Flash mob a hit Routine designed by Cirque de Soleil choreographer. Page 8 Monday, February 24, 2014
SPOKE
A learning newsroom for journalism students
Conestoga College, Kitchener, Ont.
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Notes and novels Family-run business worth a visit. Page 12 45TH Year — No. 7
Everyone urged to laugh out loud By SPENCER BEEBE
The audience was breathless with laughter at the Queen’s Square Library in Cambridge on Feb. 9 during Deb Loyd’s “Laugh out Loud: Life’s Too Short” presentation. Loyd, who is a professional public speaker and educator, used her talent with humour to teach visitors how to improve their lifestyle through laughter. With silliness and storytelling, she kept the audience in stitches and showed them how a simple smile could improve their mood and put a song in their step. “It’s all about your attitude,” she told the audience. “Whenever you don’t know whether to laugh or cry – always laugh.” Her stories about her family and her co-workers had the audience roaring with laughter, and her exaggerated hand gestures, intriguing impersonations and squeaking clown nose had everyone suppressing giggles. She made light of dayto-day events that we all struggle with – being stuck
in traffic, taking your kids to the dentist and listening to someone shouting at a cashier at the grocery store. She even cracked jokes about homemade omelette cooking. “Humour is so powerful,” she said. “Laughter releases the happiness hormones, so why not smile?” Stories about her mother were the highlight of her presentation; her mother often mixed up words, she said, leading to several sidesplitting scenes where she talked about “a neighbour selling his house and buying a nice condom,” or about “watching Doctor Zeus” on television. Everyone in the audience took away something special from Loyd’s presentation, and just as she told them, a simple smile lifted their spirits and made everything seem alright. Loyd lives in Waterloo and often gives presentations like this to local businesses and public forums. To learn more about her workshops and presentations, visit her website at www.debloyd. com.
PHOTO BY Spencer beebe
Deb Loyd’s stories made her audience howl with laughter during her Laugh out Loud presentation on Feb. 9 at the Cambridge Public Library.
Business student elected new CSI president BY JOSH BURY
Conestoga Students Inc. will have a new president for the 2014-2015 academic year. After nearly 10 hours of speeches and voting that began at 9 a.m. on Feb. 8, the selection committee chose Jeffrey Scherer, a third-year business administration marketing student, as the president after three rounds of voting. The committee was assembled by CSI and made up of six randomly-selected students and three members of the current CSI board of directors. Only directors who were not running for president were allowed to vote on the proceedings, and one director, Nitika Oberoi, was not present. Students had to apply to be a part of the committee, and then were random-
ly chosen from applicants. Student members of the committee were paid a $150 honorarium and were given lunch and dinner. The committee was supposed to have two more students, but they didn’t show up Saturday. The event’s format consisted of a morning spent listening to 15-minute speeches by the 10 candidates, who were not allowed to be present for the speeches of their competitors. After the first few speeches, the Sanctuary, where the event was being held, began to smell heavily of gas. Security was contacted and they confirmed that the proceedings should be moved elsewhere while the issue was resolved. The remainder of the event was held in the more intimate confines of the Student Life meeting room - directly across from Room 2A122, also known as the “clubs
room,” where candidates were already relaxing before and after their speeches. Some candidates made use of visual aids or handouts during their speeches. Scherer showed a personal testimony video shot by a broadcast journalism student, while Zoey Ross handed out a dossier containing more than 500 signatures supporting his candidacy. Adam Rochon, a broadcast journalism student and a candidate for the position, showed a selection of the work he had done in his program. Hayley Press, current member of the board of directors, outlined a full platform and strategy in a distinctly PR-oriented style. The platforms presented were varied, but there were some points in common. Most candidates said that transparency and communication were important to them, some referring specifically to
a story that Spoke ran previously about the $945,000 CSI budget surplus. The speeches were mostly well-received. But the question and answer period, which took place after a lunch of Quiznos subs, was where candidates truly faced down the committee. Each candidate was given 25 minutes to answer questions from the committee and audience members. The committee did not pull their punches. The questions were pertinent to the candidates’ platforms and often demanded specific examples. Scherer and Rochon both performed well during their stints in front of the committee, despite some dangerous questions. Shayna Collin, a secondyear business student and one of the student members of the committee, asked Scherer a potentially crippling question,
who may have actually turned the query to his advantage. “If you were given the choice and you could only choose one goal for the year to achieve as president, what would it be and why,” Collin asked. “The one thing I would change in the year would have to be unifying our school colours. I know it’s not a huge thing ... it’s something that can help build our school, and how people feel around our school and the stuff they can bring home with them, as well,” Scherer said, adding that many people don’t know what the school’s colours are. Another of the committee, Kassie McLean, questioned Scherer’s answer to Collin’s question. The second-year community and criminal justice student asked why this would be Scherer’s priority. continued on Page 10
NEWs
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Monday, February 24, 2014
Now deep thoughts ... with Conestoga College Random questions answered by random students
What is the worst outcome of a bet you have seen or been a part of? “I bet 20 bucks on the Broncos winning 24-21. Not only was it not even close, they were blown-out. Just a complete blowout.” Steven Jones, first-year police foundations
“We bet someone 20 bucks to lick puke off the ground, not even our puke, some random puke. He did it.” Kyle O’Brien, a Guelph resident who was on campus touring the college
“After a game of beer pong someone had to go streaking after they didn’t sink any cups.” Jordan Dixon, second-year architecture, construction and engineering
“In high school two kids bet each other to snort lemonade. One of those ‘if you do it, I will do it scenarios.’ They ended up both doing it.”
Internet PHOTO
Otis Clay performed at Pop the Gator’s opening night in 1989. It is fitting that he will attend the 25th anniversary on March 1.
Pop the Gator returns to K-W after 25 years BY KELSEY DUNBAR
Lauren Deoliveira, first-year international business management
“During the summer two friends had a competition to see who could take more ghost pepper vodka shots. The loser had to eat the rest of the pepper.” Craig White, second-year public relations
“I am currently in a bet that if the Leafs win their division, I have to go streaking down Conestoga’s halls. They are on a hot streak lately, so I’m a little scared, but it is the Leafs.” Connor Ayerst, first-year pre-health Smile Conestoga, you could be our next respondent!
Walking up the long flight of stairs into a smoky room with huge 15-foot tin-tiled ceilings and blues posters plastering the walls, you would have never thought this cool blues club would be remembered after 25 years. Pop the Gator opened March 1, 1989 so it is fitting that the 25th anniversary will be held on March 1 of this year at THEMUSEUM. Hosted by Glenn Smith, the original owner, Otis Clay will attend the event as he performed at the club on its opening night. “It is sort of a tribute to the music scene and history of Kitchener … People know the blues festival and in a way Pop The Gator started that,” said David Marksell, CEO of THEMUSEUM. “Pop the Gator comes up miraculously in conversation now and then … people just have this fond memory of Pop the Gator. If someone brings it up, very quickly people are talking about how great it was to go there and all the good and bad things they did there
… there is this huge fond memory that surrounds it.” Tickets to the event were sold at THEMUSEUM, Encore Records and at Ethel’s Lounge. However, all 400 of the tickets to the anniversary sold out within 48 hours. Marksell said he hopes this will encourage Smith to host one of these events once or twice a year. Back in the days of acidwashed jeans and denim jackets, the club was located on the second floor of the building where Encore Records is located today, on Queen Street in downtown Kitchener. Pop The Gator used to showcase successful as well as up-and-coming artists and this trend will continue at the reunion. In addition to Clay, Wesley Bright and the Hi Lites will be preforming and Marksell said there will be some surprises and artifacts from the club at the event. “Everyone talks about the club and its long set of vertical stairs leading up to the smoke-filled room where everyone was kind of jammed into,” Marksell said.
Smith said, “It wasn’t a problem going up the stairs, it was coming down drunk that was the problem.” He added Pop The Gator had the right atmosphere for a blues club. Unfortunately, he said, there aren’t any more places like that around here, although New Orleans probably has a few. “I was a pretty young guy in Kitchener collecting blues records, and it went from a point of a guy collecting records to having a club, and instead of just listening to these guys I could phone them up and have them come up here and play in my club. On that level it was really cool,” Smith said. For one night, Pop the Gator will return to its home in Kitchener and bring back tons of memories for all who attend. “I’m just thrilled that people can revisit their youth and those fond memories of 25 years ago and I am really looking forward to seeing them all gather together to celebrate Pop The Gator here at THEMUSEUM,” Marksell said.
