I finished my Social Psychology test, now I just have to wait on my final grade. If I pass the test, I pass the course, and if I don't... there's not a huge margin for error.
Got 93% on my Russian Studies presentation. Just have to write an essay now, and I'm done the school year.
Way back in Canada World Youth, during my rotation in Quebec, one time me and my counterpart, as well as another pair of counterparts and our Project Leader, went out to Quebec City. We went to some icecream place. I wasn't fluent, and when the server asked me a question I didn't understand about a topping I said "non" to eliminate further conversation and minimize the language barrier.
On the other side, everyone in my team is eating chocolate-coated icecream. I note this, and my Project Leader says, "Of course, we're at the House of Chocolate, Chocolate Favoris"
I'm like, "So I came to the House of Chocolate, the server asked me what what kind of chocolate I wanted, and I said NON?!"
During our initial cultural sensitivity training, we had a practice where we were asked to step back from a difficult situation and ask, "Will I be angry in five hours? Five weeks? Five months? Five years? So is it really worth being angry about?"
Telling people about that practice, I offer the example of Chocolate Favoris, and I say "It has been five hours, weeks, months, and years, and I am still mad I didn't get that chocolate covered ice cream!"
When I was carpooling with my coworker to my Train the Trainer recertification, at one point, my coworker screams. I ask what that's about and she's like, "This ice cream parlor is opening up! It's like Dairy Queen on steroids! They have like a million options for chocolate dips!"
I say "That's a bit of an extreme reaction for ice cream. It reminds me of this story where I..."
She says "I finally won't have to go to Quebec City for it!"
"WHAT?! What is the name of this place?!"
"Chocolate Favoris"
I screamed.
They are opening a location in Guelph of all places, and now me and my coworker are going to go there on opening day.
This will be so cathartic.
Thursday, April 5, 2018
Friday, March 30, 2018
Presentation, Essay, SMG Trainer Recert
I'm done with my paperwork for the fiscal year, I did my Russian studies presentation, I finished my Social Psych paper, and I recertified as a Safe Management Instructor. It's been a whirlwind of a few days. Now I've just got a paper next week, and a test the week after and I'm done with the semester.
Last Sunday I had a full day of direct support work, then I had to get my paperwork into the Extend-a-Family dropbox because it was due by Monday. I couldn't bring it in earlier, because I needed two signatures from the people I worked with on Sunday. So I finish work at 9:00 PM and need to bus over to the office. Usually I just need one bus to get home, but it takes two to get to the office, and two to get home from there. So my one bus turns to four, and it's Sunday, so they only come every 45 minutes.
I get home at 11:30 and still need to finish my powerpoint so I can present by 1:00 the next day. I stay up all night and the next day I feel like my brain is bleeding.
I'm last in the day to present, so I have the whole class to compare my presentation to my peers and convince myself I don't stack up. Nerves are mounting. I didn't even get the chance to do a trial run beforehand and make sure my time is sufficient.
My subject is the psychological impact of being a doctor in Russia during the transition of Slavophlism (traditional Russian medical practices) to Westernism (adopting other European techniques) and comparing two characters from pieces of literature by Ivan Turgenev that we'd studied in class, one of them being a Slavophile and the other a Westernist.
We were supposed to present the topic that we will write our essay on. We'd already written an abstract for the essay, so I didn't have a choice on what to present.
My abstract had been done quickly. It had been due the same day I had to do that abstract art presentation and my field trip report. So I'd been exhausted that day as well. I leafed through the course content, pieced a few related bits together, and had written my abstract on that.
Despite continually encouraging us to use content covered within the course, all the presenters before me had found unique sources, so I was feeling fairly unoriginal. The instructor was giving feedback too, some more positive than others, so I felt like if I didn't really sell my topic, I'd get exposed.
Somehow, I managed to swing it. I was told I had a "very interesting interpretation" of the topic and she "looks forward to reading my essay" without any constructive feedback.
I went back home, decided I would finish my essay right away after I took a nap. Woke up at 4:00 AM the next day.
So now it's Tuesday and my SMG recert is on Wednesday. My cofacilitator is driving me to the office in Oakville where the training is being done. She lives in Guelph so we've arranged to leave from there, so I need to be in Guelph Wednesday morning, which means I have to travel on Tuesday. My essay is due Tuesday at midnight (submitted online), so I'm writing my essay as I travel.
Manage to get the essay done. Wake up at 6 the next day and leave at 7:15 AM.
If you'll remember, I've been to Oakville before, when they sent me there when I was supposed to be in London Ontario. It was the correct location this time. Felt weirdly nostalgic even though I'd only been there one night and one morning.
I was pretty nervous. Each trainer was randomly selected a segment of the course and we had to present it to the other recertifying trainers, as well as a Safe Management official in charge of evaluating us. I got "Limits and Interpersonal Boundaries". Basically talking about written and unritten rules, the importance of consistency in a staff team, and deciding what is and is not appropriate to share about our personal lives and the people we serve. I did fine. I "took it from a number of interesting angles and engaged the audience well". It was honestly kind of a love fest though. I don't think anyone got any real constructive feedback, we just spoke to each others strengths.
Then we had a written test, which was more difficult for some but I got through fine. Then we each had to instruct three or four physical techniques. I lucked out hardcore. I got Safety Position Basics, Safety Position A, Safety Position B, and The Worm.The Safety Positions are the first part of the physical component and basically shows in what way you should be standing depending on the level of aggression that you're dealing with. Basics as just a general rule, Position A for a lightly escalating situation, and Position B for a more imminent one. Simple stuff, and all pretty similar.
The Worm is a bit more intricate. That's the technique for assisting someone in escaping from a hair pull.
I got through it. In my initial training, I stumbled over one of the techniques but this time I was successful on each on the first try. I also did better on the written component this time around. The presentation too, come to think of it. I guess you do get better the more you do it.
