Vol. 5 Issue 11 by The Runner

Feb

THE

2013 Riding the bus with my sister since 2009

/03/

THREE MORE YEARS FOR THE U PASS

/06/

THE PROBLEM WITH PINK SHIRT DAY

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MASTHEAD

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MAR / 20 / 2013

THE

Community March Against Racism The Runner is student owned and operated by Kwantlen Polytechnic University students, published under Polytechnic Ink Publishing Society Arbutus 3710/3720 12666 72 Ave. Surrey, B.C, V3W 2MB 778.565.3801

www.runnermag.ca Vol. 05, Issue no. 11 March 20, 2013 ISSN# 1916 8241

EDITORIAL DIVISON Coordinating Editor / Jeff Groat

Saturday, March 23 @ 6:30-8 p.m. Clark Park, Commercial Drive & 14th, Vancouver The International Day for the Elimination of Racism marks the anniversary of the 1960 Sharpeville Massacre in South Africa when police opened fire on hundreds of South Africans protesting against Apartheid’s passbook laws, killing 67 and wounding 186. Every year, friends and allies around the world to mark this day and to speak the truth about racism. Join them in solidarity and resistance to celebrate the dignity, strength, and resilience of our communities.

KSA presents: Equinox 19+ Dance Party March 28 @ 7 p.m-11 p.m.

Richmond Campus; Melville Centre for Dialogue The Kwantlen Student Association Presents: EQUINOX an end of semester dance party. The student association is showing some rare love to Richmond students, so if you want to see more non-Surrey events, come out and make this one a success. The KSA promises a live DJ and two tickets to this summer’s Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z concert as a door prize.

editor@runnermag.ca / 778.565.3803

Culture Editor / Max Hirtz culture@runnermag.ca / 778.565.3804

Kwantlen Celebrates Holi

News Editor / Matt DiMera news@runnermag.ca / 778.565.3805

Holi is a religious spring festival celebrated as a festival of colours. Come join the Holi celebration with colours and enjoy the free food and dance party, organized by the Kwantlen International Student Society (KISS).

Production Editor / Roland Nguyen

Surrey Courtyard; Tuesday, March 26 @ 11:30 a.m-3 p.m.

production@runnermag.ca / 778.565.3806

Media Editor / Kimiya Shokoohi media@runnermag.ca / 778.565.2806

Associate News Editors / Sarah Schuchard / Chloe Smith / Sasha Mann Associate Culture Editor / Tabitha Swanson Associate Opinion Editor / Hannah Ackeral

Student pricing

Associate Sports Editor / Brian Jones Associate Copy Editor / Elizabeth Hann

CONTRIBUTORS Tenzin Butsand Becca Pattison, Sheetal Reddy, Sarah Isha

For just $29.95, walk in with your taxes, walk out with your refund. Instantly. You’ll also get a free SPC Card to save big at your favourite retailers.*

Cover Photo / Roland Nguyen

BUSINESS DIVISION Operation Manager / Victoria Almond office@runnermag.ca / 778.565.3801 we make taxes painle$$ hrblock.ca | 800-HRBLOCK (472-5625) © 2013 H&R Block Canada, Inc. *$29.95 valid for student tax preparation only. To qualify, student must present either (i) a T2202a documenting 4 or more months of full-time attendance at a college or university during the applicable tax year or (ii) a valid high school ID card. Instant Cash Back is included in the price. Students pay $79.99 for Complex/Premier return. Expires 12/31/2013. Valid only at participating locations. Additional fees apply. Instant Cash Back valid only on the federal portion of tax returns filed in Quebec. Some restrictions apply. SPC cards available at participating locations in Canada only. Offers may vary, restrictions may apply. For full terms see www.spccard.ca.

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THE RUNNER

NEWS

MAR / 20 / 2013

MultiPass

Transit KSA campaigns for better Kwantlen transit options

Kwantlen locks into U-Pass for three more years

Students vote at the Surrey campus during last month’s Kwantlen Student Association election and referendum. Becca Pattison/The Runner

Seventy-eight per cent of students vote in favour.

