Vol 36 issue 5

SPIRITS

Taking an unconventional look at the city’s all night arts festival. page 6

IN THE NUIT Monday, October 5, 2009

Volume 36, Issue 5

UTM searches for next principal

UCS camps out for cancer research

Students and faculty gathered for a town hall to discuss attributes they would like to see in the next principal

Matthew Filipowich/The Medium

Commerce students Carl Saleem and Faisal Alikhan keep themselves warm by studying and eating pizza.

EMIL JABBARLI

Matthew Filipowich/The Medium

Former UTMSU VP External Dhananjai Kohli asks students during the town hall whether they would support the library staying open 24 hours a day.

KATHERINE LUCZYNSKI WITH NOTES FROM SAALIHA MALIK

Students and faculty members gathered last Friday for a town hall to discuss issues facing the UTM campus.

With the announcement that current Principal and Vice President Ian Orchard will be leaving UTM at the end of this academic year, U of T President David Naylor, along with Vice-President and Provost Cheryl Misak, invited students to express what they thought the next Principal

and Vice President should do for UTM. The council chambers room, which is located directly above the Registrar’s Office in the South Building, quickly filled as pizza was served to all in attendance.

President Naylor began the meeting. “Many good things have happened here and we believe many more can happen,” he said, adding that $70 million has already been invested by the federal and provincial government for the new instructional centre.

“Although the Dean and Principal have to walk hand in hand, the job of

the Principal of the University is like running a quite sizable city,” said Misak, who was also the first dean of UTM. “We’re looking for the values, beliefs and attributes that you are looking for in a leader,” said Naylor.

Joey Santiago, president of the UTM student union, started the line at the microphone for questions.

Santiago stated that UTMSU had collected a petition with 1,200 student signatures outlining what students would like to see out of their next principal.

see Principal on page 3

UTM's Undergraduate Commerce Society held a five day long fundraiser event with support from the Canadian Cancer Society from September 28 to October 2. Carl Seleem, UCS social director, and Faisal Alikhan, special events director, spent five days and nights camped out in a tent in front of the Student Centre to raise cancer awareness.

Alikhan and Saleem announced that they would camp outdoors “through rain or shine,” a statement that was almost prophetic considering the chillier-than-usual weather last week. Armed with a microphone and loudspeakers, UCS volunteers joined Seleem and Alikhan to encourage passers-by to donate for the cause.

Brochures with a wealth of information about cancer were available during the event, which the UCS called Camping for a Cure.

Daily music, singing and karaoke

Career Centre holds Get Experience Fair OVAIS SHAH WITH NOTES FROM ALAIN LATOUR

UTM student Helen Vladiborova considers her stint at the University of Toronto as something more than a chance to hone academic skills and maintain a decent GPA. Vladiborova, 20, wishes to appear as a lucrative candidate for either a for post-secondary program or a employer — she's not sure yet which.

Her ambition mirrors that of many university students, namely,

that a strong university education will lead to higher employment prospects.

W h i l e t h e a b o v e s t a t em e n t is valid to a certain extent, a Statistics Canada Report, titled “Steppin’ Out: An Analysis of Recent University Graduates into the Labour Market” shows a different trend: many students find a period of joblessness after graduation.

This gap between the academic world and the workplace is a result of a disintegration of new graduate students and their inexperience and lack of skills required for

Canada’s evolving workforce.

Aware of the detrimental effect of this trend on undergraduate students, the UTM Career Centre offers students career advancement resources via education and skill training resources. The Get Experience Fair, which was held at the RAWC facility on September 24, was one of the ways in which the Career Centre at UTM hopes to ease the transition of students into the workforce.

The fair focused on particular skill-sets and how internships, volunteer positions, part-time jobs, work-study opportunities, leader-

ship programs and research opportunities can develop these skills.

“Students need to understand that employability is not about position or finding work. Rather it is about one’s skill set. Most employers are looking for specific skills,” said Jon McCurdy, director of the Career Centre.

The Career Centre team succeeded in bringing over 73 organizations from the GTA community and the University of Toronto campuses.

see Experience on page 2

performances accompanied the event.

Guitar shows by local artists were especially popular and created a festive atmosphere for the fundraiser that encouraged people to donate.

Unlike previous events organized by the UCS, no corporate sponsorship was sought for this fundraiser.

Alikhan explained that the UCS intended this drive to be a reflection of the UTM community and did not want the fundraiser to be “shadowed” by any possible corporate interest or motivation.

That objective seems accomplished.

The fundraiser received praise and support from the student community as well as the school administration and faculty.

The campers expect more than $3,000, all of which will be donated to the Canadian Cancer Society, a nationwide community-based organization that aims to made eradicate cancer and provide better quality of life for people who have the disease.

see Camping on page 2

INSIDE UTM Fillipino community raises money PAGE 3 Arctic Monkeys visit Toronto PAGE 6 ECSperT Care PAGE 8 Majors win big at home PAGE 11

2 THE MEDIUM

MONDAY, OCTOBER

5, 2009

NEWS CAMP FOR CANCER

Getting experience Braving the elements for cancer is the first step Camping continued from cover

Experience continued from cover Some of the community organizations that attended were the Rape and Crisis Centre of Peel, Community Living Mississauga, Region of Peel Children Service’s Division, Peel Police, United Nations Committee, Canadian Red Cross, Eco-Canada, Conservation Halton and Service Canada.

University organizations such as the Accessibility Centre, UTM WalkSafer, Meal Exchange, UTMSU, the Sexual Education Centre and this newspaper were also in attendance. Over a thousand students attended, up from the 700 that came last year.

“The Get Experience fair is a really nice way to advertise volunteer positions at the Accessibility Centre for students who want to work with people with disabilities and gain interpersonal skills, note-taking and team-work skills in a social-work setting,” said Scott Mendoza at the Accessibility Centre’s booth.

A representative from Riverwood

Conservatory also attested to the skilldevelopment nature of the program.

“The Get Experience Fair is the perfect opportunity to recruit biology students to the conservatory’s outdoor program that instills valuable leadership and communication skills for Biology graduates” she said.

Similar opinions were also voiced by the Junior Financial Achievement Organization, which successfully recruited many commerce and economics students to facilitate their money-sense and perfect their presentation skills via public education campaigns in schools.

Students who missed the Get Experience Fair can still plot their future professional careers by attending the Professional Schools’ Fair on October 7 in the RAWC. Students will have the chance to meet representatives of various post-graduate schools such as law, medical and dentistry schools. Students can drop by the Career Center in the South Building or attend the Get Experience Expo on October 27.

It also offers care and support through volunteer based programs, such as providing transportation for people with cancer.

With every two out of five Canadians likely to develop cancer, the need for such programs is evident.

Combating such a deadly disease requires a never-ending supply of funds. Support programs and a constant supply of information cost a lot of money. So does research, which has led to a better understanding of the disease as well as improved treatment options with fewer and less severe side effects and earlier diagnosis — a key factor in the treatment of cancer. This is why the Canadian Cancer Society is always looking for donations.

Camping for a Cure is not the first charity fundraising event organized by the the UCS, which frequently organizes charity fundraising events. UCS raised $2,000 last March for the Sick Kids Foundation through a “Rent a Date” event. Alikhan and Saleem did not break their five-day camp-out. As an experienced camper, the physical

Matthew Filipowich/The Medium

Faisal Alikhan and Carl Saleem camp outside of the student centre last week to raise money for cancer. hardships of the outdoor event were not particularly harsh for Saleem, but he considered it very worthwhile considering the positive reaction and the encouragement the UCS received from the campus community.

More information about the Undergraduate Commerce Society and their future events can be obtained from www.utmucs.ca.

Pictures and videos of the camp-out and many of the performances throughout the week can be seen at the event page under the UCS’ Facebook group.

More information about intervention and treatment programs and cancer in general can be obtained from the Canadian Cancer Society website at www.cancer.ca.

Campus police weekly summaries September 24, 2009 to September 30, 2009 September 24, 2009 Theft Under $5000 A student reported the theft of his parking permit from his vehicle.

September 24, 2009 Request from Peel Regional Police Peel Police inquired about the CCTV coverage on campus that could possibly assist Peel Police in an investigation.

September 25, 2009 Controlled Drugs & Substances Act Campus Police were called to investigate a group of males reportedly smoking marijuana behind Oscar Peterson Hall. The males had left the area prior to arrival of Campus Police.

September 25, 2009 Mischief Under $5000 A pane of reinforced glass of a door in the South Building was found shattered. Campus Police investigated the incident.

September 25, 2009 Medical Call – Personal Injury Campus Police transported a male stu-

dent who sustained a minor injury to hospital.

