from chris lloyd <dearpm@gmail.com>
to pm@pm.gc.ca,
date Jul 3, 2007 10:39 PM
subject Do-not-call list one ring closer; …
Dear Stephen,
My, but it has been a long time since I last wrote you! You really should get a Facebook account, then I’d definitely write you more often.
I was just about to go to bed when I decided to clip Manu’s nails, and while doing so I had this thought: I tried to wonder what moments of stillness, those moments of unqualified joy spent doing the most mundane of tasks (I find peace in everything from washing dishes to taking out the garbage, and sometimes even in making art, imagine that!) and I wondered about you. I hear you are writing a book on hockey and I suppose that counts. But this query got me to thinking about how you even ended up as PM. I’ve heard it has been your ambition for sometime. So that makes me wonder exactly what it is about this position that you’d envy and strive for so much. The respect? Maybe from the lunatic fringe. The deep-down in your belly warm feeling from selflessly helping humanity? Doubt it. So then it is the power, right? The power to enforce certain policies that reflect your outlook. Quite a tall order!
So as I was clipping my cats nails I realize that really what democracies need is less of the figurehead, PM / Presidential figures, and more of direct action, voting, plebiscites, committees, etc. Maybe we can somehow run the country through Facebook?
So I’ll try to bring you up to speed from my last post. That night Claudine’s computer was stolen from our car while it was parked on Maissoneuve. Then we went to the Adirondacks, camped, hiked, climbed Mt. Marcy, had all our food eaten by a bear, went to North Adams, went to MASS MoCA, camped some more, went to Ogunquit Beach, camped some more, went to Portland, Maine, came back to SJ, unloaded a very full Corrolla, met with friends, announced our impending move back to Montréal—yes, Claudine had an interview with Oboro while we were in Montréal and yes, she got the job—then Nicole arrived from Louisiana, then we packed up the car again and took the very expensive ferry to Digby, dropped Claudine off in Pointe de l’Église, headed to Halifax, visited galleries, went to Lunenburg, attended my grandparents 60th wedding anniversary, headed back home, have been procrastinating from the half dozen commissions and various gallery work ever since. That’s my life in a nutshell.
So while you jet-set around the globe building statesmanlike photo-ops to help bolster your credibility with the mainstream for a potential snap autumn election, I’m looking online for jobs that I’m skilled for, apartments that aren’t too expensive and art posts that make me happy. I’m enjoying the heck out of my massively-spacious apartment, my super-cute and well-behaved cats, and my new power tools, for which I used to build benches and tables for in the basement (another procrastination tactic). The plants are healthy, and suppers with Meghan and / or Rae in the evenings are something to look forward to and help take the edge off being away from my new bride. The gallery has events coming up and I start work (and earning money to pay off a whopping debt) on Thursday. Happinez will get a kick-ass patio within three weeks and the weather has been mostly sunny. And finally I have art projects on the brain and in the slipstream, so this should be a fun summer. Maybe we can hook up sometime and discuss art?
-chris
from chris lloyd <dearpm@gmail.com>
to pm@pm.gc.ca,
date Jul 4, 2007 10:52 PM
subject Terrorist threat up in Canada: experts
Dear Stephen,
Happy belated Independence Day. To celebrate Rae and Meghan and I went to see Live Free or Die Hard. As to be expected, it was chock full of the standard stereotypes, plot lines, American jingoism and old-fashioned machismo. It was thrilling and kept my heart palpitating through every explosion, car wreck, helicopter ride, fighter jet blowing up freeways and tractor trailers and many, many gun battles. I wonder if a movie like this will help reinforce the idea in the comfortable west that terrorist attacks are highly probable and likely. Oddly enough, the whole “fire sale” job—a three-step computer hacking designed to bring to a halt the world as we know it by messing up transportation, finances and power—is brought about by a USA-trained computer whiz who has an axe to grind against the post 9-11 bureaucracy that stifled his warnings. So in that sense it almost becomes believable, in that the movie shows that even though it is possible, it needs to be carried out by Americans for it to happen. Sort of like some twisted intertwining of Manifest Destiny and a self-fulfilling impulse for self-destruction. But maybe I’m reading a bit much into it.
