Home Blog Page 151

Calgary and the Arts

Hanbo Yu
-
0

It has been quite a while since I made my last post as I have been quite busy with many different activities and events both in school and outside of school, so I will be sure to make this post as worthwhile as possible.

An Introduction

In recent years in Calgary, the performing arts and culture has seen a massive boom. At the center of this rapid development and further introduction of the arts into the city, well, lies directly at the heart of the city–that is, right beneath the Calgary Tower.

Vertigo Theatre in all its glory has been at the heart of the arts culture in Calgary for over forty years, and to say the least, it has provided countless moments of humor, anguish, sadness, however emotion you want, to all massive demographics across Calgary (and even beyond). My personal experiences with the theatre has been tremendous and I would recommend anyone to take time off, unwind, relax, and enjoy a show at Vertigo Theatre.

A quote from Ray Bradbury (author of Fahrenheit 451) that reflects my honest views on art is: “We need our Arts to teach us how to breathe.” In a city like Calgary where oil and gas industries are what propels the city forward, a high-octane atmosphere and a work-centered mindset is often adopted. In such an environment, it is even more necessary to relax and settle the mind. What better way to do so than to settle down snugly in a theatre seat and watch a truly fantastic show unfold before your eyes?

Our Man In Havana

I had the pleasure of watching the wonderful Our Man in Havana in March, and below are a few comments  I have made about the play, and how they relate to theatre in general.

Like any other piece of literature, innately there is a big, overarching theme, perhaps a dogma, an aphorism, about life or about human nature. A component of theatre that truly, you cannot find anywhere else is that you are immersed into the story. Unlike a movie where there is a physical screen between you and the actors (and all those fancy-schmancy camera techniques) detract from the overall immersive experience. While in theatre, the people are true, the atmosphere is real, and there is no screen blocking you from the actors. What I noticed is that Our Man in Havana was very immersive, and it truly gives you a feel for what type of place Cuba was in the mid 20th century;  truly beautiful, yet at the same time dark and foreboding. A setting you would typically see in a James Bond-esque movie, Our Man in Havana captures to feel perfectly and gave me waves of nostalgia as the play unfolded itself.

The dialogue was definitely very engaging, and unlike some theatrical works which rely heavily on tropes and stereotypes, Our Man in Havana deviates from that and employs very individualistic styles which add to the overall experience.

The acting was fabulous, and the overall flow of the play was great. There were not any discrepancies nor in-cohesiveness, as everything tied back together perfectly.

Conclusion

Theatre experiences are wonderful, as they bring light to a whole new world and allow one to be immersed in a world that otherwise would have to created by head or watched in a movie. It is a great way to unwind and be caught up in the story, almost as if you are a pedestrian or a passerby witnessing the events as they unfold. Art and the culture is important in any society, and just like my experience with Our Man in Havana, I hope more people can take time off and appreciate the wonderful and talented space that is Vertigo Theatre as it truly is a wonderful experience and a great way to relax and unwind.

 

The Effects Of Negativity

Julieanne Acosta
-
0

You know you’re prepared. You’ve been studying for days on end, but you finally get to that exam and you think to yourself, “I’m probably going to fail.”  Why is that? Our brains are so hardwired to think negative that we don’t even realize the magnitude of the effects on us. 

Most of us would say we’re fairly positive people. We’ve all at least tried to fill our minds with positive thoughts, yet we’ve all caught ourselves doubting our abilities in certain tasks. Sometimes it’s just a quick comment about how you think you’re going to do on a quiz, but sometimes it’s more than that. Sometimes you believe it. 

Self-doubt makes things significantly harder. We all have that little voice in our head. The one that analyzes everything we see and calls the shots on how we perceive certain situations. It’s that little voice that can controls how you see yourself. 

The truth of it is, the more you talk to yourself negatively the more your brain starts believing it. Your thoughts slowly turn into facts and you start thinking about yourself with a grain of salt, with constant disbelief of your own capabilities. It changes your self-views and plummets your self-esteem. The remarks that may have just started as a joke now to seem to roll off your tongue subconsciously, and it doesn’t even bother you anymore because it’s already been made certain that it’s true in your mind. This takes a huge toll on your mental health. Mainly, your confidence.

The more of a habit this becomes, the more you become harsher and frankly, unfair to yourself. This can lead to not only low self-esteem but anxiety and depression issues. Leaving a mental scar, it’s always going to exist; the thoughts you once had about yourself are now constantly going to be in the back of your mind. 

It’s something that’s become so common in adolescent behavior that it’s barely even noticed when someone mentions something about themselves in a negative way. We react as if it’s the new normal, because quite frankly it is.  Self-talk is one of the main factors as to how you present yourself to others. It’s what determines how you uphold yourself. We remember every bad thing people have told us and we take it into consideration each time, and with each judgment, we notably lose parts of ourselves that we thought was great. Not only that, we start to expand on what was said. We overthink things, it’s just how it is.

Without any positive thoughts, we drown in our own words. It changes everything, from how we see things to how we act. That’s why it’s extremely important to push through the negativity and overwrite what you may already be thinking of yourself and replace it with positive talk. Try writing down the bad thoughts you have about yourself. Afterwards, go through each of them and talk yourself through why you think that and why it isn’t true.

Finding a neutral between being too positive and too negative is in truth, harder than it comes off. Expecting everything’s going to be easy is unrealistic but so is expecting everything with a pessimistic outlook. Really the only thing that matters is how you see yourself, not how others do. It’s important to bring awareness to negativity and help those have a better attitude towards themselves.

