The Cascade Vol. 25 No. 2

JANUARY 11 TO JANUARY 17, 2017

VOLUME 25 ISSUE 2

Benefiting from family legacy since 1993

SUS Health Centre now online

Are you punk?

Snow art shows campus heart

Thumb sore from swiping right too often? The Student Union Society’s new online health centre has you covered.

Well, are you punk?

Wondering what the strange, new, winter themed art installations around campus are all about?

So were we.

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Bella Coola pg.4-5

WWW.UFVCASCADE.CA

www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

EDITORIAL

A voice for mental health Margaret Trudeau speaks from person experience on struggles with depression JOEL ROBERTSON-TAYLOR VANESSA BROADBENT THE CASCADE

With mental health and the issues surrounding it becoming an increasingly addressed topic on campuses internationally, it only seemed fitting that the Student Union Society would ask Margaret Trudeau to speak as part of their health and wellness advocacy initiative.

Margaret touched on her past experiences, both the healthy and unhealthy, drawing attention to parts of her life that she has typically shied away from, all while delivering it with a lot of bold energy. Having a history with depression and bipolar disorder, it comes across like if anyone really understood mental health, it would be her.

Margaret’s charming delivery was impressive, heartfelt, and it clearly connected on an emotional level with her audience — it’s hard not to relate to her stories of trying to find herself through travel, relationships, and substance abuse. However, even though on surface level her subject matter seemed like the perfect anecdotal material to address any group of young adults, and it likely was intended to do so, she unfortunately lacked the understanding of who they really are.

From having accommodations paid for by her parents while attending university, to vacationing in Tahiti on “the most beautiful lagoon in the whole world,” Margaret’s experiences as a college-age student are anything but similar to the average UFV student’s. With millennial poverty on a rise and students today earning less and spending more than ever, Margaret’s message of traveling from country to country on her husbands card to escape her depression just didn’t hit home.

As well read as she may be, her understand-

ing of depression is one from wealth and high society. It’s not that her experiences are invalid, but they’re just not relatable to all young audiences.

Margaret shared touching personal stories that gave a glimpse into what living with mental illness was like, from debilitating depression, to being so restricted that even getting out of bed was impossible.

But Margaret’s answer to her mental illness — anti-depressants, plenty of sleep, and something about nature — might not be the cure-all that she preaches them to be.

That she suggested widespread anti-depressant usage is inherently linked to reduced crime rates is a conflicted statement. Are mentally ill dangerous? Or are we just less willing to fight when our faculties are debilitated.

Fighting is a powerful word, we fight for power, we fight also for love.

Some believe that the term mental health is a redundancy. Health is health. The compartmentalization and the target specific treatment she suggests disagree with her long time belief that mental health is not separate from addictions.

Margaret spoke as a lovely woman, and truthfully nothing more should be expected.

She spoke from her experiences saying that nature is the big balancer of mental health, but then prescriptions are the fulcrum.

Perhaps this reflects that as a society, we still haven’t come to terms with what mental illness is and how it affects us. Our research has brought us so far, but our collective state of well-being is singing that we still don’t know, and there is so much to know.

With that said, sometimes it’s not what you know, but whom you know.

STAFF

CONTRIUBUTORS

Editor-in-Chief Vanessa Broadbent vanessa@ufvcascade.ca

Culture & Events Editor Jeff Mijo jeff@ufvcascade.ca

Distributor Quintin Stamler quintin@ufvcascade.ca

Managing Editor Joel Robertson-Taylor joel@ufvcascade.ca

Arts in Review Editor Martin Castro martin@ufvcascade.ca

Staff Writers Emma Groeneveld emma@ufvcascade.ca

Business Manager Quintin Stamler quintin@ufvcascade.ca

Production Manager Brittany Cardinal brittany@ufvcascade.ca

Michael Chutskoff mike@ufvcascade.ca

Copy Editor Kat Marusiak kat@ufvcascade.ca

Online Editor Tanya Vanpraseuth tanya@ufvcascade.ca

News Editor Joel Robertson-Taylor joel@ufvcascade.ca

Features Editor Bradley Peters brad@ufvcascade.ca

Opinion Editor Panku Sharma panku@ufvcascade.ca

Illustrator Amara Gelaude amara@ufvcascade.ca

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Klara Chmelarova Jennifer Trithardt-Tufts Aman Bhardwaj

Cover: Michael Wigle Back Cover: Brittany Cardinal

WWW.UFVCASCADE.CA @UFVCASCADE FACEBOOK.COM/UFVCASCADE INSTAGRAM.COM/THE.CASCADE

Volume 25 · Issue 2 Room S2111 33844 King Road Abbotsford, BC V2S 7M8 604.854.4529

The Cascade is UFV’s autonomous student newspaper. It originated under its current name in 1993, and achieved autonomy from the university and the Student Union Society in 2002. This means that The Cascade is a forum for UFV students to have their journalism published in an entirely student-run setting. It also acts as an alternative press for the Fraser Valley. The Cascade is funded with UFV student funds, and is overseen by the Cascade Journalism Society Board, a body run by a student majority. The Cascade is published every Wednesday with a print circulation of 1,250 and is distributed at Abbotsford, Chilliwack (CEP), Clearbrook, and Mission UFV campuses and throughout the surrounding communities.

The Cascade is open to written, photo, and design work from all students; these can come in the form of a pitch to an editor, or an assignment from an editor. Writers meetings are held each Monday at 2:00 p.m. in The Cascade’s office on the Abbotsford campus.

In order to be published in the newspaper, all work must first be approved by The Cascade’s editor-in-chief, copy editor, and corresponding section editor. The Cascade reserves the right to edit submissions for clarity and length. The Cascade will not print any articles that contain racist, sexist, homophobic or libellous content. Letters to the editor, while held to the same standard, are unedited, and should be under 400 words. As The Cascade is an autonomous student publication, opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect that of UFV, The Cascade’s staff and collective, or associated members.

www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

NEWS

Athletics department inducts inaguaral hall of fame

NEWS BRIEFS Former UW GM charged for fraud

Photo: Vanessa Broadbent

The former University of Waterloo School of Architecture general manager has been sentenced to 18 months in jail after defrauding the school of $176,000. Jeffrey Lederer opened a university payroll account in his mother’s name, in which $139,000 was deposited over several years.

Lederer has been ordered to make full restitution and was put on two year probation.

The Waterloo Region Record

Abbotsford home occupants responsible for clearing snow A City of Abbotsford bylaw dictates that homeowners or renters that do not remove ice and snow from sidewalks bordering their property are subject to a $150 fine. Residents have until noon the day after the snowfall to have all pathways cleared, as well as the roof of any building adjacent to a road.

Abbotsford News

TRU hires sexual violence prevention manager Thompson Rivers University has hired a sexual violence prevention manager to respond to all sexual violence reports and oversee prevention. Amber Huva will be working 20 hours weekly to offer support for victims of sexual violence, connect students to support in the area, and help student access legal support. TRU has also released a draft of their sexual violence policy earlier this month, which will be presented to the board of governors for approval in February.

CBC

Wrestlers bring home four medals The UFV Cascades wrestling program won four medals this weekend at the Alberta Golden Bears Invitational in Edmonton.

The wins included two gold medals from Brad Hildebrandt, who won three matches and finished first in the men’s heavyweight division, and Amtoj Dhaliwal, who took home the 82-kilogram men’s title by winning two matches.

Haseeb Javed won silver in men’s 61-kilogram and Karla Godinez won bronze in women’s 51-kilogram.

UFV Cascades

VANESSA BROADBENT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / PHOTO

After months of planning and preparation, the inaugural class was inducted into the UFV Cascades Hall of Fame on Friday.

More than 30 years since its inception, UFV’s athletics department is recognizing those that helped build the program with the newly created Cascades Hall of Fame and an induction ceremony was held between the women’s and men’s basketball games on Friday in the Envision Athletic Centre.

The five inductees included former athletic director Jane Antil, former basketball coach Pat Lee, women’s basketball athletes Carolyne Lucy and Tracy MacLeod, and the 1987-88 men’s basketball team.

The inductees, who were chosen for their accomplishments as players or role in developing the athletics department, were entered into one of three categories: builders, athletes, or team.

“It’s allowed us to recognize some people who wouldn’t otherwise be recognized for those accomplishments and that hard work and determination,” director of athletics and campus recreation Steve Tuckwood said. “It’s a way to immortalize them, put them up on a wall. Everybody who walks in [the Envision Athletics Centre] now and goes in the mezzanine is going to see plaques of people who we really appreciate the efforts of.”

Tuckwood decided to start the Hall of Fame as a way to highlight the Cascades’ history and acknowledge those involved in creating it.

“I knew there were some stories that needed to be shared about successes, not only of teams that won but also athletes, administrators, and coaches, and people who really made a difference in the early years,” he said. “The Hall of Fame is really our opportunity to recognize some of those contributions and the ones that really paved the way for where we are today … They didn’t have a gymnasium, they played off campus, and so it was a lot of pioneering. I give a lot of those folks from the early years a lot of credit to be as persistent as they were.”

Nominations were open until the end of August and a selection committee chaired by Tuckwood and comprised of both internal and external members of the UFV community voted on who the five inductees would be.

“We wanted to get a mix of folks involved,” he said. “We had some UFV staff members, we had a representative from the alumni association, and then we had an external representative too from the media, Eric Welsh who writes for ***the Chilliwack Progress.”

The inductees were announced in December, and along with plaques in the Envision Athletics Centre will be featured on the UFV Cascades website.

“Some people were just utterly surprised,”

Tuckwood said. “Others, we had to do some sleuthing and send some emails so it was almost some exploration and digging which was nice.”

Going forward, a new class will be inducted on a yearly basis, and anyone who has been removed from the program for at least five years is eligible to be nominated.

“We have a lot of catching up to do,” Tuckwood said. “There’s lots of athletes and teams who otherwise haven’t been recognized yet.”

Tuckwood noted that although this year saw five inductees, it’s likely that there will be more in the future.

“The inaugural class could have been a little larger but we also really wanted to focus on that group of people who were really head and shoulders above sort of the next class,” he explained.

“We’ll build along the way and make it an annual thing so people expect it and want to participate.

If we can get a crowd like this again when we do it again I’d be thrilled.”

More than anything, Tuckwood hopes that the Hall of Fame will be a reminder of the hard work and determination that helped form the athletics department into what it is today.

“It took somebody in those early years to say, ‘You know what? We just need to do this, we need to try it and we need to continue to get better,’” he said. “It’s easy to give up but I really appreciate the people who don’t.”

