December 3rd 2009

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Shad

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Cross country

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New motions adopted at CFS AGM

Dec. 3 - 9, 2009

www.theontarion.ca

Gryphons suffer first home loss Triple Gulp features 16 artists

NICOLE ELSASSER

ZACK MACRAE

Last week, several Central Student Association (CSA) executives from the University of Guelph journeyed to Ottawa for the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) Annual General Meeting (AGM).

The meeting was expected to be contentious, as several Canadian Universities, including the University of Guelph, have already submitted petitions to the CFS requesting a referendum be held on campuses asking student to consider continued membership with the organization.

Galen Fick, the Local Affairs Commissioner for the CSA, explained that the meeting was fairly tense due to recent developments with respect to the organization.

“There was two factions that were pretty entrenched in some things,” said Fick. “There was a group of delegates that were feeling dissatisfied or disenfranchised about some things…the flip-side of that is that there was a lot of delegates that felt that they identified strongly with what the CFS was and felt that that idea was under attack…it was very much a one side or the other side.”

This one side or the other side idea was very apparent specifically in relation to a motion put forward by the Carlton Graduate Association, according to CSA. The movement specified a change in CFS-bylaws with respect to how students organizers are able to hold a referendum; it moved to change the number of signatures on a petition requesting referendum from 10 per cent of the student population to 20 per cent. It also moved to enforce a five year period between referendum’s on any one campus, and stipulated that only two universities could hold a referendum in any three month period.

Fick explained that while the motion did get passed, the members of the University of Guelph delegates voted against the motion.

“The really big concerns for

Throughout the semester, the Ontarion has devoted space every week to covering emerging artists that are practicing right here on campus. We feature much of the work by artists from specialized studio practices who are constantly learning, progressing and asserting their own distinct style or aesthetic.

The class of 16 features a hugely diverse body of work with the talent and intent to back it up.

Showing all week long, with the opening reception tonight at 6:30pm is the specialized class’ collaborative show, Triple Gulp. The name alludes to the pressure put on the students by a demanding semester and crediting system, with professors telling the students that every week of class is weighted as if it were three weeks of class. Intense? I think so.

>

SEE “CFS AGM”, PAGE 3

>

SEE “SPECIALIZED”, PAGE 4

the issues this week

Rashaad Bhamjee

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Andrew Bartram, a fourth-year rightside, seals a block at the net in Saturday’s loss to Western, the Gryphons first home court defeat of the year.

Don’t be such a stress ball “Stress Less for Tests” gives tips for dealing with stress NICOLE ELSASSER Like many other students, Pam Martin was dealing with end of semester stress. It was the kind of anxiety all too familiar to university students. As exams approached quickly, Martin, a fourth year Arts and Science student at the University of Guelph, was forced to change gears as her workload got more difficult to maintain.

“I think it’s the same for everyone at this time of the year,” said Martin. “It’s just a time when you need to be really careful how you take care of yourself or else the stress will just be too, too much.”

According to Kathy Somers, the organizer of a stress management program on campus, this is one

of the most important ideas that is emphasized in the workshops she offers through Health and Performance. The program- which originally was a research project but due to avid interest evolved into a regularly offered campus program- is generally a semester long process whereby skills for dealing with school-related stress are taught and practiced by participants over the months.

“These are skill oriented programs [and] it takes practice over time,” said Somers. “That means that we will start at the beginning of the semester with the programs that will have the best chance of building really strong skills…The one I was running this semester was called “Stress Less for Tests” so the name says right there, it’s about test anxiety and performing better on exams.”

While the “Stress Less for Tests”

program for the Fall semester is drawing to a close, Somers pointed to some key ideas that are discussed in the program that could assist students in managing stress levels during exams.

“Many students just don’t realize how just looking after your body can be so helpful at this time in the semester,” said Somers.

“They might think they have no time to do anything but study and work but if they do make sure that they’re getting adequate sleep, if they’re eating nutritious meals… [and] don’t have any escalation of caffeine and alcohol… these kind of things will help keep our anxiety levels down and put some balance in our life.”

This is exactly what Martin tries to do, especially when school gets particularly busy. >

SEE “MANAGING”, PAGE 3

CSA

FOOD BANK HOME

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THE ONTARION

NEWS

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U of G launches sustainability website

Humane society: “It seems like a house of horrors”

New site designed to highlight the school’s efforts to ‘go greener’ FRASER PENNIE Last week the Council of Ontario Universities (COU) released an online report outlining the environmental efforts of 22 Ontario Universities, including the University of Guelph. The COU report, Ontario Universities: Going Greener, discusses nine project areas dedicated to ‘going greener.’

These areas include environmental research; curriculum based initiatives, recycling and waste management and transportation.

In conjunction with this report, U of G launched a new website, www.uoguelph.ca/sustainability, outlining the school’s efforts to reduce its ecological footprint. “The website attempts to take a present day snap shot of everything we’ve got going on about going green and moving forward on sustainability,” says Gillian Maurice, the U of G Sustainability Co-coordinator.

Website highlights include water management and energy conservation initiatives designed to cut back on resource consumption.

According to the site, large scale water-retrofits of 17 campus buildings and use of chilled water air conditioning systems have contributed to the reduction of water consumption by 21 per cent between 2004 and 2008. As part of a $5 million student funded Energy Conservation Initiative, the lights

Courtesy

The renovation of the Axelrod building is one aspeect of the University of Guelph’s “greener” plan. in the McLaughlin Library were replaced to curb consumption. The University Centre is set to undergo the same upgrade.

To facilitate eco-research, the Axelrod building is set to receive major re-constructive surgery, transforming it into an environmental science teaching and research centre.

A $33.6 million investment granted by the federal and provincial governments will be used to ensure that the building is a state of the art research facility. The project is also set to exceed energy efficiency standards by 25 per cent. The research facility will be home to the School of Environmental Sciences, Ontario Agricultural College, and the School of Engineering.

Eco-friendly transport initiatives are also at the forefront of the administration’s sustainability

efforts. To encourage usage, the school renovated the bus depot in the front of the University Centre, making it more user friendly.

On campus, light walk ways; security posts and over 1,200 bike racks are intended to persuade people to leave their cars at home.

Furthermore, as a part of Hospitality Services’ Local Sustainability Plan, the school’s main food supplier has committed to buy local, Ontario products, including fresh produce, dairy products, and various meats. Their target is to purchase 40 per cent of their food locally.

The Sustainability website also highlights the impact of studentled projects, applauding Guelph Students for Environmental Change (GSEC) and the Residence Sustainability Challenge (RSC)

Managing stress at exam time <

<

“I usually try to eat healthy food but I am more conscious of it during exams,” said Martin. “I also started taking yoga because the breathing techniques come in handy when I feel anxious about things.”

According to Somers, taking care of one’s body is indeed not the only thing that can help manage stress.

Instead of saying ‘what if ’ it is better to say ‘What can I do to get as much as possible done starting with the most important things first?

Kathy Somers

organizer, “Less Stress for Tests” Sanja Gjanero

“You don’t want to be studying, studying, studying because that will increase our risk of burnout and our retention levels really go down, down, down,” said Somers.

“It’s just not sustainable to do that for the end of the semester and into a long exam period.”

Somers explained that when it comes to dealing with stress, many people have what she calls “a tyrant” and “a terrorist” living

for encouraging the students to ‘go greener.’

According to RSC cocoordinator Hilary Coburn, RSC is a friendly competition held between each section in residence. “The goal is to reduce residence student’s ecological footprints and promote more sustainable living,” says Coburn. “Our vision is to create a culture of environmental awareness and sustainability.”

For Coburn, institutionalized reforms are important, but are not enough.

“Change from the bottom up is crucial,” says Coburn, “Encouraging students in residence to make responsible, environmentallyconscious choices has implications for their future years as University of Guelph students, and inevitably their life choices there after.”

CFS AGM

CONTINUED FROM COVER

Managing exam stress may seem an impossibility but Kathy Somers, from the “Stress Less for Tests” program says taking care of your body can go a long way. in their head. She illustrated this idea by explaining that the tyrant is the ‘I have to do it all!’ impulse and the terrorist causes a person to ask the big catastrophic “What if ” questions at the least opportune moments.

“We will not be able to get 85

things done in a day so what would be the 20 things or 10 things that you could get done today,” said Somers. “Instead of saying ‘what if ’ it is better to say ‘What can I do to get as much as possible done starting with the most important things first?’”

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CONTINUED FROM COVER

our delegation was the only two referendums in any three month period because when you look at the way that the bylaws are set out…there’s fairly short time frames that you can have each step of the process,” said Fick.

While it was speculated that this motion was put forward to limit the abilities of student organizers to hold referendums and to stabilize the CFS organization as a whole, Nathan Lachowsky, the CSA Academic Commissioner, suggested that it might be a reaction to the many petitions the CFS has received from various universities.

“Being reactionary in this method, isn’t actually addressing the concerns and if the reason that these schools are leaving is because they have concerns with what CFS is doing…changing bylaws around the referendum process is not addressing proactively or reactively these issues,” said Lachowsky.

“People seemed more interested to talk about CFS and the maintenance of the organization and not issues that are effecting students.”

According to the members of the CSA executive, it is unlikely that the motion will affect petitions already filed with the CFS.

Members of the OSPCA raided the Toronto Humane Society last Thursday, finding many of the animals in worse than poor condition. Since their raid, five animals including a puppy and two cats have been euthanized.

A tip led the investigators to remove a ceiling panel, finding the body of a cat which physical evidence showed recently died in a trap. One participant in the raid referred to the building as a “house of horrors.” The society is closed “indefinitely” for investigation.

Humane Society employees say a large part of the problem comes from understaffing. (Toronto Star)

Tiger Woods cancels tournament appearance Tiger Woods was forced to cancel an appearance at his own tournament in California recently, after sustaining minor injuries in a car crash outside his home in Orlando, Florida. Woods has offered no insight on his website into what exactly happened. A police report states that Woods pulled out of his driveway at 2:25 am in his Cadillac Escalade, and subsequently struck a fire hydrant and tree. It was reported that Wood’s wife smashed the back window of the vehicle to free her husband. (CNN)

Matt Morison: carving a reputation in snow Matt Morison, 22, a former student of Ontario’s Courtice High School was interviewed last week about his ambitions for this year’s Olympic games in Vancouver. He’ll be competing for Canada as a snowboarder in the Alpine racing sector. Matt’s growing popularity and charming personality have allowed him to grace the cover of “Vancouver 2010,” the Olympics official video game. (newsdurhamregion.com)

Ryerson and Loblaws make a deal for Maple Leaf Gardens The historic Maple Leaf Gardens is rumorued to become a grocery store. The federal government is contributing $20 million to help Loblaws and Ryerson University turn the building into a student athletic center and supermarket.

The cost of this makeover will be approximately $60 million, one third of which will paid by students themselves. Students agreed to a $126 increase in student fees to construct a new athletic center in a referendum. There is talk that some of the traditional value of the building will be preserved, and skating will return again. (Toronto Star) Compiled by Josh Doyle

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DEC. 3 - 9 , 2009

NEWS

THEONTARION.CA

Departments across campus “Fill the Box” The CSA Food Bank runs their first campuswide campaign to prepare for winter need

more of giving back to the community. The [food] from Trick or Eat…goes to the Guelph

Usually a lot of our campaigns have been about awareness; awareness of student hunger and that kind of thing. This is a little bit different. It’s more getting awareness for our program but at the same time getting donations for the students that we serve…[and] everyone’s involved.

Krista Kermer

NICOLE ELSASSER For the first time, the Central Student Association (CSA) Food Bank at the University of Guelph is running a campus-wide winter food drive called Fill the Box, with all food collected going directly to U of G students who need it.

The Fill the Box campaign, which is running from Nov. 23 to Dec. 12, involves a number of different departments having collection boxes in prominent locations so that they can be easily filled with non-perishable donations.

Krista Kermer, the CSA Food Bank Program Coordinator, pointed to the uniqueness of the campaign as the reason why there has been an enthusiastic response from departments around campus. She explained that as well as academic departments participating, the CSA Food Bank has involved the Interhall Council and the on-campus residences in the food drive as well.

“It’s the first time we’ve ever embarked on something like this,” said Kermer. “Usually a lot of our campaigns have been about

program coordinator, CSA Food BAnk

Rashaad Bhamjee

The CSA Food Bank’s winter “Fill the Box” food drive is the first to include the whole campus and to benefit the university food bank, exclusively. awareness; awareness of student hunger and that kind of thing. This is a little bit different. It’s more getting awareness for our program but at the same time getting donations for the students that we serve…[and] everyone’s involved.”

