the carillon the staff
editor-in-chief editor@carillonregina.com
holly funk
executive director business@carillonregina.com
jacob nelson
production manager production@carillonregina.com
morgan ortman
advertising manager advertising@carillonregina.com
ty cote
technical editor tech@carillonregina.com
shae sackman
multimedia/graphics editors multimedia@carillonregina.com graphics@carillonregina.com
sarah carrier rooky jedege
copy editor copyeditor@carillonregina.com
aurel dumont
news editor news@carillonregina.com
sara birrell
a&c editor aandc@carillonregina.com
hannah eiserman
sports editor sports@carillonregina.com
vacant
op-ed editor op-ed@carillonregina.com
sarah nakonechny
distribution manager distribution@carillonregina.com staff writer
vacant hammad ali
staff writer
gillian massie
news writer
syd mcwilliams
a&c writer
jorah bright
sports writer
victoria baht
web writer
vacant
this could be you!
vol. 64
contributors
board of directors holly funk, lindsay holitzki, joseph holoein,, dustin smith, jacob nelson and honourary members hammad ali, cassandra byblow, morgan ortman
the paper
227 Riddell Center University of Regina - 3737 Wascana Parkway, Regina, SK, Canada S4S 0A2 www.carillonregina.com Ph: (306) 586 8867 Printed by Star Press Inc, Wainwright, AB The Carillon welcomes contributions. Opinions expressed in the pages of the Carillon are expressly those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of the Carillon Newspaper Inc. Opinions expressed in advertisements appearing in the Carillon are those of the advertisers, and not necessarily of The Carillon Newspaper Inc. or its staff. The Carillon is published no less than 11 times each semester during the fall and winter semesters and periodically throughout the summer. The Carillon is published by the Carillon Newspaper Inc., a non-profit organization. land acknowledgement The Carillon is written on treaty four territory. As such, the staff recognize that we are living, working, and telling stories on and of Indigenous lands. We recognize that we are on the traditional homelands of the Nakota, Lakota, and Dakota peoples, along with the homeland of the Métis nation. The carillon understands that it is pointless to acknowledge the land on which we work without speaking to our commitment to telling stories and prioritizing voices that further the return of the land to its place sacred place in the cultures of those that live here. the manifesto In keeping with our reckless, devil-may-care image, our office has absolutely no concrete information on the Carillon’s formative years readily available. What follows is the story that’s been passed down from editor to editor for over sixty years. In the late 1950s, the University of Regina planned the construction of several new buildings on the campus grounds. One of these proposed buildlings was a beltower on the academic green. If you look out on the academic green today, the first thing you’ll notice is that it has absolutely nothing resembling a belltower. The University never got a belltower, but what it did get was the Carillon, a newspaper that serves as a symbolic bell tower on campus, a loud and clear voice belonging to each and every student.
the people’s friend; the tyrant’s foe
The University of Regina Students’ Newspaper Since 1962 November 25, - December 2021 | Volume 64, Issue 12 | carillonregina.com
news
Wet’suwt’en rally
Hey all! It’s our second last issue of the year and we have a lot of great stuff for you. Included in these great things is our new News Writer, Syd McWilliams! You can find her breakdown of Scott Moe’s bumbling tweet and the COP26 summit on pages 4 and 5. Welcome, Syd! As always, thanks for reading. If you’re interesested in gracing the pages of the Carillon with your writing or artwork, we are always accepting submissions from contributors!
news
p.3
An emergency rally took place this past weekend in support of the ongoing defence of Wet’suwet’en territories against LNG Canada and the RCMP.
arts
Scotty tweets
arts
p.4
Moe tweets himself into yet another hole. Which is to blame, a true lack of understanding or intentional distraction?
The Lazy Owl
p.8
The Lazy Owl’s hours have left much to be desired, and new menu might be too fancy for some, but at least the fries are still good?
op-ed
sports
Morgan Ortman Production Manager
photos
cover...................................... news...........................wikipedia commons news..................rebecca granovsky-larsen a&c................................hannah eiserman a&c................................hannah eiserman sports...................................arthur images op-ed.........................wikipedia commons
LARP-ing
p.9
A look into Regina’s free Live Action Roleplaying event “A Quest for Champions”, as written by the Carillon’s now expert LARP-er, Hannah Eiserman.