CORRECTION The article “New Experiential Learning and Wellness fee helps fund changes in UFV’s campus recreation and wellness program” published on Jan. 4 suggested that UFV’s athletics department was planning to implement a campus recreation fee. They are not, however, but are instead considering charging drop-in fees for fitness classes again in the future.

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www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

NEWS

UFV reaches further to fulfull student needs A partnership between two B.C. instututions brings degree program into beautiful Bella Coola

Photos: Michelle Reidlinger

JOEL ROBERTSON-TAYLOR NEWS EDITOR

The commute is about 7,000 metres above the snow-capped coastal mountains and far reaching valleys. B.C.’s coastal range is a living landscape, reminiscent of centuries of sculpting by geologic death and rebirth.

After only an hour in the air, having departed from Vancouver, the aircraft begins its descent, choosing a seemingly random of innumerable valleys as its guiding landing strip.

Bella Coola, resting on the Bella Coola River, is about 100 kilometers inland from the coast, 400 from Williams Lake, and at least a 12-hour drive from Abbotsford. The remote town known for its local art and raw beauty is home to less than 1,000 people, and the valley it resides in less than 2,000.

“You fly in on a tiny little plane. You’re pretty much flying in between mountains as you arrive,” said Michelle Reidlinger.

Reidlinger is one of four UFV faculty and instructors who have each spent a week of intense teaching in Bella Coola.

“Beautiful views, the mountains. You can’t really describe the landscape until you’re there but it’s pretty much in a mountain shadow, mountains all around,” she said.

Nestled in that valley, at the Nuxalk Education Centre in Bella Coola are multiple demountable buildings where UFV, in partnership with the Nicola Valley Institute of Technology (NVIT) offers a unique cohort to students pursuing a bachelor of general studies.

The students there have already completed the chemical addictions worker advanced diploma, a three-year program offered by NVIT. In this fourth and final year-long cohort, they work towards completing courses for their degree.

The chemical addictions worker program — which is fairly

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unique in Canada — trains and assists students who work as or intend to work as alcohol and drug counsellors and / or in addictions counselling. This course in particular has largely aboriginalspecific course content and a holistic approach.

NVIT is B.C.’s aboriginal, public post-secondary school offering unique classes to First Nation students in wellness, governance, and land and economic development.

Although NVIT’s campuses are in Merritt and Burnaby, they have previously gone into Bella Coola three different times to teach the chemical addictions workers program to a group of students there.

The chemical addictions diploma starts out with a one-year certificate and it ladders to a two-year diploma and then a thirdyear is an advanced diploma. But NVIT was interested in offering more to their students.

“They were very interested in seeing if the students who had gone through three years of education could have some sort of degree completing,” said Peter Geller, UFV vice-provost / associate vice-president academic.

One of Geller’s areas of responsibility is supporting UFV’s indigenizing efforts which recently have been with the cohort providing partnership.

The diploma program at NVIT was largely established because there were a lot of people working in communities or with indigenous organizations who provided drug and alcohol addictions counselling, but who didn’t necessarily have an academic background.

After so many students had completed the diploma, many wanted to return to continue their educations. Graduates who were working in the field wanted to be able to move into a management role or various positions that require the education background.

“And they said to the dean at NVIT, ‘So what’s next? What do we do after this?’” said Shirley Hardman, UFV’s senior advisor on indigenous affairs. Hardman visited Bella Coola and has been instrumental in setting up the program partnership. She too is responsible for overseeing the university’s indigenizing efforts.

As the senior advisor on indigenous affairs, Hardman is often approached first to connect peoples or groups to the appropriate faculty at UFV. When NVIT was part of the Indigenizing the Academy conference at UFV in 2012 — when 275 delegates from 33 post-secondary institutions came together at the University of the Fraser Valley Aboriginal Gathering Place — Hardman helped to bring the right people together.

UFV and NVIT have been working together in varying capacities since then, both institutions learning from each other. From this, and to be better equipped, the faculty involved with the cohort have been involved in various professional development opportunities, geared towards indigenization.

The students in Bella Coola are delivered a special model of schooling to meet their needs. Because many are in ongoing employment, the program operates as one week-long session a month, every month. Classes during that week take up the entire day — 8 a.m - 6 p.m.

“They complete their assignments and hand them in, then three weeks later somebody else comes in and they deliver another course,” said Hardman.

This was the model that NVIT initially created to deliver their chemical addictions worker advanced diploma in Bella Coola. It worked well for the diploma, so UFV did the same.

“The teacher stays in Bella Coola for six days and meets with the students for all of those six days,” said Hardman. “The students are then left with some assignments that they have to hand in after the teacher leaves.”

www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

NEWS These breaks between sessions naturally creates a disruption between courses. To prevent this, all the instructors meet and talk about the resources that they’ll use. They also work to indigenize their curriculum, working with and from traditional knowledge.

“So whatever they’ve read in the past, we’ll incorporate into the course,” said Reidlinger.

A theme covered by all the courses taught by UFV instructors is health and wellness, a focus that fits in with the very applied program of addictions counselling. One that is a major focus of the advanced diploma.

“In essence the course that I was teaching is academic workplace writing,” said Reidlinger. “The types of things to do with chemical addictions counselling, client recordings, and also doing research.”

“They’re amazingly articulate and experienced in their own fields so our job is to just bring that out and think about how they might research that or how they might repurpose what you’re doing for different audiences,” said Reidlinger There’s research that shows that aboriginal students who are successful in post-secondary education tend to take their education much further.

“If they finish a bachelor’s degree, they usually get a PhD. There’s a much higher percentage,” said Hardman.

Most schools have a high level of attrition against aboriginal students. The graduation rate from high school for aboriginal students is below 50 per cent, which is actually an increase from past years.

However, those that graduate high school and do well in post-secondary have a much higher chance of finishing a PhD than nonaboriginal students.

This program was designed for the success of its students, to meet the needs in Bella Coola where the students were at.

“We’re really proud of the completion rate, it’s been 100 per cent,” said Hardman. “We don’t generally see that.”

The current cohort is half complete, and the next instructor from UFV, Ethel Gardner, is in Bella Coola this week. But after this semester, the students will have completed their 30 UFV credits.

During the initial formation of the arrangement, the advanced diploma program curriculum was analyzed to determine how it would relate to and how it could transfer to a degree from UFV. Based on the block transfer agreement between UFV and NVIT — the formal arrangement that says a graduate of this particular program will get so many credits towards this other program — a graduate of the advanced diploma is accredited 90 course credits.

The following 30 to receive a bachelor of general studies from UFV are given on completion of the cohort.

A major reason that UFV wanted to partner with NVIT to begin with is the commitment to indigenization.

“I think we were interested in this opportunity in working with NVIT and learning from them,” said Geller. “We’ve thought that this was a really important way to serve a need.”

And in delivering this need, the instructors and faculty have had to deal with a number of challenges inherent to teaching in a moderately remote locale.

“The internet is spotty, there may be no network to make a phone call home if you want to talk to your kids or your spouse,” said Hardman. “It’s extra circumstances for the teachers going in there too.”

“I’m used to having technology that works, it’s just part of being up there that you’ve just got to accept that sometimes it’s a struggle to make the technology work,” said Reidlinger.

While Reidlinger was there, there was a snowstorm which didn’t prevent classes from happening but made for another challenge to overcome.

“But the rewards, they’re so incredible, like meeting the committed people and to be apart of the community,” said Hardman.

The departure from Bella Coola is similar to the arrival. One of the quirks with both is that sometimes the pilot can’t do either.

“They say there’s one mountain where, if it’s fogged in, you’re not going to get out of Bella Coola, and it was fogged in,” said Reidlinger.

For several of the flights already, some were diverted to Anahim Lake, and one was cancelled completely. If the flight does change its course to Anahim, it’s followed by a two-hour bus ride west, down to Bella Coola. It’s part of the experience.

“I think it’s one of the best things that UFV does in terms of indigenizing,” said Reidlinger. “I’m really proud that we’re doing this and I hope that we continue.”

Bella Coola is the third time that UFV has delivered the chemical addictions workers general studies completion program. The previous two years were both offered at NVIT’s campus in Burnaby. The current cohort will continue, and another four instructors will each spend a week there until the completion of the course in March.

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www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

NEWS

The kiosk is gone, but the Spirit lives on Spirit Bear Coffee kiosk at CEP shut down, moving to Abbotsford VANESSA BROADBENT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

After opening last summer, the Spirit Bear Coffee kiosk on UFV’s CEP campus in Chilliwack has been shut down.

“Dana [Hospitality] came to us to see if they could close down because people weren’t using it,” said director of ancillary services Cameron Roy. “It’s the inevitability of the finances, the business model, but we will provide a solution for the Chilliwack students.”

Dana Hospitality took over as UFV’s food services provider on August 2 after the previous contract with Sodexo expired, and this semester marks their second at the university. To compensate for the decrease in services at the CEP campus, the Tim Horton’s will be expanded to include a Fast and Fresh program, increasing the amount of fresh food available, as well as an espresso whole bean coffee system.

Although Spirit Bear Coffee will no longer be offered at the CEP campus, Roy noted that plans to open a kiosk on the Abbotsford campus are still in place. The coffee shop will be running out of the current Road Runner Café space, which will be renovated over the summer with the tentative opening planned for the fall semester.

“We’re going to transition it over to Abbotsford and build,” said Roy. “We’re not losing the brand, we’re bringing them in, expanding it.”

The renovations will include turning the area into more of a student-friendly study space, including aboriginal art commissioned by Spirit Bear Coffee, which is Vancouver-based and aboriginally owned and operated.

“Students are staying on campus more and more, and we want to cater to that, we want to make sure there’s services here that make their stay on campus, the experience, that much better,” Roy said. “We want to make sure it’s there and it’s comfortable, just a real gathering place.”

As for the former kiosk on the CEP campus, Roy noted that current plans include for food services to utilize the space for catering.

“We still want to run catering on the Chilliwack campus,” he said. “We have events going on there all the time and that’s a perfect spot to keep so that we can manage that area as well.”

Since its transition at the end of summer, Roy has already received positive feedback from students on the services provided by Dana Hospitality.

“The feedback that I get from students is immediate, because you mess with someone’s food it’s a very controversial issue,” he said. “If you get food services right on campus, you’re a hero, but if you don’t you’re scrambling to compensate.

Dana has done such a wonderful job of responding to what we need, what the university needs, what the student population has been asking for.”

Extraordinary General Meeting NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN THAT the Extraordinary General Meeting of The Cascade will be held Wednesday, January 18th, 2017 at 3:00 p.m. at The Cascade Office, Student Union Building, Room S2111. The Extraordinary General Meeting is open to students, alumni, and faculty of the University of the Fraser Valley.