For further help try these physical exercises that have been proven to help stop negative thoughts.

 

Image: 1

The Type the Germans Drank- An Original Short Story

Kiana Baghban
-
0

She was writing about her life, what had happened, and how she had felt during those two years. She was scared and alone, but she had hardened up to the world and so she sat there, with her tea and pastry beside her, knowing her writing was what would save her.

She was in a snug cafe, tucked away in a small corner of an out-of-the-way street. There were white lace curtains in the windows and cardinal rose buds all round. Inside, paintings of lands that existed only in the quarry of imagination hung on the walls; their frames accenting the ivory chairs and tables. And there was a pianist, whose sorrow dripped over the sides of the instrument.

The bell rang as the cafe door opened and closed, the girl looked up from her paper to see a man with cold eyes; she looked down.

“Pardon me.” The girl looked up. It was the man. He was holding his coat in one hand and a cup in the other. He was drinking a coffee so strong that she could smell it. It was the type the Germans drank after they were done pushing her around. “May I sit down?”

She nodded and went back to work. There was a flashing in the corner of her eye, and she couldn’t ignore it. There was something desperate about it, as if it had died, but was still clinging onto a strand of life. Quickly, quietly, she forgot about the man, the piano, her pen and paper and she stared at the man’s coat, which lay carefully draped upon the chair.

“Writing is such solitary labour,” said the man. The girl’s eyes snapped to his face, her pen had dropped from her hands. “One could ask for company, but then you feel more alone. But the best pieces I’ve written were in crowded parks and libraries. I’ve always wanted to know why they ended up so well.”

“Do you write much?” asked the girl, as she drank the rest of her cold tea, the man had finished his coffee already.

“No,” he said. “I finished my first story half an hour ago, then I tore it up.”

“Why?” she asked.

“I don’t know why,” the man sighed as he put his hand on his forehead. “It seems as if…no, I don’t know why.”

An eloquent silence followed. The girl and the man looked at each other, neither caring to talk.

“It scared you,” said the girl.

The man started. “What?”

“The story you tore up, it scared you.”

He opened his mouth, shook his head and sighed. “Yes…yes…it must’ve frightened me,” he said hoarsely. Then with sudden force he cried. “No! I shouldn’t be frightened after the things that I did. My fear died a long time ago. Besides, the doctor said writing would help me face what I had done during the war. But how many words will it take to change the past? I wish it never happened, I wish I had been killed like the rest of the-”

He suddenly stopped. His eyes, which had turned misty during this dialogue slowly hardened once again. In sudden and jerky movements, he went to reach for his cup and saucer. He stood up, uttered a small cry, clutched his chest, dropped the cup and fell back into his chair. His coughs took over his body.

The girl shuddered as the glass broke, but in her heart, she was growing a certain sympathy for this strange man.

“You must forgive me,” the cold voice said.

She smiled faintly, “Of course.”

Squinting, she opened her notebook and pushed it towards the man. “I want you to read this.”

As the waiter cleaned up the broken glass, the man read and the girl stared once again at the chair. That flashing again. Her whole world had turned into that small gleam. There was nothing more important to her than that blinding glint. What did she care for life, death, broken cups and white lace curtains? Right there, tucked away on an out-of-the-way street, there was a pin on a man’s coat. A pin that was burning into a young girl’s eyes; while a stranger read her innermost thoughts and reflections.

She blushed after he finished reading her notebook. “I guess it was silly of me to think that you would be interested in such foolish thoughts, I don’t-”

She had stopped because he wasn’t listening. His eyes, once cold, were now warm and sympathetic. “So. You were one of them.”

Slowly, she nodded.

The man looked across the room and sniffed. “Did w…did they treat you badly?”

“There were worse off than myself, I have no right to complain.” Her hand wandered to the blue number tattooed on her wrist.

The man laughed dryly. It was the first time he had smiled or laughed during his remarks with the girl, but it was not natural. It didn’t lighten up the atmosphere, it didn’t change the pianist’s sentiments towards his lost lover, and it didn’t change the girl’s sensitivity towards the pin. It was a sound. Nothing more, nothing less. “So you saw the others as well.”

She nodded. He stood up and reached for his coat. He paid for his drink and put the coat on. And for the first time, the girl got a glimpse of the pin. Her head began to spin. Her world turned upside down. And then she knew: all that had happened to her in those two years was because of that flashing.

“I’m sorry.” He said.

The bell rang as the cafe door opened and closed. With the smell of the German’s coffee still in her nose, the girl blinked rapidly to clear away the blank spots the swastika pin had left on her vision.

Featured Image Source 

Moral Dilemma: Trolley Problem

Claude Lu
-
0

There is never a correct answer in hypothetical scenarios that question an individual’s morals and ethics. However, these hypothetical scenarios are able to evaluate what somebody considers important in life. Dilemmas are predicaments in which undesirable choices are given and a choice has to be made, unfortunately you are at a loss in both cases. If both cases are unfavorable it tests what this individuals prioritizes.