SARAH SCHUCHARD ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR

The results are in and Kwantlen students will have the U-Pass for three more years., albeit at a higher monthy price. Seventyeight per cent of students who voted, voted to keep the universal transit program during the February referendum. At $45 monthly, beginning in May, Kwantlen students pay more for their UPass then any other school in Metro Vancouver. The new $35 U-Pass fee is in addition to the accompanying $10 MultiPass fee that Kwantlen students approved in 2011. The final referendum numbers, according to the Kwantlen Student Society (KSA) website, were 1532 in favour and 432 against. The referendum approval rating was 12 per cent higher than when it was first voted on in 2011, according to Christopher Girodat, the KSA’s director of student services, The monthly fee will first increase by $5 per month, and then an additional $1.75 in 2014. In total, the fee will rise by $8 over the next three years.Along with a fee increase, students will also see a change in the look of the U-Pass, to the new Compass Card model

being adopted by TransLink. According to Arzo Ansary, director of external affairs, the KSA is still unaware if the $1.50 fee for the Compass Card will be covered by the U-Pass fee, or if students will have to pay extra. The Compass Card will have students’ picture and I.D. on the card, and it will be reloadable every month. “A lot of considerations went into it including privacy for students, what the Compass Card would look like . . . it was a long and arduous process,” says Ansary. Kayla England, a mature student at Kwantlen and recently elected as a KSA arts representative, does not use transit and is against the U-Pass. “It’s unfair to make all the students pay for something that a majority of students use, but still the minority does not have the ability to opt- out,” she says. Due to her having her own car for transportation, England expresses that the UPass is of no use, and unnecessary for her. “For me . . . somebody that lives in Port Moody, it kind of seems a little bit ridiculous that . . . I have to take the toll over the No. 1 to get here, and now I also have to pay for the U-Pass that I don’t use... it doesn’t really seem fair to me,” she says.

Although there is an opt-out option for students, England says she did not meet the requirements needed to be exempt from the MultiPass. According to the KSA, their contract with TransLink reads that students can only opt out if they prove to be experiencing financial hardship, have to use an employment vehicle, experience a disability that prohibits them from using their U- Pass, or experience music or geographic hardship. According to the KSA’s MultiPass webpage, the previous contract between the KSA and TranksLink only allows for five per cent of students to be exempt from the U-Pass, allowing little flexibility for student exemption. “To students who don’t use transit, I’d encourage them to take advantage of all the MultiPass services. We know that not all students take the bus, that’s why we’ve tried to bundle additional services,” says Girodat. “The U-Pass makes it accessible for a majority of our students, so we think this is a very good thing,” says Girodat.

CHLOE SMITH ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR

If the over 1,500 students who voted in favour of keeping the U-Pass are any indication, transit is a priority at Kwantlen. The Kwantlen Student Association (KSA) has partnered with other Metro Vancouver student associations and the Get On Board campaign. On Feb. 27 KSA representatives, including Arzo Ansay, Richard Hosein and Jamie Cellier, joined supporters of the campaign for a rally organised by the Surrey Citizens Transportation Initiative. The campaign focuses on lobbying the provincial government and TransLink for more accessible and sustainable projects. The KSA has allocated roughly $5,000 into promoting the campaign at Kwantlen, focusing on a push for more rapid transit, in Surrey, Cloverdale and Langley. In a Runner interview, Arzo Ansary, the KSA’s director of external affairs outlined her goals for the campaign. “[We have] definitely three objectives which is definitely more public transit, more infrastructure, and the third aspect of that is the Surrey light rail,” she said. The Get On Board campaign organizers hope that they can pressure the government into making transit in Metro Vancouver more efficient. “Translink is funded right now . . . between revenue from fares and gas taxes,” said Tanner Bokor, external affairs director for the student association at UBC. “The problem with gas taxes being if they work you don’t have as much revenue. What we’re looking at for solutions are road pricing, reallocation of taxes – such as the carbon tax, gas tax increases, property tax – and we’ve also been talking about ways we can monetise more on existing infrastructure within TransLink; ways that can raise revenue without having to raise fares all across the board.” Ansary is aware of student concerns and is optimistic about the campaign’s ability to address the problems of insufficient transit in Surrey, White Rock, Delta and Langley. “What I’m really hoping for is that the majority of the [campaign’s] benefit would come to areas like Cloverdale and Langleywhich are severely lacking in transit abilities.”

NEWS

THE RUNNER

MAR / 20 / 2013

pulp l //

SASHA MANN ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR

Interested in submitting to pulp? Check out our guidelines online or on Facebook, and submit to submissions@pulpmag.ca Find us on Faceebook @ Pulp Mag & visit us at www.pulpmag.ca

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Pulp publishes: Design Art Literature

