Youth Are Awesome, commonly referred to as YAA, is a blog written by youth for youth.
YAA provides the youth of Calgary a place to amplify their voices and perspectives on what is happening around them.
Youth Are Awesome is a program of Youth Central.
Any views or opinions expressed on this blog belong solely to the author and do not represent those of people or organizations that the blog may be associated with, unless explicitly stated. All content is for informational purposes only.
The question that all true Marvel fans will ask, what are the most powerful items in the (Marvel Cinematic Universe) MCU ?. Most of you believed that the Infinity Gauntlet is the most powerful weapon in the cosmos but there is something even more powerful? What if I told you that the Infinity Gauntlet was merely a fragment of the power that lies in the MCU.
The Heart of the Universe is an intergalactic object that’s power is limitless, yet in the hands of evil destructive and chaotic. In Earth 616 Marvel Universe, the Heart only appeared in a comic called Marvel: The End. In the comic, The Living Tribunal (Powerful Cosmic Being) gathered the most powerful beings including Eternity, Infinity, Death, Galactus, and the Celestials to stop Thanos. Ultimately, when Thanos was given the chance to use the heart, he absorbed all the cosmic beings and thus consumed the universe.
2. Infinity Gauntlet
To the few who are unfamiliar to the power and the capability of the Infinity Gauntlet, it can wipe out half the universe with a snap. Ultimately seen from recent films like Infinity Wars the Infinity Gauntlet has just displayed a grasps of what it can do. The gauntlet consists of six gems, Mind, Soul, Space, Power, Time and Reality. The gauntlet allows the power of these gems to be harnessed to do incredibly powerful tasks. The only thing stopping you is your imagination, the gauntlet works towards what you imagine. Though the Infinity Gauntlet holds great power but their are limits towards it while the Heart of the Universe does not.
3. Stormbreaker
Stormbreaker is an enchanted axe used by Thor. It was forged from Uru in the heart of a dying star on Nidavellir. It is claimed to be the strongest weapon in Asgard’s history. Stormbreaker not only harmed Thanos while he was holding every Infinity Stone but almost killed him. This Hammer alone is a weapon of mass destruction but combined with the God of Thunder (Thor) is deadly even to the Infinity Gauntlet. The Hammer is extremely powerful in the hands of Thor because the Uru material can conduct Thor’s lightning increasingly well.
4. The Ultimate Spell Book: The Book of Cagliostro
The Book of Cagliostro is a powerful artifact and is a book in the supernatural realm of the MCU. The book is a book that has some of the universe’s darkest secrets and mysterious. Ultimately, the book is featured in the film Dr.Strange, and draws it’s power from the dark dimension. This weaponized book of ultimate power is one of the most amazing artifacts in the mystical world, with only one page being enough to open a portal to the dark dimension! The dark dimension is where the evil Dormammu resides.
5. The Ultimate Nullifier
Now moving onto the final artifact the Ultimate Nullifier which has the power to wipe anything from existence, this small object may seem small but the effects of one blast are deadly. This machine is so powerful even the mighty Galactus fled at the sight of it. This is not more powerful than the Infinity Gauntlet nor the book because its a machine. This machine may look unbeatable but it is easily taken away, while the Gauntlet is much harder to obtain.
The 1929 American Wall Street Crash caused the intertwined European economy to crash as well. After WWI, Germany was depending on America for loans so she could pay back her war reparations, and the money countries such as France and Britain received money from Germany and going back to America to repay the war bonds. So, when the source of income disappears, so does this cycle. How did Britain and France, the two most prominent countries in the League of Nations, deal with this?
A similarity between the
two nation’s policies is that both tried to alleviate the burden of workers and
raise their spending power. Britain did so by trying to increase public works
and unemployment benefits, and in France, the elected Popular Front government
gave a forty-hour working week, paid holidays for workers, and rights to trade
unions in hopes of raising recovery and workers’ spending power. Another
similarity is that Britain and France both came to see as their current
economic practices as ineffective and set off to a more protectionist policy.
Britain introduced tariffs, and France attempted to hinder the free market as
to prevent capital from leaving the country. A difference, however, is that
Britain and France took polar economic policies. While Britain reinforced
particular firms with policies intended to create monopolies, France
nationalized sectors such as the Bank of France, railways, and the arms
industry. Another difference is that France remained on the gold standard
longer than Britain, who, in 1931, went off the gold standard in hopes of
devaluing the pound. As well, while Britain’s general population were against
radical political protests and did not want to overthrow their government, the
French government was unable to solve the social unrest and as a result, the
communists, socialists, and the Radical Party won the most seats in the next
election.