Recently in Church our morals and ethics were challenged. One of the moral dilemmas discussed was if a homeless man was begging for money what would you do? Answers varied from walking past the man to buying him food. Their answers varied as everyone had a different perspective on the situation. Some people were concerned the man would purchase drugs or alcohol, while others believed it to be unfair to only give this man money and not the many other homeless people. The discussion helped me reevaluate what I believed was righteous or unethical. In this scenario, I believed the virtuous act would be to purchase food for the homeless instead of walking past him. I stumbled upon a famous ethical dilemma that puts one’s morals to the test. I will share my opinion on the situation and what I believe is righteous.

Trolley Problem

There is a runaway trolley barreling down the railway tracks. Ahead, on the tracks, there are five people tied up and unable to move. The trolley is headed straight for them. You are standing some distance off in the train yard, next to a lever. If you pull this lever, the trolley will switch to a different set of tracks. However, you notice that there is one person on the side track. You have two options:

  1. Do nothing, and the trolley kills the five people on the main track.

  2. Pull the lever, diverting the trolley onto the side track where it will kill one person.

Case 1: Would you kill 1 person to save the lives of five people? This is the question one must ask themselves if they choose to pull the lever. If you weren’t aware of the person on the side track, this would not be a problem. However, the issue is knowing the repercussions of pulling the lever. Our morals are tested as we decide whether to intentionally kill a person to save the lives of others. Significant harm on one person must be done to save the lives of others which cannot be morally justified. Human lives aren’t like money with prices attached to them, the lives of five people is not more significant than the life of one person. I believe that it is not morally acceptable to use the lives of people to save the lives of others.

Case 2: The second scenario is where you do not pull the lever and allow for the train to run its main course. Although, you might not have pulled the lever you had knowledge of the circumstances, you were aware of the death of the five people ahead on the track if nothing were done. However, you still chose to not pull the lever as you believe it was morally unacceptable to sacrifice the life of one person for the benefit of others. I believe that it is morally acceptable to do nothing in this case as you aren’t intentionally killing the five people.

In the Trolley Problem, I do not value lives of five people higher over the life of one person. The killing of one person cannot be justified through saving the lives of others. Everybody might believe saving the lives of five people would be more important than a singular life, but I can’t go through with pulling a lever knowing that I would still kill somebody. Morally I would feel grief and guilt for pulling that lever. The Trolley Problem has to be one of the more morally challenging dilemmas as both scenarios result in death. One’s choice is dependent on what they personally believe is ethical.

Image Source 1/2

Dear High School Me,

Hui Wen Zheng
-
0
Dear High School Me,

Congrats on your graduation! Grade 12 is nearing its completion at long last. While for some, high school graduation holds the significance of the completion of 12 years of education, it is a culmination of all the hard work, difficulties, and successes that has turned you from that shy 7 year-old who didn’t speak an ounce of English to someone who is immersed in society completely. While the term “a moment you’ve been waiting for your entire life” isn’t really applicable to your high school grad, the sense that you’ve finally crossed the finish line of a marathon you’ve watched so many others complete is nonetheless exciting. Remember last year this time when you were watching all of your friends walk the stage at grad and thinking how much you wished you could go with them? Be patient is what I would tell you now. It turns out you needed that extra year to self-actualize and develop your core beliefs, which guide you in everything you do now.

While high school was rocky at times, I would ask you to not be a pessimist about it. I bet now you’re thinking about it with rose-coloured lenses and reminiscing about how wonderful it was to have all your closest friends so easily accessible, how great it was to feel such a sense of community, and how at-home you felt sitting in the always too hot or cold band room. And I don’t blame you for that. You learned how to be a strong leader in high school, you finally recognized your weaknesses as a person and started to consciously try to fix them, and you definitely started dressing better (and finally learned how to do your brows!). The past three years was full of remarkable changes in your attitude, both towards the world and towards your own life. You discovered self-confidence and finally realized your potential, allowing you to live without fear of being judged. You surrounded yourself with friends you care about and know in your heart who you want to remain friends with for the rest of your life. You realized so many things that allowed you to get to your graduation feeling wholly prepared to step into the next chapter of your life, and for that, high school deserves a lot of credit where credit is due.

Now, as you live this weird, transitional time between university and high school, I hope you continue to maintain your commitments with the heart that you have given them the past three years. Use this time to organize your life to make things easier for you in the future. Read, write, and educate yourself on things you were always curious about but never had the time to study during school. Take up new hobbies, and make plans to continue your old ones, which have now become a defining part of your identity. And always remain grounded. To reality, to your accomplishments, and to the moment. You’ve got a whole life to come where failure, success, and unexpected events will undoubtedly make their mark. Accept that as life, and don’t let any one thing define everything that you have worked so hard and have had the good fortune to receive and become. Take time to reflect; your strongest skill that has made you passionate about what you do. Reflect on the value of things and people in your life, reflect on what your contributions to them are, and reflect on the good and bad of everything before making up your mind about anything.

Finally, I hope you spend all the time you can with your family and loved ones and tell them that.  These people love you more than you could ever understand; overwhelm them with love just as they do you. Love your mom, who took care of your every single need and always looked out for your best interests on top of everything she does for others. Love your dad, who gave the best advice and talked you through all of the toughest times you faced. Love your brother, who is the light and joy in your life with his funny antics and constant care and affection. I would hope I know you well enough to say that all of the above should be a no-brainer. That being said, call them right now and remind them that you love them. It doesn’t matter how busy or inconvenient it is for you — what ever it is can wait, don’t make your family wait for you.

The next four years will be another roller coaster with its highs, lows, twists and turns, uphill battles, exciting moments, and boring ones. However, if there is anything I wish for you, myself, is to always make time for the things you love, and remain grounded.