NEWs
Monday, February 24, 2014
Facebook celebrates its 10th birthday BY RANDI CLARKE
For many years now, people have been trying to keep in touch with relatives, old high school romances and longlost best friends. Up until 10 years ago, you required an e-mail address, home address or a land line number to keep in contact. Then along came Facebook. According to www.wikipedia.com, the website was based off of its predecessor, Facemash, a site launched on Oct. 28. 2003 and created by Mark Zuckerberg, along with his Harvard University roommates, Andrew McCollum, Chris Hughes and Dustin Moskovitz. It was set up as a type of “hot or not” game for Harvard students and allowed its visitors to compare two student pictures side-by-side, letting them decide who was “hot” and who was “not.” It was shut down by the Harvard executives a few days after it launched. In January 2004, Zuckerberg began writing the code for a new website and on Feb 4. 2004, he, McCollum, Moskovitz, Hughes and Eduardo Saverin launched the website called Thefacebook. It was originally located at www. thefacebook.com (which now redirects you to the current address of www.facebook. com). Zuckerberg’s intention was to create a universal website that could contact people around the university. Within 24 hours of launching, Thefacebook had
between 1,200 and 1,500 registrants. Membership on the popular website was initially restricted to students of Harvard University but was expanded to Stanford, Columbia and Yale in March 2004. Expansion continued to all Ivy League and Boston-area schools until it gradually reached most universities in Canada and the United States. Then, in 2006, it was finally available everywhere. Facebook’s timeline (much like the timelines currently on people’s own main profile pages) includes some major milestones in its 10 years. For example, on Dec. 30. 2004, it acquired its one millionth registered user. It also launched its photos feature in October 2005 while the ability to tag your friends in those pictures was added in December of that same year. Its News Feed was created on Sept. 6. 2006. In September 2009, Facebook announced a feature where people could tag their friends in their statuses and comments. In June 2010, Facebook’s famous “Like” button became available in the comments section. In January 2011 the company was worth $50 billion. Facebook was made accessible to the iPad as an app in October 2011 and reached one billion users in October 2012. In June 2013, Facebook announced that you will be able to use hashtags in your statuses, much like another popular website, Twitter. Facebook is the most popular social networking site in the world, however, it still
receives limited popularity in countries such as Japan, where domestically created social networks are still largely preferred. Due to the rising popularity of Facebook, its users have grown quite substantially over the years starting from one million in December 2004 to over one billion. Even more interesting is the age range of Facebook users. With more and more people from an older generation joining Facebook, teens and young adults are shying away from using the social networking site and moving toward Twitter due to the fear of being friended by their parents. “I don’t know that I see them moving from Facebook to Twitter, but you have a lot of other social platforms that they’re excited to experiment with, like Snapchat or Instagram,” said Lydia Frey, a second-year Conestoga advertising and marketing student. “I definitely have seen those platforms become more popular among a younger generation.” The numbers are still pretty high though. A new survey conducted by Pew Research Center, an American think tank organization that provides information on social issues among other things, shows that 73 per cent of Facebook’s users are kids ages 12-17. With Facebook now 10 years old, Zuckerberg told CNN on Aug. 21, 2013 he isn’t done planning to connect five billion people from around the world.
Scammers target college By greg stamper
“If it seems too good to be true, it is.” Those were the words spoken by Conestoga College security and parking supervisor Barb Eichholz regarding an alleged scam attempt that took place during the last week of January in one of the parking lots at the Doon campus. Although Eichholz said that her security team did not get an official complaint on this specific attempt, word got around amongst college students that a man was trying to sell electronics in the parking lot in an effort to scam
“
It’s a target-rich environment for people to pull their scams. — Barb Eichholz
”
any would-be buyers. According to Eichholz, this is not the first time someone has tried to do this under her watch, as she believes the college presents too good of an opportunity for scammers because of students always wanting to get a good deal. “We have had these people in
the past, maybe three or four times, mainly in September; it’s a target-rich environment for people to pull their scams.” One particular scam that has prompted security to ask the sellers to leave the campus on more than one occasion is people selling spa packages. Eichholz reminds students to never purchase anything from anyone not operating out of a booth, that would first be approved by Facilities Management, and to immediately contact Security Services (located across from the library at the Doon campus) if you have any doubts or concerns with sellers on the campus grounds.
SPOKE s Page 3
PHOTO BY Randi clarke
Facebook, which recently celebrated its 10th birthday, has been available on mobile devices since December 2011.
COMMENTARY
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Monday, February 24, 2014
Wage increase changes little BY Jody anderson
The seemingly constant discussion about the proper minimum wage heated up again when it was raised to an even $11 per hour in Ontario. Premier Kathleen Wynne also promised legislation that would tie future increases to the rate of inflation. Though an increase in minimum wage is welcome news to many, it still leaves many living in poverty. What a living wage is depends entirely on your personal circumstances, especially whether you have children to support or not. If you do and happen to be a single parent (as 19.3 per cent of people with children under the age of 14 were in 2011, according to statcan.ca), $11 an hour would not be enough. Whether you should be able to live on minimum wage or not is a debate that comes up often. When people hear the term minimum wage, they picture 16-year-olds at fast food chains saving up for their new cellphone or first car. That, however, is an idealistic image that does not hold much truth in 2014. Most available jobs pay minimum wage or just above minimum wage. Not everyone can be a tradesperson or a manager in some office building, and even if they could, those jobs aren’t that plentiful. Factory workers, too, are in a bad position with many of them making just a few dollars an hour more than minimum wage. With the increase to $11 per hour these factory workers are even closer to the minimum. The Workers Action Centre, a self-described “workerbased organization committee,” wants a $14 per hour minimum wage which they say would bring workers earning this amount to 10 per cent above the poverty line. That would be a massive change, for both employees and employers. The problem is it would force some employers to lay off staff, something our precarious economy doesn’t need. The upcoming minimum wage increase is a start but it doesn’t solve the problem. What has been said is that people feel they should be able to support themselves with a full-time job. It sounds strange, because it is so obvious but it isn’t the current paradigm. It doesn’t have to be the ideal life either; an apartment, a car, utilities and food. It adds up quickly and the money disappears just as fast. There needs to be a balance, for those small businesses that don’t make as much money, but jobs, all full-time jobs, should be worthwhile. The views herein represent the position of the newspaper, not necessarily the author.
Letters are welcome Spoke welcomes letters to the editor. Letters should be signed and include the name and telephone number of the writer. Writers will be contacted for verification. No unsigned letters will be published. Letters should be no longer
than 500 words. Spoke reserves the right to edit any letter for publication. Email letters to: www.spokeonline.com with the subject line “Letter to the Editor,” or bring them to Room 1C30 at the Doon campus.
Security at Sochi has been so tight that even the athletes are being scrutinized.
The separation of ad and state Intrusive broadcasts, steeped in politically nonsensical rhetoric and force fed to the senses around election season, need to be outlawed and exiled. Just because someone owns a car doesn’t mean they need to be a mechanic. In order to cast an informed vote one shouldn’t have to be a master linguist. Language aside, advertising has no place in politics. The nature of these two subjects is completely different, their delivery and reception should remain divergent. Ads are made to capture attention; they make false and unrealistic claims in order to trick consumers into voting, or rather, buying. It’s time that political parties respect their age of majority constituents. The most educated, informed and curious cohort of all time is becoming increasingly apathetic and growing callous to the very idea of politics due in part to the constant bombardment of lame ads aimed and fired at them. The advent of the television in the 1950s, and to a
Tyler Batten Opinion
greater extent the obligatory advertisements that followed, saw politicians chase voters down the rabbit hole into the depths of that hot medium, with its marquee lights, explosions and theme songs all riddled with false and disconnected, yet easy to understand, promises. In the spirit of late communication theorist Marshall McLuhan, within the irony of this generation — the hipster — there lies a testament to the renewal of individualism within an old and tired global village, but the real irony is that the solution which guides the renewal of individuality has become marketable itself. The individual’s problem is a fisherman’s hitch — the greater the solution the tougher the problem, that is, the more authentic the idea, the more popular it will become.