September 25, 2009 Unauthorized Activities Campus Police received a report of males causing a disruption while practicing a dance routine in a hallway of the South Building. The males were gone upon the arrival of Campus Police.

September 25, 2009 Theft Under $5,000 A male student reported the theft of his Blackberry from the Athletic Facility.

Investigation continues.

September 26, 2009 Noise Complaint Campus Police responded to a townhouse complex to investigate a noise complaint. Campus Police spoke with the tenant and had the music lowered.

September 26, 2009 Noise Complaint Campus Police responded to the courtyard of a townhouse complex to investigate a noise complaint. The group

that was gathered in the courtyard had dispersed upon the arrival of Campus Police.

September 27, 2009 Noise Complaint Campus Police received a noise complaint from a townhouse complex.

Campus Police spoke with the tenant where the noise was emanating from.

September 27, 2009 Controlled Drugs & Substances Act Campus Police responded to a report of two males smoking marijuana behind a residence building. Campus Police investigated and it was determined that the males were not smoking marijuana.

September 27, 2009 Personal Safety Concern Campus Police Office received a report of two suspicious males impersonating Residence Dons. Campus Police searched for the males, but could not locate them.

September 28, 2009 Theft Under $5000

P r o f e s s i on a l Schools Fair Oct. 7th | 10.30 am - 1.30 pm | RAWC Law | Dentistry | Medicine Health Care | Physiotherapy | Education Business | Social Work | Grad Schools | Colleges Learn about admission requirements, programs, & deadlines - view participants online!

UTM

A male student reported the theft of his wallet.

Police.

September 29, 2009 Theft Under $5000 Campus Police received a report of a stolen Blackberry from the Bookstore.

The Blackberry was recovered and returned to the owner.

September 28, 2009 Theft Under $5000 A male student reported a theft of money from his wallet. The theft occurred in an on-campus resident unit.

September 28, 2009 Noise Complaint Campus Police responded to a noise complaint in the CCT Atrium. The noise was disrupting people working in the building. Campus Police had the noise levels reduced.

September 28, 2009 Driving Complaint Campus Police investigated a driving complaint. The driver of the vehicle was interviewed and warned by Campus Police.

September 29, 2009 Harassment Campus Police investigated a report of criminal harassment. The suspect was interviewed and cautioned by Campus

September 29, 2009 Recovered Bicycle Campus Police recovered an abandoned bicycle on the property.

September 30, 2009 Mischief Under $5000 A computer screen in a computer labhad been vandalized. Investigation continues.

September 30, 2009 Theft Under $5,000 A male reported the theft of his knapsack from the Men’s changeroom at the Athletic Facility.

September 30, 2009 Harassment Campus Police investigated a report of criminal harassment.

Thinking about Teaching?

OISE/UT Initial Teacher Education Info Session Oct. 7th | 1.00-3.00 pm | SE 3130 This session is for students interested in graduate or undergraduate studies in Education.

Sign up online!

For more information & to register for workshops visit www.utm.utoronto.ca/careers

CAREER CENTRE UTM Career Centre | SE 3094 | 905-828-5451 | careers.utm@utoronto.ca | Services offered are for UofT students and alumni only

MONDAY, OCTOBER

5, 2009 THE MEDIUM 3

UTM’S NEW PRINCIPAL NEWS

Ketsana and Pharma slam into the Philippines CAMILLE AMIGLEO

The Erindale Filipino Students’ Association will hold a fundraiser for the victims of tropical storm Ketsana. Located in the CCT building, the fundraiser will start at 10 a.m. and close at 4 p.m. every day from today until Thursday.

EFSA comprises of at least 150 Filipinos from the UTM community.

On September 26, tropical storm Ketsana (locally known as Ondoy) lashed over Metro Manila and its neighbouring provinces, bringing an unparalleled rainfall of 341 millimetres in the first six hours alone, which led to a massive flood.

Almost 300 people have lost their lives. Over 600,000 now depend on donated food, clothing, and beddings. Many are stranded on the rooftops of their homes.

Vehicles got washed away by the waters and piled up as the water rose to past the second floor of victims’ homes. An estimated $110.2 million worth of infrastructure and agriculture were destroyed. In the next few days, the storm killed 14 people in Cambodia, 16 in Laos, and 99 in Vietnam.

As if it wasn't enough, typhoon

Pharma hit part of the Philippines last Saturday,displacing over 6,000 people and killing at least four.

Filipinos have been helping each other, exemplifying bayanihan, which refers to a spirit of collective unity and cooperation. An American blogger who lives in the Philippines commented on the website tumblr that he wished “you could all see the amazing community spirit, charity, and compassion in the Philippines…People

“What characteristics do you want from the next Principal at UTM?”

here have less to give, yet they are giving abundantl.”

Canada, on the other hand, offers to speed up the immigration of Filipinos “directly and significantly” affected by Ketsana who wish to relocate here according to I m m i g r a ti o n M i n i s t e r J a s o n Kenney. Around 330,000 Canadians are ethnically Filipinos who represent Canada’s third largest ethnic minority, according to a 2001 consensus.

“Someone who is person able, that you know on a first name basis.”

Sarah Minhas 4th year Women and Gender studies

“Someone who under stands this is a student insti tution and not a money mak ing corporation”

Khareem Sawwaf 4th year CCIT

“I want someone to address deregulated fees and understand students’ finanical issues” Zaid Zurkiyeh

Bullit Marquez Photo

Town hall for new leadership Experience continued from cover

The petition included support of a principal who will work with UTMSU and other student organizations, help lobby to reduce tuition and ancillary fees for all students, ensure that there is adequate parking space on campus at an affordable rate, prioritize safe study space on campus and reject the adoption of the flat fees tuition scheme. “We’ve got to make a change because whose campus is it? Our campus!” said Santiago.

Vice President Part-Time Affairs Ibrahim Hindy suggested a principal who will go out of their way to get to know students. A Principal who meets with students for two hours a month would be a minimum requirement. “This is the University of Toronto. You demand the most of us as students, and we have the right as students to demand the most of our principal,” said Hindy.

Other expectations voiced by students for the new principal include the expansion of the Student Centre which would incorporate student lounges and study spaces, bringing more equity officers to UTM and sustaining the sense of community felt by many students on campus.

“We will support a principal who will defend the individual rights of students regardless of gender, sexual orientation, marital status, citizenship, and mental and

physical capabilities,” said Henry Ssali, UTMSU Vice President External Former VP External Dhananjai Kohli asked, “How many students would support a 24/5 library?”

Almost every student present in Council Chambers raised their hands in support. Kohli argued that there is a flawed assumption that a lack of interest in the 24/5 library service exists.

“Assuming there’s no change in fees to cover the costs of the library staying open, what services would you cut so the library could stay open after hours?” asked Naylor, suggesting a tradeoff in services would be necessary to keep the library running 24 hours, five days a week. “You’re looking for a principal who will be a heck of a fundraiser,” Naylor joked.

Another pressing issue during the town hall was the lack of parking available on campus. Four hundred parking spots were lost to new constructions taking place on campus. Many students voiced their frustration with the lack of parking spots and the high prices for parking passes. “I don’t get it.

I b u y a p a r k i n g pa ss, but n ot a spot,” said Sunil, a fourth-year UTM student.

Suggestions to the parking dilemma included adding parking spaces at nearby Erindale Park, where a shuttle bus would transfer students to campus.

Currently, the tuition increase is set at 4.5% a year, but with the adoption of flat fees at the St. George campus, student Walied

University service helps students deal with stress Khogali feared an adoption of flat fees would cause a drastic increase to yearly tuition, one that he said many students cannot afford.

Kohli, who utilized used the microphone many times during the meeting, spoke about the upcoming student day of action on November 5. He held a postcard addressed to Premier Dalton Mguinty expressing disapproval of tuition fees and included a plea for all loans to be converted to grants.

Kohli asked, “Would President Naylor and Professor Misak personally sign this postcard and if not, why?”

Both Naylor and Misak declined to add their signatures onto the postcard. “The first problem you have here is basic mathematics.

You're leaving out the other nine provinces as a benchmark. Ontario has a 40% student population,” Naylor said. After explaining the 25% gap of student populations in the remaining nine provinces, Naylor added, “No one enjoys the ritualized warfare that’s involved in the annual debate about tuition There’s a reality check here on how you do advocacy and how you do math.”

Just as the meeting came to an end one student braved the microphone to challenge her peers “Change doesn't happen overnight,” she said before reminding students that if they want a library that is open 24 hours they will have to make sacrifices such as increase of tuition.

Her statement was met with “boos” from the UTMSU .