Konschuh
p.11
The university of Regina’s sports information director Braden Konschuh gives us the deets on what it’s like documenting the Cougars on camera.
After a blizzard
p.14
Sarah Nakonenchy’s ode to those who grin and bear it after a blizzard so the rest of us can live more comfortably.
news
3
editor: sara birrell news@carillonregina.com the carillon | nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
Solidarity rally held as RCMP invades Wet’sewet’en territories Canada is a company
sara birrell news editor On Sunday, November 21, around 20 people gathered outside Regina’s RCMP depot for an emergency solidarity rally in support of Wet’suwet’en Nation Land Defenders. The rally was one of many that took place across so-called Canada over the weekend. Protesters filled the streets in many cities and in places like Tkaronto (Toronto) and Tiotiake (Montreal) where hundreds of people blocked CP rail lines for hours in solidarity with the land defenders and their allies, who are using non-violent tactics to resist Canada’s attempts to invade their unceded, unsurrendered territories on behalf of the Coastal GasLink. This is the third time since 2019 that Canada has used its paramilitary police force to invade Wet’suwet’en territories. While the RCMP Depot, located on Dewdney Avenue at the west edge of the city, is less accessible for those without vehicles than other rallying sites such as the Legislative Building, City Hall, or the Albert Street bridge, the site was chosen deliberately. “It was the RCMP that went into the Wet’sewet’en territory,” said Natalie Owl, one of the rally’s organizers. The RCMP, which was originally established as a paramilitary force to remove Indigenous people from their lands by whatever means necessary to support Canadian expansion, have been caught on camera physically assaulting land and water defenders and their allies at the contested pipeline drill site near the Wedzin Kwa (Morice) River. On Friday, they arrested more
than a dozen people, including journalists Amber Bracken and Michael Toledano who were documenting Canada’s ongoing war campaign against Wet’sewet’en. It’s also a fitting spot to protest Canada’s continued colonization of Indigenous lands since the current RCMP depot is located at the site where Métis leader Louis Riel was executed, also for his resistance to the Canadian state and the corporations to which it has always been beholden. “We’re showing support for
Both as an act of solidarity and to raise awareness among people who may not know what’s going on. “There hasn’t been a lot of mainstream media coverage of what’s happened,” Owl said. “We have resource extraction to the point of endangering our world. It’s important to make sure that Canadian society is aware of how widespread the problem [of climate change and resource extraction] is.” “What’s happening with Wet’sewet’en is not an isolat-
lihood violated,” Owl said. She’s speaking to a long history of state governments using their legal systems and militarized police forces to defend the rights of resource extraction companies and to threaten and intimidate land and water defenders and their allies. Steven Donzinger, an American human rights lawyer who was part of a team that won a $9.5 billion lawsuit against Chevron on behalf of 30,000 Indigenous people in Ecuador is currently being punished for that win by the Unit-
“
When we see the Wet’sewet’en and other groups standing up, they’re actually defending our Earth. And in doing that we’re standing up for all the people that live here. Not just Indigenous people but for all the people and all of the other parts of creation that live here. – Natalie Owl
our Indigenous brothers and sisters that are [in those territories],” said Owl. “We understand the human rights violations they’re suffering right now, as well as the resource extraction without consultation, the violation of their Aboriginal rights that are constitutionally protected.” Owl said organizers invited drummers to come out and a singer sang a song of solidarity. “It was really a song about standing up for your rights, for your community.” Although the event was planned “overnight,” according to Owl, “We plan to make it a sustained effort [going forward].”