To read up on the Canadian Journalism Society bylaws or for more information visit our website www. ufvcascade.ca There will be pizza ok

Stories worth paying attention to #restorationforteachers The Province and BCTF agree on $50M for new teachers

Inspection of Site C hydroelectric project finds issues

The province and B.C. Teachers Federation reached an agreement to spend $50 million on hiring new teachers and support staff.

B.C.’s Environmental Assessment Office issued two new enforcement orders for the dam and has “posted an inspection record that found several issues of noncompliance related to erosion and water management,” writes the Globe and Mail.

The funding is for the 2016-17 school year and will bring in about 1,100 new teachers.

This change comes after winning the right to negotiate class size and composition at the Supreme Court of Canada in November, which ruled that staffing needed to be restored to its levels prior to the 2002 decision by the at-the-time Minister of Education, Christy Clark, to reduce funding.

“The BCTF estimates it will cost $300 million each school year for that restoration, and in today’s announcement, the province called the $50 million for 2016-17 the “first step” in complying with the court decision,” writes the CBC.

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#damshame

One of the new orders says that that the project was not addressing two conditions of its environmentalassessment certificate to protect amphibians, issued by the province.

The second of the two orders says the project is not testing local wells which are to be tested “twice a year, for a period of 10 years, from the outset of construction.”

B.C. Hydro says it is taking steps to address the orders, and that the dam will provide electricity for potentially more than 100 years with cost projections at $8.8 billion and finished in 2024.

#missionpipeline Deluge of sewage could rise up fro Fraser River A pipeline that reaches from Mission to Abbotsford under the Fraser River carries the entire contents of Mission’s sewage into the JAMES Wastewater Treatment Plant in Abbotsford.

The one kilometer stretch of pipe is over 30 years old and has the mayor of Mission concerned.

“Constructed in 1983, the sewage pipe is only at the halfway point of its expected lifespan. However, there is no way to be sure,” writes the Abbotsford News.

Because the pipe is under pressure, it’s impossible to send cameras through the pipe to monitor its condition. If the pipe bursts, there’s no quick way to stop it from spewing all of Mission’s sewage waste into the river.

The mayor suggests building a second pipe.

“However, creating a second sewage line under the river comes with an $8 million price tag,” writes the Abbotsford News.

www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

OPINION

Value in mentorship: Good feelings and GDP PANKU SHARMA OPINION EDITOR

If I could go back to my first semester, there are a billion things I would change but the first would be to ask questions more often.

It’d be easier now if I could keep the personality and experience I’ve developed in the past five years; but for the doe-eyed young freshman it was harder. Not only were the bouts of shyness and social anxiety a factor, not only did my social circle not have many answers considering they were also freshman, but the university and its services felt like a maze (literally if discussing the top floor of D building) of bureaucracy, office hours, and automated replies.

It might not happen in the most efficient or useful manner, but eventually for better or worse things fell into place and I learned to navigate this place, the life of a student, as best I could. Many of us have, but to this day I’m still learning more about the services available to me and the support or habits that I should be developing. It wasn’t until I took a more active role in mentoring younger students however, with the RBC Arts Peer

Mentor Program, that the gap became even more apparent.

In talking to the younger students, often in their first year, I’m reminded of how much there really is to prepare for and learn when pursuing higher education. We don’t just always ***know how to find a balance between school, work, and life; we often have to learn through mishaps and regret. Test-taking skills, academic resources, setting up appointments with career advisors, or even knowing where to take a nap; these are all things that we either have figured out or learned to do without — but could prove invaluable to someone just entering university for the first time.

What I’m getting at is, I know we are focused (and should be) on what is in front of us, but in any capacity you can I urge you to take a moment in your first or second year elective to give thought to the students around us who may be struggling or scared or just have a burning question they feel too embarrassed to ask. I’ve never seen anyone react poorly to being asked directions to get around, so I know this campus has got some great friendly people. We should just do a better job in lending a hand and being open to sharing and collaboration; we all have some

insight or experience to add to the zeitgeist of student life. We should pay it forward for the person who directed us to our classroom on the first day of school, which was successful enough to bring you to this moment of reading your student newspaper!

Whether informal, through clubs and study groups, or more formally through the mentoring and tutoring programs on campus (who, wink wink, will be looking for staff and volunteers for next fall and possibly right now) we’ve all got some good advice in us that could help someone scrape a few less knees and spend a little less on textbooks. And not to mention the additional bonuses of (in advancing order from the moment of giving advice): a good feeling for being helpful, a better understanding of how people might face obstacles you don’t, a better understanding of how you yourself function as a student and human being, and increased gross domestic product for your nation as a capable mind is able to flourish and contribute to the workforce and therefore support the structures and necessary funds for your retirement in your old age!

MAGIC

Resolute Resolutions KLARA CHMELAROVA CONTRIBUTOR

The new year has started, the holidays are over, and people are now reluctantly returning to their usual business while trying to circulate eggnog out of their systems. As always, this January is a time of detoxes, brand new gym memberships (that don’t last far beyond the first visit), and of course, resolutions. There is no better chance to turn it all around then in the new year, a clean slate! So we pour ourselves the last glass of wine, light the last cigarette, eat the last bar of chocolate, and write down what we will do differently before Earth manages to spin around the Sun once again. It feels natural that as one year comes to a close our system calls for a reboot.

So the question is how much are New Year’s resolutions a product of tradition and how much is an outcome of biological cycle? Probably a bit of both. After all, tradition is nothing more than a cultural recognition of repeated behavioural pattern. Take Christmas, for instance. It is now known as the day Christ was born, yet before that it was a pagan holiday celebrating Winter Solstice. Looking at it from a natural point of view it was simply our way

of recognizing that the planet was closer to the Sun and therefore days would be longer.

New Year’s resolutions aren’t as traceable, reason being that it isn’t as well of an established custom. We aren’t prompted by our surroundings about doing or not doing it. You’ll probably never hear your neighbour ask: “Have you made a list of your resolutions yet? And what colour is the paper? Oh, where did you buy the ink? You know Walmart ran all out of the glittery one!”

Still, most of us can’t escape at least thinking about things we want to change. Essentially, there is nothing wrong with that — if we wouldn’t repeat ourselves most of the time. Resolutions should serve as change indicators in our way of living. We put down the same unrealistic goals, and then just wipe what we’ve learned clean the next year. We decide on things we know we won’t do for resolutions. And so it becomes something akin to a preached mantra.

Mine is a prime example: the only thing on the list at the moment is becoming a pirate. It’s been there since I was five, but it’s 2017 now. I have a whole year to pretend to try to make it come true ye landlubber. Arrr!

The Chilliwack Arts & Cultural Centre Society presents

Cabaret of Wonders Join an extraordinary gathering of magicians for the later cabaret style show at 10pm!

You can even bring bar drinks into the Theatre if you are 19+ 7:30 &10pm

JANUARY 604

Tickets

All seats: $20

CHILLIWACK

CULTURAL CENTRE

art of the month

V

391.SHOW

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The Chilliwack

Progress 9201 Corbould St., Chilliwack • www.chilliwackculturalcentre.ca

Submissions are due Friday, January 31st

Accepted mediums: painting, drawing, print, photography, digital art, sculpture, 3d work

Limit of three submissions per person, per month

Include a 50 word bio, 150 word artist statement, and image list with titles, mediums, sizes, and dates of creation

Submissions must have been created with in the last year

Submissions & questions can be sent to jeff@ufvcascade.ca

All images must be in CMYK format, 300+ DPI,in Zip file, less than 5 MB total. All files must be in PDF format.

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www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

OPINION

SNAPSHOTS Curtailed commentary on current conditions

Jeff Mijo

Vanessa Broadbent

Illustrations: Amara Gelaude

How Canada Post stole Christmas

A horizon of mumbled GPAs and lost hats

T’was two weeks before Christmas and all through the ‘hood not a delivery was arriving: nothing bad, nothing good.

In the leadup to Christmas, like any good student with exams to prepare for and ***The Cascade crosswords to design, I skipped all that “shopping” nonsense and ordered a bunch of presents online. Anticipating last-minute shoppers and the holiday rush, I even gave myself lots of extra time for them to arrive. Or so I thought. They didn’t arrive on that guaranteed day. Or the day after. Or the next Monday. I’m part of a Facebook group for my neighbourhood, and it turned out nobody was getting mail, be it packages, letters, or Christmas cards.

There’s nothing that quite puts a damper on your holiday spirit like worrying that the yoga bag your mom’s been not-so-subtly hinting she wants is just sitting in a post office somewhere.

FINALLY we were told that our mail lady had broken her arm, then her replacement had disliked the job and stopped doing it, and there was no second replacement. This was never posted on our community mailbox, never told to anyone during the week. Finally, two days before the festivities began, a giant stack of packages showed up in the mail, along with a whole week’s worth of junk mail. Christmas was saved!

I just heard that the mail’s stopped again.

Thankfully, the textbook I ordered from Amazon was eligible for post office pickup, so no stress. Except… they just told me it’s already been picked up. What a parcel farce.

I’ve resigned myself to the rocking dad bod I adopted alongside my kitten, so my first and only resolution this year will be to graduate. Once I have my ducks in a line and stone in the slingshot (as it were) in regards to final marks and completion requirements, I have only to look forward to opening up my wallet and spreading it wide for the world around me to lift me by the ankles for another shakedown. (Which, when taking into account that the open wallet and no mention of pockets might seem incredibly gratuitous.)

Between application fees and the probable few dozen dollars it costs to print on that rare university degree paper, I’ll also have the joy of pictures of me wearing a fake smock and hat in front of a greenscreen or bookshelf wallpaper. I’m just itching to wait out a three-hour ceremony for a brief moment of awkwardness where I have to be in front of people and hear my name mispronounced.

The end of the semester can’t come sooner.

At least I’ll probably score a free dinner before an alumni organization asks me for donations.

Panku Sharma

Do we get a pass on parking?

Mission Impassible

Partly because I’ve had a few more parking tickets than I can afford, partly because it’s relatively cheap and probably the right thing to do, I now (usually) pay for my parking. I don’t know if Impark is handing out more tickets than I remember or if my luck is just dwindling over the course of my degree, but I’ve learned the hard way that paying a few dollars daily beats paying $25.

However, the recent plague of ice that coated UFV’s parking lots made this difficult. With the numbers of parking stalls illegible, my wellpracticed skill of showing up to class just on time had become the reason that I might now have to spend a few extra dollars to be at UFV. Was this a gift from the universe, allowing me a free pass to save my $2 and not have to pay $25 in return, or was there a formality that I was required to follow, despite being completely unaware of it?

I never found out the answer but I didn’t get a ticket and bought a parking pass the next day so it doesn’t really matter anymore.

