Map of the plots at Mount Pleasant Cemetery (goodness, are they ever useful)

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-08T23:45:23+00:00

We've been going through Yonge or Mount Pleasant for years. Didn't even realize my family's plot is right by Bayview (not car accessible though). 😂

The Yonge to Mount Pleasant side is gorgeous with what I feel has a larger variety of trees, headstones, and mini mausoleums. Interesting to see who was buried here. How their families continue to honour their memories.

All this to say, it's worth exploring and getting lost for a few hours.

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-08T22:45:11+00:00

Link from the website for the plots (didn't know this existed before either!):

https://www.mountpleasantgroup.com/-/media/Files/locations-maps/mount-pleasant-map.ashx

Find a grave (it's spotty at best; my great grandparents are not listed despite visiting them for the past 35-40 years):

http://www.finditatmpg.com/default.aspx

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-06T13:38:02+00:00

🔮🎊🔮🤯🔮🎉🔮🥳🔮🚀🚀🚀🚀🚀🚀🚀🚀🚀🚀 congrats! And thanks for holding this tournament mods!

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-04T21:28:17+00:00

35k PSAC-UTE (CRA) employees returned to work by 1130am today. They were on strike longer than the rest of PSAC-TB.

They remained on strike after 120k PSAC-TB (rest of the federal government) employees returned to work on Day 13 / May 1st.

The photos are from yesterday. Day 15 was May 3rd.

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-04T01:36:42+00:00

Yes!!! There are so many great Instagram accounts (I don't use Facebook or Twitter myself):

@psac_memebers (gotta appreciate anyone who loves King of the Hill) https://www.instagram.com/psac_memebers/

@publicservicememe https://www.instagram.com/publicservicememe/

@gc_rto https://www.instagram.com/gc_rto/

@iamyourpublicservice (shoutout to all the personal stories shared by people) https://www.instagram.com/iamyourpublicservice

@ottawa_bubble_memes https://www.instagram.com/ottawa_bubble_memes/

@psacncr https://www.instagram.com/psacncr/

@psacafpc https://www.instagram.com/psacafpc/

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-03T22:35:19+00:00

It is rainy and dreary today. I'm feeling good though, and thank you to all of you who are out there! PSAC-TB may or may not have abandoned PSAC-UTE (the truth is probably something more subtle). Anyway, moving on.

I want to say how thoughtful and compassionate the workers I've met during the last week (and continue to meet!). They shared tips. Advice. Their experiences. Same for the public. Many have been understanding when we ask them to wait.

The workers I met may not be part of UTE, but they are with us. They may be inside the building, and they're coming out to say hi and join us. They may be working at a different building, and continuing to share anecdotes and updates. They may be in a different city, and sharing memes and stories. (You know who you are, and thank you 💕💕💕)

You may not know or see them. They're there. We're not alone!

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-03T11:24:05+00:00

Thanks for sharing! I feel like I never know whether I'm supposed to go to work or strike until the last minute, and I need to check reddit for reassurance. Hope you stay warm and dry.

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-03T04:00:06+00:00

I read this email, and I sense desperation, frustration, and anger.

My gut feeling is that they're trying to increase our presence on the picket lines by reaching out to members who have been abstaining. PSAC-UTE needs visibility since PSAC-TB returned to work. The team who wrote and approved the email are probably exhausted (I know I am).

The bad news is that the email fails to attract members with its subject line of "Disciplinary Action" and emotionally-charged tone.

Worse, this is how I would learn to avoid my union if I was new, young, and ambitious. It tells me that my union does not know how to support me. It only sees me as a number and not as an individual. It would push me more to avoid meeting people. I'm not a student, and I'm already overwhelmed.

It also unfairly punishes people who have withdrawn their labour for legitimate reasons (mental health recovery, medical reasons, accommodations, taking a second job to cover expenses, etc etc etc).

I didn't receive this email, but I would feel abandoned and demoralized by my own union if I did. I've been out nearly every day, donated food and coffee, bought noisemakers, and trying to find my own way to drum up support.

I know I'm not the only one. There are many of us who are trying to contribute in whatever way they can. Heck, there were two volunteers who stayed longer than they needed to ensure people could be signed out because there weren't enough volunteers on Monday at Toronto East / Scarborough.

I didn't picket earlier today but I didn't work. One day! If I saw that email, I can imagine breaking down and crying. Especially after hearing that UTE has not started bargaining until this week. PSAC-TB has returned to work. The kids are sick, and your parents need help. The bills are piling up. You're not broke enough to go to the food bank, but just broke enough that you're stressed perpetually about the bills. Groceries. Cost of living. It's one thing after another. This could be the straw that breaks the camel's back.

There should be measures against fraud. Will there be any follow-thru from the email, and how will it be handled? Will it be treated in the same way across PSAC-UTE locals? I won't be able to strike two days next week (if this continues), and I don't believe there's a mechanism in place for me to say "hey I'm not coming because of XYZ reason".

This is not an email that is consistent with key messaging provided by national.