Spent the morning in the studio, actually did some work there, then went to the gallery and did some gallery work and sent out some invites for the decentre ARC book project. Meghan bought fish and we cooked on the barbecue. Checked my Facebook account compulsively all day. Scary fact #1: there are almost as many people listed in the Saint John Facebook network as there are people living in Saint John.
As a social networking tool it does come in handy though. I met up with Christine and Bethany in Halifax through Facebook meetings, same with Becka, Jim, Dan and Lisa. Christine and Bethany gave me a great idea to help wind down the PM project. I won’t go into detail right now suffice to say it involves public displays of paranoia and various elements of street theatre. Perhaps miming. We shall see. Perhaps you will see. We shall see.
Say, what happened to the French headlines and news stories on the Canada.com network? You know I use those in my subject headings in my letters to you, right? What gives?
-chris
from chris lloyd <dearpm@gmail.com>
to pm@pm.gc.ca,
date Jul 8, 2007 11:35 PM
subject Families receive six fallen soldiers
Dear Stephen,
“The bodies of _ Canadian Soldiers…”
This will be the title, or content, of a new art piece I’m working on. It seems that every few weeks of so we read that headline, or something to that effect. “The bodies of six Canadian an soldiers return home”, for example. I’ll keep the project on the back burner, where most of my projects go, until I have more time top flesh it out. Like that will ever happen.
So Friday we had one of the busiest nights at the bar, it was slammed and packed solid almost all night. Danika worked with me and we kept on top of it and the tips we quite good. Saturday, of course, was slow as molasses; my first customers came in at 8:15. I took advantage of the setting sun and read outdoors.
Today everyone in the house slept in, then after a long and fulfilling breakfast everyone retired to respective studios to make work. I’m still not through with Craig’s Bacchus commission, and to further procrastinate I started another, as I’m not entirely happy with the one I’ve been working on for the past week or so.
At 3pm we met outside Oryx Books for the Slowpokes—or Slow Folks—soccer match. There were ten of us, we drove to the mini field at Bayview school and played for an hour, until it started to rain. It was fun to move and run around but I bet I’ll be stiff and sore tomorrow. I stretched a bit beforehand, but probably not enough.
What else has happened in the past few days? The Closing Party for Artists on Vinyl went well, I think they raised about $1000 towards their power increase. I stopped in at the NB Craft Fair in Rothesay to hang out with Darren a bit while he did demos of clay throwing techniques. I also went to my parents house and hung out with the cats; my folks have been away all week and feared the cats would be lonely. They seemed indifferent to me. I stacked some wood and enjoyed the sunshine.
I’ve been cataloguing and sorting our wedding pictures, a big job as there are hundreds. It makes me miss my beautiful bride all the more. I can’t believe someone so gifted, intelligent and so darn beautiful actually married me. I’ve pinched myself but it still seems to have happened.
Tonight after soccer I made a paella and then Meghan Rae and I went to the gallery to watch Open your eyes, the Spanish film that was remade into Vanilla Sky. I enjoyed it, although the premise wears a bit thin after awhile. I think Robert Lepage’s film version of John Mighton’s play Possible Worlds explores the multiplicity and complexity of navigating between dreamworlds and reality in a more thought-provoking manner. But that’s just me.
-chris
from chris lloyd <dearpm@gmail.com>
to pm@pm.gc.ca,
date Jul 9, 2007 10:13 PM
subject Parents of slain Mountie speak out
Dear Stephen,
Looks like I’m losing the poster war, but not to the Crazy Poster Lady, but to Saint John Energy. They called the gallery today and told me I was risking $200 fines for every poster. Seems I was a little too effective with my postering. I had a few nice chats with some folks at SJE about poster collars, etc., but it all comes down to the city. They need to provide more places for people to poster. Why is everyone so concerned about old posters? If left alone they’ll be covered with new ones. It’s a look into the cultural vitality of an urban core. No posters, no events, no nothing. It made me mad for half the afternoon but I realized quite quickly that it’s not my battle to fight. My next battle is simply making enough money to get out of here and finding a job in Montréal. On that note, I must rleave you and try to finish the Bacchus painting.
