Category: lifestyle

The Construction Neighbours: The Captive Transit User Series Part 14

Posted in Edmonton, lifestyle, Local Establishments, Politics, Social Issues, UncategorizedTagged , , , , , , , , , , , 3 Comments

By: Giselle General

This is part of an ongoing series of posts discussion issues I personally encounter while taking public transit in Edmonton. Links to other posts will be added on an ongoing basis:

What is a Captive Transit User? I learned about the term for the first time from the City of Edmonton’s website. The easy definition is: someone who takes public transit because it’s the best (or only available) option for them to travel around. The part about feeling ‘captive’ comes from the restriction that sometimes comes up, perhaps because one is too poor to own and maintain a vehicle, one does not know how to drive, or for medical reasons, cannot operate a vehicle. In many ways, I relate to this a lot. Though I’m pretty fortunate to afford the occasional taxi ride, and with my husband having a car.

When people choose a place to live, they consider many important things in choosing the neigbhourhood. We knew when we picked the neighbourhood we live in now that since the LRT will literally pass through the main road nearby, that we will be inundated with the impacts of the construction for many years until the line officially opens. But what is something that many residents complain about, became something that piqued my curiosity over the years.

I’m basically like a “Marites”, the nosy neighbour looking into the latest “tea” of what is happening next door, but for an LRT construction. This transit nerd is delighted with integrating such a Filipino reference, hehe. Every time I leave my home to commute to work, it’s neat to see the changes.

Between my husband and me, our no-cost-but-super-fun date idea has been to go for a half-hour work along the construction site, observe the different holes and poles, the cranes and trucks, the cement and the metal pieces, and the people around the site. I bet my husband is truly enjoying being married to a transit nerd – no need to go far or spend a lot of money for romantic quality time, haha!

As the cliche goes, a photo says a thousand words. So here is a photo dump of the photos of the LRT construction progress because because it’s fun and nerdy

The construction zone for the West Edmonton LRT along 87 Ave. It is winder and there's block of ice and snow along the road and construction site.
The construction zone for the West Edmonton LRT along 87 Ave. The two traffic lanes are backed up, and four pillars are almost finished construction.
The construction zone for the West Edmonton LRT along 87 Ave. The specialized above-ground crane is lifting platforms for the above-ground Misericordia station.
The construction zone for the West Edmonton LRT along 87 Ave. The view is from underneath the specialize crane. 6 platforms were lifted and still have gaps in between each other.
The construction zone for the West Edmonton LRT along 87 Ave. The ramp to take the tracks to street level is partially done, with lots of metal rebar sticking out.
The construction zone for the West Edmonton LRT along 87 Ave. The specialized crane is approaching the traffic light on 165 Street.
The construction zone for the West Edmonton LRT along 87 Ave. A crane is parked in the middle of the site.

Frankly at this point, for very short trips, it is much better to walk – to the mall, the library, the pharmacy. But as long as the locations are literally long the main road, I can also be lazy and take the bus in one direction.

I heard many times that the construction impact north of my neighbourhood, along Stony Plain Road, is much worse for the businesses there. In fact, the City launched a campaign called “Rally for the Road” to encourage people to continue to patronize the businesses along the road, where construction makes it difficult and unappealing to park to get to these businesses. I know of a business owned by a fellow Filipino that sells Filipiniana inspired attire. I hope to visit the business someday when it is easier to travel to get there, either by car of perhaps, the newly opened LRT line!

The construction zone for the West Edmonton LRT along 87 Ave and by the business plaza on 159 Street. A sign by the fence says "Businesses Are Open During Construction"

In the middle of May, during the Annual General Meeting for our community league, we also held a town hall where staff from the city and the LRT construction company co-presented and answered questions from the neighbourhood. I really appreciated them doing this. The maps and slideshows were informative in giving both the big picture progress of the whole project, timelines for summer 2024 and what to anticipate as far as changes in access to lanes and intersections. We were given the reassurance that any concerns can be shared to them anytime, and that they have what sounds like daily meetings with the staff at the hospital to ensure access is not blocked unintentionally.

On top of that, our community league president seems to have established a good relationship with relevant staff. He managed to make a few phone calls to sort out the traffic lights nearby to help traffic flow better.

The construction zone for the West Edmonton LRT along 87 Ave and 165 Street, the intersection that will be closed for two weeks as the specialized crane finished lifting platforms for the track.

And just a few weeks after this neighbourhood meeting, my husband and I can see the large crane off our second-floor bedroom window.

We were told that our section will be finished by fall this year, then the section off the other side of 178 Street will be worked on. I will definitely miss the unique crane when it moves. And I hope that the residents who live in that area, that have been affected by construction for just as long as we are, have a manageable experience for the next few years.

Thank you and goodbye, my relentless sewing machine

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By: Giselle General

Our journey together started in January 2016. Only six months after settling in a larger home, I’ve learned the delights of having eight-seater dining table. Not only can we host board games with enough seats for friends, but I can make larger pieces of art.

Inspired by the idea from the brother-in-law in Victoria, I thought that having a couch quilt made with cut-up T-shirts is a great idea. Hence my frantic shopping for a sewing machine with only two weeks to spare before the husband’s birthday. The first thing I saw in the shelves of London Drugs is a box showing a machine with a pink décor, but with a brand name I’ve only known for printers. Well, what the heck, if they can make machines that work well with paper, maybe they can do a decent job with machines that work with thread and cloth.

