Vicky Blogs: COVID-19 (& beyond)

So my last post was about optimism and what I'm learning in my UPenn course on resilience that I am taking. While I test very well on the optimism questionnaire that I mentioned, it is also true that I have been struggling with my recovery from surgery and my herniated disc. Here are my scores from the optimism questionnaire and an explanation of what each metric is measuring. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vicky's Scores (Range 0-8 except hopefulness) Permanence-Good Events: 8 - People who believe good events have a permanent cause score highest here Permanence-Bad Events: 2 - People who resist helplessness + believe the causes of bad events are temporary score low on this metric; People who give up easily tend to beleive the causes of bad events are permanent and rank high on this metric Pervasiveness-Bad Events: 3 - People who make universal/pessimistic explanations for ...

Because I am someone who wants to be constantly learning in my life, I have selected a few of the free online classes that are available right now and am trying to see how many I can work through.  The first one that I started at the end of last week is a class from UPenn titled "Positive Psychology: Resilience Skills". I've just finished up the first week of lectures (it's a 4-week class) and am happily surprised to hear that I already have a natural optimism to me that will help me to stay resilient in many aspects of my life.  If you are interested in seeing where you stand on optimism, you can fill out a questionnaire  here .  You will need to create a user name and login to be able to take the questionnaire, but it is FREE!  This site also has other interesting questionnaires that you can take, such as: stress & empathy questionnaire; meaning in life questionnaire; gratitude survey; and an authentic happiness inventory. Optimism can have many dif...

So like I said I would, this morning I woke up with a strong desire to bake something sweet.  I live with two roommates who are both gluten free and dairy free, so I've been learning a lot about how to adapt my baking skills to suit these needs.  Otherwise, if I didn't change up the recipes, I'd be forced to eat ALL of the baked goods myself, and I can imagine that wouldn't end well for my health and weight.... Plus, I like the challenge and nuances that come with trying something new or adapting existing skills.  So I used  this recipe  for Peanut Butter Banana Muffins and changed it up a bit.  I used  this flour  from Pillsbury.  I have learned from my roommates that Xantham gum is a very important ingredient when doing gluten free baking.  (One of my roommates is a great baker and has been a great source of information for me!)  Some gluten free flours do NOT have this ingredient already included, so you have to be sure to ...

I was on a Zoom video chat with some high school friends last night and someone mentioned that they had seen this on another blog and just had to share it.  It definitely let me have a giggle while all of the rest of the world seems to be in chaos.  For full blog post associated with this, click  here . For me, 'can't identify a single solo hobby you even have' wins in the top bracket.  For the bottom bracket, I feel like I want to pin 'still touching your face 69 times per day' and 'laughing and then crying when your 6th grader niece rebranded COVID-19 to The Boomer Remover', but that isn't how brackets work...... so the still touching your face would probably win. When those two go head-to-head, pretty sure that not being able to identify a single solo hobby comes out on top! Who would 'win' for you?? -Vicky

I was curious if I could find much out about what employers in other countries are doing for their employees in this outbreak, so I went and searched around. To be honest, it seems that most of the other countries are doing similar things to the best practices of U.S companies. The two countries that I found that had a bit of extra information were France and New Zealand. The difference for France are as follows: A confirmed case can get convential sick leave + social security allowance Those in quarantine can get 20 days pay through social security (This is similar to regular sick leave, but without a waiting period.) If an employee has a child who is 16 years younger and can't work remotely can qualify for a 'work leave' If an employee is parent to an infected child, they are qualified for a specific leave developed for coronavirus (parts social security + part conventional/legal compensation, both without a waiting period) Employees who suffer a loss of wages due t...

As I was making breakfast one morning during this time, I tried to use up some items that needed to be used in my house.  Sinc e we are being told to try and avoid going out to public places such as grocery stores, I have been trying my best to see what I can whip up with things I already have. The tortillas in the fridge, which were the first thing I saw when I opened the door, were ready to expire.  I immediately had the idea to make a breakfast style burrito/taco.  I already had eggs and salsa.  I had some arugula and an avocado that were both about to go bad and some frozen turkey that I figured I could use the leftovers for meals the rest of the week. Long story short, these were DELICIOUS and I felt good about using items that didn't require me to leave my house. What have you all been making during this time?!?! -Vicky P.S - I have a few very ripe bananas that I may turn into some baked good later this week - look out for a post with some pics and ...

As the weekend is coming to an end, I am looking at the weather forecast for this week and it is making me SO SAD!  I had to share the picture above because this rock I found brought a smile to my face + hopefully will keep me thinking about rainbows all week..... In MA, we will be getting rain (or snow!) every day this week except for Tuesday.  I am beyond happy that I have had the ability to get outside both this weekend and last weekend for a hike in the Fells Reservation nearby where I lived. I was definitely a big hiker before my back surgery in Novemeber and have been trying to ease myself back into it as the weather gets warmer.  Conveniently, hiking is an activity that can still be done while social distancing! I highly recommend downloading the Alltrails  phone app if you want to start hiking or just make the hikes you already go on a bit easier.  I found this app when I lived in Virginia and spent a lot of time exploring the Shenendoah National...

