April White, Fogo, watercolour, 2014 7X10 inches
Sarah O’Rourke-Whelan, Roy, digital. 2014.
Contents: “Our generation will be the last that will be able to make a serious impact to prevent unsafe global warming...”—pg. 12
——-Your Thoughts, Your Ideas—the community box project—pg. 18——-
Articles
Creative Writing: Sprig—pg. 15
Found in a Fish Bin and Waiting to Grow—pg. 3
Mouths—pg. 15
Fracking on the West Coast—pg. 4
Cota—pg. 16 Where Home Lies—pg. 17
Opinion—US. Presidents on Trial—pg. 5 Behind the Lens: An Innu Woman’s Perspective—pg. 7 Friends of the TrenchTown Reading Centre—pg. 10
——-Recipe for a Poor-And-Hungry–Student and an Ode to Seafood Chowder—pg. 14——-
“If a positive example can be set in TrenchTown, just like Bob Marley’s music, it will be heard all across the globe!”—pg. 10
Non-Profit Ads: Don’t Sweat It—Corner Brook Electric Bike Share Program —pg, 2 Oxfam Grenfell—pg. 6 December, 2014—Page 1
Corner Brook Electric Bike Share Program : Don't Sweat It Coming to Corner Brook Spring of 2015 The Western Environment Centre (WEC), in partnership with MUN Grenfell Campus, the City of Corner Brook, and Cycle Solutions is pleased to announce that an Electric Bike Share Program will commence in the Spring of 2015.
The Advantages of the Electric Bike An electric bike is very much like a normal bike except it has several advantages which drastically improve the way you will commute around Corner Brook’s hilly terrain. Each motorized bike features: chain guards, mud guards, front and rear lights and reflectors as well as panier baskets. However, the most impressive advantage are the powerful motors and batteries that each bike is outfitted with. These begin to power the bike when you stop pedaling. This product is ideal for people who would love to have an alternative to driving every single day to work, but want to avoid the sweating, headwinds and exhaustion that come with powering up steep hills on a traditional bicycle. Renting The Western Environment Centre, a non-profit organization, has secured funding to purchase 10 electric bikes. These will be available for rent at two locations in Corner Brook: Cycle Solutions and Grenfell Campus. You will be able to rent an e-bike for a day or for a week ($10/day, $40/week).
Advertisement Opportunities Each of the 10 e-bikes will provide an advertising platform on either side, which provides potential advertising opportunity for your business from spring to late fall. You can also purchase advertising space either by season or you can also purchase an entire bike. This will give you double sided advertisement for the lifespan of the bike (minimum 5 years) for $2500. Advertisement space for that amount of time has never been cheaper! For more information, please contact WEC at: www.wecnl.ca or info@wecnl.ca. There’s also an opportunity to volunteer (next page) Page 2—December, 2014
Volunteers wanted! The Corner Brook Bike Share Program is a pilot program that promotes environmental sustainability. We believe that the future of our society rests in our hands. Our actions can have significant impacts on our future. However, cooperation is mandatory if we are to make drastic changes. We are all shapers. And none of us can do it alone. Whatever time you can spare, whatever small task you can contribute to this project will make it that much better. Imagine Corner Brook with dozens of bike stations, where you leave one place, hop on an e-bike and zoom up the hill to a drop off location without breaking a sweat, all for an affordable price! Think you can help? Get in touch. info@wecnl.ca
through the muck of other peoples’ leftovers, looking for a clean slate. It’s not like it used to be—the cliché of every generation. It’s nice to know things are changing. It’s nice to know things never change. I watch a woman scrub her windows. Red-faced and panting, she is fierce in her efforts. I think about land claims disputes and fracking protests and people raising money to save orphaned kittens and wonder about the battles we choose. What brushes do we brandish? What are we cleaning? What are we sweeping away?
Found in a Fish Bin Trying to Grow
Empty fish bins and pieces of dying ice bergs float into the harbour with condoms and tampons and the iridescent film of spilt fuel. We love living by the water. Listen to the breath of incoming waves. A rhythm of impermanence and repetition. The dishes keep coming. The clothes keep falling. The weeds keep growing. And the fish bins keep beaching themselves like open palms. So it seems only right to bring them in. Fill them with something—firewood, sand for the winter, or soil to grow an idea or two. The notion of green starts with a container—something to hold our hopes on the edge of rock.