So the city of Mission gets rid of all its sewage via pipeline. Fair enough. However, as an article recently published by the Abbotsford News reported, a section of said pipeline, more than 30 years old, is constantly under pressure and deteriorating quickly. Halfway through its lifespan, there is no way of stopping any leakage should the pipeline rupture. There’s no failsafe, and the city can’t simply ask people to stop using toilets and taking showers. There’s also apparently no way of checking the pipeline’s condition due to its location.

The article quoted Mission mayor Randy Hawes as saying that if the pipeline ruptures “The flow will keep coming. There’s no way to stop it,” he said. And to top it off, “You can’t put it in a pit and hold it temporarily.”

The best solution to this environmental disaster waiting to happen, says Hawes, is to install a second pipeline. Because, you know, the first one worked out so well. Fuck the environment, people 20 years from now can deal with the problem. Right?

Martin Castro

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www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

OPINION

Health centre to open shortly

SATIRE

The centre is difficult to find when it’s not open JOEL ROBERTSON-TAYLOR NEWS EDITOR/PHOTO

Following multiple attempts to reach out for medical care, students confirmed that the health centre has yet to be established by the Student Union.

The health centre was announced over a year ago and was purported to be an on-campus health and medical centre for students.

The centre would operate as a general practice (GP) clinic for students who don’t have their own doctor.

Although no official opening date was established, many students assumed that because previous SUS president Thomas Davies said it would open in Fall, it would open in Fall.

One of the biggest concerns circulating is about the lack of treatment for unique-tostudent ailments such as adrenal fatigue due to balancing classes, work, and social lives — activities that require more hours than are in a week, and “Tinder thumb,” a form of early onset arthritis from constantly swiping right.

With students’ issues being as unique and culturally defined as they are, many hope that having a GP clinic will provide them with a means to get the assistance they need.

“I’m not sure where I’ll go to see a doctor, my family doctor won’t increase my Adderall dose and I don’t know of any doctors taking patients right now,” said student Chelsea Lampiron.

Other diseases that the centre will address

are chronic Netflix over-absorption (CNOA), acute IBS from exorbitant coffee intake during the first 20 hours of the day, and chlamydia.

It was also expected that the health centre would hand out Narsistone kits to counter the potentially life-threatening effects from binging selfie posts on Instagram.

Without the on-campus service, students have been forced to take matters into their own hands and seek out medical attention on their own.

“I actually just don’t know how you get a doctor,” said Randy Lee. “Do I swipe a Poké Ball towards one when I find him?”

As the Student Union approaches election phase, a push to get the health centre open was launched because it would look bad if health centre planning reached across three presidents’ terms.

Ignoring recommendations from medical professionals about what to include in the centre due to it being both time consuming and expensive, the Student Union decided to host the centre entirely online. New plans will see the health centre as an online interface where patients can anonymously request medical advice from student employees. Health centre student employees will be able to Google medical information or refer patients to a walk-in clinic nearby.

The streamlining of the centre means that advice will be given anonymously, and within 48 days of receiving the inquiry — much faster than any of SUS’s current services.

The Cascade is hiring a Distributor!

The Distributor carries out circulation of The Cascade’s print edition throughout the Fraser Valley. This includes UFV campuses in Abbotsford, Mission, and Chilliwack, branches of the Fraser Valley Regional Library system, and local coffee shops and potentially other locations The Distributor also works closely with the Business Manager to determine the best methods for distribution, and to maintain and track readership count. In addition, the Distributor works as a community representative, building The Cascade’s presence and recognition ound UFV and the surrounding areas.

To apply send a resume and cover letter to joel@ufvcascade.ca by Jan. 21

The Cascade is hiring an Advertising Representative!

The Advertising Representative is responsible for the marketing of advertising sales. The Advertising Representative works under the supervision of the Business Manager to meet monthly sales targets as set within the annual budget. The Advertising Representative will also seek to foster positive, lasting relationships with advertising clients.

To apply send a resume and cover letter to joel@ufvcascade.ca by Jan. 21

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

www.ufvcascade.ca

FEATURE

Are You Punk?

Punk is more a state of mind than a style of music

Photo: Mitch Huttema

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www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

FEATURE

Photo: Queen Bee & the Buzzkills / Facebook Written by: Jennifer Trithardt-Tufts Layout by: Brittany Cardinal

A

s Ian Fildes pushes back his bleached blonde hair under his cap and finds a comfortable spot on the couch across from me, I notice his painted nails and septum piercing. Fildes is a second year student in a basic musicianship program at Douglas College and although he has some features which could be considered punk, there is nothing unusual about his appearance considering he is a millennial.

It is a well known fact that Abbotsford is part of B.C.’s “Bible Belt” and a hub for religious groups. Underneath that innocent shell lies a yolk of culture that every once in awhile seeps through the occasional crack.

The Abbotsford punk music scene is part of that yolk; many people know it’s there, but few choose to look past the pristine shell and acknowledge what hides beneath it. Even though the shell is what you see first, the yolk is all that matters in the end; it’s what sustains people.

It was a busy November evening when I met up with Fildes, who is focusing on voice and piano studies in order to get into the music therapy program at Capilano University. Looking at him in that moment, I would never believe that he was the same person I saw perform two weeks ago at a Halloweenthemed show in a dingy, unfinished garage at a local Abbotsford show house. The frontman for local Abbotsford punk band Queen Bee and the Buzzkills, he was dressed in a toga and taking swigs from a bottle of wine as his friends and peers danced around him and cheered him and his band on.

As many young adults in the Fraser Valley, Fildes grew up with religious parents. However, he is not the typical Christian-kid-turnedrebel; instead, his father always made sure he had a punk music influence in his life. Typically, young adults in Abbotsford seek out the punk scene as a way of rebelling against the popular Christian rhetoric, but Fildes’ father chose not to force any particular religion and even drove Fildes and his band mates to perform at shows before they were able to drive themselves. In the punk scene many alternative forms of spiritual guidance and religion are challenged and accepted.

Fildes’ introduction into Abbotsford’s punk scene came as kind of a fluke. After picking up and playing a guitar at a party one night when he was 16, one of the other party-goers, a member of a local band called GSTS, asked him to consider jamming with the group. The rest is history.

“I found out there were more people that were into the kind of things I was into,” Fildes recalled. “It felt like home instantly.”

As a music student, Fildes is now able to look at both aspects of the industry, the professional and the fun. But not everyone has this ability and a lot of Fildes’ punk peers think he is selling out by going to music school and will lose his edge.

But Fildes thinks the opposite.

“Learning theory fits into the punk lifestyle because you are exploring what you love and you’re becoming a part of what you love and that’s a big part of what the punk ideal is,” he said. “Just because [it] can be sometimes more simplistic than other genres doesn’t mean the music isn’t still great.”

Despite its hard exterior, the punk scene is known to be welcoming, and this is exactly how local artist Kimberley Sutton found it during her rebellious high school days.

Sutton recently curated an art project which is displayed at Gator’s Pub, a popular local show venue in downtown Abbotsford.

The project is a collection of posters for shows that have been held in Abbotsford, some dating as far back as 1991 or as recent as October 2016, and the evolution of the punk scene is highlighted throughout the entire project.

“The old punk scene was attached to old downtown Abbotsford and punkers used to be misconstrued as gang members,” she explained.

The city of Abbotsford has since made large efforts to clear out the negative activity in the downtown area. However, when people see punkers downtown they still associate their vests, spikes, and crazy hairstyles with that negativity.

“The optics still stay,” Sutton said.

But over time the scene has become much more encompassing of all styles and one can no longer tell someone’s music preference based solely on their attire and physical appearance. Punk is ever evolving and Abby

punk has become much less aggressive and more thoughtful.

CIVL Radio, UFV’s campus and community radio station, is one of the most attainable resources the punk scene has in Abbotsford.

The station connects the punk scene to the rest of the world by providing air time via promotion and discussion of music and events, as well as spreading awareness of band openings and other opportunities to perform.

Aaron Levy, CIVL’s station manager, claims that since punk music is the one thing that is universal for most modern youth, there is a punk scene to be found in any city.

“Punk is something most youth will identify with at some point,” he said.

Levy considers the Abbotsford punk scene to be very small given the size of the city.

However, based on the kind of engagement the city typically receives, it is considered a successful punk scene because of its consistency.

Despite the preconceived notions Abbotsfordians may have towards punk scene individuals as what Levy describes as “dirty, good-for-nothing, drug-taking, underage alcoholic, irresponsible, violent, bravadoladen, offensive, radical political, dangerous queers,” most punkers are stand-up people; they watch out for each other and there are unwritten rules of how to behave at shows and in mosh pits.

“If there were problems laden in the scene it would be talked about pretty quickly,” said Levy.

It’s this sense of “watching out for each other” that the punk scene is really about, and as Sutton put it, it’s about “connecting with people to expand what you want to do.”

This parallels Fildes’ experience. He’s used his connections to find fulfilling work as a former music director for the Devon Clifford Foundation, which gives kids from lowincome families the opportunity to learn to play instruments, and he currently works as a music therapy facilitator for children with autism at Monarch House.

“The punk music scene for me has been the gateway to the career I am in right now,” he said.

“

“Abbotsford has preconceived notions of punks as dirty, good for nothing, drug taking, underage alcoholic, irresponsible, violent, bravado laden, offensive, radical political dangerous queers.”

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www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2016

STUDY BREAK v CROSSWORD DOWN 1: Stuffed tortilla dish 2: HIMYM’s Barney Stinson’s catchphrase 3: Social system of nobility and serfs 4: To unconsciously roam ACROSS 1: Noble title, first name, or tea 3: Passing trends 5: Female sheep 6: To become blocked by an accumulation of matter, like a drain 7: A desire or encouragement 8: A symbol representing something else 9: Expedient acronym 10: An invisible, possibly mystical emanation 11: Central US state with Des Moines as capital 12: New Year’s _ _olutions 13: Not here 14: Religious ascetic LAST WEEKS ANSWERS Across: 1: Hues 3: Prong 5: Falafel 6: Byzantine 7: Oversee 9: Dogma 10: Toe

Made by Jeff Mijo

v HOROSCOPES

Astrological mysteries interpreted by Master Moji

Aries — Mar 21 to Apr 19 Beware of new strangers coming into your life. They’re probably friendly and quite nice, but you know they’re secretly just trying to gain access to your textbooks.

Taurus — Apr 20 to May 20 That accent you do that you think is funny? It totally is. Try it in class this week!

Gemini — May 21 to Jun 20 Nice haircut!