The Health & Counselling Centre (HCC)is offering weekly workshops to help students cope with stresses faced by university students.

Each workshop tackles a different source of stress - school, exams, family, relationships - and offers students an opportunity to share their concerns with their peers. Facilitators will also provide strategies that students can use to better manage stress. HCC also has advice for overcoming exam stress.

Avoid panic - it's natural to feel

some exam nerves prior to starting the exam, but getting excessively nervous is counterproductive as you will not be able to think as clearly.

Each week, beginning October 7, students can participate in the new weekly workshops from 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. in the South Building, room 3138.

Students are asked to RSVP if they plan on attending to health.utm@utoronto.ca, but dropins are also welcome. Light snacks will also be served.

Ground breaks for new Instructional Centre On October 2, 2009 the Minister of Industry Tony Clement, Harinder Takhar, MPP for MississaugaErindale and Professor Ian Orchard, Vice-President and Principal of U of T Mississauga, celebrated the groundbreaking of

the Instructional and Laboratory Project at the UTM. The project received federal and provincial funding totalling $70 million through the Knowledge Infrastructure Program and Ontario’s 2009 Budget.

Jasmine Alzaiatova Photo

4 THE MEDIUM

OPINION

MONDAY, OCTOBER

5, 2009

to the Editor www.mediumonline.ca

Issues with Sue Johanson ALAIN LATOUR EDITOR IN CHIEF

EDITORIAL

Last week UTMSU representatives met with departing Vice-President Orchard to discuss what they wanted from the next president.

(Predictably, the issue of tuition fees was chief on their list.) VicePresident Part-Time Affairs Ibrahim Hindy suggested a principal who will go out of their way to get to know students, meeting with them for two hours a month as a minimum requirement. “This is the University of Toronto” said Mr. Hindy. “You demand the most of us as students, and we have the right as students to demand the most of our principal.”

Sensible as Mr. Hindy’s suggestion was, it made me think about something apparently unrelated to the topic of tuition fees or even the topic of the next vice-president. It’s the basis of this editorial, and can be summed up as “We have the right to demand the most of ourselves.”

On second thought, make that “We have an obligation to demand the most of ourselves.”

The seed was for this idea was planted one afternoon, two or three years ago, in a Communication, Culture and Information Technology Advisory Board meeting, when a student complained that the CCIT program was not that well-known. This, he argued, meant that he would have a difficult time finding a job when he graduated. Other students nodded their agreement as CCIT professors scribbled notes on their notepads.

When I got home that night, I looked CCIT up in Wikipedia. By then the CCIT program had existed for at least a couple of years. Hundreds of students had learned elements of communication from cyberlaw to web design to the history of radio. Yet none had thought of creating a Wikipedia entry for CCIT. So I did. (Someone has since deleted it.

That’s beside the point, although I do plan on finding out who did and why.)

The idea blossomed further when I heard that Michael Di Leo, The Medium’s arts editor, had failed to find a summer job. Michael could have raged on against the economy and the depression and how bad students have it. Instead, he partnered with a friend to create his own a company – a yacht – and deck cleaning business. Hard work, to be sure. But it made him some money.

The idea finally materialized into a draft for this editorial when I heard about the Erindale Filipino Students’ Association and its initiative to raise money for victims of Hurricane Ketsana. They didn't just sit down and weep for the losses that their countrymen suffered. They did something about it.

I don’t mean to deny that some students may have a hard time paying their tuition fees, or making the most of UTM, or gathering the nerve to knock on the door of a UTM official.

What I am saying is that going through hard times is the point. It’s no picnic having two jobs while going to school full-time, like my sister did last year. It’s not easy to take four courses and a paid internship and work at The Medium, like Saaliha, our news editor. Neither is it pleasant to feel a knot in your stomach every time you get a letter from OSAP, like I do.

What I am saying is that tough times are part of the experience.

Tough times come when you do your best, when you try and beat the odds. Tough times are something that all students should experience.

They teach you what it’s like to work until midnight even though you have an exam next morning. They make you tougher and they make you a better student, and they will pay off when you get that job that you couldn't have gotten otherwise and when you retain that job because you already know what it’s like to work your ass off.

Some students may have legitimate reasons to complain about high tuition fees or about UTM being inaccessible to students. Whatever they are, I do not mean to discredit them – not as long as these students can look at their reflection in their mirror and tell themselves, I did my best and still couldn't succeed. I applied for OSAP but was rejected. I tried – really tried – to find a job or two while I went to school parttome but was unable to. I graduated but couldn’t’t find a job – even though went to the Career Centre workshops and cold-called a bunch of companies and kept going door to door, no matter how many people had slammed them to my face.

I want to understand. And I also want to help. I can help with experience in The Medium. Not much, perhaps. But it’s something. So, email me, or call me. Let’s talk.

Alain Latour

Yours,

Dear Editor,

I attended Sue Johanson's little talk on September 22 and I did not come away from that session any more educated. Sue Johanson is lauded as the premier sex ed counsellor and sex therapist of Canada.

She herself said that she came to us to "fill in the gaps" and teach us things we never learnt in high school sex ed. Her lecture however had many holes in it.

Her talk was not inclusive. She kept saying things like "her boyfriend", and "his girlfriend". I understood right awa y that she had no intention of addressing me as a lesbian. Sue should have used more inclusive terms like partner, spouse and mate. When asked about lesbian sex positions directly in the Q & A portion of the session, Sue first started with a speech about how she doesn’t have time to speak at length about homosexual relationships, so just in our minds replace the appropriate pronouns (i.e. him for gays and her for lesbians) and we would glean what we needed to know. Her answer to the question was that any hetero position would be good for a lesbian couple. But what about tribbing or scissoring? This is a lesbian sex position that was totally neglected

by Sue. Sue talked as if lesbians are only a minuscule percentage of persons who have sex and are not worth talking about. She also talked the same way about gay men.

Sue said that more information could be found on her website regarding homosexuality. When I headed over to talksexwithsue.com to try to "fill in the gaps" from her presentation, I was left disappointed.

The “Homosexuality" page only had obscure facts and myths about gays and lesbians and no real resources such as use of dental dams, which can be used to protect against the transmission of sexually transmitted infections both among homosexual and heterosexual couples.

Sue Johanson's talk was not inclusive, outdated and did not promote a positive space environment.

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THIS ISSUE’S CONTRIBUTORS Katherine Luczynski, Emil Jabbarli, Ovais Shah, Camille Amigleo, Gordon Freeman, Jasmine Alzaiatova, Andrea Beiko, Paola Savasta, Adam Erb, Anam Ali, Brendan Mernagh, Mimi Zalat, Ashlee Ferreira, Sarah Malagerio Bruno, William Robertson

MONDAY, OCTOBER

5, 2009 THE MEDIUM 5

Michael Di Leo, Editor | arts@mediumonline.ca

Making art all nuit long A student’s journey through the real Nuit Blanche GORDON FREEMAN

It is 4 a.m. on a Saturday night.

I’m sitting on a streetcar, surrounded by contortionists.

No, it’s not a dream. I know this because I didn’t wake up when one of the junior members of the troupe accidentally kicked my leg while dislocating her hip. I have been drinking though, which doesn’t help when you’re sitting across from a particularly large, crazed transvestite and I can’t stop staring.

The streetcar is full but stops to pick up more passengers. Three girls get on. I vaguely recognize the blonde in the middle. They pay their fare, and as they walk down the aisle she turns to me, surprised. “Gordon! I thought you went home hours ago?”

It’s Catherine, a sociology major at U of T whom I had met through my friend Kerr earlier that evening. She’s cute in a cookiecutter kind of way, but she has a boyfriend. “What are you doing here?”

“I’m not entirely sure,” I respond. I think I’m looking at art.

About six hours earlier I’m sitting in Kerr’s living room.

“Another beer?” he asks. “No thanks, I have to get to sleep tonight – lots of writing to do tomorrow.” We say our goodbyes to his brothers and make our way into the cold, dark nuit.

We are walking along Parliament Street, in Cabbagetown. We pass a crew of artists hibernating in their homemade nests and some bicycle

fana tics pain ting a long canvas using only their tires. Kerr’s phone rings. It’s Catherine, his friend he had been telling me about earlier. We are supposed to meet her in twenty minutes outside of Hart House. But not before we buy some slushies.

It’s cold but the frozen drinks warm our spirits, this is a night of whim after all. Walking along Carlton Street there is little evidence of a city-wide art festival.

Unless you count the strange, homeless-looking people. In which case there is plenty.

