Coronavirus Shutdown: Neighborhood Diaries
After Governor Newsom ordered a shelter-in-place for six bay area counties on March 17, I started going out for daily walks with my camera to document the impacts of Coronavirus in my neighborhood in Alameda, California. Residents have been sharing their experiences, often from their front porches. I usually start by asking the simple question: “What has your day been like today, during the ‘shelter in place’?” Here is a collection of responses, portraits, and scenes from my neighborhood.
Laura Reyes Castaneda at Alameda Beach in Alameda, Calif. on March 22, 2020. She brought her family to the beach after their first week of home school because the gyms are closed. She feels comfortable going outside and thinks we are overreacting to the virus.
1400 Bar and Grill displays a sign offering St. Patrick’s Dinner for takeout or delivery in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020
Daisy Medina and Manny Gonzalez spend their final evening together by the water on Ballena Bay Island in Alameda, Calif. on Monday, March 16, 2020, hours before the ‘shelter in place’ order went into effect in Alameda County. Both were planning to return to their respective hometowns at opposite ends of the state the following day.
Ballena Bay Island, Alameda, Calif. on Monday, March 16, 2020
A man fishes on the west side of Ballena Bay Island, in Alameda, Calif. on Monday, March 16, 2020
Franklin, a hospitality worker, fishes off the Rock Wall in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020. His workdays have been cut down to two per week, and he is anticipating further reductions. He lives in Sacramento, Calif. where he is concerned about the health of his parents. His dad is 88 and his mom is 77 so they are staying inside. Franklin and his three siblings have taken on the responsibility of doing all the errands for their parents.
Red Blevins, a retired naval officer, enjoying the sun in front of a home on San Antonio St in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020
A view of the Oakland Estuary and Cranes at Matson shipping company, from Alameda Point, Alameda, Calif. on Wednesday, March 18, 2020
A United States Postal Service truck delivers mail to homes in the Gold Coast neighborhood in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020
Scotty Holland, who works as a bartender in San Francisco, enjoying a St. Patricks day beverage from his front porch in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020. Due to the ‘shelter in place,’ he has been temporally laid off from his job. He spent the first day at home with his two kids helping them with home lesson plans they got from school.
A discarded glove litters the sidewalk in Alameda, Calif. on Wednesday, March 18, 2020.
Mahal has the basketball court to himself at Washington Park in Alameda, Calif. on Wednesday, March 18, 2020. Mahal, a student at College of Alameda and an after school program employee, said his classes moved online, and his work was canceled. Without work and school, he said a lot of the stress in his daily life is eliminated, which allows him to take better care of himself and focus on the most important things.
Lenora and Raymond Howard relax on a bench front of La Penca Azul restaurant in Alameda, Calif. on Wednesday, March 18, 2020. They say for them “nothing has changed. We have everything we need.” Ms. Howard says “how you think your life will be is how your life will be. If you think good and positive things, good things will happen to you.”
Ole's Waffle Shop in Alameda, Calif. on Wednesday, March 18, 2020
A note in displayed in the window of Daisy's shop in Alameda, Calif. on Wednesday, March 18, 2020, describes the owner's decision to close in response to the Covid-19 outbreak.
Nina Jongerius, Remy Bleyendaal and their two daughters, share a meal on their front lawn in Alameda, Calif. on Sunday, March 22, 2020. The family moved here from Amsterdam four months ago. Ms. Jongerius said they are getting used to their new schedule doing school and work from home. She took it easy on the girls during the first week while they worked on math and English lessons. Bleyendaal says he is coming down with an illness but does not know if it is the coronavirus. The family feels more on edge these days.
Rebecca Roman and Roger Rocha practice social distancing from their front porch in Alameda, Calif. on Sunday, March 22. Roman, who works as a web designer, says her job is unaffected because she can work from home, which she was already doing two days a week before the pandemic. Rocha's job installing billboards in San Francisco has been put on hold because it is not considered an essential service. His second job as a gig musician is also on hold. He has been passing the time by practicing his music from his front porch for his neighbors.
A man walking his dog on San Antonio Street in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020
Michael Torres (left) and Nick Ellis (right) practice social distancing while having a conversation in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020
A man makes a face behind the glass doors of his home on Bay Street in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020. A sign in the window reads “Practice Social Distance.”
Paden Elementary School, Alameda, Calif. on Monday, March 16, 2020
A handprinted sign posted to a tree reads, "Draw a picture. Leave a message. Play with the fairy door! But don't forget to wash your hands" on St. Patricks Day in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020
Lynsey Jenkins-Stark, a public administrator at Alameda Unified School District, works from home on her front porch in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020. She is helping work on a plan for what learning will look like going forward, after the governor issued a 'shelter in place' order for six Bay Area Counties. She says it has been a steep unprecedented learning curve for everyone. One of the first challenges was figuring out how to get meals to students during the school cancellation. The internet has been impacted and Zoom has been bogged down. The school district is anticipating that the shelter in place will be longer than three weeks.
Alameda, Calif. on Wednesday, March 18, 2020.
Dan's Produce remains open for business. Alameda, Calif. on Wednesday, March 18, 2020.
Remy Bleyendaal works from home on his front porch in Alameda, Calif. on Monday, March 16, 2020.
A nearly empty parking lot at South Shore Shopping Center in Alameda, Calif. on Sunday, March 22, 2020.
Nayelin Mendoza, yoga instructor and owner of Yoga Soul Connection, practices a meditation at Alameda Beach, Alameda, Calif., on March 22, 2020. Her meditation was focused on feeling a connection to her students and clients who are at home during the statewide ‘shelter in place.’ “Whatever they feel is what I care about,” she said. “As I meditate and pray, I ask god and the divine to make sure they have enough money for food and rent.” Mendoza has also been calling to check in on her clients: women, kids and seniors. She hopes her clients will use this time to heal, to take the time to know their kids, to fix relationships, to do the things that we never have time to do.
A message in chalk in the Gold Coast neighborhood in Alameda, Calif. on Tuesday, March 17, 2020 reads, "We are all in this together. We can do it Alameda! xoxo”
Alameda Beach, Alameda, Calif. on Sunday, March 22, 2020.
Alameda Beach, Alameda, Calif. on Sunday, March 22, 2020