Alexandra - Day in the life / Journal Entries

Monday, September 12, 2100

I can’t believe that today is the day that I get to start working for Aletheia. I got out of bed at 7am and I put on the outfit I had planned the night before: a white dress shirt, a black pencil skirt and my favourite black blazer that fits just right. I got to work with 15 minutes to spare. Nervous about my first day, I took a few deep breaths in the car to calm my nerves before heading in. I’m given a tour by the receptionist, Emily. She shows me all the amenities that come with the job including a yoga studio, a coffee bar, a meditation corner and the cafeteria that offers a buffet lunch every day. I could get used to this.

After gawking at this amazing new workplace, I head to my new office. I can’t believe I have a whole room with a desk that is all mine. I take a moment to look at the view. Being on the 67th floor definitely comes with some perks.

Throughout the day I slowly learn the lay of the land. I figure out my daily tasks and see how my schedule works. I even answer a few phone calls and get to meet the big boss, Mathew Andrews.

A 6’2 man with brown hair and green eyes stands before me, reaching out his hand. I introduce myself with a smile and quickly catch onto his quirks. He likes his coffee hot and his sandwiches cold. He likes his schedule laid out for him before he arrives and he likes having his coat hanged as soon as he gets in the door. I make a note of these things so I don’t forget what he’s saying. After our introduction he heads back to his office. I sit down in my chair for the first time and think; I can’t believe I’m finally at my dream job.

Tuesday, October 18, 2100

My bladder wakes me up five minutes before my alarm, so I shut it off early to avoid waking anyone up. I head to the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face. I throw on my work clothes and start my makeup. I rescrunch my hair and grab last night’s coffee from the fridge on my way out. Before locking the door I glance in the mirror and think about how grateful I am to have this job. I zip up my boots and head out the door since I’m running late. On my drive I chat with my Aunt about the office gossip; about how Jerry bought us bagels from the bakery the other day and how Daisy keeps complaining about her new boyfriend. As soon as I set my purse down and turn on my computer, Andrews comes in and rants to me about his meeting last night. As I listen to him tell me about how Montclair keeps fighting him on whether or not they should delete Mckenna’s videos, I can’t help but wonder what other kinds of content are they deleting from the media?

The day goes by smoothly as I perform my usual tasks, getting coffee for the board meetings, picking up his dry cleaning and organizing his schedule for the next few days.

I get home around 4:45pm and thank Eleine for keeping an eye on the kids after school. My 7 year old, Alana, tells me all about how she learned about colour theory and how her teacher used a hologram wheel to demonstrate contrasting colours. My 10 year old, Austin, tells me about this new software that scans math problems so that he could access step by step solutions after school if he gets stuck on a problem. I can’t believe how much technology has advanced in the past few years.

I start to get dinner ready and I can’t help but wonder what kinds of information my kids are missing. What are they not exposed to and what is Aletheia’s ulterior agenda to all this censorship?

Thursday, December 5, 2100

As I wait for my caramel macchiato at the coffee bar, I overhear Andrews’ conversation with Montclair as they walk towards his office. It seems like they are arguing about how much mental health content is allowed in a book for it to be cleared to be taught in schools. After I thank the barista for my coffee, I press my ear against his door to find out more information. As the conversation dies down I head back to my desk and pretend I’m scheduling another one of his meetings.

At around 2:30 I come into the board room and hand out eight coffees to the members. I linger and slowly make my way around the table so that I can eavesdrop on what they are discussing. I piece together enough information to figure out that they are planning on removing any media that displays LGBTQ+ content. As I leave the room, I close my eyes for a moment to compose myself. I can’t believe my children have to live in a world where only one type of family dynamic is being shown on tv.

Before I leave work I prep Andrews’ office for the next day. I was surprised to see that he forgot to turn his computer off before heading home. I take a glance and see that most of the staff has left already, so I take a look at his screen. One of the 20 tabs he has open is labeled “curriculum details”. I hover over and find a list of topics that are banned in schools. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw that the list was 5 pages long. I shudder at the fact that Aletheia prides itself on the fact that we have access to all the information we could ever want, and then proceeds to ban all of these materials. I shut off his laptop and lock up.

Wednesday, March 9, 2101

I don’t know if I can do this anymore. How can I work for an organization that hides so much from the public eye? I text my best friend and ask if we can meet up for coffee tomorrow during lunch.

Thursday, March 10, 2101

I fill her in on everything. I tell her about all of the information that is banned in schools and how they are always debating on what to delete from the media. I also mention the pros of working in the office, but I can’t shake this feeling of guilt knowing that my kids are not getting other perspectives aside from what Aletheia tells us to believe. She is shocked by what I tell her (rightfully so) and takes a moment to process everything I said. I mention that I am thinking of leaving Canada and publishing the list of topics that are banned from the curriculum. She reminds me that if I do this, I will never be able to return to my life here. Together, we sit and make a pros and cons list to help me decide what I should do moving forward.