The significance of this

particular campaign is that all of the non-perishable food collected will go directly to the CSA Food Bank for students use, unlike Trick or Eat, where the university food bank does not receive any of the collected food. “[Trick or Eat] is very much

Food Bank and we don’t see any of those cans,” said Kermer. “We miss out on that really large food drive that takes place every Halloween and this is the time of year when we like to get a jumpstart into January, where we see our users increase-double.”

Kermer explained the timing of the campaign is especially important as the food collected will help supply the over 400 U of

G students and their dependants that use the CSA Food Bank regularly in the second semester.

This is when the Food Bank sees the majority of its users. “[Second semester] is the point in time when summer money runs out, OSAP will start to run out,” said Kermer. “We see a fairly large increase after reading week with students. March is the one time when it’s really hard to make it through to April. We’re there to help the students out and sometimes they’ll just come for the last two months and they won’t be back until maybe the next year.

You need food to concentrate, to work on exams.”

According to Kermer, the organizers are optimistic about the results of the campaign.

Kermer also emphasized that the U of G Food Bank is meant to be a highly accessible resource for any students of the university that find themselves in need of assistance.

“We only require a student ID card and that’s it,” said Kermer.

“The Guelph Food Bank looks at all of your financial stuff and bank statements and we don’t.

Just because your parents make a lot of money, they may not give you any of that money. We understand that. It’s anonymous completely so nobody needs to feel the stigma.”

ARTS & CULTURE

Specialized studio practices takeover campus gallery space <

CONTINUED FROM COVER

The show was curated and installed entirely by the specialized class with no external help or guidance. The process was totally democratic, with the artists designating their spaces with post-it notes on the white walls.

Because of the large amount of artists being featured in Triple Gulp, the exhibit appears at two locations, in Alexrod in the special projects

space, and in the Zavitz gallery. Make sure you visit both locations to see all of the work on display.

The gallery in Alexrod is tranquil and welcoming and a brilliant use of the space. Walking into the room, I was instantly calmed.

Of note was Darryn Doull’s investigation of the Artist-Curator in the form of a pillar that may not at first be apparent to the viewer. The

piece affords the viewer a unique interaction as he/she walks around the pillar noticing illuminated Petri dishes with skin samples made from Polaroid pictures inside.

Stephan Herda has his work in both galleries. The sample of homemade pigments in the Alexrod space demonstrates the progress he has made over the semester, coming up with a variety of different pigments to use in his work.

Across campus in the Zavitz gallery, good things are happening too. The space is a little more open and features paintings, sculpture, video, and photography.

Laura Simon actually features an arts & culture article from a previous issue of the Ontarion that details the night she got married at the Albion Hotel just to be divorced within the week and married again whenever the opportunity arises.

Patrick Krzyzanowski submitted an extremely detailed, pain-staking and hilarious watercolour painting that depicts two baseball teams in a massive pile-up as the result of a tie game. Krzyzanowski’s focus and dedication to this piece is remarkable.

But don’t just take my word for it, go take a look.

Triple Gulp features a variety of work from a variety of different perspectives, making it my favorite exhibit all year. This specialized studio takeover is a unique and thought provoking exhibit worth checking out.

The two galleries are open until Dec. 4.

Rashaad Bhamjee

Both the Zavitz gallery and the special projects space in Alexrod host Triple Gulp until Friday, Dec. 4.

THE ONTARION

160.12

ARTS & CULTURE

Mmmm... egg nog

Featured artist: Sparkle Diamond Universe

NICOLE ELSASSER It’s hard to top the delirious joy that comes from seeing the seasonal holiday grocery products emerge from their hiding places deep in my wildest dreams and grace expectant shoppers with their presence, if only for a short time.

While candy cane ice cream, gingerbread house kits, and pre-packaged shortbread cookie dough shaped to resemble the face of Santa Claus are, indeed, pleasant things, nothing truly signals the holidays for me like eggnog.

Eggnog, which is a popular beverage in North America and Luxembourg, is readily available at most grocery stores during the holiday season, and is usually served spiked with brandy or rum and occasionally whiskey.

While the supermarket eggnog has been totally satisfying since I discovered my love for the beverage, this year, in the spirit of doing things myself, I have decided to learn to make my very own eggnog.

Perhaps the only issue that could be taken with the supermarket eggnog is that, even when cut with alcohol, the drink is simply too thick to be enjoyed in large quantities. And isn’t that the point?

After doing some extensive research, I came up with a recipe for eggnog inspired by Portland bartender Jeff rey Morgenthaler that promises a delicious, boozy drink boasting the appropriate thickness. When made correctly, it should inspire the drinker to sit in the glow of a fire (real or simulated DVD version) and listen to Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and the like croon beloved holiday songs.

DANIEL WRIGHT

PETE YORN & SCARLETT JOHANSSON BREAK UP

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Left: The Living Room the breakfast takes place in Right: A Sparkle Diamond Universe Pin

Isaac Wedin

Egg nog is a delicious festive drink. You can purchase it in stores, but try making your own!

Egg Nog

Ingredients: 2 large eggs 3 oz (measured in a shot glass) of sugar 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 2 oz brandy 2 oz spiced rum 6 oz homo milk 4 oz heavy (whipping) cream

Directions:

Despite Hollywood’s ideas of an über blonde ScarJo, she seems determined to show the world she’s in control of her music. In her debut album, the androgynously smokey Anywhere I Lay My Head, Johansson shamelessly made an album composed almost entirely of Tom Waits covers. She further generated some hype with the help of David Bowie cameos and production by David Sitek (TV on the Radio). Talk about name dropping! But for those of us that listened, we were just impressed that the actress-turned singer wasn’t pulling another Lindsay Lohan.

Next, ScarJo managed to get a spot on the He’s Just Not That Into You OST with the Jeff Buckley cover “Last Goodbye.”

It was a daring move, given the difficult nature of the song, and she received a lot of criticism for

it. However, it is rather difficult to hate someone who does a cover of a great artist whose life was cut short from an accidental drowning.

Now most recently, she’s teamed up with the grungyvoiced folk singer Pete Yorn, whose known for doing many movie soundtracks, including: Me my self and Irene, Spiderman and Shrek 2. Maybe that’s the connection.

Break Up is more along the lines of what you may expect from ScarJo and because of it, is far more accessible than her debut. I can’t help but compare this album to She and Him’s Volume One, except Break Up varies little from the folk-rock template.

But perhaps that says more about the difference between M. Ward and Yorn, than Zooey Deschanel and Scarlett Johansson.

Upon multiple

Put eggs in blender and blend rapidly for one minute. Add sugar and blend for another minute. Add nutmeg, brandy, rum, milk and cream and blend until combined. Chill if possible to allow flavors to develop and serve with additional nutmeg on the top.

French curator Nicholas Bourriaud coined the term, “relational aesthetics” as “a set of artistic practices which take their theoretical and practical point of departure as the whole of human relations and their social context, rather than an independent and private space.” That being said, it simply means a role reversal in the approach, display, and creation of capital “A” Art. It is Sparkle Diamond Universe, an artist collective, that uses such aesthetics. Blair Poulin, Drea Scotland, Meg Wilcox and John Merritt, use the guise of a homemade breakfast diner as their point of departure to engage socially, connecting with their audience and allowing their audience to connect with each other. And the best part is nobody knows that they are part of art.

Bourriaud views artists as facilitators, rather than makers, which shifts the perspective and removes the art object, bringing focus to the experience. This is exactly what Sparkle Diamond Universe is about.

They can be compared to Rirkrit Tiravanija whose best known for serving Thai food at openings in order to create structures for living and socializing. Sparkle Diamond Universe uses this strategy; yet they go beyond Tiravanija by moving out of the gallery system to create alternative social architectures in their own living room.

Sparkle Diamond Universe has managed to remove the gallery from the art and then remove the art from the gallery. The result of this double switch is a completely distinct, fresh, and unique approach to the creation and distribution of the art product. It is no longer about the product, but more about the event and if you missed it, you won’t get it.

-Miles Stemp

listens, the album starts to feel more and more like a break up, whereas initially it seemed to be very upbeat. It’s through the lyrics that the characters start to build and we get a glimpse of Scarlett’s dark side, “I don’t beg, I don’t borrow, I steal.” Break Up is anything but disappointing, but I hope Yorn doesn’t feel like just another gruff-songwriter on Johansson’s belt. Then again, most would probably consider themselves lucky to be a notch on that belt.

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DEC. 3 - 9, 2009

ARTS & CULTURE

Readings for TV

The epitome of cool

ZACK MACRAE

ALEX CURRIE

On last Thursday night, I was at an art opening at the Zavitz gallery looking around at some photography and chatting with friends. Upon rounding the room I ran into Jeff Tutt, a master’s student in the fine arts department here at the university. We got to talking, and he invited me to come by the Axelrod building after the opening for a performance that he and three other MFA students were putting on.

So after the opening, I migrated over to Axelrod and found the special projects room where this performance, that I knew nothing about was going to take place.

The performance was called Readings for T.V. and was a collaborative effort between Tutt, Tiziana La Melia, Maggie Groat and Doug Jarvis who each read a piece of their work in front of video cameras and a live studio audience. While the four artists work primarily in the visual realm, Readings for T.V. gave them a chance to integrate a literary aspect into a live performance of their work.

Walking into the performance space was like walking into someone’s head while they dreamt about a kitschy 70s variety television show. The space was transformed by Tutt to mimic television, complete with a black plastic curtain, a table to hold drinks beside a chair and microphone and colourful paper jutting out of the walls in surreal folds.

“As a child I was educated by television,” says Tutt, replying to my question about the relevance of the television set in the performance. “A third of my perception growing up was shaped by children’s television shows.”

Sitting in the audience, with dim lighting, a very distracting strobe light and music dictating the mood, I wasn’t sure what was going to happen. As the music and theatrics

of the room faded, Tutt took a seat at the front and delivered an intense reading from a book of poetry he published in 2000 called, As I Watch, I Taste You. “I revisited some of my old work that I was more comfortable with to find out if it was still relevant, and it turns out, it was,” said Tutt.

For Tutt the night wasn’t about poetry, “it was more encompassing in terms of it being visual and auditory.

It was an opportunity to work with my colleagues in a way that we don’t normally do. To engage with each other.”

Maggie Groat, a student in the MFA program and a performance artist commented on questions about the set: “There was a programming in television that occurred when we were growing up that continues to occur,” asserting that the performance was an alternative to that programming.

In her reading, Groat rhythmically recited 71 directive phrases that were suggestions on a different way of looking and a way to activate your everyday.

“I usually make art that can be shown outside of myself. I liked that those ideas that only exist inside of me, came out in the performance,” said Groat, excited about discovering a new form to present her work.

Although Tutt took the initiative to create a performance space to hold this event, he doesn’t see it becoming a series, but “is interested to see what would happen if somebody else takes it on.”

“I’d like to continue the structure of having a live performance where people can deliver something that is auditory rather then visual,” said Groat about the idea of continuing the programmed readings.

For both Tutt and Groat, above all the night was about getting people out and bringing them together to listen.

Last Thursday an eager crowd of people flooded into the eBar in anticipation of seeing arguably Canada’s best hip-hop artist, Shad, take the stage. The show was organized by CFRU and CBC personality, Vish Khanna, as a fundraiser for the Canadian Cancer Society and as a precursor for the annual Stay Out of the Mall VIII winter music festival which runs from Dec. 16 -17.

Khanna started a group of benefit events after a close friend of his, Shannon Marshall, passed away in 1997 from leukemia. Thanks to the fantastic performances by Shad and opening act, I Am A Robot And Proud, the crowd was able to raise a whopping $1,700 for leukemia research as well as an abundant amount of canned food for the Guelph Food Bank.

Using concerts as a way to fundraise demonstrates the amazing power that music has in creating possibilities and propelling a supportive community.

In the New Year, the eBar will be hosting more shows, all of which are benefits for the Guelph Food Bank and Out on the Shelf, Guelph’s Queer Library and Resource Centre.

After the show, I had the pleasure of sitting down and speaking with a relaxed, soft-spoken Shad K. Our interview was (not surprisingly) interrupted a few times by eager fans coming up to our booth to gush about Shad’s music, which he gracefully thanked them for, seeming genuinely pleased by the compliments.

