February 2022 Monthly Entry
We only had a small amount of snow a few weeks ago, but it was so insignificant that I didn't even have to deal with it. The weather has been mostly cloudy, a little rainy, and sunny. We have been generally at the freezing level or above at night too. Compared to the holidays, I'm glad winter has been mild up to this point. Just one more month and we'll reach the end. And after 34 work shifts since the holidays, we now reached the long weekend! Whew!
I mentioned last year about the upstairs boys washroom at Montecito was getting destroyed by some little fucker, who eventually got caught. I don't know if he got punished, but for awhile, the washroom wasn't as bad and not getting flooded most days. Since sometime later last month, there has been some return of past problems, but it seems kind of different. I've been noticing pissing on the floor again, but now also pissing on the wall-mounted sink and even on top of the toilet tank cover. Just last week, a bunch of toilet paper and paper towels were used to clog the urinal and toilet, hoping someone would flush and make an overflow happen. I would simply use my tongs to remove it. For the toilet this one time, a bunch of toilet paper was used to clog the drain. The sneaky bastard had the lid closed, thinking I or Jay would hit the flush nob without thinking, and let the water overflow. Good thing I checked first! I proceeded to remove the stuffed toilet paper with tongs. The next day, I noticed both toilet paper rolls were removed (they have no lock). I don't know what happened to one of them, but the other was jammed into the drain with a bunch of toilet and paper towels too - plus some feces on top. The tongs once again helped after some effort, but they had to be disinfected more throughly afterwards. Instead of replacing both toilet paper rolls, I only put one fresh one in. The next day, that was used to clog up the toilet again. So instead of wasting a fresh roll, I went into the girls washroom and took out a mostly used roll, gave them a fresh one, and put that used roll back into the boys washroom. I would continue this until the whole thing stopped and the little fucker is caught. Last week Friday, that used roll was used to clog the urinal. So same thing: used my tongs to remove the urine soaked roll, and replaced the boys' toilet paper holder with a used roll from the girls washroom. The principal was aware of this after our complaint and the EAs would again try to keep an eye on which boys are coming and going from the washroom. Jay checks at times and once he notices the vandalism, he locks the door, which forces the boys to go downstairs to his larger washroom - which has been getting its fair share of disgusting vandalism these days too (in the past, it didn't happen near as much as mine upstairs). Come Thursday, they believe they caught the same kid doing this as before! I guess that "apology" he was forced to write to Jay a few months ago only meant the toilet paper it was worth! I heard that the principal will contact the kid's parents about it... which should have been done the first time he was caught! Outside of that, work hasn't changed and I still struggle most nights to get done on time.
On the last Saturday in January, I went to my union meeting on Zoom. This was not a monthly meeting, it was specifically about our upcoming collective bargaining. There were different Zoom meeting days and times for each support staff department. Custodial fell on 12pm. At the meeting, there was only six of us: my shop steward, a sub-foreman, and myself were the actual only custodians at the meeting. The union president and a provincial representative (which she didn't say anything) were also present. There was a sixth person but she must have had technical issues as her webcam and microphone were not on. After some introductions, I got to speak and I would be the only making a case for a change in the agreement. I advocated that we be given more freedom to book vacation/gratuity time off during the entire school year, and not be regulated to only the winter, spring, and summer break periods. Everyone agreed that management bitches and complains about the lack of custodial muscle during the summer scrub - and yet we are forced to take all or the majority of our vacation time! There was some clarification from the president: technically, those with four or more weeks of annual vacation can take up to 5 days worth of vacation time outside the break periods. I didn't know that but sadly, my seniority has me at 3 weeks vacation so I don't get that benefit and won't for another 2 or 3 years. We at least could improve the 5 days to 10 days as a start. The way I saw it, as long as a custodian gives a lot of notice for days he or she wants off, management should just give it to us. But at the end, everyone agreed we should look into the concept of using our vacation days more freely - which will allow for more of us to work in the summer and use those saved days for the fall and winter seasons. I was glad to get the ball rolling.