After making a big mess of thread, strands of cloth, learning how to deal with materials new to me such as “batting” and “interfacing”, I finished the gift just in time. With the quilt now eight years old, it continues to be used daily on the couch as he plays video games. It’s already fraying and staining, that I had to patch it up and test just how many layers of blanket can a simple $90 machine handle.

Many projects came to life, decorated the house and draped over me and my husband’s bodies over the years – from pillow cases, dresses and pants, or multiple repairs of clothes until they fray so badly that they can only be used as rags.

The beginning months of the pandemic was next level as far as sewing projects. When I discovered the need to make fabric laundry bags for healthcare workers, we got to work really relentlessly. From March to September 2020, during spare time on lunch breaks, evenings and weekends, we made 300 of these fabric bags where healthcare workers can put their dirty uniforms after working with sick patients. That was such a process!

Somehow I didn’t realize that the inner rods and gears would wear down. It’s probably from the combination of dust from fabric and my admittedly aggressive pressing of the foot pedal. The first time I noticed that I can only do five stitches in a row and then needle bar grinds to a halt, I tried to fix things in a DIY way. Borrowing the husband’s screwdriver, I managed to unscrew and pry apart the two halves of the plastic cover and dab some oil in the parts that seem to act like gears.

Somehow it wasn’t until 2021 when I realized I should’ve treated you like a car, with tune-up and dusting routines on a regular basis. The first time I took you to the local quilting supplies store I first visited in 2015, the clerk on the machine repair booth gave a scolding look as I admitted I tried to do some solo repairs. The tuneup was successful through and I managed to do more projects.

In the fall of 2022, the husband had a wacky idea of using T-shirts in a different creative way to turn them into skirts or kilts for people in his running group. One kilt that combined 5 shirts turned into another, and now there are about 14 people going for runs and showing off multiple logos of this running group’s merchandise. The kilts became so popular that as per the tradition of this running group, I earned my code name related to my “shenanigans.” I am officially named “Licensed to Kilt”.

Those who requested and received the kilts paid various amounts of cash as a thank you. Back in 2022 I received another sewing machine from the father-in-law, but it was too rickety that one day, parts of the tension wheel flew off the machine. And then, you also had the same issue of breaking into a halt after only five stitches. With the cash from the kilts, both machines went for repair again.

But as I was only halfway through making a new kilt, despite being repaired just recently, you gave out again. I suppose it is time for the new arrival but older version machine to take the reigns.

As you journey into the city’s Eco Station facility this summer (whenever the husband and I actually get motivated to do so), that your go to a better place. Maybe your parts gets dismantled with the salvageable bits of metal be repurposed to something else, or the bits of plastic somehow chemically transformed into fuel.

As we say in our home, thank you and goodbye!

Recovering Political Candidate: What I wish I Knew

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By: Giselle General

Sometime in December 2023, I was contacted by a researcher who is working on a paper asking for the financial barriers faced by women running for public office. Did she ever find the right person willing to talk and vent about this very topic! I was connected to her through a national organization that aims to encourage women to run for public office.

I shared what I knew and gave so much more information that the questions she outlined in her 3-page questionnaire. I truly hoped I didn’t sound too grouchy when I explained all the potential barriers, both ones I experienced personally and broader patterns I’ve observed.

Despite the fact that my candidacy was coming up to three years ago, I remember many things that I wished were more clear during the campaign workshops and campaign toolkits that I accessed between 2017 – 2021.

So here is a short list of what I wish I knew.

  • About the “social etiquette” in Canada, Alberta, and Edmonton when it comes to door-knocking. I didn’t feel confident enough to reassure volunteers on how to handle different types of situations such as homes having no mailboxes, the “no soliciting” signs, entering gates and how long to wait at the doors.
  • How to handle conversations with one’s employer on handling things such as time off, salary and using vacation days and reputation management for the workplace. I think I handled it okay, but if I had more information I would have been less terrified.
  • The range of options on how to handle the election campaign with family members.
  • Exercise routines to help manage pain and soreness from walking, standing a long time, using mobility aids (like my walking cane) for a long time, hand care (from knocking on all the doors), and more.
  • Personal finance budgeting once the motivation to run is there. This includes saving for money for taking time off from work to do campaigning full time, money to initially fund election expenses, budgeting some extras that may be needed such as replacement shoes, therapy appointments, pens, umbrellas, or takeout food.
  • Options for campaign finances, as in ideas of what a low-budget, medium-budget, and a high-budget campaign can potentially look like, as it took me too long to decide whether I should get one digital billboard or one bus bench.
  • Tips and tricks to coordinate with landlords to connect with apartment residents, as this process also took a lot of time coordinating while being afraid I might be somehow breaking some election rule that I was never aware of.

I will likely talk about this more in future posts. In the meantime, I eagerly look forward to the research publication talking about this topic.

Everyday people that wanted to participate in the political discourse in this very important way should feel confident in their ability to do a decent job. They should not feel demoralized by obstacles that seem systemic in nature.

To conclude, here’s the copy of the post I wrote for the Alberta Filipino Journal back in 2021 during the beginning of the actual campaign.

General Point of View: Trailblazing and Smashing Ceilings – The Journey of a First-Time Elections Candidate

By: Giselle General, April 2021

This election candidacy is a journey five years in the making.  Here is a reflection on my experiences as of this date as someone running for the first time.

A main challenge is informing people on different topics. There are many issues that affect our daily lives, and it can be difficult to remember which level of government is responsible. On top of that, there are issues that are a shared responsibility between the municipal, provincial and federal government. So it is important for me, my campaign team, and other candidates to be informed and patient when discussing with others.