ed event,” Owl said. “It occurs across Canada and when we see the Wet’sewet’en and other groups standing up, they’re actually defending our Earth. And in doing that we’re standing up for all the people that live here. Not just Indigenous people but for all the people and all of the other parts of creation that live here.” “I don’t think that our position as Indigenous people is different from any other marginalized group in other countries that have their human rights violated, that have their territories invaded and the resources that are there extracted and their right to a live-
ed States government with more than 800 days of house arrest and a six-month jail sentence in a federal prison in Connecticut. In 1995, the Nigerian government executed poet Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other members of the Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People in service of Royal Dutch Shell, one of the five companies that is currently involved in the LNG Canada project that Canada is attempting to invade Wet’suwet’en territories to build. And across the Global South, and in particular Latin America and Africa, Canadian companies are regularly linked to the murder
and intimidation of land and water defenders and then shielded from responsibility by the colonial legal system. “The Wet’sewet’en’s right to govern their territory is constitutionally protected,” Owl said. “But it doesn’t arise from Canadian government.” Their lands are unceded and unsurrendered and they have an inherent right to govern them that cannot be given or taken away by the colonial state government. Owl added that even in places where treaties were signed, like Treaty Four territory, where oskana kâ-asastêki (Regina) is located, “what you have are unilateral treaty interpretations. So while the provincial and federal governments might state that Indigenous people who signed treaty have signed away all their rights, Indigenous people will say ‘no,’ and back that up with our oral history,” said Owl. “We did not give up our rights to self-govern, we did not give up our rights to our territory.” Essentially, where Canada has made treaties, it has also decided, without engaging the other parties, what is meant by those treaties. Where it has not made treaties, it uses its own legal system, terrorism, and paramilitary forces to obtain access to the land and resources it needs to feed the companies that run it. “There is existing case law that recognizes Indigenous rights both for those who have signed treaty and for those who have not,” Owl said. “And those legal precedents are continually being violated.” Solidarity protests are expected to continue throughout so-called Canada this week.
Rebecca Granivsky-Larsen
Shut Down Canada
nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
carillonregina.com | the carillon | 4
news
Moe’s “nation within a nation” demonstrates ignorance Saskatchewan is no nation
syd mcwilliams news writer On Tuesday, November 9, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe tweeted “Saskatchewan needs to be a nation within a nation. When the federal government implements policies that are detrimental to our province, our government will continue to stand up for Saskatchewan people.” This tweet was a followup to comments the premier made on the Roy Greene show where he stated “I think you’re going to see provinces like Saskatchewan – we (had) our convention yesterday and had passed a motion specific to this – to really start to expand our provincial autonomy,” and “We’re really starting to feel the differences between Saskatchewan and where our federal government is heading, is we’re actually, at this point in time … more like a nation within Canada.” These comments from Moe were spurred by the federal government’s promise to cap Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions at the latest climate summit in Scotland. Moe was angered that Saskatchewan wasn’t consulted about that promise and claimed the federal government doesn’t have the right to make decisions unilaterally regarding natural resources and climate. In stating that he wants Saskatchewan to be a nation within a nation, Moe is saying that he wants what Quebec has in terms of provincial jurisdiction and for Saskatchewan to be regarded as a distinct culture within Canada. He also wants more authority in taxation, policing, and immigration to control Saskatchewan on
Wikipedia Commons
Two men who will never run a country.
Saskatchewan’s terms and ensure he doesn’t have to answer to the federal Liberals for so many things. But to truly understand what Scott Moe is trying to say, you have to look further at the concept of a nation and how Moe uses this rhetoric to further a political agenda. The Carillon spoke to Charles Smith, a professor of Political Science at the University of Saskatchewan, to get some clarity on what Scott Moe is really trying to say with “Nation within a Nation,” and what it means in the broad political landscape that is Canada.