Born in Kenya and raised in London, Ontario, Shad began free-styling as a teenager, looking up to hip-hop idols Common and OutKast for inspiration. Since his humble beginnings, Shad has released two albums: When This Is

THEONTARION.CA

Justin Broadbent

Shad K, hip hop artist from London played the eBar last Thursday night and helped raise $1700 forhte Canadian Cancer Society Over (2005), and The Old Prince (2007); the latter receiving a Juno nomination for Rap Recording of the Year, as well as a Polaris nomination.

Shad is currently recording a new album and also working towards his master’s degree in liberal studies at Simon Fraser University.

To me, the life of an average university student seems like it would be busy enough that the thought of having to balance school with a music career seems outlandish.

However, when I asked how he manages, Shad casually shrugged and explained that it’s a matter of knowing what you can handle and that he knows his limits (hardcore party animals take note, perhaps?)

Wrapping up the interview, I questioned Shad on his thoughts about the differences between Canadian and American hip-hop.

“Our culture is different. Hiphop in Canada that’s successful tends to have some element to their music that is quite different. K-OS and K’naan both do something just a little bit different with their music, blending unusual sounds together, which is what makes them popular in Canada,” he said. “In the States it’s that type of hip-hop that’s less successful and stays on the fringe, whereas the Canadian ‘fringe’ artists are the most successful.” Shad also said that the Toronto rap scene is extremely strong right now, and that the public should expect some more home-grown talent, in particular hip-hop artist Shawn Boothe, to flourish in the near future.

Shad will be releasing his new album in January 2010, and will hopefully grace Guelph with his presence, once again.

melting into soup to complement this section.

The summer section is the home of the hammock. Hammocks will be draped and likely available for temporary occupation by gallery goers. Visual tension is created by the presence of scissors in relation to the thread and quilts.

An addition to the summer section particularly relevant to Guelph’s eco-conscious spirit, is a video of a tree being cut down.

These images are intended to engage the viewer with ideas about our relationship to nature. This aspect of the work is particularly inspired by the amount of development taking place in and around Guelph.

The spring section offers an undeniably fun contribution to the piece. Dyson has informed me that the spring section will contain blocks and quilts for children to make forts with. “Once kids get inside a fort with fabric,” Dyson said, “they just feel like they’ve defined their space and they get

so excited; its so fascinating that whole relationship to fabric.”

The structures themselves are inspired by ideas of the safety and security that shelter can provide one with. Dyson also explained that they are a reference to the artistic space, and the artistic process. “It’s also about entering into the artistic space, and I think the artistic space is this sacred space that you were born from and you go back to it when you die; it’s the space that you enter when you’re in a creative moment …” This idea has further relevance to the show because that creative space has been shared and developed by these three generations, and is evident in the gallery.

Danielle Dyson’s show is valiant, engaging, inspiring, and makes me feel warm and fuzzy.

With her subtle references to home, family, the environment, childhood, life, death, and the spaces that keep us sane in the face of all of these factors, she has created a show worth seeing.

Home Again at Ed Video REBECCA BENSON As I walked into the Ed Video Gallery space to interview Danielle Dyson about her upcoming show, I was greeted with echoes of hammering, and a plethora of material destined for inclusion in Friday’s opening. As December has begun, with the cold nipping at our heels, it’s difficult to fight the urge to crawl into bed with an underlying intention of staying there until April. “Home Again” addresses those urges, along with several other themes. The show is a multi-faceted, complex arrangement of texture, material, and thought. Spanning three generations of artistic ingenuity by: the artists mother, whose majestic quilts grace the space; the artist herself whose thought, arrangement and craft has created a cohesive exhibit; and the artists son, who provided one of the videos featured in the installation.

The gallery space is divided into four sections, one per season. Each section provides video footage

projected onto different surfaces such as quilts and fabric, and each section provides a structure for viewers to interact with.

Gracing the center of the space, a white column has been transformed into a sculpture

My mother has beat cancer three times and she says that the quilting is one of her strengths. reminiscent of a tree, covered in quilt pieces with the suggestive of bark and scraps of real bark, while branches extend out from above the fabric. The quilts in the show are by the artists mother, crafted over the span of twenty years, and are integrated into every facet of the show. In Dyson’s words, this

way of presenting the quilts is meant to “break down the way quilts are presented because usually they’re just hanging on walls.”

When I asked Dyson about her mother’s quilts she stated, “My mother has beat cancer three times and she says that the quilting is one of her strengths. And I think when you find a passion in life that’s really something you can constantly return to, and that’s what I’m referencing.”

A further element stretched between all four seasons is the idea of material. Each season has a material which it references; for fall there’s thread, for winter there’s batting, representing snow, for spring there’s thread, and for summer there is thread and scissors.

In the winter section, a tent is draped by quilts, and the only way to discover what the structure holds is to duck inside and see for yourself. There is also a video piece of a person in the fetal position, and a snow man of vegetables

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Cool running Brunsting and Lalonde take third at Canadian cross-country championships MIKE TREADGOLD Having already taken two consecutive CIS titles, Gryphon runner Matt Brunsting took his game to a whole new level on Saturday. Brunsting placed third in the AGSI Canadian Cross-country Running Championships in the Arboretum, a series of events that featured not only the nation’s top university runners, but also some of Canada’s best post-collegiate athletes, including several Olympians.

Spectators and athletes came from across Canada to see and compete against Canadian Olympian Simon Whitfield, a former gold and silver medalist in the triathlon. Regina’s Simon Bairu, a six-time winner of the event, also drew quite a crowd.

Bairu led from start to finish, easily taking the 10km senior men’s event in an incredible time of 28:49 to pick up his seventh title.

Canadian Olympian Eric Gillis, running for Guelph’s Speed River Track & Field Club finished second, while Brunsting, also a member of the Speed River group, took third.

“For most of the fall (season), I was thinking about CIS and after that, I turned my attention to this race,” said Brunsting. “I was looking at the field and trying to figure out

where I could be and this was really my dream result.”

In the junior women’s 5km event, Gryphon runner and OUA Rookie of the Year Genevieve Lalonde also put herself on the podium with a third place finish. Fellow junior Gryphon Robyn Mildren finished 66th. In the senior women’s race, Courtney Laurie posted a very respectable 14th place finish and in the junior men’s race, three Gryphons ran well with Alexander Hinton, Stephen Holmes and Benoit Boulay finishing 17th, 55th and 82nd, respectively, in what was a series of highly competitive races.

The men’s race started and finished at a furious pace. Bairu, Gillis and Brunsting all finished around the 30-minute mark, incredible times given the rough, hilly terrain of the Arboretum course.

“It was quick, but I tried not to think too much about the pace, I just wanted to get into a pack, roll and tell myself that I belonged there,” said Brunsting. “I knew that I couldn’t be intimidated. I needed to know that I belonged there and that I could run with those guys.” “[The pace] was just crazy fast,” added Gryphon and Speed River head coach Dave Scott-Thomas, who observed the entire senior men’s race from the backseat of the John Deere Gator tractor that paced the field. “We think that this course is easily a minute slower when you compare it to track times, especially when you look at the soft surface

and the hills and the muck. If you put [Saturday’s winners] on a track, that’d be a high 27-minute race. It was a brilliant run.”

The 34-year-old Whitfield, who was easily the race’s biggest celebrity and one of the oldest competitors in a race limited to 20 to 40-yearolds, certainly impressed spectators, finishing tenth, amid speculation that he would not be a factor.

With competitors coming from all across Canada, Scott-Thomas was extremely proud of how well his runners stacked up against the competition.

“These are the national championship (races). It’s deep and you get people coming from coast to coast; they’re really good athletes,” said Scott-Thomas, whose senior men’s team won their category. “It just shows that in our backyard, the [runners] who we think are pretty good are really that good and they can do it. Canadian collegiate athletes can run very well and we saw that today.”

Despite the adverse conditions and increased level of competition, Brunsting effectively translated his pre-race strategy into positive results. “[The race] went exactly the way I wanted it to,” he said. “I felt like I was running right at my threshold; I was feeling great and that was something that I could hold.

Strategically, it played out great. I was able to use my strengths and keep the good pace rolling.”

Rashaad Bhamjee

OUA Rookie of the Year Genevieve Lalonde capped an impressive rookie season with a third place finish at the AGSI Canadian CrossCountry Championships.

Finding their killer instinct Men’s volleyball team focusing on mental ability to finish games MIKE TREADGOLD Despite a winning record after their first nine games, the Gryphon men’s volleyball team expected better.

With seven returning players who received significant playing time last year, expectations were set high for the Gryphons, who made it to the OUA semi-finals in last year’s playoffs.

“We’re not achieving what we thought we would,” said head coach Cal Wigston. “It’s a little bit frustrating because the guys have put in a lot of hard work and they’ve done a lot of hard training but unfortunately, we’re just not getting the results that we thought we’d get.”

With a 5-4 record, the Gryphons sit tied for fifth in the 11-team OUA division. After winning their first four home games of the season, the Gryphons fell by three sets to one to the first place Western Mustangs on Saturday night.

In Saturday’s loss, the Gryphons dropped the first two sets, despite leading 2319 in the first and 24-21 in the second. In many of their losses,

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A redesigned blocking scheme is just one of the changes that the Gryphons have implemented for the 2009-10 season. the Gryphons have shown all the necessary physical capabilities, but lacked that killer instinct to finish off their opponents.

“We need to work on the mental aspect of being able to finish games. Finishing is as much mental as it is physical,” said Wigston. “We’ve made some

changes to our communication pieces and we’ve made changes to our blocking schemes. It’s just taking the guys a little longer to adjust to that. For the most part, they’ve done a good job.”

Part of the development in team communication comes in the form of familiarizing second-

year setter Riley McAllister with the fulltime role of acting as a sort of on-court general. McAllister took over as the Gryphons’ primary setter late in the second half of last year when Jon Waito decided to apply a greater focus on academics.

“If we were a football team,

Riley would be our quarterback.

He’s been feeling that pressure,” said Wigston. “He’s in that position of knowing that he has to get [our hitters] the ball and that’s a lot of pressure for a second-year guy.”

During last season’s run to the semi-finals, the Gryphons developed remarkable team chemistry, becoming arguably the closest, most tight-knit team on campus. Despite all the returning starters, Wigston was still forced to fill out his roster with a number of new players, and team chemistry has not developed quite as easily.

“In some ways, that chemistry from last year has (carried over), but in other ways, because we brought in so many new guys, it’s been a little bit more difficult,” said Wigston. “We’re not as tight as we want to be yet, but even last year, it took us until the second half to really start feeling that closeness.

“I think that this year, we’ll really feel it in the second half again, and that’ll be a catalyst to take us on to winning. In the second half, you’ll definitely see a stronger team, one that is more well-rounded and welldisciplined, both with their play, as well as their mental ability to finish games.”

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The scary sounds of slumber Irregular snoring may suggest a greater medical problem MIKE TREADGOLD We’ve all been there. The peaceful and rhythmic, yet often loud and annoying sounds are emitted during the night when our muscles relax. Whether it’s ourselves, a sleeping partner, roommate, neighbour or relative, we’ve all witnessed snoring at some point.

But these sounds of slumber often warrant further investigation.

“Sometimes, there will be some laboured breathing, it may sound like choking for air or their snoring becomes excessively loud and irregular,” said Kathy Somers, who runs Guelph’s Better Sleep program. “Some people may snore and it sounds nice and rhythmical, it’s peaceful and steady. That’s fine.”

Those laboured, choking sounds are warning signs for a condition known as sleep apnea.

According to Somers, everyone has a degree of apnea every night. Sleep apnea is simply defined as not breathing while you are sleeping. These limited frequencies of apnea that everyone has are completely normal and expected; however, when you stop breathing for more than ten seconds, more than five times in an hour, you cross the threshold of having a medically-concerning condition that needs a physician’s assistance.

Aside from concerned listeners, there are also symptoms and alarming behaviour that can occur while someone is awake that might suggest an issue.

Symptoms when awake include feeling fatigued, even after a long sleep, waking up with a dry mouth or headache, frequent urination during the night and decreases in one’s

Gryphons schneid

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After seven losses to begin their season, the Gryphon women’s basketball team finally captured their first win of the year on Saturday, a 6862 victory over the RMC Paladins.

After trailing 42-36 at halftime, the Gryphons held the Paladins to just seven third quarter points, helping to seal the win. The Gryphons were led, once again, by forward Jasmine Douglas, who scored 26 points and added ten rebounds. Samantha Russell also had a double-double for the Gryphons with 13 points and ten rebounds in the win.