We get to Yonge and still nothing. But on the bright side, the sketchy people who we saw playing dice in the alley have been replaced by hordes of students taking advantage of the all-night free-for-all. “Hey bro, did you see Massey Hall? It was sick!”

It’s easy to tell what all these people have in common. They like the freedom Nuit Blanche offers and are all drunk. “Hurry up,” Kerr yells to me. I’ve fallen behind. As I make my way back up to him I run into Sabrina, an exgirlfriend of mine. She is with her new boyfriend and he is big. She looks worried. Worried that I will make a move on her and her boyfriend will kill me, or that her boyfriend will just kill me. Either way I’m out of luck, so I wave politely and move on.

I catch up to Kerr. We’re at Queen’s Park and by this point have finished our slushies. A woman manning an bejewelled trash compactor asks us for our waste. We hand the plastic cups to her and watch as she gently places them inside the contraption. She

Andrea Beiko/The Medium

This midway ride was one of the exhibits on display at this year’s Nuit Blanche. turns the lever and we hear a scrunching noise. She opens the hatch but the cups are intact.

“Done!” she proclaims. We don’t quite get it, but it was briefly entertaining.

We get to Hart House and meet up with Catherine and her two friends. Introductions all around, and we’re off to see the Blackwood exhibit inside. I notice the Food Jammers, who I’ve watched countless times on television, preparing snow cones from a Ferris wheel.

There were also some video installations which are still on display at the Blackwood Gallery.

We leave Hart House but don’t know where to go next. Catherine and her friends had run off to a frat house, but Kerr and I aren’t as interested. Instead I recall that I’m still in search of writers who can contribute to the arts section tomorrow. After making a round of late-night calls, it seems that no

one is interested. I should go home and write.

On my way through the St. George campus I get a phone call

from another friend, Jason. He asks me to come down to Harbourfront – the lake is amazing at night. “Sorry, but I have to get home and write some th ing.

What were you up to earlier?” “I met up with Claire and Amanda,” he tells me.

“Amanda?”

“Yeah, she’s on Queen West now. Trinity Bellwoods I think.”

With that I was off. I hopped in a cab, paid thirty dollars, and got off near Queen and Shaw. It took a while to find her, but I did. She didn’t realise I had come across town just to say hi. Nor did she realise I came with the intention of seeing her.

We said hi, and just as quickly said our goodbyes. She got a ride home from a friend.

I waited nearly half an hour for the Queen streetcar. It’s 4 a.m. and I had to get home.

Andrea Beiko/The Medium

Sheridan College student Mallory Hazlett performs as part of Art and Art History’s Lights Out! exhibit at the Camera Bar.

Show me the art PAOLA SAVASTA

Andrea Beiko/The Medium

Jeff Koons’ balloon rabbit which he flew over Yonge Street.

I have been up for twenty-six hours straight and have learned that Nuit Blanche not only means “White Night” in French, but also holds a another meaning: “staying up all night to the point of delirium.”

For those of you who still have not checked it out (and for all of you who did), Nuit Blanche is an event where the streets of Toronto are filled with performances, sculptures, installations, music, and anything else remotely artsy.

The Food Jammers created a two by four Ferris Wheel at Hart House as a part of Blackwood Gallery’s Drop Out! exhibition.

Instead of seats the Ferris wheel had blocks of frozen coffee which were scraped from to make coffee

snow cones for curious attendees.

Alison Koboyashi, Emily Gove and Jennie Suddic k hosted Cry School Yearbook just outside of Hart House’s Great Hall, where everyone was invited to make an appointment for a traditional goth or stoner makeover and then photographed in graduation garb as the ultimate high school dropout.

Jeff Koons flew a balloon rabbit over Yonge Street, Monopoly was played with real money at the TSX, Tom Dean slipped me exclusive photography tips (and hot cocoa to the rest of the public) while Jamie Kennedy cooked sausages. Walking paper bags apologized profusely while walking along the corridor of the Liberty Market building as a part of Maria Legault’s Apology Project, and just down the hall one hundred individually recorded and compiled cries were experi-

enced from overhead as a part of Oswaldo Maciá’s Surrounded in Tears.

UTM’s very own Art and Art History program held their own series of individual and collaborative performances called Lights Out! in the entrance window at Camera Bar on Queen West, along with some short films playing in the back theatre. A long list of performers included Diane BeattyWearing, Kyleigh Buryta, Jennifer Chan, Violeta Para D’Moya, Mallory Hazlett, Sebastian Koever, Ryan Lord, Natalie Merrifield, Johnson Ngo, Paola Savasta and Jessica Vallentin.

For more of Nuit Blanche visit our website at ww.mediumonline.ca

6 THE MEDIUM

MONDAY, OCTOBER

5, 2009

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT MUSIC IN BULK

I bet they sound good on the dancefloor British alternative rockers Arctic Monkeys take Toronto by storm in support of their new record NIVES HAJDIN ASSISTANT A&E EDITOR

The Arctic Monkeys are one of those bands that aren’t afraid to speak their minds. Whether they are “slagging off” another band (that’s British for dissing someone) or accepting awards while intoxicated, they never fail to catch the interest of our generation. Yet, the Sheffield quartet seem to have matured a little, as the songs off their third album, Humbug, will surely confirm.

Produced by Josh Homme (Queen’s of the Stone Age), Humbug deviates from the band’s standard electro-pop dance style in

exchange for darker and moodier melodies, a style completely unfamiliar to their fans. Yet the Monkeys were still able to win their fans back over as they played a soldout show at the Kool Haus last Tuesday.

Despite rumours about the possible choice of The Klaxons as the Monkeys’ opening act, many fans were disappointed to find out that it was indeed just speculation. The band’s permanent supporting act for their North American tour was The Like, an all-female group from Southern California. The group has taken lots of heat from Arctic Monkeys fans during the current tour. Their style is nothing like that

arcticmonkeys.com

Arctic Monkeys toured earlier this year in support of their new record Humbug.

of the Monkeys’ and as a result they failed to pump up the crowd sufficiently for the main act.

Despite Elizabeth “Z” Berg’s great style and charming chitchat with members of the audience, the rest of the band seemed amateur, shying away behind their instruments. But the band received praise for songs like “He’s Not a Boy” and “Fair Game.” Though it is possible that the positive reaction from the crowd could have been a result of the illegal substance being passed around all night long.

Even before the Monkeys hit the stage, security guards began pulling people out of the audience after catching them smoking marijuana.

When Alex Turner and the boys finally emerged onto the stage, he was surprised by the rambunctious behaviour of dozens of pot smokers and crowd surfers. “Toronto, you’re mischievous. Naughty, naughty Toronto,” he scolded. Despite all the commotion, the band’s flawless performances perfectly recreated the tracks as they sound on the record.

This flawless recreation caused the performance to become rather flat.

Turner’s replication of lyrics in the exact same pitch and arrangement as the recordings left no room for spontaneity the band could have exercised. Their gusto was evident from the opening track “Dance Little Liar” to the final song of the night, “505,” but their energy was

limited in the performance aspect only – they either forgot or chose not to engage with the crowd on a grand scale.

Regardless, their fans didn’t seem to mind in the slightest. They made up for the band’s lacking connection with the audience by overcompensating – jumping and pushing as close as they could to the stage.

Just over a month since the band’s latest record was released, fans already knew the words to “Crying Lightning” and “Potion Approaching”–and screamed the lyrics even louder to favourites such as “I Bet You Look Good on arcticmonkeys.com the Dancefloor” and Alex Turner rehearses with the rest of the “Brianstorm.” Nevertheless, band. it was difficult to ignore how Turner barely moved around hair and collared shirts. the stage or parted from his guitar – Yet despite all of the changes the he lacked the showmanship that Monkeys’ have undergone, Turner audiences have come to expect of was extremely appreciative of the the band’s front man. support the band received in Perhaps it has something to do Toronto and treated the crowd to with the band’s desire to be taken almost 20 songs over the course of more seriously as musicians, rather the evening. The Arctic Monkeys than goofing off and causing trouble remain one of the best new alternain the press as they had previously tive rock bands of the past few years, done in their adolescence. They drawing comparisons to the like of have certainly adopted a new look: Oasis, not to mention their debut out with the striped cardigans and album becoming was the fastest-sellbowl haircuts, in with the shaggy ing record in UK chart history.

More than just power metal Legendary metal group Stratovarius sits down with The Medium to discuss their new album, touring, and life since they nearly broke up ADAM ERB

Stratovarius is a group some may consider a household name within the metal industry, but to the rest, they’re just another European power metal band. Stratovarius made their debut in 1989 and have since reinvented the progressive and power metal genres. Today,

they focus more on melodies and tempos rather than the more technical style of metal music they first began playing.

