ABSINTHE PUB AND COFFEE SHOP CREATIVE SUBMISSIONS
SEPTEMBER 2013 VOL. 03 NO. 1
2
WINTERS
EWAG Elanor Winters Art Gallery Update Betty Zhang, Curator
Hi everybody, welcome to Winters College! We are located at WC 129 and we welcome all kinds of artistic expression (visual, music, dance and theater performances). If you are interested in exhibiting your artwork, email us at ewag@yorku.ca for more information. Keep checking Artichoke for updates on EWAG! You can Also visit our facebook page www.facebook.com/EWAGYU and facebook group www.facebook.com groups/ 409362955785187/ follow us on twitter @EWAGyu and tumblr ewagyu.tumblr.com/
September 30 - October 25 “Untitled Objects 1.0” Artist: Stanislav Guzar Guest Curator: Alex Dabic Stanislav Guzar was born in Lviv, Ukraine in 1990 and lived in India, Egypt, Ecuador, Ukraine and Canada. He received his B.F.A. from York University and lives and works throughout Ontario, Canada. In the upcoming show “Untitled Objects 1.0” at Winters College sister gallery, EWAG, Stanislav Guzar is presenting new works that explore the aesthetic potential of cultural objects. Guzar’s primary interest lies in the power and history that objects hold, breaking them down with visual elements borrowed from institutional systems. Thus, manipulating the visage that objects hold and expose them for their potential. Stanislav Guzar will also be hosting a roundtable discussion on navigating the art world October 6 at 2pm, and curatorial practice and networking on October 20 at 2pm. Please check EWAG Facebook page and twitter for more information.
CONTENTS VOL 3 NO. 2 OCTOBER 2013
FEATURE
ENTERTAINMENT
9
ABSINTHE PUB AND
24
WINTERS PRESS PLAY
COFFEE SHOP
Hemp
14
CREATIVE SUBMISSION
28
POP CULTURE
Have you thanked Pop-Culture lately?
32
CREATIVE SUBMISSION
30
FAN EXPO
Turning Fiction into Reality
By Phoebe Todd-Parrish
By Alex Millington
MAJOR SPEAK
HEALTH
12
FASHION
33
RES RECIPE
You’ve got a beautiful sole.
French Onion Soup
16
literature
34
PSYCHOLOGY
When was the last time you read a Canadian novel eh?
Art of Being Cool
20
VISUAL ARTS
36
PHILOSOPHY
Usher the Fall of the House
The Problem of Perspective
22
STUDY TIPS
38
ENVIRONMENTAL
Putting off Procrastination
Do Trees Feel Pain?
Contributors EDITOR IN CHIEF
EMMA BECKETT
ART DIRECTORS
JACOB COLOSI JENNIFER ZHANG
WRITERS
Alex Millington Betty Zhang Camellia De Castro Curtis te Brinke Diana Edelhauser Joy Wong Laura Speare Lindsay Presswell Maddy Patton Megan Rooney Nikky Waxman Nigel D’Souza Rielle Ullberg Sarah Ellison Tanner Ferris
DESIGNERS
Amanda Hoff Amy Chiu Anna Campbell Chelsie Grant Emily Munro Erika Sternberg Heather McAlpine Karen Keung Karen Vertierra Michelle Fok Sarah El Sherbini Scott Osborne
PHOTOGRAPHY
Haley Walton Steph Raposo Peter Howie
wcc
ARTICHOKE
UPDATE
It’s official. School is in session. Those killer 8:30 classes that drag us from slumber have finally arrived. However, with school comes some awesome events to immerse yourself into the Winters culture. We will be kicking off the year with some awesome acoustic nights, poetry nights and not to mention the great Absinthe Pub nights. With all these events, who couldn’t love school? Perhaps the first years… Our goal is to make Winters College a space for anyone and everyone to feel welcomed by all the absurdity, compassion, and outgoing personalities, even towards people who seem like random strangers. As Winters affiliates, we should be proud to welcome new members into our community. To accept is to be awesome. So why not be awesome? The next time that you find someone you don’t know, strike up a conversation. It could be the beginning of something beautiful....or.... you could just make it awkward. The ice breaker is the trick, just say hi, what’s up, hey I’m _____ , or even hey, what’s your major. Don’t try to be funny, relax, and be yourself. So for all of you new affiliates, a word of advice: get involved, go to events, and bring your friends because these events are for you! They are for you to make connections with different students, to make friendships stronger and to give you
5
a break from classes. Take advantage of what is being offered, and by all means stop by the college council office if you are intrigued by any event or just want to chill. Coming up on Tuesdays we have acoustic nights, band nights and poetry nights, and every Thursday at the Ab is, of course, pub night. Also coming soon are elections for commuter reps, first year reps and residence reps. Remember to vote, because these people will be representing you on council for the next year. Your voice is everything, so use it! Have a great month, Tanner Ferris
6 WINTERS
�
Editors Letter Even though I am no longer a fine arts major, Winters has always been my home. Over the last few years that I have been a student at York, I have probably spent more hours in the college than anywhere else in the world, including my own house. It has everything, a council office who’s doors are always open, peer mentors, creative students, and best of all a pub and coffee shop. I have everything I need right in this one tiny corner of the world. Now that I have been given the opportunity to contribute and give back to this community, I couldn’t be happier. Winters has provided me with so much, and one of the best things about being part of the Artichoke is that it has allowed me to give others the same opportunity.
Technically my current major, Creative Writing, is not part of the Faculty of Fine Arts or Winters College. However I still consider writing to be an art form, and I want to make the magazine accessible to a large variety of students, so for that reason I have opened the Artichoke to accepting creative submissions. We take short stories, poems, or any other form of literature as long as it is under 500 words. Each issue will have a few submissions chosen for publication. If you are interested in submitting, come to Winters College Council or the Artichoke office and pick up a Creative Submission form. I know Winters students are some of the most talented, artistic, expressive people in the world, so I am sure there will be some outstanding work. If you have any other questions about what we do or how you can get involved, email me at wintersfreepress@ winterscouncil.com, or come visit the Artichoke office Room 004 in the basement of Winters College. Sincerely,
Emma Beckett, E.I.C.
ARTICHOKE
7
8
THE AB
ABSINTHE PUB & COFFEE SHOP BY EMMA BECKETT WALKING THROUGH those big black doors in the basement of winters college is a lot like stepping into another dimension. Hidden under the dull, expansive brick and concrete pathways of York University, this haven of history and art culture has existed as a part of the college for decades. Recently it has begun to attract a wide variety of patrons from all corners of the university, creating an controversial sense of community among students.