The electoral district boundaries not only changed in composition, but also the names have changed. They are changed from numbers to Indigenous names. I think the names are beautiful and meaningful, but many are frustrated and unwilling to learn. I can personally attest that all it takes is practice, just like learning Asian geography back in high school. After a few rounds of practice, I can confidently say without missing a beat that “I am running for city councillor for West Edmonton, the ward of sipiwiyiniwak!” Those in ward Dene and O-day’min will have an easier time, while those in ward Ipiihkoohkanipiaohtsi would need to practice a few more times.  

I found out that apartments and condo buildings are usually ignored by campaign teams. I found this shocking and unacceptable! Because most apartment buildings are rentals, this means that many people who are not homeowners and from lower economic background are not given the same opportunity by election candidates to share their thoughts about political matters. No wonder the voter turnout in municipal elections is only 30%. Like a spark that ignited in me, I felt a fierce sense of determination to go against the tide and find ways to connect with people living in higher-density places. I hope that landlords and building managers would cooperate with my campaign team so we can engage with residents effectively and safely.  

A harsh and true advice I received was “you need a lot of money”. And I don’t have a lot. I feel motivated to find creative ways to compensate for the shortage of money, and fun ways to raise money and support. From virtual dance-a-thons as a fundraiser, using social media for marketing instead of spending money on billboards, and asking volunteers to drop off brochures instead of paying Canada post thousands of dollars, the ideas seem to be endless. Necessity is the mother of invention as they say, and I’m excited to find innovative ways to connect with potential voters and supporters. I hope that I get hundreds of volunteers from all walks of life, and that even those who cannot vote yet, the newcomers and under 18 years old, feel inclined to join the campaign team as well.  

The election day is in October, and given how time feels like it’s slipping through our fingers, it will be here before we even realize it. All the spare time I have, between breakfast and starting work, between dinner and bedtime, between laundry and cooking on the weekends, are occupied by the seemingly endless tasks to gain more resources, to recruiting volunteers, to ensuring we consult with people with different perspective. Door-knocking officially starts in May and I’m eagerly looking at the calendar counting down the time.  

I am excited to be transformed by this experience. I suppose, turning 30 years old this year also highlights the significance of this adventure. I’d love to win of course, but it’s more that that. My hope is that I am just one of the many people from under-represented backgrounds, of the women, the young adults, the migrants and the Filipinos who would take the leap and throw their name in an election race. I hope that my experience can serve as inspiration and a resource guide in navigating an election candidacy that appropriately considers the complications that arise from our lived experiences. If I don’t end up being that trailblazer, I hope that someone else does not too long after I run.  

When Community Service and Self Care Goals Conflict

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Giselle wearing a stylish safety glasses, KN95 mask and a volunteer Tshirt

By: Giselle General

Last fall, I had an an eye-opening moment as I went about doing my volunteer activities. During the third weekend of September 2023, I had two activities back-to-back, both outdoors. From morning until early afternoon, I was in my neighbourhood park helping with an annual gathering that includes serving lunch, having activities for kids and families to enjoy, and for residents to apply for their membership with our organization. Shortly after, I went to an Philippine arts event at an outdoor park in downtown Edmonton.

When the day began, I checked the air quality index and it is a 4. Not yet a concern which is great. But as we approached the lunch hour, my eyes started to feel irritated so I wore my glasses. It’s not the type that corrects your vision, but a cuter version of safety glasses I got a few years ago. Turns out, my eyes get irritated by the wildfire smoke, more easily that the average person.

It was 3 PM when I rushed to the arts event, where I kept my glasses but didn’t wear an N95 mask. That was my mistake. Although I must say that communicating and connecting with my fellow writers in our booth was so much more efficient without the mask. Also, since we were outdoors, I figured the COVID risk would be minimal.

Unfortunately on my bus ride home, as I sat on my seat resting my legs from walking and standing all day, that’s where it hit me. When taking transit I still wear a mask because I definitely don’t want to catch any of the respiratory viruses spreading around. As I sat patiently waiting for the bus to reach the west side of the city, I checked the air quality index app again. It went up to 8 – high risk! No wonder my eyes were irritated for the afternoon. As soon as I arrived home, I plopped on the couch while struggling to answer my husband’s question about what we plan to have for dinner. After dinner, my chest started to hurt, and I have to make an effort to breath in for the rest of the night.

I had plans to attend other neighbourhood events the next day, but when I looked out the window and saw the familiar orange haze in the sky I knew it’s a bust. The air quality index app showed a rating of 8 in the morning which went up to 10+ in the afternoon. I have to stay in.

This is just frustrating. I very much hate the fact that my own body seems to now get in the way of my volunteer activities. I also know that since COVID precautions are virtually nonexistent in public spaces, the burden on individuals to protect themselves is just more significant. The worst part is, event individual precautions are less effective especially if let’s say, you are one one of the 100+ people in an indoor hall during a community engagement event. While on one hand, I know that my assistance and contributions will be very helpful during the said event or activity, none of the organizers, fellow volunteers, or attendees would step in to help me if I get permanent harm from attending.

Perhaps that is part of the reason why that even more so the past few months, I make sure that majority of my volunteer activities can be done from home. Writing two informative articles for the monthly ethnic paper for the Filipino community in Edmonton continue to be rewarding. Over winter and until now, I started to do volunteer sewing tasks, upcycling old merchandise from my husband’s running group and turning them into personalized outfits. The documentary and book projects are also tasks that hopefully will make a positive impact in the future and can be done without risk of being exposed to smoke, fumes, viruses, hostile weather or all of the above.

