Month: April 2022

Categories
Pandemic Pandemic Movie

Songbird

While movie production sets were shut down everywhere during the pandemic, there was one exception for the movie Songbird. It was the first movie to be filmed in Los Angeles during lockdown.

Songbird is a dystopian romantic thriller set in the year 2024 and is based off the Covid-19 pandemic. The world is in its fourth year of lockdown and the virus has mutated into the Covid-23 variant. Those infected have a high rate of mortality but there are some who have natural immunity and are allowed to move about freely without restrictions. The story takes place in Los Angeles and is about Nico, a courier, who is immune to the virus and tries to save his girlfriend Sarah from being forcibly admitted to a quarantine camp known as a Q-Zone by the LA Department of Sanitation. (Wikipedia).

The idea for the movie was conceived in March 2020 just as the pandemic arrived in the United States. Its timing could not have been more controversial and critics accused the producers of being tone death. Production began in July that year and filming wrapped up on August 3, 2020. The film was released on December 11, 2020.

I enjoyed watching the movie and felt the futuristic aspect of it was quite good and realistic but the plot was weak in parts and it felt like there were gaps missing. Overall, it scored 9% on Rotten Tomatoes and the general consensus of the movie was “muddled, tedious, and uninspired, Songbird‘s gimmick never coalesces into a meaningful story about pandemic lockdown.” According to IMDB the film grossed $620,836 worldwide and the movie soundtrack was Leap of Faith written and performed by Lila Sugarman.

An article for The Los Angeles Times published on December 10, 2020 explains why producer Adam Goodman felt it was the right time to make this movie: “We’re living in a scary time, and the reason the movie is sparking conversation is because it resonates with what we’re experiencing today. The reason why the movie is called ‘Songbird’ is it’s about hope. It’s about resilience. It’s about the strength of the human spirit” (Rottenberg).

Click the YouTube link below to watch the official Songbird trailer. Enjoy the movie, and remember to “stay safe, sane, and sanitized.”

Social Media Trends as of April 30, 2022

Facebook #songbirdmovie: 1,200 people are posting about this
Instagram #songbirdmovie: 6,471 posts
TikTok #songbirdmovie: 11.4 million views
YouTube #songbirdmovie: less than 100 videos and channels

Google Trends: songbird movie achieved peak popularity during the week of October 25, 2020.

songbird movie search term

Sources

Rottenberg, Joseph. “Coronavirus thriller ‘Songbird’ was filmed during the COVID pandemic. How, and why, they did it.” The Los Angeles Times. December 10, 2020. URL: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2020-12-10/songbird-explained-coronavirus-movie.

“Songbird.” International Movie Database (IMDB). URL: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12592252/.

“Songbird.” Rotton Tomatoes. URL: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/songbird_2020.

“Songbird.” Wikipedia. URL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Songbird_(2020_film)#Release.

“Songbird film poster.” Wikipedia. 30 October 2020. URL: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/90/Songbird_film_poster.png.

“Songbird | Official Trailer.” STX Films. October 29, 2020. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgxXSfto6Vo.



Categories
Pandemic Vaccine Virus

Double-vaxxed and triple-vaxxed

If you’ve had two Covid vaccines already, from either Moderna or Pfizer (or a combination of both), you have been double vaxxed. If you’ve had the booster you are triple vaxxed. Or triple jabbed. They’ll be a blog post for double jabbed and triple jabbed in due course.

There is an entry in the Collins Dictionary for “double vaxxed which is defined as “having received two vaccinations against a disease Also: double-jabbed.”

The Cambridge Dictionary’s definition for double vaxxed along with some examples is as follows: “having received two vaccinations against a disease, especially Covid-19:

-She wasn’t worried about Covid because she was double-vaxxed.
-Only double-vaxxed people were allowed into the country.”

A cursory search for “double vaxxed” revealed the following headlines:

The National Post – January 26, 2022: “Survey finds a growing divide between double-vaxxed and boosted people” (Osman).

The New Straits Times – April 21, 2022: “Over half a million children double vaxxed against Covid-19” (Basyir).

