My COVID-19 Work Space
Title
My COVID-19 Work Space
Description
description of my workspace [shown in the file attached]
Creator
Sophia Rasura
Date
04/30/2020
Format
Image & Description of All the Parts
Language
English
Text
Ojai, California
30 April 2020
Hanging Silver Mirror:
From the 90s, my parents had it in their first house together, was sitting in the garage until I came home and wanted a mirror in the room. Can't seem to figure out how to hide the hooks from showing, so it droops.
Wilting Florals:
Picked with one of my high school friends on our hike to Matilija Canyon in the Los Padres National Forest on 27 April 2020. My favorite is the yellow floral arrangement; the red ones have begun spreading their petals in my hairbrush.
Yellow Hairbrush:
Good for wet & dry hair! Used after showers & before my 8 am classes to make me look a bit saner & put together. Currently has a red petal wedged in it.
Hot pink slip of paper:
Gift I got in an envelope from the child I babysit in Bronxville, NY with my name on it in pencil, fully highlighted by paint pens to appear hot pink. Received today in my mailbox after creating it with him via FaceTime on our weekly playdates where we make crafts together over our devices. So lucky to have that one with me on my desk, reminds me of him while we're apart.
French Provincial Desk:
Missing knob inside the drawer: do not have the wits to re-attach. First drawer on the left is my penpal writing drawer where I keep all my letters, frog stamps, & decorated envelopes to send to friends from Sarah Lawrence or international penpals I've connected with over the quarantine. The drawer below (not pictured) holds all my past journals from Muji, filled with illustrations & thoughts. Very special desk because I got it in early March of 2020 before California completely closed off of Craigslist in Ventura for $70. My bedroom set is French provincial and did not come with a desk, so finding this in a very similar yellow felt like fate and I now had a workspace for my Sarah Lawrence courses. Has a chip in the paint just above the middle of the drawer that reminds me of a molehill, always making me think of the common saying: "don't make a mountain out of a molehill".
Starbucks Washington Mug:
A gift from my mom's best friend after she visited Bellingham for her daughter's graduation. Mostly used for my oat milk matcha lattes in the morning, but right now it has water in it because we were out of glass cups.
MacBook 2017 & charging cord:
My life. Usually positioned in a way to hide the clothing pile in the mirror on the right side of the zebra chair and my suitcase from traveling home.
Framed Artwork on Left Side:
A gift to my mom from one of her high school best friends in the 80s. Stole it from the fireplace mantle in our living room because I wanted some artwork on my desk.
Postcard:
Propped up by my two glasses cases, one holds my reading glasses and one holds my black sunglasses from the MoMA store in Soho one weekend. They're both Warby Parker cases though, I lost the MoMA case. Postcard sent to me by one of my friends at Sarah Lawrence who lives in Louisville, Kentucky. Pictured are the Beatles in white suits, dancing and singing at what looks like a wedding.
Strawberry Plastic Carton:
Holds painter's tape, chapstick, medication, & a glitter eyeshadow I keep forgetting to put away. Repurposed from the strawberry man, a local fruit stand my family goes to in town (our neighboring town Oxnard is one of the largest strawberry suppliers in the US, so we always have lots of fruit stands on the side of the road run by local fruit pickers). I also use it to throw my car keys in there so I don't lose them, recently established since before that they were everywhere.
White Zip-Up Bag:
Too Faced Mascara, drug store eyelash curler in a cringe rose gold, Glossier highlighter. Emergency Zoom kit.
White Mug Behind Flowers:
I bought it off of Amazon, definitely expensive but used to drink turmeric tea and Americano out of it while on-the-go in New York or in Greenwich Village while working at my favorite coffee shop. Ergonomic design & reminds me of the professor I am an assistant for at Sarah Lawrence and her kind energy.
Black Zip-Up Bag:
About 4 Muji pens on low ink. Micron pens from high school. Tweezers for some reason. Zebra double-ended Mildliner pen in a cornflower blue. Sustainable cactus swiss ballpoint pen from my Sarah Lawrence friend, Erica, given to me for Christmas I think.
Egg Carton:
Silly Trader Joe's Easter novelty item. Came with lavender and eucalyptus soaps shaped like eggs. Empty container now, but sits on my desk for an unknown reason, I guess I think it's cute to stare at when I zone out in Zoom.