Last Sunday I had a full day of direct support work, then I had to get my paperwork into the Extend-a-Family dropbox because it was due by Monday. I couldn't bring it in earlier, because I needed two signatures from the people I worked with on Sunday. So I finish work at 9:00 PM and need to bus over to the office. Usually I just need one bus to get home, but it takes two to get to the office, and two to get home from there. So my one bus turns to four, and it's Sunday, so they only come every 45 minutes.
I get home at 11:30 and still need to finish my powerpoint so I can present by 1:00 the next day. I stay up all night and the next day I feel like my brain is bleeding.
I'm last in the day to present, so I have the whole class to compare my presentation to my peers and convince myself I don't stack up. Nerves are mounting. I didn't even get the chance to do a trial run beforehand and make sure my time is sufficient.
My subject is the psychological impact of being a doctor in Russia during the transition of Slavophlism (traditional Russian medical practices) to Westernism (adopting other European techniques) and comparing two characters from pieces of literature by Ivan Turgenev that we'd studied in class, one of them being a Slavophile and the other a Westernist.
We were supposed to present the topic that we will write our essay on. We'd already written an abstract for the essay, so I didn't have a choice on what to present.
My abstract had been done quickly. It had been due the same day I had to do that abstract art presentation and my field trip report. So I'd been exhausted that day as well. I leafed through the course content, pieced a few related bits together, and had written my abstract on that.
Despite continually encouraging us to use content covered within the course, all the presenters before me had found unique sources, so I was feeling fairly unoriginal. The instructor was giving feedback too, some more positive than others, so I felt like if I didn't really sell my topic, I'd get exposed.
Somehow, I managed to swing it. I was told I had a "very interesting interpretation" of the topic and she "looks forward to reading my essay" without any constructive feedback.
I went back home, decided I would finish my essay right away after I took a nap. Woke up at 4:00 AM the next day.
So now it's Tuesday and my SMG recert is on Wednesday. My cofacilitator is driving me to the office in Oakville where the training is being done. She lives in Guelph so we've arranged to leave from there, so I need to be in Guelph Wednesday morning, which means I have to travel on Tuesday. My essay is due Tuesday at midnight (submitted online), so I'm writing my essay as I travel.
Manage to get the essay done. Wake up at 6 the next day and leave at 7:15 AM.
If you'll remember, I've been to Oakville before, when they sent me there when I was supposed to be in London Ontario. It was the correct location this time. Felt weirdly nostalgic even though I'd only been there one night and one morning.
I was pretty nervous. Each trainer was randomly selected a segment of the course and we had to present it to the other recertifying trainers, as well as a Safe Management official in charge of evaluating us. I got "Limits and Interpersonal Boundaries". Basically talking about written and unritten rules, the importance of consistency in a staff team, and deciding what is and is not appropriate to share about our personal lives and the people we serve. I did fine. I "took it from a number of interesting angles and engaged the audience well". It was honestly kind of a love fest though. I don't think anyone got any real constructive feedback, we just spoke to each others strengths.
Then we had a written test, which was more difficult for some but I got through fine. Then we each had to instruct three or four physical techniques. I lucked out hardcore. I got Safety Position Basics, Safety Position A, Safety Position B, and The Worm.The Safety Positions are the first part of the physical component and basically shows in what way you should be standing depending on the level of aggression that you're dealing with. Basics as just a general rule, Position A for a lightly escalating situation, and Position B for a more imminent one. Simple stuff, and all pretty similar.
The Worm is a bit more intricate. That's the technique for assisting someone in escaping from a hair pull.
I got through it. In my initial training, I stumbled over one of the techniques but this time I was successful on each on the first try. I also did better on the written component this time around. The presentation too, come to think of it. I guess you do get better the more you do it.
Friday, March 23, 2018
End of Semester Rush
Beh... In under two weeks, I have my last Social Psych test, a Russian Studies Presentation, a research paper for Russian Studies, and one for Social Psych as well. On top of this, it's the end of the fiscal year, so I have to have all my paperwork figured out by Monday, and on Wednesday I have to attend Safe Management recertification training. Plus I still have all my contract work, and I have to attend some research participation thing for Social Psych.
Little nervous to attend research participation. In Social Psychology, they like to make tests that state a purpose, but which have a secret purpose that determines that you are racist/sexist/homophobic or a potential murderer based on your unconscious submissiveness. I would like to not know these things about myself, but I get 2% for attending and an additional 2% bonus grade for additional participation.
Just did my final Russian Studies test last Wednesday. First one that I didn't get 100% on, I got one question wrong. It was a true/false question stating that Russian folk music could make a strong impression without strong emphasis on lyrics. Sounded true but it was false. Of course the one question I'd get wrong in the semester had to do with music. I am not a musically minded person.
I'm getting a raise in the new fiscal year for my Direct Support Work. I don't know if I mentioned it the last time it happened, but this is my second wage increase since I started. Of course, my initial wage was under what is now minimum wage, so it's natural that they would have to increase it. It's a little awkward now, though, because I also do some work independent from the agency that is linked with most of the people I support. When I work independently, I charge a bit more than I would if I went through the agency, because the agency takes a bit off what I make, and also because I've been doing this for so much longer than most people and I deserve it, darn it. But now, with the April wage increase, what I receive hourly from the agency will be more than what I charge for my independent work. So when I work independently, I'll be like a discount social worker. That's not a good look.
So I'm going to have to give myself a raise. I've never done that, and I feel like that could develop into some awkward conversation.
I don't know if I've mentioned it, but the Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge area has been developing a Light Rail Transit system. It's been under construction since I moved to Kitchener about four-five years ago. It's been a really controversial subject, because the tri-city has put massive amounts of funding into it and the construction has caused a lot of inconvenience. There have been times where I've had to check the bus schedule daily because there were so many detours.