There’s really no solid takeaway message I can pin down. During my election campaign a few years ago, I made decisions that I know prioritize my wellbeing and my life over potentially winning over votes. “My goal is to come home alive” and “if I’m sick, severely injured, or dead, then I won’t be able to help” are my personal constant reminders when I feel guilty about missing community events or volunteering opportunities.

In the new year, I tried to nudge more of my free time towards improving my personal health. Weekends offer what seems to be an unlimited opportunities to get involved and volunteer, whether it is events, workshops, rallies, and more. However, given that my husband goes out for a run with his running group in the afternoons (in the winter), I discovered that it is best to try a fitness related activity that I can try to stick to on a weekly basis. So for that past three months, that has been swimming for about 45 minutes at the local YMCA.

Giselle wearing a swimsuit getting ready for a swim.

This weekly swim routine has paid off really well in just a few weeks. It’s hugely help reduce my shoulder, neck, and back pain from doing office work full time. Swimming laps and treading water is definitely good cardio without aggressively hurting my joints. And slowly, as I gain confidence in learning how to tread in deep water, I also manage my fear while celebrating my incremental improvements.

This tradeoff has been worth it for now. My community service time and activities are sprinkled over week nights, lunch breaks and weekends, so I figured carving out a premium time for my self is the right call for now. I do dread the upcoming summer though with the greater likelihood of forest fires and smoke risk. Maybe volunteering for public and indoor activities is the approach moving forward.

Memoir Writing Reflections 7: The Boss of My Book

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By: Giselle General

I can hardly believe it but the time has come. It is manuscript feedback and editing time – first round, that is. Just around the last week of September I finally received the Editorial Letter from the Developmental Editor. I received a 19-page document and I couldn’t help but chuckle. It was more like a report than a letter, maybe even a little book.

My goodness is it a lot! In a good way. The letter organized the feedback in categories, and under each, there were several examples from the manuscript where these problems have come up repeatedly. In addition, in the actual copy of the manuscript she added some recommended edits (through the Tracked Changes feature) as well as comments on actual paragraphs. There were many of these throughout the 150-page, 85,000-word document.

With this, I learned that the timeline I submitted for the editing process might not be as realistic as I would have liked. Perhaps, if all I’m doing is creative work full time with volunteering at nights and weekends, maybe it would be achievable. But it’s different now. I have a separate full time day job that involved writing, coordinating and some creative work. Then all the volunteer commitments involve communicating, coordinating and some creative work. As much as I wish I have unlimited energy, alas I am only human. Working on the manuscript is set aside for the weekends.

When I first read the document and the email, I was anxious on what I was supposed to do with the feedback. There was one question in my mind that worried me the most. And I wanted to share that part of the email exchange here:

Hi Justine,

I have a follow-up question regarding the potential next steps after a writer receives the feedback on a developmental edit. I guess I’m struggling a bit with the Filipino tendency to be “always obedient” and “follow everything that is told by a person of authority and expertise”, combined a tendency to be a people-pleaser. 

If feels kind of silly to ask but I’d appreciate some clarity. I know that in your email and letter it says that your comments are “recommendations”. But as far as me as a writer, what happens next? Is this kind of a like a thesis document where I send you additional versions and that you look at it again until you approve the version and are satisfied with the edits? Or do I basically have free reign as far as which suggestions to apply or reject? If for instance I make significant edits to the manuscript and would like another comprehensive review, that is a separate and independent agreement for another developmental edits, is that correct? 

Hi Giselle,

I just opened up editor access on that line edit of your manuscript. Let me know if you’re still having issues opening it up and I’ll try and turn it into a Word doc.

Now for your question – not silly at all!  You have free reign at this point to apply or reject any/all my recommendations. It’s completely up to you as a writer! I don’t need to “approve” your manuscript for you to move on – that’s for you to decide 🙂 

Email exchange between Giselle and Justine from Living Hyphen, October 2023

Reading the email response was a huge sigh of relief.

When I mentioned this to my husband, he told me with such conviction, “You are boss of your own book.” The words on your book will be written the way that works best for you.”

This way of thinking is so new to me. I’ve always have the mindset that experts or authority figures have greater knowledge and expertise than me, so I must follow all their advice. But as I go through the recommended edits of not just the memoir, but for the other creative projects I’m doing, there had been times when I read the comments and think “that suggestion doesn’t make complete sense, but I can see why they suggested it. I don’t think I’ll do it 100% but will do something else that will resolve the issue that was flagged.”

For the Developmental Editor feedback, I actually had to review my draft manuscript backwards, from the last chapter to the first.

Writing and then editing a book is such a long process. From the various writing groups I joined, some people take weeks, months, or even multiple years to write and edit their draft. The last thing I wanted is for this project to get lost in the fast pace shuffle of life. Since I’m the type of person who needs a target end goal to stay motivated, I’ve set mid-December as my deadline to work on the developmental edits. That’s three months of incrementally working over the weekends, a few chapters at a time.

If all goes well, my Christmas gift to myself is the peace of mind from sending off the updated draft to the next person who will review it, the Line Editor. A line editor works line-by-line, tightening up sentence structure so the language is sharp and clear. I’m excited and nervous about this. I hope that I caught all the comma splice statements that seem to be a bad habit of mine. But if there are a few more, that the Line Editor can make them better.