Silver on ice Jamie MacDonald

Your partner’s chronic snoring could turn out to be much more than a mere distraction. alertness, concentration and memory. Poor sleep health also makes people more irritable and increases their likelihood of depression.

For individuals who are fearful that they may have sleep apnea, the first step is to consult a family physician who, if necessary, will refer the patient to the sleep lab located at the Guelph General Hospital.

“It’s truly impossible to know if someone has concerning sleep apnea until someone goes to a sleep lap, stays there overnight and has their sleep monitored,” said Somers.

Untreated sleep apnea has very serious consequences.

When the body goes through apnea episodes, the heart releases a chemical that foreshadows cardiovascular health issues. An irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, an enlarged heart, heart failure, stroke, weight

gain, impotence, and even death can result if the condition goes untreated. Death does not directly result from an apnea episode, but rather, from the heart problems that follow.

Ninety-five per cent of sleep apnea cases are a result of body composition, whereby soft tissues in the neck and throat are obstructing normal breathing, and are often associated with being overweight. Fortunately, these cases can be treated; however, there are also five per cent of cases that stem from improper wiring in the brain that can sadly not be treated by medical professionals. “[Sleep apnea] can be tough to diagnose among a student population, because students, in general, are probably sleep deprived,” said Somers. “Just because they can fall asleep in an afternoon lecture doesn’t mean that they have sleep apnea; they may just be sleep deprived.”

Somers suggested that if people are telling you that you’re snoring, or that you have other symptoms, it may just be fatigue and tiredness. So when the semester is over, try to get some good sleeps and then reassess the situation.

One in four men snore

regularly , as do one in seven women; however, when women reach menopause, these levels even out and both sexes must become increasingly aware of their sleep health.

There are more than 300 anti-snoring devices in North America, yet approximately half of them actually work and virtually none of them will have any effect on an individual with sleep apnea.

A continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine is really one of the only medicallysanctioned devices that can treat sleep apnea. It is usually a mask; however, due to comfort issues, a pillow-like device has also been approved that you breathe into to keep the air pressure at a particular level. Surgery is another viable option; however, as Somers suggested, this 20 minute laser procedure can be incredibly painful as it is either removing the uvula, or reducing the size of the tissue in the back of the throat.

Simple snoring aids include losing weight, avoiding alcohol and central nervous system depressants before bed, increasing humidity levels, sleeping on your side or reducing pillow height to open your airway.

The Gryphons figure skating team earned a silver medal over the weekend at the Queen’s Invitational. As a team, the Gryphons scored 45 points, trailing only the gold medal winning Gaels who had 70. The third place Western Mustangs had 39 points to round out the podium. Sandra McCubbin won the Senior Silver Solo Dance, while the Senior Similar Dance team also won their event.

Pool medals The Gryphon men’s swimming team finished fourth among the eight schools that participated in the University Challenge Cup on the weekend, trailing only host U of T among OUA schools. Secondyear swimmer Andrew Ford won both the 100m and 200m individual medley races, including a meet record time of 2:04.23 in the 200. Secondyear athlete Matthew Stephenson also won the 100m breaststroke in a record time of 1:03.70.

Puck shorts Tori Woods scored four goals in two games as the Gryphon women’s hockey team swept their weekend series with victories over U of T and York. On the men’s side, the Gryphons had their hands full with the visiting second place Lakehead Thunderwolves, losing 3-1 and 4-3.

Rookie Thomas Kiriakou scored for the Gryphons in both games.

Research at Guelph: under the microscope The Ontarion looks into some of the exciting and interesting research projects on campus and the people involved in them

Claudia Bertrand The Biodiversity Institute of Ontario at the University of Guelph is currently involved in one of the most world renowned scientific studies, the International Barcode of Life, a project that looks at DNA barcoding and species diversity. DNA barcoding attempts to use a single gene marker to define species boundaries. The project, which exists in different working groups, will catalogue and create an inventory of all the species in the world.

“This is a worldwide effort to understand biodiversity,” said Claudia Bertrand, a Masters of Integrative Biology student working in the program. “Biodiversity is in decline because of all the social and environmental factors that are affecting it. If we don’t even know the foundation of what we’re trying to study, how can we make assessments on it?”

According to information taken from the International Barcode of Life website, “sequence diversity...can provide a sophisticated tool for both the identification of known species and the discovery of new ones.

By developing a system for species identification based on digital characters, DNA barcoding promises automated identifications.”

The Institute opened in 2006, supported by the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the Ontario Innovation Trust, Gerome Canada and the Ontario Genomics Institute. In its three years of existence, considerable developments have been made, working towards developing this catalogue.

ANDREA BUCHHOLZ & ROBIN MILHAUSEN

LINDA PARKER Dr. Linda Parker is a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Behavioural Neuroscience. As the country’s foremost scholar in her field, Parker and her colleagues have undertaken the ambitious task of understanding the neurobiology of nausea, via the study of shrews and rats, looking at the effectiveness of antinausea and anti-vomiting agents. Parker and her colleagues are looking at the endocannabinoid system, the system that THC (the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana) acts upon. Parker’s studies look at how the brain’s naturally produced compound, anandamide, which is like THC, would reduce nausea and vomiting.

Parker’s research is highly relevant to individuals undergoing chemotherapy as well as understanding the nauseating effects of other drugs, such as antidepressants. Because of the virtually unlimited scope of test subjects, as well as the utter lack of previous research on this topic, Parker’s study, which has been ongoing for some time, has no anticipated date of completion.

“This study is ongoing and openended,” said Parker. “We understand the neurobiology of vomiting, but very little is known about the neurobiology of nausea.”

The results of some elements of the study that have already been analyzed are leading Parker and her colleagues in a particular direction.

“What we think may be happening is that the neurotransmitter, serotonin, is a trigger for nausea, and the anandamide, the natural THC, turns nausea off. They regulate one another,” she said.

A large group of research associates, graduate students and undergraduates are also contributing to the project, including Dr. Cheryl Limebeer, Erin Rock, Katherine Tuerke and Martin Sticht, as well as numerous undergraduate students from the field of Natural Sciences and Engineering.

“Nausea is one of the most difficult clinical symptoms to treat,” said Parker, on the uniqueness of her project. “Part of the problem is that there hasn’t been a good animal model yet. Our model in rats, called condition gaping, is providing insight into how nausea works.”

Dr. Andrea Buchholz and Dr. Robin Milhausen have developed the BOD POD, a machine that uses air displacement technology to measure body composition. The BOD POD will help the researchers draw conclusions for their cross-sectional study on body image, body composition, relationship quality and sexuality.

BARRY SMIT Barry Smit, a University of Guelph geography professor and a Canada Research Chair in Global Environmental Change, is on an Arctic mission.

Smit and his team of researchers are examining the effects of climate change on people living in the Canadian Arctic. The purpose of his study is to help Arctic communities adapt to changes in their environment.

Among the issues being examined are changes in caribou migration routes, as caribou are a main source of food for Inuit communities. In recent years, food patterns have been altered and as a result, caribou herds are avoiding human communities and inhabiting new areas. Smit and his colleagues suspect climate change as the root cause but remain uncertain. By identifying the source of the caribou problem, Smit hopes to develop policies that will enable Inuit communities to adapt. Such policies may include a decrease in hunt quota or finding an alternative food source, such as muskox.

For Smit, recognizing changes in climate and designing policies to adapt is crucial.

“The ability of people to capitalize on knowing what may happen, rather than praying for weather that isn’t coming, will determine who succeeds in the future,” said Smit.

Smit’s research is a part of the Community Adaptation and Vulnerability in Arctic Regions (CAVIAR) program, an international research collective of universities and Inuit communities.

The program’s mandate is to develop adaptation strategies in response to climate change.

Dr. Andrea Buchholz and Dr. Robin Milhausen are currently leading a study that looks at the relationship between body composition, body image, relationship satisfaction, and sexuality.

“We’re not necessarily saying that people who are overweight have a lesser quality sex life,” said Buchholz. “If you’re overweight, but you have a loving a partner who loves that fact that you’ve got love handles, maybe you’ve got a great sex life. We’re not saying that people who are overweight have a lesser quality sex life, we just want to know how you feel about your body and how you feel about your relationship, and if that can mediate the relationship between physiology and a vibrant, healthy sex life.”

The SSHRC-funded study (Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council), began in the fall of 2008 and has since successfully recruited 150 of its 200 desired participants. The cross-sectional study looks at men and women between the ages of 18 and 25 who are normal weight, overweight and obese, and in a heterosexual relationship. Physical tests that measure body fat, specifically truncal fat (from the collarbone to the waist area) are performed in the Body Composition and Metabolism Laboratory on campus and participants also partake in both a general fitness, nutrition and relationship questionnaire, as well as a private and much more personal and intense survey about their sex lives.

“We want to know not only about total amount of body fat, but also, if you have more or less body fat on your abdomen, does that make you feel poorly?” said Buchholz. “Maybe it doesn’t make you feel poorly about yourself. Maybe you’re fine with the fact that you have a spare tire or two and maybe it doesn’t affect your sex life and overall health.”

Future relevant studies will also include individuals affected by chronic health problems, asking how, for instance, diabetes or heart disease affects sexuality.

Buchholz’s and Milhausen’s study is the first and only team in Canada to do this kind of work and the only ones to look at sexuality from a multifactorial mindset.

“We’re also the only team that has looked at the relationship between body fat and sexuality,” said Buchholz. “Most people use body mass index, but we’re actually measuring kilograms of body fat and truncal body fat. We’re looking at location (of fat) too. We know very little about how obesity can affect your sexual health.”

The grant was ranked third out of 75 in the country in terms of how unique it is to Canadian research

QUICK FACTS University of Guelph’s annual research complement is at a record high of $145 million.

STEPHEN HENIGHAN Dr. Stephen Henighan is a professor in the School of Languages & Literatures, specifically looking at some of the work of four influential writers. The two Nicaraguan writers, Ernesto Cardenal and Sergio Ramirez, who both published in Spanish, were crucially influential in their country during the Sandinista Revolution in 1979. Pepetela, a Portuguesewriting author from Angola, and Mia Couto, a Portugese-writing author from Mozambique, both did some of their most significant work while their respective countries were seeking to abolish their colonial ties to Portugal in 1974-75. Henighan’s work looks at the development of national identity as these countries obtained their independence, a time that coincided with these famed writers migrating to high positions in the political structure.

“In all of those countries, the national identity wasn’t all that developed,” said Henighan. “Angola and Mozambique were both controlled from Lisbon (Portugal), and in Nicaragua, although it had been officially independent since the 1830s, it was seen as a prime location for the canal that would eventually instead be built in Panama, and people kept invading from about the 1850s up to the 1920s.

“When the U.S. Marines occupied the country for six years, they left the Somoza family in power when they left in 1934,” he continued. “The Somoza family stayed in power until 1979 but the American Ambassador’s face was on the 20 cordoba note. While it was an independent country, it was still indirectly under U.S rule.”

Henighan’s research draws on the comparisons between the three countries and how its scholars responded to the respective revolutions.

“In all three countries, the identity gets developed when the revolution happens,” said Henighan.

“But it gets developed using Marxist revolutionary language that reflected the 1970s and 80s. Then in 1990, the Cold War ends, the Sandinistas lose the election in Nicaragua, the former commissars in Angola go into the oil business and in Mozambique, they have a decent transition to the post-Cold War world. Then all these writers leave politics.

“But then the question is, in the post-Cold War world of globalization and the borderless universe, how do you talk about the nation in that (Marxist) context?

Can you keep using the Marxist doctrine? Can you adjust parts of it or abandon it completely? What’s your strategy? It’s those strategies that I’m looking at.”

Henighan’s research carries uniqueness to it in that despite the similarities between the Spanish and Portuguese languages, there have actually been very few comparative studies done in their respective literatures.

JERRARD SMITH It would seem that the degrees of separation between the University of Guelph and David Bowie have decreased ten-fold since Jerrard Smith, professor of scenography at the U of G, has created a series of theatrical events that take shape as a labyrinth. Asterion, as it is called, began as a workshop funded by a fine arts grant, and started to take shape from the question, “What makes space theatrical?” From this initial stage, the project took off to include participants from a wide range of disciplines including landscape architecture, horticulture, sculpture, and carpentry. The research involved with the labyrinth seeks to allow the scenographic design to change over time in relation to the natural elements. The labyrinth showcases artistic collaboration and holds regular workshops for interested parties. The labyrinth was intended to go beyond traditional assumptions about art and plays with the expectations of those who pass through it. The story crafted through the labyrinth incorporates all senses to create meaning in its space. The Asterion website describes the experience as “part museum, part fairground, part gallery and part concert. It is part fun house and part game, part quest and part contemplation.”

