Covid-19 Reactions and Impact

Covid-19 shelter in place restrictions have made everyone’s lives harder by not being allowed to do their daily normal activities. With no official date given on when the shelter in place orders will end, daily normal activities ranging from school and work to hobbies have been impacted for many students.

The longer people have to remain sheltered in place, the longer their lives continue to stay changed by not being allowed to leave for non-essential reasons.

Twenty-year-old Aundre Fletcher, kinesiology major said, “life during COVID-19 is pretty normal for me because I don't really go anywhere or with anybody at all. I stay home normally.”

Lives have also been negatively impacted by students not being allowed to find friends and hang out with non-relatives of different households.

Stay at home orders have impacted me personally because now I can’t go to the basketball gym like I used to. My apartment complex has also closed down all of the amenities to residents until further notice from health officials is given. Meaning as a resident, I am unable to access swimming pools, apartment gym and computer lab for college homework which is why I had to borrow a laptop from the CRC library.

Other daily normal activities students miss include getting their hair and fingernails done. In fact, depending on where students work as their primary job, trimming of hair and fingernails may also be a requirement such as in the food industry.

“What makes me feel normal is going to get my nails done on a regular basis,” said 18-year-old history major Brooke Elizabeth Bryant.

Though physical store locations for customers are seeing declines in customer sales, online store sites are increasing in their sales. In fact since I can’t shop in-store at Kohl’s who I have a retail credit card with, I’ve now switched to online shopping through Kohl’s website. I enjoy shopping at Kohl’s because they have everything I want from PlayStation products, gift cards, clothes, school supplies and food.

My life plans also had to be canceled due to Coronavirus like concerts I’ve previously planned on going to attend. Until I’m able to have fun for my birthday in May without shelter at home restrictions, I’ve just been playing NBA 2K20 on PlayStation 4 in addition to working, completing college assignments and packing up my clothes for Fall 2020 to attend the University of Nevada Reno I’ve recently been admitted to.

Guests also miss dining in at their favorite restaurants. Restaurants have temporarily closed for dine-in order options where guests were previously able to sit and eat where they’d like. Due to the recent widespread coronavirus, Round Table Pizza locations throughout Sacramento County have closed their dining room which now limits guests to only placing orders for pick-up and delivery.

Staff from a variety of different non-essential businesses have recently been ordered to shut their business doors until further notice in order to slow the spread of the coronavirus. What the closures mean for employees of those businesses is a loss of customers which means a loss of income for the company. Loss of the company’s income leads to employees’ hours being reduced.

My hours as a current Round Table Pizza employee has been decreased dramatically to where I’ve sometimes had to overdraft my bank account in amounts that I later paid back. My job has decreased my hours from 15 hours per week to 5 hours per week.

Twenty-year-old Gabriel Santos, psychology major said, “Before COVID-19 I was able to freely go to the gym and dine in at restaurants.”

More paid hours are not only given for employees’ hard work but are also based on the company’s sales and demands. If customers aren’t shopping, how would money continue to keep businesses open?

“Since COVID-19 came around, no one has been able to do that. I think adjusting to a new lifestyle can be difficult for some people but life's greatest challenge will always involve some type of overcoming,” Santos said.

Once all shelter orders and restrictions have been lifted and no longer impacts me, the first thing I will do is visit my longtime barber for a fresh haircut and facial trimming. Next, I will begin shopping in stores for school supplies to prepare myself for the upcoming semester in college that will be my first day attending a university. I’m also considered a first-generation college student by being the first person in my family to attend a university.