Verse Magazine - Edition 53

VERSE

Edition 53 Free

Interview with Maybelline San Juan In This Time and Place

Undercurrent

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY It was and always will be Aboriginal land.

Verse Magazine acknowledges the Kaurna, Boandik and Barngarla First Nations People as the traditional custodians of the unceded lands that are now home to the Univeristy of South Australia’s campuses in Adelaide, Mount Gambier and Whyalla. Verse Magazine respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past, present and emerging. Verse Magazine also acknowledge the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia.

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Cover Art by Vivi L.

STUDENT LIFE Editor's Letter

4

by Tamara Montina

Pin Competition Winner Announcement

34

by Verse Team

UniSA Profile: Maybelline San Juan

44

Untitled

by Tamara Montina

President's Letter

by Isaac Solomon

ARTS & PHOTOGRAPHY

62

14

by Vivi L.

Untitled Photography

22, 23

by Justin Leung

Fruit Salad Series

36

by Evanthea Kyriacou

Castilla: Proof of Concept

by Luna de Lara

50

Yesterday. Today. And All The Days To Come.

40

by Sarah Herrmann

Anxiety

43

by Natalia Prokopowicz

The Legacy of Loss

48

by Christie Marks

CREATIVE WRITING In this time and place

10

by Vivi L.

A Coffer Full of Copper

13

by Nirvika Lopchan

Mama's Hands

50

by Xenia Hackett

The 2007 WGA strike: What Films and TV were affected?

16

Spotify: Vibe Out Playlist 24

by Anonymous

Reading Recomendations

8

by Verse Team & Community

Pride Word Search

by Sarah Herrmann

Undercurrent

6

by Verse Team

by Charlie McAteert

Interview: Bread Philosophy.

LIFESTYLE

30

32

by Lucia Rojas

Which Tv Series Are You?

by Verse Team

54

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PHOTOGRAPHER ZANE QURESHI STYLIST ELIZA STAFFORD

Coinciding with the commencement of SP5, Edition 53 is illustrative of new beginnings; a clean slate.

For students who have experienced emotional turmoil or distress in the previous semester, the new semester prompts an inner dialogue of selfreflection and self-correction. This edition mirrors this mental shift and preparation for the second half of the year with its contents.

Featuring an inspiring profile of UniSA alumni, creative prose that touches on humanity, and an article highlighting the parallels of the 2007 and 2023 writing strike, this edition is brimming with creative talent and necessary information.

Whether you pick up your copy from the campus space or thumb through it online, I hope that the presence of this issue instils a sense of motivation for your upcoming studies and delivers a delightful read for you to enjoy.

Until next edition,

ONTINA

ARA M

TAM WORDS

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Vibe Out Playlist XS

by Rina Sawayama (ft. Bree Runway)

Eternal Sunshine

by Jhené Aiko

Bruises

by Jerome Thomas

Virgo's Groove

by Beyoncé

Love is Only a Feeling

by Joey Bada$$

Scan the code using Search in your Spotify app to listen all the playlist.

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USASA is here to help you through the good times & the bad. We are a non-profit, student-owned organisation focused on providing services & a voice for all UniSA students.

USASA empowers you through: Verse Magazine Student Representation Academic Advocacy Student Clubs Social Events Student Voice USASA Grants Financial Counselling USASA Student Spaces UniSA Merchandise

Facebook

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USASA.sa.edu.au

Discord

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Reading Recommendations "Based on your recent reads"

What are you currently reading?

How would you review it?

Type something...

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Heart Strong, by Ellidy Pullin. A heart wrenching story about love, loss and overcoming. 10/10 Reply

The letters of Vincent Van Gogh (5/5 LOVE IT)

Reply

The Stranger by Albert Camus - 7/10 (so far, only a couple chapters in)

So real it hurts - so honest, unapologetic, blunt, a need

Reply

Reply

entire PJ series, LOVE IT

Priory of the orange tree

Reply

Reply

WORDS VERSE TEAM verse · 9

WORDS VIVI L.

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Here, in this time and place, you are adrift.

When your mother calls you, you are curled up in bed with blankets wrapped around you. During this time, the rain was frequent and the cold, constant. When the call finally connects, her face fills the screen.

You see the light pouring around her; you could almost feel the sticky heat, and you are reminded again that distance has thrown the hours out of step between you and her. The inane details of life take centre stage, she tells you that the cat vomited in an obscure corner lately, and you tell her that you witnessed a bird stealing chips from a man. Beneath the mundane, a questioning undercurrent froths; are you happy, it asks. Are you happy?