The Kwantlen Student Association (KSA) is ready to roll out a new Harvest Box program, which aims to provide fresh fruit and vegetables to students at a reduced price. The KSA council allocated $25,000 at its February meeting towards the cost of the Harvest Boxes. The KSA plans to subsidize $5 off each order, according to their website. The money will come directly from MultiPass fees. There will be three categories of boxes available: value, local and buy-one-give-one (BOGO). Value boxes will be $5 and local boxes will be twice that much, but will come from more sustainable sources. If students buy a BOGO box for $10, they will receive a value box and a second box will be given to a B.C. family in need. According to their website, Harvest Box has been running for more than 15 years, and operates all over Metro Vancouver. Simon Fraser University and BCIT also participate in the program. Sponsors of Harvest Box include the City of Surrey, the City of Langley, as well as two Christian churches. Christopher Girodat, the KSA’s director of student services, has pushed for the adoption of the boxes. “We know that students tend to have the moniker ‘starving students’,” Girodat said in an interview with The Runner, “and so we wanted to give them an opportunity to get fresh produce for a lot cheaper than they could get otherwise and in a way that was really convenient for them.” Girodat says that the last part of this semester and the summer semester will serve as a pilot period for the Harvest Box program, to make sure it catches on with students and that the practical elements are sorted out. The program has received some mild criticism for not promising any organic options. This includes the local box, which is described as fresh produce grown using “sustainable agricultural methods.” The food from the value box doesn’t promise being local or organic, but tries to be “as local as possible.” “It’s organic and local as much as it can,” Girodat said.” “So depending on what time of year, if it’s not available then they’re going to be importing vegetables.”

Agriculture

Student association launches fresh fruit and vegetable program

Flickr Image

Harvest Box initiative to be subsidized by MultiPass fee. Richard Hosein, leader of the sustainability policy studies group at Kwantlen and the electes KSA representative for students of colour, questioned the lack of organic options, at the Februay KSA council meeting. He thinks the Harvest Box is a great idea and understands the price concern that organic food represents, but still wants a more sustainable choice. “I would like to see it eventually, at some point get a step taken a bit further, and have organic options available,” Hosein told The Runner. He has plans beyond just organic. With sustainable agriculture and horticulture programs at Kwantlen, why not have those students produce some of the food? Hosein sees this as the best way to get cheap organic

produce. He also envisions involving graduates in the production of food for his theoretical extra-local Harvest Box, and paying them for their work. Putting aside dreams for the future, the Harvest Box program still needs to be launched and have student support before further additions to it are realized. Girodat says the KSA will be marketing the program through whatever means it has. That means more than just posters. “We’re going to be mentioning it at the next installment of our student services newsletter, which is also going out through the email listserv; social media; the intramurals website. So sort of using whatever communications mediums we have available to us,” Girodat said.

When discount cards were introduced in October, a program that Girodat also led, students told The Runner they wanted cheaper groceries to be included on the cards. Five months later, Kwantlen students will get exactly that. But it remains to be seen how many students will actually use the service they said they wanted. The deadline for Harvest Box orders will be the first and second-to-last Thursday of every month. Pickup will be the second and last Thursday. The first batch of box orders will be received March 21, and the food will be delivered a week later. Orders can be made online or in person at KSA offices.

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THE RUNNER

SPORTS

MAR / 20 / 2013

Do you even lift, bro?

BRIAN JONES ASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR

Kwantlen has never been known for its bustling student life or engaging extracurricular opportunities.

But it should be. Both the athletics department and the Kwantlen Student Association (KSA) offer a ton of fitness recreational activities throughout all four campuses. In Surrey, the fitness centre boasts modern strength-training and cardio

equipment; including treadmills, bikes, cable machines, a squat rack, as well as free weights and core equipment. While the one-time drop in price of $5.32 doesn’t turn many heads, the $15.96 monthly membership should. And the bigger commitment, the bigger the savings – the price

Surrey

Making the grade The broken link between academic and athletic success

BRIAN JONES ASSOCIATE SPORTS EDITOR

There’s an old adage that when referring to student-athletes, the ‘student’ part comes first. If this is true, then Kwantlen should be at the head of the class when it comes to recruiting students to play for its athletic teams. Since Kwantlen started competing in basketball in the PacWest conference in 2000, (back then it was named the BCCAA - British Columbia Collegiate Athletic Association) the Eagles have failed to stand atop the podium at the provincial tournament. Capilano, VIU, Douglas and Langara’s men’s and women’s teams have combined to win B.C. gold twice each in that 13-year span. It makes sense that Kwantlen has taken time to develop, but it doesn’t make sense that Kwantlen hasn’t attracted a large group of the Lower Mainland’s best talent in recent years – since it became a full-fledged university in 2008. Capilano only offers 15 bachelor’s degrees, with eight of them being fine-arts oriented. VIU offers 13 bachelor degrees. Douglas