Britain
was more successful than France in combating the effects of the Great
Depression. For one, France was the last among all nations to recover from her
economic crises. There were many changes in France’s government throughout the
Great Depression as well as opposition that delayed the ability of France to
successfully make effective changes to her economic policies. However,
Britain’s government was always supported by the public, and the government
started off as a coalition between the Labour, Conservative, and Liberal
parties. In France, the Popular Front’s decisions to nationalize sectors
alienated business leaders and caused the wealthy to send their money out of
the country. Even after nationalizing sectors, French industrial production did
not regain the 1929 levels until a decade after. However, when Britain focussed
on creating monopolies there was more industrial production and a small
recovery but increase in employment rates, and the protective tariffs allowed
money to circulate within Britain. France remained on the gold standard, which
attracted international investors, however, the benefits of this did not remain
long because France was not industrialized enough to combat the economic
downturn that resulted from the Depression, and thus there was no more funds
because investors were worried about the safety of their investments. France
also tried to give more money to the workers, and by nationalizing the bank,
they were able to do so. However, bank owners sent their money to different
countries, and there was unrest in business and bank owners. Britain went off
the gold standard relatively quickly and tried to increase employment benefits
by not nationalizing the bank, but by taking loans from the banks, who gave
what they could offer. The resulting currency devaluation and the increase in public
spending was what was opposite to Britain’s policy before, where adherence to
the gold standard and not spending in hard times was considered. However, this
new policy that was opposite from the traditional caused Britain to combat the
effects of the Great Depression better than France. The National Government in
Britain was supported by the majority, the system of government was more
compatible than France’s, and the increase in industrial production as well as
they devaluation of the pound and increase in public spending all led to
currency being circulated around Britain, which caused them to recover from the
Depression much quicker than France.
France’s government during the Great Depression and interwar years did little to rectify the economic situation, relying on capitalism and the market to make amends of the aftermath of the war. The French government also believed that Germany should be punished and made to pay reparations and essentially France’s debt. When the Germans asked or a moratorium, Poincare sent troops to occupy the Ruhr. Through this, France wanted to protect herself from a stronger Germany. France did not want Germany’s economy to rise again in case that threatened her. Their rationale was that if they would receive their reparations through other means, not money, which would allow France to recover their economy but not allow Germany to flourish. This is what France thought would lead to collective security. This plan failed because it was seen as, by the Labour Party, French imperialism and a vengeful attempt to threaten the peace of Europe. France officially failed when the Dawes Plan came into effect where an aspect of the Treaty of Versailles came into Germany’s favour. France also believed in her own and the collective security through rejecting disarmament. She thought that disarming in front of Germany would lead to disaster, and Europe should only disarm if there was enough mobilization in the settlement of Versailles to fight against a potentially armed Germany, which would prove as a safety for everyone. Since Britain and the United States did not agree to France’s settlements, France thought that she should not be forced to disarm, as this would threaten her security. However, in the eyes of the Labour Party, France was a rich nation, yet they were benefiting greatly from the Young Plan. They thought that disarmament, since the armaments race led to war, would create peace. The French, in their search for security, especially during the Great Depression, failed mainly because of her isolation from Britain and the United States.
Lately, it has been super cold outside and I find myself refusing to go outside. Currently, I am hunching my body over the heater as a way of keeping warm. Unfortunately, the measures I have taken to stay within the comfort of my warm house are broken as I have to face the cold while going to school. However, I do have some tips to survive the frigid winter season which I would be glad to share
1. Hand Warmers: Invest your money into some of these bad boys! I usually put these into my gloves and shoes around thirty-minutes before I leave my house. They make my feet and hands feel as if I never left my home.
2. Hats and Socks: Most of your body heat escapes through the top of your head or through your toes. I recommend wearing a hat and socks twenty-four seven in order to not lose any of that precious warmth.
3. Windows and Curtains: Windows, they easily let warm air escape and cold air enter. You are probably thinking that the best way to prevent this from happening is by having your blinds or curtains always closed; this is not the case. On sunny winter days, they should be left open to allow the heat from the sun to come in. Although, during every night, blinds or curtains are to be closed to keep the cold out.
4. Food: Yes, food everyone’s first true love. Warm beverages or soups have the splendid power of making you feel toasty while also satisfying your hunger. Plus, you can enjoy holding and drinking a thermos of your favourite warm beverage while also keeping your hands warm.
5. Wool Clothing: It may be itchy but, wool clothing is the best material to wear during the winter season. If you are allergic to wool or prefer not to war it, cotton or fleece clothing are also warm fabrics.
6. Exercise: I know, this option is probably not the most desired. I myself am pretty lazy, but, desperate measure means desperate actions. When I feel cold at home and am bored I exercise to generate body heat and keep myself entertain. On the bright side of working out, I am bettering my health and shedding away the calories from all the food I eat.
7. Cook or Bake: I ain’t talking about whipping up a bowl of cereal or making jello. Sure, for some they count as “cooking” or “baking” but, they will not really help in keeping you warm. Make yourself something that requires using the stove or oven. For example, bake cookies. After baking the cookies, you should leave the oven door open. This allows the remaining heat to escape and warm your house. This tip will leave your house warmer and smelling like vanilla.
8. Layers: Layer it up, man! I do not care if you look like a marshmallow. Wear layers, and you’ll feel like a marshmallow being roasted over a fire. For maximum layer warmth, add more pillows or blankets to your bed. The extra bedding makes it super comfortable especially, for laying in bed and watching Netflix.
9. Warm air Rises: The majority of us have learnt at some point in our lives that warm air rises. Use this knowledge to your advantage. If your house is two or more levels, trying to hang around the top floor more often. You will see that this floor is usually the warmest as warm air does rise.
10. Humidity: In comparison, humid is air is hotter than dry air. If you take a shower don’t even bother turning on the bathroom fan. The humidity will cause your house to feel warmer.
To be weakened by war means to be unable to sufficiently sustain the country economically and politically. There is a failed attempt to deliver adequate services to the citizens, and often this results in a high mortality rate due to food shortages and a general decrease in public morale because of low development, which limit the ability of the country to deliver political goods.
Yes, Germany was weakened from the war. However, on a relative scale, Germany suffered to a lesser extent economically and politically than Belgium, France, Britain, Russia, and Italy. She was able to recover economically from the hyperinflation and reparations quicker than her continental adversaries, and there was much less civil unrest due to conflicting political ideologies in Germany than other European nations.