You don't really know how to answer. When you were younger, you took a kettle of water and poured it on your hand to determine if it was hot. When you were younger, you took a plant and closed your fist around its stem to determine if the thorny protuberances extending from its stem were sharp.

When you were younger, you ate a (or several) bird’s eye chilli raw to determine if they were really that spicy. Based on your experience and knowing that you possess a focused and intense stupidity, you think you cannot determine the truth of a matter without suffering. verse · 11

The world presses around you; it is full of movement and noise. You attempt to embrace it, but the world moves too fast; it leaves you behind, scarred and strange, in its howling wake. The people of this world are opaque, there is (and has always been) a gulf between you and them.

You have tried to extend a diplomatic hand over the abyss, but the strain is too much most days. The divide has followed you over the seas and skies. Amidst the constant flux and flow of change, the abyss has remained. You laugh a lot. What is there to do but laugh at the end of the day?

Extend your hand to the sun. Open your palm and let the weak light fall upon the skin. Spidery wisps of morning mist cling to the branches. A wet leaf has stuck to the exposed flesh of your skin. Grey clouds crowd the sky, low and foreboding - there will be another shower of rain today. The sun’s fire is dimmed, light streaking through in broken patches.

Here, in this time and place, you are adrift.

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A coffer full of copper "She would have loved you", he said, hinting at the photograph he had taken of his late mother, and a pearl fell out of his eye. And another, and another, and some more. A coffer full.

I blinked with every pearl that left his eye, and looked for everything except for his tan, briny eyes. It reminded me of the sea. Yet, my eyes were too arid to grow for him, and deep down, I covenanted, so was my heart. As one more pearl advanced under

the influence of gravity, there I sat, indifferent, realising what he meant to me was insignificant. Taking in the enormity, as paper would consume the water in its vicinity, some part of me came to an agreement that I had become as brutal as they made me to be.

For what was to him a coffer full of pearls, locked with love and longing, was a coffer full of copper to me.

WORDS NIRVIKA LOPCHAN verse · 13

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ARTWORK VIVI L

Mama's Hands Oh, look at my hands, they’re the hands of an old woman.

Yes, look at your hands, Mama, at the veins deep blue and they weave through your finger bones like vines do a rainforest’s roof. Do you remember like the one you told me about when you travelled the world? Where the trees were large and broad and reached higher than you could see.

You loved the bark the most, especially the type that rippled and warped like the wrinkles on your hand, like those lines just there. And remember, you said as you stood at the base where the ancient roots grew, you watched as an orangutang, marvellous and skilled, made its way gracefully down to where you stood. And it reached out its hand, and you nearly cried because her wrinkled fingers clasped yours, so leathery and soft. That gentle hand took your breath, they were strong, and had gone through a lot, yet she touched with care, hands mastered in working, in giving, in holding, in loving. So strong, they help us all stand.

Hold my hand, Mama.

WORDS XENIA HACKETT

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The 2007 WGA strike: What Films and TV were affected?

On May 2, 2023, the Writers Guild of America went on strike due to an ongoing labour dispute with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. The WGA is made up of over 11,000 writers in film and television, and its purpose is to protect the writers in the union and ensure that the writers responsible for creating these projects receive a fair wage and rights regarding their work. The WGA and the AMPTP negotiate deals every three years, with the last deal signed in the middle of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic.

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The 2023 writers’ strike is about defending the writers right to a liveable wage and defending their work against the increased use of AI in the entertainment industry. The WGA submitted a proposal to limit the use of AI technology to rewrite scripts or use scripts to train AI, but the AMPTP rejected the proposal.

Another part of the strike is about wages. A report published by the Union itself found that half of the registered television series writers are currently being paid the basic minimum rate, with streaming making it worse.

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“ During

those 100 days, many films and television shows were affected...

Heroes (2006-2010)

Television programmes on streaming services have uncertain futures, leading to lower pay and higher chances of the programme being cancelled.

The last time a writers strike occurred was 16 years ago, and lasted from November 5th, 2007, to February 12th, 2008. The strike was started because the WGA sought increased funding for writers in comparison to the profits of larger studios. It was targeted at the AMPTP, which is made up of important studios such as Warner Brothers, Disney, Lionsgate, and Sony.

The writers went back and forth with studios like these for 100 days before reaching an agreement that compensated them for their hard work. During those 100 days, many films and television shows were affected by the writers on strike.

TV shows had shortened seasons, scripts, or extended hiatuses, and movies had incomplete or bland scripts. Here is a list of a few shows and films and how they were affected.