 

25 Best Cosplays from the Calgary Expo: Part 1

Mankaran Gill
-
0
25 Best Cosplays from the Calgary Expo: Part 1

This post was delayed a little bit longer than expected however let’s not waste any more time! During the last weekend of April the annual Calgary Expo was held and within the wonders of geek culture. Amazing spectacles and figures of pop culture were all present during this enormous gathering of people who all share the same love for this medium of entertainment. Some of the most amazing people there were the cosplayers who showed off their love by creating costumes of their favourite characters. Here are 25 of the best cosplayers on Saturday that I had the pleasure of running into.

 

*Just a side note, I am not the best or near talented photographer and, being the amateur I am, I had also forgotten to ask for credit.

1.War-torn Charizard and Blastoise

2. The War Doctor and The TARDIS

3. Silent Hill Nurse and Pyramid Head

4. Skyrim Living Dragon Priestess concept art

5. Fallout 4 Hot Rod Power Armour

6. Genji with Nihon skin

7. Fallout New Vegas Ranger Armour, Craig Boone, ED-E and Rose of Sharon Cassidy (They all have various skins and these are assumptions).

8. Captain America/Darth Vader mix and human pigeon (not sure which specific character)

9. Borderlands Psychos

10. Ghostbusters

11. Doctor Octopus

12. Witch-king of Angmar and  Sauron

13. Mercy with Devil Skin

14.  Oscar taking a break and Solaire taking care of business elsewhere

15. Kitty Pryde and Team Skull Boss Guzma

16. Modern Warfare Soldiers

17. Team Skull

18. One Piece Zoro

19. Star Wars X-Wing Fighter Pilot

20. Imperator Furiosa

21. The Penguin and Batman

22. Tracer Sporty Skin

23. Steampunk Guy

24. Samurai Deadpool

25. Stranger Things Joyce Byers

Stay tuned for Part 2!

 

 

25 of the Best Cosplays from the Calgary Expo: Part 2

Mankaran Gill
-
0
25 of the Best Cosplays from the Calgary Expo: Part 2

This post was delayed a little bit longer than expected however let’s not waste any more time! During the last weekend of April the annual Calgary Expo was held and within the wonders of geek culture. Amazing spectacles and figures of pop culture were all present during this enormous gathering of people who all share the same love for this medium of entertainment. Some of the most amazing people there were the cosplayers who showed off their love by creating costumes of their favourite characters. Here are 25 of the best cosplayers on Sunday that I had the pleasure of running into.

*Just a side note, I am not the best or near talented photographer and, being the amateur I am, I had also forgotten to ask for credit.*

  1. Doom guy

2. Heatwave and Captain Cold

3. Classic Optimus Prime

4. Bulma and gender swapped Vegeta

5. The Red Queen and Time (Alice Through The Looking Glass)

6. Logan aka the Wolverine

7. Captain Wade Wilson

8. Star-Lord with Baby Groot

9. The Boulder from Avatar

10. Worried gender swapped Reaper

11. Edward Scissor Hands

12. Storm Trooper

13. Doctor Octopus

14. Gender swapped Deathstroke

15. Darth Revan and Darth Nihilus

16. Demon Hunter WOW

17. Geralt of Rivia

18. Sim Characters (Sims)

19. The Wasp

20. An Incredible Family

21. Young Hanzo, Junkrat and McCree (Default Skins)

 

22. Devil May Cry, Dante

23. A broke Darth Vader

24. Hawkgirl

25. Star Wars Carbonite Freezing Wall (Most Likely Han Solo)

 

Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed this blog, if you want more you can check out other blogs around this site.

LOGAN… from Start to Finish (spoilers…duh)

Tom Wang
-
0

When the trailer to Logan came out I was excited to say the least. The Wolverine was my favorite superhero. I loved his ‘don’t care, get out of my face’ attitude, and oh did I mention he has ADAMANTIUM, A D A M A N T I U M claws and bones and regeneration. But let’s talk about the trailer for a second, you see, it’s different from typical movie trailers, especially for the action/superhero genre. The trailer for LOGAN uses the classic “Hurt” – sung by Johnny Cash masterfully. Basic cords in the exposition, then the scene cuts along the drop, building the tension and giving just enough context to build suspense. Johnny Cash’s iconic raspy voice fits the deserted themes in the film. I could go on all day just on the trailer, but let’s move on to the actual film.

That’s the girl that was in the trailer! (Brilliant deductive work, Tom.)

Of course, the foreshadowing in the trailer made it obvious that the girl (Laura) would have mutant powers resembling Logan, but I never expected her to have adamantium claws as well.

Wait. She only has two claws… aw… …

You seein’ this?

HOLY CRAP ARE THOSE FEET CLAWS.

Watching this film, Laura gave me the same feeling that first time I saw Wolverine. It was that same feeling of awe the first time I saw Logan with his adamantium claws. And it wasn’t just her fighting capacity. Throughout the film, Laura maintained a hard face just like Logan when he was young. That made it bittersweet. It was an incredibly nostalgic reminder of the Wolverine yet it highlighted the tragedy that a young child would be conditioned into such a state. And that’s a nice transition into the not so ‘hard’ parts of the film.

Going into this film I expected the typical Marvel action superhero movie. Going in I did not expect to be put on the verge of tears. While I always loved Logan for his tough exterior, I hated him for not letting people near him and in this film we got to see Logan acknowledge Laura as her daughter.