Well, they're finally sending trains over their rails, although only doing tests at the moment. I've seen them in motion, and they look sleeeeeek. They've caused me a lot of inconvenience up until now, but I have to admit, they look good. The stations also look marvelous.
They're getting rid of the bus stop that I've used to get almost everywhere since I moved into my current place. It's not a popular bus stop or anything, but out of coincidence, it goes by people that I've worked with, it goes by my old grouphome job, and it goes to the university. At first I was bummed out, but then someone pointed out that a station is going to be right by where I live, and it's a direct line to the University.
Since I've only ever known the LRT as the source of inconveniencing construction, I have only anticipated it finishing so that it can stop inconveniencing me, I've never really considered that it might be beneficial. Right now it takes me an hour and a half to get to the University, but this Light Rail could make that into a fragment of the time.
My life feels like it's... developing patterns. When I was in my early twenties, I did Ways2Work, Katimavik and Canada World Youth, living in five different communities, and had different job placements in each. I worked in eleven factories during my time in Guelph. When I moved to Kitchener, I lived in the Residence for a year, then student housing for two, then I subletted at a place after graduating before moving to where I am now. When I was in college, my part-time job changed twice. I lived with twenty different roommates throughout college, eight people in Katimavik, three different Project leaders, two host families in Canada World Youth and my counterpart. Even after graduating high school, I changed roommates three times.
I've been living at the place I'm currently at for two years and three months now, which is three months longer than anywhere else that I've lived since turning twenty, and it doesn't look like I'll be moving anytime soon. In one month, I will have lived with my current roommate longer than any other. I've been working as a Direct Support Worker for four years, three of which I've been with since I started. If I go back to the Summer Program for a fourth year, I will have worked sporadically with that program for five years.
I guess it's normal to become more consistent with age, and it looks good on a resume to show that you're able to maintain a position, but I won't lie... I'm feeling like a bit less of a... dynamic character. Feeling a little static in my lifestyle.
Little nervous to attend research participation. In Social Psychology, they like to make tests that state a purpose, but which have a secret purpose that determines that you are racist/sexist/homophobic or a potential murderer based on your unconscious submissiveness. I would like to not know these things about myself, but I get 2% for attending and an additional 2% bonus grade for additional participation.
Just did my final Russian Studies test last Wednesday. First one that I didn't get 100% on, I got one question wrong. It was a true/false question stating that Russian folk music could make a strong impression without strong emphasis on lyrics. Sounded true but it was false. Of course the one question I'd get wrong in the semester had to do with music. I am not a musically minded person.
I'm getting a raise in the new fiscal year for my Direct Support Work. I don't know if I mentioned it the last time it happened, but this is my second wage increase since I started. Of course, my initial wage was under what is now minimum wage, so it's natural that they would have to increase it. It's a little awkward now, though, because I also do some work independent from the agency that is linked with most of the people I support. When I work independently, I charge a bit more than I would if I went through the agency, because the agency takes a bit off what I make, and also because I've been doing this for so much longer than most people and I deserve it, darn it. But now, with the April wage increase, what I receive hourly from the agency will be more than what I charge for my independent work. So when I work independently, I'll be like a discount social worker. That's not a good look.
So I'm going to have to give myself a raise. I've never done that, and I feel like that could develop into some awkward conversation.
I don't know if I've mentioned it, but the Kitchener-Waterloo-Cambridge area has been developing a Light Rail Transit system. It's been under construction since I moved to Kitchener about four-five years ago. It's been a really controversial subject, because the tri-city has put massive amounts of funding into it and the construction has caused a lot of inconvenience. There have been times where I've had to check the bus schedule daily because there were so many detours.
Well, they're finally sending trains over their rails, although only doing tests at the moment. I've seen them in motion, and they look sleeeeeek. They've caused me a lot of inconvenience up until now, but I have to admit, they look good. The stations also look marvelous.
They're getting rid of the bus stop that I've used to get almost everywhere since I moved into my current place. It's not a popular bus stop or anything, but out of coincidence, it goes by people that I've worked with, it goes by my old grouphome job, and it goes to the university. At first I was bummed out, but then someone pointed out that a station is going to be right by where I live, and it's a direct line to the University.
Since I've only ever known the LRT as the source of inconveniencing construction, I have only anticipated it finishing so that it can stop inconveniencing me, I've never really considered that it might be beneficial. Right now it takes me an hour and a half to get to the University, but this Light Rail could make that into a fragment of the time.
My life feels like it's... developing patterns. When I was in my early twenties, I did Ways2Work, Katimavik and Canada World Youth, living in five different communities, and had different job placements in each. I worked in eleven factories during my time in Guelph. When I moved to Kitchener, I lived in the Residence for a year, then student housing for two, then I subletted at a place after graduating before moving to where I am now. When I was in college, my part-time job changed twice. I lived with twenty different roommates throughout college, eight people in Katimavik, three different Project leaders, two host families in Canada World Youth and my counterpart. Even after graduating high school, I changed roommates three times.
I've been living at the place I'm currently at for two years and three months now, which is three months longer than anywhere else that I've lived since turning twenty, and it doesn't look like I'll be moving anytime soon. In one month, I will have lived with my current roommate longer than any other. I've been working as a Direct Support Worker for four years, three of which I've been with since I started. If I go back to the Summer Program for a fourth year, I will have worked sporadically with that program for five years.
I guess it's normal to become more consistent with age, and it looks good on a resume to show that you're able to maintain a position, but I won't lie... I'm feeling like a bit less of a... dynamic character. Feeling a little static in my lifestyle.