Germany’s invasion of
Belgium caused Belgians to flee to England at a rate of 26, 000 refugees per
week. An attempt to assimilate them caused British trade union leaders to
complain that with such a large number of refugees, there would be an increase
in unemployment and a fall in wages. The Belgians were urged to not take
British workers’ jobs or work for wages that were under the accepted standards.
Belgium was soon under German control, where the Belgian government was in
exile. Even after British involvement in removing German troops, it was
difficult for Belgium to recover civil rest and economically.
Germany’s impact on
Britain’s economy is less intense. Britain’s international markets were replaced
by Japan and the United States. Britain’s home front was almost always in good
condition throughout the war, except when Germany began her unrestricted
warfare on American merchant ships. This caused a huge food shortage on the
British home front. There was a point where Britain only had six weeks supply
of wheat left. Workers and farmers who relied on the incoming food for work
felt the impacts of an increase in unemployment and an increase in the public
debt to GDP per capita ratio, which continued until after the war.
Negotiations between
Russia and the Central Powers were influenced by the weakened Russian state,
which caused her to give in to the terms of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk more
easily. This treaty caused Russia to lose one third of her coal, oil, and iron
stores in about one million square miles of former Russian territory, which was
most of her industry. The debt and economic hardships gave rise to the first
communist dictatorship in the world.
The Germans along with the Austro-Hungarians destroyed a strategic military area for the Italians, the Caporetto. This caused a crisis and a major civil unrest in Italy, and the small part Italy had in the making of the Treaty of Versailles was a reason for the rise of Mussolini in Italy after the war. French economic and civil crises were caused by many reasons. French natives of Alsace-Lorraine were drafted into the German army. As well the huge losses from the Battle of Verdun and the agricultural losses of No Man’s Land lay a huge blow to the French economy. With a small population and land area to begin with, losses in both the former and latter resulted in difficulties for France to catch up after the war ended, which is why Clemenceau was desperate to demilitarize the Rhineland to avoid future harm from the Germans.
Contrary to all of this, German land was left untouched throughout the course of the entire war. All the industries and infrastructure were left unimpaired. Even though the war bonds and excessive note printing caused hyperinflation, German economy was able to recover fast. There was three times more steel production in Germany than France in 1921. As well, the revolution and civil unrest in Russia as well as the broken Austro- Hungarian Empire lessened the threat of surrounding countries to Germany. There were also fights between civilians in succession states and the Balkans. There were communist revolutions in Germany, however, she was quick to adopt the Weimer Republic in 1919. All this gave Germany relative strength compared to other European nations. None of her land was spoiled, there was no threat from surrounding countries, and unscathed industries and infrastructure allowed Germany to quickly recover her economic crisis while remaining somewhat politically stable.
The historiography of the Treaty of Versailles impacted how the treaty was viewed in the twentieth century. Keynes book The Economic Consequences of the Peace was widely popular and never lost its authority. In Keynes book, he views the Treaty as ‘Carthaginian’, or the death sentence of millions of Germans. Neither Jacques’ Bainville’s Les conséquences politiques de la paix, which has never been translated to English, or Etienne Mantoux’s argument against Keynes have ever entertained a wide audience, yet their predictions became more so accurate than Keynes’. When Jacques Bainville, who thinks the Treaty of Versailles was too lenient, says that the treaty was “too mild for its severity” in Les conséquences politiques de la paix, he means that Germany received a minor punishment for the huge damage she caused in the war. Each clause in the treaty was seemingly justifiable, because the punishments were based on what Germany did and how she should repay the European countries back. Bainville, with his statement, meant that the treaty was unpleasant to Germany, but it was not lethal. The treaty was meant to restore peace in Europe, and although the Germans thought the worst of it, Bainville thinks that they were let off easy compared to the damage they caused. Opposite to what was intended, the treaty allowed Germany to recover and demand power which can be seen in the course to WWII. Germany did not even end up paying all the reparations, and there were many disagreements in the making of the treaty. Bainville combines all these aspects to say that in the end, the treaty did not justify the actions of the Germans, and rather than being fair or harsh, it was too lenient on them.
What can be concluded from this is that Keynes’ Carthaginian image is more accepted than the opposing views, and that Keynes’ historiography of the Treaty has been the victim of many attempts from historians to challenge, however, “historians have failed to break the Keynesian spell.” Britain was left with a sense of guilt that “sapped the will to uphold a treaty felt to be unjust,” and that Keynes’ argument on the treaty being too harsh on the Germans left a lasting impression that was never overruled by a different perspective.
Most people take their privacy very seriously but neglect their online privacy. Most people wouldn’t want a stranger snooping in their bedroom, yet so many people ignore their online privacy. When Google, Facebook, or any other large corporation collects our personal data, many of us don’t even bat an eyelash to it. We’ve fallen under the “Why should I care about my privacy if I’ve got nothing to hide?” mentality. It’s natural to fall into this mentality, since it’s often not easy to see how our compromised privacy can negatively impact us. However, the truth is that compromising out privacy can negatively impact us in many ways. Here are a few of them.
Privacy Directly Impacts Equality
Many websites read, and track your data. In particular, websites for online shopping can be very invasive. Websites can pull your data, and know which websites you’ve visited, how much time you’ve spent on there, how much you’ve spent and what you spent your money on. This is all well known. “So What?” you might ask. It’s not like they can do anything malicious with this information right? That’s where you might be surprised.
