[sunnykerr]

The raise was non-negotiable. I would have had to walk away if they hadn't raised me significantly. Because money has been tight for a long time and the price of everything is going up, so my salary needed to more than keep up this year.

Honestly, the raise could have been better. But I was expecting worse, so...

They're not technically changing the lunch hours per se. We have to work 15 minutes more each day. So, in theory, people could choose to start 15 minutes earlier or leave 15 minutes later instead. But, like, who would do that? Well, I shouldn't presume no one will.

So, I went to my mother's today with my brother, sister-in-law and nephews. It was great. The youngest wasn't feeling too well, though. Still adorable, but coughing up a storm. The oldest, who turned 5 at the start of the month, just cracks me up. And he finds me hilarious, because I put it on a bit thick to get that reaction out of him. It's a match made in heaven.

He was cold in the minivan on the way back, so I ended up piling a blanket and three scarves on top of him and then putting my tuque over his head. It came down to his chin and he was delighted. Kept asking his mother if she could see him.

[MsPerfectionist]

the raise on our salary can't keep up with cost of life and the raise on the minimum wage every year.

for 15 min, it's ridiculous. wouldn't it be easier to adjust the lunch hours?

i'm glad u had great family time today aww kids are cute.

i'm thinking to go to the lego store tomorrow

[sunnykerr]

For once, the raise I got should cover the rise in cost of life, etc. At least, I hope it will. Because it's given me hope that the next year might be more alright for me, financially. By which I really mean that I'll be able to stop being aware 24-7 of exactly just how much money I have or don't have in my bank account.

But, even as we were discussing this abnormally "generous" raise I received, the HR people who told me of it were still talking about how the company tries to stick to a 2% raise each year... and, like, no one got a raise last year (well, there were exceptions, because there are always exceptions where I work) and the inflation right now is closer to 6%, so a 2% raise would have been like taking a pay cut.

The 15 minute things... HR where I work really like to play it like we're all super free and have all the advantages in the world. So they're never gonna come down and say "we're taking 15 minutes out of your lunch hour." They're rather meet with every single employee, one on one, to have them "decide." Because, you know, we're all about productivity.

There's a lego store? Where? You don't understand. The 5-year-old is in love with anything lego. It may even, some day, years in the future, outstrip his love of monster trucls and anything car or vehicle-related. In fact, I may be creating a bit of a family controversy at Christmas because I have bought him a kiddo microscope and yet more basic lego sets while I have bought for his younger brother a submarine bath toy and a semi-large cargo plane toy.

But if I come in with the notion that there's a lego store? My reputation as world's best aunt may be restored...

[MsPerfectionist]

yeah 2% that's just readjustment to the inflation that's what i call it. there was a time that i got a 0.10$ per hour raise .

productivity, haha 15 min more of work i'm sure we're doing a lot more with those additional minutes.

There are 2 in the area: Fairview Pointe-Claire, Carrefour Laval. if u see a product out of stock online, they might have it in store (u can select the stores to see if it's still in stock). it's a "dangerous" place for our wallet. from star wars, harry potter to christmas theme legos, there's something for everyone.

wait until u bring the kid to Legoland (in Toronto) u sure is the best aunt.
https://www.legolanddiscoverycentre.com/toronto/

[sunnykerr]

I actually meant that the big comments we get at our yearly evaluations is on our productivity. Not sure how productive it is for the HR department to meet everyone one on one to discuss removing 15 minutes from their lunch time. Basically, it's like the "rules" don't apply to them. We have to be productive, but they don't.

Ah, now I understand why I didn't know about the lego stores: way outside my reach. But it's good to know there's one in Laval. I wonder if that's where my mother found the lego sets she bought for the 5-year-old's birthday. If not, I'll have to bring to her attention that there's a store there. It's not too, too far for her.

I can see why it would be dangerous for a person who appreciates legos, though. Heck, just going through Walmart the other week, I ended up getting a puzzle for myself. I like puzzles, but I have zero surface on which to do a puzzle... unless you count the floor.

[MsPerfectionist]

sadly that's how it usually is. they squeeze the last drop of our energy to get things done and then we wonder are they doing anything for us in return. it feels like one-way.

in the store, u can make ur own lego characters with a mix and match of hair, outfit, accessories. one of these days i'm gonna make some i never had any lego when i was a kid.

puzzles are fun too i find them quite relaxing. hmm i guess the floor it is

only 3 days of work left. needless to say i already have zero motivation today...

[sunnykerr]

HR is only there to make sure we can't sue the company. I'm sure some of them care about the employees, but I'm also certain a lot of that is lip service. Anyway, the new hours come into effect in the new year. I honestly don't believe it'll make much difference.

We had legos as kids. What happened was that my brother and I were significantly younger than our cousins. For the most part, my aunts and uncles had their kids about 10 years before my parents. There are exceptions, of course, but I don't want to get bogged down with the details. What I'm trying to get at is that my parents didn't have a lot of money, but we did end up with all the toys that had survived the previous generations of cousins. And probably toys they got from friends of theirs who didn't have anyone else to hand them down to.

So we had plenty of leggos. But either specialized lego sets weren't a thing back then or the toys weren't passed down to us for whatever reason, but we "only" had basic cubes. I mean, we had a ton of those, but I have no memory of anything meant to build something specific.

I enjoy puzzles. I haven't done a physical one since I was a kid... I think. We'll see what happens with the one I got.

I think having zero motivation is par for the course when you're a few days from a vacation... either before one or after one.