Was mending the clothesline for the third time. It's rusted to a thread and the wind tugs at the clothes like sail cloth until the whole mess comes down on the boat house roof. Leaves our underwear stained with tar. There is frustration in repeating tasks knowing you'll be stepping backwards and tackling them again before long. Just ask the rest of my generation with our liberal arts degrees, sweating in the dish pits of busy restaurants. We grit our teeth. Pound questions into a tangle of footnotes and citations with the soles of —–an excerpt from summer reflections—anonymous brand new Blundstones®. All the while we sift
December, 2014—Page 3
Fracking on the West Coast By Sara Langer
I had the opportunity to attend a Fracking Forum at the Glynmill Inn in Corner Brook on November 14th hosted by NDP candidate for Humber East, Martin Ware. Coming from Ontario it is pleasant to see community grassroots organizations, like the Port au Port/Bay St. George Fracking Awareness Group, take a stand against something environmentally detrimental as opposed to something environmentally friendly such as wind turbines. The Forum featured Dr. Ian Simpson and Graham Oliver. Simpson, a medical doctor, spoke of the reported health effects on humans due to fracking, the most notable consequences being increases in severe and moderate skin conditions and decreases in birth weights in infants. There is also a predicted increase in respiratory conditions among those within a close proximity to a fracking pad due to the air pollution, containing carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxides, and particulates – these are not only harmful to human health but have also been proven to contribute to global climate change. During a small intermission between Simpson’s and Oliver’s presentations there was an announcement from George Murphy about Nova Scotia where high volume hydraulic fracking has been banned from the province. The news seemed to lift the spirits of those in the room as it made the goal of Newfoundland doing the same more realistic and more achievable. However, Oliver’s presentation was still concerning even after the good news we were all told. Frack pads are also known to use intensive processes in fracking with toxic chemicals. Casings in the wells have been known to fail causing leaks into the water table even though many spokespeople will assure communities that groundwater and aquifers have not been contaminated directly from a leak due to a failed casing. Along with water contamination, the amount of water used for one frack is lost after being contaminated with chemicals, a troubling thought Page 4—December, 2014
seeing as there are numerous rural communities in Newfoundland that are without access to clean water already (NL Government Website). Despite all this companies involved with fracking continue to talk about the supposed economic benefits that will come from allowing fracking on the island. There will be some new jobs created but they will be short term jobs as was pointed out at the forum. Personally I believe that fracking is environmentally destructive and allowing it will not bring much economic benefit to the provincial economy. I think Newfoundland and Labrador should follow suit with Nova Scotia and ban, at least, the high volume hydraulic fracking. Taking this a step further, I think that institutions, companies, and governments should divest away from the oil and gas companies and invest into greener technologies, an ethical solution that takes away some of the power the industry has. As for the NDP candidate Martin Ware, he certainly seemed to be determined to ban fracking from the province. November 25th is the election and it will be interesting to see how people vote; fracking is a controversial topic here but will it be the defining issue of the election?
Artwork by Jared Rodriguez/Truthout, from Special Investigation: Fracking in the Ocean Off the California Coast. Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
——————
Opinion ——————
Dear Editor; Whenever I used to see the word "murder"
try to war in a deceitful and covertly cunning way,
and the name of U.S. Presidents in the same sentence,
leading to a protracted military conflict that claimed
I would usually think of assassinations, such as that of
the lives of nearly 5,000 American army personnel as
President John F. Kennedy in 1963. Over the years,
well as those of considerably more than 50,000 Iraqi
however, it has been brought to my attention that at
civilians. The killings of some U.S. soldiers were so
least two American Presidents can be linked—directly
grisly that their families received the bodies in coffins
or indirectly—to multiple thousands of killings of in-
that were directed not to be opened for viewing.
nocent people, killings which probably can justify the label of "war criminals" for the heads of state in question.
Vincent Bugliosi, a famed American attorney and author, has written a book that declares that President Bush should be tried for the murders of those
First, I want to comment on the invasion of
5,000 American soldiers because he violated the U.S.
Iraq by the U.S. in 2003. The pivotal point of the mak-
constitution by propelling his country into a lengthy
ing of this war was the terrorist attacks on the U.S. in
war on naked, ugly lies. An MP in Canada is remem-
September, 2001. President George W. Bush resolved
bered for calling Bush a moron early in his Presidency,
that the appropriate response of his country to these
and I would have to reply that Bush has at least shown
tragic events would be his display of machismo in the
much inhumaneness and villainy while being in a posi-
most grandiose, contrived and potent manner possible.
tion calling for substantial reasonableness, transparen-
He probably chose Iraq as his victim of invasion and
cy and humanitarianism in policy-making.
of the suppression of its existing government because it was part of the legacy of his father, who successfully directed the first Gulf War in 1991 with the loss of a mere 130 or so Americans.