offers nine bachelor’s degrees, with five of them being recreation or health focused. And Langara offers no bachelor’s degrees – just two-year associate of arts programs. Kwantlen offers 32 bachelor’s degree programs, including 14 BA double minors, four honours degrees, and five more bachelor degrees under development. Is the problem that prospective recruits don’t know about the wide-range of degreeoffering programs that Kwantlen boasts? Or do 18 year-olds that enroll in post-secondary studies even care? “I think it’s a personal thing,” said Stefon Wilson, head coach of the men’s basketball team. “I think everyone’s different. Because when you recruit a player, you have to figure out what the pitch is going to be to get him. Is it the academic side, is it the system you run, or is his buddy on the team?” Some just want to play ball. They have the potential to get $500, $1000 or more of their tuition paid for by playing for an athletic team, and may not always know what they want to do with their lives upon high-school graduation. But Wilson says that there are some students

flickr picture

who do adhere to the ‘student comes first’ mantra. “You talk to some players, and the first thing they say is ‘Do you have a criminology program?’ And they won’t even discuss the sports side of it until you have their program,” he said. “And I like that. It tells me that they care about their academics. When someone says to me ‘I want to be a police officer, do you have a CRIM program? How is it?’ That tells me that they’ll be academically eligible the whole time they’re here.” Academic prowess doesn’t always translate into athletic dominance. If that were true, then Ivy-League schools in the U.S. like Yale and Harvard would sweep the NCAA tournament every year. It’s unclear how important a role academics plays in a school’s athletic success, and just looking at past PacWest champions doesn’t offer much insight into this conundrum. But if education is supposed to be the backbone of a university, then why isn’t it the deciding factor in choosing a place to further your education – either on the basketball court or off of it – the first thing on an athlete’s mind?

of a three-month membership is just $42.56. Compared to a $30-$50 membership at most private gyms and rec centres, Kwantlen students (especially cash-strapped ones) can get fit while keeping their wallets fat. And for an even better deal, students with a valid MultiPass can pick up a monthly membership to any Steve Nash Fitness World for just $5 a month. In addition to the fitness centre, Kwantlen’s Surrey campus also offers a variety of fitness classes, including an abs/core workout, kickboxing, body sculpting, and yoga. Each class costs around $4 per session. Richmond students are even better off, as those with a multipass can try out hip-hop dance, Ju-Jitsu, kickboxing and three types of yoga for a $25 refundable deposit. That means free people! Both the Langley and Cloverdale campuses offer their own yoga classes that cost $4 per session. Proving that even plumbers and welders have to stay flexible. Although KPU doesn’t offer semesterlong intramural activities, they do host a March Madness basketball tournament and a road hockey tournament in the early spring. The tournaments are open to the public, just as long as one member of the team is a Kwantlen student. And if you take classes in Surrey, but don’t feel like forking over the dough for a gym membership or fitness class, the gymnasium offers hours of free open-gym times, as well as time slots that are designated for basketball, volleyball, soccer and badminton. Finally, for those who like to pound the pavement, there are spring running clinics that are geared towards beginners, as well as seasoned-sprinters looking to shave a minute or two off their 10k. If you want to check out the fitness centre, drop by the Surrey Campus’ Cedar building. It’s located adjacent to the gym, just across from the Grassroots Cafe – ideal for those whose post-workout meal includes a pint. You can register for fitness classes and running clinics at the athletics desk, located right between the gym and fitness centre. All the classes in Richmond take place at the Blossoming Lotus Studio (Room 1320). You can find the times of each class online at http:// kwantlen.weebly.com/richmond.html. The $5 Steve Nash Fitness World pass is available at any KSA Member Services desk. More information about the pass can be found at http://www.ksamultipass.ca/ MultiPassFitnessServices.html.

EDITORIAL

THE RUNNER

MAR / 20 / 2013

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Like to write nasty emails? Send us your letters!

write@runnermag.ca

THE RUNNER EDITORIAL

Pink Shirt Day On Feb. 27, the Kwantlen Student Association’s (KSA) volunteer program, START, rolled out an interesting new form of self-promotion. Under the guise of Antibullying Day (more widely known as Pink Shirt Day), START members donned their specially-made pink shirts and handed out flyers to students that said “don’t bully volunteer for START.” Ah, yes. Aligning yourself with a preexisting cause in order to bolster your own image. Appropriating a cause such as Pink Shirt Day is easy – after all, who actively endorses bullying? Of course we all want to do away with it! And, like so many ribbon campaigns that have gone before, we have convinced ourselves that by wearing a pink shirt we are some how helping The Cause. It’s not a far jump for START to want to cash in on those easy karma points volunteer with START and you, too, can be part of such “meaningful” campaigns! This isn’t just a clumsy move on the part of START. Political heavy- hitters like our own Premier Christy Clark seem to genuinely believe these acts of blatant insincerity will benefit them. Clark employed the same self serving technique during an anti-bullying speech.