HISTORY After the Greenbush Inn Coffee Shop was shut down in September of 1982, the students of Winters College were quick to fill the void with their own student
pub. This pub came to be known as the Absinthe Pub and Coffee Shop, and it is still going strong. A few years after its inception Ian Pedley, a visual arts student who had graduated in ‘83, was still friends with many of the student staff at the new pub and found out that they were in the market for a new manager. After an unsuccessful interview he assumed that he had seen the last of the Ab, but a couple of weeks later he got a call saying that the manager they hired was not working out, and asking him to step in until they could find someone else. Twenty five years later, Ian Pedley is still managing the pub and it is more successful than ever. Referring to a group of prominent Absinthe pub patrons, the term “ab rat” made its first appearance very early on.
ARTICHOKE
The original group of students who first became regulars at the Ab to spend their school nights drinking beer and playing darts, latched onto the idiom “rats in the cellar” and the rat imagery began to appear more and more as the pub developed its identity. Pedley was the first to create a t-shirt with the rat design, and it went over so well that he followed it up with a new design every year. After a while, the décor in the bar itself developed from gifts from friends, students, and council members because people began to associate the Ab, and Pedley himself, with the image of the “ab rat”. Curiously, this term was generated independently of the Winters College mascot, the ferret. WINTERS COLLEGE The Absinthe Pub and Coffee Shop is officially owned by the Winters College Council, which represents all Winters affiliated students. It is an incorporated, not-for-profit company, so any money that the Ab makes will find its way into improving the space or funding student projects. Because council is so fluid and is made up of a different group of students every year, many who do not yet have the management experience to run an establishment of this size, Ian Pedley acts as the manager and primary contact. As a previous student, he still cares a lot about the college and community and works alongside council to make sure the bar is always at its best. For example, since are doing well financially at the moment and as a result there are plans in place for extra money to go towards new Absinthe Pub student grants. Though Pedley is responsible for most of the work to keep the place running, all of his major decisions regarding things like finances, renovations, and anything that
9
“With such a central location and hospitable atmosphere, the Ab is one of the most recognizable aspects of the college building.” could affect students must be proposed to a committee called the Ab Management Board, or AMB. This committee is comprised of the Master and Student President of Winters College, a handful of alumni and fellows, and several student representatives who are neither members of council nor Absinthe staff. The AMB has always had the student’s best interest in mind, and seeing as this is one of the only licensed locations that has survived on campus, it seems to be doing its job. It is clear Winters College has a large presence in the management of the bar, and the Ab itself has become a very integral part of the university. During the day the crowd often consists of professors meeting with their students to talk about classes, undergraduates discussing extracurricular activities, alumni reconnecting with old friends, and quiet bookworms studying or reading. By the time it starts to get dark, most of the studying has been pushed to the side and the space begins to fill up with couples lounging in the corner booths, boys
playing darts, and clusters of people crowded around pitchers and pint glasses on the patio. Because the Ab is open to all ages, those under 19 are stamped with a mark so the bartenders are aware not to serve them and no one is excluded from this welcoming environment. For students who are far from home, or just new to campus, it is an amazing space to get to know people and feel at home. The devoted staff and regulars are always there with an eye out to make sure everyone is safe and happy. With such a central location and hospitable atmosphere, the Ab is one of the most recognizable aspects of the college building. It gives the college council and administration a place to get to know the rest of the students so they will be able to function as accurate representatives, and put on events and shows to make people feel at home. Without the Ab, Winters would not have the community it does and many of the relationships and experiences that develop within the student body would not be able to exist.
10
THE AB
“...many of the other college bars that had been taken over by outside management got shut down one by one.”
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS In the past few years, there have been a lot of changes to liquor distribution at York University. In the past, the entire university was covered by a blanket liquor license and each college had their own student bar that was owned by the students and bought their alcohol through the university. After this blanket license was revoked, most other colleges allowed their bars to be bought by outside companies, and as a result their management was no longer connected to the university. Winters College was the only college to maintain a student owned and operated facility by creating the Ab Management Board and staying connected to Winters Council. The devoted community of regulars and “ab rats” stayed intact, and the Absinthe remained an incorporated, not-for-profit company. After a while, many of the other college bars that had been taken over by outside management got shut down one by one. Things began to come to the surface like underage drinking, financial inconsistencies, and high violence rates. Eventually Winters was the only college left with a place for its students to go and socialize, and that shift has caused a ripple effect in the university. Now that other
colleges have nowhere to unite, not only have they lost a sense of community, but many of the students seeking a place to go have found the Ab as a replacement. Ian Pedley has noticed this change, noting that although the Ab has been doing better financially, there are “more people exhibiting aggressive behaviour, and less respect for the establishment.” He believes this is because there are more patrons who are not members of the usual fine arts crowd, and they pose a threat to the healthy, friendly environment of the pub. If York University notices too great an increase in illegal activity, the Ab may go the same way as most of the other college bars. Last year was the first time a fight had ever broken out in the bar in nearly 30 years of its existence. Despite all this, the staff are extremely diligent and they have done an excellent job of keeping people informed of the house rules and making sure all laws and rules are followed without exception. Their zero tolerance policies have maintained a positive atmosphere, and so far the Ab has remained a law-abiding place where everyone can feel safe and enjoy themselves.