-chris
from chris lloyd <dearpm@gmail.com>
to pm@pm.gc.ca,
date Jul 23, 2007 5:40 AM
subject Canada could step back by end of year
Dear Stephen,
Sorry I haven’t written in a while. I’ve been busy, spent some time in Pointe de l’Église in NS. When I’m here I’m either procrastinating, cleaning the house or making art in the studio, and/or working the bar or gallery. Plus I just haven’t felt the need to write you, since you never write back (probably because I never discuss politics with you).
I was chatting with Mohanad and we did steer into the realm of politics and this is what he wanted me to pass on to you:
“next time you write him tell him I think he is doing a shit job and I am going to replace him with a severed monkey nut to improve canadian politics for the future”.
I could elaborate but I don’t think I’ll bother.
-chris
from chris lloyd <dearpm@gmail.com>
to pm@pm.gc.ca,
date Jul 27, 2007 9:56 AM
subject Whitmore asks to be chemically castrated
Dear Stephen,
The weather here has finally turned to summer, with temperatures hitting the low thirties—quite an accomplishment, given that our proximity to the ocean and almost constant fog banks means the weather is rarely hot. I love it, and spent a good hour on the patio at Lemongrass in the sun. The happinez patio—hapito—is still under construction in Al and Curtis’ workshop, and now the launch date has been pushed to August 9. It will be, in Peter’s words, “stunning”. I’ve seen the plans and believe it.
We had a rousing game of Risk on Tuesday night. Kate, Rich, Michel-Antoine and I joined Stephen and Monica at their place for Secret Mission Risk, which I won on Rich’s last move—Kate was threatening to leave at 11 sharp, due to work in the morning—and when he wiped out the last of Monica’s armies it was revealed that eliminating all the “black armies” (which sounds bad, I know) was my Secret Mission. We were all quite drunk and stoned by the end and I left the car in their driveway and caught a ride home with Kate and Rich.
Wednesday I went to a barbecue at Jamie’s house, and we had a bonfire on the beach, all very idyllic. I stayed late, and caught a lift home with Adam and Lyndsey, who thankfully didn’t hit on me, as is often her way when she is drunk and in my proximity. Had an interesting conversation with her friend Jenny May, who is a Golfing Mormon, and Paul Zed was presented with the skateboard I had painted of you that Jamie had bought earlier this year for the Skatepark fundraiser.
I worked last night, it was mostly slow, with a group that stayed a bit late. I’m in a weird headspace, trying to kill time until I get Claudine on the 5th. I’m in NS this Sunday for my grandmother’s memorial service on Monday. I’ll probably spend Tuesday at the Lake visiting with Anne and Lee, Sharon and Brian and my grandfather; I rarely see folks from my dad’s side of the family. Then off to Sackville to catch some of OK Quoi? the contemporary arts festival. Then more bartending, then finally getting my wife.
I don’t enjoy our time apart, but in some ways little absences makes the heart grow fonder. Or, at the very least, fuels my sexual fantasies and imagination. In probably doesn’t help that I’m finishing reading Michel Houellebecq’s novel Plateform, in french, which is full of steamy explicit descriptions of sex. Makes me miss my honey all the more, but also whets the appetite for fuller experiences. It has been awhile since we’ve done a threesome, even longer since we’ve had sex in public, our sex life is great but we’re not expanding our horizons a whole lot at the moment. With us leaving Saint John very soon it is a good time to think of what sort of sexual adventures we want to have and with whom.