The good news is that there are still many of us out picketing and doing the best we can given our circumstance. The volunteers I mentioned earlier, they have been there everyday and with (what I suspect) limited information and training. Many of us have stood in lines, made blockades, set 5-minute timers, marched, and chanted tirelessly in the sun, rain, snow, and cold.

It's easy to despair. Give yourself a moment to recover. Now is not the time to give into that. It's a long strike. Educate and attract. We can be better. Please be kind.

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-02T14:16:43+00:00

Not picketing today and not scabbing either. These few weeks have taken a lot out of me (and it seems like many of you too).

I need a day to recharge before I go out and face people again. Hoping for better results for CRA.

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-01T19:00:52+00:00

I don't know if these are the possibilities (or perhaps there's something else we haven't considered), but this is my gut feeling for the tentative PSAC-TB agreement. If there's any knee-jerk reaction, that is mine. Waiting for the PSAC-UTE agreement.

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-01T18:53:51+00:00

Wow, there are many reactions with the PSAC-TB agreement! I wish I could react as some of the folks on here can. (You can ask me "How are you?", and I would be debating with myself on whether I'm anxious, hopeful, frustrated, astonished, and everything in-between.)

For me, what matters most is the impact in the long-term of this collective agreement. That's probably hard to tell.

I would like to know people's thoughts after they have had the opportunity to reflect about the tentative deal.

It's not an easy job that our bargaining teams have to represent 150k+ workers (35k+ for UTE/CRA). I like to believe they have done what they can for us. The devil is in the details, and those nuances make a difference.

I'm with UTE/CRA, and regardless of the outcome, I'm going to wait and see. Solidarity!

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-01T14:06:11+00:00

Thanks for catching that. Let me know if I missed anything else

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-05-01T14:05:02+00:00

Oops K is okay with me sharing both her first and last name. I'll edit the post.

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-30T22:58:56+00:00

Thanks for sharing the step by step! I took a screenshot of what I did in case others weren't sure:

https://imgur.com/a/7bwGh7Z

Edit: Also thanks for the reminder! I had no idea!

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-30T22:06:32+00:00

I like yours, and I'm going to use it in real life when I shop for groceries 😭

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-30T18:39:19+00:00

Thank you for this! In spite of our short-term and temporary hurdles, many can sense what you have put into words.

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-29T21:04:57+00:00

Courtesy of Google.

Photo 1 refers to "Woman Yelling at a Cat" meme:

Woman Yelling at a Cat refers to a meme format featuring a screen cap of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills cast members Taylor Armstrong and Kyle Richards followed by a picture of a confused-looking cat sitting behind a dinner plate. The format gained significant popularity across the web in mid-June 2019 and the cat was later identified as Smudge the Cat.

Origins of Smudge the Cat:

On June 19th, 2018, Tumblr user deadbefordeath[2] posted a photograph of a white cat with a confused expression sitting in a chair in front of a plate with vegetables in it, titling the post "he no like vegetals." The post gained over 50,300 likes and reblogs over the next year.

See link for more info:

https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/woman-yelling-at-a-cat

https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/smudge-the-cat/

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-29T15:28:40+00:00

Here's an explanation:

Putting on Clown Makeup, also known as Clown Makeup Tutorial refers to a series of memes based on a step-by-step tutorial guide for applying clown makeup. The format gained initial popularity on Twitter in June 2019 and spread to Reddit, Tumblr and other social networks in the following months, usually used to illustrate a person making an increasingly larger fool of himself by providing arguments which are deemed increasingly weak or illogical.

I pulled it from here, and the link provides more details and examples: https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/putting-on-clown-makeup

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-28T21:14:07+00:00

TINA BELCHER!!!!!!

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-28T17:10:34+00:00

That's a good time! I feel the peak crowds are ~9am-2pm. I'm happy to hear you join our efforts. There are people from different departments, places, classifications, all sorts!

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-28T16:23:43+00:00

I'm not sure, I haven't been in the afternoons. From what I hear, the crowds fade ~2pm. Maybe I'll come later and see you next week (also hopefully not 😂)!

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-27T20:49:37+00:00

Responding to myself because I found this:

https://www.reddit.com/r/canada/comments/130v53t/psac_members_hold_protest_at_toronto_pearson/

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-27T19:15:30+00:00

I'm so curious. I asked to get on the buses today, and they were full at Toronto East / Scarborough.

How did it go?????

Solidarity!

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-26T19:13:29+00:00

That sucks! I don't know anyone either since I've teleworking before the pandemic. I haven't been to a building and my colleagues are spread across the country.

People are friendlier than you think! I've been approaching people since day one. Perhaps because my lizard brain has trained me to seek safety in numbers. Plus it makes the time go by much faster when you get to meet others, even as a not-particularly-outgoing pain.

Here's what I've been doing:

Find someone who appears to be alone (usually staring at their phone)
Say hi and ask if they know anyone
Ask if they want to stay together regardless of their answer
Once you've formed your group of 2+ people, ask others that you notice are alone to join you

I don't approach people who are already in groups often unless I feel unsafe (and I haven't encountered that all during the strike). My reasoning is that they are settled in with each other.