[MsPerfectionist]

yep probably no difference.

i think it's a great idea, to pass down toys. it saves a lot of money as kids get easily bored with toys.

back then, it was different. it was more sets of legos to build what u want, free style. i still remembered.

what's the design of ur puzzle?

only 2 days. i'm glad the 2 new clients are easy to talk to. as my patience is very low at this time of year, i appreciate good clients.

[sunnykerr]

Passing stuff down through the generations is a great idea. It's how I grew up. Secondhand clothes, secondhand toys, secondhand books... The funny thing is that I used to be pretty embarassed by the secondhand clothes thing and now, of course, I think it's a genius thing.

The puzzle I got is actually two-sided. So one side has a Canadian mountain fall landscape view with the leaves in all the usual glorious colours of that season, and the other side has an Australian bridge with a big dusk sky behind it. I didn't realize it was two-sided when I bought it... which makes me wonder how much attention I was spending since it's very obviously announced as a two-sided puzzle. And the only reason I know the flip side if an Australian landscape is because it says so on the box. It's not a view I recognize.

I understand being low on patience at this time of the year. For reasons that quite escape me, I've connected to my work e-mail a couple of times and been pretty peeved at finding out that I have clients who have contacted my colleague to take over some of my work since I'm away. I've been doubly peeved at seeing her agree to do so. She's away next week. And she's always saying that she's "very busy" whenever we have department meetings. So what is she doing meddling in my stuff? Serves me right for logging in.

[MsPerfectionist]

same here. i embrace secondhanded stuff. it has history and can be fascinating.

nice! double sided wow!

ahh work...don't count me in on checking emails during time off

i need to go to bed. it seems like the more depressed i am the later i sleep

[sunnykerr]

I embrace second-hand stuff now. In large part because I'm broke (well, more like cheap and not super disciplined with my spending) and it makes things more affordable. But there's also the ethical side of things that appeals to me.

Like, I'm not thrilled with the aspect of capitalism where wealthy corporate actors get my money without treating their employees with the kind of respect I want to receive as an employee myself. So, you know, sweatshops, minimum-wage workers, etc. It's all on my conscience. Not to mention the environmental toll fast fashion has.

So, basically, I'd be buying all of my clothes from secondhand stores if I could rely on them to have what I'm looking for. That's my only hiccup there. Also, bras. I don't think secondhand bras work.

I was really worried about the two-sided nature of the puzzle when I realized it was there, but I think the colour palettes are different enough that it should be alright? Still haven't figured out when I'm meant to do it, though.

As someone who gets the winter blues and is on antidepressants for other reasons... sleep hygiene is a thing. I'm terrible at it. I also know beating yourself up about it doesn't work. I think the main thing is to make sure you're getting enough rest. After that, be patient and kind with yourself. It's helpful to sleep enough but not too much. What's not helpful is when you become an obstacle to your own health by being harsh on yourself.

[MsPerfectionist]

ethical and affordable absolutely.

yeah and it gets on my conscience when i look at the amount of clothes we leave behind and that's just a part of it that we see at the charity shops.

yeah bra is best new for better elasticity. it is like a treasure hunt we don't always find what we need.

i'm sure u'll figure it out during the holidays

[sunnykerr]

I just got back from two days away, one at my brother's and one at my dad's. So that's three days in a row of getting up "early" and, naturally, I'm not feeling too great. I woke up really early this morning, like early than I do when I get up to work, and I almost got up (because everyone else was) and then I thought "f that."

And thank goodness for that, because if I feel this crummy with having had plenty of rest this morning, I can't imagine how I'd be feeling if I'd gotten up. And, you know, not that my stepmother's scintillating company was that urgent to get to anyway.

I think I just need to get some decent food down my gob. My brother's was great. My dad's... it's clearly not their forte. Which is hilarious, considering the amount of effort they put into trying to fancy it up.

My nephews were awesome, if quite over-excited by everything and not at all into listening to the grown-ups which inevitably leads to tears, but I'm so tired. It's great that they want me involved in everything and it's on me that I choose to participate, but goodness me.

Now, I need to move forward with the cooking. I did a quite General Tao before going to my brother's. I need to freeze that and do a couple of other things. And then some more things.

I hope you have a nice holiday season, even if you and your mother already share the everyday.

[MsPerfectionist]

sounds like u had a great time with ur family overall.

we had fresh crab and some cake for Christmas. today we went out for groceries. tons of people at Walmart. nothing really exciting.

[sunnykerr]

Meh. I'm glad to be home alone, if I'm honest. My brother and nephews, and to a certain extent my sister-in-law as well, will always be pleasant company for me. The rest of them? I'm probably not their favourite guest either, so that'll be the end of that for me.

Fresh crab... that sounds delicious.

I can't wait to go back to Walmart, though that's partly because I have a fantasy of an "empty" Walmart and partly because money always burns my pockets after Christmas. I've bought a ton of wrapping paper... and I already have a ton, so that shows just it's more about buying than about needing. I've also bought my nephew's birthday presents. He turns three at the end of April. I did the same thing last year.

Also, as you saw, I came back from my dad's in a foul mood and, when stressed or very annoyed, I tend to fall into retail therapy.

Either way, I'm unlikely to see the inside of any store for a while. Annie's mother was hospitalized shortly before Christmas and remains there so far as I know. Meanwhile, my mother did a home test for Covid about three days after we were there (so three days before Christmas) and it came back positive. Her doctor has put her on home quarantine till January 7.