I've been diving deep into what companies have been doing for their employees during this COVID-19 outbreak. I have already posted once about a few personal connections that are unfortunately employed by companies that are not prioritizing the health of their employees at this time. Since that post, I have also been reading up on the Boeing factory in Seattle that is refusing to halt production. Amidst these bad examples, I am happy to report that there are many companies who are trying their best to do what is right for their people, even if it is at the financial expense of the company. Gallup  is a company that has been aggregating data regarding some of the best practices that the world's largest companies are following.  These companies are those that have an average revenue of $27 billion and 80,000 employees.  Obviously, these entities might have resources that smaller companies don't have access to, but this doesn't change that they are trying to be an e...

Hiking in Acadia National Park last April Soooooo..... forgot to post yesterday!  But to make up for it, I'm sharing my BODYWEIGHT + RESISTANCE BAND WORKOUT that I did with two fellow shut-ins.  Many of the exercises in this workout come from my physical therapist. I had back surgey last November (November 15th to be exact.... what a DAY that was...).  A microdisectomy, which is the slicing off of the herniated part of a spinal disc.  More detailed info about the surgery can be found  here .   Mine was L5-S1, which means it was by the 5th vertebra of the lumbar section of the spine and was pinching my sciatic nerve.  You can learn more about sciatica  here .  Moral of the story, chronic pain like this is NOT a joke.  I was dealing with it for two years before I finally decided that I wouldn't solve the problem with more conservative approaches.  Now, I am dealing with the residual nerve pain that happens even after surgey...

I saw these guys while I was out on a bike ride today (trying to get a bit of sun, but also not be around too many people).  For some reason, I decided that I needed to take a photo.  I couldn't decide if these fish were confused or scared or emotionless.  With all of the uncertainty of what's going on these days, I guess these fish kind of reminded me of how people are feeling regarding the virus.  We are all supposed to keep carrying on with our lives as best we can, like these fish seem to swimming, but don't know when things will get back to normal.....  

I chatted with an old colleague of mine today from my Amazon days.  For those of you that don't know, I used to work as an Area Manager in a fulfillment center (basically a warehouse) for Amazon.  I got this job right out of college and went into it with an open mind and high energy.  Long story short, the culture and lack of support I encountered was disappointing and I didn't stay with the company too long.  This experience did inspire me to investigate ways that I could get involved in promoting employee well-being in the workplace and lead me to where I am today - a recent masters graduate, trying to get into the corporate wellness industry.  (If you care to read more on the Amazon culture that I am talking about, feel free to read  this article that was written while I was working for the company.) Anyways, I am no longer in that space, but this friend of mine still is.  This individual has been at the company for almost 5 years now and I as...

So I've been seeing a lot of posts about museums of shows that are offering free virtual tours/viewing for all of us who are staying inside.  I wanted to compile them here for the masses. Museums: British Museum, London National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seoul Pergamon Museum, Berlin Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles Uffizi Gallery, Florence National Museum of Anthropology, Mexico City Live & Recorded Shows: Free MET Operas  - 7:30pm each evening from March 17th until Sunday March 22nd  (will remain on the site for 20 hours -- for a schedule click  here ) John Legend  - Tuesday March 17th at 1pm   #TogetherAtHome Katherine McPhee & Husband  - Performing on Instagram every day at 5:30pm (& taking requests!) "Streaming Up from Boston" - Dropkick Murphy's will live stream 7pm Boston time on Tuesday March 17th (St. Patrick's Day!) Others to chec...

I've been looking around trying to round up some good resources as far as tracking the virus, what recommendations are being made and what expectations should be as far as anyone is isn't yet working from home.  Here's what I've found so far: *From the U.S Department of Labor -- This provides and overview on prepping the workplace during the time of COVID-19.  Read on  here . *From the World Health Organization (WHO) -- This provides some key takeaways regarding disease control in schools.  It details what shoule be done for both schools still in session and those who may be using e-learning strategies, with sections for school administration, teachers, students and parents.  Find more  here . *From the Center for Disease Control (CDC) -- This provides a guide on 'what you need to know' regarding symptoms, prep and the latest updates on the number of cases around the U.S.  You can even sign up for email updates.  View it all  here . ...

Self-portrait: I am golden retriever Okay, you caught me.  I'm not actually a dog.  But I have been compared to one on many occasions.  When you think of a golden retriever, you think of something akin to this photo above.  A happy go-lucky, playful, friendly and all around energetic ball of fluff.  That pup you envision may not be sitting in a bathtub at a dog park that just so happens to also be a bar for humans, like this one, but those adjectives almost always tend to describe most goldens.  (This photo was taken at a place called Fetch Park in Atlanta, GA and I highly recommend a visit, once travel is a smart move again.... Also, this is not my dog, but he loved getting his photo taken.)  My family had a golden retriever named Amber for a lot of my childhood and she was the happiest pup I had ever met.  All she needed was to play and be around people. I am a social creature, much like a golden retriever.  I feed off of t...