The current political class, standard and dull, are again chasing this generation down to their agora — their meeting place — their place of individual connectedness. The Internet medium is a place where messages can be paused, played back or all together avoided. Tuning in is a completely autonomous act and if anything is known about this generation it’s that their hand will not be forced. Voter turnout is on a steady decline in Canada because what the antiquated political process has failed to understand is that capturing a vote does not mean finding voters who will listen, but rather developing an appropriate and transparent medium in which to talk. The need for a separation of ad and state now, more than ever, must be recognized and implemented. Active and engaged citizenry and a revival in the reverence of democratic values will occur naturally if Hollywoodinspired slam ads and fictional accounts of fallacious arguments are exchanged for truth, transparency and respect.
Spoke
i s p u bl i s h ed a nd prod u ced weekl y b y t h e j o u rn a l i sm st u dents of C onesto g a C olle g e Editor: Laurie Snell Assignment Editors: Steph Smith, Kelsey Dunbar Advertising Managers: Tyler Batten, Ashley Kowitz Spoke Online Editors: Brandon Hommel, Katrina Edlefsen, Spencer Beebe, Devon Hayes,
Aaron Creces Production Managers: Casey Schellenberger, Jody Anderson, Tony McLellan Photo Editors: Greg Stamper, Mark Lorentz, Cody Steeves, Bruce Chessell, Callie Wrigglesworth, Becky Sheasby, Cole Froude, Randi Clarke
Social Media Editor: Josh Bury, Tasha Lunny Circulation Manager: Hailey Merkt, Scott Dietrich Faculty Supervisor and Adviser: Christina Jonas
Spoke’s address is 299 Doon Valley Dr., Room 1C30, Kitchener, Ontario, N2G 4M4. Phone: 519-748-5220, ext. 3691, 3692, 3693, 3694 Fax: 519-748-3534 Email: spoke@conestogac.on.ca Website: www.spokeonline.com
The views and opinions expressed in this newspaper do not necessarily reflect the views of Conestoga College. Spoke shall not be liable for any damages arising out of errors in advertising beyond the amount paid for the space. Letters to the editor are subject to acceptance or rejection and should be clearly written or typed; a MS Word file would be helpful. Letters must not contain any libellous statements.
NEWS
Monday, February 24, 2014
SPOKE s Page 5
PHOTO BY TYLER BATTEN
Blue, a rescue dog from rural Manitoba, is shown in Kitchener in the late summer, 2013. The day after being found in a parking lot, she boarded a helicopter bound for a cleat-cut in the boreal forest.
Stray dogs killed in Canada too BY TYLER BATTEN
The Sochi Games are rife with controversy, but perhaps, among the many, none have gone so viral and pulled on as many western heartstrings as the mass extermination of hundreds, some say thousands, of stray dogs. The Sochi stray news is all the more biting following the widespread rumour that Chinese and eastern European clothing manufacture’s have, for years, been using dog fur as hood liners for jackets, calling it faux fur, and selling it to the fashion-forward West. Controversy surrounding faux fur clothing and the concept of mass dog culls is nothing new, and is by no
SOME FAST FACTS ABOUT STRAY DOGS IN CANADA Only one out of every 10 dogs born will find a permanent home in Canada 53,085 dogs are taken in by Canadian shelters each year Only 25,379 dogs are adopted from accredited shelters each year Sixty-three per cent of dogs taken in by SPCAs are stray Most rural dog pounds have a 48-hour policy after which, if the dog is not claimed, it is put down Shelters spay/neuter 10,701 dogs per year There are 186 Humane Societies and SPCAs across Canada An innumerable amount of dogs are killed in Canada each year
means limited to the “gaybashing, dog-slaughtering Sochi Olympics.” We have our own problems right here in Canada. In the early spring of 2013 I found a feral Rottweiler puppy in a parking lot of a rural Manitoba strip mall. At the time, she weighed about 30 pounds and was extremely emaciated. She wasn’t the only puppy in that parking lot. In the small town of The Pas there are dozens, if not hundreds, of dogs roaming around, looking for food. Unlike here in Kitchener, stray dogs aren’t picked up by local humane societies and sheltered until they’re adopted out, or killed if they’re unpopular amongst adoptees. They are hunted, shot, poisoned or otherwise neglected from the time they’re born. The well-known practice of leaving a litter of puppies alone and waiting to see which ones survive before picking a keeper is rumoured to still be in widespread use across the North. The population problem arises when dogs survive their harsh upbringing, but don’t return to their owners because they’ve learned to live without. According to North American statistics, only one out of every 10 dogs born will find a permanent home. A petition to “ban dog shoots in Manitoba,” was launched in early April 2013 by Paw Tipsters owner Yvonne Russel. The intent of the petition was to have provincial legislation passed which would see the province responsible for the sterilization of free-ranging dogs. Shortly after launching the provincial petition, Russel realized the scope of the problem and took the campaign national, calling on the federal government and First Nations’ communities to address the issue of dog shootings.
The petition garnered over 17,000 signatures nationwide but has yet to be addressed by the federal government in any formal way. Failure to address the issue has led good Samaritan Emma Lees to take up the fight against animal cruelty and abandonment. Lees founded a private animal shelter in her garage in The Pas during the autumn of 2013. She currently has 12 dogs in her care, but at one time had 17. “God, there are so many pups running around. One of the reasons why is because the sterilization process is rather expensive and a lot of people can’t afford that money straight up,” Lees said. “We don’t have a humane society here, so if a dog goes to the pound it has 48 hours until it’s put down.” “… ‘It takes a village,’ is one of our major mantras when it comes to this work – we can’t do it alone. Everybody needs to take heart in the animal control issue,” Lees said. A different petition calling for the end of “the mass killing of stray dogs” in Sochi was launched by a New York woman following American press coverage of the cull. The petition has already amassed 13,000 signatures; its rally cry reads, “this is only a ‘problem’ because of the lack of laws and regulations in animal protection and cruelty the country has never instilled.” Just days after the petition was launched, Russian billionaire and Olympics contractor, Oleg Deripaska, founded a shelter on the edge of town, where volunteers are invited to bring strays. The shelter is now home to over 100 Sochi dogs. Meanwhile, the struggle to sterilize and house stray dogs across Canada drags on.
Titular Rectory Uranus These words sound dirty, but aren’t. And neither are the conversations started by:
It’s time for the talk. THEMUSEUM.ca
D OW N TOW N K I TC H E N E R
NEWS
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Monday, February 24, 2014
n i g n i v i r h t y r t e o p Slam o o l r e t a W r e n e h Kitc BY CASEY SCHELLENBERGER
What slam poetry is varies from person to person, even between Kitchener-Waterloo Poetry Slam organizers Henry C and Janice Lee. “It’s a political venue to rhythmically say any qualms you have with society,” said Henry, who uses just the letter C as a last name. “It’s interesting that you would say that, Henry,” Janice said before giving her own definition. “A spoken word competition where original writing is judged by the audience. Slam poetry is not a kind of poetry, it’s just poetry that’s performed at a slam.” “At a spoken word event, the words become embodied and alive because the performer puts that kind of high energy into it,” Janice, who is the slam’s artistic director, continued. “I think it’s very empowering for people to be able to share their own words on a stage where it will be heard.” After attending several political spoken word events in Kitchener-Waterloo, Janice and three other people founded KW Poetry Slam in 2011. “There was a demand for a stage and there were four of us who decided that we were
going to write the grant, get the money and make it happen.” And since then its audience has, according to Janice, “consistently grown” over the years. “We used to be in the Silver Spoon in downtown Kitchener, which at 25 people was pretty full,” recalled Janice, “but, we would sometimes pack 60 people in there.” The Little Bean, located at 417 King St. in Kitchener, has become the home to the organization’s monthly slam which has an audience of anywhere from 50 to 100 people. “There’s definitely a huge demand for it and we’re just trying to balance having a venue that is a good atmosphere for the poetry and one that is affordable and accessible,” Janice said. Henry, who is the marketing assistant, thinks the current popularity of slam poetry has to do with the KitchenerWaterloo area becoming more refined. “I’ve been in the area my whole life and it seems like the area’s getting more cultured, whereas maybe five to 10 years ago there wasn’t so much of an arts or music scene,” Henry said. The KW Poetry Slam has a strong focus on creating
an inclusive and accessible space. Part of this is done by ensuring venues for slams and workshops are physically accessible to everyone. Another part of the organization’s attempt at creating such an environment is changing how the poems are judged. Until recently, performers at the KW Poetry Slam were judged using numbers, now the judges leave comments for the poets on whiteboards. “At the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word, it’s scored with numbers,” explained Henry, “but we’re trying to make it so it’s more about constructive criticism.” “It makes it about the poetry and not the points,” Janice said. “People don’t like competition, people just want to hear poetry.” Performers are still judged numerically at the finals so that the top five poets can be determined for the K-W team and go to a national competition. Janice, who was on the first K-W team to go to nationals, describes the experience as one of her best with the slam so far. “The sheer energy and support we had from that crowd was crazy,” Janice recalled. “That’s when I knew that
kind of energy and love for poetry was possible. That has always been a goal, to bring K-W’s love and energy up to that kind of passion, because people lose their shit for poetry.” “It’s really exhilarating being on stage,” Henry said after being asked what his best experience with the slam has been so far. “Just the interaction with the crowd, it’s better than a beer.” The organization hosts a poetry slam on the first Saturday of every month,
with the next one being on March 1 at 7 p.m. in The Little Bean. Another big slam poetry event happening in March is the Spoken Word Showcase on March 11 at 7 p.m. in The Little Bean featuring El Jones, Lady Sin Trayda and Beth Murch. “It’s a lineup of three amazing, powerhouse women poets,” said Janice with an emphasis on amazing. “You’ll cry and laugh and it’ll be a poetry explosion of goodness.”