Hailing from Finland, Stratovarius have made an enormous impact on the metal industry as a whole, being one of the oldest progressive metal bands alongside Dream Theater and Queensryche. After their self-titled album was released in 2005, they found themselves in financial crisis. Their label had suddenly run out of funding and their lead guitarist and principal songwriter left the group. Since then Stratovarius has been fighting court battles in order to gain funding and to retain rights to their catalog.

Four years later, Stratovarius reinvented themselves with their current album Polaris. The band

Antonia Moreira/The Medium

Stratovarius performs at the Opera House in Toronto last week.

released the album thinking the fans may have been turned off by their 2005 release, which was more mainstream than what they were used to hearing.

Stratovarius was overwhelmed when Polaris was well-received by both fans and critics. The album was both produced and financed by the band themselves.

Though their previous (bankrupt) label released statements detailing the strife between bandmates, the band, according to Stratovarius keyboardist and pianist Jens Johansson, was very happy and productive – their morale and aspirations were stronger than ever.

Johansson describes their sound simply as “heavy music with a melody” Looking at their new album, Strotovarius is best described as a melodic power metal band who put emphasis on melody with a symphonic context. Johansson describes their sound simply as “heavy music with a melody,” which has been their motto since their start in 1984. But their sound has veered at times in other directions ranging from progressive, melodic and power metal.

While the band believes they haven’t remained current with the progressive metal industry, they feel they have kept their sound organic and consistent with when they started. They didn’t want to

Antonio Moreira/The Medium

Keyboardist Jens Johansson on stage. turn too far away from their original design. For example, Johansson uses a DX-7, a very inexpensive keyboard. Stratovarius tends to use the same equipment from the 90’s and the members don’t feel the need to keep up to date with new technology.

At their concert last week at the Opera House, Stratovarius played older hits such as “Eagleheart,” “Black Diamond,” “Hunting High and Low” and “A Million Lightyears Away,” along with some of their newer material. They did not, however, play any songs from their 2005 release.

Heading into the venue, the crowd was clad with both old and new Stratovarius t-shirts. The three opening bands were received

very well, but it was clear that the crowd was restless in anticipation for Stratovarius.

Soon enough, the lights were cut and Stratovarius took off. The entire night was filled with the quick-paced melodies and blasting bass beats – the band’s trademark – which hurled towards the fans like an angry Viking storm.

Altogether, it was a night of symphony, warm melodies, extreme power and a memorable performance by Stratovarius.

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MONDAY, OCTOBER

ARTS DIES AT THE END

5, 2009 THE MEDIUM 7

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Try to guess the ending AMIR AHMED FEATURES EDITOR

“Dave? This is John. Your pimp says bring the heroin shipment tonight or he’ll be forced to stick you. Meet him where we buried the Korean whore.

The one without the goatee.”

So begins the first dialogue of Jason Pargin’s uproariously funny and endlessly addictive novel John Dies at the End. For the curious reader, the dialogue you have just read was code for “meet me tonight.” “Code, you know, in case the phone was bugged,” Wong narrates to the reader.

John Dies at the End is full of energy, unsurprising considering the novel’s beginnings. Pargin originally wrote the story in serial format on the internet,

which forced him to keep every chapter compelling and economic. The story was printed in trade paperback by indie horror publisher Permuted Press in 2005 and has as of September 24 been re-released in hardback by mainstream publisher St. Martin’s Press. Not bad for something spawned on a website called pointlesswasteoftime.com.

Pargin’s novel tells the tale of two friends, David Wong and John “Cheese.” David has something of a past, but he acts as an everyman, winning the reader’s sympathy as the narrator of the story. John is crazy in about every sense of the term.

The setup is almost formulaic, but it works so well it’s unnoticeable. The novel opens with the duo battling an evil spirit with a fourteen-year-old’s sense of humour (a doorknob turns

into a penis – yeah), and continues into an account of how John and Dave fell into their line of work and how they can see things other people can’t.

The story itself is well constructed, with the only downside being that Pargin’s style occasionally heaps on more plot than the reader can chew. Rest assured, it makes sense on the second read and if you are tackling the book for the first time, the humour and horror will keep readers turning pages regardless of whether or not they understand what’s going on.

Reading this book was a pleasure.

Pargin creates prose that works seamlessly, a refinement approaching Stephen King in its economy and voice. He knows which details to bring up, when to do so and how to describe them. Pargin delivers physical sensa-

tions, like the sound of thousands of cockroaches gushing onto a floor, and abstract emotions, like the feeling of losing a loved one to creatures Godzilla wants to be when he grows up. He never dwells too much on a particular scene. This keeps the story moving at a frenetic speed.

Pargin never took an English course, never thought considered writing before he created John Dies at the End and never used any special methods for advertising his novel beyond word of mouth. Most reviewers (especially those with unpublished manuscripts called The Innocent just begging to be released) have every reason to dislike him, but we don’t. John Dies at the End is awesome, and its rumoured sequel, John and Dave and the Fifth Wall, is something to look forward to.

aintitcool.com

Cover of John Dies at the End.

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MONDAY, OCTOBER

5, 2009

Amir Ahmed, Editor | features@mediumonline.ca

ECSperT care in expert hands When the campus police need help, and when the ambulances are too far away, ECSperT fills in the gap

AMIR AHMED FEATURES EDITOR

The Erindale College Special Response Team is a St. John’s ambulance affiliate, run by student volunteers. Its most noticeable service around campus is its on-call first aid support. Several ECSperT members are available during on-call hours in their office in the student centre, and are ready to spring into action if the opportunity arises. ECSperT members also attend campus events where crowds or sporting activities make medical emergencies a possibility.

While St. John’s Ambulance’s Canadian chapter has been around for over two hundred years and the original Order of St. John stretches as far back as the sixteenth century, ECSperT was only established eleven years ago.

It took some time to set up the on-call system, due to the bureaucratic process of both the university and St. John’s Ambulance. But when a math TA died on campus in 2004 with heart trouble due to an overlying medical condition , the process of establishing the oncall service was hastened.

Originally ECSperT was only able to perform on-call aid from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., but thanks to increased volunteerism, they are now able to provide support from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Mondays through Fridays. Divisional Sergeant Willi Chou hopes to push these numbers further and establish a 24/5 on-call service.

The on-call service functions in coordination with campus police and ambulance. If the police find someone in need of medical assistance, 911 is contacted and ECSperT is called in to stabilize the individual. Although the “10 to 10” system is a definite asset,

Chou states that twenty-four hour surveillance, five or seven times a week, would be best.

UTM has a large residence population and limited coverage is a bit like hiding someone behind a curtain – just because you can’t see them doesn’t mean they aren’t there.

Although they have many members, ECSperT needs more volunteers to increase their service hours. “We advertise through Frosh Week and we have our orientation,” said Divisional Training Officer Kimberly Knight.

“We’ve had about thirty interviews so far for membership this year.” But volunteers eventually graduate and a constant flow of volunteers is needed to keep members up.

ECSperT volunteers are divided into two groups based on skill level and experience: observers and medical first responders.

Observers know standard first aid and assist MFRs in emergency situations. MFRs are equipped with advanced training and practical experience in first aid.

“The presence of a first aid support unit on campus is crucial,” said Dasvinder Kampo, divisional staff officer and instructor for the October 3 first-aid class. It takes nine minutes on average for an ambulance to arrive at UTM. It takes four minutes for brain-death to occur. In such a situation, speedy first aid response could be crucial in saving someone’s life.

The UTM campus’s location creates another problem.

Ambulance drivers are only given two addresses for the entire campus – the North and South Buildings. If someone goes into anaphylactic shock in the CCT building, it becomes all the more important for a first aid team able to deliver care and know where the emergency is taking place, and the fastest way to get there.

When asked about the frequency of emergencies, Knight said that emergencies come and go in cycles. “Sometimes we only get

two calls a month, and others we can get as much as several per week.” She also noted that exam times typically heralded more emergencies than usual.

ECSperT fulfils other important functions besides saving lives: they teach others how to. ECSperT as an affiliate of St. John’s Ambulance is certified to teach and license students in first aid.

On October 3 and 4, ECSperT ran a basic first aid course aimed at UTM students. The student fee is $80. Although the cost was $15 cheaper four years ago, administrative expenses per trainee have risen by $50. “You have to give credit to the St. John’s office for the student discount,” Kampo says.

The course was well attended, with some students learning first aid to become observers, some learning for job certification and others who just wanted to give aid when needed. Dasvinder Kampo lead the course, instructing would-be ‘ecsperts’ the first aid mainstays of emergency scene management, abdominal thrusts (also known as the Heimlich Maneuver to our Yankee friends) and CPR. Students were instructed in the different scenarios they may encounter and how to best assist paramedics and other emergency care providers.