Another American President who was not only a scoundrel but also a pathological liar was Richard Nixon. Quite apart from the thugary of the Watergate scandal, he and his National Security Advisor, Henry
The younger President Bush decided that Iraq
Kissinger, decided in 1969 to bomb Cambodia, which
and its leader, Saddam Hussein, must be attacked be-
was a country not at war with the U.S. at the time. In
cause of his contention that the dictator possessed
an attempt to disrupt the supply lines to the North Vi-
weapons of mass destruction that posed an imminent
etnamese which were underway in southern Cambo-
threat to U.S. security. However, a great majority of
dia, Nixon and Kissinger monstrously decided to fly
his most senior advisors reported to Bush that Iraq had
3,500 sorties over this area of the country for 14
no such weapons, and that, in any case, the country
months and to drop bombs at many secret, selected
was not a threat to the U.S. Thus, Bush took his coun-
targets. … December, 2014—Page 5
In the process, as many as 600,000 innocent
Cambodia without the approval of the U.S. Congress
Cambodians were killed. What is also hideously true
and then also hid their actions from the Ameri-
is that great numbers of Cambodian peasants were so
can government and its people) was one of the most
angered and disaffected by the illegal attacks on their
contemptible U.S. Presidents ever to take office. Wa-
homeland that they joined the Khmer Rouge. These
tergate was a mere faux pas compared to his war
evil-doers were maniacal brutes—as is well-known
crimes.
and well-documented—who undertook in 1975 an
I would judge that President Obama, though
absolutely brutal and merciless campaign to kill all
presently planning to bomb ISIS bases in the Middle
educated people in Cambodia (up to 2 million deaths
East, is much more benevolent and honest than some
resulted from this genocide) and to destroy most of
of his predecessors and that his military policies
the modern infrastructure and the essential social and
will generally evoke history's approval, as opposed to
economic institutions of the country. Thus, Nixon,
the condemnation deserved by Bush and Nixon. ◄
aided by the lying Kissinger (both of whom bombed
Sincerely, Lloyd Bonnell
——————————————————————
OXFAM GRENFELL Oxfam Grenfell is a student organization which supports Oxfam Canada’s humanitarian work by fundraising, raising awareness about issues of inequality, and advocating for change by providing students with the opportunity to sign petitions on these issues. Last year we held a public talk on the Syrian Crisis, and we’re looking forward to many more events in the near future.
To learn more, get involved, and keep up to date please contact Oxfam Grenfell: Facebook: Oxfam Grenfell Twitter: @OxfamGrenfell Email: oxfamgrenfell@gmail.com
Page 6—December, 2014
Behind the Lens: An Innu Woman’s Perspective By Melissa Tremblett
Bridge connecting North West River and Sheshatshui photos by Melissa Tremblett
My name is Melissa Tremblett. I am from Sheshatshiu, a small reserve about 35 km outside of Goose Bay, NL. My family moved to Gander, NL when I was young and I have lived in Newfoundland the rest of my life. I did my schooling in various towns around the Northeast Avalon but I spent every summer and one Christmas in Sheshatshiu. When people ask where I’m from, I always reply “Sheshatshiu” or “Labrador;” it has been the one constant in my life. My family moved around a lot when I was a child but I always knew I would return home for the summer. My father’s side of the family is from Labrador. My late Grandmother, originally from Quebec, was eventually settled in Sheshatshiu and married James Michelin from North West River. I am always surrounded by family when I am there. As a small child, spending every year in both Newfoundland and Sheshatshiu, it was sometimes confusing to decipher appropriate social norms, and it was something I struggled with until I was in my late teens. Behaviours and social conventions that were acceptable in Newfoundland were not necessarily “normal” in Sheshatshiu.