Cancer —Jun 21 to Jul 22 Fun studenting tip! Fight of the cold with a giant blazing inferno fueled by all of your papers and notes from last semester, tossed emotionlessly into the pyre as a final retribution for all the hours of sleep they stole from you

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Down: 1: Half-blood 2: Elf 3: Polynesia 4: Goldeneye 8: EST

Leo — Jul 23 to Aug 22 Mountain climbing is fun and all, but really, all the cool kids are getting into spelunking these days. So much more fun to say.

Virgo —Aug 23 to Sep 22 The next song you hear will be a portent of your week to come. I’d advise covering your ears, running to your computer and playing .

Libra — Sep 23 to Oct 22 I saw three ships come sailing in on Christmas day in the morning. They were viking longships. My whole town was plundered. Now I survive off the old editions The Cascade gives me to eat in exchange for these astrological illuminations.

Scorpio — Oct 23 to Nov 21 You’ll stumble onto a new hobby this week that will be fulfilling and life-changing.

Don’t miss it..

Sagittarius — Nov 22 to Dec 21 You adventure continues as you exam the mysteriously flipped room - what happened while you slept? You rush to your window and look outside. The house across the street is mirror too. What’s going on? You grab your phone to text your best friend, but the keyboard is flipped - you manage to call. “Olleh?” their voice answers, barely comprehensible...

Capricorn — Dec 22 to Jan 19 The hands of time walk ever forward, doing a wacky handstand and making everyone around feel weird like maybe they should applaud but they’re not sure if it’ll just distract time and make it fall over.

Aquarius — Jan 20 to Feb 18 There’s nothing quite like the excitement of packing a lunch from home instead of buying it at school. You ain’t gonna get that much peanut butter anywhere else!

Pisces — Feb 19 to Mar 20 Do you wanna build a snowman? Well, the concept of free will is an illusion so you have to. The stars told me so.

www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2016

CULTURE

UFV shows heart with snow art JEFF MIJO

CULTURE EDITOR

The Corner Cutter

Lil Birdie

With snow covering the grounds, UFV students flexed their artistic muscles. What had been intended as a walk to find the best snowmen on campus showed that our student body has transcended simple snowmen (since there were none to be found) and has opted to show their immense creativity with more original forms of artwork. Their detailed, well thought-out, and thoroughly impactful works are all over campus — you just need to know where to look.

Following in the grand artistic tradition of, well, giving the metaphorical finger to tradition, this artist was a rebel with no regard for convention. They saw the expectations of walking as a medium and flaunted them, unpacking the notion that they should follow the paths and keep their shoes dry. Why? Why do we all walk the routes that are cleared for us? The artist poses a simple question: is the snow shovel a tool of control, and does that make boots a weapon of defiance?

A piece of art that incorporates a living being, the artist clearly intended this to emulate the listless daze students feel at the start of the winter semester. Just as the bird scavenges for the scantest trace of food on the frozen pond, the winter student must search within themselves to find the will to attend their classes. And just as the bird will one day fly away from this installation, so to will we all leave in the spring, some for the last time, to search for our ponds that never freeze.

The Obelisk

The Sticks

Pushed Aside

A towering testament to the cold impersonality of man, the artist did away with ideas of snowmen, women, and children, of even snow beings. They are saying “This is all we are now. We are not individuals. We are not unique. We are amorphous faces in the crowd, mass produced by a culture of consumerism that cares little for those details we think makes us us.” But even in conformity, there is personality. A tuft of grass in the upper right of this ball winks back at the viewer, knowingly acknowledging that nobody can truly be homogeneous.

A tale of unrequited love, this simple piece speaks volumes. The two sticks, who are clearly close, and have been for a long time (symbolized by them being long) rest nearly touching, but not quite, at a nearly perpendicular angle, but not quite. The rock, which seems to be their home, is the foundation of their relationship, but it is also the thing that keeps them apart; if it were just a little shorter, the road a little less difficult, they would truly be together. Instead, the short stick is left to feel an eternal longing, with the long stick up on a pedestal, nearly within reach, but coldly extending past the short stick and searching off into the distance for something else. It is a tragic piece, that evokes the pain of the short stick within a viewer, but also makes one wonder: why should the long stick give up on its dreams and settle for the bent, gnarled branch that feels so entitled?

This empty walkway shows the signs of a tumultuous past, where strife pushed some who had the audacity to try to walk on the pathway of the elite to the cold sidelines. The bench represents those who had no strength to go on, who submitted to the will of the elites and gave up. But the footsteps, presented on the opposite side, represent an opposite mentality. An unwillingness to give up in the face of the oppressors, a story of those who fought on and forged ahead through the tough circumstances forced upon them, until eventually they were able to rejoin the walkway.

Think you can do better? Build a snowman (or other snow art installation) at UFV and tweet, ‘gram, or Facebook us a picture with #CascadeChallenge for a chance to be featured in next week’s issue! Photos can also be emailed to jeff@ufvcascade.ca

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www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2016

CULTURE

Musings of museums

Museologist George Jacob to speak at UFV

TANYA VANPRASEUTH ONLINE EDITOR

George Jacob is a museologist who has greatly contributed to the creation of museums globally, and on January 16 he’ ll be sharing his knowledge with the UFV community. Jacob trained at the Smithsonian and attended the Birla Institute of Technology and Science and the University of Toronto.

His work can be seen in over 10 countries, including Singapore, India, Hong Kong, Egypt, and all across North America. Jacob is currently the president and CEO of the $46 million Phillip J. Currie Museum in Alberta and continues to make a significant impact in the museum industry.

The Cascade had the opportunity to interview George Jacob via email and speak to him about his experiences within the museum industry, what he plans to share with UFV students during his special presentation, and the impact of museums within Canada. To learn more about George Jacob’s experiences, drop by room B101 in the Abbotsford campus on Monday January 16, where he’ ll be speaking to UFV students from 4:30 – 6:30 p.m.

What are you planning on speaking about during your special presentation at UFV? The talk focuses on the multi-billion dollar museum industry and the importance of creating cultural capital. What is the role of museums and culture in our increasingly virtual and changing interconnected world of accelerated communication and global mobility? Museums are the souls of civil societies and they serve as repositories of our collective memory. They are an important catalyst for education, tourism, cultural infrastructure, and the quality of life in communities. But museums are more than memory keepers. Museums are engines that drive cultural diplomacy — an art, whose soft power has tested true through the course of history in bridging relationships, forging allies, and facilitating the exchange of ideas.

Is there a particular message you would like to convey to UFV students?

For those interested in pursuing a career in museums, it is important to know that there are skills that can be applied to the commercial side of the museum industry ranging from design, project implementation, master planning, policy development, museum law, cultural affairs et al. It is also important to know that there are all kinds of museums that celebrate life beyond the conventional history and / or art based institutions. The spectrum of topics includes culinary arts, wine-making, design, fashion, jewelry, healthcare, living traditions, comics, chocolates, broken relationships, peace, war… the list is long!

You have been a prominent figure within the growth of the museum industry during your career. What type of impact do you believe museums have globally?

Apart from sharing history, culture, traditions and customs through exhibit experiences, the extension and educational aspects of museums impact augmented learning, attract tourism investment, rejuvenate economies and often anchor communities around a collective cause that they can take pride in. At a national level, they may foster a sense of identity, conserve and

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Photo: Goerge Jacob

protect heritage, research, cultural exchanges, and foster growth of knowledge through primary and secondary source curatorial discourses and publications.

The future of museums will be impacted by spatial and visual platforms and the continued interactive and immersive power of virtual and augmented reality tools. It is inevitable for content to move to the cyber realm in times ahead and there would be swathes of potential visitors who would be content surfing the tech-induced web of learning and discovery. However, there is no substitute for material culture. The classical appeal of museums and the need to preserve, conserve, and celebrate material culture will always be there.

Did working in places such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Abu Dhabi, Egypt, France, and North America inspire you for different projects?

With global connectivity, the museum industry is experiencing seamless integration of professional talent. Canadian architects are designing museums in Saudi Arabia, Dutch designers are working in Singapore, British curators are engaged in Egypt … this growing trend has created a confluence of creativity that the world is increasingly experiencing in the recent year, directly impacting best practices and professional standards. Not only has the cross-pollination resulted in free exchange of creative innovation, it has also induced an inherent appreciation of pluralistic perceptions and multicultural work environments.

Being from India originally, what inspiration do you draw from your hometown while working on museums?

India is a cultural mosaic like no other. It has been an interesting melting pot that still savours purity of the classical and distinctiveness of folk traditions. The cultural continuity and living traditions require a different notion of a “museum” for them to be relevant to the Indian society and psyche that struggles with identity and postcolonial angst. Indigenous perspectives, intangible heritage, and oral traditions seek a different lens for interpretive curatorial narrative. While I never grew up in my “hometown” I have carried the notion of a global citizen in most of my work, often seeking to push the paradigm to discover the undiscovered.

Regarding your work with the Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum, how did you want this particular project to impact Canada? And what kind of impact would you like your future projects to have on Canada?

The Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum dispelled many myths. First, it was the fastest museum design-build project in Canadian history.

Second, it reversed an accepted norm of endless delays and budget overruns by opening precisely on the intended date and coming under budget. Third, the entire team consisted of only two professionals prior to the opening, making it the leanest endeavour ever. Fourth, the museum designed its own website, merchandise, branding, media taglines, feature documentaries, publication, signage, and billboards — an unprecedented measure. Fifth, it bagged nine awards in nine months, clocking 127,000 visitors despite its remote location, Sixth, it became the first museum in the world to offer helicop-

ter rides over the world’s densest dinosaur bonebed sites.

Oddly, it also became the first museum in Canada to engage a visible minority president and CEO. The museum is a national asset that has successfully raised the bar for planning and project execution. Its business model offers a viable frame of reference for future museums across Canada.

Would you like to work on any projects within B.C., especially within the Vancouver area?

And if so, what kind of projects would you have in mind?

If opportunity presents, I would like to develop a non-traditional First Nations museum of living cultures on a scope and scale never con-

ceived or witnessed before.

As a previous student yourself who attended a Canadian university, what advice would you have for post-secondary students who would like to work in the museum / arts industry?