During the last full week of January, I had three days worth of appointments back-to-back before work. Starting on Wednesday, January 26 I did my second appointment at my dentist in downtown Vancouver. They had to work on my chipped filling, which took under an hour. They had to freeze and numb my jaw with a shot, which was discomforting. The procedure was a success, but I was left with a numb jaw that wouldn't go away for around 6 hours. I've never felt this for over 20 years, when I had one of my wisdom teeth taken out. I haven't eaten before the appointment and needed to have something before work. I transited back to Brentwood where I parked my car and had a bowl of Vietnamese beef pho at the food court. I tried to chew the sliced beef on the numbed side, but it would hardly break down and would get stuck in my teeth. I had to chew on the other side of my mouth. It was a good meal and helped decrease the numbness a little bit. I had some teeth sensitivity whenever I would brush for the next few days. My next dentist appointment will be June 7 and will also be my first real cleaning since 2008. The next day was physiotherapy, which I needed because of some discomfort in my right back shoulder blade from the snow shoveling I did weeks earlier. Colin, my physiotherapist, had just come back from a trip to Nova Scotia. We talked about it as he was painfully massaging and finger-digging my arm. While the discomfort still exists, it has gone down a lot. And then finally on Friday the next day, it was getting my booster shot. Once again, it was at Langley Events Centre. I arrived a few minutes late as I rushed to get to the appointment, only to realize I forgot my needed ID and vaccine card! I was 5 minutes away from home so I called my folks to tell them to go get my passport holder in my room so I could drive back, pick it up from them outside, and then immediately drive away. Anyways, I was surprised to find that we had a choice this time for the booster shot: Pfizer or Moderna. I was told by the health care worker that Moderna gave slightly more protection, but I took Pfizer for two reasons: the last two shots were Pfizer and I wanted to avoid mixing other companies' vaccines unless it's unavoidable, and I have a good immune system anyways. I only had a sore arm for a few days again, but no reaction to the shot as far as I know - maybe just a little more tiredness. And with that, my three day-to-day appointments were complete.
Two Sundays ago I turned the big 40. I thought of a theme for that day: going back and visit to where all things started. After I got up, I texted my younger sister as she gave me birthday wishes. I asked if I could borrow her for a couple hours as I wanted her to join me on a trip. She didn't get back to me yet, but my mom said she was at work until 4pm. Bummer, so I was going to do this nostalgic trip on my own. Sometime after 2pm, I drove all the way from Langley to Richmond and on No.1 road, I turned west onto Moresby Drive. I pass Quilchena Elementary School and coming up, was the house I first grew up in. The house was built in (I think) 1976 and it looks 90% unchanged from when we left it. The light yellow with brown trim hasn't changed, the picket fence is still there and in good condition, the concrete hasn't been updated either. Honestly, the house barely changed since we moved in the summer of 1988, in which I was 6 years old. A couple times in the 1990's my family has driven by and seen the house if we were in town, but I haven't seen it for over 20 years. I was glad the house has remained the same. Driving back to Quilchena, I remember walking to and from Kindergarten class by myself as it was only a couple minutes walk from home. Unlike my older brother and sister, I only spent one year at this school so I have very few memories of it. I then drove back north on No.1 road and then east on Westminster Highway, forgetting that I was going to pass Richmond General Hospital, where I was born. I quickly snapped a picture from my car as I was waiting for the light. I then drove all the way to the Alex Fraser bridge and exited off Nordel Way in North Delta.