Some of the things I heard and saw in Sheshatshiu were not necessarily common or socially acceptable in Newfoundland. But as a child I did not understand those sorts of things. All I knew was that I never really felt like I fit in and I could never seem to say or do the “right thing.” Plus, all that moving around as a child definitely never helped my social life; I never really had constant friends to build up my self-esteem. Every time we would move it was another round of “guess-the-appropriate-social-conventions game.” I felt like I was always losing. We stopped moving around when I was going to grade 7, and going into junior high not knowing how to make friends was definitely not the “highlight of my life.” Needless to say, I struggled most of my life trying to find where I fit in. I always felt like I was too “native” for Newfoundland and, being one quarter Innu, I always felt too “white” for Sheshatshiu; it was kind of like I was experiencing subtle prejudice no matter where I was. I definitely felt I was Innu but I never spoke Innu-aimun. I firmly believe it was partially a consequence of the long-term effects of historical trauma on Indigenous people in Canada. Talk-
December, 2014—Page 7
-ing to my father about his childhood, he has told me that growing up he would get mad at people who spoke Innuaimun to him and would tell them to “speak white.” He spent the first few years of his life in North West River, just across the river from Sheshatshiu, and he said he didn’t even realize he was Innu at first. He was even prejudiced against the other Innu kids and would say rude things and throw rocks at them. That seemed kind of unsettling to me, but the more I learn about the effects of colonialism, I can see that that sort of mindset and behaviour had started long before his generation. Kids can be cruel, and I was well aware when I was a child that I was not quite like the other kids, no matter where I went, but I always knew where I felt I belonged. I have so much pride in my culture, I identify as Innu, and I know I will always be a proud Indigenous woman. But that didn’t happen overnight. I was never one to loudly tote my Innu pride; it was more of a subtle desire to know more about that side of myself. It really became a yearning after my Grandmother passed away in 2008 and I realized I could never talk to her again. I felt like I never spent enough time with her or asked her the important questions. She was the first person I had lost in my life and I don’t think I could even comprehend until that point what losing a family member meant. I felt so much regret not asking her about her history—our history. Now everything that she knew has died with her. That was a pretty big blow for me at the time. I now know that the sorts of things I was interested in as a teenager weren’t necessarily related to my history or concerned with documenting my grandmother’s life. Looking back, it’s not shocking that I wasn’t interested in the past when I was so busy trying to navigate the present. I have accepted that things are how they are and cannot be changed, but at the same time those things are important to me now and can influence my future. After High School, I was accepted to Memorial University and I started the following fall. During those years I wasn’t able to go home as often as I had growing
“I feel that I had that right and a responsibility to document the way things actually are on a day-to-day basis.” Page 8—December, 2014
Teens from the CYP at the beach —photo by Melissa Tremblett
up. Most summers I did courses and would get up one week, maybe two, each summer or winter. I was so busy focusing on school that having that little break was just enough before I went back to classes. After five years, I received my degree but I was feeling like I had lost part of myself. Spending time in Labrador every year was a part of who I was and I had been so focused on my education that I never took time for myself. The month I finished school in St. John’s I was packing my bags and getting ready to move to Corner Brook to start in on my second degree. I started the Visual Arts program at Grenfell Campus that fall and I found that all the art I was making was about myself and my identity. I had this yearning to know who I was and where I belonged. After another two summers of not being able to go home for various reasons, the past summer I decided to apply for the North West River Artist Residency through the Grenfell Gallery and the Labrador Institute. Whether or not I got the residency, I knew I had to go. I applied for the Division of Fine Arts Mercy/Presentation Education Fund Award. I was thankfully, and graciously, accepted for the residency and I was granted the Presentation Award. I was starting to think I was meant to go. I went up in the beginning of June. I had three things in mind when I went up: 1- talk to the Elders and learn about the past; 2- try to find out where I belonged in the whole scheme of things; and 3- to document the way things are. Not looking for good, not looking for bad, just how it is every day. I find that the images of my community that are used in the media are exploitative in nature and not representative of the community as a whole.
At the same time, not many people have the right to walk around the community every day photographing things. As a member of the community who cares about the people, I feel that I had that right and a responsibility to document the way things actually are on a day-to-day basis. One of my artistic outlets is photography; it helps me see things from a different perspective. I was going to be doing mostly photography for the residency so I wanted to take some time to let the community know who I was, what I was doing there, and why I was taking so many pictures. It had been so long since I was up there that I’m sure people didn’t recognize me anymore. I walked around almost every day with my two cameras around my neck trying to get to know people. The kids were really curious about the cameras and before I knew it I had a gaggle of children following me around. It was great! I let them use the digital camera and take turns running around with it. That part was an unexpected surprise. The photos that they took were really interesting and each one of them had their own style and perspective. Because the kids wanted to follow me all around the community, I got them to ask for their parents’ permission and that way I was able to introduce myself to more people. Half way through the summer I started volunteering with the Cultural Youth Program (CYP), a program for at-risk teens which is run through the local Band Council. It was a six-week program and youth were learning everything that I wanted to know: setting up Innu tents, cooking various meals in the tent, wilderness survival skills, etc. I was able to learn some Innu-aimun from the teens and speak to some Elders (hired part time to teach the teens) and talk to them about the past. One rainy day in the tent, a plane flew overhead. One of the Elders told us when they were out in the country and there was a thunderstorm, if a
“I spent a lot of time really looking at the community through my camera lens and seeing all the beautiful things that are there.” plane flew overhead it meant the weather was going to make a change for the better. And not five minutes after he said that it stopped raining. The time that I spent with the CYP was very precious to me; I slowly got to know the teens and they all have a special place in my heart. I really saw potential in every one of them. As for the younger kids, I encouraged them to use the cameras whenever they wanted. I even taught some of the really interested ones about the analog film camera. At the end of my time there I really felt like I had some meaningful moments. I can only hope that I showed them something outside the “day-to-day.” I talked to them about what they wanted to do with their lives and, by telling them my story, I hope I may have inspired some to finish school and look forward to something in the future. Being in Labrador this summer was very eye opening for me. It was also tough. I spent a lot of time alone with my thoughts and had to learn how to be with myself. I spent a lot of time really looking at the community through my camera lens and seeing all the beautiful things that are there. I looked for opportunities to talk to people about themselves, but also about my late Grandmother and our family’s history. One thing I heard many times from many people was how great a hunter my grandmother was. She was a wise, determined, talented, and respected woman. She really inspires me and influences much of my art and my identity. When I grow up, I can only hope to be half the woman my grandmother was.