I did not find a dictionary entry for the term “triple vaxxed” but it does appear in many online news articles such as the one published for The New Zealand Herald on 8 April 2022. Entitled “Covid 19 Omicron: Triple-vaxxed journalist Tracey Spicer crushed by long Covid,” the article reports on the Australian journalist, who, despite being double jabbed and boosted, contracted the omicron variant of Covid-19 that left her bedridden for a couple of weeks, with a severe cough, fatigue and chest pain (New Zealand Herald).

A January 14, 2022 article published for Slate magazine and entitled “So You’re Triple-Vaxxed and Still Got COVID. Now What?” contains a sobering reminder that even with two vaccines and a booster your protection against Covid-19 may only be good for a few months before another mutant variant appears that is vaccine resistant (Palus).

Social Media Trends as of April 29, 2022

Facebook #doublevaxxed: 6,600 people are posting about this
Instagram #doublevaxxed: 11,089 posts
TikTok #doublevaxxed: 14.8 million views
YouTube #doublevaxxed: less than 100 videos and channels

Facebook #triplevaxxed: 1,800 people are posting about this
Instagram #triplevaxxed: 2,372 posts
TikTok #triplevaxxed: 5.1 million views

Google Trends: double vaxxed wasn’t even a blip until the week of April 4, 2021 when vaccines started to become widely available. The level of interest peaked during the week of October 17, 2021 when the booster shots were being recommended. The popularity went down to almost where it was a year ago. triple vaxxed did not register any interest until the week of August 8, 2021 when the government discussed the rollout of the third vaccine, known as a booster. The omicron variant spread rapidly throughout the fall of 2021 with the result that the triple vaxxed search term peaked during the week of December 18 when people were lining up to get their booster shot.

double vaxxed search term
triple vaxxed search term

Sources

Basyir, Mohamed. “Over half a million children double vaxxed against Covid-19.” The New Straits Times. April 21, 2022. URL: https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2022/04/790599/over-half-million-children-double-vaxxed-against-covid-19.

“Covid 19 Omicron: Triple-vaxxed journalist Tracey Spicer crushed by long Covid.” New Zealand Herald. 8 April 2022. URL: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/covid-19-omicron-triple-vaxxed-journalist-tracey-spicer-crushed-by-long-covid/UHP4CTAZX3WGWGZ6NXTJLGGWDI/.

“Double vaxxed.” Cambridge Dictionary. URL: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/double-vaxxed.

“Double vaxxed.” Collins Dictionary. URL: https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/double-vaxxed.

Osman, Laura. “Survey finds a growing divide between double-vaxxed and boosted people.” National Post. The Canadian Press. January 26, 2022. URL: https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/survey-reveals-widening-gap-between-views-of-double-vaxxed-and-boosted-people.

Palus, Shannon. “So You’re Triple-Vaxxed and Still Got COVID. Now What?” Slate. January 14, 2022. URL: https://slate.com/technology/2022/01/covid-immunity-triple-vaccinated-omicron.html.

Categories
Pandemic Vaccine Virus

Vaxxed and unvaxxed

To vax, or not to vax? The answer to this question is beyond the scope of this blog. Whether you are for or against vaccination, these two terms have entered the Covid lexicon.

Only the Urban Dictionary had an entry for vaxxed/vaxed: “When you have received a vaccination you are / have been vaxed.
– I better see you guys vaxed up so we can party soon.“

I had more luck finding unvaxxed in a dictionary. Merriam Webster’s definition is “not having received a vaccine : unvaccinated
– unvaxxed students
– New York City’s Covid vaccine mandate has barred the unvaxxed NBA superstar from entering Brooklyn’s home arena on game days.“

An article published on September 13, 2021 for CNBC news had both terms appearing together in the title: “As many return to the office, tensions flare between the ‘vaxxed and unvaxxed.’” Columnist Holly Ellyatt writes: “Now, as many employees return to their offices, tensions appear to be emerging along new lines: those who are vaccinated against Covid, and those who are not. In the U.S. in particular, companies have taken a rigorous approach toward employees’ Covid vaccination status, with many announcing that their staff must be fully vaccinated in order to return to the workplace.”