Despite claiming that she wanted to make homophobic bullying a top priority when she originally campaigned for premier, Clark has made no efforts to address it. Now that she’s up for reelection, she isn’t making any such promises. Instead, her big anti-bullying idea is that all bullying is the same, and no one specific branch should be singled out. And that’s the real problem with START and Clark using Pink Shirt Day to give themselves credibility as “do-gooders” Pink Shirt Day has become a useless tool to stop bullying. It doesn’t address the societal factors that encourage bullying. The first Pink Shirt Day only worked as a statement because those students were not just saying “bullying is bad.” They were saying: it’s wrong to make assumptions based on a shirt. It’s wrong to assume someone is worth less because of their gender or sexuality. By throwing their statement under the umbrella term of “antibullying” the nuances are lost and the campaign becomes just another empty gesture. Is all bullying bad? Yes. Does opposing bullying for one day in an attempt to boost your image stop bullying? No.

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THE RUNNER

MAR / 20 / 2013

CULTURE

Surrey

Cancer comes to Surrey

Bruce Horak dressed up as a personified version of cancer for his play, This is Cancer.

Canadian stage actor Bruce Horak speaks about his darkly comedic play, This is Cancer.

MAX HIRTZ

CULTURE EDITOR

Cancer is a jackass. Bruce Horak, the 38-yearold star and creator of the comedic play This is Cancer, which came to Surrey on March 15, understands this as well as anyone could. When he was just over a year old, he lost his left eye and most of the vision in his right eye to bilateral retinoblastoma, a rare type of cancer that affects the cells of the retina. He inherited the gene mutation that caused his tumors from his father, who passed away from esophageal cancer in 2003. “It’s just kind of always been a spectre in my life,” he told The Runner during a phone interview. “I’ve always kind of been afraid of this thing.” After his father’s death, Horak decided it was time to turn his fear into art and began writing This is Cancer, a play in which he portrays the living embodiment of cancer. The egotistical character thinks the world is obsessed with him and sees himself as a

celebrity, so Horak describes the show as “a big rock show for what he believes to be his adoring public.” “Through the course of the show, what happens is he actually ends up telling my father’s story and my own story, but coming from his point of view,” he said. At the end of each performance, Horak invites his spectators to interact with his character and share their experiences with cancer, and even offers to let people come on stage to clobber him with foam pool noodles should they feel the urge. Because of the heavy subject matter and the strong personal connections many audience members have with the illness, some people get pretty into it. “There’s a feeling of catharsis for the audience,” Horak said. During the interactive section of the show, people often ask him if he thinks anyone else would be capable of playing the role because of how closely his personal life is tied in with the script. “Well, it’s like that question they ask of rock singers,” he said. “Do you have to be

depressed to write a sad song, and do you need to be in love to write a love song? You can put yourself in that mindset, but having gone through it, it certainly adds [authenticity] to it.” Horak grew up in an artistic environment and has been interested in visual and performance art since he was very young. Over the years, he has worked as a children’s theatre actor, a painter and a clown. When asked whether his early experience with cancer shaped his artistic path, he agreed that it probably did, but only to an extent. “Certainly, being legally blind my whole life, there’s been a lot of challenges to it. I think perhaps, had I been fully sighted, it would have been a different trajectory for sure. But I can certainly say that a life in the arts was probably the right path for me,” he said. As This is Cancer has evolved over the years, so has Horak’s purpose for performing it. “Initially, the show was really about me kind of going out there and proving something to myself or trying to elicit

a reaction, and now it’s more about the audience,” he said. “For myself, as the performer, I’m in it there to communicate a unique message to people, and getting that across becomes more important than, say, my own journey.” Horak said that at the beginning of each show, audience members are often closed off to the idea of laughing at a comedy about cancer, but he feels that “going into it with a sense of skepticism is actually pretty healthy.” The message, he said, is usually clear to most people by the time the show is over: “We’re not asking people to love cancer; we’re asking them to accept it as a part of life.” “If you go through your life with a big frown on your face and be miserable, no one is going to want to hang around you. You’re going to end up pushing everyone away,” he said. “But if you’re able to, for a lack of a better phrase, grin and bear it, it’s going to make it a little bit easier. That, to me, is a powerful way to go through life.”

CULTURE

THE RUNNER

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MAR / 20 / 2013

Nightlife

The geek shall inherit the Earth A look at Vancouver’s new, thriving geek nightlife.