Melissa Tremblett—August 2014
December, 2014—Page 9
Friends of the TrenchTown Reading Center: Linking Social Activism and Grassroots Education at Grenfell
The TrenchTown Reading Centre is an after school program for children and youth located in TrenchTown, District 12 Kingston Jamaica. The Center provides an environment where positive social interaction and behaviour skills are modeled and practiced as the youth learn the responsibility and rewards of personal choice. One of the focuses of the reading center is to provide the children with skills and knowledge that are not necessarily provided by public schools. The educational approach, coupled with Arts and Cultural programs ensure positive experiences and creative outlets for youth. It helps the youth to express the impact of their challenging surroundings and build their skills and possibilities for their future. Today the TrenchTown Reading Centre stands as a unique iconic environment of positivity in an area notorious for crime, violence, and poverty. Many families cannot afford to provide their children with proper education, and for this and many other reasons, social mobility is a major concern and contributing factor to the struggles faced in Kingston. The Reading Centre is free to members of the community and funded by donations from the community and sources both local and worldwide. After twenty years of operation, the Center continues to struggle with the dyPage 10—December, 2014
namic and changing environment around it, and the ongoing struggle to maintain the funds to stay in operation. The goal of our group at is to help alleviate some of the financial burden by initiating The Friends of the TrenchTown Reading Centre Society at Grenfell Campus.
The Society is designated to organize events to raise funds and awareness for The TrenchTown Reading Centre and the larger issues surrounding marginalized inner-city communities worldwide. TrenchTown is an iconic location, being the birth place of Reggae music, and the platform from which Bob Marley and Peter Tosh grew into international stardom. TrenchTown is iconic also for violence and post-colonial struggle but most of all it is an iconic place of unity and love. If a positive example can be set in TrenchTown, just like Bob Marley’s music, it will be heard all across the globe! Please follow us on Facebook @ Friends of the TrenchTown Reading Centre – Corner Brook Or contact Rob @ rtulk@grenfell.mun.ca www.trenchtownreadingcentre.com
Grenfell Ski and Ride Club The 2015 ski season is upon us and it’s shaping up to be an epic year on the hill! Whether you’re a novice rider, or you’ve been hitting jumps for years this group is for you. Advantages of this group include: Carpooling to/from Marble Mountain Free night ride shuttles on Fridays (including après ski events) Week day group lessons for $24 – including rentals, lesson and lift ticket! (All levels welcome!) To join the group, or for more information, contact cvmangione@grenfell.mun.ca or join the Facebook group Grenfell Ski and Ride Club. (Photo Courtesy of Marble Mountain)
Let’s make 2015 a season to remember!