ARTICHOKE
CALENDAR
OCTOBER S
M
T
W
T
F
S
1
2 Karaoke
3
4
5
Night
6
7
8 Acoustic
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22 Band
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31 Halloween
W
T
F
S
1
2
7
8
9
Night
Night
Pub Night
NOVEMBER S
M
T
3
4
5 Acoustic
6
10
11
12
13 Karaoke
14
15
16
17
18
19 Band
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
Night
Night
Night
Gender Bender/ Movember Pub Night
11
12
YOU'VE GOT A
Beautiful SOLE By Diana Edelhauser
Born in January of 1963 in Paris, Christian Louboutin was inspired early Toronto’s Design Exchange hosted the on by the sensuous cabaret dancers of celebratory 20-year Christian Louboutin Folies Bergère, as well as Roger Vivier & exhibit from June 21st to September Christian Dior, before creating his own 15th. Walking down Bay Street, you little beauties. The trademark red soles would never know that the humble look- were introduced in 1993, with Louboutin ing building played host to over 250 famously explaining, "My assistant was shoes by the 50-year old French de- sitting there, painting her nails red. I signer. That being said, we’re not going took one look and decided to color my to call them “shoes” anymore. Having soles red as a statement for the season. dreamed of owning my own pair for as I thought, 'Oh my god! Red soles are long as I could remember, these legend- so flirtatious,' and my customers asked ary works of art could easily be my only me not to stop." And thank goodness he necessity in life. Don’t ambush me with hasn’t. Before my visit to his exhibition in obvious statements regarding the human mid August, all I could tell you was that I body’s basic need for food, water, and wouldn’t stop until I owned a pair of the shelter. This is so much more than that. Louboutin Bianca in black, regardless
With Joe Stilgoe’s flirtatious tune We Should Kiss setting the ambiance,
ARTICHOKE
of the hefty $845.00 price tag. Postexhibit, I still want them, but I’m afraid I’ve added to my wish list (sorry mom and dad, sorry future credit card). Might I also add that, post-exhibit, $845.00 doesn’t even remotely do the artistry involved any justice. Dividing the venue into multiple sections, including a re-creation of Louboutin’s Atelier complete with travel photos, a shadow theatre and a holographic appearance by the striking Dita Von Teese, my day spent there was exactly what my soul, and soles alike, needed. One particular section appropriately titled “Fetish” displayed a collaborative collection between Louboutin and filmmaker David Lynch (The Elephant Man, Mulholland Dr, etc.) that stunned me. This section was marked off as inappropriate for children, and its darkly lit maze-like corridor was lavishly adorned with photographs of showgirls wearing nothing but these insane pumps! Trust me, there is no way you could fathom these shoes, but let’s give it a go: think
pointe ballet shoes, think rigid, unbendable leather, think chains and whips and every other wild thing Rihanna mentions in that song of hers. Simultaneously, you should be thinking “beauty”, “femininity”, a woman’s desire to stop at nothing to impress, but as Louboutin often reminds us, do not think “submission”. Looking back on it now, I think that’s what I really loved. I loved the message scrawled across the black walls in swanky cursive, that Christian Louboutin projects through his creations- a sense of admiration for the successful woman, the confident woman, and an absolute appreciation of femininity in its purest form. I know plenty of women that can easily look me in the eye and tell me they are entirely unimpressed by even the most unbelievable pair of Louboutin’s (let’s say the Daffodile or the Viva Dita). That’s nuts! Why should we have to choose between intelligence or beauty? Philanthropy or pumps? A top-notch law degree or Louboutin’s? For the record,
13
those last two are both very high on my priority list, and no I will not feel vain no matter how hard anyone tries to convince me that my desires are vapid. It’s unfortunate that our society has conditioned us to think we can’t make room for both intelligence and beauty in our lives. How misogynistic is it to have girls feeling shallow simply because they pay importance to what they adorn themselves with. To all those who argue that fashion is for the inferior, your time is more than over. Finito! Before things get any more heated, let me bring it back to the wise words of Christian Louboutin himself: “A woman can be sexy, charming, witty or shy with her shoes”. So get a grip, and appreciate the finer things in life. As for myself, I’ll be wearing my Michael Kors,’ Jeffrey Campbell’s and good ol’ Chucks until those beautiful Loubies find their way into my life. If you didn’t make it to the exhibition this past summer, I can only try to appease you by reminding you, Christian Louboutin has blessed the fashion world with the Rolls Royce pump, a stiletto made entirely out of tree bark, and a most perfect Cinderella heel and he’s only 50. Let’s wish him many more fabulous decades of magical creations. Merci pour les trésors, Monsieur Louboutin!
14
CREATIVE SUBMISSION
BY PHOEBE TODD-PARRISH
This is robot love some stupid mechanical heart that beats like a drum pad pre recorded pre made pre packaged microwaveable love Love that doesn’t change according to the weather doesn’t wilt and doesn’t falter never fades The hormones and the modification keeps this love lookin beautiful. Perfect outside nothing about metal that stains that breaks
farther and farther the light
only bends only bends only bends
The light that catches on these bottlecap eyes this motherboard tongue a lung and lung that can’t utter can’t become. This robot love.
ARTICHOKE
This gear grinding beast that wears down its foes and replaces it’s enemies that doesn’t decay only falters and stops on occasional instances. The power the fuel in the ground it is finite the resources the blood in it’s body its kaldiedsocope eyesight can’t see that it’s running towards a horizon that’s empty that has as a big e for empty it’s coming it’s coming it’s not cumming but it’s cunning this robot love that ticks and hums like a thousand wound up clocks and guns that fire fire in the trigger the trigger pull the trigger pull the trigger puncture the steel and the metal corpse, metal and styrene frame the coolant that melts through hot copper veins. This robot love it can feel it can feel that it’s failing.
This love of mine fragile and weak and it’s ailing replace me with things that won’t rust machines that can detect lies swap these for a heart that can trust.
A robot love seems ideal to me now. The robot in love never has to say “ow”.
15
16
MAJOR SPEAK
When’s the last time you read a Canadian Novel, eh?
BY Camellia De Castro
Imagine yourself leisurely sitting
in your local coffee shop, sipping on your go-to latte while engaging in casual conversation with some friends. The atmosphere is light and relaxing. You and your friends talk about everything – favourite music, favourite movies, favourite pastime and just about life in general. Then, BAM! Someone brings up the question, “what is your all-time favourite novel?” Okay, so maybe the question is not exactly BAM-worthy, but how would you answer it? Maybe you’re that proud bibliophile who can not even dream of choos-
ARTICHOKE
17
However, it is important that we, as Canadians, are still knowledgeable and appreciative of Canadian literature.
ing one favourite between the books that engulfed you with suspense, the books that made you well up with tears or simply that one book that just changed your whole life. Or maybe you’re that person who only prefers to read for eduThankfully, our education system cational purposes and during those years of forced English/Humanities classes, has been doing a fine job in ensuring there were only a few novels that are that Canadian literature is included in still embedded in your mind to this day. the curriculum. Had they not ensured that Canadian students read Canadian Over the years, I have heard various literature, I fear that some of us would responses to this question. Whether walk through life not reading about the one of your favourite novels is classic or people, places and events happening right contemporary, I just have one question in our own backyard. Some readers will for you. Is the author a proud Canadian? continue to research and read Canadian literature beyond the classroom while If the answer is no, I don’t blame you. others will go through life saying they Phenomenal literature comes from many read “that one Margaret Atwood novel”. different countries all over the world. Just because we are Canadians does not It is easy to get caught up in the glitz and mean we are obliged to prefer solely Ca- glam of the neighbouring American culnadian literature. Your preferred novel ture as their American films, music, and could be from the United States, Ni- literature constantly bombard us. I enjoy geria, Japan, England or from any other American culture just as much as the next country. However, it is important that person but that does not mean I have to we, as Canadians, are still knowledgeable disregard the art that is bred within my and appreciative of Canadian literature. very own country. American stories, no
doubt, have morals and themes that transcend to all people, but why is it that some of us can become so attached stories about a boy moving to New York to chase his dreams or about a small-town Texas girl trying to find herself, rather than a story about a boy or girl’s life in Toronto? Many Canadian novels have received international acclaim nonetheless - Michael Ondaatje’s The English Patient, Margaret Atwood’s The Blind Assassin and Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, to name a few. But I wonder how often a Canadian novel is studied in a Japanese school or how often an American says that their absolute favourite novel is written by a Canadian.
