from chris lloyd
to pm@pm.gc.ca
date Thu, May 1, 2014 at 11:44 PM
subject Attaques contre la Cour suprême: la juge en chef veut rectifier les faits; David McGuinty rejects claim he’s a part-time MP
Dear Stephen,
I am still alive. I survived another May Day. How did you mark the occasion? I hear you were in Montreal. Are you watching the game? I met up with SRoberts and Michael to celebrate the recent awarding of her psychologist licence at a new bar on St. Viateur called B and B. At the moment I arrived the third period was just starting which as you know by now ended with a massive Bruins rush and a tie game at 3. Stayed for the first overtime which featured some pretty good hockey but none of us are cut out for these late late nights anymore. I also like the idea of going to bed, fully connected but unaware of what the final score is. Maybe I’ll find out when I connect to Twitter and post my nightly Tweet to you, containing the French and English national headlines, but until then, I’m ignorant. Even with the Power Play opening the second overtime I’m not going to watch.
Today marks the first day of my “new” contract. I’m supposed to get it in my hands on Monday. I have no idea what, if it is there at all, will be my pay increase. Still no word from the accountants re: my cost of living increase from last year.
In other major potential life-altering news: Tarik has counter-proposed $689,500 as a final offer for the triplex. Looks like we may soon be “owners”. Many details to finalize but we all seem into it. I’ll keep you posted. Now off to bed. Tout nu.
-chris
from chris lloyd
to pm@pm.gc.ca
date Sun, May 4, 2014 at 11:02 PM
subject L’armée canadienne renie sa promesse envers un vétéran; Three reasons why Ontario is doomed
Dear Stephen,
I am still alive. I survived the weekend. Apparently we are about to become homeowners. Tarik wants us to offer $689,500…did I already tell you this? Hmm, I guess I did. After Game 1. I listened to Game 2 on the radio. Why do we get so wrapped up in 20-something millionaires playing a sport? Maybe if I finished your book I’d know the reason. Sorry, I haven’t the time to do much reading and honestly, your book is a bit dull. Anyway, this week we’ll make the formal offer and get our percentages nailed down, hire a notary and get a building inspector in. Meanwhile, my emotions are all over the map as I feel old, and that my life has pretty much gone nowhere. Way past the halfway mark and what to show for it? An apartment full of junk as I am incapable of throwing things away. I am really going to try. Soon.
-chris
from chris lloyd
to pm@pm.gc.ca
date Mon, May 5, 2014 at 10:57 PM
subject Joe Oliver affirme qu’il ne s’est pas ingéré dans la campagne ontarienne; Health emergency declared over global resurgence of polio
Dear Stephen,
I am still alive. I survived another Monday. Had the risotto I made last night for lunch. Spent a lot of time analyzing the details from the artwork that had been knocked off a plinth by a visitor on Saturday. Lucky it was made of cardboard; there seems to have been little to no damage. Nothing noticeable at any rate. I just write the reports. No news on my contract. No news from the accountant re: my cost of living increase. I’ll ask HR tomorrow.
Louis-Phillippe has stepped down as regional organizer for the #CPC. Kind of shocking.
Not as shocking as how distracting Facebook can be! Whatever happened to the last 1.5 hours?
-chris
from chris lloyd
to pm@pm.gc.ca
date Tue, May 6, 2014 at 10:09 PM
subject Radio-Canada: l’opposition interpelle les conservateurs après la lettre de PKP; Stephen Harper a man with two sides — who broadcasts the wrong one
Dear Stephen,
I am still alive. I survived another day of work. Still no news from the accountants or HR regarding my employment contract nor the cost of living. I cycled to work and back. Sol likes the bike. It rides really, really well. You know it is the bike my dad rode across Canada? I am listening to the hockey game OMG what stress! Why do we allow ourselves to get so wound up over professional sports? 22 seconds to go. My video keeps freezing up. Now 23.5. They added some time. Egad 8 seconds to go and the net is off. Now they add time and go to 10 seconds. OMG Lars Eller and empty net and that seals it. Now I can breathe easier and go have a shower and clean this sweaty stink off me.
Oh, it looks like I’ll have a show at Le Lieu in Quebec City in 2015. I didn’t even apply, an artist I know through Facebook messaged me to let me know that he was suggesting me to their selection committee. And a swank-looking job has opened up at the MACM, adjoint au chef des services techniques. Pays better than mine for what sounds like the same job. It is good practice to apply, so I think I will, even though my French is not up to snuff.
-chris
from chris lloyd
to pm@pm.gc.ca
date Thu, May 8, 2014 at 10:00 PM
subject La position pro-choix de Trudeau empêche le retour d’ex-députés libéraux; Tackle workplace depression, federal executives plead
Dear Stephen,
I am still alive. I survived ball hockey last night, playing goal wearing rollerblades for the first time ever. I managed to make some stops but found lateral movement (and stopping) very difficult. There was quite a crew out, only a handful from the “league” that Cam has started but many more (and all on ‘blades) arrived gradually throughout the evening. I left just after 8 as we had a tenants’ meeting booked for our place so we could fill out all our offers in the same way. Tonight after work Tarik came by and signed the papers so I guess barring something major and unforeseen with the inspection or our mortgages, we’ll soon be homeowners. Today workers started pulling up all the bricks in the back yard to seal the foundation, add a membrane and re-level the slope so that water doesn’t accumulate. They brought their own microwave to heat up their lunches. Now we’re entertaining the idea of kitchen renovations. I have a couple meetings for tomorrow, we need an estimate by a company RBQ to qualify to have the estimated costs added on to our mortgage. The building inspector is coming on Monday, we have our first meeting with the notary on Tuesday, and am picking up compost and seedlings this weekend from Compost Montreal. It is a partial yoga weekend for Claudine, though tomorrow evening she has an Oboro event. Maybe I’ll go see if she wants to watch the third period in bed. I have no idea what the score is.