religious histories, you know, sociological characteristics. And I know the conservative right has been hostile to the concept of sociological concepts, but it’s really important here. Saying Saskatchewan is a nation within a nation is a fundamental misunderstanding of Saskatchewan’s history, and a fundamental misunderstanding of Canadian history.” “It’s a whitewash version of Canadian history, and it’s problematic on a lot of levels. It’s offensive to Indigenous nations, who are a legitimate nation, who have been on this territory for
relationship to Canada as a country is much different. It’s not the same as in Saskatchewan. “ The Opposition is saying this is just a way for Moe to distract from his handling of COVID-19. Do you think there is any truth to that? “So, there’s no question that it is a tactic to divert from the larger crisis in which we’re embedded right now. That is absolutely true. Although it’s worth pointing out that the NDP under Lorne Calvert and Roy Romanow did the same thing. It’s well-orchestrated political rhetoric. What
“
Moe’s use of the concept of a nation is a fundamental misunderstanding, or a lack of knowledge of what that actual concept means. – Charles Smith
Does Scott Moe have any base to claim that Saskatchewan is a nation within a nation? Is Saskatchewan distinct like Quebec, and can it demand similar powers? “There is a lot of different ways to approach this, but let’s start with the nation. Moe’s use of the concept of a nation is a fundamental misunderstanding, or a lack of knowledge of what that actual concept means. When we talk about nations, we usually talk about shared groups with similar languages, traditions,
time immemorial, who are nations that have shared histories, languages, religious traditions, et cetera, in a way that a settler society does not. Scott Moe pandering to this idea is saying we’ve been left out somehow of the larger federal economic and political map. It’s bad politics, it’s a misnomer and it’s bizarre and in some cases quite offensive. Quebec is a much different territory. It’s got a much different history. It’s obviously a majority Francophone society with a large Indigenous population. So, Quebec’s
he’s trying to do, I think, is tie into this bizarre regional nationalism that has always been kind of on the fringe, in the larger political sort of movement in the prairies. I think it’s… it’s bizarre timing. Like is this what Saskatchewan does? Is it what Saskatchewan needs right now? Is this line of thinking damaging to federalism in Canada? “Canadian federalism has withstood far worse shocks than this. If you look at the great depression and the grievances that
farmers and rural economic actors had in the twenties and thirties, that was far more grounded in a concrete reality than this brand of conservative. So, while I think that, there’s a lot of rethinking about Canada as a state in relationship to Indigenous peoples and their legitimate rights around land and territory, and self-government, that I think is the big question that this provincial government refuses to ever even talk about.” Is there anything else people need to take away from this? “I think to understand what they’re doing is to understand the conservative right in the prairies right now. I think that’s the key. The conservative right’s economic vision is to attract as much foreign capital as they can, usually American, to exploit their resources. I mean, it’s a very old model. Their model is lower taxes, lower labour standards, lower wages attract as much capital as they can which of course always benefits the elites, and it’s an old economic model that’s not very sustainable. So, part of the way they sell that is to be pro-Saskatchewan and it’s a contradiction because they’re desperate for foreign direct invest and they don’t care if it’s Canadian or not, so their pro-Saskatchewan model is essentially to sell resources to the highest bidder. This is something that we’ve seen before, and it’s worth remembering that this is nothing new and they’re playing from an old play book.”
nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
carillonregina.com | the carillon | 5
news
Climate summit makes more promises, fails on hard measures No binding agreements
syd mcwilliams news writer On November 13, the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) concluded in Glasgow, Scotland. The two-week long conference was one of the biggest yet, with over 40,000 registered participants, 22,274 party delegates, 14,124 observers, and 3,886 media representatives. Many aspects of the climate crisis were discussed, and many decisions, statements, and resolutions came out of the conference. The outcomes were the result of the intense negotiations in the two-week conference, and months of formal and informal work outside of Glasgow. A final agreement or compromise was reached on Saturday, a day after the officially scheduled end time. The outcomes of the conference have been met with mixed reactions from people across the globe. Many climate activists took to Twitter to talk about it. Some were optimistic about the conference’s outcomes, but there is also a general attitude of disappointment towards the less than actionable statements that came from it, and many noted that the Glasgow Pact – a 10-page long document that serves as a follow-up to the 2015 Paris Agreement – is not legally binding. To better understand what we should be taking away from this conference, I spoke with Emily Eaton, an associate professor in Geography and Environmental Studies at the U of R. “There are some hopeful takeaways,” Eaton said. “In general, it’s clear that countries are not promising to do enough, and the pace of change is too slow, but there are some pos-