A recent investigation by Marketplace found that based on your shopping habits, some companies will change the price of their offerings to make the most money from you. If they know you’re a picky spender, they might lower the cost a bit to try and entice you to make a purchase from them. If they know you like to spend a bit more for convenience, they might raise the cost a bit to squeeze an extra few cents from you.
Is it fair that one person is charged differently than another? If you don’t think so, then privacy should matter to you.
Your Information Can Get Into the Wrong Hands
Just recently, there was a scandal involving Facebook and a company called Cambridge Analytica. Cambridge Analytica collected hundreds of data points for millions of users. They used this data for political advertisements, but if they have this data, what is stopping a determined hacker from stealing all this data? Data breaches are a common occurrence. Credit Card companies, Dating apps, Social Media sites, are prime targets. You might be fine with Google, eHarmony, or American Express having your data, would you be fine with John Doe from Nigeria, or Jane Doe your internet stalker having access to things like your email, your address, or your shopping habits?
Recently, Marriot was hacked and the personal information of 500 million guests was exposed. Hackers stole, phone numbers, names, passport numbers, and the credit card information of many guests. If you don’t want your information to get in the wrong hands, you should care about your online privacy.
Care About Your Privacy
Caring about your privacy doesn’t have to be hard. Just think about the information that you are giving these companies, and decide for yourself what information you want to withhold. Be aware of the changes in law, and privacy policy that might impact you, and decide whether you will support them or not While shopping, compare prices from different websites and browsers, don’t pay more for something because of online price discrimination. Caring about your privacy is easy, with many added benefits.
Boredom is when none of the options you have available, appeal to you. It is portrayed by the lack of concentration and restlessness. It is a condition of feeling underwhelmed.
When you’re bored, your mind ponders. This is because your attention is not centred on anything specifically. Researchers have demonstrated that this mind wondering is useful for creativity. They gave study participants a boring task. Then they asked participants to be creative, generate as many ideas as they could for what you could do with a plastic cup. Those that were bored generated the most creative ideas on what you could do with a plastic cup than those that were less bored.
Boredom allows you to assess your life
A reason numerous researchers suspect you encounter boredom is because it gives you an indictor of your present state. If you find yourself bored in a situation you know something about that situation isn’t working for you.
The contradiction of boredom is that it may make you feel tired and unengaged however it may spur you to action. It may inspire you to make changes that would be positive for your life. Without boredom, one would remain trapped in an unfulfilling situation and miss out on cognitively and socially rewarding experiences. Boredom is both a warning that we are not doing what we want to be doing and a push that motivates us to switch objectives.
Boredom allows you to become benevolent
Studies have also demonstrated that boredom may make you more progressively philanthropic. The aimlessness you feel when you’re bored makes you question what you’re doing with your life but this also may trigger you to think about others and what you could do to help them that would help to provide you a tangible purpose to your life. The opportunity to do meaningful things even in unpleasant activities, have more value if you’re bored than if you’re not.
Boredom allows you to find purpose
This aimless state develops thoughts on what you want to do with your life and where you want it to go in the future, this is called autobiographical planning. When undertaking a task that only utilizes a fraction of your mental capacity, study participants often thought of the future and their plans for it. In this way, being bored is fundamental for goal setting. If your brain is always consumed with stimuli, you’ll rarely ponder the bigger picture and set long term goals for yourself and how to accomplish them.
When you are waiting for something, you have a decision to make, that’s whether you should go on your phone or face boredom and experience only your thought. This may appear to be an insignificant decision and without any considering the obvious thought would be to see what’s new on your phone. Making that decision mitigates a moment of boredom but you are also making yourself less likely to be creative, altruistic, and less inclined to assess your current situation and set objectives for your future.
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso, also known as Your Lie in April, is an anime adapted from a manga series of the same name. It follows Kosei Arima, a piano prodigy nicknamed “the human metronome” for playing just as the composer has written. However, he withdraws from the piano after the death of his mother. He meets Kaori Miyazono, a temperamental violinist who isn’t afraid of taking risks in her playing and going her own path. Kaori changes Kosei’s outlook on life and helps him break out of his shell, while Kosei affects her life in ways unknown to him.
Your Lie in April has nice animation, yet the plot is quite predictable from near the start, with the ending not being much of a surprise. I thought that many moments are quite heavy on the drama and cliché. However, the music in this anime is stunning. Several episodes are centred around classical music competitions, with splendid performances. The other non-classical music throughout is also beautiful. Despite the cheesiness in some of the things said, this anime is inspiring and tragic and lovely.
If you want to listen to some good music or if you need encouragement to make you practice an instrument, I recommend watching Your Lie in April.
Last week, I finished reading the book Running with Lions by Julian Winters. The main character is Sebastian Hughes, a boy who’s about to go into his senior year of high school. The novel itself takes place during the summer, at Sebastian’s summer camp. He’s a goalie on his school’s soccer team, and the whole team has been going to this same soccer camp for years, to train before the school year starts. The majority of Sebastian’s team (and Hughes himself) is part of the LGBT community, and the story centres around the team’s positive masculinity and the relationship that Sebastian has with one of his teammates, Emir Shah.