-chris
from chris lloyd
to pm@pm.gc.ca
date Mon, May 12, 2014 at 9:45 PM
subject Moratoire sur les travailleurs étrangers: Ottawa refuse d’exempter le Québec; House of Commons says it didn’t know about NDP staff working satellite offices
Dear Stephen,
I am still alive. I survived the weekend, another 4-year old’s birthday party (chez Victor yesterday), a partial yoga weekend (Clo only went for the exam on Saturday, though she worked 16+ hours at Oboro on Friday), getting sucked into Sketchup designs of our kitchen renovations, picking up seedlings and compost from Compost Montreal and picking up the steel frame to solidify our kitchen table (and does it ever make a difference! The sag is gone) and another Monday of (partial) work as I then came home shortly after lunch to go through the house roof to basement with the building inspector. All looks good, in fact he seemed quite impressed with the state of the foundation. To be sure there are lots of improvements and repairs he has taken note of, but it seems no major issues.
Now Claudine is writing my letter of intent for the MACM job as well as translating my CV. I’m about to dive into the online Galerie Sans Nom and perhaps the Est Nord-Est applications, all the while keeping an eye ont he game. Rose watched the first period with me as well as the Vanek goal to end the second, and as well wore her Canadiens jersey to daycare. Shall I add these to the Ginette Reno-esque superstitions? Shall I watch the rest of the third to see if Price can steal a shutout?
-chris
from chris lloyd
to pm@pm.gc.ca
date Wed, May 14, 2014 at 11:10 PM
subject Bureaux satellites: le NPD n’aurait pas remis tous les documents réclamés; Supreme Court ruling in favour of artists’ rights paints National Gallery into tight corner
Dear Stephen,
I am still alive. I survived Game 7. Sent Rose to daycare with her jersey and she watched the first and second half of the second period with me. I read stories, played games with her and then recited the entire Toy Story trilogy (albeit abridged) while putting her to bed. Truth be told I couldn’t bear to watch the third period with only a one goal lead. I watched the last three minutes and that was tense enough.
Today at work we had an internal team meeting to air some grievances that will probably go nowhere. Yesterday I did hear back from accounting simply that no, in fact nobody received CoL increases, so I guess HR is a bit confused. And no raise yet, as we haven’t done the employee reviews, and I guess I am still working 28 hours as there was no change at all in my pay tomorrow. I’ll just keep calm, carry on, and have a shower before bed as I stink. Clo went back to work tonight to get a grant done. Meanwhile fans are still out in the streets here. And as usual the SPVM have over-reacted.
What do you think of the Supreme Court decision regarding minimum fee payments?
-chris
from chris lloyd
to pm@pm.gc.ca
date Mon, May 26, 2014 at 9:31 PM
subject Prostitution: Jimmy Carter conseille le Canada; Meet the modern-day voice of Canada’s veterans
Dear Stephen,
I am still alive. Sorry I haven’t written in so long. I have been busy surviving: life, the kids, work, the house negotiations, the meetings, the weather, the biking, the parks, the planting, the rain, the cleaning, the organizing, the taxes, the parties, the openings, the events, the hockey games, the kids not sleeping, the kids not eating, the kids not going to bed, the teething, the fevers, the crying, the laughing, the cooking, the cleaning, the sweeping, the bathing, the giggling, the everything.
-chris
from chris lloyd
to pm@pm.gc.ca
date Tue, May 27, 2014 at 11:48 PM
subject Le plan sur la santé maternelle de Harper divise au pays; New book claims hockey invented in Britain, not Canada
Dear Stephen,
I am still alive. I have both kids tonight as Clo is off at Mutek openings. I’m watching the hockey game and just turned it on it on to catch the Habs’ 5th goal. What a game! Sol was up late and I ended up putting both kids down at the same time, reciting yet another brand new adventure involving Buzz and Woody. It’s her new demand, which on the one hand is more interesting than simply reciting Pinocchio time after time, but on the other hand is more challenging to come up with new scenarios for two toys. Meantime what about this hockey game! A hat trick for René Bourque. Oof and not the most brilliant 5-minute power play but at least no short-handed goal, and wow! They killed off the remaining 8 minutes nicely. Anyway, a bunch of time lost in the Facebook vortex and I must head off to bed. Game 6 is the same night as Jon and Lorna’s opening at Dazibao.
-chris
from chris lloyd
to pm@pm.gc.ca
date Wed, May 28, 2014 at 9:48 PM
subject Trudeau n’envisage aucune réouverture de la Constitution; Call for global action to fight obesity epidemic
Dear Stephen,
I am still alive. Still working. Still loving the heck out of my kids, even when they are at their most aggravating. Like when they whine or scream in unison. But then they dance or play and giggle together or play chase and how can one not find that endearing? I helped Denis get his couch into his living room tonight; it had been stuck in his hallway since Sunday when I helped him bring it up his steps. He found it in the trash but is not worried about bed bugs because he’s lucky. Clo and I are going to do something rare, attempt to watch a movie in bed together. We started “Another Year” a few nights ago but both fell asleep. Which is probably what will happen tonight as well.
-chris
DEAR PM 