itives. We need to phase out fossil fuels because they account for 86 per cent of climate change, and it’s the elephant in the room that needs to be addressed, and for the first time we have mention of fossil fuels and people lobbying to phase down coal.” Coal was a hot topic at the conference, and was the reason the final proceedings got delayed. The wording in the agreement was for coal to be phased out, but many countries that still rely heavily on coal resisted and pushed for a less concrete language of phase down instead. Said countries insisted that, to move into the en-
and these promises leave a lot of room for bureaucracy to get in the way. Canada announced that it would be ending its financing of global fossil fuel projects in 2022 and pledged to transition to clean energy. If fully implemented, this could free up a lot of money to provide a cleaner future for the planet. The Liberal party also reaffirmed one of its election pledges to cap greenhouse gas emissions. Another critical aspect of the conference was recommitting to keeping warming under the one-point five-degree Celsius level. This goal has been in place
production gap report that came out before the conference that suggested there’s this huge gap between what countries are promising they will do and what we need to do to keep closer to 1.5,” Eaton said. “We are nowhere on track to keep warming below one point five degrees. Some countries did announce new initiatives at the COPs, but it’s been calculated that we’re still very far off and it depends on how you count, but were probably headed just over two or the high twos, and that’s if countries follow through on what they promised, and that’s a big if. Canada hasn’t hit any of
“
There was good evidence that it was not at all enough, there has been all sorts of reports in the last year, even from the International Energy Agency that in order to get to net zero before 2050, we can’t have any new fossil fuel infrastructure – Emily Eaton
ergy of tomorrow, they couldn’t just scrap the resources they were using right now. Despite this resistance, the events around the Beyond Oil and Gas alliance were well attended. Eaton pointed out that this shows “that there is a growing recognition that a phase out of fossil fuels is necessary.” She believes the fact that it made such a splash in the global arena is really positive. When it comes to Canada and climate change, the country made many promises at the conference. But Canada has failed to hit climate targets in the past,
for a long time. It is a well-known fact among environmentalists and climate scientists that immediate and drastic action has to be taken to make that number a reality. But Eaton said it was clear to her that the promises made at the conference still aren’t enough to keep us on track. “There was good evidence that it was not at all enough, there has been all sorts of reports in the last year, even from the International Energy Agency that in order to get to net zero before 2050, we can’t have any new fossil fuel infrastructure. There’s also the
its climate targets from any of the [United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change] agreements that have been negotiated,” she said, pointing to Canada’s failure to meet targets promised at other climate conventions like Kyoto, Copenhagen, and Paris. Delegates made agreements that strengthened the three pillars of climate action: adaptation, finance, and mitigation. Climate adaptation is the process of preparing solutions to deal with extreme climate events and climate changes, such as preparing
for longer fire seasons, heatwaves, or flooding. Parties in attendance at the conference agreed on a work programme to define a global goal on adaptation to help identify the needs and solutions to countries already affected by the changing climate. Finance issues were also discussed at length, and countries agreed that they needed to continue to support developing countries. The duty of developed nations to provide 100 billion dollars annually from economically exploited countries to aid in adaptation was also reaffirmed. However, skepticism still surrounds this as the developed nations failed to meet this goal the last time it was promised, and many, like Canada, continue to operate and profit from resource extraction projects that cause catastrophic harm to the environment and people. Mitigation is the process of making climate change less severe by reducing the amount of greenhouse gases that are put into the atmosphere. During the conference, the persistent gap in emissions was acknowledged. As a result, parties collectively agreed to reduce emissions to close the gap and keep the rise in global temperature below 1.5°C. Only time will tell if these measures and promises are enough to save the planet and protect us from larger-scale climate disasters. So even though we are in the middle of a pandemic, climate change isn’t waiting till it is over. The large-scale global coordination could benefit us in regard to helping get everyone on the same page. Still, it is up to individual countries to implement aggressive policies to curb the warming of the planet.
Mika Baumeister via Unsplash
We’re literally dying.
nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
carillonregina.com | the carillon | 6
news
UBC refuses to host residential school denialist Lauren Southern
Southern free to speak elsewhere hammad ali staff writer On November 12, a social media statement by the University of British Columbia stated that the school is not allowing permission for a roundtable event with white nationalist Lauren Southern on November 17. The statement emphasized that this event was being planned for by an external group, and was not endorsed by the school. The group in question is called UBC Students for Freedom of Expression who, according to the information on their website, “are a group of UBC students who believe that there should be no such thing as prohibited speech.” The event in question was promoted as “An honest conversation about Canadian residential schools and mass graves,” and was designed to be a roundtable discussion between Southern, George Brown, and Kevin Annett. All three individuals are known to have controversial and factually incorrect opinions about the investigation of Canada’s residential school system. Southern is a farright commentator, former Rebel Media worker, and most recently created a controversial film titled “The Canadian Mass Graves Hoax.” The film questions the authenticity of the recent revelations of unmarked graveyards at residential schools, insisting there was no genocide against Indigenous people in Canada, and takes issue with the church burnings following the discovery of hundreds of unmarked graves this past spring and summer. On the last point, her claim is that there is no evidence of Catholic Church involvement, and that misleading media coverage
has made the Church a scapegoat. It is not known how Southern feels about the Pope himself, as well as several Bishops, acknowledging that the Catholic Church was instrumental in the development and operation of the genocidal residential school system. In the statement announcing the cancellation of this event, UBC authorities clarified more than once that the event was not
troversial speakers in the past, like right-wing speaker Ben Shapiro and anti-immigration author Mark Hecht. In 2019, their previous attempt to host Southern was also cancelled. The statement further added that, while they are committed to academic freedom, the university has determined that this event would adversely affect campus and community safety. It also said
ward who categorically denies that any wrong has been done is not freedom of speech, but rather promotion of hatred and misinformation. Turpel-Lafond added that she has been contacted by many students, community members, and residential school survivors who are deeply hurt that such a speaker and event is being associated with the UBC name. She also said that the ongoing possibility
“
Lauren Southern has long been criticized for her inadequate research behind the claims that there has been no genocide perpetrated against the Indigenous peoples in Canada. – Hammad Ali
organized or sponsored by the university itself or any affiliated office. Given how the statement claims that the organizer, UBC Students for Freedom of Expression, is an external group not even endorsed by UBC, it raises questions about how they were able to make booking requests for events on campus, or whether the inclusion of UBC in their group name should thus be addressed. The university also explained that, while it has not allowed the event permission to be held on campus, they are unable to prevent the student group in question from hosting the event off-campus or online under the same banner and title. It can be noted here that this same student entity has been known to host con-
that UBC remains committed to truth and meaningful reconciliation. Lauren Southern, soon after the release of the UBC statement, took to Twitter to say that she is not surprised, and appreciates “the University acknowledging the violent nature of those attempting to shut down free speech”. It remains unclear which part of the official statement she felt could be interpreted in this manner. Professor Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, law professor and director of the Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre at UBC, is supportive of the event being denied space on campus. She said that the horrors of residential schools are well-known, and to have a speaker come for-
that the event might yet go online is troubling, and that the centre has reported their concerns about the event being promoted on Facebook. The key speaker of the event, Lauren Southern, has long been criticized for her inadequate research behind the claims that there has been no genocide perpetrated against the Indigenous peoples in Canada. Her documentary makes no mention of the reports by the National Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada or of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls inquiry. She also chose to completely ignore the findings in multiple papers published by UBC’s Residential School History and Dialogue Centre.
One of the other speakers, Annett, is also part of the sovereign-citizen movement and an outspoken critic of the COVID-19 vaccine. Last year he made multiple statements on social media about how him and his associates plan on disrupting the vaccine supply chain in Canada. Annett, a former United Church Minister, was fired in the 1990s. As many had been predicting ever since the UBC statement not allowing the event to be held on campus, the UBC Students for Freedom of Expression had indicated that the event would go on in some other manner. In their statement, the student club claims that they are disappointed but not surprised at the cancellation, and allege that UBC has a tendency to avoid controversy at all costs. It is in fact true that the university has faced several issues around inviting far-right speakers, something that led to their event risk assessment and mitigation policy being revised in 2020. This is the first major cancellation since the policy updates. On November 17, the UBC Students for Freedom of Expression hosted a YouTube livestream of Lauren Southern in lieu of the cancelled event. Interestingly, for a group that enshrines freedom of speech, they mentioned that they were unable to find an opposing speaker and said it is incumbent on the audience to challenge Southern’s claims. On November 18, a further social media post alleged that the YouTube livestream has not been allowed, possibly due to mass reporting, and that they still fully intend to upload a recording of the event at some future date.
Government of British Columbia
Sit down, Lauren.