Tuesday, March 6, 2018
Social Psych Test, Old Night Shift Job
Did a Social Psychology test today. Last one was particularly difficult and I had no confidence in it, but I still passed. This time around, I thought I did pretty well on the multiple choice but thought I may have been off-base on the short answer. Oh well, last time I wasn't confident in either section and I did alright. This time I had confidence in one section, so we'll see how I did.
On the bus to school, someone got on at the stop passing the grouphome where I used to work. He was nearly screaming on his cell phone, "They won't take me off nights, apparently no one wants to do it so they never let night shift change shift! I want to work with the kids! Everyone blames night shift for everything! They pay peanuts!"
After he finished his call, I asked him if he worked where I thought he did, and I was right. It was really gratifying to hear so many of the complaints that I had about the position echoed by someone else.
Apparently there was a mass firing, and most of my old coworkers and my former boss lost their jobs. I don't know anything about it, but I assume they all have criminal records now. Kind of glad I wasn't around for it. Not because I ever did anything to warrant a firing or criminal record, but just because.... you don't want to be too close to that.
I told him that I worked there for six months, and it had been about eight months since having left the position. Weird to think that my time away from the organization has been longer than my time in it. Feels like yesterday I was going in to work there.
I'm still in touch with one of the morning shifters, and apparently no one has lasted as a night shifter since I left.
They recently upgraded the buses around here as a response to that series of near-strikes the bus drivers threatened awhile back. So far, this includes a new system where bus transfers are issued from within a mechanism after you have paid cash. These new transfers include a bar code which can be scanned by bus patrons on entering their connecting ride. This eliminates the responsibility of the bus driver to check each transfer to make sure they are boarding within the allowable time of the transfer, as the transfer deactivates as soon as the allotted time ends. It also means that, if a bus patron attempts to under-pay, the system will not produce a transfer. This takes away some of the accountability that bus drivers have in deciding whether or not to let people who underpay board.
It doesn't eliminate all awkwardness though. I've still seen people beg to be allowed to board, and have seen bus drivers concede so as to avoid a fight. The only difference is that the driver no longer has the option to count the rider as a passenger in their system. The new transfer system is also much slower than the old system of ripping off a bit of paper and handing it to a rider, so it has put all the bus schedules back a bit. I've seen a few buses have plexiglass shields for their drivers as well.
Have you guys heard of the Universal Law of Urination? This is the concept that all mammals, regardless of size, urinate for approximately 21 seconds! So an elephant, a house cat, and a human would all need approximately 21 seconds to urinate. At first, I thought there was no way that I last that long (ha), but decided I would put it to the test. And to my surprise, I was exactly 21 seconds! Next time you go to the bathroom, make sure to count, and see if you match up to the Universal Law of Urination!
On the bus to school, someone got on at the stop passing the grouphome where I used to work. He was nearly screaming on his cell phone, "They won't take me off nights, apparently no one wants to do it so they never let night shift change shift! I want to work with the kids! Everyone blames night shift for everything! They pay peanuts!"
After he finished his call, I asked him if he worked where I thought he did, and I was right. It was really gratifying to hear so many of the complaints that I had about the position echoed by someone else.
Apparently there was a mass firing, and most of my old coworkers and my former boss lost their jobs. I don't know anything about it, but I assume they all have criminal records now. Kind of glad I wasn't around for it. Not because I ever did anything to warrant a firing or criminal record, but just because.... you don't want to be too close to that.
I told him that I worked there for six months, and it had been about eight months since having left the position. Weird to think that my time away from the organization has been longer than my time in it. Feels like yesterday I was going in to work there.
I'm still in touch with one of the morning shifters, and apparently no one has lasted as a night shifter since I left.
They recently upgraded the buses around here as a response to that series of near-strikes the bus drivers threatened awhile back. So far, this includes a new system where bus transfers are issued from within a mechanism after you have paid cash. These new transfers include a bar code which can be scanned by bus patrons on entering their connecting ride. This eliminates the responsibility of the bus driver to check each transfer to make sure they are boarding within the allowable time of the transfer, as the transfer deactivates as soon as the allotted time ends. It also means that, if a bus patron attempts to under-pay, the system will not produce a transfer. This takes away some of the accountability that bus drivers have in deciding whether or not to let people who underpay board.
It doesn't eliminate all awkwardness though. I've still seen people beg to be allowed to board, and have seen bus drivers concede so as to avoid a fight. The only difference is that the driver no longer has the option to count the rider as a passenger in their system. The new transfer system is also much slower than the old system of ripping off a bit of paper and handing it to a rider, so it has put all the bus schedules back a bit. I've seen a few buses have plexiglass shields for their drivers as well.
Have you guys heard of the Universal Law of Urination? This is the concept that all mammals, regardless of size, urinate for approximately 21 seconds! So an elephant, a house cat, and a human would all need approximately 21 seconds to urinate. At first, I thought there was no way that I last that long (ha), but decided I would put it to the test. And to my surprise, I was exactly 21 seconds! Next time you go to the bathroom, make sure to count, and see if you match up to the Universal Law of Urination!
Wednesday, February 28, 2018
Malevich
This past Monday, I had to do a presentation for my Russian Studies class. On the same day, I had to submit an Abstract Statement for my final essay and a fieldtrip report. So, three assignments in one day. I didn't really think it through when choosing a presentation date.
The presentation was the most stressful of the three, as it was worth the most marks, and if I failed, I would fail in front of the class.
I did not meet my presentation partner in person until the day of. A list hard circulated around class, I'd written my name down in one of the slots, and someone wrote their's down next to mine. They contacted me over email and we sent emails back and forth as our method of communication.
Our topic was Abstract Art in Russia, with a focus on Kandinsky and Malevich. My partner had taken the initiative in starting the Powerpoint, and had begun the section on Kandinsky. So, I offered to cover Malevich as a way of dividing the workload.