16
MAJOR SPEAK
If this article has at all got you inspired to check out some Canadian literature, I have compiled a list of just a few of the many excellent Canadian authors.
Margaret Atwood Margaret Atwood, one of the current queens of Canadian literature (in my opinion) has most recently released a novel entitled MaddAddam. Other successful novels from Atwood include The Handmaid’s Tale and Alias Grace. Her writing has touched upon our relationship with nature and animals and entices readers with vivid and witty language, but most importantly her writing showcases Canadians’ exploration for identity.
Michael Ondaatje Although originally born in Sri Lanka, Canadian citizen and resident Michael Ondaatje is an excellent acclaimed author with a common theme of immigration. Plus, he writes ever so poetically with his rich imagery. Some of Ondaatje’s most notable works are In the Skin of a Lion and Running in the Family.
Alice Munro The recently retired Alice Munro is another compelling Canadian author who has written many novels, including Lives of Girls and Women and Runaway. Munro is commonly known for portraying the struggles of girls and women in her body of work. She explores the complexities of humans’ everyday lives in a fantastical, yet detailed style.
ARTICHOKE
Sinclair Ross This Saskatchewan-born writer is most famously known for his first novel, As For Me and My House. This novel deals with life in the Canadi- Lucy Maud Montgomery an prairies, a theme that consistently surfaces in many of Ross’s novels. Remember when you heard the story of Anne of Green Gables as a child? Montgomery is the one to thank for Margaret Laurence that – she wrote the novel in 1908. The beloved Canadian author Margaret Laurence has had a long literary career, and two of her most acclaimed novels are The Stone Angel and The Diviners. Many of her novels share a common theme of the female perspective, and Laurence is known for giving women a voice with her non-conservative writing style. Fun Fact: some of Laurence’s literary notes, drafts and other relics are located in York University Scott Library’s Clara Thomas Archives and Special Locations room (room 305). Be sure to check it out!
Kelley Armstrong You may have heard the recent buzz surrounding the newly released novel, Omens. It was written by Ontario resident Armstrong who primarily writes in the fantasy genre. If you love some entrancing literary action and dialogue, then I suggest you give one of her many novels a read!
At the end of the day, whether you read Canadian literature or not, it is nonetheless essential to accept and value the art our fellow Canadians create. Reading Douglas Coupland a Canadian novel is in many ways like looking in a mirror, because the novel Although he has both visual artist and de- will undoubtedly reflect aspects of what signer to his name, Coupland is also quite it means to live in Canada. So, if you’re the writer as he has written thirteen novels ever in that coffee shop again, might I thus far. Coupland’s first novel is Gener- suggest another question you could bring ation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture. up to your friends: “When’s the last Many readers have stated that Coupland time you read a Canadian novel, eh?” writes in a way that is not overbearing, but resonates long after the initial reading.
17
20
MAJOR SPEAK
usher the fall of the house BY Alex Millington
A transcribed conversation between Alex Millington and Quintin Teszeri regarding Kevin Yates’ exhibition Usher the Fall of the House at the Susan Hobbs Gallery. Q: …a cool dude. You said you didn’t get a chance to speak with him?
2nd Street South, 2009 by Kevin Yates artwithheart.ca
A: Well, no. I didn’t know what he looked like so I couldn’t pick him out of the crowd. I probably bumped into him, or made crude remarks in front of him. But you know, earlier you were talking about the Yates brothers. That might be an interesting way to lead into this conversation. You said they look somewhat alike… We have just finished reading this thing and you remember that in the exhibit description it is suggested that the creepiness of the book [Edgar Allen Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher] is enhanced by that sort of doppelgänger factor. And we had just briefly touched on how the idea
of twins or doubles is pretty apparent in the work. Q: Reflections, doppelgängers, mirror images, perfect mimesis. They’re captivating, surreal devices. A: He had said that the doubling effect, that mirror image, is unsettling. And I was thinking to myself, “is this exhibit really unsettling?” I’m not sure. Q: Have you ever looked in a mirror and stared into your own eyes? It’s just as distracting as looking into someone else’s eyes. It’s kind of unsettling because it’s another you. A: I’m just trying to think of this in terms of whether or not the sculpture is unsettling. Q: I wouldn’t say unsettling. Well, unsettling in a tipped-horizon, Hitchcock kind of way. Not to get too horizontal-axis-oriented, but Hitchcock would tip horizons just a little bit. If you ever see a picture and it’s just a little bit off… It feels weird, disorienting sensitivities. A: So you think that effect can be equated to Yate’s work? Q: It’s not unsettling in an alarming way. It’s quite the opposite. It’s like a trance or a dream. An eerie calm, disoriented but comfortable, lost but peaceful. A: It’s arresting, not alarming or unsettling. You know I thought there was a profound stability there. Q: It’s arresting and visually spectacular. It does have interest, but once you get past the initial bang, there’s more to it.
ARTICHOKE
A: I think the unsettling effect would have been more apparent if these things looked perilous. There’s really only the one sculpture that’s kind of like this… I mean it seems like we’ve both got that dresser/ aquarium sculpture in mind while we talk about this. That and the little houses were the key notes, of course. But instead of it seeming perilous or unsettling in a more physical, toppling kind of way, it seemed very stable. Like one solid tangible object as opposed to one that is reversed on some mysterious plane. Something like a face, you know, divided, but two essential aspects of a whole structure. Q: Naturally symmetrical. A: Which means the only real unsettling aspect is the positioning of the aquarium on the dresser. It’s just slightly off to one side and the skeleton with the stake in its heart was off to the left. That was the only thing straying from that vertical division. Q: Was it slightly to the left? A: Yeah… Oh, and I don’t know if you noticed, but there was a… looked like a coffee stain or something. On the far left corner of the lower dresser there was a spot that was even reversed on the upper dresser. Q: The top and bottom both had mirror spots, patches, and drips. The craftsmanship was pretty incredible. It’s not often we get to see such meticulously built sculpture. A: You know those little houses with the trees. I really loved those. That little truck that’s sinking. You know it’s not wheels to wheels, but halfway up the door. That’s the realistic way things would look if they
were sinking into water, and I respect him for not taking the easy route about that sculpture. It’s a lot of work. From a craftsmanship standpoint. He’s probably one of the better artists I’ve seen around Toronto in a while. But yeah… Yates and, I guess, Ai Weiwei are the only two I can really think of, at least in a timely sense, when it comes to craftsmanship, although I don’t think you can compare them… And Sorel Etrog, but he’s dead isn’t he? Maybe not. Q: Craftsmanship, along with the creation of that particular type of unwelcoming atmosphere, are definitely some of the most notable aspects of the show.