NBC’s Heroes was one of TV’s first dives into superheroes before Marvel started really getting into its own superheroes. Heroes followed a group of unexpected heroes who helped save the world. Its approach to the story, emulating classic comic books, was different for the time and garnered a large fanbase. Due to the strike, its second season, subtitled Generations, had its episode number cut short. Only 11 out of 24 episodes aired, with no episodes filmed after the strike ended. This led to the show being cancelled in September 2008, nine months after season 3 ended.

Family Guy (1999-present) Family Guy is one of the longest running adult animated programmes on television. It managed to return to air after being cancelled in 2002. During the writers’ strike, its sixth season was heavily impacted. The episode total was cut in half, and Fox even produced episodes without creator Seth MacFarlane’s final approval. This led to a strained relationship between MacFarlane and Fox.

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Lost (2004-2010) Lost is a show many remember for its balance between comedy and drama, its unpredictability, its ensemble cast, and its inconsistent quality after the second series. Lost continued on to last 6 seasons, with its decline in seasons four and five.

The strike started during production of the fourth season, with only eight episodes being filmed at that point. The decision to air the completed episodes was made while production was delayed for the rest of the episodes. An additional 6 episodes were filmed after the strike, bringing the total to 16, making it the shortest season of the show.

Breaking Bad (2008-2013) While many shows did not benefit from the strike, Breaking Bad was one of the only shows that did.

Fan favourite characters like Hank Schrader weren't supposed to make it past season one. Due to two episodes being cut off of Season One’s original 9 episode count, Hank’s death was cut out of the script. Aaron Paul’s Jesse Pinkman was also supposed to be killed off, but due to the strike, creator Vince Gilligan had time to consider his fate. Gilligan was impressed with Paul’s performance as Jesse and kept him on the show.

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Quantum of Solace (2008) The original script for Quantum of Solace was finished two hours before the strike was called, leaving cast, crew, and production in the lurch. This meant that script changes were unable to be made on the fly, causing the script to be uninteresting and stale. In a later interview, Daniel Craig admitted to writing parts of the script himself, as they were only left with the basic outline of a potential script. The film is also the shortest in the modern James Bond franchise, at only 1 hour, 46 minutes.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) Michael Bay’s Transformers movies have always been criticised, due to the lack of lack of character depth, visual style and storytelling. Bay himself said that the film was "crap"

So why is this still happening?

and that it was restraining to have only three weeks to make the story without a real script. He filled in a lot of missing spaces in the original script which was derailed by the strike.

Terminator Salvation (2009) The script for Terminator Salvation was rushed to be completed ahead of the upcoming strike. Director McG has said that the script needed a major rewrite, but with the strike ending in February 2008 and production starting in May 2008, there wasn’t enough time. Salvation is criticised for being visually off, unlike any other film in the fran-

Streaming becoming more popular than mainstream television is the cause. Writing for a traditional multi-season cable show, like The Sopranos and The Vampire Diaries, provides more financial stability than writing for a Netflix show like I Am Not Okay, which was cancelled after one season. With more Netflix Originals and Disney+ Originals being made direct to streaming, this is one of the problems that arose with the 2007 writers’ strike: the company’s inability to properly provide for their workers.

Most writers’ rooms with traditional television had a room of a dozen writers, who wrote around 20 episodes a year. This differs greatly from the norm now, which is around 6–8 writers on staff working on shorter contracts. This can lead to writers going from show to show, which is not as stable as the 20-episode season a year.

This is why a strike is so important: to give our writers a voice and to be creative in many different ways.

With the right people, television chise. The rating was changed from can be magical. It can be moving. It MA15+ to M in order to appeal to a can be brilliant. I hope that for our wider audience. That decision didn’t future in entertainment, our writers mesh well with the rest of the fran- will be paid fair. chise after Salvation.

WORDS CHARLIE MCATEER verse · 21

PHOTOGRAPHY JUSTIN LEUNG

ARTWORK JUSTIN LEUNG

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INTERVIEW Bread philosophy: the Adelaide linguist with a 21st century attitude to home baking

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While most people gave up on sourdough post 2020, Mary Quigley has created a bread empire, building an online community of over 150,000.

Mary Quigley refuses to get up at 2am.

She’s no regular baker. A doctor, teacher, carer, and Deutscher at heart — she loves bread, but not enough to break her sleep to tend to it.

What she will break, gladly, are the rules.

The bread is going to rise. Her loaves are not burned; they’re caramelised. And "if it tastes good, it really *is* good".

Quigley baked 100 hot cross buns last Easter and didn’t sell a single one.

She gave them all away.

Then this year, she made just a few trays. Because "that’s what real life looks like sometimes," Quigley says.

Ten loaves a bake has dropped to two, but she’s still thinking of other people: "one for me and one for someone else".