This was Kandinksy's key contribution:
This was Malevich's:
Titled: "Black Square". Let's check how much a reproduction of this image might cost...
...$590 to $1950 depending on what size you want.
I felt like I'd gotten the more difficult pitch for the audience.
And my instructor was a big fan of Malevich. When she showed us part of "Victory Over the Sun", an opera that was a collaborative work between Russian artists, she indicated that the backdrop was Malevich's "famous painting". It was Black Square, and I don't think most of the people in the class even perceived it as a painting.
She showed another one of Malevich's paintings, "Yellow and Black", which is a series of overlapping yellow and black geometric shapes. She showed it from three different angles, saying that when you observe it in person, it takes a long time to analyze, because it looks correct no matter which way you view it.
I was lost. But I knew that if she felt strongly about it, I had to sell it.
I was ranting to someone about how I'd have to fill ten minutes (it was a twenty minute presentation, so assuming I took half). She said, "You've already been talking about this for over ten minutes" and suggested I just speak as I had been.
"It's just a black square! A BLACK SQUAAAAARE!"
No, that wouldn't do.
Even though me and my partner never met in person, they claimed to know who I was, as we had been grouped together in our first class. Because this person's name was something traditionally male in Canadian culture, I envisioned a guy in that group that never again returned to class. There are some people who just don't go to class, read the online notes and submit assignments online. A few weeks previous we had a presentation by someone that nobody recognized. I assumed it was a similar situation, especially because I said that we'd meet in class and they said it was impossible because they had a class directly after.
Day of, we're supposed to meet in the library. I can't find the guy, but I notice the shy girl from the back of the class. "Uh... Gryphon?"
Yup, my partner. I'd felt bad because I hadn't been too responsive with my emails (a frustration I'm sure many of my readers associate with me), but it turns out she was in every class and had not approached me. Whatever.
We get into class. Our instructor is sick and says she's "just trying to stay conscious". Not good. You don't want the person in charge of your grade to be in a negative headspace, even if it has nothing to do with you. She says that we have a "Very interesting topic". Again, not good. She's invested in this presentation, so if we step wrong, she's going to know. Each presentation before us has been at the end of the class, and she's cut into their time, but she offers us the opportunity to open the class, so that she doesn't cut into our time. So we'll have to do the full 20 minutes, and she's clearly invested in a topic I have no confidence in.
At first, we can't get the projector to work. It's just showing a blue screen despite the Powerpoint showing up on the computer. She has to call for tech support. Nobody gets why it won't work. I have to choke back jokes about this being Malevich's famous work, "Blue Square".
Eventually it clicks on for no reason and we can present. I start off with a definition of abstract art and it's influence on Russia, then hand it over to my partner to cover Kandinsky. She's short, and so I have to cover the bulk of the time with Malevich.
We start in with his early works:
At this time he used bold strokes and usually conveyed one or two people.
Then we went into his inspiration from cubism and futurism:
That's the Knife Grinder. We then go into his collaborative work, the opera, "Victory Over the Sun"
And the style he developed with his colleagues, "Alogism".
The "log" in "Alogism" stands for "logic", and the "A", is similar to "Asymmetrical" which means "Not symetrical". So "Alogism" means "Not logical".
The point of Alogism was to contradict all conventional aspects of art so that it challenged viewers to understand how their own minds work.
However, Malevich felt that by simply rebelling against artistic trends, was still allowing for artists to be defined by those trends.
He felt that God had given humanity talent to create, and that immitating God's creations was theft.
So he rejected form, including his own human form. He strove to reduce everything to zero, which would reveal a void. But he wasn't satisfied with the void, he wanted to arrive on the other side, and create the first truly original human creation.
And thus he created Black Square, which was bringing "Zero to one"
He began his own art movement, "Suprematism", which meant "Supremacy over form". He said that Black Square was the face of Suprematism, and it was his "Royal infant" that would grow into the rest of Suprematism.
Having to call a black square a royal infant in front of a crowd of colleagues has to be one of my most humiliating moments.
After this I showed another one of his works:
That's "White on White", two slightly differently off-coloured white squares set atop one another. I explained this as the tilted white square representing motion. I said that when I first looked at this image, I thought that if I wanted to represent motion, I might draw a bird or a train, but then I realized that with those images came all the perceptions and biases associated with them With a neutral image such as White on White, we can observe the concept of motion in its purest form, without any attached biases.
Then we looked at Yellow and Black
This was the class example where our instructor said it took a long time to analyze because it looked correct no matter which angle you observed it from.
I said that because it looked correct no matter the orientation, this gave the impression of a lack of gravity, and a sense of motion, where you could easily imagine it "tripping through space" which emphasized Malevich's "Cosmic reality" which opposed and earthly one.
At the end of the presentation she thanked us for a very interesting presentation. At the end of class, she repeated that she would like to thank today's presenters. Felt that was a good sign
Got our grade back today. Unfortunately, it was the worst grade that I have received in this class to date.
That means we only got 97%! So far my grades are:
Test 1: 100%
Test 2: 100%
Abstract: 100%
Presentation: 97%
I should just move to Russia.
The presentation was the most stressful of the three, as it was worth the most marks, and if I failed, I would fail in front of the class.
I did not meet my presentation partner in person until the day of. A list hard circulated around class, I'd written my name down in one of the slots, and someone wrote their's down next to mine. They contacted me over email and we sent emails back and forth as our method of communication.
Our topic was Abstract Art in Russia, with a focus on Kandinsky and Malevich. My partner had taken the initiative in starting the Powerpoint, and had begun the section on Kandinsky. So, I offered to cover Malevich as a way of dividing the workload.
This was Kandinksy's key contribution:
This was Malevich's:
Titled: "Black Square". Let's check how much a reproduction of this image might cost...