December, 2014—Page 11
Fossil Fuel Divestment and the Fossil Free Canada Convergence in Montreal “We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.” -Aldo Leopold, Foreword to A Sand County Almanac (1949), viii
From November 7th to the 9th members of Fossil Fuel Divestment at Grenfell attended Canada’s first national Convergence on fossil fuel divestment, where 120 people from all across the country had gathered. Fossil fuel divestment is a process by which organizations, institutions, and individuals are moving their investments out of the fossil fuel industry and into other industries, including green energy. From the University of Glasgow to the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, numerous organizations are helping to pave the way for a sustainable future, and are helping to highlight climate change as a global issue. Currently the fossil fuel industry has far more in its reserves than would ever be safe to burn, so the question is how do Page 12—December, 2014
we transition quickly from our current dependence upon fossil fuels to a green economy? While our choices as consumers can make a difference in this respect, changing our consumption patterns alone will not create systematic change, and focusing on consumers alone also often places the weight of acting on climate change upon those least able to carry it. However, one powerful tool in respect to making a difference in the ways our economies work is the way we invest. Institutions now have options to invest in a way which is environmentally sustainable, without having to sacrifice returns, and indeed to continue investments in an industry
we know we have to transition away from, as opposed to The warnings are stark, but the emphasis at the Converinvesting in solutions for the future, would be economically gence was on pro-activity in transitioning away from fossil and socially very short-sighted. fuels. Rather than denying the problem exists, the time has come to begin a transition which can be - and must be Climate change is no longer a distant-future issue. It achieved. may sometimes be uncomfortable to talk about, but it must be addressed. Having barely scratched the surface of cli- Photos (from the Convergence) by Jordan Chaffey, Article mate change, already we have seen forest die-offs, coastal by Conor Curtis flooding, and heat-waves leading to the devastation of crops and tens of thousands of deaths (The New York Times November 2nd, 2014). The economic and social costs of climate change will be far greater than any short term benefit from fossil fuels; this is an issue that affects all of us globally and it will take all of us working together to address it. Our generation will be the last that will be able to make a serious impact to prevent unsafe global warming, but all generations must work together if we are to succeed. Photo (below): Grenfell students show support for Divest Dalhousie!
For more information check out Fossil Fuel Divestment at Grenfell on Facebook, @DivestMUN on Twitter, or email fossilfreegrenfell@gmail.com Petition: http://campaigns.gofossilfree.org/petitions/go-fossil-free-72 December, 2014—Page 13
Quick And Dirty Seafood Chowder By chef Poor-And-Hungry -Student, modified from BBC’s Simple Seafood Chowder for an added 150% poor and hungry.
1 tbsp. vegetable oil 1 large onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 pack of bacon (optional)
1 1/4 cup milk
1 pack of Mr. Noodles flavour
3-5 fillets of cheap frozen fish (we used sole)
3 average sized potatoes, halved 1 average sized potato, diced
4 tbsp. of whipping cream
Ode to Seafood Chowder
Process
Heat that oil in a large saucepan over a medium heat then add the onion and bacon, man. Cook for 8-10 mins until the onion is soft and the bacon is cooked. Stir in flour, then cook for another 2 mins.
Make Mr. Noodles stock with water, add to mix and bring to simmer—gnarly. Add the potatoes and carrots, cover, then simmer for 10-12 mins until the potatoes are cooked through.
Meanwhile, pan fry the fish in light margarine, and break it into small pieces. (I just like fried fish more than boiled, you know, not as chewy. Ask a chem major why.) While fish is frying, add milk to the chowder.
Tip the fish into the pan, gently simmer for 4 minutes. Add the cream.
Bam.
( Really, it only serves two. I’m so sorry. )
When I was younger than I am now My grampy and I would go to town In Prospect Bay we’d pick our Mussels We’d bring everything together in delicious chowder We’d make it ourselves and feel empowered Now my 3rd year of university I have survived on Mr. Noodles and hotdogs Actually I ran out of hotdogs But my friends and I are making chowder tonight And now I feel everything will be alright No Mussels this time, but we have sole So my soul sings with appreciation To taste our interpretation Of a deliciously hearty chowder To help us gain strength and power It tasted like fish with the piece of the Sole The whole chowder was delicious However low in quantity for three Make this every weekend And we will defeat all our courses this semester
-Chef Poor-And-Hungry-Student -Robin Taylor Page 14—December, 2014
C R E A T I V E
. W O R K S . .
Sprig
under curtains, carpets and parapets a floor of fauna engorged in shroud of shadows and silhouettes the glory of forest forged marrow and mirth of marionettes bountiful and boundless corrugated corsets wreathed in jackets of jade jaded beneath a thicket of palpable palisade tendrils of sentinels, all tentative in vain sapped of sapience, a terracotta terrain shearing of sheaves in autumns rouse division of visage devised a boreal banquet, a bouquet of boughs a feast of leaves and lives a labyrinth embroidered in lattice and lace bordered embracement of twine amazed masquerade of tresses entraced trespassing in turbulent time
—Quinton Colbourne
mouths Just listen there are always reasons & love isn’t just another thing to fail at it is the thing to fail at
—Sarah J Penney Megan Trotman
December, 2014—Page 15
C O TA
By — Sarah J. Penney
“Man is free, so far as he has the power of contradicting himself and his essential nature. Man is free even from his freedom; that is, he can surrender his humanity.” — Paul Tillich There were eleven empty seats on the front section after a slight delay. of the bus, just ahead of me. A pale, stringy haired man
"I said," pause, "sit-your-ass-down."
was lifting a shopping cart onto the bus with the help of an
Despite the fact that his opponent had nearly two
equally pale, stringy haired woman. She was nearly indis-
feet of height on him, was thickly muscled, sober, and
tinguishable from him except for the fact that she had ciga- gleaming with cold rage, stringy took a swing at him, "Real rettes lodged behind both ears.
nice, motha-fucka!"