Learning bread Mary Grace Bread began in April 2020, when the sourdough fad was raging. It was Quigley’s first time baking since she was 13. She made a loaf that was "quite ugly but tasted really good". We meet three years later to the day.

"I just remember eating it and being like, ‘Did I make this? Like, how? How does it taste like real bread?’" Quigley recalls, her face lit with a grin.

She was "leaving loaves in letterboxes" from the start, and the reaction it garners remains the most rewarding part of the process.

"I love making bread for other people, in a way, more than for myself," Quigley says. verse · 25

The Bread Room. It’s complete with two Rofco stoves, banneton baskets, a locally-crafted workbench, and a huge brown-paper bag of flour.

Plus, she couldn’t resist the house’s window that looks out to the mature lemon and bottlebrush trees in the garden. Plants can fix anything, Quigley thinks.

"It’s something you can give that gives back to you in multiple ways.

You give it away, and people give you joy by being happy that you’ve given it to them, and you also made yourself some food that tastes really good, and your family’s happy."

She adds: "Bread is something you can give to people, and they pretty much always want it". And so, Quigley offers what she’s created with her heart and hands freely and without charge.

It’s made in the home she shares with her husband as well as Benny the Devon rex (hers) and Sammy the cocker spaniel (his). The pets are her sous-chefs: Sammy bounds in at the sound of a knife on the chopping board and mellow Benny has his own stool in their bright but, ironically, narrow-as-anything kitchen.

For a space that’s the selling point of a rental for Quigley, "the oven sucks". Luckily, the zone adjacent to the living area is known as 26 · verse

Her go-with-the-flow nature means she’ll even bake on holiday.

"You know when you’re at an Airbnb and you’re like, ‘Oh my god, they have nothing’," she laughs.

"But just trying to make it work and kind of experimenting … at home, I always have the scales and I have this pot and that pot and the dough whisk."

Quigley’s not flamboyant either. Her favourite thing to make (and eat) isn’t buttery croissants or olive rolls nor sumptuous chocolate cake.

Smothered with Vegemite and garnished with sliced tomato, homemade pickles, or mozzarella, the baker instead craves beige.

"Maybe this is a bit boring, but my favourite loaf is just the simple basic loaf. Nothing added to it.

Just like say 80 per cent white with just a little bit of wholemeal or a little bit of rye. Sourdough, always sourdough."

"I will never ever get sick of eating just like a really nice, fluffy, fresh, plain loaf of bread. It’s the best."

Teaching bread "What was the moment you realised sourdough was something more for you than the pandemic fad it was for a lot of people?" I ask.

Quigley tips her chin towards the ceiling and smiles. She emits a childlike liberty and yet the wisdom of someone beyond her years.

Her true age is a secret. "I like the mystery," she says. "It makes me maybe more relatable to more people."

“

"If you give a lot of effort to something, it will pay off and it will be good"

Well, Quigley became "fixated" on learning all the things there are to learn about bread, dismantling the "unintuitive" ways of sourdough… and she’s not finished.

being enough" — is a hallmark of her instruction.

Quigley’s organic, rustic and

It’s about letting go of control, which is in stark but comforting contrast to many sourdough

"If you give a lot of effort to something, it will pay off and it will be good," she says. "But I think "Every time you bake a loaf of bread, a lot of the time we’re like, ‘No, it wasn’t *good* *enough’*. it’s always different. And it’s always a little reflection of the day you’ve "Trying to find a way to appreciate baked it on. You forgot something; things when they’re not exactly you got busy; you had to go out. how you want them … if I couldn’t And that will change the way your do that, I would never have kept loaf looks, and it’s not always a bad making bread." thing."

freeing approach to bread — "putting everything in and that

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bakers online who are "such perfectionists".

"Why are these people getting up in the middle of the night? Or doing all these things that are so inconvenient? Don’t they have other stuff to do, but they still want to make bread?"

With her fit-your-life and everything will be ok attitude, Quigley’s been accused of "leading people astray" and disrespecting the trade’s traditions, but she says: "That’s not what I’m saying! You can do it if you want to; you just don’t have to".

She shrugs, at ease, "People seem to be making pretty good bread!"

Quigley’s put her discoveries into three books, one of which she wrote at the same time as her PhD thesis about German studies.

A decade of tutoring English as a second language has also helped Quigley teach bread in an articulate and relevant style. "Dr Bread", she could call herself, Quigley laughs.

Living bread Academia and bread combined again for Quigley when she returned to Berlin last year with her new skill in tow.

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"I lived in Germany for seven years, so it was a home for me."

Studying there throughout her various degrees, the only thing Quigley taught Germans to bake was pavlova. But she loved their bread and wanted to make it in Australia.