...$590 to $1950 depending on what size you want.
I felt like I'd gotten the more difficult pitch for the audience.
And my instructor was a big fan of Malevich. When she showed us part of "Victory Over the Sun", an opera that was a collaborative work between Russian artists, she indicated that the backdrop was Malevich's "famous painting". It was Black Square, and I don't think most of the people in the class even perceived it as a painting.
She showed another one of Malevich's paintings, "Yellow and Black", which is a series of overlapping yellow and black geometric shapes. She showed it from three different angles, saying that when you observe it in person, it takes a long time to analyze, because it looks correct no matter which way you view it.
I was lost. But I knew that if she felt strongly about it, I had to sell it.
I was ranting to someone about how I'd have to fill ten minutes (it was a twenty minute presentation, so assuming I took half). She said, "You've already been talking about this for over ten minutes" and suggested I just speak as I had been.
"It's just a black square! A BLACK SQUAAAAARE!"
No, that wouldn't do.
Even though me and my partner never met in person, they claimed to know who I was, as we had been grouped together in our first class. Because this person's name was something traditionally male in Canadian culture, I envisioned a guy in that group that never again returned to class. There are some people who just don't go to class, read the online notes and submit assignments online. A few weeks previous we had a presentation by someone that nobody recognized. I assumed it was a similar situation, especially because I said that we'd meet in class and they said it was impossible because they had a class directly after.
Day of, we're supposed to meet in the library. I can't find the guy, but I notice the shy girl from the back of the class. "Uh... Gryphon?"
Yup, my partner. I'd felt bad because I hadn't been too responsive with my emails (a frustration I'm sure many of my readers associate with me), but it turns out she was in every class and had not approached me. Whatever.
We get into class. Our instructor is sick and says she's "just trying to stay conscious". Not good. You don't want the person in charge of your grade to be in a negative headspace, even if it has nothing to do with you. She says that we have a "Very interesting topic". Again, not good. She's invested in this presentation, so if we step wrong, she's going to know. Each presentation before us has been at the end of the class, and she's cut into their time, but she offers us the opportunity to open the class, so that she doesn't cut into our time. So we'll have to do the full 20 minutes, and she's clearly invested in a topic I have no confidence in.
At first, we can't get the projector to work. It's just showing a blue screen despite the Powerpoint showing up on the computer. She has to call for tech support. Nobody gets why it won't work. I have to choke back jokes about this being Malevich's famous work, "Blue Square".
Eventually it clicks on for no reason and we can present. I start off with a definition of abstract art and it's influence on Russia, then hand it over to my partner to cover Kandinsky. She's short, and so I have to cover the bulk of the time with Malevich.
We start in with his early works:
At this time he used bold strokes and usually conveyed one or two people.
Then we went into his inspiration from cubism and futurism:
That's the Knife Grinder. We then go into his collaborative work, the opera, "Victory Over the Sun"
And the style he developed with his colleagues, "Alogism".
The "log" in "Alogism" stands for "logic", and the "A", is similar to "Asymmetrical" which means "Not symetrical". So "Alogism" means "Not logical".
The point of Alogism was to contradict all conventional aspects of art so that it challenged viewers to understand how their own minds work.
However, Malevich felt that by simply rebelling against artistic trends, was still allowing for artists to be defined by those trends.
He felt that God had given humanity talent to create, and that immitating God's creations was theft.
So he rejected form, including his own human form. He strove to reduce everything to zero, which would reveal a void. But he wasn't satisfied with the void, he wanted to arrive on the other side, and create the first truly original human creation.
And thus he created Black Square, which was bringing "Zero to one"
He began his own art movement, "Suprematism", which meant "Supremacy over form". He said that Black Square was the face of Suprematism, and it was his "Royal infant" that would grow into the rest of Suprematism.
Having to call a black square a royal infant in front of a crowd of colleagues has to be one of my most humiliating moments.
After this I showed another one of his works:
That's "White on White", two slightly differently off-coloured white squares set atop one another. I explained this as the tilted white square representing motion. I said that when I first looked at this image, I thought that if I wanted to represent motion, I might draw a bird or a train, but then I realized that with those images came all the perceptions and biases associated with them With a neutral image such as White on White, we can observe the concept of motion in its purest form, without any attached biases.
Then we looked at Yellow and Black
This was the class example where our instructor said it took a long time to analyze because it looked correct no matter which angle you observed it from.
I said that because it looked correct no matter the orientation, this gave the impression of a lack of gravity, and a sense of motion, where you could easily imagine it "tripping through space" which emphasized Malevich's "Cosmic reality" which opposed and earthly one.
At the end of the presentation she thanked us for a very interesting presentation. At the end of class, she repeated that she would like to thank today's presenters. Felt that was a good sign
Got our grade back today. Unfortunately, it was the worst grade that I have received in this class to date.
That means we only got 97%! So far my grades are:
Test 1: 100%
Test 2: 100%
Abstract: 100%
Presentation: 97%
I should just move to Russia.
Thursday, February 22, 2018
Court Again
Went to court today. I've mentioned it, but my landlord had been increasing my rent by an illegal amount and refusing to show me my lease. When I opted to pay him only what he could legally claim based on increases from my initial rent, he decided to put in a court order.
I told him that if my initial rent was $939.00 on January 2016, then it could only have been increased to $953.09 at a 1.5% increase in 2017, and then to $970.25 at a 1.8% increase in 2018. But he was saying I owed him $972.54 for 2017 and $990.05 for 2018.
He told me that my initial rent was discounted, and the discount became inactive after my first year, "as we had discussed". This is the man who told me that I had to pay him an extra half month of rent because even if I had moved in January 1st, he had accepted me December 15th. This is the guy who, for the first four months that I had lived in the unit, told me my cheque bounced and that I would have to write him another, and I would have to show him a bank statement showing he was wrong. Giving a discount would be very out of character for him.