I ended up at 86th Ave near 116th Street. It was here that I saw the two houses my family ended up living in after Richmond. The first house was a large rancher that we lived in from summer 1988 and was heavily modified by my father for the next 3 years. My dad first started with an addition to the back of the house so that my sisters had a shared bedroom, and my brother and I had ours. Then one small side of the house was bulldozed and given more room so that both my mother's electrolysis home business could be built, and my folks had a separate bedroom to use too (their original master bedroom would later be used to house out first family computer). The final bulldoze was on the opposite side of the house where we had a big recreation room and the garage (also where my mom first started her business before she moved it to the other end). On that side of the property my dad helped build a brand new house and we transfered in possibly late spring of 1992. I think the rancher was rented out or possibly sold but we had new neighbours who took it over and became friends of the family. As for the newer home, it looks very much the same except the pink with white trim of the original (popular back in the early 90's) was now replaced with brown colours. Unlike the rancher next door, which looks smaller than how I remembered it, the better house next door is very much the same except for the colour. There was an older man sitting outside the house and I talked to him. I told him that my family were the original inhabitants of the house and how it all happened (as I said above). I don't remember how long he said that his family have lived in it, but that the previous owner was an Italian guy. He let me take a picture of the house and I said goodbye and hoped he enjoys it for many more years. Before I continued on, I debated if I should visit my old elementary school: Hellings. It was only a 5-minute walk just east on 86th Ave. I decided not this time, but I'll mention this quick note: I started first grade in September 1988 and graduated seventh grade in June 1995. The next house we lived in was about late May or early June of 1995 and it was all the way north at the end of 116th Street. So on the way, I passed my old Junior High School, Delview. I think over 15 years ago, it converted into a High School for grades 8 to 12. The school itself looked the same except for a renovated main entrance and new paint job. I went to that school from September 1995 to June 1998.
I remember the downhill slope on 116th street but forgot that some time ago, they added speed bumps to the street. I reached the bottom of the hill into the cul-de-sac and saw the last house I lived in with my family. My father helped build it in 1993 and was completed in late spring of 1994 when we moved in. For the rest of my school life, I lived there and it was the last house in which my entire family lived in as one. A quick note: our living in that area was considered Surrey even though we were on the border with North Delta. Every school year from then on, my folks had to sign a form acknowledging that I was technically out of the district by being in Surrey, but they were granting permission to continue attending school in North Delta. Anyways, my older brother would much later move out of that house for work and also be independent. On May 16, 2001 I was kicked out of that house over my being gay and was exploring myself in gay culture. Looking at the house today, it looked pitiful... all paint had faded and it seemed no one bothered to add fresh paint and breathe new life in it. I snapped the last picture and back in my car, I called my younger sister as she was already home that I was on my way. I drove south on nearby River Road, which was also nostalgic as a past-friend of mine lived next door to a Lutheran church there. Throughout this entire trip, I was blasting popular tunes mostly from the 1960's to the 1980's in my car from the auxiliary cable to my phone. I got home after 5pm, before dusk.
My younger sister's family and my folks were my celebrants as usual. They already had turkey dinner so I had a couple of plates. While I was eating, I showed my folks the pictures I took and revealed what it was I did. Looking at the Richmond house, my parents were happy the house remained the same and that it has stood for all these years. Not much was said about the rancher in North Delta, but the house next door seemed satisfactory to them. As expected, the house on 116th just looked bad. We had lots of discussions about living in those houses and our growing up. We had the birthday cake and I got $50 each from my folks and younger sister's family, which will go toward my future Nintendo Switch or some other console. I thanked everyone and after my sister's family went downstairs, my folks and I started to chat about things. Later at night, when I assumed they had went to bed, I threw on my leather jacket, gloves, and muir cap so I could go outside and have a cigar with a bottle of diet pepsi to drink. After lighting up, I tried to video call Daddy Rick of Seattle but got no answer. I then talked to Daddy Jeff of Alton, IL for over half an hour, talking about his current health. I then called Kevin of Fresno, chatting about the Knights and current politics. During that time, I noticed the light on in the upstairs kitchen and my father was up! I don't know if he saw me outside, but likely he did. As I was in the front and parking area on the property, I decided to move to the back yard for the remainder of the smoke and chat. After I said goodbye to Kevin, I tried again to call Rick and still no answer. I finished up by calling Alex of Vallejo and by the time that call was done, the cigar was put out and finished.