JANICE LEE’S TIPS FOR WRITING AND PERFORMING SLAM POETRY “As soon as you start acting like a poet you saw on YouTube, it’s so obvious. You become a poser and everyone can tell and everyone doesn’t like it.” “You can make stuff up, but audiences like seeing truth on stage. Honesty and vulnerability always resonate with audiences.” “It’s certainly good to practise. Be animated and performative.” “Have fun with it and don’t take the scoring too seriously.
PHOTO COURTESY OF SILVARA BAILEY
Lindsay Jack (from left), Callahan Connor, Beth Murch, Brockenshire Lemiski and Alex McDonnell perform at the KW Poetry Slam’s Decathlon on Oct. 5, 2013.
FEATURE
Monday, February 24, 2014
SPOKE s Page 7
Kitchener’s kitchen and living room BY LAURIE SNELL
Local. Organic. Fresh. Amazing. That’s how Kitchener’s Café Pyrus chooses to be marketed, because that’s exactly what they are. As one of the only vegan restaurants in the area, owner Tyson Reiser takes pride in the high-quality, healthy, well-crafted foods that distinguish Café Pyrus as a great, casual destination for the health-conscious, the curious – or even just the hungry. Everything from Daiya cheese (a soy, casein, dairy and gluten-free cheese alternative), tofu, tempeh (a fermented soy product), sandwiches (or sammiches as they call them) and daily soups, to almond milk lattes, vegan doughnuts, fudge and glutenfree muffins that don’t taste like cardboard, can be found at Café Pyrus at a slightly higher than average cost. A standard lunch of soup, a sandwich and a drink costs anywhere from $10 to $16 – depending on selected sandwich toppings and portion sizes for soup. “Right off the bat we were different from everybody else … and because we were so different from everybody else, we got all the people who were so different than everybody else,” Reiser said, as he looked around the café, smiling at many of the familiar faces he knows by name. The salmon-coloured walls are covered with paintings for sale by local artists, which have been hand-selected by Gallery Pyrus curator David Atkins. With splashes of colour and obscure sounds of jazz, punk and hip-hop music serving as background noise, and recurring after-hours events featuring local performers, it is clear that this independently-owned establishment is in touch with Kitchener-Waterloo’s community and culture. The buzz of early morning conversation and clicking of diners on their laptops grows louder as the line to the register grows with the day. The cherry red couches, periwinkle armchairs and other mismatched furniture fills out the lounge area, surrounded by other tables and chairs – providing a quirky sense of character. The tagline, Kitchener’s kitchen and living room, begins to resonate with guests new and old, as they watch the cooks prepare their meals and baristas brew fresh coffee, from a comfortable couch or chair. Everything about the place – the vibe, the music, the artwork, the food, the ingre-
PHOTO BY LAURIE SNELL
Cafe Pyrus barista, Jadyn Clasper, prepares an espresso shot for a customer on Feb. 9. dients and coffee – is fun and casual, but that doesn’t mean there wasn’t a lot of hard work involved in the process. Now in its fourth year, Reiser is excited about the steady increase in business, and hopes that this is the year they will start to turn a profit. “That’s when I’ll know we’ve made it,” he said.
“
The conventional food
chain right now is really
screwed up ... I can’t make a profit off of somebody else if I wouldn’t eat the product myself.”
”
— Tyson Reiser,
Cafe Pyrus owner
Five years ago, when Reiser and his then-business partners were creating Café Pyrus, he left his corporate job and life in the suburbs to kick-start a health-wise, environmentally and ethicallyconscious business, based on the notions of veganism. “I think the hardest part was, because of the business partners I had, to have that creative side and understanding what needs to happen and create this thing. Now we have this spot that’s made its
mark on Kitchener … I have multiple businesses, I don’t run this place day to day. I’m not here behind the counter everyday. I’ve got great people who have been doing that and I provide them direction on how to manage the place and how to start,” Reiser said, adding that every member of his staff participates in developing the direction of the cafe. “If it didn’t work out, I would find another way to make it work. Every time something doesn’t work, you just make slight changes and it just gets better, and if they don’t work, we can just keep doing other changes until they do work because I believe in this.” The only exception to the strictly-vegan menu is the option to substitute Daiya cheese for organic cheese. After researching nutrition and finding recipes for healthy alternatives to traditional foods, Reiser created the entire menu himself. “The conventional food chain right now is really screwed up. When you’re getting a burger from McDonalds or anywhere else, that’s really just processed corn. They’ve made it highly processed through the animal – using the animal as machinery and pumping as much crap into it to get the cheapest form of meat possible – and that comes with a whole host of different problems … I can’t make a profit off of somebody else if I wouldn’t eat the product myself,” he said.
With the Charles Street bus terminal directly across the street, it’s no wonder the staff at Café Pyrus come across new faces almost everyday. Jadyn Clasper, who works as a barista, said the range of people keeps things interesting. “I love all of the amazing people I get to meet. Being across from the bus terminal, you meet such a wide variety of people and we’re downtown Kitchener’s living room, that’s our tagline … it’s amazing to meet all of the different people who live around here.” With all sorts of people popping in to see what the hype is all about, the staff at 16 Charles St. W. have heard almost every response from firsttimers. “We’ve heard everything like, ‘what? There’s no meat on your menu?’ and they walk out and we’re like ‘great, you’re not going to connect with us anyways,’ to relief – where people are like ‘this is a place where I can eat.’ Many are surprised we make (ingredients) here. Like ‘wow, how are you doing this?’ A lot of places you don’t have that connection,” Reiser said. The most notable response from din-
ers, Reiser recalled, is more permanent than the average connection between a consumer and a food joint. “We’ve had the extreme where people have “Pyrus” tattoos because they met here. Their lifestyles connected here and they have been in a relationship for three years now because of it. So they got the matching tattoos,” Reiser said. There’s a reason customers keep coming back and staff turnover is so low – it’s all about making connections strong connections and actively engaging in the community. For Pyrus cook, Erik Stuhlmacher, it’s all about “…the atmosphere, the environment, it’s pretty relaxed … I like getting to work with good quality products and I’m pretty passionate about what I do … decent music is always playing and it’s a nice casual place to go.”
Clasper said, “We’re kind of like a family because we are an independent business.”
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Monday, February 24, 2014
Debra Brown, a freelance choreographer who has worked with Cirque du Soleil and many other internationally known acts, volunteered her time to choreograph a flash mob routine for Conestoga College students.
Photos by Hailey Merkt About two dozen flash mob dancers gathered to perform a choreographed routine to Let’s Dance by David Bowie.
Flash mob busts a move by hailey merkt
“We set out to create awareness about our programs, our charitable events and advertise the School of Media and Design,” said Conestoga College’s visual merchandising co-ordinator Margaret Hedges. At 12 p.m. on Feb. 10 a flash mob erupted in the Atrium at Conestoga College’s Doon campus. With the help of Emmy award-winning Cirque de Soleil choreographer Debra
Brown, about 25 Conestoga College attendees were able to put together a thrilling threeminute flash mob routine. “We just had one two-hour rehearsal the night before so I think it went really well,” Brown said. The award-winning choreographer truly loves the students’ creativity, which is why she gladly donated her time and skills to the college. This was Conestoga’s first flash mob to date and Hedges is calling it “a great success.”