Report it on the App: The Captive Transit User Series Part 12

Posted in Edmonton, lifestyle, Local Establishments, Personal, Politics, Reviews, Social Issues, UncategorizedTagged , , , , , , , , 5 Comments

By: Giselle General

This is part of an ongoing series of posts discussion issues I personally encounter while taking public transit in Edmonton. Links to other posts will be added on an ongoing basis:

What is a Captive Transit User? I learned about the term for the first time from the City of Edmonton’s website. The easy definition is: someone who takes public transit because it’s the best (or only available) option for them to travel around. The part about feeling ‘captive’ comes from the restriction that sometimes comes up, perhaps because one is too poor to own and maintain a vehicle, one does not know how to drive, or for medical reasons, cannot operate a vehicle. In many ways, I relate to this a lot. Though I’m pretty fortunate to afford the occasional taxi ride, and with my husband having a car.

Whenever I take the bus or LRT, regardless of whether I’m alone or traveling with my husband, I try to pay attention to my environment. Sure, at some point I end up getting slightly bored and browse on my phone, but I don’t do that until a few minutes after getting on the bus. It’s also why I don’t wear headphones while taking transit.

Frankly speaking, the reason I feel inclined to stay alert is not related to safety. Sure, that is important, but thankfully I personally haven’t experiences direct and aggressive treatment on the bus which is a relief. I have a different motivation, that is to observe whether something is going wrong with the bus, train, bus stop or transit station that needs to be fixed. The moment I spot it, I report right away on the 311 app.

The City of Edmonton has an app called the 311 app, that enables people to report different things that the city can resolve. It includes a feature to take a photo (although it is not mandatory which is good), text boxes to add a summary of the issue, automated geo-location, and a check box to indicate whether the issue causes accessibility concerns.

As far as transit, the categories are:

Late Bus: For this section there are questions such as the location, bus stop and route number, and whether the delay is due to weather conditions. I personally don’t make a report when a bus is 15 minutes late and if the travel apps like Google or Transit had actually indicated it. It means that it is a real-time update. But if it is winter and the bus is 20 or more minutes later, then definitely I would report.

Transit Feedback: I am guessing that this category is for other types of feedback that are not related to buses being late, or not related to broken and dirty things in transit facilities. In the past, the third category is specifically related to vandalism and cleanliness, so I have used this category to report something that is simply not working, like a digital sign. I also haven’t used this option in a while.

Transit Maintenance: This is the option I use most often. What I typically report falls under two categories: items related to cleanliness or vandalism, and items related to functionality of electronic items in the bus. The vandalism I’ve reported vary, from scribbles on the seat in front of me written with pen or paint, broken wayfinding signage in downtown right beside a bus stop, a few bus shelters where the glass walls had completely shattered, and the one I know should be addressed quickly – colorful and sticky stains on the bus seats, especially the fabric ones.

As far as functionality of electronic items in the bus, there are two main ones. First is the ARC Card machines where people are supposed to tap on their way in or out. The sounds from the machine are quite distinct whenever it doesn’t function. When after 10 minutes on the bus, I can still hear the particular beep that indicates it’s not working, then I make a report. If the display screen is not working, I do the same. The most frequent report I do though is whenever the device that is supposed to announce the next stop is not working. as indicated in this post, I’ve learned to appreciate the value of hearing and also reading the information of the next stop, especially when it’s hard to see over the window. The best part about the app is whenever I report issues, there’s a check box that asks whether it is a disability issue. Whenever it does, I check if off every single time. I truly hope that the issue gets escalated.

It’s truly unfortunate that I cannot see whether the issue is fully resolved or not. The odds of me taking the same bus with dirty seats right after I made a report is unlikely. The only update is seeing the ticket being closed or “redirected to other business area.”. However, in our data-driven society, I know that every report gets added in the statistics. In fact, there are public databases available on all the 311 reports made to the city, for those who want to do analysis on a certain issue and want to use the number of complaints filed as supporting evidence.

If there’s one change I’d like to see on the app, is to know for sure whether the issue is fully resolved or not. A photo to show the issue is fixed or cleaned would be so nice. A once-sentence update that says the broken speaker or digital sign is fixed on a certain date would be so reassuring. Even a statement saying that the issue is considered and can be addressed by future policy gives an indication that it is a long-term problem. Maybe this can help prompt people to use these reporting methods more and trust them.
For now, I still use the app. It’s more productive that venting on social media.

Memoir Writing Reflections #6: The Bucket Analogy

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by: Giselle General

Through social media posts, blogs on this site, and a few local media interviews, I’ve been sharing my journey in writing this memoir. The more experiences and milestones get documented, the more reassured about doing it in the first place. Not only does it help me have a point-in-time memory captured of the experience, sharing it seem to reach out those who are thinking of doing some kind of creative work as well.

I’m feeling a bit antsy since the developmental editor is working on the manuscript and I have about two more months to go before I get to see the feedback and dive in to make changes. A few times actually, I noticed some comments pop up on the Google doc and I immediately archived those email notifications, not wanting to see them too early.

Just recently, a friend who also lives here in Edmonton reached out to me to ask for advice on writing the memoir. This person is quite active on social media sharing her takes on social issues and sharing some of her personal life. If she wanted to, she has a lot to tell that would be a good fit for a memoir. I got the request through a private message on Twitter, then I set up an invite to do an online meeting.

I told her that the cliché advice of having an outline made sense to me, but instead of making a spreadsheet, a document or to-do list, I treated one chapter as one blank word document. The file name of the document is the rough idea of what the chapter would be about. The file name had a number in the beginning so when I click the button to sort the files, they will be chronological. When I then feel inspired to write about that chapter or topic, I have a space ready to go and write.