21
A: Oh, and earlier you made a good point about the use of the domestic theme… Q: The show’s unpopulated, post-disaster representations of domesticity, and its literary inspiration, remind me of There Will Come Soft Rains, a short story by Ray Bradbury. Set in a post-apocalyptic world, a house continues to perform all of its futuristic robot tasks, unaware that some sort of nuclear weapon incinerated the family it served. Upon hearing no response to what poem the missus would like to hear, the house selects one of her favourites by Sara Teasdale.
There Will Come Soft Rains There will come soft rains and the smell of the ground, And swallows circling with their shimmering sound; And frogs in the pools, singing at night, And wild plum trees in tremulous white; Robins will wear their feathery fire, Whistling their whims on a low fence-wire; And not one will know of the war, not one Will care at last when it is done. Not one would mind, neither bird nor tree, If mankind perished utterly; And Spring herself, when she woke at dawn Would scarcely know that we were gone.
22
MAJOR SPEAK
$
PUTTING OFF PROCRASTINATION BY MEGAN KOROL ROONEY The school year has only just begun but denial already tinges the air. Assignments have started to add up, and in typical fashion students are already delaying that first trip to the library. Faced with a seemingly insurmountable pile of work due at the end of the term, in addition to commitments to extra-curricular activities and social events, we turn to the practice of procrastination. Students under pressure decide to live by the old adage: why do today, what you can put off until tomorrow? Despite the well meaning promise we made on the first day of school, the one where we pledged to change our ways for good and to start an essay the moment the topic was given, students everywhere are already giving up and giving in. So, in an attempt to help my
fellow peers and hopefully slow my own descent into delaying anything and everything, I thought I’d share some thoughts on how to put off procrastination. Procrastination feeds on the feeling of instant gratification. Delaying work means that you don’t have to wait to see that new movie or to head off to a party. Regardless of the fact that you have a mid-term paper due the next day, procrastination allows you to graciously accept that invitation to dine out with friends. And let’s be honest, who doesn’t love the feeling of getting to do what they want, when they want? Unfortunately such habits are simply unsustainable over a long period of time. While pulling an all-nighter to finish a months, swearing off sleep several days
a week can take a serious toll. Bloodshot eyes and permanent headache aside, your stress levels will shoot through the roof and any hope of being a productive student will have gone out the proverbial window. To save yourself that aforementioned headache I’d like to suggest that you learn how to better manage your waking hours. Experience has taught me that poor time management is a significant contributing factor to postponing schoolwork. As such, developing that skill is a good place to start when trying to put off procrastination. Modern technology functions on the basis of immediate access, and keeping people linked together. For example, laptops and cell phones are commonly used by students to maintain social connections through such platforms
ARTICHOKE
as Facebook or e-mail. For the purpose of managing your time and keeping to a schedule, cell phones and computers can be put to work as organizational tools. To start and maintain a list of required textbooks, use the notes program on your cell phone. Recording upcoming assignments in an online format, such as Google Calendar, allows students to plan ahead and organize themselves accordingly. Some applications, including Mac’s Calendar, will even send reminder e-mails in advance of a due date. However, if technology serves as a serious distraction when you are valiantly trying to start an assignment and the lure of Facebook and YouTube have proved too strong to resist, I would recommend downloading a program to temporarily block such sites. SelfControl, for Mac users and StayFocused (Chrome) or LeechBlock (Firefox) for Windows computers, will not allow access to specified domains for a pre-approved amount of time, forcing easily distracted students to turn their attentions to school work. Using these tools does require personal effort and a certain amount of dedication, but such simple measures can go a long way towards helping with time management. Amongst the structured chaos that seems to define our time at university, it can be easy to forget that the person you should be most invested in is you. You, the person who hopes to leave York University with a degree to your name. So, if you know the date and time of the next dorm party but are at a loss as to when that essay on world peace is due, I feel the need to kindly intervene and suggest that perhaps your priorities need some rearranging. So buckle down and write a draft of that essay. With that out of the
23
p 46 66 66 46
6666 666
“While pulling an all-nighter to finish
a project is feasible once every couple of months, swearing off sleep several days a week can take a serious toll” way you are free to watch and laugh as that one classmate holds onto the floor for dear life after having several cups of “fruit punch”. Like almost everything, procrastination is not a terrible thing when practiced in moderation. Temporarily delegating the reality of deadlines to the sidelines can give frazzled university students the much-needed opportunity to relax. With that being said, reality cannot be pushed aside indefinitely and at the end of the day, the ultimate goal is to find a balance between academic life and social life. Managing your time and putting off procrastination are two ways to get a little bit closer to that goal, but if anyone finds a shortcut, please let me know.
24
WINTER’S PRESS PLAY
WINTERS PRESS PLAY:
BY LINDSAY PRESSWELL
“ I must point out that Brendan Raymond – Bass, Rhythm Guitar, Vocals Quinn Kapuscinski – Drums Travis De Luca – Keys & Synth Rob Spadafora – Guitar & Bass
these guys are all self-taught, bringing no professional training to the table: just a love of similar styles of music and their bond of friendship, it seems.