“Students had fun doing it and watching it,” she said. According to a press release, “This year, the School of Media and Design is holding two anticipated charity events: the second annual Chairity Gala and the fourth annual aWEARness Runway Performance. Both will take place at the Waterloo Region Museum, located at 10 Huron Rd. in Kitchener, on Tuesday, March 18 and Thursday, March 27. Proceeds from the Chairity Gala will be donated to the neonatal unit at Guelph
Melissa Smith (left to right), a faculty member in public relations, Katerina Bersena, a student, and Paula Barrett, public relations diploma co-ordinator, participated in the flash mob.
General Hospital, and the proceeds from the aWEARness Runway Performance will be donated to the Juvenile Diabetes Association.” This year’s aWEARness theme is genres of music, so they decided to use music as their advertising tool, which then turned into a flash mob. Melissa Dlugokecki, a second-year visual merchandising arts student at Conestoga College, said the flash mob went great, even though it was “a little nerve-racking” seeing a huge crowd of stu-
dents waiting around for them to start. “It was a really great experience … I would rate (today) a 10/10. We weren’t expecting a crowd when we got to the Atrium … but I had a lot of fun (and) an awesome experience.” For more information about their two upcoming events or tickets, contact Margaret Hedges at mhedges@conestogac.on.ca. If you missed the flash mob you can watch it at http:// youtu.be/tvKYww9GqOQ.
A crowd of Conestoga College students wait in anticipation for something big to happen.
ENTERTAINMENT
Monday, February 24, 2014
Fun off the starboard bow
BY BECKY SHEASBY
If you hear loud shouts like “avast, me hearties” ringing through the air, it’s probably coming from Waterloo Region Museum’s newest exhibit, Odyssey’s Shipwreck! Pirates and Treasure. Over the past 3,000 years, war, plunder and storms have sunk some of the world’s greatest ships, with some of the remains now on display at this exhibit. Artifacts from the 1600s to 1800s, the history of pirate lore, pirate legends, information on history’s most infamous pirate such as Blackbeard, Captain Kidd and Barbary Corsairs are all on display at Shipwrecks!. “There are a lot of handson material that are fun for kids and also grown-ups like myself,” said James Jensen, one of the Waterloo Region Museum’s curators. “There are a lot of experiences that you wouldn’t get in your everyday life or at most museums anywhere. So it’s really kind of cool that it’s so close to Conestoga and also the universities.” One of the biggest attractions within this exhibit is the number of fun, interactive activities that are perfect for any college students looking to find their inner child. There is a hurricane
PHOTOs BY BECKY SHEASBY
Storms, plundering and war have sunk mighty ships for over 3,000 years, with some of the artifacts from these wrecks now displayed in the Odyssey’s Shipwreck exhibit at the Waterloo Region Museum. wind tunnel that simulates approximately a class one hurricane, blasting air up to 80 km/h. The exhibit also
The Waterloo Region Museum’s Shipwreck exhibit is full of priceless pirate artifacts, treasure and lore.
features ZEUS, a robotic arm used by the Odyssey team when collecting artifacts and treasure from
shipwrecks. Participants can control the arm in an interactive challenge to try and collect
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the coins scattered along the base of the robot. “I like Zeus,” Jensen said. “The interesting thing about what Odyssey does is they don’t use divers for what they do. It’s all done using subversive robots. So, for some people, seeing Zeus in the flesh is pretty cool. They’ve seen it on the Discovery Channel and documentaries before.” The exhibit houses over 500 priceless artifacts that have been recovered from famous shipwrecks all over the world. Some of the most impressive artifacts on display are real pirate treasure – over 400 pounds of gold and silver to be exact. Some of the silver bricks weigh almost 100 pounds. A cannon from an unidentified shipwreck from the 1700s is also on display. It is thought that the wreck the cannon was found on is a xebec, the Barbary pirate vessel of choice. Also found in the exhibit is a 1600s wooden carpenter’s folding ruler, the oldest of its kind to be found on a shipwreck and a rare mariners astrolabe, which was a sailor’s navigation tool and one of only about 100 on land today. The exhibit is on until April 30. For more information on it or other exhibits check out waterlooregionmuseum.com.
James Jensen, one of the Waterloo Region Museum’s curators, steers a sinking ship through an interactive storm Feb. 10 at the exhibit.
NEWS
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Scherer defeats Rochon in final vote
FROM PAGE 1
“If we have a unified school colour, and we have that community, and we have that mentality that we are all one, we are all connected, we’re all working towards the same goal ... I believe that unifying our school identity is somewhere where I’d like to start,” Scherer replied. Incumbent CSI president Jason Wright faced some tough questions from current board members about some of the internal troubles that the board of directors faced during the year. Current director on the CSI board and committee member Danielle Wingfield asked about Wright’s flaws. “You’ve outlined your external successes very well, but what I’m interested in is your
THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS The committee was made up of six students and three members of the board of directors: Chloe Cao, a third-year civil engineering technology student (Cambridge) Brian Clark, a human services foundations student (Doon) Shayna Collin, a secondyear business student (Brantford) Cameron Jones, director on the CSI board. Kassie McLean, a secondyear community and criminal justice student (Doon) Olufunke Ogunbiyi, a human resources management student (Doon) Julie Ryan, a first-year bookkeeping student (Doon) Danielle Wingfield, director on the CSI board. Jaclyn Wingfield, director on the CSI board.
“
I believe that unifying our school identity is somewhere I’d like to start. — Jeff Scherer
”
flaws, because I’ve seen them. I’m just wondering if you’ve seen them. On an internal level, where do you think you went wrong this year, and how can you plan to not let that happen again, should you be re-elected,” Wingfield asked. “I said ‘no’ too quickly on a lot of things, and that’s something I didn’t really take into consideration when I first got this position. For me, I was too quick to dismiss ideas just because I wasn’t sure, I didn’t research them enough, didn’t look into it enough, so that would be something that I’d like to change,” Wright replied. Zoey Ross, who had campaigned at all of the Conestoga College satellite campuses, faced questions about his previous time on the board of directors as well as his decision to campaign despite the fact that the president was to be selected by committee. Wingfield had a question for him, as well. “You said that you are in support of CSI. Knowing the voting process, don’t you think it was a little unfair to heavily campaign so much, because you did create a lot of bias within students that made it very hard for us to find an unbiased presidential selection committee and that is the point of the selection committee ... knowing the way it is, do you think it is unfair,” asked Wingfield. “I don’t think it was unfair ... what I needed was responses from the students to build
on my platform. How do you know what students want unless you go out and ask them,” Ross replied, adding that if he affected public opinion at all, it would have been 10 per cent or less of the student population. With these types of indepth questions being fairly common, most of the candidates utilized the full 25 minutes. After all the questions and answer sessions were completed, the committee took a break for dinner before voting. In order to limit conversation about the proceedings, candidates got first crack at the pizzas while the committee waited nervously. When it came time to vote, Sheena Witzel, the CSI operations manager who was acting as primary electoral officer, handed out the ballots. She explained that the president would need a majority plus one of the total nine votes to be elected - in this case, five. “Unless in the very first round a candidate does receive five votes, there is not a clear winner, so we will eliminate the candidates with the lowest votes,” Witzel explained. Witzel asked a Spoke reporter to act as scrutineer for the balloting process, with the caveat that he not report on vote totals outside of the final round of voting to protect the feelings of those who may not have received any votes. The reporter agreed to act as scrutineer and abide by this condition. The candidates were again kept in the clubs room while voting took place. It took three rounds in total, with the committee being told each time which candidates were still in the race at the beginning of each round. All ballots were clearly marked and none were spoiled.
THE CANDIDATES Jeffrey Scherer Program: Business administration - marketing, third-year Build school spirit; sort out school colours; mental health initiatives; revisit UPass with GRT
Adam Rochon Program: Journalism - broadcast, second-year Daily radio address to students; “buddy system” for international students; food bank improvement
PHOTO BY JOSH BURY
CSI president-elect Jeffrey Scherer looks on as other candidates applaud his newly-announced presidency on Feb. 8. In the final round against Rochon, Scherer earned the nod with six of nine votes, or 66 per cent of the committee’s votes. After the announcement, Scherer looked genuinely happy as well as lost for words as the committee and his fellow candidates looked to him for a response. Moments after the announcement, Scherer sat down for an interview with Spoke to talk about how it felt to win. “I am ecstatic, but at the same time, very stunned. When my name was announced ... I was lost for words, for a couple minutes ... I’m very excited,” Scherer said.
