Progress.

[lance_sibley]

Announcing another Guest Of Honour for Gaylaxicon:



We are pleased to announce Nalo Hopkinson as Author Guest of Honour! Nalo is the author of The Salt Roads, Brown Girl In The Ring, Midnight Robber and Skin Folk, and editor of Mojo: Conjure Stories and Whispers From the Cotton Tree Root: Caribbean Fabulist Fiction. She is a winner of the Campbell Award (for best new writer), the Locus Award, the World Fantasy Award, the Sunburst Award (for Canadian science fiction and fantasy) and the Gaylactic Network Spectrum Award, and she has also been nominated for the Hugo Award, the Phillip K. Dick Award, the James R. Tiptree Memorial Award and the Nebula Award.

We had a good meeting for Gaylaxicon today - I can see real progress being made. I'm feeling really enthusiastic now. Yay!

In other news... I spoke to my mother on Thursday regarding the meeting with my RRSP agent, broker, investment advisor... whatever you want to call her. She asked me to reschedule for some time after March 17, because it seems that's her last day at work. I'm not 100% sure whether it's because her employer was bought out (since that happened a year or so ago) or because she turned 65 last year. They had taken her off full-time status and put her on a contract after her birthday last year, so it could be either. It's probably a combination of the two, since people in her department were given the option of relocating to Waterloo several months ago, and she declined. The strange thing is that apparently she's not getting any kind of severance package despite having worked there for 11 years. I'm not sure that the company is behaving altogether ethically, but since Ontario doesn't yet have legislation in place forbidding companies from forcing people to retire at 65, the fact that they kept her on nearly until her 66th birthday is probably more than they were legally required to do. Of course, in my mother's universe, all employers should be required to keep all of their employees as long as the employee wants to remain there - it doesn't matter how badly they might be doing in terms of profit, they shouldn't be allowed to lay people off. Um, yeah. Whatever.

Anyway, so when I told her that I had made the appointment, she snapped at me that she still doesn't understand why I don't want to leave the stocks in both of our names so that we can get the dividends. First of all, the shares are in a Dividend Reinvestment Plan - so they're automatically used to purchase more shares. Second, she got the condo. She didn't have to take out a mortgage or a bank loan to pay me the difference between its value and the bank balance to even things out as per the terms of the will. So now she wants to keep her claim to the shares? Not bloody likely. And third, it's not as though I'm selling the stocks, anyway. I'm just depositing them into an account with the company that manages my retirement fund. For some reason, though, she continues to act as though I'm ripping her off for money she's neither entitled to nor would be getting if I did as she wanted.

Oh, and she demanded to know why I'm "in such a hurry." Excuse me? My grandmother died in October 2004...

On a slightly happier note, the Leafs played a much better game tonight. They still lost, but they were actually in the game for a change. I think Belfour should have stopped Ottawa's third goal, though.

Anyway, I hope to get a decent amount of sleep tonight. I was a little sleep-deprived today (though not too badly - I got nearly six hours last night) but I was having trouble finding words that I know are in my vocabulary, the same problem I was having last Sunday afternoon. whitesangria said that it's a classic symptom of fatigue. This afternoon's meeting probably would have been about 20 minutes shorter had I been able to speak at my normal rate of speed.

Comments

[indydark.livejournal.com]

in my mother's universe, all employers should be required to keep all of their employees as long as the employee wants to remain there - it doesn't matter how badly they might be doing in terms of profit, they shouldn't be allowed to lay people off.

I thought I read something that the Federal Government was thinking about doing this (getting rid of mandatory retirement)to help deffer the amounts of CPP pay-outs.

she continues to act as though I'm ripping her off for money she's neither entitled to nor would be getting if I did as she wanted.

Maybe it's time to retaliate and say that you'll sue her for the monies owing you in regards to the condo??

[boywhocantsayno.livejournal.com]

I thought I read something that the Federal Government was thinking about doing this (getting rid of mandatory retirement)to help deffer the amounts of CPP pay-outs.

I thought it was provincial legislation, not federal - but in any case, it hasn't been enacted yet to the best of my recollection.

Maybe it's time to retaliate and say that you'll sue her for the monies owing you in regards to the condo??