“This is what it feels like.”

You know that cliché that goes something like: a guy walking down the street gives a stray dog some food. The dog begins to follow the guy but he ignores it. The guy could totally use a dog but he just stubbornly refuses while you’re watching going, “JUST TAKE HIM IN!” That’s what the relationship between Logan and Laura felt like. And at last, we see the development. That is what it feels like, Logan.

Maybe the most bittersweet part of the film was the theme of mortality.

But the superhero isn’t supposed to die!

This film killed off characters. “Good guys.” Mutants. It’s backwards writing. It goes against all the conventions of superheroes. The immortal wolverine beast was dying. Dead. The brilliant Professor Xavier had dementia (or some similar degenerative disease). Dead. These heroes we’ve grown up regarding as immortal were made so human in this film. It was tragically depressing but it wasn’t unsatisfying. These characters are dead. And not dead in the Superman v. Batman way. This film wasn’t about getting rid of the old cast for the sake of setting up a new franchise, at least it didn’t feel forced. I know Laura will continue the wolverine legacy and I couldn’t have asked for a better successor.

I’ll be honest, that last scene: it broke my heart. The Wolverine that I looked up to as I grew up was dead. Impaled on a branch. But before that last fateful scene, we did get a taste of the Wolverine of old.

The beginning of the end.

After injecting himself with the drugs he knew would die from, we saw that old Wolverine we’ve come to love. That last surge reminded me of the wildness of the first wolverine. Maybe I’m romanticizing it, and I still don’t completely know exactly how I’m feeling about all this, but this has definitely been my favorite Wolverine movie.

A phenomenal film. And if you’ve gotten this far and you have not seen it, be warned that it is R rated and therefore contains: an abundance of swears, and numerous very graphic scenes (think Breaking Bad). If the R rating doesn’t deter you give this one a shot. I know I’ll remember it for a long time.

Img Sources: Ft/PrtScr from the film

Mental Health Awareness

Bhavana Vel
-
0

Luckily these past few years have done wonders to raise awareness for the pressing issue that is mental health. If you didn’t know already, Mental Health Awareness Week happened on May 1-7th. The week helps teens become more aware of mental health, at least by a little bit.

First off, what is a mental illness?

If you Google it, the definition that comes up is:

Mental illness refers to a wide range of mental health conditions — disorders that affect your mood, thinking and behaviour. –Mayo Clinic

Despite the good intentions of Mental Health Awareness Week, many of us don’t know the issues surrounding mental health well enough to have meaningful conversations about them.

Teens these days are constantly not taking mental health seriously, but the truth is experiencing a mental illness should not be any different from experiencing a physical illness. They can be treated and helped, but only if people understand.

Mental illnesses affect day-to-day lives: school, work, family, relationships, etc. We need to step up and face the problem and give help to those who need it.

Types of mental illnesses include:

  1. Anxiety disorder
  2. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
  3. Bipolar disorder
  4. Depression
  5. Eating disorders
  6. Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)
  7. Post-tramautic stress disorder (PTSD)
  8. Schizophrenia

You’ve probably heard people make jokes about these topics, or not take them seriously. I think that teens need to understand that these illnesses aren’t something to take lightly. There are people on this planet who have been battling mental illnesses for years, and making them into a small thing isn’t okay.

Mental illnesses should be talked about. People with mental illnesses should be able to reach out for help without being made fun of, or accused of “faking it.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with a mental illness, you can contact Distress Centre Calgary, which is located at:

Suite 300, 1010-8 Avenue SW, Calgary, AB T2P 1J2

or, you could call them at:

(403) 266-4357

Please always know that you are not alone, and there is a solution to every problem.

images: x , x

My Vancouver Trip- Part 2

Ananya Arya
-
0

Friday, April 21st

My dream was about to come true. Finally. After nine years, I would finally be able to play in the Chan center in UBC. My dad graduated here, and I hope to as well one day. We worked with an amazing conductor (and I won’t say who, just for confidentiality purposes) on one of our hardest pieces of the year “Symphonic Dance No. 3 – Fiesta” and he vastly improved us as a band.  He made us repeat multiple bars for what seemed like a hundred times, but it was worth it. Just having the opportunity to play there was heaven! It was roughly a two hour workshop. Afterwards, all of us who weren’t in jazz band, walked around the rose garden, the grand libraries in UBC, and just around the campus. I was surprised as to how much I remembered about the campus and how close I was to tears that day. Walking around brought back so many memories, it was surreal.

Afterwards, we went to the aquarium! This was my sixth time going there. I had seen it all, yet every time it managed to surprise me. We did a workshop where we got to touch a few sea creatures and explore the place, I even had the chance to touch sting rays! There was a new dolphin in the routine, which was amazing and the experience was vastly different compared to what it was before. Going and hanging out with friends there makes a very big difference in my opinion.

After all of that, we quickly grabbed a bite at whole foods, and got changed for an amazing performance of “Anything Goes.” The production was a wonderful journey that made us all laugh and clap and compelled us all to sing along. The main actress’s voice was unlike any-other I’ve ever heard. The show was absolutely spectacular and I only wish I was able to enjoy it a few more times.  That night we got to our hotel around 12 a.m. and it was my last night in Vancouver, and because of that, I didn’t sleep most of the night.