When Sebastian was younger, he dealt a lot with bullies. He was a little overweight as a kid, so he sported the nickname “Bastian the Trashcan” . Even though he’s gone into high school, lost loads of weight and started working out, his weight issues still follow him around like a dark cloud. He’s not happy with his body and this brings him down quite a bit. This book talks a lot about the insecurities that Sebastian has. The taunts of his childhood bullies still haunt him. He spends quite a bit of the book, rekindling the friendship he had with another boy, Emir Shah. As the two of them become close, Emir aids Sebastian in becoming more comfortable with his body and accepting who is as. Acceptance is a massive part of this novel and I really liked reading about Sebastian’s struggles with himself, as well as how he overcame them.
This book was honestly quite lovely to read. At my age, many boys seem to deal with a lot of toxic masculinity, and I found that this book really steered away from the general mood of grade nine boys. Yes, everyone in this book is quite a bit older than 14/15, but I’ve noticed that the views on masculinity are quite similar. Everyone who’s on the team, is incredibly accepting of every different race, gender (though it is an all boys team) and sexuality. There are many guys on the team, who seem to have no issue being close with their friends, no matter their sexual orientation. That’s something that I wish I could see in every day life. Most guys I know have issues being affectionate with their guy friends, and if they are, they need to make sure that their friend knows that they aren’t “being gay”. I’m hoping that as we get older, they’ll start to get more comfortable with just, being normal. I really loved being able to read about guys who were comfortable just being themselves and didn’t worry about what others thought or how they were perceived. I know that that happening in real life is probably a far away dream, but I’m keeping my hopes up. Hopefully, as more books like this one start to come out, guys will start to see that being affectionate with their friends isn’t wrong and that showing actual emotion is perfectly okay.
I would seriously recommend this to anyone looking for something new to read, it’s funny and lighthearted and just all around perfect in my opinion. It tackles a good few subjects and issues and it’s a read for everyone.
Valentine’s Day is a well-known day celebrated by many. It’s most known for romance, chocolates, cards, and other gifts that are exchanged among loved ones. What most people DON’T know is its origins. The Catholic Church found about three Valentine’s that have have been sacrificed. No one realizes that when we celebrate Valentine’s Day, we actually celebrate St. Valentine’s courage.
The Legend Of St. Valentine
It is said that Saint Valentine was a priest during the third century in Ancient Rome. Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made much better soldiers than those with a spouse and families. Therefore, enforced a law that made marriage illegal for young men. After a while, Saint Valentine then realized the injustice of the law and went against Claudius. He continued to perform wedding ceremonies for young men secretly. But when Saint Valentine was exposed, Claudius sentenced him to death.
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Some believe that Valentine was sentenced to death for attempting to release a group of Christians from harsh Roman Prisons, where they were tortured.
One story states that a jailed Valentine sent a ‘Valentine’s Day’, said to be the first, greeting himself after he met a lovely young lady, possibly his jailor’s daughter, who visited him during his captivity. It is also said that he wrote “From Your Valentine” on the card. An expression that is often used today. Thanks to his/their acts Valentine’s Day was born.
The Origins Of Valentine’s Day
While some people think that Valentine’s Day was to commemorate the burial/death of Saint Valentine, others claim that the Christian Church may have decided to place St. Valentine’s feast day in the middle of February to Christianize the pagan ritual, Lupercalia. Lupercalia was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman God of agriculture, and others. To commence the festival, the members of Luperci and a group of Roman priests would be gathered into a sacred cave, which was believed to hold Romulus and Remus as infants, the founders of Rome. They were believe to be raised by a she-wolf or lupa. There, the priests will sacrifice a goat for fertility and a dog for purification. They would then strip the goat of its hide, strip the hide into strips, dip them into sacrificial blood and head inland. There, they would gently slap women and crop fields with the strips. The Roman women accepted the strips because they believed it made them more fertile for the upcoming year. Some time after, the city’s women would place there names in an urn, and the bachelors of the city will choose a name, and they will be paired with that woman. Normally, it would end in a marriage.
Conclusion
Lupercalia became illegal, as in the 5th century it was said to be un-Christian. Pope Gelasius stated that February 14th would be named St. Valentine’s Day, a while later it became associated with love because during the Middle Ages it was believed that the 14th was the beginning of mating season for birds.
Dim Sum is the Chinese version of Sunday brunch: served anytime from mid-morning to late afternoon, with various bite-sized portions of food served in small bamboo steamer baskets and lots of tea.
It’s a lazy, long meal. Most dishes are very light in flavour, portions are small, and each plate is shared by the whole table, family style. Because of the small portions, you’re able to eat a wide variety of food. The cuisine itself includes various dumplings, rolls, buns, meats, congees, savoury cakes, and sweets. In traditional Cantonese teahouses, carts with plates of dim sum food are rolled around the restaurants by waitresses, with patrons ordering and being served straight from each cart (each cart will have a specific dim sum dish that you can request to be served or not). However, this is rare to find nowadays. In most modern restaurants, owners have chosen to switch to menu-ordering to reduce the amount of labour necessary to complete a round of dim sum. This was the case at Forbidden City.
Traditional Cantonese cooking is meant to be light, emphasizing the natural flavour of the ingredients themselves rather than using sauces. Dim sum can be a bit tricky at most Chinese restaurants in North America, as some owners try to cater to western tastes, upping portions and using MSG to enhance flavour. Although this is tolerable for most food at a lot of Chinese restaurants, stuff like that completely ruins dim sum; dim sum is meant to be light and elegant (think British high tea).
Restaurants that have more authentic Chinese food are well known and very popular among Chinese families in Calgary, and Forbidden City is one of them.