A news article entitled “The political divide between the vaxxed and unvaxxed is widening, according to new report” appeared in Fortune.com on September 28, 2021 and discussed the differing views of vaccines and boosters depending on whether you consider yourself a Democrat or a Republican (Alsever).

A YouTube video clip posted on May 18, 2021 discusses the Red Wings taking on the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. Seating is allocated at 50% for vaccinated individuals, who must show photo Id and proof of vaccination, and unvaccinated people get the other 50% (News 8 WROC).


Social Media Trends as of April 28, 2022

Facebook #vaxxed: 38,000 people are posting about this
Instagram #vaxed: 6,600 posts
TikTok #vaxxed: 96.7 million views
YouTube #vaxxed: 1,000 videos; 256 channels

Facebook #unvaxxed: 2,500 people are posting about this
Instagram #unvaxed: 1,160 posts
TikTok #unvaxxed: 102.5 million views
YouTube #unvaxxed: less than 100 videos and channels

Google Trends: vaxxed didn’t get much traction till the week of May 9, 2021 when Covid vaccines became widely available. The term peaked in popularity during Christmas 2021 and the first week of 2022.
unvaxxed did not register as a search term until the second week of May 2021 and slowly moved up in popularity as many businesses enforced vaccine mandates. The term peaked during the week of January 9, 2022.

vaxxed search term
unvaxxed search term

Sources

Alsever, Jennifer. “The political divide between the vaxxed and unvaxxed is widening, according to new report.” Fortune.com. September 28, 2021. URL: https://fortune.com/2021/09/28/the-political-divide-between-the-vaxxed-and-unvaxxed-is-widening-according-to-new-report/.

Ellyatt, Holly. “As many return to the office, tensions flare between the ‘vaxxed and unvaxxed.’” CNBC.com. September 13, 2021. URL: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/09/13/office-tensions-rise-between-the-vaccinated-and-unvaccinated-.html.

Jflo2000. “Vaxed.” Urban Dictionary. March 16, 2021. URL: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Vaxxed.

“Scranton Wilkes-Barre RailRiders New PNC Field.” News 8 WROC. YouTube. May 18, 2021. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKdbKJV2eO0.

“Unvaxxed.” Merriam Webster Dictionary. URL: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/unvaxxed.

Categories
Pandemic Vaccine Virus

Vax

Vax is short for vaccine and can also be spelled “vaxx.” It’s not a new word and was first recorded in English in 1799. It’s derivative words, “vaccinate” and “vaccination” appeared in the year 1800.

Collins Dictionary defines vax as: “short for vaccine: a substance put into a person’s body to prevent them getting a disease.”

Lexicographers at Oxford English Dictionary chose “vax” as Word of the Year for 2021. A BBC News article writing about this said: “Words related to vaccines have spiked in frequency in 2021 due to Covid, with double-vaxxed, unvaxxed and anti-vaxxer all seeing a surge in use. OED senior editor Fiona McPherson says vax was an obvious choice as it has made ‘the most striking impact’. ‘It goes back at least to the 1980s, but according to our corpus it was rarely used until this year. When you add to that its versatility in forming other words – vaxxie, vax-a-thon, vaxinista – it became clear that vax was the standout in the crowd.’ Vax and vaxx are both accepted spellings but the form with one x is more common.“

The word appears frequently in news articles. A cursory search of the news using Google found an article entitled: “Dozens of NYC educators placed on leave for alleged fake vax cards” that was published on April 21, 2022 in the New York Times.

“Blue Bombers drop vax mandate, but are they dropping the ball?” is the title of an article that appears in the Winnipeg Sun for April 25, 2022.

2021 Word of the Year

Social Media Trends as of April 26, 2022

Facebook #vax: 19,000 people are posting about this
Instagram #vax: 103,561 posts
TikTok #vax: 328.5 million views
YouTube #vax: 1,600 videos; 672 channels

Google Trends: I set the analytical search tool to the beginning of 2004 for vax. It peaked in popularity during the month of October 2021.

vax search term

Sources

Bamberger, Cayla. “Dozens of NYC educators placed on leave for alleged fake vax cards.” The New York Times. April 21, 2022. URL: https://nypost.com/2022/04/21/nyc-eddozens-of-nyc-educators-placed-on-leave-for-alleged-fake-vax-cardsucators-placed-on-leave-for-alleged-fake-vax-.cards/.