She tried a bread machine, thought sourdough was too hard, but finally attempted it (as we know) during COVID-19.

"I was like, ‘I’ve. Made. The. German.

Bread. Yes!" she remembers.

Sourdough is a reminder of the city Quigley loves — and describes as a mysterious version of edgy Melbourne where, during summer, "you walk down the street and you can really feel the energy of people being happy" — whenever she bakes it.

But Quigley doesn’t have the time she did when she started sourdough three years ago.

Though her title means she’s often mistaken for a medical doctor, in a sad irony she really has quit everything (for now) to care for her ill father.

As a child, Quigley says, "Dad would always give me bread" and it’s been her mission to make a loaf he likes more than Helga’s.

"I haven’t given up. I’m still determined. But he’s had radiotherapy and he’s lost all his tastebuds so I have to wait until he can taste again."

Quigley married her husband in a last-minute ceremony on Christmas Eve 2022, so her father could witness his only child’s wedding; but, she says, "now things are looking better than that".

Bread and her community have been her shoulder: "You’re just doing something with your hands and you’re just thinking about bread — which is very neutral — and it’s sort of meditative".

Quigley hopes, one day, she’ll open her own bakery. Inspired by a fusion of brid in Piccadilly and SOFI in Berlin, she thinks. She’s aware of the intensity of making sourdough by hand on a large scale and "will never complain again about paying $10 for a loaf".

But the biggest turn-off — for which we can’t very well blame her — is getting up at 2am.

WORDS SARAH HERRMANN

“

Don't they have other stuff to do, but they still want to make bread?

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Undercurrent

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A hazy boulevard folds itself across an empty parking lot. The laundrette perches on its hip, carrying toddlers and exhaustion, reverberating coins, and the flitting of socks in a dryer, speckled in patterns and torn in familiarity.

I pop rose petals on my tongue and feel them dissolve into a sugary bitterness until the rain comes and I am still waiting for the machines to stop growling against the winding up of lighting and the inevitable cascade of thunder.

On the jutted pavement, I wait for my laundry to dry, feet planted besides bicycles that are chainlinked to corrugated gating and candy dispensers that topple with faded gumballs.

An exigency for change.

WORDS ANONYMOUS

There’s a chill that sticks to the skin, like plastic clinging to water.

I watch on as moths permeate the rippling fabric of the air, flitting towards industrial bulbs that yellow against the itching darkness. And I wonder: did the grazing light entrance the insects, Or were they afraid to fuse with the infinite oblivion? Or maybe, they were like me and had nothing better to do but wait.

Squinting, these moths transfigure into fireflies, a fractured shine that reflects their misshapen wings. I envy them. They can assume an identity that wasn’t theirs.

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Activism Courage Equality Identity Pride Resilience Unity Advocacy Diversity

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Flag Inclusion Pride Rights Visibility Celebration Empowerment

Freedom Love Progress Support

DM F H S T X H I Y F Y C L O I I S R E I D E N T I T Y O T N Y V I E D J E H I E N H V S C C T E V E I H S L D O L E N L A R I R I D R G A I O N O P U C OMN S T O P U R T I G R S O P K K U I C MQ P T A O O I V P A O C L T A E A L D Y G O D U Y O X I J Y R F Q A I R N A S T H G I R B C A L Q A E B F T N E M R E WO P M E D S G U R E S I L I E N C E C P S S Y H H P E G B Y F G N B KW Z M X Q C V I S I B I L I T Y E G A R U O C J E I Q Q Y N D

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Design a pin

Competition Winner

Chelsea Mitchell-Trewin

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ARTWORK EVANTHEA KYRIACOU

Fruit Salad Series

BY EVANTHEA KYRIACOU

I've always had a love for creating my own characters and so I decided to create a series inspired by different fruits.

I like to experiment with personifying different things to see what I can come up with and I thought that fruit would be a fun theme!

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BLUEBERRY

APPLE

ORANGE

STRAWBERRY

KIWI

WATERMELON

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Yesterday.

Today. And All The Days To Come.

Yesterday. Today. And All The Days To Come.

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Her bare toes meandered through the red dust. Eyes glazed over and staring through the earth below, a bony tail entered her vision. Sphynx cats swirled themselves against the towering, electric-blue poles.

"Can you hear me, cats?"

They kept swirling, meowing intermittently. The cats inched closer and closer to her ankles, but never touched the skin there. Her limbs prickled from the increasingly bitter wind. She swung to warm them. The chains creaked. Rust fell from the sky. The rubber seat cut lesions into her thighs. She had been there for hours, days, months now. Yesterday. Today. And all the days to come. None of it mattered now.