I told him that we had not discussed the discount, asked him what the discount was for, and told him I would need to see the lease to verify. He refused to answer all these questions. I also told him that he had reported me as having paid less than I had for June and October 2017 and I had bank statements to prove it. He refused to comment.
Happened in a text conversation, so I had him on record for denying me my lease and not answering questions. Told him I would be reporting this information if he chose to take this to court, that I would be pushing to have him pay the court application fee, and that I would be looking into paying the Landlord and Tenant Board directly from hereon out.
So, knowing what information I had, I was surprised that he decided to issue me a court notice.
This is the second time I've been to court with him this year. First time, when I explained the situation, his lawyer cussed him out, "F*** my life. He's trying to charge for fifty f***ing dollars. I don't give a sh**, I really don't give a sh**, he's trying to evict on pennies". Then when I told him my take on the rent situation he said "I'll take your word for it". When he told the judge the situation, she laughed at my landlord, and he wound up having to pay some minor charges.
After that exchange, I was surprised my landlord wanted to go round two.
I saw the judge again this time, but there were two hearings being held, and she was overseeing the other one. Saw the lawyer, but he was representing a different case. Neither of them recognized me.
I had prepared thoroughly once more. I had bank statements for every month since moving into the unit as well as images of each of the cheques, I had copies for each rental notice and records of him denying me the lease, and three copies of all relevant information.
As soon as I told his lawyer that he had been denying me the lease, she was just like "I'll make a copy for you. I'm doing that right now."
So now I have a copy of my lease. I'm the first person that I know of in my complex to have one.
Aggravatingly enough, it turns out his numbers mostly check out. I had a 2% "prompt payment discount" in 2016, meaning that I got 2% off if I paid on the first of the month. The discount wore off at the end of the year, meaning that it was a 1.5% increase from $957.78, not $939.
I have no idea why he would refuse me access to the lease if his numbers checked out, or why he would refuse to answer what the discount was for if there was a valid answer.
We had never discussed this. We had in fact never met before I moved in, I had only communicated with the then-Superintendant. It's also a little weird that the base rent is not stated on the lease, only the discounted rent, and that it states in the fine print that the base rent is 2% more than the stated amount.
But still, it says the lease was active January 1st, 2016, so I'm glad I didn't pay for December 15, 2015 like he was requesting. And he still misreported me for June and October 2017.
Whatever. I have a small expense to pay, but after two years and two months I finally managed to obtain my lease.
I told him that if my initial rent was $939.00 on January 2016, then it could only have been increased to $953.09 at a 1.5% increase in 2017, and then to $970.25 at a 1.8% increase in 2018. But he was saying I owed him $972.54 for 2017 and $990.05 for 2018.
He told me that my initial rent was discounted, and the discount became inactive after my first year, "as we had discussed". This is the man who told me that I had to pay him an extra half month of rent because even if I had moved in January 1st, he had accepted me December 15th. This is the guy who, for the first four months that I had lived in the unit, told me my cheque bounced and that I would have to write him another, and I would have to show him a bank statement showing he was wrong. Giving a discount would be very out of character for him.
I told him that we had not discussed the discount, asked him what the discount was for, and told him I would need to see the lease to verify. He refused to answer all these questions. I also told him that he had reported me as having paid less than I had for June and October 2017 and I had bank statements to prove it. He refused to comment.
Happened in a text conversation, so I had him on record for denying me my lease and not answering questions. Told him I would be reporting this information if he chose to take this to court, that I would be pushing to have him pay the court application fee, and that I would be looking into paying the Landlord and Tenant Board directly from hereon out.
So, knowing what information I had, I was surprised that he decided to issue me a court notice.
This is the second time I've been to court with him this year. First time, when I explained the situation, his lawyer cussed him out, "F*** my life. He's trying to charge for fifty f***ing dollars. I don't give a sh**, I really don't give a sh**, he's trying to evict on pennies". Then when I told him my take on the rent situation he said "I'll take your word for it". When he told the judge the situation, she laughed at my landlord, and he wound up having to pay some minor charges.
After that exchange, I was surprised my landlord wanted to go round two.
I saw the judge again this time, but there were two hearings being held, and she was overseeing the other one. Saw the lawyer, but he was representing a different case. Neither of them recognized me.
I had prepared thoroughly once more. I had bank statements for every month since moving into the unit as well as images of each of the cheques, I had copies for each rental notice and records of him denying me the lease, and three copies of all relevant information.
As soon as I told his lawyer that he had been denying me the lease, she was just like "I'll make a copy for you. I'm doing that right now."
So now I have a copy of my lease. I'm the first person that I know of in my complex to have one.
Aggravatingly enough, it turns out his numbers mostly check out. I had a 2% "prompt payment discount" in 2016, meaning that I got 2% off if I paid on the first of the month. The discount wore off at the end of the year, meaning that it was a 1.5% increase from $957.78, not $939.
I have no idea why he would refuse me access to the lease if his numbers checked out, or why he would refuse to answer what the discount was for if there was a valid answer.
We had never discussed this. We had in fact never met before I moved in, I had only communicated with the then-Superintendant. It's also a little weird that the base rent is not stated on the lease, only the discounted rent, and that it states in the fine print that the base rent is 2% more than the stated amount.
But still, it says the lease was active January 1st, 2016, so I'm glad I didn't pay for December 15, 2015 like he was requesting. And he still misreported me for June and October 2017.
Whatever. I have a small expense to pay, but after two years and two months I finally managed to obtain my lease.