This enabled me to bounce around the timeline of my book. When I’m in the mood to write something really heavy and intense, like the events in March or May 2007, I can do that. When I’m emotionally drained and wanted to write about a more lighthearted chapter of events sometime in summer 2003, I can work on that too.

The analogy I used was buckets. I got a bunch of buckets, labelled them, and eventually these empty buckets got filled little by little until I was done.

But then I realized that her situation is not the same as me when I started. She is not starting from scratch, but rather, she already has a draft of 30,000 words. It’s milestone I personally reached a month after I started writing. I’m glad she’s has a good sized manuscript, and she shared about being overwhelmed of the documents. That makes sense.

Using the same analogy of the buckets, I told her “You have a big bucket of words already! Splitting the content into small buckets, where a few paragraphs focus on one experience story, theme, can be a way to manage it.”

My chapters varied in length. On average they are two pages long, with the 12 point font, single space format. Some are slightly shorter, I have about five that are outliers, that are 5 pages or more.

When I gave the advice to this friend, I suggested to read through from the top for a few pages. Once there seemed to be a natural pause, whether a small story ended or any reflections concluded for that particular topic, take that entire section and separate it as its own chapter. Then there’s Chapter 1. Move on and take a few paragraphs or pages, there’s Chapter 2. A small bucket of content being scooped out of the big hulking container of words.

Funny enough, when I submitted the manuscript to the developmental editor I actually have to combine all 43 chapters into a single document. The opposite process, pouring them all into one big bucket. It was easier and more efficient than I realize. As I copied and pasted each chapter in order, I made sure that the table of contents are set up properly and link to the right chapters. Scrolling a big document and having to begin from the top would be quite annoying I can imagine.

It was a good way to be a bit more productive while trying to wait paitently for the edits. Just over a month left!

The Unusual Birthday Gift I Gave Myself Last Year

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By: Giselle General

Last year on my birthday at the end of May, I did something that I considered an unusual, but valuable, gift to myself. I officially handed my letter of resignation to the job I had for eight years.

Materially, my life is overall comfortable. Also I find shopping for items like clothes, cosmetics, gadgets pretty dreadful. Having to think of gift items for people to get me is the opposite of fun. Thinking of what to buy myself as a treat that need to be bought at a specific time of year is also pretty restrictive.

As my wages grew over the years, both from my employment and the honourariums for some of my volunteering and writing work, I try to be very mindful of lifestyle inflation. I didn’t want to fall into the trap of buying something just because I could. In the occasions where I do splurge, those purchases were made intentionally and with no guilt.

A big theme I’ve seen in how I approach my birthday is about giving myself something special of great non-tangible value. The trip I took in New York City in 2019 is my first overseas solo trip, granting myself the new experience of independence and rare unrestricted indulgence. The boudoir photoshoot I also booked a day before my birthday is to grant myself a new way of reclaiming my body and sense of self, a valuable thing for sexual abuse survivors like me. In 2020, I hired a freelance artist to recreate a piece of artwork I drew in 2013, granting myself a way to preserve precious memories and the enjoyment of collaborating with an artist. The drawing in particular was the memento I made from my first trip to the Philippines after immigrating, taking my Canadian (white) boyfriend in tow. In 2021, my self-gift was as simple as granting myself rest and family time as I started to ramp up my election campaign running for city councillor. Something truly in short supply and so precious for that period of time.

For my birthday last year, the plans to celebrate were straightforward and already confirmed. My brother worked night shift so meeting him separately worked better since typically dinner times happen when he is already on his way to work. The husband’s family will be coming over for a separate dinner in the home we just moved in to a few months prior. They planned to bring black forest cake. Perfect.

The only thing missing is the precious thing for me.

I talked to my husband about the idea throughout the month of May. This was not something taken lightly. The job search process over the past few months were not going so well, and I knew it is because I was not giving it the right energy and focus. Also, in the past, I was unemployed when I applied for that job I truly enjoyed for eight years. It seemed like I can only do one of these two things at a time: work full time or job hunt full time.

On top of this, I realized that I never had a full two-month summer break since before my parents died, which was the summer of 1999. Since 2000, my summer breaks consisted of working for most of it, either working in the store in the mining village in the Philippines, working in retail or placements during my university years, and then as a full-time working professional. As a child, since my birthday was the end of May, just right before the schoolyear begins in the Philippines, my birthday always marks the end of a notable period of time and the beginning of another.

I looked at my bank account repeatedly. I inspected the information in the budgeting software I used since 2017. If I were not to do anything extravagant or ridiculous, I can afford to pay my bills and save for retirement with no interruption, for quite some time.

This is the perfect timing for this reset.

When I woke up on my actual birthday which was a Tuesday, I was a bundle of nerves and certainty. I was working from home that day, in my home office where to my left was a wall of frames, including the employee recognition certificate I received for my years of service. The draft email was already in my inbox. And then I clicked send.

Just a few minutes after, I got a message through our internal chat software. It looked like it came as a surprise. Then emails and video calls took took place, with strategies and decisions to make the most of the one-month resignation notice.

Since we had a hybrid work arrangement still, my office was not as decorated as it was. Packing up any remaining personal items was easy. The last month of work flew by, as I eagerly waited for my last day of work, just right before Canada Day long weekend.

After the long weekend, my relaxed summer break began. Nothing changed in my evenings as I kept all my volunteer commitments. I also wanted to spend the same amount of time with my husband so I kept my sleeping schedule the same. But the time period that is labelled as the typical weekday work hours from 8 AM – 5 PM, were all free and flexible. It felt eerie but not as slow as I expected. Boring and lazy and unstructured was exactly what I’m looking for and what I got. It was quite remarkable.