The playground was deserted.

Why had no one come looking?

She could not leave. Not now. She was finally free — despite the cuffs around her wrists, tightened to the loops in the chains of the swing set.

She did not remember how she had arrived there or why she had stayed so long. But she knew she was special.

"I’m special. Aren’t I?" The cats had begun climbing the poles now, too intent on clawing their way up to respond. Oh, she had always despised cats anyway.

Such idiots they were, she thought as she pumped her legs harder.

They were scratching away at the set — made of a material for which their paws were simply inapt. Their faces were contorted with strain as they flailed up the slope, never reaching the summit.

Bodies tumbled down the cold and unforgiving steel and crashed into the dirt. They would lick their wounds and begin the voyage again. See? Idiots.

She was swinging quite high now.

The set was rocking and knocking the cats off before they were even a quarter of the way along the pole.

Christ, they were boring! She would never be that boring again. And so tragic! She thought as the swing shook harder in the wind. The sky had started to spit. And the cats verse · 41

“

She hollered at the cats.

They were listening now. were meowing louder, squirming at the feel of raindrops on their noses, and finding refuge in a nearby shed. That’s what made her and them such enemies.

"Well, I love the rain!"

Exhilaration rushed through her as she mocked them, flying further and further in her seat. She knew now that the world could and would go on around her, although her own world was burning, and she could and would not care.

Despite how utterly cruel it was, and how easily she could end up back there. Caring.

"How utterly cruel is that?!"

She hollered at the cats. They were listening now.

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"Why have you forsaken me?"

She was screaming at the clouds.

Suddenly overcome, she closed her eyes and tipped her head back.

"God! Why have you forsaken me?"

She was still swinging violently. The cats were shivering in their hut.

"Answer me!"

She felt the world tip forwards and her eyes snapped opened. It was raining blood then. And the swing set was falling.

She wailed as the electric-blue poles and the rusty chains collapsed with a mighty boom. In the red dust where her bare toes had meandered. Yesterday. Today.

And all the days to come. None of it mattered now.

WORDS SARAH HERRMANN

I feel the itch to write, could be what's supposed to be the happiest day. So I get dolled up in the crowd I've been shown to fit into, and I sit where the others are in lace and innocent whites. Drink chardonnay for me in gloss, light wind and rain on the glass panes. I tumbled through the trees, expecting a loveliness but, from experience, not expecting the very best. That I start to feel bland against the odours, prettier that I hide my aching self who has longed for recurrence forever and always. Begin to feed off my own bias, chasing the camera only to wonder if I really look like that in real life. Do I appear so? Did that dress make me look big? Shouldn't I be bright, excited, and dying of happiness? But all I feel when I sit there, back on the gold ribbon, uncomfortable in my own skin. Losing my confidence, my establishment, my will to live. All I feel is sadness, a great deafness, from the littleness in which I need to leave the room suddenly, as though I've consumed my whole existence. That very core staller of ickiness, my fearlessness of anxiety, my shadow, my hell, my sickness are there. When your old friend can't acknowledge your success, the hand on your shoulder lingered a little longer as your other intends. To judge yourself almost, creeping up as if I wanted a redo. Blandly mixed feelings in a swarm of overwhelment, wanting the best for everyone as if they were your responsibility. To say my feeble goodbyes, missing some through the waves of head turns, side glances, see you soon, take it all in, farewell.

WORDS NATALIA PROKOPOWICZ

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UniSA Profile: Maybelline San Juan

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From Festival Internships to Walt Disney World – Here’s How An Alumni Did It

Equipped with a fierce determination at a young age to be spotlit in the Creative Industries, the Festivals and Performing Arts graduate, Maybelline San Juan, has worked tirelessly throughout her degree to be celebrated as an upand-coming Woman of Colour in Adelaide’s bustling, creative sphere.

Recognised by UniSA as the highest performing graduate in her Creative Industries degree, and with four internships under her belt, it was clear that Maybelline was destined for big career strides.

Landing internships with iconic Adelaide festivals including the Adelaide Cabaret Festival and Fringe Festival, Maybelline said the real catalyst for her career was the work experience

she did with Adelaide City Festival, facilitated by UniSA’s industry connections.

“Interning at FCA was the opportunity that launched my career, and the professional relationship that I made with CEO Justyna Jochym is the continued gift that keeps on giving,” she said.

Although her love for the stage and events has been embedded in her since she started acting, singing and dancing at only five years old, it was her Class of Cabaret performance in high school that verse · 45

“ "Trial and

A dream she says that has finally been fulfilled, crediting UniSA and Adelaide’s bustling festival lifestyle for scoring this opportunity.

error, that's all it really is" she explains.