Saturday April 22nd

The morning was unbelievably painful for me, to leave home and venture on back to Salmon Arm. We first went to Kelowna, to support our Jazz band in the Kiwanis festival. At breakfast that morning, I was so terribly engrossed in a conversation, that without realizing, I put Tabasco instead of sugar in my coffee. Little did I know that adding Tabasco to your coffee doesn’t make it spicy, rather it spikes the flavor of the coffee, and since I have been drinking my morning cup the same.  Who knew right?

We quickly headed off to Kelowna and I very much enjoyed the ride there because I was able to reminisce most of the way there. We saw two other groups perform and I must say our band did an outstanding job. We quickly walked to Boston pizza where I can’t seem to recall how many pizzas I devoured myself! As soon as we could, we headed to an arcade near Salmon Arm. There my friends and I played for tickets, went mini golfing and just ran around like kids on a sugar high. My band conductor had a dance off with multiple students as well! But the highlight of that place was when my entire group of five friends thought I was going to be last because I was playing mini golf so terribly, and I ended up tying for first place! Who knew my skills were so good? Although I didn’t get much from the tickets I collected, I got two bouncy balls and a voodoo doll. And right as we were about to leave, I challenged two of my friends to basket ball, three rounds each, and unfortunately I lost by three points each time. For some reason everyone had gathered around us to see that. An hour later, driving in the dark having the stars on the ground in the mountains, we reached the hotel at Salmon Arm, where we had stayed at previously at nearly 1 in the morning!

Sunday April 23rd

This was the last day. The final day when we would reach Calgary. There wasn’t too much to this day apart from sleep.  When we reached back here, it was raining hard, and I couldn’t help but feel that the universe was helping me reminisce and be happy to come back, that this was Vancouver’s way of says “see you soon.”

 

 

Ain’t Nuthin’ Better Than the Good Ol’ Days?

Lucy Han
-
0

Nothing beats reminiscing about fun past memories, whether than be your childhood, school days, or any other fun times.

I had a humanities teacher one-time ask my class: if your house was burning down and you could choose to save one thing, what would it be? Sure it was one of those generic, icebreaker questions but her personal answer has stayed with me ever since. So now, if I ask you the same question, what would it be? (Let’s assume all of your family members and pets are saved)

My initial instinct, as silly as it may sound, was to save my beloved childhood stuffy: a green duck that I received one Easter. If I had been asked to pick otherwise, I might’ve gone with personal journals, electronics, etc. But, my teacher revealed that she would save all her photos. I had been exasperated at myself for not choosing that. It was so obvious, but in this presented scenario, photos had never once crossed my mind.

Some may oppose that you could always save your electronics and reprint your photos, but a large number of photos at my home were brought over from my home country – the camera and film would have been long gone. Sure, photos may not seem very profound, but that little activity made me realize the importance of my past.

For some, the “good ol’ days” may not refer to childhood times. Generally, I didn’t begin to use this term nostalgically until I reached high school. Only when I realized how much I had to be thankful for – such as time, opportunities, and ‘parental-assisted commute’ (I like to call it, a.k.a. being driven around rather than taking public transit) – did I properly notice how well off I was in grade school and junior high.

Lots of times, we are beaten into keeping a tunnelled vision: focus on the future, …the future, … future… until it becomes a tireless phrase. And for a long time, you get dragged along, having no time to look back on your prideful, joyful, and cheerful moments. Instead, you’re consistently in the presence of a foreboding, uncertain future, with muscles taut, jaws clenched and fingers tapping.

I was told, when I was quite young, that it never gets easier. I never believed this but deep down knowing that I was aware, I just didn’t want to believe it. It’s true. And although it never gets easier, it’s important to not get caught up in an endless cycle of work exhaustion. Look back.

But when I think back, I always remember that one embarrassing moment back in Grade 4 …” is what many of you may think. Relatable? Yes. Relevant? Not so much. Maybe try to think back on road trips, memorable play dates, movies and so on – any moment that makes you grateful and want to be taken back to.

Time to time I catch myself thinking about these fun-filled memories. Like:

1) That one shirt with buttons I’d love to fiddle with and wish was still being produced in my size

2) Deliberating how to spell pterodactyl during the sixth grade spelling bee

3) Karaoke-ing during long road trips

4) Waiting three hours in line just to get ice cream in Cochrane (must go!)

5) (And of course) The classic marshmallow roasting around a toasty campfire

Things like these are what make me feel why nothing can compare to the good ol’ days.

Images /1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/

The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik: Deep Sea Explorer-Review

Kiana Baghban
-
0

On Sunday, April 23, at 12:30pm, I went to see The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik: Deep Sea Explorer in the heart of Calgary: VertigoTheatre. In other words, I went to see a masterpiece of animation, puppetry, acting and ukulele playing. Yes, you heard me, ukulele playing.

The play ran for about fifty minutes, and it was truly a work of art. It was set years ahead of our time, when the oceans have all risen and one man: Alvin Sputnik, had to save all humanity and find his wife’s soul. Not only was it incredible, TAAS (The Adventures of Alvin Sputnik) had a strong message to it.

The puppet, Alvin Sputnik, was made out of a buoy (for the head) and the puppeteer’s free hand acted as its legs and arms, like so:

Could there be anything cuter? Anyways, as I was saying, I absolutely loved the show and would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to see a small deep-sea diver go through a bitter-sweet adventure.

They have spent trillions of dollars on a space program only to find out that we are alone in this world.