I’ve visited all of the more popular Chinese restaurants in North Calgary, and (according to my Chinese mom) Forbidden City is hailed to be one of the best in Calgary. While I’ve had their normal dinner fare, this was the first time I’ve visited for dim sum. I walked in last Sunday with high expectations.
Forbidden City is situated in Pacific Place mall, an Asian shopping centre in NE Calgary. The mall has a variety of stores, all very authentically Asian; boba cafes, Chinese medicinal herbs, home cookware, art, furniture, as well as a T&T supermarket (an Asian supermarket chain, which also has great food). All stores are small businesses, most run by Asian families. With Chinese New Year around the corner, the day I visited also happened to be a day of celebration. The mall was packed with people, performers, and vendors, and on a stage in the center of the food court were performances of Chinese dance, martial arts, singing, and traditional Chinese music. It was hard to squeeze by all the people to reach the restaurant.
Upon arrival, we had to take a number and were informed that the wait may take around an hour (this was due to the large volume of people at the mall that day). After around 30 minutes, the time which we took to look at the festivities, our number was called and we were allowed in.
We ended up with a pretty terrible spot with a really cold draft coming from the outside. I requested for spot change, but the waitress (very rudely, too) told us that we ended up with what we could and if we wanted a new spot we would have to go outside and wait in the queue again. Sigh. (Chinese restaurants generally have pretty rude waitresses, so I’m not too surprised).
This is how the menu works: you have all menu items on a long list (as shown below), and you mark the things you want with a pencil. Each item has a star rating (one, two three or four stars), and that determines the price of the dish. The waiter then takes your order, and as each dish comes it is crossed off your “list” by the waiter.
A good rule of thumb is to order 2-3 dishes per person, as the portion sizes are relatively small. We had 5 people and ordered 11 dishes.
Forbidden City is on the pricey side for dim-sum in Calgary, but that doesn’t stop us from ordering whatever we want.
I do not order: I leave that to my mom because she knows what is good (if it was up to me, I would have ordered only egg tarts and deep fried glutinous rice dumplings). The food was served very quickly and came in 4 rounds.
Round 1:
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From left to right: Mango Pudding, Baked BBQ Pork Pastry, Steamed Chicken Fingers in Black Bean Sauce
The mango pudding came pre-packaged in a disposable plastic sushi container, which was a bit odd. It wasn’t very good, either. It was mostly untouched and eventually eaten by my 2-year-old nephew.
The Baked BBQ Pork Pastry was DELICIOUS. It’s essentially BBQ pork wrapped in a puff pastry shell, kind of like a sausage roll. It’s warm and crispy on the outside, but with juicy, sweet pork on the inside, the ultimate comfort food. This one was a bit greasier than I would have liked, but it’s hard to mess up this dish if you have a good BBQ pork.
Steamed Chicken Fingers in Black Bean Sauce is one of my favourite dim sum dishes, and Forbidden City does it well, with very tender, flavorful meat. For westerners, the idea of eating chicken feet may seem a little unappetizing, but for me, it’s one of my favourite foods and a must-order for dim sum. If you’re uncomfortable with the idea of eating chicken feet, I recommend trying the Steamed Spareribs in Black Bean Sauce for dim sum instead; the ribs, if done well, should also be extremely tender and flavorful.
Round 2:
From left to right: (leftover) Steamed Chicken Fingers in Black Bean Sauce, Seafood and Meat Bean Curd Roll with Mushroom Soup, Seafood and Meat Bean Curd Roll in Abalone Gravy, Steamed Pork Soup Dumpling (it’s a bit hard to see, as it’s so deep inside the container)
For some reason, my mom ended up ordering both Seafood and Meat Bean Curd Roll with Mushroom Soup and Seafood and Meat Bean Curd Roll in Abalone Gravy. Both are very similar: with meat, some kind of seafood, and rice noodles wrapped in a tofu beancurd skin, kind of like a tofu-skin spring roll. This is a very Chinese dish. One version was likely steamed in mushroom soup (as the name suggests) and was more watery. The other was likely pan-fried then placed in abalone gravy, which made the skin crispier. Both were very good, lightly flavoured and very juicy on the inside. I would recommend these to anyone coming to this restaurant.
Steamed Pork Soup Dumpling (xiaolongbao, shown on far right, inside the square-shaped container) are dumplings made with very thin skin, with a (usually) pork meatball on the inside. As the dumplings are steamed, the juice from the pork turns into a pocket of very flavorful soup inside each dumpling (thus the name “soup dumpling). This soup is meant to be sucked out of the dumpling before eating it as a whole; thus eating these is a very delicate process. Breaking the skin before sucking the soup is considered a failure. A good soup dumpling is characterized by very thin skin and lots of soup. This one was made well; with much thinner skin than most, I’ve had in Calgary.
Round 3:
From left to right: Pan-Fried Taro Cake, (leftover) Seafood and Meat Bean curd Roll in Abalone Gravy
I’ve never liked Pan-Fried Taro Cakes because it seems like it should be a sweet dish, but it’s savoury instead. It’s a cake made with rice flour, taro, and sausage, and is a classic dim sum dish. This one was nice and crispy, but I just can’t seem to get past the odd savoury flavour.
Round 4:
Hong Kong Style Spicy EggplantPan-fried Dried Scallop Enoki and Bean Curd Shoot
Hong Kong Style Spicy Eggplant was definitely the worst dish ordered. Deep-fried chunks of eggplant with spicy garlic (???) dusting on top, this one was a bit heavy in flavour and too rich in grease for our tastes.