Brown Package with Painter's Tape:
Disposable film camera from CVS that I finished when I went to the beach with my little sister (15) last weekend. Since the pharmacies aren't processing film anymore, I'm sending it into a local film development store in Ventura, CA, Dexter's Camera and they will develop it and send it back to me. Haven't paid for shipping yet, so kind of procrastinating.
Stack of Notebooks:
3 of them are my seminar notebooks, each with a different silver holographic butterfly sticker from Mrs. Grossman's sticker company that my roommate in the fall at Mansell House gave to me. I can tell which is which based on what shape of a silver butterfly is on there. There is one in the stack that is the journal of my random thoughts, I usually make lists of places I'd like to go or things I need to buy or want, inspiring phrases someone said, a word I want to know, a book I should read, it's me in a book. Most recent entry: "the best i can do is commit to trying - get to the starting line for 5 minutes"
Car Keys:
Mercedes from 2004, but my best friend in high school threw my keys across the concrete parking lot back in 2016 so I have a blingy new car key since the old one broke. On a Kate Spade keychain, that same friend gave me during fall of my high school senior year. Winnie the Pooh holding a bouquet of flowers keychain I found at a thrift store in Ventura, CA.
Piece of Recycled Paper & Muji Pen:
I got distracted after writing a blog post for my neurobiology seminar and went in-depth into the Peace Corps volunteer program because one of my friends has been talking to me about his plans to join after college. The recycled paper reads:
peace corps:
Morocco
Indonesia
Thailand
Cambodia
Fiji
Malawi
Madagascar
Colombia
Peru
10,000 transition to life back home pre-tax
Paul D. Coverdell Fellows program
Michael Kunkel - served in Madagascar as an education volunteer
education TEFL recognized teaching credential
youth development volunteer
--------
Warby Parker Glasses on Notebooks:
Lost them for all of my Zoom classes until I found them under my bed a couple of days ago. In a green color called Aloe Vera, reminds me of getting sunburned and my mom using Aloe Vera gel.
Zebra Print Chair:
My mom's best friend didn't have space for it anymore so she gave it to us. Kind of sat in my room until I got a desk and used it as a desk chair, though it is a bit lower than the desk so my feet always go numb during my three-hour seminar on Wednesdays.
30 April 2020
Hanging Silver Mirror:
From the 90s, my parents had it in their first house together, was sitting in the garage until I came home and wanted a mirror in the room. Can't seem to figure out how to hide the hooks from showing, so it droops.
Wilting Florals:
Picked with one of my high school friends on our hike to Matilija Canyon in the Los Padres National Forest on 27 April 2020. My favorite is the yellow floral arrangement; the red ones have begun spreading their petals in my hairbrush.
Yellow Hairbrush:
Good for wet & dry hair! Used after showers & before my 8 am classes to make me look a bit saner & put together. Currently has a red petal wedged in it.
Hot pink slip of paper:
Gift I got in an envelope from the child I babysit in Bronxville, NY with my name on it in pencil, fully highlighted by paint pens to appear hot pink. Received today in my mailbox after creating it with him via FaceTime on our weekly playdates where we make crafts together over our devices. So lucky to have that one with me on my desk, reminds me of him while we're apart.
French Provincial Desk:
Missing knob inside the drawer: do not have the wits to re-attach. First drawer on the left is my penpal writing drawer where I keep all my letters, frog stamps, & decorated envelopes to send to friends from Sarah Lawrence or international penpals I've connected with over the quarantine. The drawer below (not pictured) holds all my past journals from Muji, filled with illustrations & thoughts. Very special desk because I got it in early March of 2020 before California completely closed off of Craigslist in Ventura for $70. My bedroom set is French provincial and did not come with a desk, so finding this in a very similar yellow felt like fate and I now had a workspace for my Sarah Lawrence courses. Has a chip in the paint just above the middle of the drawer that reminds me of a molehill, always making me think of the common saying: "don't make a mountain out of a molehill".
Starbucks Washington Mug:
A gift from my mom's best friend after she visited Bellingham for her daughter's graduation. Mostly used for my oat milk matcha lattes in the morning, but right now it has water in it because we were out of glass cups.
MacBook 2017 & charging cord:
My life. Usually positioned in a way to hide the clothing pile in the mirror on the right side of the zebra chair and my suitcase from traveling home.
Framed Artwork on Left Side:
A gift to my mom from one of her high school best friends in the 80s. Stole it from the fireplace mantle in our living room because I wanted some artwork on my desk.