In the middle and end of the month, when I paid my bills, rent or the automated deduction for my retirement savings got taken out of my bank account, I relished in the feeling that I didn’t have to work during that current week to pay for it. My past self (and of course my husband) helped make this comfortable period of time happen.

When September long weekend arrived as well as back to school for students, I knew this free time was up. It is time to be a responsible adult again and actively work towards finding my next job. I knew it will take months from applications, to interviews, to the offer and a starting date. As fall came and went, the pressure crept up a bit more. Thankfully my husband consistently and patiently put my panicked thoughts into perspective.

In some career-oriented articles, I’ve heard of people talking about the benefit of taking a break, sometimes they call it a sabbatical. The type of break for a working professional where they won’t have to worry about financials, but are able to not work full time to rest or try something different. I didn’t name it that way back in May 2022, but it looks like a two-month sabbatical and life reset is what I have gifted myself. One can argue that it was quite expensive, if not the most expensive gift I have given to myself. My living expenses were $3,500 a month and I didn’t find employment until six months later.

It was wonderful and definitely worth it though. Something that is hard to give or get for someone like me with extreme workaholic tendencies. The gift of rest, of reset, of leisure, of personal flexibility. I hope that I can do it again just a few more times during my prime career working decades.

Event Review: Writers Guild of Alberta “Origins” Conference

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By: Giselle General

This past weekend, from June 2 – 4, 2023 I had the great fortune of attending the weekend-long annual conference organized by the Writers Guild of Alberta. They titled their conference this year “Origins: A Return to Networking, Publishing, Genre and Craft.” It’s a hybrid conference, with the in-person location at Fort Calgary and the keynotes and focus workshops available to attend online.

Frankly when I first heard of the conference through the e-newsletter from Writers Guild of Alberta, I was already checking my budget. I started a new job recently so my bank account is not draining anymore and I had full intention of finding a way to pay for it. Then, good news came. As I was a mentee of the Horizon Writers Circle this year, the conference was covered for free. There was even a travel allowance! This prompted a conversation among my fellow mentees to travel together from Edmonton to Calgary.

I agonized for a while on how to attend for two main reasons. I’m learning to be more kind to myself and be more conscious of my precious and limited energy for socializing. I haven’t attended a multi-day conference since November 2018 and I found it exhausting. If I wanted to focus on learning, I need to protect my capacity.

I’ve also felt reluctant to probe and ask questions related to COVID precautions and limiting viral transmission. I don’t feel comfortable attending large gatherings that can be a superspreader event. What’s the point of learning about improving my writing craft, if I die or get permanently debilitated by long COVID?

After some deliberation I decided to join the event virtually. As I read the details in the registration I felt hopeful that the virtual components were planned and executed seamlessly. As the conference day approached, I received the instructions on travel, accommodations, and online links. I was amazed by how the online component felt naturally included, and not something that was thrown together last minute. This gave the impression that the organizers have full intention for the event to be inclusive, compassionate, flexible, accommodating, which is what I believe the artistic and literary world is supposed to be.

How was Friday?

I rushed to finish dinner and run the dishwasher before plugging my headphones and connecting online. I then discovered that the opening keynote speaker is sick, and at the last minute, is joining online from their home in Edmonton. So technically speaking, I’m geographically closer to her. Her manner of describing how humans use language as a means to make change was just so awe-inspiring to me.

I knew that those who attended in-person had an opening networking event and a casual get-together after the keynote. As my online meeting linked closed, I happily went on to do chores to ensure my weekend is as cleared as possible.

How was Saturday?

Turns out, the morning keynote speaker had a travel-related hiccup and didn’t make it to Calgary. I’m super duper grateful to the power of the internet, giving him a way to do a virtual presentation. It was a compelling keynote that reminded me to continue learning about Canadian history that was not taught in my newcomer orientation and citizenship booklets, to find them in literature that is being produced these days. For Indigenous writers, it is a way to control the narrative of their lives and experiences withing the wider Canadian society and story. For recent immigrant and settlers like me, there’s many ways to learn and enrich our understanding of this place where we live.

It was my first time participating in a panel workshop with writing exercises for both attendees in-person and virtual. The last time I attended a writing workshop with writing prompts (as in, you get five minutes to write answering the question the facilitator gave) was at Pinoys on Parliament conference last year, but all of us are attending virtually so there’s lesser technical hiccups. This is also my first interactive workshop related to memoir.

“Do what’s right for you, for this project, at this time.” I appreciate the compassion, the permission, and flexibility when it comes to processes and decisions. The reminder of the fundamentals that are sometimes forgotten was very valuable. As always, there’s the “good problem” of having too many good choices of panels to attend. When I was choosing which to attend, I read all the details to my husband who does not do artistic of literary work. His perspective helped me narrow it down to the one that makes most practical sense. The fact that we can watch the recordings afterwards is also very reassuring.

I’ve organized events and conferences myself, so I have full appreciation of what happens behind the scenes. It was incredible to see the resources adjustments to mitigate the tech issues. Really incredible and appreciated.

How was Sunday?

Our keynote for Sunday joined us virtually from overseas, all the way from Greece. It was such a delightful and insightful Q and A about their approach across different projects and genres. There’s great comfort in hearing a successful writer acknowledging that certain processes related to writing are still difficult. For an outdoor hotel in Europe and only with one single internet interruption, I’m overjoyed that the setup of the conference allowed her to share her time with all of us.