As a Canadian, and a lifelong student of creative thought and cultural conservation, my advice would be to explore the world, its diversity, its limitless ocean of knowledge that could enrich our souls in boundless ways. Museums are but mere vessels where narratives resonate with those who open their minds.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

www.ufvcascade.ca

CULTURE SCORE BOARD

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2016

Getting to know the Cascades Hall of Fame inductees VANESSA BROADBENT

SCORES Men’s Basketball: Jan 6 UFV Cascades vs. MacEwan Griffins W 77-72 Jan 7 UFV Cascades vs. MacEwan Griffins W 89-82 Women’s Basketball: Jan 6 UFV Cascades vs. MacEwan Griffins W 73-70 Jan 7 UFV Cascades vs. MacEwan Griffins W 59-55 Men’s Volleyball: Jan 6 UFV Cascades vs. DC Royals W 3-2 Jan 7 UFV Cascades vs. DC Royals W 3-0 Women’s Volleyball: Jan 6 UFV Cascades vs. DC Royals L 3-2 Jan 7 UFV Cascades vs. DC Royals W 3-1

UPCOMING GAMES Men’s Basketball: Thursday, Jan 12 8:00 pm UFV Cascades vs. U of C Dinos (away) Friday, Jan 13 8:00 pm UFV Cascades vs. U of C Dinos (away) Women’s Basketball: Thursday, Jan 12 6:00 pm UFV Cascades vs. U of C Dinos (away) Friday, Jan 13 6:00 pm UFV Cascades vs. U of C Dinos (away) Men’s Volleyball: Friday, Jan 13 8:00 pm UFV Cascades vs. CAP Blues (home) Saturday, Jan 14 8:00 pm UFV Cascades vs. CAP Blues (away) Women’s Volleyball: Friday, Jan 13 6:00 pm UFV Cascades vs. CAP Blues (home) Saturday, Jan 14 6:00 pm UFV Cascades vs. CAP Blues (away)

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

After more than 30 years since its start, UFV’s athletics department inducted their inaugural Hall of Fame class on Friday. Inductees were chosen for one of three categories: builders, athletes, or teams. The five inductees included former athletic director Jane Antil, former basketball coach Pat Lee, women’s basketball athletes Carolyne Lucy and Tracy MacLeod, and the 1987-88 men’s basketball team.

Tracy McLeod - Women’s Basketball 1990-1992 What did you enjoy about your time at UFV? Basically, just the team that we had and the coaching that was going on. We had some great coaches and the comradery. We had a good bunch of girls and we were all really driven basketball players and that worked really, really well. It’s really just the people that we were surrounded with and going to practice with every single day, the community atmosphere, the campus. I remember loving the fact that we spend a lot of time talking in the commons. In between classes we would sit and everybody would come to the commons and we would sit and talk on the couches. And then on the road it’s all about bonding and being together and eating together. It was always team suppers and we always traveled together and it was always the guys and girls together. I loved the atmosphere and I loved being able to connect that way. It’s a blast.

What was your favourite moment (or moments!) throughout your time at UFV? Definitely going to nationals in 1992. That was my second year and we got the silver medal, so going to nationals was huge. We went down to Forest Grove, Oregon too and we just had a blast going down there.

I remember this trip like it was yesterday because we were talking to the girls after the game and they were like, ‘You guys have jeans on?’ And we said ‘Yeah.’

They asked, ‘Did you stop and go shopping while you were here?’ and we said ‘No, we just came, we were worried about time and it took us a little while to get down there. We asked why and they said, ‘Our coach told us not to laugh at how you guys were going to be dressed. Our coach told us that you were going to be coming in toques and mukluks and big huge parkas.’ I think they thought we were going to be Inuit people.

That was seriously one of the bonding moments of our trips, just how we chuckled and laughed. We all totally remember that and we were flabbergasted, and we kicked their butts too on top of that — pretty good for dog sledders and seal clubbers. That was a memorable moment, going down to the States and being asked cultural questions, and having the experience of going and playing in the U.S., that was cool too. That and going to nationals. We had some awesome girls on the team and we were all hams too. We’d get the job done on the court and everything, we were ballers, but we were funny and we enjoyed each other’s company and just talked with each other and bugged each other. We were a family; we were a bunch of sisters.

What does it mean to you to be a member of the Hall of Fame?

It is so cool, especially with how my story ended. I feel totally privileged because all through my high school career, I wanted to be a starter on a university team.

That was my goal and I was very driven towards that goal and I wanted to reach that goal. I ended up doing that. I was so shocked but it was such an awesome surprise because it was me being acknowledged for ev-

erything that I worked hard to do, and to become and to strive for. I honestly had no idea, I don’t remember being named to the all-conference teams. To know that I had the highest scoring record that no one had beat, it was shocking and it was such a huge honour, but I didn’t really realize how good I was I think. It’s such an amazing feeling. Everybody there that met me and introduced themselves to me really brought home just what an amazing institution you guys have, and you have such an amazing culture there. Everybody supports everybody and it’s genuine. It just reaffirmed that I made the right choice in going to college before university, and I made the right choice of colleges, and I did work hard and I got recognized for my hard work and my achievements, and that I did my job for you guys and the institution.

Carolyne Lucy – Women’s Basketball 1985-1988 What did you enjoy about your time at UFV? Being a Cascade meant representing the Fraser Valley and the many talented women basketball players we had and still have.

What was your favourite moment throughout your time at UFV? When you love playing a sport like basketball, having the opportunity to play at UFV was extremely important and the relationships / friendships you build. The best was making it to the nationals in our very first year. You don’t realize at the moment how special that was until you look back at that accomplishment. Being a student athlete is a lot of hard work but extremely rewarding. It was also fun traveling with a bunch of cute guys on the men’s team.

What does it mean to you to be a member of the Hall of Fame?

Being inducted to the Hall of Fame is a huge honour especially at the same time as coach Lee who made UFV basketball what it is today at the school. UFV is a great institution for all students and student athletes, my time at the school learning and playing basketball was a memorable time I will never forget.

Pat Lee – Men’s Basketball Coach 1995 2007

History of the Cascades 1983 – Men’s Basketball established 1985 – Women’s Basketball established 1987 – Men’s Soccer established 1989 – Women’s Soccer established 1992 – Women’s Basketball wins PacWest championships and CCAA silver medal 1994 – Women’s Basketball wins PacWest championships and CCAA silver medal 1995 – Women’s Basketball wins PacWest championships and CCAA silver medal 1996 – Women’s Basketball wins PacWest championships and CCAA silver medal 1997 – Women’s Basketball wins PacWest championships and CCAA bronze medal 2000 – Men’s and Women’s Rowing established Men’s Basketball wins PacWest championships, CCAA championships, and CCAA gold medal 2001 – Women’s Basketball wins PacWest championships and CCAA silver medal 2002 – Men’s Basketball wins PacWest championships, CCAA championships, and CCAA gold medal 2003 – Men’s Golf established 2004 – Men’s and Women’s Volleyball established Women’s Basketball wins PacWest championships and CCAA bronze medal Men’s Basketball wins PacWest championships, CCAA championships, and CCAA gold medal 2005 – Women’s Basketball wins PacWest championships and CCAA silver medal 2006 – Women’s Basketball wins PacWest championships and CCAA bronze medal 2007 – Men’s Golf wins CCAA bronze medal

What did you enjoy about your time at UFV? It was fun to be able to recruit the kind of players you wanted, and I found it a new challenge to coach at a university level. I was already in Abbotsford and had already coached younger grades, but at this level you had the opportunity to recruit and go and watch them play and build the team you wanted.

2008 – Men’s Golf wins PacWest championships and CCAA bronze medal

What was your favourite moment throughout your time at UFV? For me, it’s not about the wins, it’s the journey, it’s what happens along the way. It’s getting to know the players and watching them form lifelong bonds. Those are the moments that stand out to me the most over my time there. To bring a team in and watch them work together and become friends.

2011 – Men’s Golf wins CCAA bronze medal

What does it mean to you to be a member of the Hall of Fame?

I don’t like to bring fame or glory to myself but it was very nice of them to bring us back like that. It was quite an honour. I would have liked them to highlight more of the players but I was really grateful to be honoured.

These interviews have been edited for length and clarity.

2009 – Men’s Golf wins PacWest championships 2010 – Women’s Soccer wins Canada West gold medal and U Sports bronze medal Men’s Golf wins CCAA silver medal

2012 – Men’s Basketball wins Canada West silver medal Men’s Golf wins PacWest championships Women’s Volleyball wins CCAA bronze medal 2013 – Women’s Basketball wins Canada West bronze medal Women’s Volleyball wins PacWest championships, CCAA championships, and CCAA gold medal 2014 – Women’s Soccer wins Canada West silver medal

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www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

ARTS IN REVIEW v MOVIE REVIEW

CHARTS 1

Cheap High Subterranean Suburbia

2

The Evaporators Ogopogo Punk

3

Loans Self-Loaning

4

July Talk Touch

5

Mild High Club Skiptracing

6

Mitchell Ko This is Hell

7

In Drift Better Days

8

The Pack A.D. Positive Thinking

9

P.I.S.S. Lynchin’ Louie Sam

10

Preoccupations Preoccupations

11

Numenorean Home

12

Well Being Well Being

13

Hello Moth Slave in a Stone

14

Joey Alexander Countdown

15

The Prettys Soiree

16

Run The Jewels Run The Jewel 3

17

Black Marble It’s Immaterial

18

Clementine Quite World, Still Lovely

19

Black Pink Square One

20

Duotang New Occupation

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SHUFFLE

Dangal – A quest for equality, empowerment, emancipation, and greatness

AARON LEVY

STATION MANAGER

Hawksley Workman Ice Age A song I’ve heard covered by Donovan Woods, but originally written and recorded by the Hawk, the same man who brought us Jealous of your Cigarette, Striptease, and (The Happiest Day I Know Is A) Tokyo Bicycle -- A real life, absolutely nonsensical song title. This soft swooner is a keeper.

Modest Mouse The Cold Part I may finally understand why Isaac Brock was so insistent that he didn’t want the subject of this song to be alone down there, in The Cold Part; it’s because body heat is so essential to staying healthy, safe, and alive in the cold, darkened tundra of Canada’s vast wilderness.

Spank Rock Chilly Will This song is in no way about being cold, temperature wise, at least. It’s about being cool as a cucumber, chilly will, with those sick as flu Baltimore beats, the Baille funk beats that former DFA associate Armani XXXChange, no just XXXChange, manicured for the excellent, and excellently titled, YoYoYoYoYo. Led Zeppelin Whole Lotta Love In a song as blazing hot as this one, with guitar solos and imagery as heated as a binge read of a harlequin romance novel reinterpreted to mirror the plot development of that 50 Shades of whatever business, for some reason, singer Robert Plant talks about keeping it cooly, babe.

Boyz II Men Four Seasons of Loneliness This song came out in the winter of 1997, a year that saw the National Guard march down the heart of Queen Street in downtown Toronto, and though the song itself references each of the four seasons, and their connection with the emotional state of loneliness, I’m focusing on winter.