The first aid courses hav e an unexpected side effect. “I’ve been in situations where spinal damage is a possibility,” says Dasvinder, “I’ve told these people, ‘don’t move your head!’ and I’ve had them nod ‘okay.’” Needless to say, this is not the best reaction. An understanding of how to help in emergencies can also translate into an understanding of how to be helped. Students attending first aid courses learn that calm from the medical responder and from the injured party is the best approach to emergencies.

Students looking for information on training sessions, events, and volunteerism can be visit ECSpert’s website, http://ecspert.sa.utoronto.ca.

Matthew Fillipowich/The Medium

Top: Dasvinder teaches the Heimlich Maneuver modified for people in a wheelchair.

Bottom: Students practise CPR on training dummies.

UTM Debate Club starts first year ANAM ALI

Which came first? The chicken or the egg?

The question is older than anyone reading this paper and has yet to be answered conclusively. The debates are endless and everyone has their own opinion on the matter (despite the fact that the chicken is the clear answer).

While this particular conundrum isn’t quite worthy of serious

discussion, the questions at the UTM Debate Club are.

In fact, the story of the Debate Club begins with a question far more relevant than the chickenegg debacle. This question was: “Are scientific advances ultimately grown from conflict?”

Suvrat Barar, a social sciences student, argued for conflict.

According to Barar, the advances made during World War II were unparalleled in human history.

Subin Yoo, a forensic biology

student, retorted that the theory of gravity, relativity and calculus – major theoretical advancements –

were all invented in peacetime.

The question remained unsolved and the two of them thought of

creating a debating club.

D e b a t e continued on p a g e 9

WRITE FOR FEATURES Interested in writing and want to see your work published?

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MONDAY, OCTOBER

5, 2009 THE MEDIUM 9

APPS AND ARGUMENTS

FEATURES

iPhone apps: Yes iCan UTM debates BRENDEN MERNAGH WITH NOTES FROM ALAIN LATOUR

Debate continued from page 8

Do you own an iPhone? An iPod, perhaps? If you don’t and you’re thinking about upgrading your MP3 player or phone, these tiny iDevices hold a major advantage over any counterparts that you should consider.

This advantage is the App store.

The App store offers a platform for developers, designers and publishing companies to upload their software online for users to purchase and download onto their iDevices, without the cost and material trappings of information storage devices. You’ve probably seen the commercials for these applications on television, offering services from taxi locaters to advice on how to skin a polar bear.

But why do these apps create such an advantage for the iPhone?

Is the Zune really that bad? Isn’t the iPod just for music and isn’t an iPhone just a phone with a big, friendly touch screen?

Yes and no. While the iPhone and iPod do a great job with their functions, the ability to download apps allows them to become small, cost-effective computers. The iDevices are not limited by conventions of software and are defined by what user want, as opposed to whatever the folks at Apple intended.

gadgetzine.wordpress.com

Dictionary.com’s App

Google Earth’s App

This free app lets you look up definitions and synonyms from Dictionary and Thesaurus.com, reaching into a database of more than 275,000 definitions and 80,000 synonyms to access spelled words, alphabetical indexing, synonyms example sentences, nonstandard uses, word origin and history. It also features audio pronunciations. Best of all (other the price)? You can retrieve information offline, so it can be used even while in the subway.

Had anyone said three years ago that you would soon be able to use Google Earth on a phone, they would have been dismissed as crazy.

Yet here it is – maybe not as fast as the computer version, but even more of a joy to use, thanks to the ability to turn and zoom in and out with your fingers.

Download it for free and check out your home, UTM, or the road ahead –from your pocket.

Aided by mutual friend Agnivesh. Suvrat and Subin set about realising their idea. They received funding from UTMSU this year, which makes their club one of the newest on campus.

The club executives have grand plans despite its recent beginnings.

One of their primary goals is to train a group of talented debaters to participate in competitions and conferences held across Canada and the United States. The most immediate conference that they are preparing for is taking place in January at McGill University in Montreal.

They also hope to gain individuality as a club by organizing debates between other clubs and academic societies. The club executives hope

that these debates will address topics a bit more sophisticated than deciding which academic groups can drink more, which has too often been a part of inter-academic debates.

In addition to these plans, the club is working on a professor-student debate for October as well as a grand social for November. By January, the club hopes to send a group of qualifying students to the McGill Winter Fair for a debate conference. Suvrat and her cohorts also plan to have general debates on Mondays and Thursdays beginning in October.

To contact the UTMDBC about debate timings, or argue about whether the “B� belongs in their acronym, email utmdbc@gmail.com or check out their blog at www.utmdebatingclub.wordpress. com.

There is a huge range of available programs. The App store houses over 85,000 apps. Even if you don’t run out to get an iPhone after this article. T he two apps listed below, will at least show what these tiny machines are capable of.

While the apps here, and the others offered on iTunes either for free and for a fee, can be incredibly cool, they also hint at something more. Like it or loathe it, the App store is a sign of the future. The transmission of media, be it music or movies, is bound to become a gigantic online transac-

tion. For decades publishers and developers have been limited by the material costs of products. In an online world, the middleman of discs and memory devices as an instrument of data transmission can be cut out. The iTunes music store is already the top-selling music distributor in the world and it offers a cheaper, more efficient buying experience.

A $300 Blu-ray player or a download from Xbox live? The choice is clear, the way is certain, and the potential offered by the iProducts and their associated applications are undeniable.

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10 THE MEDIUM MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2009

FEATURES CHINESE WOOD

Creative Corner

Knock, knock on wood MIMI ZALAT

In many stories that involve illfated occurrences, the teller often places the blame on the same, ageless culprit that has been deemed responsible for many of the world’s most unfortunate incidents: poor, crabby, old man Luck.

A s a n a g i n g f el l o w w i t h a hunched back and shoulders that get heavier with the weight of each passing year, Luck roams around streets, looking for something to do. Despite what people may think, Luck quite enjoys helping people.

He takes pleasure in walking into a grocery store where a poor man is buying a lottery ticket and helping him pick the winning numbers. He helps the unfortunate by walking into a dark alley where a young girl had wandered, and shutting the eyes of the drunken man near her so that she makes her way out safely.

Every day, old man Luck continues to journey from city to city, from neighborhood to neighborhood, always ready to help someone,, until one day he begins to h e a r a n g r y vo i c e s c o mi n g f r o m every home, each blaming various situations on him. “Stupid Bad Luck!� Luck hears them say. He becomes cranky when they do that.

Irritated, he strolls around again, but this time for a different purpose.

When Luck becomes grumpy, he turns into an unstoppable force and knocks over everything in sight. He can make children’s lunch money slide out of the holes in their back pockets as they skip their way to school, or force students to forget the answer to an important question on their final exam.

Even worse, bad-tempered Luck creates physical injuries. He could make a construction worker tumble off the top of a slippery ladder to

his death, , distract a man from the pedestrian ahead of him by persuading the driver to talk on his phone or push two speeding cars together, creating an accident that hurts everyone involved.

One question, how ever, still taunted me.

What should one do if no wood is around?

Apparently, when Luck grows really grouchy, he takes his place among people in a conversation and waits patiently for one to speak of a person or an object that they hold dear to them. No sooner do the words hit the air does Luck angrily leeches on and twists and twirls them so that if the words were a wish, they become a fear, and if they were a fear, they turn into reali t y . H e d oe s n o t s t o p u n t i l t h e speaker’s worst terrors have been met – until they miserably wish

Your new girlfriend ASHLEE FERREIRA

“It’s nice to meet you,� I would say and she’d Reply the same. But I’d prefer to tell Her how you were before we met. I’d just Make sure she is aware of all my work In making you the man you are today.

No mushy stuff. I take no credit for Your heart and mind. We split up because Those sucked and, yeah, that’s still the case. So take A set, new girl, ‘cause this may take a while: His bad eyebrows and hairy back, his acid wash And ‘vintage’ tees, his stupid hair and dirty Nails, he slurped his soup and flailed his arms And, by the way, he snored. And all these changed Because of me. For many years I screamed And nagged and here’s the end result. Now, I’m Not bitter of jealous. I simply want Some recognition...

You’re welcome.

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they had never uttered the words in the first place.

Lucky for me, my friend Rana seems to have found the solution to the latter issue.

According to Rana, a spell of bad luck can be easily thwarted through a foolproof method. Upon talking about something that one wishes to protect from Bad Luck, all they have to do is find a wooden surface and rap their knuckles on it a few times. “It comes from an ancient belief,�

Rana once told me. “See, back then, people used to believe that trees had good spirits. So, they would knock on them to tap into their spirit.