Friesen, Paul. “Blue Bombers drop vax mandate, but are they dropping the ball?” Winnipeg Sun. April 25, 2022. URL: https://winnipegsun.com/sports/football/blue-bombers-drop-vax-mandate-but-are-they-dropping-the-ball.

urbanbuzz. “VAX Oxford English Dictionary word of the year.” Shutterstock.com. Standard License. Royalty-free stock vector ID: 2067447635.

“Vax.” Cambridge Dictionary. May 11, 2020. URL: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Maskhole.

“Vax declared Oxford English Dictionary’s word of the year.” BBC News. 1 November 2021. URL: https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-59089596.

Categories
Pandemic Virus

Quarantini

Two years of lockdown is a long time, especially for those who enjoy life’s little pleasures. Bars and pubs were closed during the pandemic because they were deemed non-essential businesses. So what’s a chap to do with a hankering for an adult beverage?

Enter the Quarantini. The Macmillan dictionary defines this as “a cocktail drunk while socially distancing.” An interesting factoid is that quarantini is not a new term. The above source mentions that “the word itself made its first appearance 15 years ago, in an episode of US medical comedy series Scrubs. Character Danni Sullivan asks ‘Quarantinis anyone?’ during lockdown of the intensive care unit because of a potential SARS threat.”

Some of the earliest quarantini recipes were published at the beginning of lockdown. An article named “10 ‘Quarantinis’ to Drink While Social Distancing” appeared in Town and Country magazine on March 23, 2020. Columnist Lauren Hubbard writes: “We may not be able to head to our favorite bars for a drink these days, but social distancing doesn’t mean we have to give up on a top-notch cocktail hour. In the name of making your solo cocktail session special, we’ve rounded up some of the tastiest (and easiest) “quarantinis” to enjoy while standing at least six feet away from other people.

For a health, immunity-boosting cocktail that only takes 5 minutes to prepare, look no further than the Lemon Martini Quarantini. This may be one of the earliest coronvirus pandemic recipes published and appears in a post for the The Novice Chef Blog on March 13, 2020. Author Jessica Segarra touts the exciting benefits of this drink: “The alcohol kills the germs. The local honey and lemon boosts your immunity. And the optional added pack of emergency vitamin c – that can also be used to rim the glass – is just an added bonus!“

On April 17, 2020, YouTube channel Tasty featured a Quarantini Challenge during their virtual happy hour. Contestants had to make their own unique quarantini using 5 ingredients in their fridge and pantry. Ice did not count.

Quarantini Challenge

Social Media Trends as of April 24, 2022

Facebook #quarantini: 21,000 people are posting about this
Instagram #quarantini: 110,061 posts as of April 24, 2022
TikTok #quarantini: 36 million views
YouTube #quarantini: 288 videos; 122 channels

Google Trends: quarantini reached its peak in April 2020.

quarantini search term

Sources:

designergraphic84. “Quarantini bar sign.” Shutterstock.com. Standard License. Royalty-free stock vector ID: 1709264158.

Hubbard, Lauren. “10 “Quarantinis” to Drink While Social Distancing.” Town and Country Magazine. March 23, 2020. URL: https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/drinks/g31900654/quarantini-cocktail-recipes/.

“Quarantini”. Macmillan Dictionary. 27 March 2020. URL: https://www.macmillandictionary.com/us/dictionary/american/quarantini.

“Quarantini Challenge 4 Ways • Tasty.” YouTube. April 17, 2020. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFAF2RojfQg.

Segarra, Jessica. “Quarantini Cocktail.” The Novice Chef Blog. March 13, 2020. https://thenovicechefblog.com/quarantini/.

Categories
Pandemic Virus

Quaranteam

Prolonged isolation under lockdown can cause depression especially if you’re a teenage, live alone or are elderly. After being without human contact for considerable lengths of time, some people decided to form their own small bubble of people they could socialize with that didn’t interact with other “bubbles” outside their group. Quaranteams can consist of friends, family or Covid free neighbors that spend quality time together.