AMAN BHARDWAJ CONTRIBUTOR

I walked out of the theatre feeling inspired after seeing Dangal. Inspired, and excited for the future of the Indian film industry because I felt as if I had just seen a film that would be considered highly influential and significant for years to come. I truly believe that this film is a huge step forward for not just the industry, but for India as a whole. I am also amazed at how Aamir Khan continues to reinvent himself with every film and has raised the bar yet again with his role as the main character. Dangal accurately depicts the daily struggles of oppressed women in India and how they are viewed in certain parts of the country, especially when they participate in activities considered outside of the norm, such as wrestling. With Dangal, director Nitesh Tiwari has created a landmark film that is able to tackle serious social issues within India, while presenting them in a way that is also commercially appealing and accessible for all audiences.

Dangal portrays the real-life story of wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat (Aamir Khan) and how he trains his two daughters, Geeta Phogat (Fatima Sana Shaikh) and Babita Kumari (Sanya Malhotra) in the art of wrestling, eventually molding them into international-level champions.

Coming from Balali, a village in Haryana, India, Mahavir has an immense passion for wrestling, but due to his financial situation he is unable to pursue his dream of becoming a champion on a global level. Eventually his wife, Daya Kaur (Sakshi Tanwar), gives birth to four daughters, two of them being Geeta and Babita. At this point, Mahavir is hopeful that his daughters will fulfill his lifelong dream and bring home gold for his country. Determined, Mahavir begins training them at an early age in the hopes they will be able to reach the highest level of empowerment and emancipation, while setting an example for oppressed women all across the country. This decision to train them in wrestling is, for the most part, met negatively in their village where the patriarchy (characterized by early marriages for women, an adherence to household roles, and a lack of rights) is prevalent. Many of these issues and conservative opinions are still prevalent to this day in various parts of not just India, but around the world, and Tiwari does a fantastic job of addressing them in Dangal.

Nearly every part of this film is incredibly well executed, from the performances, the shots, and the background score, to the soundtrack. The songs are presented and sequenced in just the right places to evoke certain emotions from the audience. With most Indian films nowadays, there appears to be an overabundance of mediocre songs embedded within the film soundtracks that have little to do with the story or are just there for promotional purposes, which usually end up being detrimental to the pacing of the film or even the film as a whole. However, this is not the case with Dangal, as it is quite refreshing to see that the soundtrack in this film contains empowering, meaningful, and thought-provoking tracks, which actually help to propel the story even further by complementing the characters and their daily struggles quite well.

With Dangal, Aamir Khan has given perhaps the greatest performance of his career and has solidified his status as the most consistent actor in Indian cinema. He continues to prove that he has an innate ability to completely transform himself in order to inhabit a certain type of character, while constantly pushing the boundaries of Indian cinema with his performances and film choices. There are a number of other highlight performances throughout this film as well.

Both performances of Geeta translate well onto the screen, from Zaira Wasim’s performance as a young, inquisitive, and strong-minded Geeta, who develops a desire to win and prove that women are not inferior to men, to Fatima Sana Shaikh’s performance as an adult Geeta who has fallen victim to a lack of discipline and is on the quest for redemption and greatness. Both actresses perform their roles with just the right amount of intensity and conviction and genuinely seem like experienced wrestlers on screen, despite not having any experience in wrestling prior to this film.

Part of the magic behind Dangal is how it just flows seamlessly, without ever feeling bloated or overlong and that is attributed to the way the film is almost masterfully edited. No shot or scene feels forced, contrived, or unnecessary and the film itself is nearly three hours in length, but it never felt as if it was that long after watching it. The editing and the pacing of this film combined with the depths of the characters and the intensity of certain scenes are what make this film a fascinating experience. It is also, without a doubt, the best film in 2016.

www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

ARTS IN REVIEW

SOUNDBITES Mini album reviews

Neil Young

Rolling Stones

Peace Trail

Neil Young’s music has a way of making you care about whatever he tells you to care about, and I’ve known so since I bought a scratched copy of Harvest from the 50 cent record bin at Salvation Army during high school and listened to it on an inconsistent bi-weekly basis. Peace Trail, Young’s 37th and latest album, is the kind of record that tells you to care about a lot of different things (from police shootings, to pipelines, to ordering electronics on Amazon), but Young’s perfectly placed use of tongue-incheek commentary or thought-provoking observations help to tone down the preachi-

Kill Your Boyfriend

ness of the record.

Unfortunately, musically, Peace Trail is, well, boring. Although Young returns to his mostly acoustic roots on this record, each song sounds a little too similar to the one before it, making it the kind of album you forget you’re listening to, not because it’s relaxing or makes for great background music but because there’s just nothing exciting going on. Even though I didn’t have to pay 50 cents for it, I definitely won’t be playing it on a bi-weekly basis, probably not on any basis at all.

Did we really need another album from the Stones? Did we need a blues jam session from four men that look like their rooms in the nursing home are next in queue for a new tenant and the caretakers are betting on who’s going first? We absolutely did.

Blues has weaved its way in and out of rock since Robert Johnson traded his soul for the unique ability to sound as if two guitars were playing at the same time. What’s interesting about this album is that it’s not a contemporary blues album, if you will.

Almost like a time capsule, the Stones have carried with them the essence of 1950s blues for over 60 years. They’re not recreat-

Vanessa Broadbent

Gold Gloom

Joel Robertson-Taylor

Douse

Rosemary and Honeydew

This album took me to a place I used to visit in high school. A lower-middle class house owned by a friend of a friend-someone I had never genuinely connected with. Whether it was skipping class or after school, a group of us made our way to this house, stuffing into a garage loaded up with boxes of miscellaneous crap. Overcrowded, we would pass around joint and talking about what seemed at the time to be some of the most important things in the world. Eventually everyone gets too up in the clouds and sits quietly thinking

ing or resurrecting a genre — they’re playing their music. As much as contemporary musicians like The Black Keys and Gary Clark Jr. play fantastic takes on the blues, it at times feels a bit appropriated.

Blue and Lonesome is not full of The Stones’ mainstream radio hits, if that’s what you’re familiar with. It’s raw and slinky — I guess Jagger finally realized they don’t need to write pop.

Speaking of the devil, Jagger’s practically still got the vocal energy of his 30-year-old self. The album is great, and the kind of thing that I think more musicians of their caliber need to be releasing.

The Light in You Has Left

of deeper topics, not discussing them just letting them stew in our minds. Rosemary and Honeydew transported me to this garage where I had discussions with friends but also with my own heart and soul, forming dreams and aspirations of the change I would make in this world. I would love to sit on one of the lawn chairs that we had arranged around a beat-up coffee table in that garage one last time and have a deeper interaction with myself. This album put me in that seat, and I kind of liked it for a bit.

Quintin Stamler

Vancouver-based Douse’s The Light In You Has Left brings a more calm rock to the decidedly angst-ridden soundscape of the Valley. The record effectively toes the line between the kind of soft-rock that the early 2000s were notorious for and a heavier instrumentation which could have easily overpowered Alea Clark’s breathless vocals, but manages to instead opt for restraint, framing her less-than-bold delivery with instrumentation which effectively fills in the gaps naturally left in tracks like “I Am

More Directed.”

Harmoniously energetic, The Light In You Has Left manages to soften the edges of what could have been a much more aggressive punk record and mold it into a collection of tracks which, barring some exceptions, would be equally at home playing softly in a coffeehouse, or over the airwaves on whatever kind of radio station might play what amounts to the more subdued cousin of post-90s grunge / alternative rock.

Martin Castro

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www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

ARTS IN REVIEW vMOVIE REVIEW

Netflix Obama biopic insightful, but only scratches surface MARTIN CASTRO ARTS EDITOR

Netflix has, at this point, solidified its status as an entertainment powerhouse as far as its original serialized content is concerned. That’s old news. House of Cards, Orange is the New Black, and Narcos’ success speaks for itself. And the almost obscene level of success that Stranger Things’ first season enjoyed backs up the notion that whoever it is that’s making decisions regarding serialized content over at Netflix is knocking it out of the park.

Original feature-length films have been an entirely different story. Netflix has struggled to draw out the same level of fervour from viewers for original movies as it has for shows. The only exception being documentaries, such as Liz Garbus’ 2015 What Happened, Miss Simone? (Which you should watch if you haven’t already.) And even then, most of these kinds of documentaries lack the wide-ranging appeal of their show counterparts.

Enter Barry, a movie so straightforward that its characters (and even acts) can be reduced to labels. Take young Obama’s boozing, womanizing roommate, entirely out of place at Harvard, a fact Obama (portrayed by Devon Terrell) calls him out on at some point in the movie, asking why he’s even at school. In the same vein, young Obama wonders, “Kerouac went here… where’s that scene?”

As a movie, Barry is simple and predictable. We’re not here to think. It’s a story about class and race struggle, but even that must be explained to us, in the form of Obama constantly debating with another student about how inequality stems from the history of race relations in the U.S. “It’s always about slavery with you,”

says Obama’s clearly privileged classmate.

And, I mean, he’s not wrong. To this day, he’s not wrong. The U.S. is a country whose economy thrived since its inception on the monetization of slaves, and it’s aggravating to watch a movie that struggles so profoundly to communicate such a simple truth: race relations (both in the ‘80s when the movie is set and now) have always been informed and influenced by the practice of slavery.

Some might say that’s just divisive, that to imply one group of people, today, has more privilege than another is propagating the problem. But it isn’t, and this is what’s so aggravating. Eight years after Obama’s election, and we’re still blind to the facts. Any change must be systemic change, and for that to happen, so-called passive attitudes towards race and gender must change.

If anything, the movie attempts to point out how, in the mid-‘80s, inequality and oppression faced by people of colour was, in the eyes of those more privileged, not there. (After all, they themselves had suffered no such injustice.) Unknowingly benefiting from the system in place, privileged members of society found it (and still do) hard to believe that, since they themselves are not being openly discriminated against, others can’t be either.

As a movie, Barry is formulaic and uncreative, abusing expository dialogue at every turn. But what’s even more infuriating is that the same issues put forward by 1981 Obama are still entirely relevant. Eight years after Obama’s election to the presidency, here we are, still bickering like children over whether or not race or gender matters.

Of course it fucking matters.

Wake up.

The Casca​de is hiring a varsity writer!

The varsity reporter is responsible for writing at least two UFV varsity sports articles per week during the regular season. During the off-season, the varsity reporter will write one varsity sports article and one other article for The Cascade. Because reporters are paid members of the Cascade staff, they are expected to write more comprehensive articles than a contributor.

To apply send a resume, cover letter, and a writing sample to joel@ufvcascade.ca by Jan. 14.

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

ARTS IN REVIEW vALBUM REVIEW

What’s even going on with Shapeshifter?