Search it if you don’t believe me.�

I decided to take her advice.

After navigating my way through web pages filled with people asking the same question, I landed on an article written by journalist Angela R u s s e l l . I n h e r a r t i c l e, R u s s e l l explained that although the origin of the superstition isn’t known,

there are several possibilities. One of them is similar to Rana’s advice: tapping on wood allows one to share the tree’s sacred spirits and protect oneself from Bad Luck.

The Irish, however, have a slightly different account. They believe that by knocking on wood, one would alert the leprechauns within that they were thanking them for their good luck.

In North America, some think that knocking on wood prevents the devil from hearing what was said, thus preventing him from taking action. Others believe that the act comes from a Christian belief that the wood represents the wood Jesus Christ was crucified on.

And across the world, the stories vary.

One question, however, still taunted me. What should one do if no wood is around? “Knock on your head,� Rana suggests. “It’s probably just as hollow.�

La cuisine chinoise ALAIN LATOUR

Paris in the summer was beautiful.

P a r i s w a s l i fe a f t e r o p p r e s s i o n .

Paris was food, except I barely ate any. But I smelled it, and I saw it, and in Paris that amounts to a lot.

Fresh out of Cuba, broke and with only a temporary residence permit, I could afford neither hotel nor restaurant. I didn't have to worry about the hotel: my ex's grandmother had lent me a small studio in the 7th Arrondissement.

But food was a different matter.

I skipped breakfast my first day in Paris. I was too worried about money. The second day I discovered an electric kettle and tea bags in a drawer in the nightstand, so I made myself a cup of tea. That was my breakfast every day I spent in Paris—a far cry from my usual coffee and toast and jam.

For the rest of my meals, I drank a lot of water and ate once a day, at around five, at a Chinese cafeteria not two blocks away from the studio. Sometimes, when I'd trekked too many kilometres, the hunger became unbearable and I had to eat earlier. I tried to avoid that, though, because it meant the hunger would return in the early evening, not to let go until I finally fell asleep.

In the Chinese cafeteria I never quite knew what I was eating. The owner spoke French with such a heavy Chinese accent (or perhaps it was Chinese with a French accent) that I had to resort to pointing to the mounds of steaming noodles and chopped something or the other that lay behind the glass counter. Chinese food may not the first the first thing to pop in people’s minds when they think about eating in the City of Lights, but it was cheap and filling and tasted alright, so I didn’t mind. At least not initially, not when I was tasting the sweet taste of freedom and roaming the cobbled Parisian streets, ogling at women who knew how to be both sexy and classy, smiling every time I caught a glimpse of the Eiffel tower, and wondering, with a mix

of hope and fear, whether I could one day become that elegant man wearing a driving cap, sitting at a table in a cafĂŠ, dribbling away in a notebook, much like Hemingway must have done in the 1920s as he wrote “A Moveable Feast.â€?

But in Paris it was hard to resist the food. When it came to food, temptation lurked everywhere. It lurked in the patios brimming with Parisians and tourists feasting upon crispy roast chicken or charred steak and drinking wine and shoving their spoons into their crème brÝlÊe, amid the clatter of cutlery and dishes and the waiters gliding around. It lurked in the cafÊs where people sipped beer and citron pressÊ and cafÊ au lait, and it lurked in the small boulangeries where early risers stood in line every morning before breakfast, patiently waiting for the fresh warm baguettes and croissants whose aroma spread for blocks like the ocean breeze. This city told you, every single step of the way, that it was the perfect place to rediscover the pleasure of food, money be damned. Eat only Chinese food in Paris, I promptly discovered, and you might as well not have gone to Paris.

And so it was that one sunny afternoon I found myself standing in front of a busy restaurant a few blocks away from the studio. I’d walked past this restaurant every day, and after reading the menu du jour scribbled with chalk onto a blackboard, a studied casual air on my face, I knew it was—barely—within my limits.

I counted, once again, the bills in my pocket—a sad amount. I conveniently forgot about my family, who waited for me in Spain, and about the rent that I knew I’d have to pay if I returned to them. I forgot about the astronomic tuition fees that I’d have to fork over if I was granted the visa for UTM, and I felt myself march into the busy restaurant, where I startled the first waiter I saw with an energetic, “Une table pour un, s’il vous plaĂŽt.â€?

A table for one.

MONDAY, OCTOBER

5, 2009 THE MEDIUM 11

Andrew Tysiak , Editor | sports@mediumonline.ca

UTM Eagles tie UTSC in women’s intramural soccer season opener SARAH MALAGERIO BRUNO

UTM Eagles Women’s Division 1 Intramural soccer team tied Scarborough campus 2-2 on September 27 during the first match of the season.

UTM led UTSC 2-0 at the half and held off conceding goals to the Scarborough team until late in the second half. “[It was a] good game on Sunday,” said coach Rob Brown. “We were unlucky not to do better.”

Brown led the UTM women’s team to a first place finish in 2008, when UTM faced off against Scarborough in the finals, winning 2-1.

The 2008 victory marked the first time since 1995 that the Eagles took home a first place finish in women’s Division 1 outdoor soccer.

The UTM Eagles plan on making the victory a reoccurring event.

With over half of the championship team returning this year, the focus in 2009 is to integrate new players into key positions and to maintain cohesion.

“We need to work on our fitness, but it’s only the beginning of the season, so it will come,” said newcomer defender Mara Piotto. “We need to keep practicing, to learn how to play with one another.”

The team holds mandatory practices on Wednesday nights, focusing on

conditioning and developing structural plays that span over the perimeter of the field.

The 2009 UTM team has access to a larger concentrated core of players that come from high-level, competitive backgrounds.

“I think that this year we're playing more as a team,” said returning midfielder Amanda Giatti. “There’s more talking on the field and we've improved on our passing. It’s much easier to switch the field and get the ball to open players.”

Star forwards Ariana Lloyd and Nicole DiNardo benefited greatly from the improved passing. As top-scorers in the 2008 season, the pair continues to send rapid-fire strikes on their opponents. In the first game, Lloyd and DiNardo piled up double-digit shotson-net.

UTM outshot Scarborough and held possession of the ball for the majority of Sunday’s game.

Midfielder Nadia Piotto, who brings OYSL experience to the field, scored UTM’s first goal in the fifteenth minute of the game. The play saw Piotto receive a pass from returning midfielder Sarah Bruno. Piotto immediately sent a powerful strike from a step outside the 18-yard box straight into the UTSC net. “[That was] the highlight of the game for me, to see my older sister

Sarah Malagerio Bruno/The Medium

UTM Eagles (white) battle UTSC (red) for possession during their opening match on September 27 in a 2 2 draw. scoring the first goal of the season!” said Mara Piotto.

Returning midfielder Amanda Giatti scored UTM’s second goal at the twenty-fifth minute. Giatti put an end to a UTSC pass when she rushed the UTSC goalie. The play caused UTSC to panic and lose control of the ball, which Giatti quickly took control of. The

UTM midfielder then sent a shot straight past the UTSC goalie and into the bottom left corner of the net. “[I] saw the net and thought, ‘I have to score.'It was just me and the goalie.

When the goalie messed up, I saw the opportunity and took it instead of stopping when she ran at the ball.”

While the team has room to develop,

its members say they work and play well together.

“We all fit well as a team. We have all the pieces of the puzzle, but we can still work on finishing,” said Piotto.

The #1 ranked women’s team played their second match of the season yesterday at 1 p.m. at the North Field.

Majors outlast rival Battalion in home opener A hard fought battle ends in Majors shootout victory, pushing their record to 3 2 0 0

ANDREW TYSIAK SPORTS EDITOR

After going on a 2-2 road trip to begin the season, the Mississauga Majors had their home opener at the Hersey Centre Friday night against next door rivals, the Brampton Battalion.

With 3,456 people in attendance, the atmosphere at the Hershey Centre was full of excitement and energy from start to finish. Fans were anxious to see the 2009/10 edition of the Majors hit the ice. Characterized by physical play, grittiness and high intensity, the Majors did not disappoint their fans, grinding out a 3-2 shootout victory.

With the Friday game making it the second time this premature season they have defeated the Battalion, the Majors have paid back their rivals for eliminating them from the playoffs last year in six games during second-round action.

The Majors used the centre’s lively atmosphere to their advantage early on, dominating the Battalion with their physical play. Majors forward Devante Smith-Pelley set the tempo

for the game with several bone-crushing hits on various Battalion victims during the early stages of the first period.

It was 12:20 into the first period when a team finally hit the scoreboard.