Quaranteam soon became a pandemic era word and appears in a few online dictionaries. Cambridge Dictionary lists quaranteam under their “New Words” blog post for 7 September 2020 to mean “a group of people who go into quarantine together.

Quaranteams, therefore, are not simply a convenient idea because they let people see their friends and family. Isolation poses serious health risks – both physically and mentally – that social bubbles can help alleviate while improving social well-being and quality of life. [theconversation.com, 17 June 2020]”

The Urban Dictionary’s entry for quaranteam is: “The people you choose to live with during a coronavirus quarantine. My girlfriend lives by herself, so my roommates and I have included her in our quaranteam.“


The online magazine Inverse gives 5 tips to consider when forming your quaranteam:

1. Quaranteaming is not risk-free.

2. Your group must make rules and adhere to them. This can only be done with extremely high levels of trust.

3. This situation is probably going to last longer than you think.

4. Smaller groups are better.

5. The urge to “quaranteam” is natural.

Betuel

Perhaps the most important piece of advice from the above quoted article is this: “Quaranteaming is not a way to get around social distancing, nor is it even a version of normality, experts say. You are signing up to live in a strictly governed social experiment that will require a huge amount of responsibility and trust.“

On March 11, 2021 Twitter user Pharmbills published a humorous tweet about quaranteaming.


Social Media Trends as of May 17, 2022

Facebook #quaranteam: 82,000 people are posting about this
Instagram #quaranteam: 176,045 posts
TikTok #quaranteam: 41.3 million views
YouTube #quaranteam: 960 videos and 425 channels

Google Trends: quaranteam first appeared during the week of March 15, 2020 coinciding with the time that lockdown mandates were beginning to be put in place. The term which its peak of interest during April 2020 and faded away by March of the following year.

quaranteam search term

Sources:

Betuel, Emma. “Quarantine with friends? 5 tips experts say to consider.” Inverse. May 8, 2020. URL: https://www.inverse.com/mind-body/quaranteam.

Faquat. “Quaranteam”. The Urban Dictionary. March 21, 2020. URL: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Quaranteam.

Musjaka. “Quaranteam social logo and text to stay at home. Coronavirus quarantine, virus in quarantine to prevent infection.” Shutterstock.com. Standard License. Royalty-free stock vector ID: 1703917987.

Pharmbills. “New 2021 Dictionary: Quaranteam — a group of people who create a social circle during the COVID-19 pandemic, prohibiting interaction with others.” Twitter.com. March 11, 2021. URL: https://twitter.com/pharmbills/status/1369954986868809728.

“Quaranteam”. Cambridge Dictionary. 7 September 2020. URL: https://dictionaryblog.cambridge.org/2020/09/07/new-words-7-september-2020/.

Categories
Pandemic Virus

Mask up

When mask mandates began in Spring 2020 everyone was encouraged to “mask up” and save lives. Wearing a mask reduced the transmission of Covid-19. Until recently, the U.S. Department of Transportation “[required] the wearing of face masks on planes, buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation.” There was even a toolkit on their website that contained “Multi-media assets, social media graphics and messages, and email content to help communicate to the traveling public online” the importance of wearing a mask.

The phrase “mask up” soon found its way into the dictionary. The Macmillan Dictionary’s definition is:
“to wear a mask or facecovering.
– That’s why we are asking all Hoosiers to mask up – and speak up about how wearing your mask can save lives.”

The Urban Dictionary’s definition of “mask up” is:
“A phrase used to tell people to put on their mask:
‘Hey Alex, mask up, man!’
‘Woah there tiger, mask up!
‘Mask up, kids, it’s time to go outside!'”

In an article last updated on February 9, 2021, the CDC encourages Americans to “Continue to ‘Mask Up’ to Help Stop the Spread of the Coronavirus. Austin Powers, Casablanca, Harry Potter, The Lord of the Rings, and others are reimagined with characters wearing face masks.”