A twenty-something year old was the only occupant of the handicapped seats, the twelfth seat. He sat with
The next few movements were swift and terrible. There was the faint noise of the bus driver screaming words
Bose headphones and rocked his head slightly to
in the background. Then there was the white-faced
the beat of the music, staring straight
drunken man, lying on the ground, getting the
ahead.
shit beaten out of him. "I need you to move to
People started getting off the
make room for my lady," the man with the shopping cart said grandly to Headphones. Headphones ignored him.
bus. Everyone except me and some
“The next few movements were swift and terrible.”
men in the back, who all started yelling "FIGHT!" and watching with interest.
"I said," Stringy in-
It wasn't really a fight. I
toned louder, slurring, " get out
adjusted my sun dress, put my jour-
of the way for my lady."
nal away, and watched. The black man
Headphones lifted one of his
crouched over the drunken man, hitting his
headphones, listened to this demand, and then put his headphones back on without showing any
face over and over, over and over, crunch, crunch, crunch.
more interest. It was extremely badass. I admired him for it. The bus driver informed everyone that there were eleven empty seats, which the lady was welcome to. The lady sat down obligingly. Her man was having none of it. "Motha-fucka," he said, "My lady needs that seat." He was a knight in shining armor, coming to the rescue of his lady. He was not going to stop now. A large black man stood up. "Mother fucker," he said politely, "is your lady so fat she needs all the goddamn seats on the bus? Sit your ass down." "What did you say about my lady?" asked stringy, Page 16—December, 2014
It was a strange noise, I thought to myself. The lady for whom all of this had started was feebly begging for this to be over. She did not seem concerned so much as troubled to be outside of her vagueness for a moment. The bus driver called the police. The black man stood up, finally. There was blood on the bus, trickling in a slow line towards my shoes. The white man lay there and watched the black man walk away. "Motha-fuckin nigger," he croaked out venomously, spitting bloody spit out of the side of his mouth.
Everything went weirdly still. Everyone stopped breathing. There was a flash of silver, and there was a knife to the throat. This is the part where I saw something new, something so old that it shocked the fuck out of me. The
stood up calmly and stepped up to the scene. "Sir," I said to the man holding the knife, "can you please excuse me. I want to get off the bus now." He stared at me incredulously for a long second, and then shifted his body slightly to allow me to step by. Police cars were surrounding the bus as I got off,
expression on the white man's face contained no fear. It
but no one bothered me. I heard screaming. I just kept
was full of blinding pity. He regarded the black man the
walking.
way you would regard a wild animal. It was then that I wished to see no more. The obscene level of racism cut through my numbness. I
I walked all the way to my job interview. During the interview, I noticed a small bloodstain on my shoe. ◄
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Where Home Lies I am from the sweetness of the apple blossoms their fragile softness rests between my fingertips. I am from the cedar’s beckoning branches my calloused hands yellow with sap. I am from the ageless wooden swing that has grown within the branch of the crooked tree. I am from the sound of rain on the tin roof it rocks me to sleep with a lullaby remembered by the most primal centre. I am from the tangy scent of balsam that mingles with the musky smoke of beeswax candles. I am from dandelion wishes scattered throughout the garden that gently float on stolen sunbeams, I am from the place where memories gently whisper in the back of my head, “This is where you learned to live.” Megan Trotman, Horseshoe Crab, ink. 2014.
—Kendra Morton
December, 2014—Page 17
Megan Trotman. Marble 2013. Ink , 2013
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- community box project -
YOUR THOUGHTS, YOUR IDEAS With the focus of this issue in mind, we wanted to hear your thoughts; what do you think of when you think of ‘community’? In the weeks before the publication of this issue, we left questions and deposit boxes around Corner Brook . These are the responses you gave us. Do you consider yourself part of the Corner Brook community, and what does being part of a community mean to you? Yes. Getting involved in sports…. B-ball, squash, triathlon. Long time volunteer with Canadian Ski Patrol. Contributing in this way and advocating for shopping local. Enjoying Corner Brook outdoors. I love here… how can you not! It means that I can live in a great city with a great family, safely, with no wars. (9 year-old submitter)
Page 18—December, 2014
The youth are very important. In years to come, we want them to be a unified city. We do not want to see any classes or cliques develop among them. We want these people to be peace loving but also brave. They must learn to accept deprivations without ever collapsing. I like the buildings downtown where I get my haircut (5 year- old submitter)
Do you identify with a particular group, title, name, or occupation? I identify as an Indigenous woman from the Sheshatshui Innu Nation. Sometimes this leads to judgement by other people. I am reclaiming my heritage and pride in my community. Right now the symptoms of colonization and its multigenerational effects are very obvious, but that is not us, that is not who we are. We got lost. Now it’s time to find ourselves again.