It was sad to say goodbye to my 30s, as I felt that decade I matured considerably. I also gained a lot from it, but lost a lot too. It started very rough with the issues Daddy David and I went through. Like during my coming out stage in my late teens and into my early 20's. it was one of the most emotionally taxing situations of my life. It didn't last too long, but it did cause some emotional trauma. But the way it ended is what gave me self esteem and proved I was pretty tough. David and I still had a friendship, but my view of him changed and I stopped prioritizing him in my life. For all of my 20's, he was my world. But in my 30's, that wasn't the case anymore and I began to have other Leatherdaddies and Sirs be closer in my life. I didn't expect to lose David almost six years ago and be a "leather orphan". I had hoped David would live well into his 70's and we were still living in Port Coquitlam to this day. But like Kevin McKenzie's death over 7 years prior, reality can be cruel. I didn't expect that I would go back to living with my folks and still be here to this day. I'm grateful that I'm cared for, well fed, saving thousands a year, and being secure. But I miss my freedom, being able to express myself, and having a leather household family to be a part of. I got the job I've been coveting for years and finally quit my previous job that I've been in since I was 25. I still can't believe I managed to work 2 jobs for over 2 years at that time! My income is a lot better than any job I had before, but still not enough to buy any property or afford the high rents in the GVRD. My health declined a bit in my 30's with slow; continued weight gain, sleep apnea and use of a CPAP machine, and a broken arm that still needs physiotherapy but is otherwise fully useable. After David, it's been lonely and wish I was dating someone, maybe even marry. I think I said in the past, my problem is that I fall in love with those who are already partnered, or I feel that I don't deserve them and know they would not be happy with me in the end. Because of the stuff with David back in 2012, the thought of a future lover one day viewing me as expendable and regretting our relationship... kind of scares me. Maybe things will look up before I reach 50? And the last decade brought many people I loved to be taken from me: Daddy Barney Hickey, Al Ingram, Jim Ott, Jim DeYoung, Peter Hanson, Damian Elliott, my grandmother, Bert Clever, Stephen Chappell, and Daddy David. That doesn't include those I chatted with online and never got to meet physically I don't need to be told the obvious: that even more people I love will be taken from me in the next 10 years. I will do my best to treasure the love I have for my family and friends until their time comes.
The journey to 50 will be interesting!
Almost two years since the last time I've been to the theatres, I went and saw Spider-Man: No Way Home on Jan. 29th at the Langley Colossus Cineplex. I watched it in 2D IMAX while the theatre had very few people that night. Vaccine passports were required for entry and I could take my mask off when I sat at my seat, especially when munching on popcorn and having a root beer. I'd say there were 20 of us in the theatre. In this third film, Peter Parker asks Dr. Stephen Strange to use magic to make his identity as Spider-Man a secret again following its public revelation at the end of Far From Home. When the spell goes wrong, the multiverse is broken open which allows visitors from alternate realities to enter Parker's universe. No Way Home is definitely the best of the Tom Holland Spider-Man films and the fan service is quite nice. This is hardly a spoiler, but Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield also show up later in the film from their Spider-Man universes. And you know what? It works well! While they couldn't get all villains from those universes to come back too, it's still a good chunk of them. I do love the interactions between the three Peter Parkers and wish the film had more of that. Unlike current Disney Star Wars which shat on the legacy of our beloved characters, Spider-Man: No Way Home pays respect to the original trilogy and the two Amazing films. Right now, I consider it the third best Spider-Man film, behind the first two Maguire movies.
For Doug Walker's Disneycember review of the film, go here or below:
Click to view
Last night I saw the 2016 film Warcraft, based on the ultra popular PC game series. The film follows Anduin Lothar of Stormwind and Durotan of the Frostwolf clan as heroes set on opposite sides of a growing war, as the warlock Gul'dan leads the Horde to invade Azeroth using a magic portal. Together, a few human heroes and dissenting Orcs must attempt to stop the true evil behind this war and restore peace. I've never played the games before so I don't know the world and lore of the series. The movie itself seemed okay, a little too fast paced though. A shit ton of CGI was used, but there was definitely a budget put into it plus the props. I saw it on DVD so things were a little blurry on my 4K TV (it used to be on Netflix, but currently is no longer available). I did like there were quite a few bearded characters and some of the CGI orcs looked sexy too.
I should have Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles done before the end of the month if things work out. I'll likely play Mega Man soon after. I'm almost done season 3 of Star Trek: Enterprise so that review will be up soon.
Last Movie: Spider-Man: No Way Home (Theatrical), Warcraft (DVD)
Last Book: The C.S. Lewis Signature Classics - The Screwtape Letters
Last Game: DmC Devil May Cry: Definitive Edition (PS4)
Current Book: The C.S. Lewis Signature Classics - Miracles
Current Games: Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles (PSP) & Mega Man (3DS Virtual Console - GB)