SMARO KAMBOURELI Smaro Kamboureli, a University of Guelph professor as well as a Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Critical Studies in Canadian Literature, founded the TransCanada Institute with her CRC grant and with the support from the University of Guelph. The institute has a mission to maintain relevancy in Canadian literature in the face of its changing identity. The institute was initiated as a series of large-scale conferences, which according to Kanboureli, were intended to encourage scholars from many disciplines to “think outside the box” with related publications to follow. Kamboureli points to multiculturalism, changing ideas of citizenship, and various kinds of motilities, like transnational shifts, to highlight how these factors necessitated a forum like the TransCanada Institute as a place for scholars to interact about these things.

“The responses also shows that the TransCanada ‘project’ has a role to play,” said Kamboureli, “a role in that it has created a space of both comfort and discomfort, that is, a space where people, students and faculty and artists, can try out new things in an environment where they feel safe at the same time that it encourages them to think, as it were, outside the box.”

According to Kamboureli, the TransCanada Institute has bee invaluable for providing depth to the “relatively young” Canadian literature graduate program at the University of Guelph.

Number of the University of Guelph’s Canada research chairs: 34 Amount of money received over the next five years from two new research chairs: 2.4 million

Asterion, the brainchild of Prof.

Jerrard Smith of the School of English and Theatre Studies, is a labyrinth showcasing artistic endeavors from a wide range of disciplines.

IMPROVISATION, COMMUNITY AND SOCIAL PRACTICE Improvisation, Community, and Social Practice (ICASP) is a social research project originating in Guelph under the direction of Ajay Heble. ICASP is a $4.3 million collaborative research project generously supported by the SSHRC’s (Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council) prestigious MCRI program. It brings together a dynamic international research team of 35 scholars from 20 different institutions to study the social implications of improvised musical practices, fostering innovative partnerships with 20 community- based organizations.

The project has a strong social justice, community arts, and alternative policy focus.

Over the seven years of the grant period, the project will be funding (and mentoring) the equivalent of over 230 graduate student assistantships and 17 postdoctoral fellows.

Outcomes will range across a wide spectrum of electronic, broadcast, and print media, with a focus on policy-oriented and communityfacing impacts. In addition to public discourse and scholarly publication, the work highlights collaboration with arts presenters, educators, street-level organizations working with at-risk and aggrieved populations, and policy makers to ensure the broadest possible impact on Canadian society.

The project’s core hypothesis is that musical improvisation is a crucial model for political, cultural, and ethical dialogue and action.

Taking as a point of departure performance practices that cannot readily be scripted, predicted, or compelled into orthodoxy, the project argues that the innovative working models of improvisation developed by creative practitioners have helped to promote a dynamic exchange of cultural forms, and encourages new, socially responsive forms of community building across national, cultural, and artistic boundaries. Improvisation demands shared responsibility for participation in community, an ability to negotiate differences, and a willingness to accept the challenges of risk and contingency. In an era when diverse peoples and communities of interest struggle to forge historically new forms of affiliation across cultural divides, the participatory and civic virtues of engagement, dialogue, respect and communitybuilding inculcated through improvisatory practices, take on a particular urgency.

Prof. Istvan Rajcan in the Department of Plant Agriculture, is working to develop a new high� oil soybean to be used to create everyday commercial products.

The hope is that by using soybeans for oil, commercial products will be more biodegradable and their production more sustainable.

Nate Perkins, a landscape architecture professor at the University of Guelph’s School of Environmental Design and Rural Development, has looked into changing the location and natures of designated smoking areas. The study explained that smokers are more likely to use designated smoking areas if they are convenient for them to do so. Perkins work seeks to use this knowledge to find a better way of making specific locations for smoking.

University of Guelph psychologist Prof. Saba Safdar has research on the psychological experience of adjusting to life as an international student studying abroad. Her intention is to understand their perspective more clearly with the intention of making Canada a more attractive and popular place for international students to come and study.

All photos courtesy

12

DEC. 3 - 9, 2009

SPORTS & HEALTH

THEONTARION.CA

The Liberation Treatment ELIZABETH MCLEOD Multiple Sclerosis is the most common central nervous system disease in Canada, affecting 75,000 Canadians and 2.5 million people around the world. Slightly more common in women, this disease typically is diagnosed in those aged 15 to 40.

There are four forms that the disease can take. Relapsingremitting MS affects approximately 75 per cent of sufferers and is characterized by attacks, followed by partial or complete recovery.

Secondary progressive MS generally occurs within ten years of diagnosis for half of those with relapsingremitting MS. These patients will experience fewer and fewer relapses, but with an increase in disability. Primary progressive MS affects approximately 10 to 15 per cent of patients and shows no clear relapses. Over a period of years, there is a gradual loss of physical and cognitive functions. The fourth type of MS is progressive-relapsing MS which affects approximately five per cent of sufferers; it involves relapses with or without some recovery and steadily worsens over time.

MultipleSclerosishastraditionally been described as a disease in which the fatty myelin sheaths around the brain and spinal cord are damaged, leading to a broad range of signs and

symptoms such as loss of balance, impaired speech, extreme fatigue, and paralysis. Though there are various government approved treatments for MS, there has never been mention of a cure for this disease.

In early October, the MS Society of Canada received initial information of new research and a potential treatment for the disease.

A discovery made by Dr. Paolo Zamboni in Italy has provided a new way of looking at the disease. His work involved conducting intensive and innovative research on the disease. Zamboni discovered linkages to Chronic Cerebrospinal Venous Insufficiency (CCVSI). CCVSI creates a malformation, or blockage, in the veins that drain blood from the brain and a direct relationship has been discovered between CCVSI and MS: iron builds up in the brain, blocking and damaging crucial blood vessels.

This blockage causes the vessels to rupture, which allows both the iron and immune cells from the bloodstream to cross the blood-brain barrier into the cerebro-spinal fluid.

Once the immune cells have direct access to the immune system, they begin to attack the myelin sheathing of the cerebral nerves, and result in the development of Multiple Sclerosis.

The aptly named “Liberation Treatment” is the treatment proposed

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Kaitlyn Krizmanich, the Gryphons rookie leftside, hammers a serve in Saturday’s three set win over the Western Mustangs.

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by Zamboni, and in small studies has proven effective. Simply put, this treatment involves the insertion of a small balloon into the veins, to clear out the blockage, and liberate the blood flow. In this study, patients underwent the treatment and those with relapsing-remitting MS showed a decrease in the number of disease relapses and a clear improvement in their quality of life.

“The reaction of the MS community to this treatment is unprecedented, with a great deal of interest and enthusiasm from medical practitioners, families and sufferers of MS,” explained Stewart Wong, National Senior Manager of Media and Public Relations at the Ontario chapter of the MS Society. “These findings definitely warrant further research; this treatment needs to go through a testing cycle of early trials, publishing and review. The idea must be poked and prodded in order to get definitive and absolute results.”

The MS Society of Canada is responding to this news with a level of carefulness, as the initial studies have been small with a sample group of only 65 participants.

While many patients have been eager to try the liberation treatment, they are urged to consult with, and follow the recommendations of their physicians and neurologists, and follow their advice on their current course of treatment.

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THE ONTARION

SPORTS & HEALTH

160.12

The noble Gryphon keeps its head held high Smaller victories shine bright in a dark season Amidst a dismal scoreboard, the 2009 season for the Gryphons football team has still managed to come to an admirable close.

Defensive halfback James Savoie and running back Nick Fitzgibbon have been respectively named as ďŹ rst and second team AllCanadians. Fitzgibbon in particular has been one of this seasonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most diehard players, in addition to being a noted team leader.

Fitzgibbon has been the recipient of countless awards â&#x20AC;&#x201C; his â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;winning streakâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; began in his very ďŹ rst year when he was dubbed OUA Rookie of the Year. The proceeding year, he was named as an OUA second team all-star and team MVP. He also earned a nomination as an OUA ďŹ rst team all-star the year after.

Along with being named to the All-Canadian team this year, Fitzgibbon scored a total of 14 touchdowns in the 2009 campaign, the second most in Canada.

The Ontarion was recently given the opportunity to sit down with the star running back and discuss his past, present and future experiences with the Gryphons.

Sarah Dunstan: Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve always been very successful as a Gryphon, and youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve always been seen as a team leader. Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s that been like for you?

Nick Fitzgibbon: Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been great. Coming here in my ďŹ rst year, everyone who wants to play wants to be able to make a mark, and it was great to be able to do that. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s been great just to be able to grow with the team, as well as continually grow as a player, and ultimately become a better runner.

SD: Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve recently been

Volleyball (M)

Volleyball (W)

Basketball (M)

Basketball (W)

Guelph vs Western: 1-3

Guelph vs Western: 3-0

Guelph vs RMC: 95-64

Guelph vs RMC: 68-62

Western McMaster Queenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Windsor Guelph Laurier Waterloo U of T Ryerson York RMC

SARAH DUNSTAN

13

W

L

9 8 8 6 5 5 5 4 2 2 0

1 1 2 4 4 5 5 6 8 8 10

McMaster Waterloo Western Guelph Brock Laurier Windsor

W

L

8 8 7 5 5 3 1

1 2 2 3 5 6 8

Lakehead Windsor McMaster Waterloo Western Brock Guelph Laurier

W

L

7 6 5 5 5 3 3 3

1 2 3 3 3 5 5 5

Windsor Western Brock Lakehead McMaster Laurier Waterloo Guelph

Cross-Country

Hockey (M)

AGSI Canadian Cross-Country Championships Junior Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 1. Caroline PĂ&#x20AC;ster (Sherbrooke) 2. Chelsea Graham (Edmonton) 3. Genevieve Lalonde (Guelph) -------------------------66. Robyn Mildren (Guelph)

Guelph vs Lakehead: 3-4

Junior Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 1. Mohammed Ahmed (Niagara) 2. Dylan Haight (British Columbia) 3. James Leakos (Saskatchewan) -------------------------17. Alex Hinton (Guelph) 55. Stephen Holmes (Guelph) 82. Benoit Boulay (Guelph)

Western Lakehead Laurier Waterloo York Guelph Windsor Brock UOIT

West

W

L OTL

13 11 10 10 7 6 6 7 6

2 3 4 5 7 7 7 9 8

0 2 1 1 1 2 2 0 1

W

L

8 7 6 4 4 3 2 1

0 1 2 3 3 5 6 7

Hockey (W) Guelph vs York: 3-2 Laurier Queenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s York Guelph U of T Western Waterloo Windsor Brock UOIT

W

L OTL

13 10 8 7 5 5 4 5 4 4

0 2 4 4 5 8 6 9 9 8

0 1 0 2 1 1 2 0 2 1

Senior Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 1. Kendra Schaaf (Queen City) 2. Megan Brown (U of T) 3. Megan Metcalfe (Edminton) -------------------------14. Courtney Laurie (Guelph)

Rashaad Bhamjee

Gryphons running back Nick Fitzgibbon scored 14 touchdowns, second-most in the country, and was named as a second team AllCanadian. named as a second team AllCanadian. Would you say your achievements have aďŹ&#x20AC;ected your playing, or encouraged you to become a better player?

NF: I can only be as good as the team â&#x20AC;&#x201C; itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s how hard everyone works, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re all part of a system. I think [my accomplishments] would be more the result of everyone elseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hard work.

SD: The team started oďŹ&#x20AC; pretty strong in the season, but struggled near the end. What do you think changed?

NF: I think it was just our mentality. Our oďŹ&#x20AC;ence lost its swagger and missed the mark, and just didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t execute as well as we could â&#x20AC;&#x201C; everything just went downhill from there. In the playoďŹ&#x20AC;s, when it really mattered,

we just couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t beat Western.

SD: Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re currently in your fourth year, but would you consider playing a ďŹ fth year?

NF: Academically, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll graduate and be done with school (after next semester), but coming back and upgrading my marks whilst playing with the Gryphons is always an option.

SD: In the future, do you have plans for playing or coaching?