Social Media Trends as of May 17, 2022

Facebook #maskup: 657,000 people are posting about this
Instagram #maskup: 1,488,539 posts
TikTok #maskup: 780.5 million views
YouTube #maskup: 6,200 videos and 2,700 channels

Google Trends: mask up appeared during the week of March 22, 2020 and peaked during the week of July 12, 2020. By this time the pandemic was in full swing and federal, state and local governments had declared masked mandates and were encouraging everyone to “mask up.”

mask up search term

Sources:

buckshotboi. “Mask up.” The Urban Dictionary. August 25, 2020. URL: https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Mask%20Up.

stockmatic. “Man wear face mask vector. Vector Wear Face Mask sign. Warning sign recommend wear of protective face mask in prevention vs virus infection in health care. Coronavirus protection mask.” Shutterstock.com. Standard License. Royalty-free stock vector ID: 1732942073.

“Mask up.” Macmillian Dictionary. 15 July 2020. URL: https://www.macmillandictionary.com/us/dictionary/american/mask-up.

“Mask up.” The U.S. Department of Transportation. URL: https://www.transportation.gov/maskup.

“Mask Up America.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. February 9, 2021. URL: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/communication/mask-up-america.html.

Categories
Pandemic Virus

Face mask

The hospital mask, long the domain of surgeons and operating theaters, was synonymous with personal safety and became a symbol of virtue and of the times we live in.

Shortly after the pandemic arrived in the United States, the CDC recommended wearing masks to lessen the transmission of coronavirus on April 3, 2020. This was in addition to social distancing and personal hygiene recommendations. Over the course of the next two years, masks were mandated on airplanes, public transport, in schools, hospitals and for a time, retail stores. Only in recent months have mask mandates been lifted and, according to Wikipedia, “by April 2022, nearly all state-level mask mandates had been lifted, although the mask mandate for public transport was to remain in place until May 3.”

The N95 respirator mask is highly recommended by doctors and hospitals because it filters 95% of airborne particles. The CDC states that “if worn properly, a surgical mask is meant to help block large-particle droplets, splashes, sprays, or splatter that may contain germs (viruses and bacteria), keeping it from reaching your mouth and nose. Surgical masks may also help reduce exposure of your saliva and respiratory secretions to others” (FDA).

As the pandemic continued for months on end, masks became the new normal and it was inevitable they’d find their way into the world of fashion. British designer Patrick McDowell Gosh describes the plain mask as “so boring – just a white sheet mask, because now I wear a blue silk one which I made, then I have a pink one…Like anything in fashion, if you like what you’re wearing, you feel better don’t you?” Hermione de Paula, owner of a bridal business, said “As face masks have evolved into our new normal, we received an overwhelming amount of messages requesting if we could create them for our followers – and not just brides” (Bumpus).

There were occasional supply shortages of masks so people turned to the internet to find tutorials on how to make them using simple household materials. In doing so, many discovered the lost art of sewing with needle and thread. Here is one YouTube video that gives a tutorial on how to make a mask:

Some people choose to double mask where they choose to wear two masks for extra protection due to the increased. Another advantage of double-masking is that the outer mask “can apply gentle pressure to the edges of the inner mask. When this happens, the inner mask fits more closely against your skin and creates a better seal” (Seladi-Schulman).

Like our wallet, phone and keys, one never left home without a mask. I lost track of the number of times I went to the store only to realize I left my mask and had to go back to the house to retrieve it.

Social Media Trends as of May 17, 2022

Facebook #facemask: 867,000 people are posting about this
Instagram #facemask: 7,934,182 posts
TikTok #facemask: 6.9 billion views
YouTube #facemask: 71,000 videos and 33,000 channels

Google Trends: the popularity for mask reached its peak during the week of April 5, 2020 which coincided with the time the CDC recommended the wearing of face masks. One reason for its popularity is that not everyone could get hold of a mask due to supply shortages so it was important to learn how to make one. Though not as effective as N95 surgical masks, they were required to enter places of business and while traveling on public transport.

mask search term

Sources:

Bumpus, Jessica. “How face masks became the symbol of 2020.” HarpersBizarre.com. August 24, 2020. URL: https://www.harpersbazaar.com/uk/fashion/a33742806/how-face-masks-became-the-symbol-of-2020/.