MARTIN CASTRO ARTS EDITOR

Ian Sweet’s debut Shapeshifter is odd right out of the gate. Bittersweet guitars are plucked lazily and put through what sounds like a subdued flange pedal while Jilian Medford sings somewhat lazily. As an opener, it’s kitschy but effective.

“Slime Time Live,” the second track on the record, is much more straightforward, although it seems as if all the meandering calm of the first track is traded in for a much more energetic yet still hazy and vaguely lopsided instrumentation. It’s not quite punk, but it’s not quite the stuff of ballads either.

Also, it’s interesting to note that many instances on this record (separate, individual aspects of different songs) heavily recall Big Thief ’s Masterpiece. Now, the obvious comparison is, yes, we’ve got two female singers kicking ass while still providing an ethereal yet unmistakable femininity. However, songs like “#23” turn a straightforward, fuzzy, slowly moving

groove into a jam that’s somehow not held back by all the fuzzy distortion which permeates every single aspect of the track, from the vocals (which croon with longing one moment, and squeak playfully the next) to the multiple guitars used on the track, somehow still discernable through the haze.

Some tracks, such as “Cactus Couch” can’t seem to decide just what they are. With an intro that’s more rock than anything else, a prechorus that’s essentially a blurry folk track, and a breakdown that incorporates not-quitejarring tempo changes, “Cactus Couch” defies anticipation, always proving the listener wrong.

At six minutes, though, the track is just too amorphous, melting into a frankly overly vague collection of sounds. The only saving grace afforded to the track comes by way of Jillian Medford’s vocals which, always at the forefront, anchor the track.

Perhaps that’s why “All Skaters Go To Heaven,” which initially comes off as unfocused, after a second listen reveals itself to be the best track on the record. Its lack of focus, grounded

by Medford’s concretely ethereal vocals, the instrumental aspect of “All Skaters Go To Heaven” is allowed to quite literally run amuck.

Sparse pauses and Medford’s energetic vocals hold the track together more than any explicitly evident cohesive instrumental direction.

But it’s this sense of looseness which makes Shapeshifter as engaging as it is. Half the time Medford’s singing is hidden behind layers of reverb and distortion, despite the tracks not being overly energetic. On “Knife Knowing You” for example, Medford’s more of an instrumental addition than the focus of attention. Perhaps disorientingly, we’re not presented with any individual aspect to hone in on, but rather a moving, shifting soundscape to envelop ourselves in.

The bitter sweetness of opener “Pink Marker” and closer “Pink Marker 2” encapsulate the record in a mist which waxes and wanes throughout, urging us to listen through it, and rewarding our focus with a record that seemingly defies categorization into a genre, but is doubly rewarding just the same.

vALBUM REVIEW

Run The Jewels’ third outing builds on the duo’s already illustrious repertoire PANKU SHARMA OPINION EDITOR

Run the Jewels, the duo composed of famed southern rapper Killer Mike and New York backpack darling El-P, might have seemed like an unlikely pair but their past few years of collaborative music proved to have a strong place in modern music. Killer Mike has a bombastic voice and contagious swagger and confidence that sounds surprisingly natural over El-P’s futuristic and gritty production, and provides a great compliment to the El-P’s more esoteric writing style.

RTJ3 is their most recent outing (available for free download) and continues their trend of solid albums with good guest spots, terrific production, and high energy. If that’s what you love them for you won’t be disappointed. The back and forth on “Call Ticketron,” the funky guitar riff beat on “Oh Mama,” and the production of “Panther like a Panther” are the particular standouts. It’s perfect workout music which I wish I could take advantage of (I’ll get back to it, eventually), but recently I’ve found that I’m personally a little less drawn to the “rapping

to prove they’re the best at rapping tracks,” no matter how brilliant the wordplay is. I already know they’re the goddamn best, and those that don’t will smell the ether soon enough.

While I can’t point to a single bad track by rap standards, there are a few hiccups. Danny Brown’s feature on “Hey Kids (Bumaye)” is a wrench in the spokes of an otherwise great ride, “Stay Gold” is a perfect example of why most songs shouldn’t have a chorus in which you spell out words, and if pressed I might admit that “Everybody Stay Calm” might bottom out a ranking list just because of how safe and forgettable it is within the context of their entire catalogue.

The variety of sounds and content has woken me up to the shift in taste and need that I approach rap music with nowadays considering the political climate and my aging, old man sensibilities. Often, RTJ projects will have a mix between braggadocious slugfests wherein the duo trades verses and flexes their lyrical muscle and slower or more politically or inwardly focused tracks like RTJ1’s “A Christmas Fucking Miracle” or RTJ2’s “Early” and “Crown.” These are the tracks that stick with

me the most — and also best showcase both artists’ depth and artistry. Especially in the past year, they have also become increasingly vocal about their politics and views on community, with Killer Mike being one of Bernie Sanders’ most vocal and passionate surrogates. For this project they dropped “2100” (featuring the very talented BOOTS) as a single on the day of Trump’s victory; it is an emotionally charged and poignant track. “Thieves!” is an intricate narrative, tinged with the sci-fi dystopian brush that El-P has built his career on, that is an example of how, on this album particularly, RTJ has given El-P a little more room to show his versatility and style. “Letter to the Shareholders” provides the most succinct view of what Run the Jewels represents within music for me, and what I love them for when El-P says: Can’t contain the disdain for y’all demons / You talk clean and bomb hospitals / So I speak with the foulest mouth possible / And I drink like a Vulcan losing all faith in the logical / I will not be confused for docile / I’m free, motherfuckers, I’m hostile

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www.ufvcascade.ca

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 11, 2017

JAN

11

TEA TIME WITH ELDER @ Indigenous Student Centre (UFV Abbotsford) & Elders Lounge (UFV Chilliwack) 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM DROP-IN CRAFTS @ Student Life (UFV Abbotsford) 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM RESILIENCE: THE BIOLOGY OF STRESS AND THE SCIENCE OF HOPE @ Clarke Theatre (Mission) 5:30 - 8:00 PM

JAN

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TEA TIME WITH ELDER @ Indigenous Student Centre (UFV Abbotsford) 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM

UPCOMING EVENTS JAN

17 JAN

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INFLUENCES OF METIS WORKSHOP @Gathering Place (UFV Chilliwack) 12:00 - 3:00 PM

13 JAN

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ARTIST MEET & GREET: IN YOUR FACE FEATURING SHANNON THIESEN @ Chilliwack Community Arts Council Art Room Gallery 6:00 - 8:00 PM

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RECONCILIATION: ESTABLISHING HARMONIOUS RELATIONS WORKSHOP @ U-House (UFV Abbotsford) 11:30 AM - 12:45 PM

CELTIC NIGHT AT TRACTORGREASE @ Tractorgrease Cafe (Chilliwack) 7:00 PM

T.I. US OR ELSE TOUR @ Abbotsford Centre 7:30 PM

TRUTH & RECONCILIATION COMMISSION REPORT READING SESSIONS @ B140 (UFV Abbotsford) 11:30 AM - 12:45 PM GEORGE JACOB VISITS UFV @ B101 (UFV Abbotsford) 4:30 - 6:30 PM MYCAMPUSLIFE INFO SESSION @ A1202 11:30 AM @D228 2:00 PM

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JAN

MINDFUL SINGING @ Abbotsford Arts Council 2:30 - 4:30 PM

TEA TIME WITH ELDER @ Indigenous Student Centre (UFV Abbotsford) & Elders Lounge (UFV Chilliwack) 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM

23 JAN

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MYCAMPUSLIFE INFO SESSION @ A1202 12:30 PM

JAN

20 JAN

21 JAN

22

25

SONGWRITERS UNITE! @ Tractorgrease Cafe (Chilliwack) 7:00 PM

THE BLACKWALL BASH @ Manning Park 8:00 AM - 12:00 PM WALK MISSION - FRASER RIVER HERITAGE PARK @ Fraser River Heritage Park 10:00 - 11:00 AM

TRUTH & RECONCILIATION COMMISSION REPORT READING SESSIONS @ B140 (UFV Abbotsford) 11:30 AM - 12:45 PM BOOK DISCUSSION, SAINT AUGUSTINE: THE CITY OF GOD @ Lifetime Learning Centre (Mission) 1:30 - 3:30 PM COMMUNITY ELDERS TEA @ UFV Abbotsford 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM

TEA TIME WITH ELDER @ Indigenous Student Centre (UFV Abbotsford) & Elders Lounge (UFV Chilliwack) 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM DROP-IN CRAFTS @ Student Life (UFV Chilliwack) 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM CAREER EXPLORATION & LIFE PLANNING WORKSHOP @ G180 (UFV Abbotsford) 4:30 - 7:00 PM

JAN

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TEA TIME WITH ELDER @ Elders Lounge (UFV Chilliwack) 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM INFLUENCES OF METIS WORKSHOP @ U House (UFV Abbotsford) 12:00 - 3:00 PM RAVENS BREWING PAIRING DINNER @ Townhall Public House (Abbotsford) 6:00 PM

SHAWN FARQUHAR’S CABARET OF WONDERS - V @ Chilliwack Cultural Centre 7:30 PM & 10:30 PM MERKULES & MUGG SHOT @ Main Street Night Club (Chilliwack) 7:00 PM

OPERATION AVALANCHE @ Silver City 7:00 PM

FRIENDS WITHOUT BORDERS @ Global Lounge - B223 (UFV Abbotsford) 4:00 - 6:00 PM

JAN

OPENING NIGHT WITH HARMA WHITE @ LIVE Fridays (Mission) 5:00 PM

‘80S LIP SYNC DANCE PARTY @ The Stage (Mission) 9:00 PM

JAN

MYCAMPUSLIFE INFO SESSION @ D204 12:00 PM @ D221 4:00 PM

SET THE TONE FOR A GREAT NEW YEAR AT RIVERS DINING ROOM @ UFV Trades and Technology Centre 6:00 - 8:00 PM

BOWIE - THE TRIBUTE @ Clarke Theatre (Mission) 7:30 PM

JAN

SET THE TONE FOR A GREAT NEW YEAR AT RIVERS DINING ROOM @ UFV Trades and Technology Centre 6:00 - 8:00 PM INDIGENIZING THE CURRICULUM @ B121 (UFV Abbotsford) 8:30 AM - 4:30 PM

KELLEN SAIP @ Cheers Bar and Grill (Abbotsford) 7:00 PM

JAN

DRUMMING & WELCOME BACK LUNCH @ Indigenous Student Centre (UFV Abbotsford) 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM

JAN

26

HALO (PLAY) @ Abbotsford Arts Centre 7:30 PM

HOSTING ANY EVENTS YOURSELF? WANT TO SEE THEM POSTED HERE? Send the date, time, location and any relevant info for the event to jeff@ufvcascade.ca