NF: Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s my draft year this year and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always been a hope and a dream to play at the next level. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s part of my goal as a football player to keep growing and achieve them â&#x20AC;&#x201C; which would be to play in the CFL. If not, coaching with the Gryphons or with another team would be great.

Senior Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 1. Simon Bairu (Regina) 2. Eric Gillis (Guelph) 3. Matt Brunsting (Guelph)

Swimming University Challenge Cup Individual Gold Andrew Ford -100m IM -200m IM Matthew Stephenson -100m Breast Team Rankings Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 1. U of T 2. Calgary 3. Alberta 4. Guelph Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 1. Calgary 2. Montreal 3. UBC 8. Guelph In Saturdayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s AGSI Canadian Cross-Country Championships, Gryphon runner Matt Brunsting, running for the Speed River Track and Field Club Ă&#x20AC;nished third in the senior menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 10 km race in a time of 30:17 at the University of Guelph Arboretum.

(Photo: Rashaad Bhamjee)

Visit www.sundaycinema.ca for more info on these Central Student Association events all day

csa book fair S ACK

RB

E PAP

99¢ - $6.99

Books for everyone: cookbooks, coffee table books, health books, how-to books, craft & gardening books, kids books & much much more!

Stock up for the holidays! courtyard sale

Thurs Dec 3 uc courtyard | free Thurs 8 am to 6 pm

8:00 pm show

Spyboof!Qpuwjo

WISHING

docurama Watch for these titles & more in Winter 2010: Afgan Star | Burma VJ Capitalism: A Love Story Crude | Food Inc. The Cove

/<2 B63 5==2 :=D3:73A

coming winter 2010 A Serious Man Invictus Precious Sherlock Holmes The Fantastic Mr. Fox Up In The Air Where The Wild Things Are Zombieland and more

live music Fri Dec 11

docurama

sunday cinema

dublin street united church

thornbrough 1307 | free

war memorial hall

68 Suffolk West | $14 UoG stu | $16 gen adv Tickets available at the CSA OfďŹ ce

Co-presented with MacLaughlin Library Weekly screenings resume the week of January 18.

$3 UoG stu | $5 general Weekly screenings resume on January 24.

YOU A E SAFAN D

HAPPY HOLIDAY best of luck on your ďŹ nal exams â&#x20AC;&#x201D; see you in 2010! â&#x20AC;&#x201D; your Central Student Association

OPINION

14

DEC. 3 - 9, 2009

THEONTARION.CA

“It’s not the alleged lewdness, it’s the factual gayness” GENNA BUCK Rihanna’s dancers carried rifles.

Lady Gaga smashed whisky bottles.

Janet Jackson gamely groped a male back-up dancer.

But without Adam Lambert, last Sunday’s American Music Awards (AMAs) would have been fairly forgettable.

In a display of typical rock-star excess, the 2009 American Idol runner-up yanked on the bikini string of a female dancer, tonguekissed his male keyboardist, and most controversially, grabbed a male dancer’s head and simulated oral sex with him.

Adam Lambert’s performance was over the top, and its aggressiveness was off-putting.

But rock stars are over the top.

Awards shows are over the top. The entertainment industry exists on the premise that everything will be over the top.

After racking up an approximate total of 1500 complaint calls, an embattled ABC, the network that aired the awards, called off Lambert’s Monday morning appearance on its Good Morning America program.

“Adam Lambert has shown himself to be unpredictable on live television,” the network claimed.

Next week, Good Morning America is airing an interview, albeit taped, with Chris Brown - who has “shown himself ” guilty of felony assault.

Speaking of unpredictability on live TV, I will be watching to see if ABC ever has Kanye West on the show.

CBS graciously invited Lambert to make an impromptu visit to American Morning on Monday instead. In the lead-up to his interview, CBS played a clip of the performance, with the same-sex kiss blurred out. Footage of the famed

2003 Madonna-Britney kiss was then shown in all its original glory.

“It’s a double standard...what [CBS] is doing is they’re reinforcing the idea that homosexuality is indecent. And that’s dangerous,” said Lambert in an interview later that day.

Naturally, social conservatives were quick to condemn Adam Lambert’s antics, but I do not believe they accounted for all of the complaints. Suddenly, people started taking issue with other aspects of his performance.

What [CBS] is doing is they’re reinforcing the idea that homosexuality is indecent. And that’s dangerous.

Adam Lambert Their real issue, even if they do not know it, is that it was really, visibly, unabashedly gay.

Some of the most common objections: It was just too sexual.

Maybe so, but it was not any more sexual than is customary in pop music, and certainly not worse, although perhaps more aggressive and more male, than music videos by groups like the Pussy Cat Dolls.

Eminem performed before Adam Lambert at the AMAs. He rapped about the 17 rapes committed by his alter ego Slim Shady. What exactly

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American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert has been embroiled in controversy since his provocative AMA performance is the definition of “too sexual”?

What about the children?

Lambert’s performance was the last one of the night. Do you recall sitting down with mom and dad at 10:45 on a school night to watch...the AMAs? Granted, Adam Lambert is fresh from American Idol, a family-friendly show. Some parents probably let their kids stay up late to watch his first big gig because they followed his rise to fame together and voted for him every week.

Adam Lambert should have thought of that. Even so, live television broadcasts always play a cautionary sound bite after every commercial break.

It sure didn’t do anything to

advance gay rights was another argument being thrown around.

But none of the other straight entertainers were on the hook to do something for straight people.

This argument relies on the arcane idea that if someone is a member of a historically marginalized group, then they should behave very well because their actions reflect on the entire group. That attitude just enforces stereotypes. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Lambert claimed he had no agenda but to act out the lyrics of the song. Apparently, the only other ulterior motive for the raunchiness was to upstage Lady Gaga: “I sat there and watched the performances...and I got a little competitive,” Lambert said to EW.

I agree with the entertainment journalist Elaine Lui. “The problem is not the alleged lewdness,” she blogged Tuesday on her website, Lainey Gossip. “The problem is the factual gayness.”

It is the evident gayness that has people still talking about Lambert’s performance a week later, the gayness, which, consciously or unconsciously, spurred most of the complaints. And it’s the gayness that has made people so upset.

A certain feeling of revulsion towards homosexuality, particularly male homosexuality, is sadly still common in society. It is naive to consider that the uproar over Adam Lambert’s performance stemmed from anything else.

THE ONTARION 2

GIRLS

OPINION

160.12

1 (SEX)

15

COLUMN

Get crafty and sexy AISLINN WYATT Following last week’s article about masturbation, this week I’m going to explore the wonderful world of sex toys. Sometimes thought to be solely the domain of the lonely, sex toys aren’t a replacement for the “real thing” or anything to be ashamed of; they’re an exciting way to bring some variety into your sex life, either alone or with a partner (or partners!). Sex toys can be used by anyone and everyone, and they can offer new sensations and stimulate you in ways you have never experienced before.

For someone new to sex toys, or the budget-conscious university student, one of the most daunting aspects of sex toys can be the price.

While there are less expensive toys on the market, many can run upwards of $50. Other people may be embarrassed to buy a sex toy, or have roommates or parents in the house who they feel necessitate a greater degree of discretion. For these people, and anyone else who’s interested, making your own sex toys can be a crafty way to add some spice to your sex life.

In addition to being budgetfriendly, making your own sex toys gives you complete control over the size and shape of your toys. Store bought toys are more one-size fits all, and people are hardly onesized! Making toys from scratch means that each one is personal

from start to finish, so that you can be proud of your craftiness while you’re getting off!

For the fellows, the most basic form of homemade sex toy is the masturbator. This is any sort of toy into which one inserts their penis and achieves stimulation either by thrusting into the toy or jerking it manually. Masturbators can be easily made at home from items you find around the house.

A large bar of soap can become a toy by carefully drilling a hole in the center and getting it wet, while two warm damp sponges put inside a plastic juice cup can also do the trick. A hole in a suitable piece of fruit, such as a melon, is also a great choice. The fruit can be gently microwaved to warm it up.

A more advanced model involves a medium-sized towel and a latex glove. Fold the towel in half lengthwise so you have a long rectangle shape. Lay the glove about a quarter of the way in from one end of the rectangle, with the wrist hanging over the top edge.

Fold the shorter end of the towel over the glove, and then roll the rest up. Stretch the wrist of the glove over the end of the rolled up towel to hold everything in place, and go to town! As with any masturbator toy it’s always important to use lube - it makes the whole process that much smoother.

For those who enjoy penetration, some of the simplest

homemade toys are those used for that purpose. A quick glance around the fridge or the kitchen pantry will yield endless phallic foodstuffs ready for fun. Fruits and veggies such as bananas, carrots, cucumbers, zucchinis and more offer a wide variety of different shapes and sizes for your penetration needs. If you don’t find exactly the shape or size you want, most of these food toys can be cut and carved to make them just right for you. Make sure to wash the food carefully and cover it with a condom before using to keep yourself nice and clean. As with any sex toy, if you’re going to be sharing with a partner make sure to use a fresh condom on the toy every time you switch to a different person, or use a different toy on each partner.

For added sensation, these food dildos can be either gently heated up in the microwave or left in the fridge for a warm or cool sensation. For those who really love the cool feeling, ice dildos can be made by filling a condom with water and freezing it, by standing it up inside of a cardboard tube.

Make sure to run it under water briefly before using, to remove the layer of frost and avoid a very unpleasant tongue-stuck-to-acold-lamppost-esque situation.

Anal penetration with these any of these homemade penetration toys, however, is not recommended. The

Chronical Books

rectum functions like a vacuum, and if you’re not careful can suck up any toy without a wide, flared base.

Even vibrating toys can be found around the house. A humble electric tooth brush can be easily converted into an exciting sex toy by simply purchasing a new head attachment for that purpose.

While the bristles may be a little too intense, the backside of the

brush head works just fine. If you want to modify it further, using contact cement to affix a smooth plastic cap, such as one from an After Bite™ tube, to the brush head will make it even better suited to the purpose.

The most important aspect of making your own sex toys is to have fun and be creative. These ideas are just a starting off point –think sexy and let your imagination run wild!

Every conversation needs a starting point MARGOT FEYERER As a person who occasionally wears a clerical collar, the image presented on the flyer at the INSIGHT arts conference is disturbing and offensive. Such images can do little but provoke a reaction. But I cannot see this image without remembering the families of gay men who have died from AIDS that have arrived at their funerals only to endure pickets that proclaim “GOD HATES FAGS” There is a deeper issue here. Deeper than deciding where offense lies.

The queer community is not the first community to find the church either unresponsive to their cries or actively engaged in their oppression. Arguments in favour of the slave trade were made for years on the basis of scriptural authority; with arguments that slavery was condoned in both Hebrew and New Testaments and that the apostle Paul had given instruction for slaves to remain obedient. (1 Timothy 6:1-2). Today it would be hard to find persons of faith who would favour the institution of slavery. That does not erase the centuries during which enslaved people were taught that they were rightly oppressed.

Our First Nations peoples have also had a history of oppression within the bounds of religion.

Canadian churches complied

with government policies that sought to eradicate aboriginal cultural and religious practices; made the removal of children from their families a matter of law.

Gatherings for spiritual practices were outlawed.

Individuals suffered from abuses within residential school systems, many operated by religious institutions.

We are only now slowly working on making our apologies and seeking reconciliation for the tragedies to which the churches have contributed.

This is not to say that the churches have not worked tirelessly for the good of the world.

Innumerable examples come to mind; the establishment of hospitals and schools; numerous charities and outreach missions across the world and in our community.

People of faith have contributed millions upon millions of dollars to help others.

Additionally, the church has fostered human endeavour; the nurturing of the spirit; the deepening of intellectual and artistic expression. But we are human agents and thus fallible.

Humility is our proper position.

Rather than shutting out the message contained in the poster; rather than simply labelling it a hate crime, I would hope that we could think more deeply about the relationship between members of the queer community and the religious community. What would it look like if we were intentional and self reflective about the ways our communities interact and overlap? People of faith are both queer and non-queer. And those who identify with the queer

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community have experiences of church and religion that may be prophetic for us. I would hope that we might be able to hear the complaints and reflect upon our attitudes, theologies and practices with relation to the queer community. We might listen and learn. We might even be changed.

Every conversation needs a

starting point. Even an image that provokes my outrage may be a place to begin to share our experiences, speak truthfully, listen deeply, respect differences and seek reconciliation.

Margot Feyerer, Ecumenical Campus Minister

16

DEC. 3 - 9, 2009

OPINION

POLITICS

WITH

PETE

OPEN CONTENT

Canada and Copenhagen

B+, A-, C+, D: Who knows?

