Time to embark on physics education! I think studying physics is the best training for ones mind possible. But it ain’t going to be easy. Physics never is. But now there is a pandemic.

I was going through a practice exam solution last night. I realized that there was a subtle point to solving a problem that I had put on the exam years ago and had obviously worked through. But I had forgotten – this was the first time I used that exam as my practice exam. I am thinking all morning about how I am going to explain this subtle point the day before the test without destroying student confidence. Ugh.

I mentor a number of students/people at Adelphi and at other colleges. I think mentoring is the most important part of education. A few of these people see counselors for a variety of reasons, just like I have in the past. EVERYONE SHOULD GET A COUNSELOR! But now with the crisis in full swing, we don’t really have access to the help we are used to getting – And the crisis that is much worse than our regular lives. Ugh. And now we are going to go at physics at full speed.

In some ways this can be a wonderful thing. I worked so hard yesterday, that I didn’t even notice the stock marketing dropping again, the number of coronavirus cases increasing, and apparently a name change – it’s not coronavirus any more is COVID-19?? I am hoping this also happens for my students – we can keep them working so much that they will not even think about the world falling apart around them.

I think back to when I was 20 in college. My friends were everything! Sure I got along with my family – well my sister and I didn’t start getting along until well into our 30s – but I couldn’t imagine being forced to stay with them for months and not being able to go out and hang with my buddies. I would have gone bonkers! As usual, a group of young who party too much got a lot of press. But most of my mentees are hunkered down in their homes limiting their interaction with people and like the rest of us going nuts with quarantine. Mental health is going to be a HUGE problem as this thing continues.

PLEASE TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF! TALK TO YOUR MENTORS AND FRIENDS! JUST KEEP TALKING! KEEP INTERACTING!

I love that as I was checking up on people last night, people were also checking up on me. A special thanks goes out to President Riordan. She sent me such a wonderful video message just saying hello! That is exactly we need to do up and down the chain. Just keep saying “Hi, I am here if needed.”

This morning Boo was at my workstation checking in on me:

QUICK UPDATE FROM MY SOCIAL WORKER FRIEND I ALWAYS WRITE ABOUT: There are lots of places one can go for remote mental health help. Text messaging, over the phone, and the internet all provide opportunities to get help. Please use these resources.

As someone who has received counseling over the phone, I have had success, locking myself in my car and talking over bluetooth. It was actually pretty comfortable and no one could from the house could hear me.