As someone who belongs to many nonprofit boards, I appreciate the value of the seemingly boring but very important activity during an Annual General Meeting. I’d say it’s the most engaging one I’ve attended in a long time, particularly on the elections part. I’m glad that the Writers Guild of Alberta will have a full board of directors for the upcoming year, and that they are working on ensuring their committees are able to help with particular goals, such as membership engagement, diversity and inclusion, and youth supports.

The afternoon panel I would say is the most practical and helpful for me in my personal writer’s journey. The Q and A between publishers and agents addressed many questions from the in-person and virtual audience with tangible examples whenever they could, and saying frankly “I don’t know” and “it depends” at other times. My notebook is filled with notes on what I can work on in the next few months as I set up my schedule with editors and publishing one day.

Takeways

I’ve helped organized many events and conferences in the past, and have attended many events and conferences before COVID and in recent years. I am very aware of the additional time, coordination, cost, and sometimes, stress that comes from organizing events in a hybrid fashion. I’m immensely grateful that they did so. It meant that three of the major speakers were still able to share their wisdom despite unexpected cancellations or other plans that resulted in scheduling conflicts. It helped me focus on my primary objective for this conference, which is to learn and preserve my energy accordingly – and also preserve my limited vacation time and money. Alberta is a massive province and it’s difficult to expect rural Albertans writers to be able to travel all the way to a major city, or from one major city to another. It’s a truly tangible way to showcase the commitment to diversity and inclusion.

My two final takeways with my ongoing literary journey that I hope are action-oriented are these:

First, joining a literary-oriented organization and paying the nominal membership fee is very much worth it. Just starting with one is enough. In my case it was through the Writers Guild of Alberta. This one membership is what helped me pace myself in gradually expanding my literary community, where I eventually felt convinced that despite the seemingly grandiose image that come up with the word “guild”, that perhaps I belong here too.

Second, especially for people like me who don’t have a career in literature, to carve some time for a literary or artistic program or event. There’s no need to pressure one’s self to spend a lot of money or fill every single evening or weekend. A small local event once a month, one multiple-month flexible program per year, once conference in the spring and one in the fall. All these add up after a while.

This event has been such a gift. It’s a comment that came up in the comments during the virtual meetings. Simple and the most accurate way to describe it. Huge huge thank you to the organizers, sponsors, staff and volunteers for making it a success.

Memoir Writing Reflections #5: Marinating Time is Over

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By: Giselle General

After I finished the first round of drafting, I made the deliberate choice to not do revisions on my memoir manuscript since mid-January. Aside from reading the chapters for the reading event in March and organizing sample chapters for funding applications, I haven’t seen all of the other ones.

I don’t know why I chose a food-related analogy, but I thought letting the documents “marinate” for a few months is a good idea. My mentor author agreed. It seems like many other writers have done the same.

In those months I read two memoirs that have drastically different formats, which is equal parts refreshing and confusing. I suppose there is no truly one-size-fits-all approach.

I did my best to ensure my creative mind is not stagnant. I continue to write for the Alberta Filipino Journal, and some of my recent assignments were actually more challenging as they are more like articles or event summaries. Now that the weather is nicer I’ve also done some artwork again. And I try to write for this blog once a month. Heck, I even made a couple of submissions for a literary magazine. I got rejections both times.

Since I like scheduling and organizing, I’ve blocked a few hours on Sundays to start doing this again and actually booked it in my calendar like an event or appointment. I hope that the time I allocated is well-paced enough for the next two months, until I hear back from the different arts foundations where I submitted funding applications. I’m so very much looking forward to those. I’m excited to have professional editors look at the manuscript so they can chip away at all the awkward and ineffective bits and forge the final piece.

I organized my folders somehow like a factory production, where I have different containers (digital folders) to store various versions until it reaches the final version.

A computer screen showing several folders for a draft book. Each folder is for a different version of the draft.

What happened over the first four Sundays the self-revision time is scheduled in my calendar? I ignored them.

For the first two times, I don’t have any good excuse other than procrastination. Given I volunteer a lot in the city and I’m getting a lot of social media inspiration to deep clean my house, I have lots of alternative activities to do instead of reading through my files.

The third Sunday I have an actual legitimate excuse. My grandmother died and I had to focus on making sure I can communicate with everyone in the Philippines given that their time zone is 14 hours ahead. I have a lot of thoughts and feelings I’m still trying to unpack. On top of that, this particular grandmother, my mother’s mother, is an integral part of my childhood years covered in the memoir.

Now it’s the fourth Sunday of my so-called new Sunday routine to self-revise. I have so many volunteer tasks that I’m falling behind and I’m likely going to prioritize that.

In terms of the actual content I will likely not change anything since it is from the perspective of my childhood self. But my present-day self though, I’m just getting hit with more realizations and recently discovered family history that puts people’s behaviors into context. More nuance, less answers.

I even have other stories I wanted to incorporate somehow. Thankfully through the resources and advice I received I know I have a lot of options. I can write a whole chapter focusing on a experience. But it can also be as powerful as a paragraph, a sentence, or a phrase. It can be outlined as a story as it unfolds and experienced in real time, as an internal monologue, or a recent fleeting memory that can still be from the perspective of the child. This particular story I believe is very important and would enrich the reader’s experience of witnessing this orphaned girl trying to navigate a new reality.

This week I also submitted my report to the arts foundation that gave me the money, the grant, late last year. I’m supposed to report and show how I achieved my goals that I set out in that particular funding application. That was easy for me since the proof is very clear.

Now that grandma is buried and it’s my birthday month I really have to push forward with the self-revisions. That is, if my own existential crisis or health issues don’t get in the way.