Oh, and on a completely different note we had a good turnout for the gallery general membership meeting, and added five new board members to the roster, and set another brainstorming session for early in August. We couldn’t forecast at the time whether we would be able to hire a coordinator as we didn’t know the results of our provincial funding situation. Now we do, and with a meagre $3,000 increase—to bring us to $13,000 per annum—I can safely say that we can’t. Rent alone eats up half that budget. But we were 50% successful with the last round of CC projects and that at least will keep some exhibitions happening—though I will remain involved electronically. I’ll help with the next round of grants as wellSimply put, he board will need to take a more hands-on approach.
from chris lloyd <dearpm@gmail.com>
to pm@pm.gc.ca,
date Jul 27, 2007 10:00 AM
subject Whitmore asks to be chemically castrated
Dear Stephen,
Please disregard the previous message with the same subject heading, I accidentaly hit ‘send’ before the letter was finished.
– Show quoted text –
The weather here has finally turned to summer, with temperatures hitting the low thirties—quite an accomplishment, given that our proximity to the ocean and almost constant fog banks means the weather is rarely hot. I love it, and spent a good hour on the patio at Lemongrass in the sun. The happinez patio—hapito—is still under construction in Al and Curtis’ workshop, and now the launch date has been pushed to August 9. It will be, in Peter’s words, “stunning”. I’ve seen the plans and believe it.
We had a rousing game of Risk on Tuesday night. Kate, Rich, Michel-Antoine and I joined Stephen and Monica at their place for Secret Mission Risk, which I won on Rich’s last move—Kate was threatening to leave at 11 sharp, due to work in the morning—and when he wiped out the last of Monica’s armies it was revealed that eliminating all the “black armies” (which sounds bad, I know) was my Secret Mission. We were all quite drunk and stoned by the end and I left the car in their driveway and caught a ride home with Kate and Rich.
Wednesday I went to a barbecue at Jamie’s house, and we had a bonfire on the beach, all very idyllic. I stayed late, and caught a lift home with Adam and Lyndsey, who thankfully didn’t hit on me, as is often her way when she is drunk and in my proximity. Had an interesting conversation with her friend Jenny May, who is a Golfing Mormon, and Paul Zed was presented with the skateboard I had painted of you that Jamie had bought earlier this year for the Skatepark fundraiser.
I worked last night, it was mostly slow, with a group that stayed a bit late. I’m in a weird headspace, trying to kill time until I get Claudine on the 5th. I’m in NS this Sunday for my grandmother’s memorial service on Monday. I’ll probably spend Tuesday at the Lake visiting with Anne and Lee, Sharon and Brian and my grandfather; I rarely see folks from my dad’s side of the family. Then off to Sackville to catch some of OK Quoi? the contemporary arts festival. Then more bartending, then finally getting my wife.
I don’t enjoy our time apart, but in some ways little absences makes the heart grow fonder. Or, at the very least, fuels my sexual fantasies and imagination. In probably doesn’t help that I’m finishing reading Michel Houellebecq’s novel Plateform, in french, which is full of steamy explicit descriptions of sex. Makes me miss my honey all the more, but also whets the appetite for fuller experiences. It has been awhile since we’ve done a threesome, even longer since we’ve had sex in public, our sex life is great but we’re not expanding our horizons a whole lot at the moment. With us leaving Saint John very soon it is a good time to think of what sort of sexual adventures we want to have and with whom.
Oh, and on a completely different note we had a good turnout for the gallery general membership meeting, and added five new board members to the roster, and set another brainstorming session for early in August. We couldn’t forecast at the time whether we would be able to hire a coordinator as we didn’t know the results of our provincial funding situation. Now we do, and with a meagre $3,000 increase—to bring us to $13,000 per annum—I can safely say that we can’t. Rent alone eats up half that budget. But we were 50% successful with the last round of CC projects and that at least will keep some exhibitions happening—though I will remain involved electronically. I’ll help with the next round of grants as well as give some grant-writing workshops. Simply put, the board will need to take a more hands-on approach.
Jo and Philippe and Nataniel are coming for a visit right after Claudine gets back from Pointe de l’Église, which will be fun. It will be a busy week, as JD Boudreau will be here installing his Sofa-Tête sculptures in the Bargain! Shop windows at the same time, and hapito launches the same week.