Pan-fried Dried Scallop Enoki and Bean Curd Shoot is a long and complicated name for a dish of enoki (a type of long, white Asian mushroom) wrapped in tofu skin, breaded, deep-fried, then tossed and soaked in a scallop sauce. This was definitely the best dish we ordered; the dual crispy/juicy texture of the soaked deep-fried tofu strips was just right, and the sauce was full of seafood flavour and very tasty. If I could, I would have brought that sauce home. Despite the fact that the dish was deep-fried, the grease was not overwhelming, due to the presence of the enoki mushrooms; instead, it was light and refreshing.
We also ordered a Chicken Congee, which came last but was eaten before I could take a picture. Congee, which is white rice porridge, is always good at restaurants and is a nice, warm way to finish off a meal.
(My mom denied my request to order egg tarts and deep fried glutinous rice dumplings, by the way).
Out of all the dishes, those which stuck out the most were the Bean Curd Rolls (from round 2) and the _____ (from round 4), both being tofu dishes that are not typically found in Dim Sum menus. I would recommend these to both Asians and Non-Asians dining at this restaurant, as they were both light, tasty, and not too odd. Otherwise, the other more classic dim sum dishes all lived up to my dim sum standards, and they’re all a safe order if dining here. The only dishes I would not recommend are the Mango Pudding (seemingly prepackaged), and the Hong Kong Style Spicy Eggplant (too greasy and spicy).
Overall, Forbidden City’s dim sum did not disappoint. I would definitely rank them as one of the better Chinese restaurants in Calgary. The authentic Cantonese dim sum feeling and flavours were there, not completely masked by the MSG so commonly used in North American Chinese cuisine. The cuisine here is not going to be as eloquent as authentic dim sum in Hong Kong (which I’ve had, and oh my god it’s so good), or as good as dim sum in cities with larger Asian populations (ie. Vancouver, San Francisco). However, for those of us living here, Forbidden City is a solid choice for a quality Asian Sunday brunch with friends or family. Just be wary of the rude waitresses.
If you are bored or if you are looking for great books to read, try picking up the Lorien Legacies series. There are seven novels and fifteen novellas in total. The novellas give context to the events that happened in the seven novels. Pittacus, the author, combined 3 novellas in one book, so that gives twelve books in total.
There are three primary reasons why I believe this series is so awesome. Firstly, the action-packed sci-fi novels are very suspenseful and very hard to put down. I know this is very cliché to say, but there’s no better way to put it. After you read one page, you just feel like you have to keep going, and before you know it, you’ve already read for an hour.
Every page contributes to the plot or develops to character development, so you will never feel bored reading the books.
Also, you might think that it’s just another common alien invasion book after reading the synopsis, but trust me, the Lorien Legacies are different. Pittacus goes very in-depth about the backstory of every character. Additionally, the characters feel very human so readers feel connected and can relate to some of their problems.
I’d highly recommend this series to anyone, whether you’re an avid reader or if you don’t enjoy reading too much.
Tell your friends and family too, they will thank you for sure!
Some people might be unaware of what Junior Achievement is, and why they should care about a tradeshow? Simply stated, Junior Achievement is a program which is typically signed up for during summer or September, and begins in October, lasting for around 5 months. Students from various High Schools meet up once a week at a certain location, and with help from mentors, attempt to create a business, appointing specific roles amongst themselves such as President, and Vice President positions. Student gain real experience into the hardships of business, and develop rewarding and valuable connections.
The tradeshow on February 9th was a culmination of the efforts put together by these student entrepreneurs. This event was held at CrossIron Mills, and featured all of the Junior Achievement companies in Southern Alberta. The teams set up between the Forever 21 and Victoria’s Secret area, which is most easily found through the entrance by the food court/movie theater. Each Junior Achievement company is mandated to donate at least 25% of their proceeds to a charity of their choice, so it was also a great opportunity to help other charities when visiting. Here a few of the items made by creative companies who kindly gave me permission to feature them.
OmNOMZ
Before you succumb to his dazzling looks, let me present to you, The Mellow Fellow. OmNOMZ, the company I belong to, produces these fun and useful toys made from tennis balls! Each tennis ball has a suction cup on its back to attach to a wall or surface, and if you squeeze the sides of its face, its mouth open and serves as an multi-purpose item holder. By re-utilizing used tennis balls and making them into entertaining and usable toys, we are able to create environmentally friendly products which encourages our message to appreciate simple pleasures. Our charity of choice is Kidsport. Be sure to visit our booth to see our Mellow Fellow (above) and the other various products we offer, as unique designs and personalities are present in each of our products! Our website can be found here, and our Instagram can be found here.
EcoPaws
EcoPaws produces environmentally friendly dog and cat toys! They are made from donated T-shirts and re-purpose them to make these awesome and fun toys for pets. By carefully weaving various strips of used shirts, they developed the Tuggle “Dog Toy” and Whisker Weaver “Cat Toy”, creating a specific toy for a dog to endlessly chew, and a simple cat toy with a fringed end and bells to captivate the attention of cats. Each toy sells for 5 dollars each and the charity of their choice is the Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society. Their Instagram and website can be found here and here respectively.
HeatCo
Take a look at these wonderful heat packs HeatCo has made! By using high-quality, and recycled fabric, as well as high-heat capacity rice inside, they were able to produce gentle and soothing, yet affordable and eco-friendly heat packs. Each small heat pack costs 8 dollars, and a large heat pack costs 9. For an enhanced relaxation experience, the heat packs also have essential oils and a washable, protective outer layer. The charity of their choice is Inn From The Cold. Their Instagram and website can be found here and here respectively.