It's crossed my mind, but she's already convinced that I don't care about doing what's right, just getting my hands on as much money as possible. Remember, she lives in her own little universe where nobody who disagrees with her is ever right.

[marahsk.livejournal.com]

she's already convinced that I don't care about doing what's right, just getting my hands on as much money as possible.

OTOH, since she is already convinced of this, you have nothing to lose by going after the rest of the money you are rightfully entitled to. I'm not saying you should necessarily do so; I am pointing out that if you don't, you are giving up money that you are rightfully entitled to because you want your mother to think better of you, even though you know intellectually that she already thinks badly of you for demanding most of *your* money (and would still think badly of you even if you gave her everything).

The question isn't whether you can get her to love and respect you, it's whether you feel that several thousand dollars are worth the time and hassle, and having to spend more time with her. Only you can decide that.

Remember, she lives in her own little universe where nobody who disagrees with her is ever right.

She also lives in a magical world where no one has to plan for their own retirement, and wills are ignored because she'd like to have more money. None of this is your problem.

[avt-tor.livejournal.com]

It's crossed my mind, but she's already convinced that I don't care about doing what's right, just getting my hands on as much money as possible. Remember, she lives in her own little universe where nobody who disagrees with her is ever right.


So there's no downside in living up to her expectations.

[boywhocantsayno.livejournal.com]

However, at the risk of making it sound like it is about the money - there's also the possibility that despite what she's said about willing the condo to me, she could always change her mind. Then I would have lost $200,000 and any remaining shred of a civil relationship with her in order to gain $30,000 - not a good tradeoff.

I just shut out most of her comments, because I know what my feelings on the subject are, and no amount of arguing will convince her that she's wrong. (She's always been that way, about everything.)

Okay, maybe I don't shut them out completely - otherwise I wouldn't post here about our conversations. I guess it would be more accurate to say that I allow her to believe whatever helps her to sleep at night. Smile and nod. Smile and nod.

[avt-tor.livejournal.com]

Right on. Lance should be suing her, for the rest of his share, for the interest because of her delay, and for his legal costs.

Appropriate verbal rejoinders include:

* "In my mind, I'm already peeing on your grave."
* "I realize you didn't plan for your retirement. I'll try to learn from your mistake."
* "I'm counting the days until you can be declared incompetent. Really, it'll be for your own good."
* "It's not about having the money for myself, it's about taking it away from you. When I win, I'm taking the money and throwing a big party for my friends at a gay resort in St. Maartin."\
* "Everything I know about family and respect, I learned from you, Mom. Now sign the paper and pay up."
* "It's not a surprise to you that you turned 65, is it? Surely you had time to plan for your retirement?"
* "You shouldn't worry. You'll find another job that suits your skills."

[boywhocantsayno.livejournal.com]

Oh, my. :)

I'm not sure I can be that evil/rude (it's just not in my personality - unfortunately, in this case), though I rather enjoyed reading this list. :)

That being said, "It's not a surprise to you that you turned 65, is it? Surely you had time to plan for your retirement?" is the one that has almost come out of my mouth almost every time she bitches about being forced into retirement. Then again, it might have been a surprise - she always claimed to have been born in 1942, not 1940 as her government documentation indicates.

[marahsk.livejournal.com]

When she whines about having no money because she is unemployed, remind her that working at McDonald's is "better than nothing," and that she shouldn't think she's too good to work retail. Or however she phrased it to you.

Yes, I am evil. :)

[boywhocantsayno.livejournal.com]

ROFL! Yes, I may just do that. Wal-Mart hires retired people, don't they? *grin*

[marahsk.livejournal.com]

I believe they do. The whole "greeter" thing was originally retirees. McDonalds made a point of hiring retirees as well. That was a few years ago, though; I don't know if they are still doing it. I haven't seen any older people working at McDonald's when I've been there lately. Wendy's might, too; and there are middle-aged people working as cashiers all over the place.

[indydark.livejournal.com]

I agree with all that you said, 100%.

The whole "greeter" thing was originally retirees.

retirees and mentally challenged adults. But, I really don't know boywhocantsayno's mom THAT well. JK

[marahsk.livejournal.com]

Heh. Good one. :)