I'm not sharing anything new, I'm seriously considering reducing blog posts to once a week which doing the time that I'm quarantined but we shall see. Stay safe & well! 

Day 4 of COVID-19 California Lockdown

     Today, starts my first full week of state imposed quarantine and I am working towards maintaining a regular daily routine as well as creating a work from home schedule similar to my regular work schedule. I started my daily by doing execrise and since it was raining outside this morning, I decided to do a strength training video from the HasFit YouTube channel.

     After doing my workout, I have took a shower and got dressed for the day. I have decided the best way to establish a regular work at home routine with simple steps such as moving my laptop from my couch to the kitchen table as a way to change my mindset. In addition, I am also having my hubby help with establishing a regular work from home routine by having him make lunch at the normal time when I would have lunch. I think by making this two changes, this will assist with changing my mindset when it comes to working at home as well as provide some sort of normalcy in this abnormal times. Stay safe & well!

 

Day 3 of COVID-19 California Lockdown

     Today has started out well in that I'm treating this life a normal day. This year, I decided to make Sundays "self-care Sunday" and to this end, I got up and discovered some new YouTube channels like Fordy Runs which provide me with way to get a run in without having to leave home through turning treadmill virtual run videos into a running workout. Today I did an hour virtual run through the streets of London and was surprised how sweaty I got as well as how much I enjoyed seeing different scenery versus what I see everyday when hubby and I take an afternoon walk around our nearby park.

     In other news, I've been plugging away with reading books for the two reading challenges I'm doing this year which are the 2020 Popsugar Reading Challenge and the the 2020 Mommy Mannegren 52 Books in 52 Weeks Reading Challenge. I just finished reading "Food Junkies" by Dr. Vera Tarman. This book is insightful in that it talks about food addiction as well as overeating, obesity, and eating disorders.

We went out briefly yesterday to get medicine and were surprised that there we no thermometers to be found. I tried to buy a thermometer on Amazon and although I found a low cost thermometer, I felt uncomfortable paying $55.98 for shipping and also having to wait until May for the thermometer to arrive. In addition, although some people were practicing social distancing, most people were not so we made sure to self distance ourselves from others. As time progresses, I think that people are going to wish that they had taken this pandemic more seriously but all I can do is work to protect me and hubby. 

Another issue I'm having is COVID-19 information overload and feeling emotionally drained by all the social media posts and online articles. I'm working towards finding a balance between being informed and not feeling overwhelmed.Self care is important no matter if it's 5 minutes or an hour so make sure if you're reading this to take some time to disconnect from all the pandemic news and reconnect with yourself. Stay safe & well!

Day 2 of COVID-19 California Lockdown

     Continuing to keep calm by doing regular daily routines of exercising first thing in the morning as well as bi-weekly washing of hair. Due to Rona and the whole social distancing situation, I told Den that I didn't feel comfortable going to church since it's a gathering of older people and every Saturday after church services, we have group lunch and everyone sits next to eat other and talk. I have a feeling we're going to stay home from church for the foreseeable future to protect ourselves.

     Another way we've decided to protect ourselves from Rona is to start wearing disposable gloves and a mask when we go to public places such as grocery stores, restaurants, and pharmacies. Although there haven't been any confirmed cases of Rona in Kings County, we feel it's smart to protect our hands, nose, and mouths from any germs that may be out in public spaces. Having said all this, I was surprised when we received a somewhat hostile reaction from two men as we were paying for medicine at CVS yesterday. The men noticed we were wearing gloves and a face mask and asked why were we wearing those since there were no confirmed cases in our county. My hubby responded that we're protecting ourselves from germs and the many responded that we were being silly and he didn't believe that the virus is that serious. Hubby responded "ok" and we got our items and left the store. During the car ride home, hubby commented "so this is what Noah must've felt like when he was building the ark; people are laughing at him for what he's doing. Once the flood started, those that laughed at him in the past were now the people begging to be let on the ark."

      On to a new topic, yesterday was my first day of working from home and by this, I mean posting things to the library's social media accounts, checking my work email and voicemail for the library's reference desk phone. While I thought it would be easy to create a separation between work and home life, I now realize this is harder than I thought it would be. Mainly I realize that when I'm doing work, I need to do it at a separate space such as our kitchen table so I can focus on the task at hand without any distractions.

     Well, this is my update for the day. Stay safe & well!

Day 1 of COVID-19 California Lockdown

    With the arrival of COVID-19 (coronavirus) aka "Rona" to the United States and growing numbers of people being diagnosed, this has caused panic and pandemonium as well as anxiety and stress among everyone. Grocery stores shelves are empty of bread, toilet tissue, water and oddly enough, female hygiene products. Luckily, there have been no confirmed cases of Rona in my county so far. In response to Rona, my library system is now closed from today with a tentative return date of Monday, April 13th. Although  the library is closed, all staff are on call and are expected to act as disaster workers if called upon by our county CAO office.

     Last night, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a state wide shelter in place for everyone in the state. This means that we need to stay indoors with the exception of going to work (if you fit in an essential job category,) the grocery story, pharmacies, banks, doctor appointments or exercise.In addition to the order to stay inside, we have also been told to not have any gathering with more than 10 people as well as to practice social distancing which is to stay six feet apart from each other when out in public places.

     I'm attempting to stay stress-free by continuing my daily routine of getting up early and exercising daily as well as reading my daily bible devotional. Although I've kept a journal since I was in elementary school through middle school, high school and college, as of late, I have not been writing as often as I used to. Given the current state of the world, I feel it's vital to keep a record of how the world handles this global pandemic. I also plan to relieve stress by reading books for my two reading challenges, binge watching funny movies and Tv shows as well as play three new Kinect video games I recently purchased which are Disney: Fantasia Evolved, Minute to Win It, and Puss in Boots.

     In reference to my running events, all of these (Las Vegas Women's Half Marathon, Havasu Half Marathon, and Star Wars Half Marathon) have been cancelled. While I'm sad that the races have been cancelled, in most cases, the races have been rescheduled or my race fees have been refunded. At this point, I'd much rather be healthy than put myself in danger for a medal.Once the world returns to some sort of normal and it is safe to travel, I'll run again.

     My main goals right now is to stay safe and sane during this crisis and keep stress levels low. I'm also going to make it a goal to blog everyday during this lockdown as a way to record my mindset during this pandemic as a form of therapy as well as for stress relief. Stay safe & well!