JON TURNER CONTRIBUTOR

When it comes to popular perceptions of nerds and geeks, it’s no secret that they tend to get the short end of the stereotype stick. Many are portrayed in films and TV as solitary at best and socially awkward at worst. But to someone like Fairlith Harvey, whose monthly pop-culture-driven variety show Geekenders entertains hundreds of self-proclaimed lovers of “geek-chic,” Vancouver’s increasingly nerd-friendly nightlife is about more than merely settling once and for all whether Kirk or Picard would win in a fight: it’s about companionship, comfort, and community. “I don’t think we geeks are socially awkward so much as we don’t have an outlet. We want to hang out with people who are like-minded,” she told The Runner in a phone interview. “And for so long, popular culture has been putting us in the basement, and that’s not at all where we want to be.”

Geekenders, and other similar events in Vancouver such as Mastergeek Theatre and the Critical Hit Show, attracts a primarily 19+ crowd. And while raunchy burlesques, live comedy, and specialty cocktails are certainly part of the appeal, the main draw is the chance to meet other people. “The atmosphere we’ve created is so friendly. There’s an emphasis on partying rather than sexuality, or doing things you’re uncomfortable with. It’s just the most inclusive, incredible experience that I’ve ever had within a community.” Eric Fell, chief organizer of the Critical Hit Show, which bills itself as a live Dungeons & Dragons comedy experience, is similarly excited by the prospect of his show being seen as a social hub. “We get 150-200 people every show, which is huge. Vancouver people don’t like to go out on the whole in terms of comedy. I’ve done shows for eight people before.” Which, aside from purely monetary reasons, is a good thing: his show, and to an extent the mechanics of Dungeons & Dragons itself, encourages audience participation. But running a live improv

show based on discrete, pre-existing rules has its own challenges – comedy always comes first, after all. “If we have to break the rules sometimes, that’s fine. And we’ll get called out on it from the audience!” Such audience turnout and enthusiasm may be surprising considering the typical associations the public has with the tabletop gamer. But Eric believes the stereotype of the introverted and socially maladapted gamer is inaccurate and disingenuous. “I think there’s a stigma of the roleplaying gamer being this antisocial person. But they have to get into a group of five or six people to play. I think that stereotype is an easy mold to put someone in, just like the ‘dumb jock’. ‘Oh, you play roleplaying games, you must be socially inept.’ It’s taking real life and turning it into the Big Bang Theory.” However, Vancouver’s geek culture isn’t all risqué, adults-only entertainment at trendy nightclubs and theatres. Familyfriendly establishments such the EXP Restaurant + Bar, whose slick neon design aesthetic is influenced by modern and classic video games, and the Stormcrow

Tavern, whose name and architecture takes its cues from fantasy and sci-fi tropes, are just as popular. “It’s almost full every night,” said Martin Deyotte, the operating manager of Stormcrow Tavern. He feels that the ambience and playfulness of his restaurant’s theme sets it apart from the rest of the bars and pubs on Commercial Drive. Instead of a row of blaring televisions, for example, they have only one. “All it plays is various sci-fi or fantasy movies, or old G-rated horror movies. And absolutely no sports.” But there’s a deeper reason for the place’s popularity that goes beyond the superficial appeal of a fantasy-themed tavern. “A lot of it indulges people in stuff that they’ve always liked but have never been able to express in a public venue, and a lot of people like it just because it’s different, it’s something new.” Emily Carefoot, a Kwantlen student and frequent attendee, agrees. “I think events like these are helping because it gets people out of their house, instead of being the basement dweller,” she told The Runner. However, she’s a little hesitant to crow about the long-term future of Vancouver geekdom. “I can see it dying down eventually once people don’t want to be a part of this any more. I think [the nightlife scene] is going to be integrated more into our pop culture, but I don’t think it’s going to be as big as it is now.” What does that mean for places like EXP and Stormcrow? Brian Hughes, proprietor of the retro game store Gamedeals and frequent sponsor of Geekenders, suspects there is definitely room for more geek-themed establishments. But he, too, is skeptical. “A lot of it is based on things that our age demographic grew up when we were kids, whereas the current generation is growing up with different things. It makes me wonder if their generation will be as nostalgic about their things as our own. Is our geek subculture going to die, or is it going to morph into theirs -- or even some amalgamation of both?” he wondered. Yet, despite these doubts, there are no signs that participation is slowing down. However, keeping the community alive is certainly a priority. “Part of it is letting those geeks that aren’t very social know that, hey, it’s time to come and hang out,” Hughes said. Which, considering the growing social acceptance of the subculture, as well as the bevy of appropriate venues and establishments, seems a compelling and timely argument to make.