Sunday, February 11, 2018
Sickness, Exercise, Board Game
I've been sick the past few days. Started with stomach cramps, turned into digestive issues. Cramps subsided, still had difficulty digesting. Low fever developed. Was blinking in and out of consciousness for almost three days. Day and night didn't mean much to me. Had to cancel two work shifts and skip a lecture. One of the people I work with was unavailable, so you can look at it as either me being fortunate in not having to cancel on another person, or me missing out on a day off.
It's Kind of like what I had at Christmas, but at least the most painful symptoms came one after the other instead of all at once, for some reason. Kind of annoyed that the same thing happened to me twice in under three months,
My roommate got it too, right after I got better. If everyone's going to get it, it's better to rotate the illness than to have it all at once, since it leaves at least one able-bodied person to go out and fetch supplies.
Fever dreams are always quite entertaining. This time, I had a dream that one of the pet cats in Guelph passed away, but she came back to life as a bag of shredded carrot. In my dream, my mother described seeing her attempting to possess the bag of shredded carrot, and encouraging her by calling "Come here little one! It's okay honey!" So this bag of shredded carrot actually came to life and would meow, purr and curl up on your lap. I vividly remember that this specific bag of shredded carrot was inspired by one that is currently in my fridge. In my dream, I remember saying that I was grateful that she came back to us, but wasn't it strange that she could live without a brain and make sounds without vocal chords.
There was a certain time when I was sick, when the cramps and the fever were gone and I had regained my energy, but I still had the digestive issues and needed to be near a bathroom at all times. That issue did not seem to be subsiding at all, and it made me wonder if this was just something I'd have to live with from here on out. I got better in one fell swoop the next day, though.
Today I managed to leave the house for the first time since the illness set in. Tomorrow, I will go back to work. I don't know if I'm back 100% though. All I had appetite for today were some crispers, and I keep sweating, even in the cold. I feel great though.
My roommate is a former body builder and is the type that exercises for enjoyment. The type that feels stress and needs to "work it out". I can't empathize. When I feel stressed, I want to eat and sleep. Exercise feels boring, repetitive, painful, and time consuming. But I'm trying to turn my mind around. He dug out a track through the snow in our backyard through the community area to the fence that separates us from the creek. At first I didn't think it would be very strenuous, because the track isn't very long, but it poses a unique challenge. When running on a track or on a treadmill, you usually start strong and then run until you meet your stride. With this thing, you sprint to the fence, skid to a stop, sprint back to the yard, skid to a stop and sprint back. Plus half of it is downhill, so every time you hit the fence, you sprint back uphill.
I've used it three times. First time I did so covertly under the dead of night, because I wanted to find out how out of shape I was privately. I overdid it, wound up hacking and coughing so bad it lasted better part of a day and I pretended I was sick to everyone else so I didn't have to explain that I was still gasping for breath 12 hours after having done the run.
My roommate does that run while punching the air, holding weights, wearing a weighted vest, and wearing a gas mask that prevents part of his oxygen flow to simulate being on a mountain. And he does it for fun.
My brother was in a Sailor Moon board game commercial. He's Sailor Mercury, and he got 2nd place in the tournament.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIfB0L3r26k&feature=youtu.be
It's Kind of like what I had at Christmas, but at least the most painful symptoms came one after the other instead of all at once, for some reason. Kind of annoyed that the same thing happened to me twice in under three months,
My roommate got it too, right after I got better. If everyone's going to get it, it's better to rotate the illness than to have it all at once, since it leaves at least one able-bodied person to go out and fetch supplies.
Fever dreams are always quite entertaining. This time, I had a dream that one of the pet cats in Guelph passed away, but she came back to life as a bag of shredded carrot. In my dream, my mother described seeing her attempting to possess the bag of shredded carrot, and encouraging her by calling "Come here little one! It's okay honey!" So this bag of shredded carrot actually came to life and would meow, purr and curl up on your lap. I vividly remember that this specific bag of shredded carrot was inspired by one that is currently in my fridge. In my dream, I remember saying that I was grateful that she came back to us, but wasn't it strange that she could live without a brain and make sounds without vocal chords.
There was a certain time when I was sick, when the cramps and the fever were gone and I had regained my energy, but I still had the digestive issues and needed to be near a bathroom at all times. That issue did not seem to be subsiding at all, and it made me wonder if this was just something I'd have to live with from here on out. I got better in one fell swoop the next day, though.
Today I managed to leave the house for the first time since the illness set in. Tomorrow, I will go back to work. I don't know if I'm back 100% though. All I had appetite for today were some crispers, and I keep sweating, even in the cold. I feel great though.
My roommate is a former body builder and is the type that exercises for enjoyment. The type that feels stress and needs to "work it out". I can't empathize. When I feel stressed, I want to eat and sleep. Exercise feels boring, repetitive, painful, and time consuming. But I'm trying to turn my mind around. He dug out a track through the snow in our backyard through the community area to the fence that separates us from the creek. At first I didn't think it would be very strenuous, because the track isn't very long, but it poses a unique challenge. When running on a track or on a treadmill, you usually start strong and then run until you meet your stride. With this thing, you sprint to the fence, skid to a stop, sprint back to the yard, skid to a stop and sprint back. Plus half of it is downhill, so every time you hit the fence, you sprint back uphill.
I've used it three times. First time I did so covertly under the dead of night, because I wanted to find out how out of shape I was privately. I overdid it, wound up hacking and coughing so bad it lasted better part of a day and I pretended I was sick to everyone else so I didn't have to explain that I was still gasping for breath 12 hours after having done the run.
My roommate does that run while punching the air, holding weights, wearing a weighted vest, and wearing a gas mask that prevents part of his oxygen flow to simulate being on a mountain. And he does it for fun.
My brother was in a Sailor Moon board game commercial. He's Sailor Mercury, and he got 2nd place in the tournament.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIfB0L3r26k&feature=youtu.be
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