The TrenchTown Reading Center. It’s an after-school program for children and youth located in TrenchTown Kingston, Jamaica. The Centre was founded in 1993 by a Vancouver-born retired librarian and school teacher and members of the community as a place for children to go, interact, play and learn. Literacy is a global challenge within inner-city communities. It becomes a barrier to social mobility. The TrenchTown Reading Center aims to combat these challenges with its library of Caribbean, African, and International literature.
How do you see Grenfell as part of Corner Brook or the West Coast of Newfoundland? Could this relationship be enhanced or changed for the better, or is it even important? I feel like Corner Brook/Grenfell has so much to offer and can be made into great places but its being held back by Corner Brook’s inability to accept change. The change being that this is becoming a ‘university town’
I often describe Grenfell as a different town than Corner Brook. It’s an artistic campus, and there’s no gallery anymore [in town]. Swirsky’s doing a few things. But I don’t feel the town is opening many doors for us. Maybe having some improv night at Swirsky’s. Or Corner Brook and Grenfell seem to be different towns altodrawing session there. Having a place to expose works gether. Many students who live in dorms don’t even know of fine art students, bringing what is done at Grenfell all of our town. It is important to get involved, we have ideto an open public would be nice. Or a space at Bowater as and knowledge to share and gain. for a sculpture, an annual contest amongst students? Ice sculpture there… Where do you hang out? What would be your ideal setting for recreation and social life?
My ideal setting for a place to hang out would be some sort of setting that serves good healthy food, has the sun beaming in the windows, and a few guitars to play if need be.
December, 2014—Page 19
Let us know your thoughts on any issue in your community which you feel strongly about… Parking garages would be an excellent investment. For the city’s downtown hospital. This town has really good coffee for such a small place, but not enough quality baked goods Does the 4 O’Clock Whistle agree, that art is the reconciliation of expression with what cannot be expressed? There are too many cars here for the size of the town Fracking. It should not be here
If you were given the chance, what would you change about this campus to make it function better as a community? One of the most challenging aspects of being part of the nonacademic organization of Grenfell is the lack of communication between groups and societies. Often times, groups have similar ideas and goals, yet collaboration is so rare. A wellfunctioning community holds a sense of unity at its core, which at Grenfell seems to have fallen to the wayside in many social organizations. I would make areas where people would organically gather to relax. Outdoor art play spaces.
Fashion section (student fashion blog on students on campus?) I like the 4 o’clock whistle because then I know what time of day it is. I am a South Afrikan and we don’t have something like that there!! So it is very convenient for me and my family. Oil development on west coast/gulf! Grenfell is a different society to Corner Brook
I would have more survey/introductory courses to some of the most specific programs. Theatre and the Visual Arts for example. If you were given the chance, what would you change about Corner Brook to make it function better as a community? Better snow clearing services, ESPECIALLY on sidewalks. Walking in winter shouldn’t be a life-threatening ordeal. Better transit!
THMs in water Describe the best aspects of the community where you grew up (or have the most connection to as “home”). Harrow, Ontario—always warm and sunny. Very fertile. Next to Lake Erie. Good fishing… good buzzons back in the day. I grew up in a small blue-collar town in another country where nobody locked their doors and the whole block was like a family. Everyone cared for the children and the elderly. It was like a little tribe. I moved away when I was 10 and I’ve been searching for that feeling of home ever since. Newfoundland is the closest that I’ve come to finding it.
Page 20—December, 2014
Is there actually a difference between the environment we learn and teach in and the “real world” for which we are preparing? The two “worlds” are categorically unrelated: 1. The educational world is staffed by persons who do not participate in the non-academic sphere, and who teach precepts from texts which were compiled by senior academics whose own education is decades in the past. (cf. S. J. Gould) 2. The “real world” in which students may find themselves, lies ahead in a future which does not exist, but which will pose non-academic problems which are totally unforeseeable. E.g. Academics circa 1980 presumed that the world in which we now work, would impose unmanageable amounts of leisure, not 50-hour work weeks