Pressing against my bones

[dolorosa_12]

I woke up this morning feeling a rumbling sense of anxiety, and the feeling didn't really dissipate for the entire day.



It doesn't help that cases here are rising sharply and we're probably on the verge of being moved into Tier 2 lockdown. This is incredibly frustrating: from March, when things locked down and the students were sent home, until the new academic year (with students in residence) began, cases here were so incredibly low, and it feels like all that was just thrown away in weeks. Unfortunately, the students are mostly to blame — they keep having illegal parties in their residences, and cases keep spreading. Apparently the rumour is that one college had a party, there were subsequent positive cases, and the entire college went into lockdown.

I still don't know any people here in Cambridge who have the virus, but a friend in Birmingham finally got diagnosed with 'long COVID' (she's had it for eight months), and two friends in Poznań in Poland also announced that they have it. Their experiences have been utterly wretched.



In slightly better news, I opened my work inbox yesterday to discover that the students had nominated me for a teaching award. These are entirely student-nominated, and the text they'd written in support of my nomination was so nice! It was a really lovely piece of news with which to start the week, and it felt fabulous to see my work recognised in this way.

I'll close this post out with some music — an absolutely beautiful live performance by Four Tet, in the Sydney Opera House, which was just about the only thing that made a dent in my anxiety today. Music, as always, is one of the few things that quietens my noisy mind, and soothes the sea inside.

Watch on YouTube

Comments

[corvidology]

Congratulations! How lovely to be recognized for your work by students. ♥

[dolorosa_12]

Thank you! It was a really nice way to start the week.

[lirazel]

Yeah, students are always supposed to be wearing masks here on campus...and there are so many in the library who are just not. I've also heard rumors that a lot of students are deliberately not getting tested because they don't want to be quarantined, so they're just doing mini "quarantines" of their own by mostly sticking to their dorm rooms. I'm so frustrated with the whole situation.

What wonderful news about the award nomination! It's delightful that the students both appreciate you and appreciate you enough to go to the trouble of nominating!

[dolorosa_12]

I've also heard rumors that a lot of students are deliberately not getting tested because they don't want to be quarantined, so they're just doing mini "quarantines" of their own by mostly sticking to their dorm rooms. I'm so frustrated with the whole situation.

Aaaaaarrrrgggghhhh! On the one hand, I understand the difficulties students face — going through this pandemic is hard enough when you're living in your own home with plenty of space and the company of family, and asking students to endure that in a sterile and cramped dorm room is pretty tough. But on the other hand, students are adults, and really need to show a bit more responsibility and community-mindedness.

Thanks for your congratulations! It was definitely some nice news to start the working week.

[goodbyebird]

That's so lovely of your students! Congratulations ♥

[dolorosa_12]

Thank you! It was a really wonderful thing with which to start off the week.