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THE RUNNER

MAR / 20 / 2013

CULTURE Kwantlen

Kwantlen student helps slow fashion movement gain momentum

TABITHA SWANSON ASSOCIATE CULTURE EDITOR

Sarah Fairweather, a fourth-year fashion design student, sits stylishly the Richmond KSA lounge. With her slightly-disheveled, curly red hair and a tape measure slung around her neck, she looks like a designer on a mission. On April 17, the fashion design and technology program is putting on their annual fashion show at the River Rock Show Theatre. The fashion show is a final project for all students in the fourth year of the bachelor program. Using the skills they have acquired from their studies, every student must design a line of clothing for it. Fairweather has chosen to create her women’s clothing line using the principle of slow fashion. The slow fashion movement promotes a more relaxed life pace and valuing how and where something was made as opposed to solely the price. Slow fashion ideas include: buying local, fair trade, buying organic, buying quality over quantity, and wasting less resources. Slow fashion isn’t something that is just a

Sarah Fairweather, a Kwantlen Fashion Design student. Tabitha Swanson photo

fashion-industry trend; we can see it in food, architecture, jewelry, and local businesses. Fast fashion is what companies such as H&M or Zara are using. When a new trend comes out, they have it designed and made within a week. The clothes we get from these stores aren’t made to last long. Sometimes, after just one wash, you’ll find them falling apart. The slow fashion movement believes we should change that, and reduce the amount of waste we are dumping into the world. Q: In what way is slow fashion clothing constructed differently? A: Well, there is a lot of textile design, so it’s the handiwork and the craftsmanship that goes into it. I have a coat that’s needle-felted, so everything’s placed by hand and then needle felted in place... and then all the finishing and construction is good, and the fabric quality is really good, so it’s going to last. Q: Do you feel as though that is how the trend of fashion is going to go? Back to buying quality instead of quantity? A: I feel like there is starting to be a shift in buying quality product, but I think the real shift is that people are really starting to think and ask questions. With other movements like slow food, or buying organic, buying local farmers markets - you’re starting to see that in fashion. People are wondering things like, “Who made this? What conditions were they in when they made this? Were they treated well? Were chemicals dumped into the water?” People are just starting to ask questions like how it’s made and where it came from. If you look at the mass market, it’s not going to be like that anytime soon, but it is definitely going to make people think. Q: Do you think that you would start reworking fashion (using already made clothes to make new ones)? A: We don’t have a system in place, so you don’t really know what you are working with in terms of the fiber content and stuff like that. I think for me, what’s interesting is scrap material. In one season, if you make coats,

A sample of Fairweather’s designs for the fashion show.

you have all this leftover fabric. You can then use that fabric as embellishment in the next season and that saves the fabric from being wasted. Then you know where that fabric has come from and how to care for it. Q: What are some things you are doing with your collection to prevent waste? A: In part of my collection, some of my things are rust-dyed. I went to the scrapyard last year for the first time, which I think was just a really cool experience in itself, like to see where your garbage goes. It’s really sad and it really makes you start to think. I think rust-dying is one of the coolest things because you get to take something that’s garbage and you get all these really interesting shapes because of the metals. All you do is you soak your fabric in vinegar and water, and then wrap it in the rust. You can leave it out for days and you just kind of see how it’s developing. And then, once it’s done, you just rinse it out and it’s set. It’s a really good dying practice because with many dyes, you have to mix it with chemicals and you’re using so much water, whereas this, I leave it out in the rain. It’s actually really good in Vancouver because it rains all the time. Q: What prompted you to start going to farmer’s markets and promote other sustainable, local endeavors? A: I think this kind of started in the summer time, I studied abroad in England and I think by travelling around, my perspective started to change and I started to really think. When

you go any place you start to really think how fortunate you are and just start to really look at the way that you live. I started to question the way I did things, and I think this summer I just started doing a lot of reading. I was reading books on textile future and sustainability. I have a friend who is at Emily Carr in her fourth year and she’s doing her grad project on slowing down Vancouver. We would just go on bike rides in the summer time and then just tell each other what we’d read. Initially, I didn’t know that what I was talking about and what I was thinking about was called slow fashion, it was just talking about changing the way we do different practices and it just developed. A: What are some other highlights you are looking forward to at the fashion show? Q: Ohh, highlights. Well I’m really excited for everyone’s line. This year, there’s a lot more women’s wear and I think just a lot of visually interesting lines. I’m really excited to see everyone I’ve worked with for the last four years and see the end product of it all. I think that will be the biggest highlight, just seeing all of the collections together. You can buy tickets at http:// kwantlen2013exchange.eventbrite.com/. Tickets for the Matinee show are $20 and tickets for the evening show are $40.

