{"id":6447,"date":"2021-02-08T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2021-02-08T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/?p=6447"},"modified":"2021-04-28T19:46:44","modified_gmt":"2021-04-28T23:46:44","slug":"valentines-day-amid-the-covid-19-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/valentines-day-amid-the-covid-19-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"Valentine\u2019s Day Amid The COVID-19 Pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Colette Bernard, In Motion News Reporter<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Photo by Toni Duncan, Target on Dunlawton Ave, Port Orange, 1\/23\/2021<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Valentine\u2019s Day will be a little different this year considering that the COVID-19 pandemic is still going strong, but that doesn\u2019t have to ruin your Valentine\u2019s Day. Students and faculty are planning to have a safe holiday this year, and by following several safety recommendations from the CDC, you can have a safe holiday, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Faculty and Students Are Doing for Valentine\u2019s Day<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faculty and students\u2019 plans for Valentine\u2019s Day are certainly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and their plans may give you some ideas of how to spend your Valentine\u2019s Day in a safe way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A sentiment of distaste for Valentine\u2019s Day has affected some people\u2019s plans. \u201cI have no plans for Valentine\u2019s Day because I’m just not into holidays that make pressure for people to purchase things they would not otherwise purchase, like a giant teddy bear,\u201d Katherine Orfinger, an alum of Daytona State College, said. \u201cMy V-day plans are the same as they are every year. Go to work and buy discounted chocolate the day after.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Kasey Leftwich, a current student of DSC, said that \u201cMy boyfriend and I live together, and we\u2019ll probably just stay home and watch some movies and make cookies.\u201d Ordinarily, she would like to go out to dinner for Valentine\u2019s day, but \u201cbecause of COVID-19, it\u2019s smarter and easier to stay home and find things to do there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aaron London, professor of journalism and mass communications here at Daytona State, said that he ordinarily doesn\u2019t go out for Valentine\u2019s Day, preferring to spend time at home with his spouse. \u201cThis Valentine’s Day, instead of going out to a restaurant for dinner, my wife and I will likely prepare a simple meal and take it with us for a picnic at the beach, depending on the weather,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One Professor\u2019s Take on Valentine\u2019s Day<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Benjamin Graydon, chair of the Quanta-Honors College and professor of writing and literature at Daytona State, gave his perspective on the holiday. \u201cFrom my standpoint, Valentine\u2019s Day seems like a good opportunity for all people to do something special for those they care about,\u201d said Graydon. \u201cIt\u2019s easy to sneer at Valentine\u2019s Day as a \u2018Hallmark Holiday\u2019 centered on boosting retail sales. And, certainly, there\u2019s a powerful media discourse around the holiday that privileges certain kinds of relationships.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Graydon believes \u201cwe can make what we\u2019d like of Valentine\u2019s Day.  Particularly given the social isolation and COVID-related challenges so many are feeling, I hope people will see the holiday as a reason to safely connect with those they love and to celebrate loving relationships of all kinds.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ways to Celebrate Valentine\u2019s Day Safely<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

   While the CDC recommends that no one travel for the holidays, the organization still offers several recommendations for how celebrants of holidays can participate in those holidays safely<\/a>, despite the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Wear a Mask<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The CDC recommends that you wear two layers of masks to keep your loved ones safe. Be sure to keep the mask over your nose and secure under your chin. Wear your mask wherever you are, indoors or out, and always keep a spare mask in case yours gets wet from the moisture of your breath or rain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While it may be tempting to go mask-less in order to show off your lipstick or even kiss your partner on Valentine\u2019s Day, in order to stay safe, keep that mask on. You can always take a picture of your lipstick and share it on social media, if you just \u201chave\u201d to show off your new \u201cLove Me Red\u201d lipstick!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Stay 6 Feet Away From Those Who Don\u2019t Live With You<\/p>\n\n\n\n

COVID-19 is more likely to spread if you\u2019re in close contact with someone for 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period. Even if your partner is without symptoms, they may still carry the coronavirus and spread it to you if you aren\u2019t careful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can always go for a picnic and sit together at a distance or go for a walk in a park to avoid getting too close to your romantic partner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Wash Your Hands<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The CDC recommends washing your hands \u201cwith soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after you have been in a public place, after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing and before eating.\u201d Hand sanitizer with 60% or more alcohol content is also a good idea, if soap is not readily available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore, it\u2019s not advisable to hold the hand of your loved one this Valentine\u2019s Day. If you do, be sure only to do so if you have no symptoms, so that you don\u2019t sneeze into your hand accidentally, and if you have hand sanitizer at the ready. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Colette Bernard, In Motion News Reporter Valentine\u2019s Day will be a little different this year considering that the COVID-19 pandemic is still going strong, but that doesn\u2019t have to ruin your Valentine\u2019s Day. Students and faculty are planning to have a safe holiday this year, and by following several safety Continue reading Valentine\u2019s Day Amid The COVID-19 Pandemic<\/span>→<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6452,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6447","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6447","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6447"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6447\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6714,"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6447\/revisions\/6714"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6452"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6447"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6447"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.daytonastateinmotion.com\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6447"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}