“Adelaide’s amazing reputation extends beyond South Australia, and if you do ever want to work interstate or even internationally, our arts organisations are prestigious and a gem to have on your resume,” she advises.

unlocked a whole new perspective of what it means to be in the creative industries.

When asked how else the degree has prepared her for working life, Maybelline talks about the advantages of her degree.

“When the penny dropped that large teams of people are needed behind the scenes to bring the magic to life on stage, it was a no brainer to want to be part of these teams,” she said.

“A lot of the work in the degree was actually, practically doing real life work in the industry.”

“In my experience, our festivals industry partner Festival City Adelaide (FCA) provided students with various work experience opportunities and internships.”

“And thanks to the industry connections embedded in the degree I have been able to walk into many amazing work opportunities, “By completing work experience, and even began my career in my interning and shadowing at final year of study.” workplaces, networking with current professionals I was able to Despite her recent contracts transition comfortably into working with Slingsby Theatre, Amplified in the industry,” she continues.

Assembly and RUMPUS Theatre, she decided to place her current “Whether you’re an artist, or a corporate career on hold to work creative person who wants to be as a Cast Member in Florida’s Walt part of the arts world but is unsure Disney World.

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how, I highly recommend studying the Bachelor of Creative Industries because of how customisable and flexible your studies are.”

Reflecting on her University studies, she laughs and details how her and her peers changed their minors and majors countless of times to get the “perfect combination”.

“Trial and error, that’s all it really is,” she explains.

After graduating her degree and embarking on her Disney dream exchange, she is ready to return to Australia to officially kick start her post-uni career.

Landing a huge role at Riverside Theatre as a Business and Venue Coordinator in New South Wales, she will be an active contributor behind upcoming productions that celebrate gender and cultural diversity, which she says she has always strived to be working towards due to her own diverse cultural identity as a FilipinoAustralian.

“My purpose in this industry is to make the arts more diverse, accessible & sustainable,” she states proudly.

they prioritise representing their local community of parramatta by putting minority voices on stage.”

Maybelline’s triumphant story is a testament to her dedication in the Arts and dynamic motivation within her degree, from participating in internships delivered by UniSA’s proactive opportunity department, to engaging with networking opportunities funded by UniSA’s efforts, she defines her most valuable lesson learnt while studying her degree.

“In my experience it’s demonstrating the “what I know” about key and relevant industry topics learned in class, about my shared values with companies, about the skills I possess and about my passion for the arts that in the end secures the job,” she claims confidently.

“The after part of “who you know” is if those people are willing to vouch for you as your references, which again someone will only do if you’ve proven efficient in “what you know” on the job.”

WORDS TAMARA MONTINA IMAGE HANH HUYNH

“Which is why I’m really excited to be working with Riverside as verse · 47

The Legacy of loss When you lose someone, you don’t just lose them once. You lose them over and over again.

When fireworks paint the sky on New Year’s Eve and the sulfuric smell fills the air, I’m back in time, on my dad’s shoulders, head above the crowd. I can feel the excitement like I’m six years old again. I’m safe.

Nurtured. Protected.

When I saw someone walking a donkey down the street past my house, my first experience of living in a country town, I grabbed my phone to text my sister. She would’ve loved that.

*And you lose them all over again.*

*And you lose them all over again.*

Letters.

In every thunderstorm, I remember my childhood best friend. How we’d hide under a blanket fort with torches and books, squealing and laughing at each thunderclap. Every moment was the only moment. All we had was right now and it felt like it would never end.

Shells from the beach in my hometown, symbolic of all the connections I forged growing up.

*And you lose them all over again.*

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I keep my treasures in a carved wooden box.

Photographs.

The foreign coin that started my coin collection, a gift from my auntie’s travels.

A hot sauce sachet, the kind that my grandma never went anywhere without.

Sentimental shadows of what no longer is.

Every happy memory is followed by an unworldly pain that pushes into your lungs with every single breath.

You remember.

When you lose someone, you don’t just lose them once. You lose them over and over again.

WORDS CHRISTIE MARKS

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Castilla: Proof of Concept

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ARTWORK LUNA DE LARA

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ARTWORK LUNA DE LARA

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Which TV Series Are You? (Based on your star sign) WORDS AND ARTWORK VERSE TEAM

Aries Pretty Little Liars

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Taurus Sherlock

Gemini The Walking Dead

Cancer The Vampire Diaries

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Leo Gossip Girl

Virgo Glee

Sagittarius Breaking Bad

Capricorn Succession

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Libra Brooklyn Nine Nine

Scorpio Bojack Horseman

Aquarius Fleabag

Pisces Euphoria

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Want to be a

USASA Board Rep in 2024?