ROUNDS OF VOTING First round of voting: Advanced: Sarah Bryant, Adam Rochon, Jeffrey Scherer Eliminated: Don Eagles, Len Meyer, Qasem Najem, Hayley Press, Andre Richards, Zoey Ross, Jason Wright Second round of voting: Advanced: Adam Rochon, Jeffrey Scherer Eliminated: Sarah Bryant Final round of voting: Victor: Jeffrey Scherer
A record-setting 10 candidates applied to become CSI’s president for the 2014-2015 academic year. They are presented here with elements of their platforms in order of the victor, runner-up, and then alphabetically.
Sarah Bryant Program: Business, second-year Make it to every campus once per month; create sense of community between campuses; seek more student feedback
Don Eagles Program: Electrical engineering technician, second-year “Relentless” pursuit of better transit initiatives including UPass; improve lines of communication
Len Meyer Program: Business administration - management, second-year Focus on leadership; environmental improvements including a compost program
NEWS
Monday, February 24, 2014
Who is Jeff Scherer? BY JOSH BURY
When Jeff Scherer ran for CSI president, the competition was stiff. Also running were the incumbent president, some members of the current board of directors, and a host of strong student candidates. But the third-year business administration – marketing student is no stranger to tough challengers. After all, he played minor hockey against elite Canadian hockey stars John Tavares and Steven Stamkos. “He was the one guy on the ice that everyone hated. He was just that good,” Scherer said of Tavares. And though hockey did not become a full-time career, Scherer’s shot at the presidency put him firmly in the “win” column after he was selected by the committee on Feb. 8. Scherer is an Oshawa native who decided to attend Wilfrid Laurier University for his post-secondary education. That didn’t completely work out, with Scherer deciding that university wasn’t for him. “I just wasn’t effectively learning what I wanted to learn from university, so I decided that switching to college would get me a better experience and a better learning style.” But there was one way that his time spent at Laurier left a mark on him. The school’s ability to create and harness school spirit was something that he envied. Scherer made this part of his platform which resulted in his election as CSI president for the 2014-2015 academic year. “The entire feel around Laurier university, the school spirit, is amazing. And it’s something that I think I can take from that experience and bring to Conestoga.”
School spirit is great, of course. But I wanted to know how Scherer would be able to gauge his success in that arena at the end of his presidency. What is he looking for to determine whether school spirit is alive and well in Conestoga’s halls? “The feeling I want to get from students is that Conestoga isn’t somewhere that you just come to school. Where you have your postsecondary education should be something that is almost a second home to you. And that feeling of community will probably be the one thing I evaluate my success on,” Scherer said. “I do know what I’m looking for. It’s one of those things that’s almost impossible to put into words until you see it. And when you see it, it’s going to be that moment of, ‘hurrah.’ I just don’t know what other way to word it.” In the question and answer portion of the selection process, Scherer was asked what he would choose if he was allowed to accomplish only one goal as president. His answer: he wanted to straighten out the school’s colours to help build school spirit. This was a risky response with the potential to backfire: it could be easy to view this as a frivolous change. But Scherer explained that it was important to what he wanted to do as president, and that many students aren’t even sure what our school colours are. “The one thing I would change in the year would have to be unifying our school colours. I know it’s not a huge thing ... it’s something that can help build our school, and how people feel around our school and the stuff they can bring home with them, as well,” Scherer said in response to the committee’s question.
Hayley Press Program: Public relations, second-year Free copying/printing for students; funding so that international students can work on campus
A look at the president-elect who will inherit one of the biggest projects in CSI’s history and aim to build a sense of community among students
PHOTO BY JOSH BURY
Jeff Scherer’s experience as a residence adviser means that he is no stranger to successfully working with students. When I asked what his preferred colour scheme for Conestoga would be, Scherer deferred to students, saying that their input would be valuable. “At the end of the day, you want those students to have a say in what colours they’re bringing home,” Scherer added. Scherer should get some chances to improve school spirit, with the upcoming renovation of the rec centre, one of the largest projects in CSI’s history. There was some talk at the December meeting of the board of directors of the creation of a CSI-run student athletic committee, whose job it would be to drum up interest in athletic events. Scherer has been heavily involved in academic life for some time. He has acted as a residence adviser and a community adviser for Conestoga College’s Doon residence. He said these experiences are
THE FINAL DECISION Qasem Najem Program: Engineering electronics tech., third-year Be more inclusive; harness diversity in the student population; listen to all feedback received
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definitely something he’ll be drawing on as president. “You stick 500 students into a small building, and conflicts are going to arise ... you can imagine the stuff that the residence staff goes through on a day-to-day basis. I’ve been pretty lucky in the past three years to be able to work with some amazing individuals,” Scherer said. He credits his involvement with residence as one of the factors that allowed him to develop into an effective student leader. “Since I’ve started at Conestoga, I’ve worked with over 1,500 students, and I think I’ve made an impact on all those students. I’d like the ability to continue making an impact on an even bigger level than that,” he said during the question section of the selection process. Scherer also credits the CSI leadership conference for
some of his success as a student leader. “I already saw myself as a student leader within our community at that point, but I think that extra push and motivation that you get from that conference kind of makes you realize how much of a leader you actually are.” Scherer is now the president-elect, but the board of directors that he will serve has yet to be elected. Unlike the presidential selection process, the board is elected by the student population at large and has voting power during board meetings. I asked Scherer what he thought, at this point, his message would be to the eight future members of this stillundetermined board. “We’re all in it together. We’re all going to be there to support each other. We’re going to need to be,” Scherer said.
66% JEFF SCHERER 33% ADAM ROCHON
Andre Richards Program: Community and criminal justice, fourth-year ACT: Awareness, communication, and transparency; make sure students know what CSI offers.
Zoey Ross Program: Arts and sciences, second-year Include students in politics; communicate to determine student needs; elections for CSI president
Jason Wright Program: Incumbent president, formerly marketing Open door policy; more frequent visits to satellite campuses; continue parking pass advocacy
feature
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Monday, February 24, 2014
Something old, something new Millpond caters to the record and book lover in you by bruce chessell
Books and music go together like butter and toast. Everyone loves to listen to their favourite album while they flip through the pages of a good read, but rarely do you ever see a place that has a wide variety of music and a great selection of books. Millpond Records is one of the exceptions, having merged these two worlds together for your pleasure. Husband and wife Wendy and Greg Hood-Morris opened Millpond Records on Queen Street in the Hespeler part of Cambridge in August 2010, specializing in used and rare records and books. Recently they began selling new books and records as well. Shelves packed with books are directly in front of you when you enter the store as well as a display of new records. The smell of old books permeates the room, and when you pick up a title that intrigues you and flip through the pages that smell only gets stronger. On the other side of the store rows of records in sleek protective plastic sit in alphabetical order. An incredible variety of genres can be found, everything from The Beatles to the soundtrack of The Empire Strikes Back. From behind the counter a turntable plays music, enter-
taining anyone perusing the books or searching through the records. “I’d always wanted to start a business,” said Wendy when explaining how they started Millpond. “We both have lots of book experience and Greg has tons of music experience so the records and books made a good combination.” Wendy worked at many bookstores before opening Millpond including used bookstores at the University of Toronto, but on the music side of things she and Greg approached the record part of their store as something completely new. “Greg has been a music fan all his life. He was a musician and he’s been collecting vinyl all his life. I have my own experience with music as well, but the music has always been as fans or musicians. We never worked in a record store before, so that was the only thing we hadn’t done before starting here.” Wendy and Greg decided on the location in Hespeler because it was within walking distance from their house as well as being an ideal place to open their shop. “It’s a nice little community,” said Wendy. “We’re on our fourth year now and it feels like we’re part of the fabric now.” Millpond has also seen its share of rare books and records come through the store. “We sold a copy of
photos by bruce chessell
Owner Wendy Holland-Morris fixes a copy of Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy while surrounded by books and records. Esposito. It was rock and roll The Two Virgins by John interesting piece available from the ’60s that went for Lennon, a picture disk cover was a record by Esther Grey, several hundred dollars. We which was also on consign- where each record sleeve was sold a copy of The Sleeping ment (a price hadn’t been individually silk screened Beauty, it was a first edition decided as of press time). as well as having each vinyl that sold for about $400.” Millpond has also moved a different colour. Wendy At Millpond all of the rare online (www.millpondrb.ca) encourages local artists to and collectible merchandise is where they sell books and bring in their records, writing proudly displayed behind the records. They also support or art so that it can be sold. counter. Some of the items on local artists from around All of this makes Millpond a display at the time of writ- the Cambridge/Kitchener- unique gem of a store that is a ing included a Motocourse: Waterloo area by selling their required visit for anyone who 1976-77 book on consignment work, which could include wants to dig into a book or get which is going for $800 and books, records or art. An some fresh vinyl.