CULTURE

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MAR / 20 / 2013

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Anchorman 2, it gets better!

If you’ve been living under the proverbial rock for the past nine years and have never come across a movie called Anchorman, let me enlighten you. Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, released in 2004, features Will Ferrell as top-dog newscaster Ron Burgundy in San Diego circa the 1970s. Anyway, a lot of funny stuff happens and with the cast of such funny people as Paul Rudd and Steve Carell the film became a cult classic. Fast forward to 2013 and a release date for Anchorman: The Legend Continues has been set for Dec. 20. Harrison Ford is currently filming his cameo and Carell recently stated, “Meryl Streep told me she was a huge Anchorman fan and she’d love to have a cameo in the sequel.” The crowd goes wild.

Calm Down, Taylor Swift

Everyone knows Ms. Swift has had some trouble with the boys (Joe Jonas, Taylor Lautner, Jake Gyllenhaal, John Mayer, Harry Styles) but now the ladies too? In a Vanity Fair interview, Taylor was asked about the joke Tina Fey and Amy Poehler made at the Golden Globe Awards about Swift restraining herself from dating Michael J. Fox’s son. In a lovely passive-aggressive and juvenile response Taylor said, “Katie Couric is one of my favorite people, because she said to me she had heard a quote that she loved, that said, ‘there’s a special place in hell for women who don’t help other women.’” Interesting. Poehler responded, “Aw, I feel bad if she was upset, I am a feminist and she is a young and talented girl. That being said, I do agree I am going to hell. But for other reasons. Mostly boring tax stuff.” Maybe Ms. Swift should take a cue from Amy and start taking herself a little less seriously.

The Mila Kunis Effect

The movie Oz, The Great and Powerful was recently released and, as is customary for a blockbuster hopeful, the cast has been around the world doing endless press junkets. One interview, however, is giving the film and one of its stars, Mila Kunis, quite the positive publicity. In the exchange, Chris Stark, an adorably meek and amateur English reporter for BBC Radio 1, questions Kunis in the now viral video. They talk about her favorite beer, his “boys” at the local bar, and he even asks her out to a football game. But perhaps the best moment comes when Stark worries he should probably start asking questions pertinent to the film and Kunis responds, “Let me just give you answers that I know you’re gonna ask”, going on to give the robotic and well-rehearsed reply she has presumably given in numerous interviews before. With all that awesome sass you would think Jackie Burkhart is alive!

Cudder is Back

After his mediocre 2012 collaborative release WZRD with Dot da Genius, fans of the Cleveland rapper KiD CuDi may finally be getting what they want. Cudi is set to release his third studio album Indicud on April 22 and reception for the three singles released so far have been solid. Although he hasn’t been completely quiet on the music front as a solo artist – with cameos on Kanye West’s G.O.O.D. Music album – he’s also got something stirring on the acting front as well. Everyone may still be upset that his show How to Make it in America on HBO was cancelled in 2011, but the kid is moving on. He’s getting ready for his role in the film adaptation of the video game Need for Speed alongside Aaron Paul of Breaking Bad.

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PROCRASTINATION

Horoscope

Sagittarius Nov. 23 - Dec 21

Capricorn Dec. 22 - Jan 20

Stay away from pencil sharpeners this month. It’s mating season.

Be nice to your family members. One day they’ll all be transormed into circus monkeys by an evil warlock. Maybe.

The spirit world says you suck.

Aries Mar 21 - Apr 19

Taurus Apr 20 - May 20

Gemini May 21 - Jun 20

Free your mind and you will free your soul. Free that girl you’ve got locked up in your attic and you’ll probably feel a lot better.

What were you thinking about, just now? Was it Jack Johnson? Was it your gallbladder? Was Jack playing an acoustic set inside your gallbladder?

“Wisdom is gained through pain. When one feels pain, one feels Pop Rocks on one’s tongue.” - Richard Nixon

Don’t forget to take your meds this month. If you don’t take meds, you should find some. The medicine cabinet is usually a good place to look.

Virgo Aug 24 - Sept 23

Libra Sept 24 - Oct 23

Scorpio Oct 24 - Nov 22

This month is literally going to be the best month of your life.

This month is literally going to be the most average month of your life.

“Stop looking for love. Love is like the sun; it only comes out at night and gets super creeped out when you stare at it.” - Plato

Leo Jul 24 - Aug 23

This month is literally going to be the worst month of your life.

Aquarius Jan 21 - Feb 19

Pisces Feb 20 - Mar 20

“What is love? Love is but a butterfly buttering a bun.” - Shakespeare

Cancer Jun 21 - Jul 23

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