Become a Key Student Leader and be the voice of all students!

Election dates released soon & nominations open September 2023 USASA.sa.edu.au/Election 58 · verse

Are you interested in Student Representation?

Do you want to take part in university decision-making?

Student Voice offers opportunities and training to enhance your skills!

For more info & to register your interest head to: USASA.sa.edu.au/StudentVoice

USASA Student Voice Find your voice.

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USASA Academic Advocacy Receive free, confidential and independent advice.

The USASA Advocates are experts in academic policies and procedures. They can help you understand what’s happening and what you need to do if you are facing academic issues to help you pursue your rights on a wide range of academic troubles. usasa.sa.edu.au/advocacy

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Financial Wellbeing Service

Need help putting the pieces together?

A Financial Wellbeing Officer can help you to develop a budget, understand your finances better, assist in dealing with university debt management & provide access to food support.

usasa.sa.edu.au/financialwellbeing verse · 61

Student Experience 62 · verse

President’s Letter My name is Isaac Solomon, and I am the USASA President for 2023.

We all come to university to learn and to get a degree. This is one of the main reasons we’re here, but making the decision to come to university can be about so much more than that. In the era of Online education, why do we still choose to go to university?

There’s something deeper involved in our decision-making,the reason we choose the institution we choose and it can be different for everyone.

This month, I wanted to talk about the student experience. Student experience has featured heavily in conversations about a potential new university, but what does it actually mean?

In the UniSA Graduate Outcomes Survey (GOS) for 2021, when asked what is most important to students, "University Life" was ranked first while "Teaching and Learning" was ranked second. This sounds like a strange statistic until you start to look at the various reasons why students come to university.

Here at UniSA, we’re proud of the fact that a lot of our students are "first in family". Students who are first in their family are usually from lower SES backgrounds, and for them, University can be about charting a new path for them and their family. For some, it’s about independence or the opportunity to enter a career no one in their family has ever had.

We have such a diverse student community here at UniSA. For a lot of students, it may be the first time that they get to be themselves.

This is the case for many students who, for whatever reason, have not been able to be themselves either at home or at school. This is particularly true for people who are queer. Many people choose

“

The friendships that people make at university seem to endure much longer than those from school.

to wait to go to university before coming out because it is a safer environment to do so. This is particularly true for students who come from countries where it’s not safe and sometimes illegal to be a member of the queer community.

When we go to school, we’re often surrounded by people who don’t necessarily share our interests, but that all changes when we come to university. You’re in a cohort of people who are passionate about what you’re passionate about, and whether it’s in the classroom or through extra-curricular activities, you’re able to find your people. verse · 63

The friendships that people make at university seem to endure much longer than those from school.

For some people, it’s a step into adulthood where they start to define who they are and where they fit into society.

activities, or even through their appreciation of beer.

Importantly University is a mindexpanding experience when you are exposed to new viewpoints.

It can challenge us, and through those challenges, we grow as people.

For others, University can be about exploring our passions. In the first As we head into uncertain times, two weeks of my law course prior to it’s about recognising that students the pandemic, I remember sitting don’t just come to get a degree and around with my new friends, having leave; University is about so much just left the Torts A lecture, fiercely more than that. debating everything from politics Ngaityalya (Thank you) to social media for 2-3 hours.

(Nai-chal-ya) For some people, it’s the first time they get to be a part of a community. On Fridays, when I’ve had time, I’ve often ventured over to the CardBoard Games Club game nights for a game or two just to connect and relax. Others find community through playing games together online, building rockets, riding motorcycles, doing outdoor

“

Isaac Solomon

Importantly University is a mind-expanding experience...

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Shop Now

Show your uni pride with UniSA Merchandise.

Official UniSA Merchandise is now available from USASA!

All profit from merchandise sales goes straight back into empowering you and supporting the work of USASA. Choose from a variety of clothes and colours including hoodies, t-shirts, caps & more.

See the full range at your closest USASA Space or online.

usasa.sa.edu.au/shop verse · 65

Contributors Charlie McAteer Christie Marks Evanthea Kyriacou Isaac Solomon Justin Leung Lucia Rojas Luna de Lara Natalia Prokopowicz Nirvika Lopchan Sarah Herrmann Tamara Montina Tayba Hamza Vivi L

@charlieeemac @christieannemarks @tias_scribbles @isaacdsolomon @_just_tin_ @picaronstudio @_natalia_olivia @nirvika.l @sarahherrmann_ @bytamaramontina @_designbytay

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