One of the most touching scenes, in my opinion, was when Alvin started to play with a plastic bag. This is a great example of how the play can incorporate a pretty decent amount of pain and grief into the plot in a fun and light-hearted way that makes TAAS suitable for all ages.

Even though the show has left Calgary, I highly recommend going to see this wonderful little play or visit Vertigo Theatre to attend another great show. Be sure to check out Vertigo Theatre’s 2017-18 season because I’m sure they will bring more shows just like TAAS. 

Images: 1/ 2/

Get Your Glow On

Fatima Saleem
-
0

Here’s how to really boost your highlight collection –with advice from a teen on a major budget. Get ready to glow! I’ve rounded up cream highlighters, and powder highlighters, ranging from brands like Anastasia Beverly Hills to Benefit, Becca and Marc Jacobs.

Best Highlighter: Cover FX Highlighter Drops

These revolutionary drops have transformed my makeup routine. Although they cost approximately $52, they are definitely the best highlighter product out there, especially for someone with somewhat dry skin. You’ll have to act as fast as possible. This product has a tendency to get sold out the minute it gets stocked! The remarkable thing about these drops is that they don’t leave a greasy residue, but simply a brilliant, eye-blinding glow.

The next one on my list has to be the Becca Shimmering Skin Perfect Pressed Highlighter in the shade champagne pop. A soft white gold with pink, peach undertones, this highlighter is definitely one of my numerous wants. It lights up my features, and the end result is so elegant! Composed of ultra-fine, luminescent pears, the multi-toned pigments create a smooth finish, a rare quality in highlighters that often tend to look overly glittery. As a bonus, you only need to use a small amount, and it lasts forever! Price: $46

Watt’s Up by Benefit, the cream to powder highlighter. This. Is. Absolutely. Magic. One stick lasts a lifetime, and it has that wow factor that I search for in all my products. Apply it to the tip of your nose, underneath your brows, in the corners of your eyes, on your cheekbones, as well as above your cupid’s bow, and prepare to fall in love! I want my highlight to view-able from space, and this one just does it for me. Indescribable glow! Price: $40

The last one that I want to mention is a more affordable, drugstore one, Physicians Formula Mineral Glow Pearls Powder Palette. There are a lot of highlighters out there; makeup is a beautifully constructed maze. But, this highlighter melts into your skin, and gives you that natural no-makeup look that we’ve all striven for our entire lives. Thank you, Physicians Formula! The perfectly even skin tone that this palette seems to create is astonishing, a must-have in my makeup kit, and in yours too. Price: $20

Skin Care Secrets

Prepping my skin for all the makeup that I load onto it is such an important part of morning, and night routine. It all depends on you, and your skin type, but personally, as someone with dry, combination, and acne-prone skin; I look for products that are oil-free. Neutrogena’s Oil-Free Moisturizer, Tarte’s Maracuja Oil and the ones by Cetaphil are my holy-grail. Not only are they inexpensive, but they do the job. I’ve invested quite a bit in Sephora products, including the First Aid Beauty moisturizers, and those by Clinique, but I keep going back to my drugstore ones. As for cleansers, I adore the Soy Face Cleanser by Fresh, and the African Black Soap. The process is quite simple from washing my face with a cleanser that contains no harsh ingredients, to exfoliating, moisturizing, using an eye cream, and then, applying primer. It turns out that if you forget this crucial step, you end up with clogged pores and breakouts

I try my best to stick to this routine, but as a stressed-out teen due to the oh-so-marvelous conspiracy known as high school, I used to find myself studying for hours and hours, rather than taking off all my makeup. Those times are in the past though, and my skin is definitely looking more radiant than ever.

Images: 1,2,3,4,5,6

Featured Image

Accidental Inventions That Have Made the World All the Better

Lucy Han
-
0

1. Velcro:

The story goes: Swiss engineer George de Mestral had gone on a hunting trip with his trusty dog. Out in the wilderness, Mestral kept noticing the troublesome tendency of burrs sticking to his dog’s fur (and his own socks). A scan under a microscope later on revealed what seemed to be these minuscule “hooks” that stuck to fur and fabric. The engineer went on to experiment with this for a range of materials. His invention didn’t become popular until NASA took advantage of Velcro in the early 1960’s for its Apollo mission.

2. Play-Doh:

This icky, but fun toy was first produced to be a cleaning product. The paste was meant to treat dirty wallpaper. On the verge of bankruptcy, the company making this substance realized that although it didn’t work very well as it’s intention, they saw that children were making crafts out of it — such as Christmas ornaments! The company went on the remove the cleanser within the product, replacing it with colour and a nice scent and reverted their product into one of the most iconic toys there would be.

3. Potato Chips:

George Crum, a hotel chef at Moon’s Lake House once received a complaint about his potato fries. The customer criticized that the fries as being too thick, soggy and tasted bland. Furthermore, the guest demanded for a new batch to be made. Crum, wanting to give the customer a piece of his mind, sliced the potatoes as thin as he could and fried the slices until it turned into a fragile crisp. In contrary to the expected reaction, the customer loved the dish as asked for a second serving.

4. Popsicle:

Continuing with the food theme, let’s move onto dessert. It was the early 1900’s and pop was the latest fad. Eleven-year-old Frank wanted to save some money and try recreating the drink on his own. He’s attempts came close, with the use of powder and water, but he carelessly left his mixture of a drink out on the porch. Overnight, the temperatures dropped and the next morning, the drink was found frozen with the stir stick still stuck inside.