If there’s no will, there’s no way

MICHAEL RIDLEY

PETE NORTON I don’t know about you, but I’m not getting my hopes up for the upcoming climate conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. Actually, it’s quite the opposite. I’m expecting our government to do what it has done in previous climate talks, going all the way back to Kyoto - to pay some half-hearted lip service to the need for action and then get back to business as usual.

I’ve been there before.

Remember the Kyoto protocol?

The commitment to lower our carbon output to 6 percent below our 1990 levels by 2010?

Remember the photos of Jean Chretien, smiling with Greenpeace activists in polar bear suits? I do. I was pretty excited about it at the time, feeling like it was a turning point. I was naive. Since 1990, our carbon emission levels have gone up by 26 percent. So basically, we agreed to the Kyoto protocol so that we could get the international community off our back, and then went on to do whatever we felt like.

Does that sound familiar? It should.

Climate action is a hard sale in Canada. When you look at the tonnes of carbon each country pumps into the atmosphere we don’t look like the bad guys. We also have a really profitable oil industry that, while a major carbon emitter and polluter, looks small in the big picture of the world’s cumulative carbon emissions, and the demand for it is tremendous.

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cent from their 1990 levels by 2020, but at least it’s something right? Well, not really. It’s that benefit of the doubt that Mr. Harper is counting on. As a leader of an enormous, diverse nation that is strongly divided on the issue it is politically tactful to keep a middle ground and show that you are not abandoning one group of Canadians to appease the interests of another. That is, however, exactly what is happening here.

Stephen Harper is a conservative politician from Alberta. His strongest support base is centered on that province. He is not going to sell Alberta’s interests short, and that is why I expect nothing from him or his government in terms of climate action.

When you look at it in those terms (as opposed to say, per capita carbon emissions) there are doubts as to why we should have to make any sacrifice to fight climate change.

Many Canadians feel conflicted.

Our Prime Minister does not.

Stephen Harper is a conservative politician from Alberta. His strongest support base is centered on that province.

He is not going to sell Alberta’s interests short, and that is why I expect nothing from him or his government in terms of climate action.

True, Stephen Harper has pledged to lower carbon emissions by 20 per cent from their 2006 levels by 2020. It’s not very ambitious when you consider the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has said we need to lower our emissions by 25 per

THEONTARION.CA

Consider that Mr. Harper has repeatedly insisted that any carbon reduction plan has to take into account an expansion of our tar sands oil production. He is contradicting himself. Carbon reduction, in our country, means a green shift. We need to put the brakes on tar sands growth and start developing green energy alternatives to lower our carbon output, even to reach our government’s much less ambitious reduction target. You can’t grow the tar sands and have meaningful carbon reduction at the same time. We don’t stand a chance at achieving any reduction goals if we go on expanding the tar sands. Mr. Harper is not going to allow any obstruction to take place, thus he has no intention of achieving his carbon reduction goal.

What really disappoints me is

how shortsighted and dogmatic that approach is. I say dogmatic because the dogma of growth is dominating our rebuttal to climate action. We keep hearing that if we undertake a green shift it will reduce our economic growth - so what? Does unrestricted growth really make us better off? Are the people of Alberta best served by ongoing tar sands expansion? If you’ve never been, I encourage you to go to Fort McMurray, Alberta and see all of the good our growth has done up there. I’m not even sarcastically referring to the environmental degradation (which is absolutely pitiful) but rather to the community itself. I think about the alcoholism and the prostitution I saw there and then I think about how Mr. Harper is going to defy the international community so that things can continue as they are. God help us.

Mr. Harper is going to sell our national-best interests short in the name of protecting our oil industry. As the rest of the world tries to turn the corner on energy production we are going to turn down the opportunity to be innovative leaders so we can go on with our faulty, short term path of least resistance. And come the day that nobody wants tar sands oil because the world has shifted to low carbon alternatives we’ll be left behind and wonder how we could have been so foolish.

Don’t be fooled - we have no plan for climate action. I expect Canada will be embarrassed in Copenhagen. With absolutely no faith at all in our government to address climate change, I can only hope the international community doesn’t let us get away with it so easily this time.

Quality. That’s the latest buzz word in university circles. Not how to enhance quality but how to measure it. Universities are expert at assessing and grading their students; as for assessing themselves, apparently not so much.

The debate about measuring and assessing quality at universities has been raging for a number of years. It popped up again recently with the release of “Up to Par: the Challenge of Demonstrating Quality in Canadian Postsecondary Education” from the Canadian Council on Learning.

CCL is one of those think tank, policy wonk groups that issue chilling reports every now and then that make headlines then fade away until the next report.

Why is quality such a hot issue? What’s not to like about quality? Everyone loves quality, right? I’m inclined to think much of the current buzz about quality is not about improvement and enhancement but about control: It’s a political issue.

Assessing universities must be easy, the Globe and Mail, Maclean’s and others do it all the time. Formulate some good questions, interview a few people, collect some data and, presto: Evaluation and Assessment 101.

The problem is that the value of a university means different things to different people (aka “the stakeholders”). And that is where the debate really moves from enhancement to control.

What do we want from universities? Depends who you ask. Students, faculty, parents, government and society at large (all stakeholders in very real ways) will give you very clear and different answers: better jobs, discovery of new ideas, economic growth, national prosperity, global competitiveness, improved health, economic engine, self discovery.

And, of course, some just want a good place to party.

Each of these groups wants different outcomes. If we want different things, we will need to measure and value different factors. For example, the Ontario government has established performance indicators for universities. They are graduation rates, post graduation employment rates, and student loan default rates. Get ‘em in, get ‘em out, get ‘em a job, and make sure they pay us back our money. That’s their idea of quality.

Am I worked up about this because I fear Guelph will come out poorly in some more rigorous assessment or comparison? Do I want to plead some sort of special case to let us (and other universities) off the hook? No. But. And the “but” is that much of the thinking around quality assessment is based on reductionist models

not diversity models. Universities are not learning factories; they are investments in growth and innovation. The suggestion that we are just a mere calculation away from making their value perfectly clear and visible is bogus. I don’t buy it.

Of course the rhetoric about quality is also about another important issue: accountability.

There is a social contract between universities and their various stakeholders. Although it is never quite stated this bluntly, perhaps CCL and others are concerned that through neglect or drift universities

What do we want from universities?

Depends who you ask. Students, faculty, parents, government and society at large (all stakeholders in very real ways) will give you very clear and different answers. are getting soft and flabby. They have become comfortable and complacent; they are dozing their way into mediocrity. This for me is the real danger. Universities need to be challenged and critiqued. We expect them to be leading edge and innovative. It is the striving for these lofty goals that is important, not meeting the ratios and metrics of the bean counters.

It’s the end of the semester.

Lots of assessment going on; group projects, term papers, final exams. As important as these grades are they don’t fully define you as a learner; they won’t even very effectively measure what you learned (they just measure what you were tested on). And so it is with the debate about quality in universities. It will assess what is measured, and what is measured will reflect the interests of the group setting the questions.

Universities are one of the most powerful and influential institutions in our society. They are vibrant and productive places.

But they are also messy, crazy, incoherent, and frustrating.

Measure it if you can.

Michael Ridley is the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Chief Librarian at the University of Guelph. Contact him at mridley@ uoguelph.ca or www.uoguelph.ca/ cio.

THE ONTARION

OPINION

160.12

A platform for anyone and everyone Editorials are a chance for a newspaper’s staff to come together and form an opinion on something collectively.

But we can’t stress one point enough: it’s one opinion.

It’s not the opinion of the masses and it is not the opinion of everyone who writes for the Ontarion.

We write this week’s editorial as a response to the intense scrutiny we received in regards to last week’s editorial; an editorial in which we criticized the organizers of the INSITE Guelph: Resistance through Arts Conference for defending an image that depicted a person penetrating the eye socket of a religious figure with a strapon dildo. The image was featured on a flyer at the conference.

The words “Fags Hate God” appeared on the top of the flyer, a parody of a slogan used by the anti-gay Westboro Baptist Church, “God Hates Fags.”

If this were the Globe and Mail, the Toronto Star or the Guelph Mercury, the editorial, which also questioned the tactics employed by other student activists, would have been extremely problematic, even in our eyes; the only recourse that readers have with those publications is to be found in the ‘Comments’ section on a website, or in letters to the editor.

But this is a different situation. The Ontarion is built on the premise of participatory journalism. Student volunteers are our reporters, they are our columnists and they form the vast majority of the opinions expressed in the paper. The paper is theirs; it is yours; just as much as it is ours.

We have received messages this week from several people warning us that because we have a weekly platform to express our views, we need to be careful with what we say.

We take issue with that: it reflects a gross misunderstanding of what this paper is. The Ontarion is not simply our own platform.

Anyone who can and chooses to, has their own weekly platform in the Ontarion as well. It’s not our mouthpiece. It’s everyone’s mouthpiece.

Some people have taken the route of writing letters to the editor, while others pick apart the editorial on our website and on Facebook. Some people sent hateful and sarcastic emails to the editor. And someone, or possibly more than one person, has gone as far as defacing many copies of our newspaper by gluing pieces of paper to the front that say “Warning! Contents reinforce the status quo.”

If in fact we are reinforcing the status quo, then it is vital that we change. Why not come to us and write ten opinion pieces for every one editorial we write? It is your paper, after all.

The Ontarion Inc.

LETTERS

EDITORIAL

We don’t doubt that some of the people who have openly criticized the Ontarion will read this and think, “fuck the Ontarion.

It’s a lost cause. I don’t want to have anything to do with that.”

But that’s a cop-out.

If people put in the time and effort to write letters to us, to discuss the issue on Facebook, and to pick apart our arguments, then they truly realize that the Ontarion has a large influence on public opinion on this campus. If you turn your back on the paper by not choosing to participate in the direction of content, then you’re turning your back on an outlet that can raise, and in many instances has already raised, awareness on serious issues concerning oppressed groups on this campus. This awareness can be raised by anyone.

It’s certainly misinformed to claim, based solely on our editorials, that the paper has no understanding of issues that face marginalized groups. It would appear that some people are reading the Ontarion very selectively. Take a look our past papers; we’ve raised awareness on several important issues facing marginalized and oppressed groups, and in several instances, we have put enough pressure on organizations to at least reflect on their habits.

But regardless of this, because people feel that last week’s editorial (and some before, as well) exhibited an inherent misunderstanding of oppression, we take this very seriously. We are not pretending, even for a moment, that we have represented all views in our editorials or in our news coverage as consistently as we need to. We are not suggesting we know how to best represent all the views on this campus.

We can admit we need to change this. While we believe it is important for people to come forward in their own volition to take part in the Ontarion, we have not done enough to reach out to various groups on this campus who can provide us with varying perspectives. While we have encouraged volunteerism, we have not directly encouraged people to provide viewpoints on issues concerning, for example, the queer community or other marginalized groups.

While we stand by the message of last week’s editorial, we see why that editorial was problematic for many people: it wasn’t problematic in its direct message, but rather because we have failed to represent certain issues, such as systemic homophobia, on a regular basis.

We expressed one view in print, a view that we were entitled to. Anyone in the community can debate and dispute their views alongside ours in print as well.

It is a two-way street, however.

And a street we challenge anyone and everyone to walk down with us.

Dear Editor, I would like to commend the Ontarion for their coverage of, and comments on the graphic poster distributed by Bash Back Guelph at last weekend’s conference, INSITE: Resistance through Arts. Last week’s news article and editorial provide an even-keeled perspective on a debate that has become increasingly unbalanced, with reason and logic playing second fiddle to irrationality and emotion.

One online response from last week’s editorial asked, “Can you agree that maybe these queer folks have an absolute right to express [their anger]?” Your editorial succinctly addressed this question by answering that no one has an absolute right to express their anger if it means reproducing and replicating oppression. The editorial also does a great job of pointing out the futility in attempting to fight oppression using the same oppressive avenues as those they seek to liberate themselves from.

Cathleen Finlay Graduate Student

On Monday, Nov. 30, I attended the city council meeting where the budget was presented and proposed budget reductions were explained. Due to the global economic downturn, Guelph is finally feeling the crunch.

Because of lowered revenues and their standard contract obligations (i.e. interest on loans, insurance premiums, negotiated compensation increases) they are facing a 9.2 per cent difference between what’s coming in and what needs to be paid. In other words, there is going to be a slew of cutbacks and a property tax increase.