After Battalion defensemen and Anaheim Ducks draft pick Matt Clark took a lackluster hooking penalty, the Majors capitalized on the subsequent power play as forward Casey Cizikas tipped in the first goal amidst heavy traffic around the Battalion net. UTM student Cameron Gaunce and leftwinger William Wallén collected the assists.

Just as it seemed like the Majors had control of the game, the Battalion retaliated with a momentum-changing goal by forward Sean Jones with less than two minutes left in the first period.

Despite being outplayed, outchanced and outshot 16-10 in the opening frame, the Battalion were able to build on that inspiring goal by Jones and carry their sudden burst of energy into the second period.

Anyone who ever doubted that these two teams are true rivals was soon proven wrong. During a vicious period of play, three fights broke up, one occurring just 22 seconds into the frame between Majors defensemen David Corrente and Battalion forward

Phillip Lane.

Despite the sudden resurgence of energy coursing through the Hersey Centre after Corrente’s impressive bout, the Battalion soon played spoilers again as Lane got his revenge, scoring his second goal of the season just shortly after leaving the penalty box at 7:22 into the period.

As both goalies stood their ground for the remainder of the frame, the tide seemed to have shifted as the Majors now faced losing 2-1 heading into the third and final period of regulation.

Despite the odds, the hockey gods seemed to be in favor of the home team this evening. The Majors ended up tying the game and going into overtime with a rather lucky chain of events.

As the Majors supplied offensive pressure early in the third, a shot was sent high and banked off the glass directly behind the net. Rather than deflecting into the corner or out of play, the puck bounced directly in front of Battalion goalie Patrick Killeen. The persistent Majors forwards quickly noticed this occurrence and eventually right-winger Ryan Lopes slammed it past the surprised Battalion goaltender to even the game at 2-2.

Despite a slashing penalty by

Matthew Filipowich/The Medium

Majors forward Casey Cizikas taps in the first goal of the game 12:20 into the first period.

Although both teams did not Battallion forward Sam Carrick and outshooting their opponents 7-0 dur- appear to be at their sharpest, they bating overtime, the Majors were unable tled hard and put on a show for both to capitalize as Killeen played solid and Majors and Battalion fans in attenmade some key saves, stopping a total dance, making it an ideal game for a of 40 shots that night. Majors’ goalie home opener.

The three stars of the game were Chris Carrozzi also impressed with a Wallén of the Majors, Cameron total of 34 saves on the night.

The shootout saw a reoccurrence of Gaunce of the Majors, and Killeen of impressive goaltending and missed the Battallion. opportunities as there was only one The Mississauga Majors’ next home goal scored between the two teams. game is on Sunday October 4 against Fortunately for the home team, it was the Barrie Colts. For information on forward William Wallén who potted Majors individual and season tickets the lone goal for the Majors in the for 2009-10, visit the Majors website or shootout with a nifty move to earn the call the Majors ticket line at 905-502team their third victory this season.

7788.

12 THE MEDIUM MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2009

SPORTS RANKINGS AND PREDICTIONS

NHL 2009/10 regular season: Eastern Conference predictions WILLIAM ROBERTSON

With the regular season having just begun, there are many predictions. One thing is certain: as soon as the puck drops on opening day, the Eastern Conference is going to be fast and furious. Teams will need every point possible to make the playoffs.

The defending Cup Champs should lock up first place with ease in the East.

The young guns of Pittsburgh are still together and do not show any signs of slowing down. Marc Andre-Fleury is coming off one of his most impressive seasons to date and should be one of the top backstops in the league this year after a solid playoffs. Jordan Staal will continue his strong two-way play and help Fleury on the defensive end.

On offence, Sidney Crosby is due for another 100-point season. He is only surpassed by Evgeni Malkin, who will lead the league in scoring for the second consecutive season. Jordan Staal will continue his strong two-way play.

Together, they should easily secure the first seed in the East.

Fellow Russian Alexander Ovechkin should lead the league in goals this year.

His performance on ice and passion to win will take the Caps to the playoffs.

With rookie goaltender Semyon Varlamov battling for the number one spot with Jose Theodore, the goaltending on the Capitals is not a concern this

season. Varlamov had an outstanding playoffs; he's expected to start more games than Theodore. They have good goaltending and clear scoring prowess; expect their team to finish second easily.

On the other hand, Boston will struggle but secure third seed with a division win in the Northeast. In the off-season, they traded Phil Kessel but acquired Michael Ryder to play with Marc Savard. Their defence will be physical with Zdeno Chara and Dennis Wideman expected to lead the way on the back end. In net, Tim Thomas proved he was NHL-worthy last year and will now lead the Bruins to a third seed.

Fourth seed is more difficult to predict but should be taken by Philadelphia.

The resurgence of Chris Pronger and Ray Emery will revive the Flyers and give them much needed physicality on the blue line. They will also have great scoring from a recovered Simon Gagne. This team will strike fear into the league with their snipers taking the advantage with many counter attacking goals.

Right behind them in fifth should be the Montreal Canadiens. They added several new faces to the team in the offseason. After losing Captain Saku Koivu and sniper Alexei Kovalev, they added Scott Gomez along with Mike Cammalleri for a much needed offensive boost. These players add scoring depth and leadership on the ice but the

defence is expected to be inconsistent.

Carey Price, however, should have the best season of his career and will help bail the defence. With Price, the Canadiens should finish fifth.

Right on their heels are the Buffalo Sabres, a team to watch out for this season. Ryan Miller will be solid in between the pipes again. Thomas Vanek was a disappointment last season, but aims to turn his fortune around this season. Look for at least seventy points from Vanek and sixty from team-mate Jason Pominville. They have a solid powerplay and a decent penalty kill.I If they stay out of the box, they should squeak in the playoffs in the sixth spot.

The penalty kill of the New Jersey Devils will be exceptional this season because of Martin Brodeur. He has backstopped the team to the playoffs numerous times and should do so again this season. Scoring was an issue last season for the Devils and continues to be problematic as they lost Brian Gionta in the offseason to free agency.

However, leading scorer Zach Parise is still in red and needs another stellar season of at least eighty points in order for this team to make the playoffs.

If Brodeur and Parise manage to stay in good shape, they will make the seventh spot. That leaves the final playoff spot to be battled for by Carolina and the Maple Leafs. Cam Ward and Eric Staal must carry the team again this season for a chance at making the playoffs.

endlesssummerbeauty.com

Expect Sidney Crosby and the rest of his Pittsburgh Penguins to secure top seed in the Eastern Conference this season.

If one of them misses any action due to an injury, a shaky defence and mediocre second powerplay unit that falters down the stretch will shatter their playoffs dream.

This leaves the window open to the Maple Leafs. They acquired big names such as Mike Komisarek and Phil Kessel, adding a much needed offence, physicality and solid defence. Despite a bad pre-season, Vesa Toskala will be solid this year in net. The Maple Leafs have much better powerplay and they will fight for the eighth seed.

Also expecting to battle for a playoff spot are the Islanders. They acquired John Tavares through the draft and managed to sign goaltender Martin Biron. However, this team is still too weak to compete for a spot in the postseason. Along with the Isles; the Senators, Thrashers and Lightning will miss the playoffs this season as scoring and goaltending will falter down the stretch.

One thing is certain: this season will prove to be most exciting for the Eastern Conference.

DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION FALL EMPLOYMENT OSAP eligible UTM students are welcome to apply for one or more of our Work Study positions:

Tournament Coordinator League Commissioners Web/Marketing Assistant Program Assistants Facility Admin. Assistant Complete job descriptions and more details will be posted on-line with the Career Centre.

Resumes and cover letters can be dropped off at the program office

Officials/Timers/Scorers Needed: All UTM students are eligible to apply for officiating/timing/scoring positions in our Campus Rec Intramural Program.

Contact Jack Krist at j.Krist@utoronto.ca

OTHER ACTIVITIES ALSO AVAILABLE Functional Intensity Training (F.I.T) This high intensity training is designed to enhance an individual competency at all physical tasks. Improves overall coordination.

Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays from 5pm - 6pm or 6pm - 7pm. 5, 10 and full term packages available.

UTM Olympic Weight Lifting Club (New Members Welcome!)

Stop by the High Performance Centre weeknights between 7pm and 10pm for more information about this style of training.

Do you enjoy Dancing?

Hop and Latin Dance classes here at UTM. Pick up a copy of our Activity Guide for more details.

Martial Arts/Yoga Stay in shape by enrolling in one of our Martial Arts Instructional Courses.

Choose from Aikido, Judo and Karate.

Sign-up for one term or two! class. Perfect for winding down!