Postcard:
Propped up by my two glasses cases, one holds my reading glasses and one holds my black sunglasses from the MoMA store in Soho one weekend. They're both Warby Parker cases though, I lost the MoMA case. Postcard sent to me by one of my friends at Sarah Lawrence who lives in Louisville, Kentucky. Pictured are the Beatles in white suits, dancing and singing at what looks like a wedding.
Strawberry Plastic Carton:
Holds painter's tape, chapstick, medication, & a glitter eyeshadow I keep forgetting to put away. Repurposed from the strawberry man, a local fruit stand my family goes to in town (our neighboring town Oxnard is one of the largest strawberry suppliers in the US, so we always have lots of fruit stands on the side of the road run by local fruit pickers). I also use it to throw my car keys in there so I don't lose them, recently established since before that they were everywhere.
White Zip-Up Bag:
Too Faced Mascara, drug store eyelash curler in a cringe rose gold, Glossier highlighter. Emergency Zoom kit.
White Mug Behind Flowers:
I bought it off of Amazon, definitely expensive but used to drink turmeric tea and Americano out of it while on-the-go in New York or in Greenwich Village while working at my favorite coffee shop. Ergonomic design & reminds me of the professor I am an assistant for at Sarah Lawrence and her kind energy.
Black Zip-Up Bag:
About 4 Muji pens on low ink. Micron pens from high school. Tweezers for some reason. Zebra double-ended Mildliner pen in a cornflower blue. Sustainable cactus swiss ballpoint pen from my Sarah Lawrence friend, Erica, given to me for Christmas I think.
Egg Carton:
Silly Trader Joe's Easter novelty item. Came with lavender and eucalyptus soaps shaped like eggs. Empty container now, but sits on my desk for an unknown reason, I guess I think it's cute to stare at when I zone out in Zoom.
Brown Package with Painter's Tape:
Disposable film camera from CVS that I finished when I went to the beach with my little sister (15) last weekend. Since the pharmacies aren't processing film anymore, I'm sending it into a local film development store in Ventura, CA, Dexter's Camera and they will develop it and send it back to me. Haven't paid for shipping yet, so kind of procrastinating.
Stack of Notebooks:
3 of them are my seminar notebooks, each with a different silver holographic butterfly sticker from Mrs. Grossman's sticker company that my roommate in the fall at Mansell House gave to me. I can tell which is which based on what shape of a silver butterfly is on there. There is one in the stack that is the journal of my random thoughts, I usually make lists of places I'd like to go or things I need to buy or want, inspiring phrases someone said, a word I want to know, a book I should read, it's me in a book. Most recent entry: "the best i can do is commit to trying - get to the starting line for 5 minutes"
Car Keys:
Mercedes from 2004, but my best friend in high school threw my keys across the concrete parking lot back in 2016 so I have a blingy new car key since the old one broke. On a Kate Spade keychain, that same friend gave me during fall of my high school senior year. Winnie the Pooh holding a bouquet of flowers keychain I found at a thrift store in Ventura, CA.
Piece of Recycled Paper & Muji Pen:
I got distracted after writing a blog post for my neurobiology seminar and went in-depth into the Peace Corps volunteer program because one of my friends has been talking to me about his plans to join after college. The recycled paper reads:
peace corps:
Morocco
Indonesia
Thailand
Cambodia
Fiji
Malawi
Madagascar
Colombia
Peru
10,000 transition to life back home pre-tax
Paul D. Coverdell Fellows program
Michael Kunkel - served in Madagascar as an education volunteer
education TEFL recognized teaching credential
youth development volunteer
--------
Warby Parker Glasses on Notebooks:
Lost them for all of my Zoom classes until I found them under my bed a couple of days ago. In a green color called Aloe Vera, reminds me of getting sunburned and my mom using Aloe Vera gel.
Zebra Print Chair:
My mom's best friend didn't have space for it anymore so she gave it to us. Kind of sat in my room until I got a desk and used it as a desk chair, though it is a bit lower than the desk so my feet always go numb during my three-hour seminar on Wednesdays.
Files
Citation
Sophia Rasura, “My COVID-19 Work Space,” Documenting the Student Experience of COVID-19 at Sarah Lawrence College, accessed April 24, 2024, https://slccovid.omeka.net/items/show/33.