What does this mean for students? Well, two main things.

First of all, there will be reduction to services and rental rates may go up. One such service that is affected is transit. One proposed budget reduction is a “Reset Student Transit Fare Categories.” When this was explained to council, it became clear that Guelph Transit is proposing raising the price for university students and lowering the price for high school and college students to harmonize the price for the monthly student pass. If this decision goes forward, it could mean that Guelph Transit might cancel the contract with the CSA and the GSA for providing the Universal Bus Pass and go to a month to month pass.

The CSA and GSA are working closely with Guelph Transit as they look into how they are proposing to make up this $300,000 change. It is important for students to stay informed and engaged on this issue. One key part of our plan is to conduct a survey to assess how you feel about your Universal Bus Pass. I

17

would urge you to complete the Transit Survey that was sent out in your uoguelph.ca email. With this information, we will be able to best able to bring a stronger voice to the student position.

Galen Fick CSA Local Affairs

Editor, It is discouraging to see the lack of responsibility taken by associated groups over the recent controversy regarding the flyer at the INSITE conference.

Horrific depictions of sexual violence against any member of society would be inappropriate.

This poster is especially offensive to Catholics, since it depicts an act of sexual violence against a visible representative of their Church. According to the article in last week’s Ontarion, INSITE organizers have justified the use of this image on the basis that, in their view, the Catholic Church has historically oppressed homosexuals. Instead of taking responsibility for this poster, INSITE organizers have thus adopted a scapegoat strategy based on anti-Catholic sentiment. The students of this campus deserve a better explanation.

Jeffrey Lima

Number of priests skullfucked in Guelph: zero.

Number of queer folk who have been harassed, assaulted, or otherwise made to feel unsafe in Guelph: TOO MANY TO COUNT. Get your head out of your ass, Ontarion. Your articles about queer issues are dangerously ignorant, embarrassingly unsophisticated, and contribute to the unsafe environment that already exists in this city. You’re a heinous joke.

Hannah Peck

I debated whether to respond to your article and diatribe about the Bash Back pamphlet, because this paper isn’t worth my time or the dead trees it’s printed on.

However, there clearly wasn’t room on your high horse for both your self righteousness AND facts, so here I am.

First, thanks for completely neglecting to mention the Westboro Baptist Church, which I know was brought up in your interview, because I was there. For readers who aren’t familiar, it’d seem like Bash Back pulled “Fags hate God” out of their asses, when it’s a direct response to the WBC’s godhatesfags.com.

Apparently, you didn’t think it was important >

CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

University Centre Room  University of Guelph NG W ontarion@uoguelph.ca Phone: -- General: x Editorial: x Advertising: x Accounts: x Fax: -- Editorial staff Editor-in-chief Daniel Bitonti Arts & culture editor Zack MacRae News editor Nicole Elsasser Sports & health editor Mike Treadgold Copy editor Terra Borody Web editor Sarawanan Ravindran Production staff Photo & graphics editor Rashaad Bhamjee Ad designer Anne Tabata Layout director Duncan Day-Myron Office staff Business manager Lorrie Taylor Office manager Monique Vischschraper Ad manager Chris Hamelin Board of directors President David Evans Chairperson Timothy McBride Treasurer Curtis Van Laecke Secretary Justine Baskey Members Matthew French Andrew Goloida Aaron Jacklin Rachel Jones Marshal McLernon Joanna Sulzycki Contributors Rebecca Benson Genna Buck Alex Currie Josh Doyle Sarah Dunstan Margot Feyerer Daniel O’Keefe Jamie MacDonald Elizabeth McLeod Peter Norton Fraser Pennie Michael Ridley Miles Stemp Daniel Wright Aislinn Wyatt

The Ontarion is a non-profit organization governed by a Board of Directors. Since the Ontarion undertakes the publishing of student work, the opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the Ontarion Board of Directors. The Ontarion reserves the right to edit or refuse all material deemed sexist, racist, homophobic, or otherwise unfit for publication as determined by the Editor-in-Chief. Material of any form appearing in this newspaper is copyrighted 2009 and cannot be reprinted without the approval of the Editor-in-Chief. The Ontarion retains the right of first publication on all material. In the event that an advertiser is not satisfied with an advertisement in the newspaper, they must notify the Ontarion within four working days of publication. The Ontarion will not be held responsible for advertising mistakes beyond the cost of advertisement.

The Ontarion is printed by the Guelph Mercury.

18 <

DEC. 3 - 9, 2009

CROSSWORD

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 17

to situate the pamphlet in the context in which it was created.

It’s a direct response to religious groups that actively promote hatred against queers. You asked in your editorial how people would feel if the situation was reversed -- it IS. Constantly. It’s called Bash Back, not Bash First.

Secondly, you neglected to accurately represent the INSITE conference. It was a conference about the intersection between art and resistance, where things can and do get controversial. But you evidently didn’t think a three day student-organized conference was worth reporting on outside of the controversy it caused.

This pamphlet was there as art. Art can sometimes take you to uncomfortable places.

No one denied the pamphlet was shocking. It’s meant to be incendiary, and people should think about why they’re offended, and consider how it feels to be queer and routinely attacked.

It’s not unlike Jane Elliott’s also-controversial “Blue Eyed”, a psychological exercise about racism in the sixties.

But let’s just be honest. You weren’t interested in accurately representing the story. As evidenced by your mention of WMST and Drop Fees, you just wanted another crack at us crazy “regressive” activists.

Veronica Majewski

CROSSWORD 1

2

3

4

12

13

16

17

19

7

8 14

33

35

40

41

25

36

37

38

46 50 53

61

62

65

66

69

54

55

31

58

59

47 51

56

63

57

64

67

68

70

71

72

30

43

49 52

26

39

45

48

11

22

29

42

44

10

15

21

28

34

9

18

24 27

60

6

20

23

32

5

73

74

Instructions: Accidentally, some pairs of clues in this crossword were mixed up. Select the right clue from the options given and find out which clue goes with which number. The mixed up clues are: ACROSS: 19 & 62 ; 27 & 50 ; 39 & 44 DOWN: 9 & 34 ; 31 & 32 ; 37 & 38

ACROSS

Teach English Overseas

THEONTARION.CA

evergreen shrub 29. Puzzle 32. Jacques’ friend 35. ____ Leone 39. Plateau OR Food serving 40. Loafer adornment 42. Besmirch 43. Henry VIII wife 44. Plateau OR Food serving 45. Rainy day feature 47. Palmer’s prop 48. Music pieces 50. Dist. Units OR Evergreen shrub 52. Was in politics 53. From left field

1. ____ ‘n cheese 4. Toasty 8. Light fog 12. Nothing 13. Of a place 15. Feed the kitty 16. Cake’s womb?

17. Manuscript sheet 18. Milton setting 19. Dispositions OR Bureaucratic divisions 22. Downs’ partner 23. Doorway 24. Sated hunger 25. Stricken 27. Dist. Units or

56. Liquorice herb 60. Orwell antagonist 62. Dispositions OR Bureaucratic divisions 65. Poet’s verses 67. Contradict 68. Very much (2 wds.)

69. Diner’s list 70. Sell pups 71. Barbie’s man, and others 72. Meat spread 73. Does math 74. Farm enclosure

DOWN 1. Connoisseur 2. Proficient 3. Mine bird 4. Drift 5. Olfactory stimulus 6. Lease, again 7. Portland’s state 8. Actress West 9. Permissive OR Rebel 10. Dance move 11. Macdonald bills 12. Interest 14. Land unit 20. Cereal grains 21. Eve’s crime 26. Peru’s capital 28. Traces 29. Like some birds 30. Horse feature 31. Sheltered OR Pinnacle 32. Sheltered OR Pinnacle 33. Encounter 34. Permissive OR Rebel 36. Tall bird 37. Scarlet OR Cool (sl.)

38. Scarlet OR Cool (sl.)

41. Behold (hyph.)

46. Dutch cheese 49. Story’s last word 51. Creeps 53. Phantom of the ____ 54. Parceled out 55. Baked 57. Buy 58. Cold-hearted 59. Approximates: (abbr.)

60. Splendor 61. Concept 63. Recede 64. Koppel and Kennedy 66. Actress Sarandon, to friends

Crossword by Krystian Imgrund

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A R A B

V I S A

O V E R

T R E A T

H E A L S

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G A S P

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W E A N O P S I I N T E S S D A Y F I E N S G

P R O W L S

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L S O T S A B A B E O T R A T S E D E M G O O T D E

S T L U E N A T S T S T C A L I O N S E S

S T E E D

L A N A

A R T S

M E S H

S N I P

S T A G E

P O K E R

A P E R S

A C E D

R O P E

C R E E

H E E D

The winner for the previous week is

Mark Sholdice!

Please stop by the Ontarion office to pick up your

2 Free Bobs Dogs!

And bring in your complete crosswords for your chance to win!

THE ONTARION

CROSSWORD, CLASSIFIED & COMMUNITY LISTINGS

160.12

CLASSIFIED

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19

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THURSDAY DECEMBER 3 Thursday at Noon Concert Series-.

This week: Student Soloists Day showcases our talented applied music students. Concerts start at 12:10PM. MacKinnon Room 107 (Goldschmidt Room). Admission FREE – donations gratefully appreciated. Everyone Welcome!

Info: www.uoguelph.ca/sofam

St. S., McCrae House at 108 Water Street. Seasonal activities continue through the holidays, for more info contact: 519-836-1221, ext. 2773 or visit guelph.ca/museum

SUNDAY DECEMBER 6 The Guelph Male Choir presents “The Joy of Christmas” at 7:30pm at First Christian Reformed Church, 287 Water Str. Admission: $15.

SOFAM presents University of Guelph Choirs with Conductor Marta McCarthy at 7pm, Church of Our Lady Immaculate, 28 Norfolk St. Adults $15.00, Seniors/Students $10.00

519-763-8666

TUESDAY DECEMBER 8 EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES SUMMER OF YOUR LIFE! CAMP WAYNE FOR GIRLS –Children’s sleep-away camp, Northeast Pennsylvania (6/198/15/10). If you love children and want a caring, fun environment we need Counselors and Program Directors for: Tennis, Swimming, Golf, Gymnastics, Cheerleading, Drama, High & Low Ropes, Camping/Nature, Team Sports, Waterskiing, Sailing, Painting/ Drawing, Ceramics, Silkscreen, Printmaking, Batik, Jewelry, Calligraphy, Photography, Sculpture, Guitar, Aerobics, SelfDefense, Video, Piano. Other staff: Administrative, CDL Driver (21+), Nurses (RN’s and Nursing Students), Bookkeeper, Nanny. On campus Interviews January 27th. Select The Camp That Selects The Best Staff!

Call 1.215.944.3069 or apply online at www.campwaynegirls.com

Festive Arts Schmoozefest – an informal networking and social occasion for the arts community.

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K I T C H E N E R WAT E R L O O

Clinic

An opening reception for Home Again Quilt Installation at Ed Video Media Arts Centre 7pm.

Exhibited from December 4-17.

40 Baker Street, 2nd Floor. http:// www.edvideo.org/gallery-events/ screenings/home-again

SATURDAY DECEMBER 5 Guelph Civic Museum’s Festive Family Day, 1:00-4:30pm. 6 Dublin

Guelph Guild of Storytellers presents: ‘Meltable Moments’ with Derek Brisland at The Boathouse, 116 Gordon St. S. 8pm. Free -Donations appreciated. Info: www.guelpharts.ca/storytellers, storytellers@guelpharts.ca, 519767-0017.

SATURDAY DECEMBER 12 Guelph Candlelight Vigil for a Real Deal in Copenhagen on Climate Change – entrance to Old Quebec St. mall in St Georges Square

downtown, 4.30pm. Inclement weather - inside the mall. The event is a collaboration of Transition Guelph and Tck Tck Tck. Contact : 519-836-0033 or mikedarmon@ yahoo.ca

ONGOING: Guelph Civic Museum exibit: Arresting Images: Mug Shots from the OPP Museum. Exhibit runs until December 20. 6 Dublin St. S. Open daily 1-5 pm. (519) 836-1221 ext. 2774, guelph.ca/museum Macdonald Stewart Art Centre.

Exhibit: Michael Davey: ‘Overly Charmed’. Runs from Sept 23-Dec 20. 358 Gordon St. at College Ave. Admission by donation. Tel: 519837-0010, info@msac.ca, www. msac.ca. Hours: Tues-Sun, noon5pm.