Millpond has a large collection of new and used books in a wide variety of genres.
Millpond Records and Books is located in the Hespeler part of Cambridge on Queen Street.
NEWs
Monday, February 24, 2014
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Eating disorders affect us all
By RANDI CLARKE
We all know someone who is obsessed with how they look. Their hair, skin, makeup, nails, clothes, all of it. It all has to be perfect. This can be very dangerous, especially when it comes to their weight. Some people have an unhealthy obsession to weigh a certain amount and to look a certain way. This causes them to become preoccupied with over-analyzing their food and calorie intake as well as their weight. An eating disorder is defined as an abnormal eating habit that can involve excessive amounts of food intake or someone who is not eating enough food. This can damage a person’s physical and mental health. The two most common forms are bulimia and anorexia nervosa, according to www. kidshealth.org. Bulimia nervosa is the act of binge eating and then purging or exercising excessively afterwards. Anorexia nervosa is an obsessive fear of gaining weight and having an unrealistic perception of body weight. There are many different forms of an eating disorder. The ones that are currently recognized in the medical manuals (aside from the ones listed above) are; binge eating disorder (binge eating without purging afterwards), eating disor-
der not otherwise specified (EDNOS – an eating disorder in which the person may still have anorexic thoughts but does not meet the criteria for anorexia or bulimia), and pica which involves eating, chewing or licking non-food items or foods containing no nutrition. There are disorders that are not currently recognized in the medical field, according to www.wikipedia.com, such as compulsive overeating (eating more than necessary), purging disorder (purging to control weight or shape), rumination (regurgitation of food), diabulimia (a deliberate manipulation of insulin levels by diabetics), food maintenance (eating behaviours of children in foster care), night eating syndrome (an increased appetite for food at night), orthorexia nervosa (an obsession with avoiding unhealthy foods), drunkorexia (purposely restricting their food intake and calories in exchange for alcoholic calories) and pregorexia (extreme dieting and over-exercising in order to control your pregnancy weight gain). The causes of eating disorders include biological, psychological, social and environmental abnormalities, according to www.ulifeline.org. People who suffer from body dysmorphic disorder can alter the way a person sees himself or herself. The media is often blamed due to the fact that they idealize the
PHOTO BY RANDI CLARKE
People can have different types of eating disorders. Sometimes a bag of chips is all one person will choose to eat in a day. slim physical shape of people such as models and celebrities. “The media totally influences people’s idea of what the perfect body weight is,” says high school teacher Maureen Lusty from Cambridge. “You look at the covers of magazines and see this person who has clear skin, perfect hair and the body to match. It’s
not right. It’s not realistic.” People tend to think that eating disorders are only found in teenage girls. However, the same disorder affects boys. “Due to the fact that eating disorders are most associated with young girls, boys and people of an older age may think that they don’t have a disorder because they don’t
fit the age bracket. That’s not true. Eating disorders affect all ages,” Lusty said. If you or someone you know struggles from an eating disorder and wants to receive help, you can contact the National Eating Disorder Information Centre helpline toll-free at 1-866-633-4220. You can also visit www.thrivecyn.ca.
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Monday, February 24, 2014
PHOTOS BY CALLIE WRIGGLESWORTH
Leo Sibunga, (left) a sales associate at Warehouse One in Cambridge, and assistant manager Jessica McGrath display jeans that were donated to ROOF, a Kitchener charity.
Jeans for teens
Clothing store collects pants for the homeless BY Callie Wrigglesworth
Homelessness is an issue that affects communities all over the world. One company decided to lend a hand. Warehouse One, a clothing store located at the Cambridge Centre, collected gently used jeans from Jan. 27 to Feb. 9. The jeans that were donated went directly to a local charity called ROOF. ROOF (Reaching Our Outdoor Friends) is located at 242 Queen St. S. in Kitchener, and is dedicated to assisting young teens and decreasing homelessness. The organization began in 1982 and last year served 825 youth. ROOF provides teens in need with hot food, hygiene products and clothing as well as education groups, counselling, medication and emergency shelter. It also runs a drop-in program where teens are given support and shown their options. All 115 Warehouse One stores across Canada were accepting donations and as of
Feb. 4, the Cambridge location had received 56 pairs of jeans, which is quite a jump from the number they received last year.
“
I think it is great because we are helping our local community and all of those teens in need. — Leo Sibunga
”
“Last year we received 19 pairs of jeans. We are doing a lot better this year. We are more known,” said Jessica McGrath, the assistant manager at Warehouse One in Cambridge. This year, customers were generous with their donations. One person dropped off eight pairs. “It is usually more than one pair. I don’t think we have had a customer yet that has
Warehouse One collected gently used jeans from customers from Jan. 27 to Feb. 9. just brought in one,” McGrath said. Warehouse One collects jean donations every year around the same time. They also accept other clothing items. Any customer who donates jeans for the charity receives
20 per cent off a purchase at the store. “I think it is great because we are helping our local community and all of those teens in need. “There seems to be a lot of troubled kids out there, so
it is great that we are helping out,” said Leo Sibunga, a part-time sales associate at the Cambridge store. To find out how you can help and to learn more about ROOF, visit www.roof-agency.net.
Feature
Monday, February 24, 2014
SPOKE s Page 15
Faces around Conestoga It is bundle up or stay inside during these dreary days of winter
PHOTO BY Devon Hayes
Students have experienced lots of frigid temperatures at Conestoga College this winter. This week will remain deep in the negatives. Bundle up! PHOTO BY Hailey Merkt
Sean Hussey, a first-year police foundations student at the college, is caught reading in the shadows of the Atrium, while waiting between classes.
PHOTO BY Greg Stamper
First-year information technology student Colin Whelan kills time by flying through multiple Rubik’s cubes on Doon campus on Feb. 6. The current world record for solving the standard 3-x3-x3 Rubik’s cube is 5.55 seconds, set in March 2013 by Dutch 17-year-old Mats Valk at the Zonhoven Open in Belgium.
PHOTO BY Hailey Merkt
Chris Stacey-McAlonen, a first-year broadcast-television student, practises his filmography skills at Conestoga College’s Doon campus.
SPORTS
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Monday, February 24, 2014
Conestoga student going national Alex Moher is set to compete in the Canadian wrestling juniors this March BY AARON CRECES
Alex Moher is no stranger to overcoming odds, working through several injuries before taking the gold for his weight category at the Ontario junior wrestling championships. Now he’s training for the Canadian juniors, which are being held in Edmonton from March 19-23. It’s something which could catapult him from Canada to Uzbekistan for the world championships if he wins. The second-year Conestoga College woodworking student decimated the competition in the 55-kilogram weight category on the weekend of Jan. 25-26, despite having to train through several injuries. “It can be frustrating,” Moher said. “You can deal with injuries by training with different moves, adjusting your style ... There are ways to train around injuries, but it’s tougher.” Training once or twice a
PHOTO courtesy of SEAN MAGENNIS
Wrestler Alex Moher takes down his opponent on his way to another victory.
day, every day of the week, Moher said there’s nothing like seeing weeks of practise and hard work come to fruition. He said it’s a lot better to practise moves in a real match setting, that way you
get to test yourself against real competition. “It’s fun knowing that practise is a lot different from reality,” he said. “Using a move you’ve practised for a while successful-
ly is an accomplishment.” The Kitchener resident said he considered his gold medal at the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations championships in 2012 to be one of his most memorable
successes. “The OFSAA tournament was a big deal,” he said. “I’d say that’s one of the best wins I’ve had.” “A lot of people hate losing more than they like winning,” said the 19-yearold. Moher has said his eventual goal is to qualify for the Olympics in 2016, as wrestling is set to return to the Summer Olympics that year. He said wrestling is still an important part of the sports world and that he was glad to be able to see its return to the Olympics, and possibly compete in it. “I love the sport because it’s exciting and pretty technical,” the wrestler said. “The best thing about it is how it affects people’s lives. I’ve never seen someone step into the wrestling ring and not come out a better person. “A lot of people in wrestling say that there are only two kinds of wrestlers – winners and learners.”