“
BAND MEMBERS
:
THE BIO
;
THE HEMP ORIGINS is a tale that begins with cannabis leafs: more specifically, over a dozen cannabis leafs in hockey jerseys. All four members of the original lineup met at intramural games for the Winters College Cannabis Leafs hockey team in fall of 2012, and subsequently decided to transfer the fun-loving atmosphere of sport over to a new musical project. This group came to be known as “Hemp,” a tribute to the hockey team where the group members met, and a word that sums up the laid-back versatility of the group’s musical style. I must point out that these guys are
all self-taught, bringing no professional training to the table: just a love of similar styles of music and their bond of friendship, it seems. The band boasts a communications major, digital media major, and a student with a psychology background… no classroom prompted these guys to get together. It was just the Cannabis Leafs. The 2012/2013 season for the Cannabis Leafs was an amazing one for an intramural sports team. By using word-of-mouth promotion and by promising fans a great night out, the
26
WINTER’S PRESS PLAY
Winters College Cannabis Leafs lured an audience of 30-40 people for each of their games, and “hockey night” instantly became an ad-hoc tradition for many Winters students. The spirit was so great that it even lured new band member Rob Spadafora over to Winters, and later over to Hemp as a new guitar/bass player. Travis De Luca joined in the spring of 2013 to fill out the group: Hemp had been whittled down to two members after half of the original line-up left, citing mutual and then irreconcilable differences.
This hiccup set Hemp back a few months, and sent about half a year of impressive progress to a grinding halt. The original unit had been consistently making music and touring for months before the line-up change, and they had even planned a tour of Canada’s East Coast. After taking some time to process the band’s changes, Hemp is finally working on new original tracks for the reveal of their current line-up.
:
THE SOUND
;
My first impression of Hemp’s practice space when I arrived for our interview was that was that it was not unlike a setting that could be found in a rock band biopic, the part where the band comes back
ARTICHOKE
0
27
“ The big umbrella I’d put Hemp under
would be alternative rock, but the use of the synths give the band an industrial feel, and you can hear moments of jazz, blues, and reggae
“
to their trailer to unwind, smoke, and hangout after playing a particularly grimy show. Instruments and various music paraphernalia were strewn about, joined by other youth culture paraphernalia on the coffee table. Books, movies, video games all greeted the eye after a brief scan of the room. The four band members and two of their friends had clearly spent the day in this well-lived space. Over the course of our 45-minute meeting, they would transform from a relaxed group of friends into a polished and cohesive musical unit after a spur of the moment decision to play me a few live tracks. (Thanks guys!) I’m not sure what I was expecting Hemp to sound like, but whatever prediction I had, I was surprised. They really aren’t your typical acoustic guitar/bass/ drum outfit, and you can clearly hear all of their musical influences ebb and flow through their songs as they play. The big umbrella I’d put Hemp under would
be alternative rock, but the use of the synths give the band an industrial feel, and you can hear moments of jazz, blues, and reggae all within the same track. All-in-all it was a very cool experience. The band adapted to the unconventional practice conditions by having the percussionist Quinn use a portable Cajon box drum, and by having the guitar and bass players trade off for different songs.
:
THE COLLEGE
;
And so if intramurals at York University were responsible for getting the group together, the Winters College community was responsible for keeping them together through the inevitable difficulties that come with being musicians. Just as the Cannabis Leafs knew their fans would return to intramural matches no matter how many losses, Hemp keeps making music because of the exceptional group
of people that support them within Winters College. If you want to experience the band, as well as notoriously feel-good atmosphere of the Winters community, come to acoustic nights every other Tuesday at the Absinthe Pub and Coffee Shop. Rumor has it these guys will be playing there this year. Alternatively, check out all the social media information and learn how to Connect with Hemp.
0
CONNECT WITH HEMP Facebook: facebook.com/hempmusic Twitter @Hemp_Sounds E-mail: hempiresounds@hotmail.com Booking: Braymond16@hotmail.com
28
ENTERTAINMENT
BY RIELLE ULLBURG
,
What does the term “popular culture” mean? On the surface, many view popular culture skeptically, thinking it a commercial institution with the purpose to ensnare the general public into fixating on some object of significance. Popular culture arises from an icon, a practice, a commodity or ideal that applies to the interests of the masses. Once something is widely accepted into the greater public’s awareness, it can then be used for marketing, financial exploitation and can be lent to other industries to further infiltrate culture and establish “popular” status. Music can be an example of this – it begins in production and once released to the public, the success of, say, a band, artist or song determines if the product can be translated into another field of culture, such as film making.
Sometimes this is the opposite. Cultural industries formulate commodities perfectly calculated to appeal to the masses. They use an obscene amount of effort to create an entity that has universal intrigue. This is seen widely in television. Models for TV production are very similar and follow predesigned formulas which have proved capable for catching viewers and amassing a dependable audience. When accomplished, advertisers view the program as a platform for reaching consumers. These two forms of culture production are tainted with advertising’s incessant need to procure a willing, waiting audience. But does that make popular culture any less appealing? One hears a lot these days about the problems with mainstream music, the downturn of
ARTICHOKE
29
“...forget any other difference and dramatic television programming, or the flimsy story making of cinema. Yes, in their attempt to become universal, these media have often missed the mark in establishing cultural potency and depth. However, there is something to be said about certain mass cultural constructs that create what can be called a “cultural baseline”. There are some things in this world that are so universal that we do not question them, we do not condemn them, we simply accept them as a fact. These are the things that rise above a one year media spotlight. They endure and continue to amaze and excite the public. Novels, video games, movie franchises and television series, often long out of production maintain a cultural relevance that cannot be tainted by commercialization. They have transcended their original commercial purpose and became pure culture. For
each individual, the set that stand out may be different. What comes to mind; Mario, Harry Potter, Audrey Hepburn or the Beatles? Since no product can truly boast full appeal to every consumer on the planet, each person’s idea of enduring culture will be different. But one can find those who agree with their viewpoint, who share that love and interest in a set of commodities that are more than commercial. And this is why popular culture is so important; because of its power to unite people in a joy and wonderment of something. To make us forget any other difference and allow us to share in the thrill of a common significant icon. It is often difficult to establish an immediate bond with another person, so having popular culture assist in this endears it to the public. We can feel grateful that this baseline exists and be excited of what new cultural phenomena are to come.
allow us to share in the thrill of a common significant icon.”