5. Sticky note:

A chemist by the name of Spencer Silver one day came across a “low-tack” adhesive that was strong enough to stay on paper, but weak enough that, when removed, wouldn’t rip the paper itself. Silver, unfortunately continuously could not make it a marketable application but one of his colleagues, Art Fry, pointed out that it made a great non-stick, no-slip bookmark.

Sources /1/2/3/
Images /1/2/3/4/5/6/

Your Screwed Up Sense Perception

Aaron Wen
-
0

If I were to ask you, “What do you know about yourself?” You would probably raise an eyebrow at me for asking such a ridiculous question. Most of you would say you know quite a bit about yourself, since you have been present in this world for a good few years. You think you know who you are, where you are from, what you’ve done, and so forth. And I would agree, you do know yourself… in that context.

The concept of sense perception comes from the idea of numerous unique perspectives on the same exact thing. It’s something we learn when we are young, sitting on the floor in Grade One, learning about the fuive basic senses: sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch. As we grow older, we learn about a “sixth sense” to perceive what may not be there. (Heavily influenced by the actual movie, The Sixth Sense, but go along with me here). Biologically, all your senses work because of the nervous system you have, with nerve endings travelling along sensory neurons to your brain, where most of your senses are received and interpreted. So as long as we tinker around with the nerves within your body, we can do some pretty wacky things…

1. Sight

We see because of rods and cones within our body, located at the back of our eye, on the retina. When receiving light, these rods and cones fire signals to our ganglion cells, which send a signal to the occipital lobe in our brain. Seems pretty flawless right? Well, when the signal is interpreted differently by the brain, some odd things begin to pop up…

Here, both tables seem drastically different in size, but are in reality the exact same. Take a ruler and measure it out yourself and you’ll find them both to be the same length and width, at the same angles as well. Sure enough, your brain can’t wrap it’s head around it, and gives up altogether.

Want another? Our brain is very clever at taking and filling in gaps of incomplete data to make everything work out (almost like the brain has OCD), but sometimes struggles to put the pieces into place with an impossible image. Take the elephant for example, where are the legs?

2. Smell

Do you think you could tell the difference in scent of an orange and lemon? What about a lemon and lime? This is an effect being currently investigated as the olfactory illusion, where humans smell the same scent differently. Want to try for yourself? Have you and a couple friends blindfold yourselves, and then try smelling various scents. Who can get all of them correct? Tough to say, but you won’t get the same answers between everyone. Scientifically, there is no evidence that an olfactory illusion exists, but scientists do believe, that between humans and humans, or humans and other animals, we all perceive scents differently.

3. Touch

On our skin, we possess numerous receptors of hot, cold, light, and heavy touch, all of which have unique neurons to send to our brain. However, as sensitive as these receptors are, they are not the best at perceiving touch when OUTSIDE of their normal orientation. This is called the Aristotle illusion. Cross your fingers together as if you were going to break some promises, and then touch a round object like a pea with both fingers, and you’ll feel like you’re touching two distinctly different peas. Cool huh?

4. Taste

Your palette is your range of tastes that the chemoreceptors on your tongue possess. They are often a range of tastes and flavors, consisting from sweet, salty, bitter and sour. However, they are not perfect. Not even close.

In the Butcher’s Tongue illusion, people stuck their tongues into a box and viewed what they thought to be their tongues in a mirror. In reality, it was a rubber double that they were viewing. When the scientists stroked the fake tongue with a Q-tip, over 40 per cent of the test subjects felt the Q-Tip on their own tongue, even when it wasn’t true at all. This test went even further, when scientists showed the patients a Q-tip being dipped in lemon, and then placed onto the fake tongue. At the same time, a Q-tip dipped in plain water was placed onto the actual tongue of the test subject. You can guess what the result was.

5. Sound

And last, but not least, my personal FAVORITE illusion ever, it is my pleasure to introduce, the McGurk effect.

If you have never seen or heard of the McGurk effect, it is a trick played on the ears where there is an interaction between the visual and audio version of perceptions. It works from the combination of auditory stimulus and visual stimulus, leading to the perception of a third sound. A conflict in visual perception and auditory perception leads to a change in the auditory perception, so some really WEIRD things happen.

In the McGurk effect, people hear the noise “ba, ba, ba”, however, once revealed to an image of a person saying “fa, fa, fa” they also hear the noise “fa, fa, fa”, however, the noise of “ba, ba, ba” never changed. The best part about this illusion is the fact that no matter how hard you try, you will never stop hearing “fa, fa, fa” once you see the photo, even if you know it is saying “ba, ba, ba”. Tricky ears they are, tricky ears…

6. BONUS! Proprioception

You need a partner for this mind-boggling trick, preferably someone who can lift you easily. Lie on the floor, have your chin tucked deeply into your chest, and stay there. Stretch your arms out, and relax. On “go,” have your friend lift up your arms higher and higher, (without lifting you entirely off the floor) while still having your chin tucked in. After 60 seconds, have your friend slowly drop your arms slowly down, making sure that the head touches the floor first. Once you do so, you will feel the most impossible sensation ever: your arms will fall below the floor.

So, the next time someone asks you how well you know yourself, you now know your answer: “Well, I do. But I don’t. But I do? You know what, I really don’t know. I don’t think I know anything any more.” You can thank me later.

Image References 1/2/3/4/5

Featured Image

1...150151152...517Page 151 of 517