EnviroNote
Motivated by a desire to encourage sustainability, as well as creativity within their community, EnviroNote developed a notebook from fully recycled materials. From a cover made from donated and recycled plastic, to beautiful clean white pages made from fully recycled paper, unlike many recycled notebooks with yellow tinted pages, the Enviro-notebook is a highly innovative product. Each notebook costs seven dollars, and their charity of choice is Green Calgary. Their Instagram and website can be found here and here respectively.
Save Our Socks
Save Our Socks is a company which wanted to increase efficiency and ease into the day-to-day lives of people, and perceived the inefficiency of searching for sock pairs after washing or drying. As efficiency and convenience was an utmost priority, they created special sock rings to ensure socks are connected to each other and do not become separated and useless until a matching sock was found. For eight dollars, a six-pack of high quality Sock Buddies can be bought, and you can prevent the destructive forces of a washer or dryer from separating socks again. Save Our Socks believes that you can use your time much more wisely and effectively than paring socks. The charity of their choice is Inn From the Cold, and their Instagram and website can be found here and here respectively.
I would highly recommend for anyone who wants to explore their passions and the opportunities around them to apply to Junior Achievement during the summer. Personally, my experience at Junior Achievement has allowed me to develop many new relationships, and gain valuable insight into the business world. Junior Achievement has allowed me to develop stronger time-management skills, and to become more productive. You can sign up for Junior Achievement here beginning in July, and I hope to see many new people again!
On January 31st 2019, Bell Lets Talk Day occurred in Canada. Bell Lets Talk is an advertising campaign created by the company Bell Canada in order to raise awareness about mental health and to end the stigma around it.
By viewing their videos or using their filters or using the hashtag #BellLetsTalk on several different social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook, Bell would donate 5¢ each time someone used them towards mental health initiatives. If you are someone who uses Bell’s services then just texting and calling made a contribution. Celebrities also participated in this campaign like Ellen DeGeneres, Celine Dion, William Shatner as well as Canada’s prime minister Justin Trudeau.
Several schools also participated in the campaign by hosting a Bell Lets Talk Day assembly. Schools covered different types of mental disorders like anxiety, depression, ADD, ADHD, eating disorders and more. Some schools also hosted different mental heath organizations to talk about the stigma and how it can be stopped.
The media has been one of the leading causes for the negative image about mental health as the entertainment industry often depicts people with mental disorders as unpredictable. These stereotypes lead to people with a mental disorder being misunderstood and feared. These stereotypes can cause people that are struggling with their mental health to not seek out treatment and have their self-esteem decrease greatly. But there are shows that focus on mental health in a much more positive/realistic manner. These shows help viewers understand that the stereotypes are stereotypes and are not real. This Is Us had a character that experienced a panic attack and had anxiety, even the cartoons like Winnie the Pooh had each character represent a mental disorder, for example Winnie the Pooh showing characteristics of OCD and Eeyore possessing traits of depression.
No one really talks about mental health as much as physical health and even if you can’t see it, that doesn’t mean someone isn’t experiencing it. The Bell Let’s Talk campaign raises the awareness of mental health and encourages people to talk about it. By spreading awareness about mental health it can decrease the stigma around it and stop the misunderstanding that has been created. This year Bell raised $7.2 million which broke their previous record of $6,919,199.75 .
Ever since 2010, Bell Let’s Talk has challenged the stigma that surrounds mental health and is making people more knowledgeable about this topic. Click on the link Bell Let’s Talkto learn more.
Do you have trouble focusing? Can you find motivation to study? I will admit, maintaining focus can become difficult if all you can think is anything but studying. After years of going to school, I have come across a few tips that have always helped me to stay motivated.
Find inspirational quotes that motivate you to achieve your goals, this will give you a purpose to study. Display them where you can see them, this way when you are occupied with things other than studying, your vision board comes into your view and reminds you what you should be doing.
Make a list of everything you have to do. This will help you to stay organized and focused on things you need to get done for the day. Writing things down will also ease your mind because you not exerting as much energy to remember everything you need to get done. It’s also been proven that every time you cross something off your checklist, it releases small amounts of dopamine, which will have you feeling good about what you’re accomplishing.
Try sitting by a window or a skylight while you work. Natural light can increase our body’s production of Vitamin D and this exposure can make us feel happier, which will enable us to get more done and concentrate better.
Take breaks but I’m not talking about a 3-hour hiatus from studying, but a 10-15 mins break can make all the difference. If you’ve been sitting in front of your textbook for hours, move your body, get some fresh air and go for a walk. Do something to relieve your mind. You’ll feel less stressed and more focused on the information in front of you.
It’s easy to lose focus when your tired, so reward your hard work by treating yourself to something you love. Eat your favourite food, beverage, anything that will bring your spirits up. Its okay to give in to this because it will give you a peace of mind.
We usually need approximately 6-8 hours of sleep in order for our brain to function at its peak the next day. Less than 6 hours may leave you leering towards your bed for a nap. Get enough sleep to maximize your productivity for the next day.
Tune in your favourite song while you prepare for the day. When it’s time to study, utilize your music to stay focused and avoid distractions. Try listening to classical or instrumental songs. By losing song lyrics, you are able to focus better on the words you are reading while you study.