30 ENTERTAINMENT
Turning fiction into reality BY NIKKY WAXMAN So what exactly is a fandom? Basically, it is a group of fans characterized by It’s where your favorite fictional char- sharing a common interest. For example, acters and stories can come alive and there are different fandoms for The you can meet the people that helped Beatles and for Batman. Often, they create them. are known to be aggressive and excitable. The streets surrounding the Metro Imagine yourself watching your absolute Toronto Convention Centre on August favorite moment in television or movie 22nd, 2013 were crowded with char- history. Now take that raw emotion and acters from the video game and movie pump it directly into the fans attending shelves at home. Fan Expo. The convention works as a type These are the exuberant fans making of marketplace for dozens of different their way to the annual Fan Expo – a fandoms; from fans of Superman comics convention for comics, the sci-fi genre, to the New York Yankees, Fan Expo the horror genre, anime, gaming and sport attracts them all. culture. In addition to the hordes of fans, It’s in the name! This explains the the convention also draws actors, writers, colorful assortment of costumes, otherdesigners and artists in to showcase their wise known as cosplays. These aren’t dedicated works. This August, Fan Expo mere costumes that anyone can purchase celebrated 19 years of Comic-Con North at Halloween stores. These getups with another successful convention that take money, effort, and dedication to brought together a unique community to create. Most cosplays are hand-made or commemorate their fandom. hand-altered with materials the fans
IS IT A BIRD? IS IT A PLANE? ... NO! IT’S FAN EXPO!
bought themselves. Cosplays can be adventurous; some utilize weird materials such as old car parts or PVC piping. At heart, cosplays incorporate both costume and character, expressing the true passion of the fan. But don’t let the cosplayers distract you. The real reason everyone comes to Fan Expo are the “Meet and Greets”. Some of 2013’s line-up included: Nathan Fillion (Firefly/Castle), Zachary Quinto (Star Trek), Carrie Fisher (Star Wars), Stan Lee (Legendary Comic Creator), Slash and Max Brooks (author of World War Z). Think about the scale of this : fans gather from miles away to meet people that they deeply admire and respect. Not only that but they are surrounded by other vastly excited members of their fandom, all reveling in the same feeling. Moments like these are few and far between and they only add to the Fan Expo experience.
ARTICHOKE
31
M “Imagine yourself watching your absolute favorite moment in television or movie history. Now take that raw emotion and pump it directly into the fans attending Fan Expo” BUT IF THAT WASN’T ENOUGH,
Fan Expo also showcases an assortment of screenings including the new premiere of Adventure Time and an Omni Reboot (futurist magazine). In addition, several gaming tournaments also took place, such as the Magic: The Gathering August 2K Open Tournament and the Settlers of Catan Worldwide Catan Championship Qualifier. If this spectacular range of entertainment still doesn’t impress you, there were also informative workshops,
such as the Drawing DC workshop or the one called How To Plot Any Story In Under An Hour. So on a scale from “I couldn’t be more bored,” to “I’m already sewing my Batman costume,” how incredible does Fan Expo sound? Besides of all the obvious attractions, the convention serves a much larger priority: to bring together this fantastic and diverse set of people in celebration of their common interests. Keeping in mind that most of what Fan Expo is
made up of (comics, video games, fiction genres and television shows) are solitary activities, conventions like these are the only major opportunities for fans to meet each other and to geek out together. For this reason, Fan Expo remains one of Toronto’s most anticipated conventions year-round.
Two sit on a park bench eating cheeseburgers: “Who the fuck is Robinson Crusoe?� The other keeps on chewing. Robinson dies on the island.
BY Alex Millington
ARTICHOKE
33
French Onion Soup BY NIGEL D’SOUZA Another month, another recipe! Hope you guys tried and enjoyed the last one. This wonderful recipe is easy to make and can once again last you quite a while. French Onion Soup is one of those meals that are just hearty enough for the fall season. With it’s warm beefy stock and rich cheesy goodness, it is sure to fill your heart. Melt butter or margarine in a saucepan. Stir in sugar. Cook onions over medium heat for 10 minutes, or until caramelized to a nice golden brown. Stir in flour until well blended with the onions and pan juices. Add water, wine, and beef broth; heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low. Cover soup, and simmer for 10 minutes.
Ladle soup into four 12 ounce, oven-safe bowls. Place 1 slice toasted bread on top of the soup in each bowl. You can use any other toast slices to dip in the soup. Broil on High until cheese is melted and slightly golden brown. If you want this recipe to last you while, I would suggest you to double the recipe requirements. Don’t be afraid to add any additional spices or herbs (Rosemary is nice since this can be a hearty soup). Remember that these are only the general requirements for this recipe, so go out there and experiment! Until next time, happy eating!
Ingredients 1/4 cup butter 3 onions, thinly sliced 1 teaspoon white sugar 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour 2 1/2 cups water 1/2 cup red wine 2 cans condensed beef broth (you can also use 2 cubes of beef bouillon mixed in 4 cups of water, though you’ll only use 11/2 cup of that mixture) Toasted bread Mozzarella cheese (However much you want!)
34 HEALTH
THE ART OF THE
COOL BY CURTIS TE BRINKE Not many of us consider ourselves to be particularly “cool” people. By that I mean nobody finds themselves very interesting given our unique perspective on the matter. You live with yourself 24/7, you are privy to every single strange and socially awkward thing you think and you get to see your gross morning face on a daily basis. We may not think we are cool, but it doesn’t stop us from trying to appear that way to other people. It’s no secret that we all make conscious choices about how we present ourselves to the general public. Be that at the pub, or coffee shop, or even just going to our morning lecture. Before setting foot out the door we have already dictated what we are going to wear, what we are bringing with us, and how we plan on combining the two. Sunglasses and the hat, or just the glasses? Is wearing that dust covered duster going to come off as overkill? All of us want to look good, given our own perspective on what makes us look that way. While this is all fairly obvious, maybe it takes an altogether uncool
experience to realize how much stock we put into maintaining a hip outer layer to our personality. A few weeks ago I found myself sitting in a crowded East Side Mario’s with my family. Sitting there making small talk amid screeching young-things and servers with too-big smiles was enough for me to cringe inwardly and check my phone just a little too often. Did I think the place was not my scene? Yes. Is this a product of trying too hard to keep my hip, manabout-campus exterior in place? I was beginning to suspect so. The question is then begged, if reasonably priced Italian food served in a family friendly environment is most certainly not cool, what is? The flip side for some could be a hole in the wall restaurant on Bathurst with no name. Presided over by
a server named Chaz with a full sleeve tattoo and Wolf Parade playing over some speakers in the back. Why do people like me gravitate towards such a place? It’s the hip atmosphere and good music, but more importantly it’s the feeling that everyone there is not trying very hard and that everything is just happening. Because that’s what it comes down to. Cool is the idea that you present yourself in a way that attracts people, and that you couldn’t care less. Basically, that you gave zero effort into the matter and that being this way is natural to you. Places like this operate much in the same way, and allow their clientele to behave similarly. What makes people of my generation turn into socially awkward penguins in chain establishments like this is the fact that the people running the joint try, and
“Maybe being cool is actually just owning whatever situation you may be in”
ARTICHOKE
they try hard. The servers are all smiles telling you about the specials and deals of the day, sing Happy Birthday to the seventh child that day, and rhyme off the slogans you saw posted on the glass doors on the way in. It smacks of forced effort, and makes people like me wish that everyone in the place would just chill out. Not only that, but it also makes us realize just how much effort we put into looking cool when we have to apply even more effort in a place that is decidedly uncool. As I was sitting there trying to act as if I didn’t care and scoffed under my breath at the tabletop advert for Wing Night, I realized exactly what I had been doing the entire time. So here is an idea I would like to put forward, as something I found myself learning as my Chicken Alfredo was delivered to the table. Maybe being cool is actually just owning whatever situation you may be in. By not trying so hard to make it look like you aren’t trying. It’s not being embarrassed of being where you are right now, committing to it and saying yes to what your life is in that moment. It might not be easy, but goddamn if you won’t make it look like it is.