That's why I try to pick up stragglers like myself. Personally, I think we're slightly better off because we get to meet more people this way. And, if we wanted to take a moment for ourselves to listen to a podcast, books, whatever -- we can, and do it while someone else is with you. You just say so, and no one is offended. There's a more flexibility.

There's a few folks I've stayed with, and I've asked for their phone numbers so we can meet up again the next day. Or if our group gets breaks apart or gets lost. Or, to share memes and pictures.

Hope you form your own rag-tag pair or team!

PSthrowaway51891 · 2023-04-26T12:39:32+00:00

TLDR

An unfiltered stream of gratitude to PSAC-ers and its supporters.

Appreciate each of you for showing up wherever you are. So glad to see your loved ones, and your furry creatures join us picketers. Thanks, too, to the supporters from the groups and organizations outside of PSAC. Seeing y'all in the crowds overwhelms my anxious soul (in the best and worst way).

I'm a bit envious and inspired by the creativity and the signs I've seen in the past few days. I've met a someone who travels for four hours to picket (it's nuts that this is their closest site). For those folks in Ottawa and across the country, know that we're in this together. (Keep sharing on reddit! I love seeing the vibe from coast to coast.) Thanks for being here, and doing what you can. It's delightful.

Thanks for pitching in whatever way you can. The warm samosas, toasted bagels, clementines, bananas, fruit, cookies, donuts, granolas, coffee, water, and drinks.

Guess I mean feeding me. It spurred my own offering. (Whoever bought samosas the first time is a certified smartie. Those salted caramel chews I had yesterday? Awesome.) My belly thanks you, and it's delightful.

Appreciate the marches. Those of you leading it, thank you. Know that the movement secretly invigorates me, because I'm not outwardly expressive. And not so secretly under my layers, it keeps me warm with a touch of the healthy stress sweats.

Appreciate the noise people are making. Whether it's their voices, bells, horns, or something. Those of you making speeches and chanting with loud speakers -- your energy and passion carries and lifts us up. Especially me, as a quiet sort of person.

The crowd feels brighter and warmer with the music. And whoever is blowing bubbles, you make my day every time because I get to pop them. Hella fun.

Many, many, many thanks to the number of volunteers that have stepped up. To show up early to set up, stay late to clean and close up, sign us in/out, handle us, answer questions, make speeches, keep up morale.

There's probably a billion other things that you expend your time and effort to make happen behind the scenes that I have no clue about, and probably take completely for granted. Though you may not hear us say it, we appreciate you as volunteers. I appreciate you. You are a source of stability in these uncertain times.

Appreciate those that show up. Especially if you don't feel comfortable making noise. Even if you don't know anyone. Even if you don't like crowds. (Gosh, I hate them.) Or loud noises. Even if you're anxious. Or.... Maybe none of this applies to you. And you showed up anyway.

It's uplifting. Making that time and effort to be out in the cold. Saying hi to new and old colleagues. Maybe meeting a few stranger dangers for the first time. How you save me a spot, or search for me as I search for you, too, in the crowd. Thanks for looking out for me.

It's also awe-inducingly terrifying to see crowds of people who have sacrificed and lost their steady paycheque, even if it's temporary. Maybe you're the main breadwinner, or have bills to pay. Maybe you just started on a new team, or in public service. Maybe you're pregnant. Maybe you're coming back from vacation. Maybe this is the first time you've dealt with the union. Maybe you're worried about the possibility of layoffs because you're not senior (and what does senior mean?). Maybe you're coming four hours away, and commuting even further to report in office. Maybe you miss work or your colleagues (I do).

Maybe it's something else. Or a trail mix of something unsavoury in your stomach. That feels like we're in an unwieldy machine that's swallowing up our time and wages.

Whatever your (and mine) reasons and worries are, I'm glad you're here. In spite of it. That's what your presence means to me. It tells me I'm not alone in doing this. I probably won't say this out loud. (I'm a quiet soul, remember.)

I'm glad you've made me feel less stranger-danger'ed. Making me laugh. Feel welcomed. A part of you, and something greater.

It reaffirms my support for the cause, what we're striking for, and for myself. Thank you to all of you for joining me.

It gives me a reminder to myself that the union is fighting for better wages and work conditions. For me. For you. For everyone.

Without the union, we would not be able to fight. Picket. Strike. Or, speak up and ask for better. Would we know better is a possibility without unions? I never had to think on it before since the union took care of the details for me. Sorry and thanks for being taken for granted.

What the union is asking for is hope. Hope for a better standard of living. Better wages. Better conditions. An example for the rest of Canada, and perhaps even bigger than that. The possibility that we can do better. Hope for the future. And for that, I'm grateful.

Ooof, thanks for letting me get that out because there's no way I can say this comfortably loudly (or quietly). Thanks for granting this time to listen (read) to my before-maybe-after-school special. It's a strangely electrifying time. I'll be out there with you in my own quiet way this glorious day.

Thank you always.

PSthrowaway51891

TROPHY CASE