I’m off to make some art—frottage paintings—outside to take advantage of the sun and procrastinate from housework.
-chris
from chris lloyd <dearpm@gmail.com>
to pm@pm.gc.ca,
date Jul 28, 2007 5:37 PM
subject Mourners remember slain child
I was at Kati’s cottage this afternoon with Rich and Rae and Monica and Stephen. We sat on the dock and tried to keep the newspapers from blowing into the lake. I do believe I added slightly to the sunburns I gained yesterday in my three-hour trek through the South End making my first “Constelleation” 13-point frottage painting. It turned out OK, and has already left me to think of new possibilities for the series.
Last night the bar was dead; on of the slowest nights ever for a Friday. The 30+ temperature in the city undoubtedly held the clue; anyone with even a remote possibility of staying outdoors, on a beach, river, boat, cottage, would be doing so. The $50 in tips over a nine-hour shift will go far towards rent, rental vans and new apartment costs.
I’ve decided to stop reading Plateforme at the last chapter. I’ve decided instead to re-start it. Also my copy of la possibilité d’une île came in the mail yesterday; Amazon is quick! I ordered on Wednesday. Of course, my .01$ copy of All the bells on earth hasn’t arrived yet, a full week past the four week ETD. I think it might have been coming from the UK.
The reason I’ve stopped Plateforme is that I don’t want to read about Valerie’s death. I’ve known from revues that she dies in a terrorist attack of some kind. Right now Michel and Valerie and so in tune and in touch and happy that I don’t want to see it end. The book makes me want to seize each day, but mostly with Claudine, my love, my companion. I want to explore and live life with her. Long distance relationships suck, even short term ones.
At the lake today I’m reminded again of my couple; how we relate to one another in our own particular way. Monica, stunning and attractive, causes a bit of me to swoon. She goes topless and we all act casual and normal; we’re all buddies, it’s OK. But she’s hot, and I can’t deny an attraction is there, even if it is only one-sided. And I of course won’t make any move at all without compromising my relationship with Claudine. Together we could take her on, if the girls were into it, or a nice foursome could be fun, but I don’t know if we’re all on that page yet, or if ever. If Claudine was on the beach going topless my mind reels and she turns me on more than ever. Usually our visits to topless beaches results in us in the bushes, or not too long afterwards. Or the fantastic thoughts stay with us and come out when the time is right. When we are together there is a palpable engagement between us; we’re touching, looking at one another. I wonder if we are the “touchy-feely” couple within our group of friends, and whether or not this bothers anyone.
I leave tomorrow for my Dad’s family’s cabin on Ponhook Lake, near Greenfield, NS. I wonder how the memorial ceremony will be. It is being held at a Baptist Church. My grandmother was baptist? I guess I knew that. Though I’ve forgotten already so much of the little I knew of her. Most of the time spent with my grandparents was time spent while I was young; I have only childhood memories, tied inextricably to summers at the Cabin, road trips, the lake, strange cousins. I never really felt like I fit in. I think now: should I bring art supplies and offer portraits? Is there something I can DO, now, so many years later? And are we really so different? Probably not. We’ll have campfires and talk about life, in general. We’ll catch up. We’ll go swimming in the lake. We’ll re-connect.
Greenfield is probably close enough to Church Point to warrant a surprise visit Monday or Tuesday night. I imagine a late-night arrival, after supper, hopefully late enough that whatever extra-curricular activity is already over, and Claudine is in her room, preparing for her exams for the morning. Maybe she’s reading or even asleep early. Like a phantom, a midnight visit exclusively for sex. How can she be disappointed with that?
I feel that after every separation, I need to compete afresh for her attentions. Maybe it is because I recognize more my deficiencies compared to her, and wonder if it is just a matter of time before she wises up and moves on. Then again, she did marry me, terrible credit-rating and all. Maybe she knows me better than I know myself. Let’s hope so. Still, I feel I should bring gifts, or have perfected my French for her. And now, too late, I realize i need to do a lot of work on the wedding Thank-yous before she comes home next week. Ay Carumba!
-chris
DEAR PM 