35
36
HEALTH
TH E
PROBLEM WITH
Perspective
BY LAURA SPEARE RECENTLY I WAS READING The blog of a friend of mine and she happened to mention a condition she suffers from that I had never heard of. When I google searched this condition I found that it was a mental disorder characterized by chronic skin picking. My first thought was, “Ooh, I have that!” I have never been diagnosed, because obviously I had not heard of it, but it struck a chord with me because I felt like I could identify with it. Then I shut myself down. I immediately went the route of political correctness: it was uncouth of me to even think that I might suffer from the same problem, because this girl obviously has it way worse. Now, why do I have to feel that way? What exactly makes my suffering less valid than hers? I am not trying to belittle
her struggle; certainly it’s not a fun thing to deal with, this disorder or any other problem. All I mean is that it seems like I should be able to feel how I feel without having to compare myself to others. I’ve noticed time and again, in my life and in other people’s lives, that there is always someone who thinks less of you for what you feel. I’ve heard people tell others off for mentioning their hunger, because a person who’s well fed has no right to say they’re hungry because people in other parts of the world are starving. But they can still be hungry, can’t they? Everyone gets hungry. Maybe too much perspective is not such a good thing. Certainly it’s great to have an awareness of the things people around you are going through, but if you begin to use these people as the axis around which you base how you should be feeling, it’s time to take a step back. Because there
ARTICHOKE
is no one way that you should be feeling. You feel the way that you feel and that’s it. That girl who’s so thin you can count her ribs through her back, who refuses every morsel of food: clearly she’s in dire straits but she’s no more deserving of help and support than someone just beginning to struggle with what could become a life-threatening eating disorder. The last thing this person needs is to feel that his or her problems aren’t serious enough to garner attention, or that people will scoff at the trouble he or she is facing because it’s not very important. Similarly, that boy who’s writing sad poems and feeling low after a breakup is perfectly entitled to feel the way he feels, even though he may lead a more privileged life than some and he may not have struggled his whole life with clinical depression. No one has any right to tell him
37
“Clinically speaking, I may suffer from the disorder I mentioned earlier or I may not.” that he needs to “man up” or that nobody cares about what he’s going through. The emotion he’s feeling is all his own, and he is not an entity to be scrutinized next to any other. The point that I’m trying to make here is that everyone ought to be their own judge of how they are feeling. Clinically speaking, I may suffer from the disorder I mentioned earlier or I may not. It doesn’t really matter, does it? If I’m suffering from anything, I’m suffering, whether diagnosable or not. If this girl suffers more than I do, well, that’s very unfortunate for her. I just don’t know whether anyone can truly be the judge of
who feels the most pain. Human beings are all just so drastically different, and that’s why it’s not very effective to try to measure one against the other. When all is said and done, you are your own being, and how you feel is how you feel. There is never and has never been any point in trying to talk yourself out of feeling a certain way because you know that someone else feels worse. Although there may not be any definite scale to measure suffering, one thing is certain: feeling guilty about not feeling bad enough is a sure-fire way to feel a whole lot worse.
38
HEALTH
do
TREES
feel
PAIN?
BY SARAH ELLISON
I FEEL THAT TREES ARE A PART
of nature that largely goes unnoticed. They provide shade from the sun, and they release oxygen into the air, but how much do we really know about these sentient beings? It was on a brisk fall day that I was raking the yard with my brother when I was struck by a sudden thought as I stared at our maple tree. Did it feel pain? That tree has been through a lot mostly courtesy of a certain young girl who liked to climb in its branches. I did this up until the day I accidentally caused one of the larger branches to snap clean off - it simply couldn’t support my weight anymore. And staring at the scar that was now in its place, I wondered if the tree felt any of the hurt a person or animal would feel upon losing a limb. I came to the conclusion that to
feel pain you need two things: life, and nerves. Life is an obvious requirement if you are dead you will not be able to feel anything. In line with life, my brother made the argument that you must be conscious though not necessarily in the sense that you are awake because people who are unconscious or in a coma have been known to feel pain - but conscious in that you are aware of the world around you. You are conscious of the life you hold. I believe trees to be conscious of the life they live - if they were not, they would not turn their leaves to the sun. They would not grow in odd directions just to reach that little bit of sunlight above
ARTICHOKE
other trees. Second to life are nerves. Nerves are how humans and animals feel pain. In the simplest terms, the nerves register feeling, and the brain tells your body that you have been hurt. This reaction hinges greatly on what you personally consider to be painful, and your past experiences with it - thus everyone feels it differently, but it works the same way. If we consider these two things to be the sole requirement to registering pain, trees would not qualify - they are certainly alive, but they do not have nerves. However, trees can do many other things humans and animals do, such as breathe and eat. Each takes place in the leaves, and though done differently than us, it is undeniable that trees seek and obtain nourishment and air. Trees also react to stimulus. I am growing a plant right now, and its shoots have begun to grow too long. When that happens, my dad bends the shoot over and wraps it
around itself. But each time he has done this, the plant grows a new shoot from the top, abandoning the one that has been bent. Trees, and plants, also grow better
‘
You are conscious of the life you hold. I believe trees to be conscious of the life they live - if they were not, they would not turn their leaves to the sun.
’
when they are spoken to, or have music to listen to. Studies have even show plant growth increases to classical music, and decreases to heavy rock or metal. When
39
we consider these things about those silent beings we love to sit beneath, it is hard not to accept that they may be more like us than we think. Unfortunately because they cannot communicate, it is impossible to know if a tree can ache. Perhaps they do not feel pain, but they are not so different as you would think, nor as insentient. I personally believe trees can hurt - maybe not in the same way we do, but it is still experienced. Their wounds scar over with fresh bark; when a branch or stalk is broken they grow a new one; and when a tree is cut down, it dies. If a tree can die, surely it can feel pain.
Illustration by, Tracy Baker