“Face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.” Wikipedia. URL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Face_masks_during_the_COVID-19_pandemic_in_the_United_States.

Image Devices Stock. “Doctor mask and corona virus protection isolated on a white background. Medical protective mask on white background, Prevent Coronavirus, protection factor for virus . 3d render.” Shutterstock.com. Standard License. Royalty-free stock vector ID: 1837231141.

“N95 Respirators, Surgical Masks, Face Masks, and Barrier Face Coverings.” U.S. Food and Drug Administration. September 15, 2021. URL: https://www.fda.gov/medical-devices/personal-protective-equipment-infection-control/n95-respirators-surgical-masks-face-masks-and-barrier-face-coverings.

Nanay Exspress. “5 Minutes! FAST and EASY Way to Make Face Mask”. YouTube. Jan 2, 2021. URL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W05R_aU9J1g.

Seladi-Schulman, Jill. “Should You Be Double Masking?” Healthline.com. March 4, 2021. URL: https://www.healthline.com/health/double-masking.

Categories
Pandemic Pandemic Art Virus

Lockdown

Who of us is not familiar with the term “lockdown,” that isolating experience shared across the globe by billions of people? The term came into common usage early in 2020 as governments around the world instituted tough measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

Shutterstock: Fiza Studio

Lockdown became the “2020 Word of the Year” according to Collins Dictionary. An article for BBC News states that “lexicographers registered more than 250,000 usages of “lockdown” during 2020, up from just 4,000 last year.”

In a November 11, 2020 blog post, the Collins Dictionary says: “So what about the word of the year itself? “Lockdown”, with its heavy, clunking syllables and heavier associations, is the condition we’ve most dreaded in 2020 – a state of national stasis, where almost everything that constitutes normal public life is suspended. Under lockdown, our waking hours get a lot smaller. We return to a simpler state – which some have, in fact appreciated – but it’s a far more restricted one. We see few people, and fewer places. We’re quite literally housebound. It’s not a shock to remember, then, that lockdown was originally a piece of prison vocabulary: it’s when inmates are confined to their cells because of some disturbance on the wing. 2020 is year that the meaning of the word shifted irrevocably: in most people’s minds, lockdown is now a public health measure – its use having increased exponentially since 2019.“

So, what did people do during lockdown? Some teenagers got together and created an event series called Lockdown “that follows a group of bored quarantined teens working together online to solve a mystery involving one of their neighbors – a mystery which ultimately places them all in danger.“


The author of this blog built a gym in his basement and made a vegetable plot in his garden. Others got creative and started blogging about their experiences during lockdown. A September 20, 2020 article for the New York Times reports on one 86 year old woman who started a blog: “Not long after the coronavirus sent her country into lockdown and brought an abrupt end to life as she’d known it, Hazell Jacobs, 86, awoke in her south London home ready to start something new. She opened a closet and began pulling out a collection of scarves – hundreds of them, gathered over decades of travels around the world. There were countless memories stitched into their hems, each silky expanse a story waiting to be told. Ms. Jacobs sat down, and began to write what soon became Scarf Aid, a blog Ms. Jacobs has faithfully maintained…soon the emails and comments began to come in from fans around the world…Some of her closest friends were struggling under the weight of isolation. ‘I’m used to supporting others,’ she said. ‘So I thought, that’ll be my role, to cheer people up,’ noting that a lot her friends have felt very down” (Purtill).

Social Media Trends as of May 17, 2022

Facebook #lockdown: 4,700,000 million people are posting about this
Instagram #lockdown: 21,126,508 posts
TikTok #lockdown: 44.3 billion views
YouTube #lockdown: 1,100,000 videos and 311,000 channels

Google Trends: Lockdown is not a new word but its meaning changed during the pandemic. It registered as a small blip during the week of March 1, 2020 and within two weeks it reached its peak before tailing off that summer as much of the world was under lockdown and knew what the new definition of the word meant. Even though it was voted “2020 Word of the Year”, it’s certainly not a cause for celebration as it affected everyone, in different ways, from how we worked, attended school and socialized.

lockdown search term

Sources:

“Covid-19: ‘Lockdown’ declared Collins Dictionary word of the year.” BBC News. 10 November 2020. URL: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-54878910.