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PHOTO BY SCOTT DIETRICH
A group of cyclists travel down King Street during the coldest ride of the year on Feb. 7. The temperature was -14 C.
Winter doesn’t scare these cyclists BY SCOTT DIETRICH
On the coldest day of winter, most people stay indoors with a warm drink sitting by the fire. The Kitchener cycling advisory committee (KCAC) researched what is statistically the coldest day in the region and planned a bike trip on that day. On Feb. 7 cycling enthusiasts gathered at Kitchener city hall to share stories about cycling in the city, and to share in some hot chocolate before they would attempt to ride 10 km around the city. While the temperature wasn’t statistically the coldest of this winter, the -14 C weather wasn’t exactly desirable either. For the second year, KCAC members, together with approximately 12 other brave cyclists, rode to test their endurance against the harshest winter elements. The event was modeled after one that takes place in Toronto, and the KCAC plans to keep attempting the frigid ride every year. The ride is supposed to be a fun activity, a sort of gut check for cyclists who would normally commute by other means in the winter. It gives them a chance to see what it would be like if they kept cycling after the snow fell. Peter Dides, the chair of the Kitchener cycling advisory committee, said biking in the winter is not that much of a hassle if cyclists just make a few minor adjustments to their bike. New tires and some
weather guards for the seat and handlebars should put anyone in good shape to handle the city’s roads and bike trails. Dides said most people who would normally commute on their bike are discouraged because the city has been less than stellar this winter with their upkeep of bike trails and lanes in Kitchener. “It’s a way to raise awareness about the situation the winter cyclists face,” Dides said. “There are so many bike lanes that are not at all maintained so the roads get narrow and tight and it keeps people off the roads. People who normally would ride in the winter are not willing to ride on the roads. There are also bike trails that are labeled as class one bike trails that receive no maintenance in the winter.” Class one trails are bike trails that are meant to be used year-round as major routes for those who commute by bike. So far, the trails have only been usable for half of the year. Krista Roubos said there is more that could be done to accommodate the growing number of cyclists in the tricities, but said that the city has still come a long way. “I think the cycling master plan has taken the city leaps and bounds above other cities in Ontario, but there is always room for improvement,” Roubos said. “Starting with maintaining bicycle lanes in the winter. If you want to encourage cycling then you have to make a safe
environment for cyclists.” Those who commute to Conestoga College on a regular basis should know that Dides listed Lower Doon as one of the most dangerous spots in the city for cyclists, and said the city could make major changes to improve safety in the area.
“We know for sure that Doon has some serious connectivity issues especially coming into the city (from Doon),” Dides said. Doon is definitely a priority area that needs addressing. There is also a sort of black hole in terms of connectivity on Homer Watson at Block Line Road.” Among the youngest of
those in attendance was Lila Dudek, 2, who was there with her parents Peter and Kate. The young married couple said they would probably not be able to finish the ride. It all depended on what time during their journey their young passenger would start to complain.
PHOTO BY scott dietrich
Richard Hands of Kitchener shows off his winter biking gear at Kitchener city hall on Feb. 7.
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Monday, February 24, 2014
Personal Credits Notice
If you received a Common Experience Payment, you could get $3,000 in Personal Credits for educational programs and services. The Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement. The healing continues. Since 2007, almost 80,000 former students have received a Common Experience Payment (“CEP”) as part of the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement. CEP recipients are now eligible to receive non-cash Personal Credits of up to $3,000, for either themselves or certain family members, for educational programs and services.
of multiple CEP recipients can be combined to support a group learning activity. How can I get Personal Credits? Each CEP recipient will be mailed an Acknowledgement Form. If you do not receive an Acknowledgement Form by the end of January 2014, please call 1-866-343-1858. Completed Acknowledgement Forms should be returned as soon as possible and must be postmarked no later than October 31, 2014.
What are Personal Credits? Personal Credits may be used for a wide range of educational programs and services, including those provided by universities, colleges, trade or training schools, Indigenous Institutions of Higher Learning, or which How do I redeem my Personal Credits? Once approved, you relate to literacy or trades, as well as programs and services will be sent a personalized Redemption Form for each individual using Personal Credits at each educational related to Aboriginal identities, histories, entity or group. Once the Form is received, cultures or languages. CEP recipients have the option of provide it to the educational entity or group sharing their Personal Credits with How much are Personal Credits? listed. The educational entity or group certain family members, such as: Adequate funds are available for each CEP must then complete and mail back the • Spouses • Children recipient to receive up to $3,000 in Personal Redemption Form postmarked no later than • Grandchildren • Siblings Credits, depending on your approved December 1, 2014. educational expenses. Which educational entities and groups are included? A list What happens to unused Personal Credits? The value of of approved educational entities and groups has been jointly unused Personal Credits will be transferred to the National Indian developed by Canada, the Assembly of First Nations and Inuit Brotherhood Trust Fund and Inuvialuit Education Foundation representatives. If an educational entity or group is not on the for educational programs. list, please consult the website for more information. For more information, including how Personal Credits can be Will I receive a cheque? No. Cheques will be issued directly to redeemed by certain family members of CEP recipients that are deceased, visit www.residentialschoolsettlement.ca or call the educational entity or group providing the service. 1-866-343-1858. Who can use Personal Credits? CEP recipients can use the full amount themselves or give part or all of their Personal Credits The IRS Crisis Line (1-866-925-4419) provides immediate and to certain family members such as a spouse, child, grandchild or culturally appropriate counselling support to former students sibling, as defined in the terms and conditions. Personal Credits who are experiencing distress.
1-866-343-1858 • www.residentialschoolsettlement.ca
fun & games
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Useless Facts
Oh Cliff!
Horoscope Week of February 24, 2014
Aries
March 21 April 19 There is a lot to do and your plate may seem full. Luckily, things are about to clear up. This weekend: Stack.
Taurus April 20 May 20
Things keep popping up but surprises keep things interesting, even if they can be annoying. Manage it and try to adapt. This weekend: Sorting.
Gemini May 21 June 21
That reading week was a breather in the sprint that is the second semester. Hopefully you caught your breath – it’s time to finish strong. This weekend: Focus.
Cancer June 22 July 22
A look at something away from school or work could give you a nice boost. This weekend: Wandering.
Leo
July 23 August 22 Trying to arrange so many separate things to go together is tough work and sometimes it doesn’t work. That can be OK, take it easy. This weekend: Alchemy.
Virgo
August 23 September 22 Hard work and determination usually pay off. This is true for you too. This weekend: Grit.
Giraffes and rats can last longer without water than camels.
Libra
More people are killed each year from bees than from snakes.
September 23 October 22
Disneyland opened in 1955.
It takes some strength to speak the truth that you’re thinking. Looking at how often you and those close to you do this can tell you a lot. This weekend: Bold.
Bacteria, the tiniest free-living cells, are so small that a single drop of liquid contains as many as 50 million of them.
Scorpio
Corduroy comes from the French, cord du roi or cloth of the king.
October 23 November 21 A break from routine could be just what you needed; look for an opportunity to do that. This weekend: Shake up.
Sudoku Puzzle
Sagittarius November 22 December 21
Fill in the grid with digits in such a manner that every row, every column and every 3x3 box accommodates the digits 1-9, without repeating any.
Positivity has power, for results and feelings. Use the power. This weekend: Inspired.
Capricorn December 22 January 19
Catching up with someone you haven’t talked to in awhile may have more of an impact than small talk usually does. This weekend: Thread.
Aquarius January 20 February 18
Material goods aren’t everything but saving up for something special can yield rewards in itself. This weekend: Bank.
Pisces
February 19 March 20 Habits can be good or bad. Now could be the time for you to adopt a good one or get rid of a bad one. This weekend: Picks.
Corduroy Blue is well versed in the magic schools of Divination, Conjuration and, of course, Mysticism.
Word Search
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