Fisa Studio. “coronavirus lockdown symbol. Coronavirus pandemic puts countries on lockdown. Stop Covid-19. Isolated Vector Icon.” Shutterstock.com. Standard License. Royalty-free stock vector ID: 1675752562.

“Lockdown.” YouTube Originals For Kids and Family. YouTube. November 19, 2020. URL: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUxtB8Ph9xFROkedqxUc9g_CxrxmRFzuB.

Purtill, Corinne. “In Lockdown, an 86-Year-Old Blogger Finds an Audience and a New Purpose.” The New York Times. September 27, 2020. URL: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/27/us/lockdown-blogger-finds-an-audience-covid-quarantine-scarf-aid.html.

“Word of the Year 2020 Blog.” Collins Dictionary.com. 10 November 2020. URL: https://blog.collinsdictionary.com/language-lovers/the-year-of-lockdown/.

Categories
Pandemic Virus

Covid wave

A Covid wave conjures up patterns of peaks and troughs where a new variant creates a surge of infections for a length of time followed by a decline in new cases. Different countries have their own Covid waves with spikes in new cases followed by an eventual leveling off of infections.

Professor Lisa Maragakis, an infectious disease specialist at Johns Hopkins Medicine, explains why this happens: “Several factors have had an impact on whether new COVID-19 cases are increasing or declining in particular locations. These factors include the effectiveness of vaccines over time, human behavior, infection prevention policies, changes to the coronavirus itself, and the number of people who are vulnerable because they have not developed some immunity, whether from natural infection or through vaccination. For instance, a large spike in U.S. COVID-19 cases occurred over the winter months of 2020–21 when people traveled and gathered for the winter holidays. The arrival of FDA-authorized vaccines in December 2020 helped bring new infection levels back down in many areas through the spring of 2021. Another surge began in July 2021 as the contagious delta variant began to circulate and eventually become dominant. Waning immunity and relaxation of public policies and infection prevention measures also played a role.“

Is another Covid wave coming? Since restrictions were lifted across the United States and people didn’t have to wear masks anymore, the number of Covid 19 cases has increased. A recent article published on April 16, 2022 for Fortune.com said “The U.S. is in a stealth wave of stealth Omicron…It can’t be known for certain because the country doesn’t have the data it should have. That’s not for lack of technology or supply, but for lack of willpower. Americans largely don’t want to get tested for COVID right now. But it sure seems like another COVID wave, and Americans want to ignore it” (Prater).

Shutterstock: Chidori_B

Social Media Trends as of May 17, 2022

Facebook #covidwave: 1,300 people are posting about this
Instagram #covidwave: 2,792 posts
TikTok #covidwave: 715,000 views
YouTube #covidwave: 282 videos and 177 channels

Google Trends: covid wave first appeared during the week of March 22, 2020 though to be honest America was only just in the grip of the first wave. The level of interest of this search term dipped a bit before spiking again in the spring and summer of 2021 as different variants made their way over here, such as Delta and Omicron. The week of March 13, 2022 saw the “covid wave” search term reach peak popularity as the BA.2 variant became the dominant strain in the United States.

covid wave search term

Sources:

Chidori_B. “covid 19 second wave concept, healthcare concept.” Shutterstock.com. Standard License. Royalty-free stock vector ID: 1776123344.

Maragakis, Lisa. “Coronavirus Second Wave, Third Wave and Beyond: What Causes a COVID Surge.” John Hopkins School of Medicine. Hopkins Medicine.org. October 21, 2021. URL: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/coronavirus/first-and-second-waves-of-coronavirus.

Prater, Erin. “The COVID wave America doesn’t care about: ‘Everybody is sick of COVID’.” Fortune.com. April 16, 2022. URL: https://fortune.com/2022/04/16/next-covid-wave-probably-here-america-ignoring-everybody-sick-of-covid-delta-omicron-pi-coronavirus-fauci-johns-hopkins-ba1-ba2-variant-voc-voi-wild-type/.