arts & culture
7
editor: hannah eiserman aandc@carillonregina.com the carillon | nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
Imagine van Gogh commemorates life of painter Trust me, the three-hour drive is worth it
gillian massie staff writer A brilliant mind whose recognition came after his time – from the outskirts of Paris to Provence, indulging in the wonderful mind of van Gogh will not disappoint. The Imagine van Gogh Experience brings new life to the work of Vincent van Gogh. Reflecting the joys of life and the miseries of humanity, the immersive exhibit experience puts a spotlight on van Gogh’s genius artistic talent. The multimedia experience uses a collaboration of sound and artwork, taking you through the story of van Gogh’s life. With paintings magnified on the walls and floor, you can truly appreciate the beauty of his post-impressionist paintings. The presentation’s use of dissolving and moving images highlight beautiful landscapes from the prairies of France to abstract paint splotch techniques. Walking through the Van Gogh exhibit is like you have been shrunk to a miniature version of yourself and are waltzing across France. Walking into the van Gogh Experience completely exceeded my expectations. I was thrilled to see Saskatchewan get different artistic experiences and I was fully prepared to have an enjoyable, but likely mediocre, afternoon. As soon as I entered the building, I immediately knew that this was not going to be like any other art exhibit. The first room is dedicated to the life and commemoration of van Gogh. Blue and red tiles hung from the ceiling, each lit by a spotlight. It takes you through van Gogh’s struggles with men-
Gillian Massie
The immersive exhibit of starry night that shows some folks sitting in space.
tal health, complications with love, and conversations with his brother, Theo. The insight into van Gogh’s personal life bears witness to why he delighted in painting. The emotional meaning conveyed in his painting was an outlet to help him cope with the inner turmoil he was experiencing while in and out of care. After the final slide, you are ushered into the immersive experience room. Before entering the exhibition space, I already had chills listening to the classical soundtrack booming while I read about the trials and tribulations
full 360-degree view of the entire painting that slowly shifted, showcasing each brushstroke, giving a personal look at the painting. As I stood with my mouth gaping like a fish out of water, I looked around at the other visitors who were in awe of the experience like I was. Some were walking around the room, some were standing, and some were just sitting on the floor. No matter what anyone was doing, there was no fear of blocking anyone’s view or casting an odd shadow. The experience is so brilliantly designed through precision projectors and
bulb in the bouquet. Self-portraits of van Gogh and other figures ordained the walls with the eyes leaping off the canvas and staring straight at you. The presentation did a superb job of fluctuating between van Gogh’s state of melancholy to creative exuberance. Narrated by music from Bach, Mozart, Saint-Saens, and many more; the soundtrack provides guests with an experience that amplifies the emotional impact of the moving images all around the room. One of the most fascinating assets to the exhibition was
“
Vincent van Gogh’s incredible artistic talent is commemorated within the Imagine Experience and it’s definitely something that needs to go on the list of things that you do before you die. – Gillian Massie
creators had building the experience. The immersive room was nothing less than spectacular. Upon entry, I was immediately overwhelmed with emotion, standing in Van Gogh’s Sower with Setting Sun (1888). The presentation slowly began fading in the sun replicating daybreak. The foreground began to fade and travel across the floor and underneath my feet. On the other side of the room, I could see a farmer walking across the field. I had a
hard drives that you are never in fear of blocking someone’s vision. Many of van Gogh’s paintings were done during the last two years of his life, and the curators did such an excellent job of taking you through a variety of different paintings. Seascapes with sailboats challenging choppy waters, rural landscapes matched with haystacks in the French countryside told the story of farmers having a snooze on their break, stilllife paintings of various flowers emphasized the beauty of each
the floor. It was expertly crafted with stripped down foregrounds or backgrounds from van Gogh’s paintings, but it truly made you feel like you were walking through one of his paintings. After exiting the exhibit, I spoke with one of the volunteers who explained to me that during the seascape portion she was overwhelmed with the floor graphics because they looked so real. The presence of the waves on the floor was so extreme that she had attempted to jump over the wave while it was
coming at her. During The Starry Night (1889) I stood directly on top of one of the golden stars before it faded away. You could see each and every detail, which was done with such care. Some of van Gogh’s art travelled outside of France such as “Japonism,” which is the focus of the Japanese aesthetic in Western art. van Gogh found beauty in a place that he had only observed from photos, and recreated pictures of cherry blossoms growing on trees – some ordained with Japanese calligraphy and lanterns. It’s truly a magical moment that transports you from the fields of France to a grove of trees in Japan. The experience was accompanied by fantastic volunteers who were determined to make sure that guests had the best experience possible. I was encouraged to take my time to enjoy the exhibit and stay for multiple rounds of the presentation – and you did not have to tell me twice. Vincent van Gogh’s incredible artistic talent is commemorated within the Imagine Experience and it’s definitely something that needs to go on the list of things that you do before you die. However, if you miss the van Gogh exhibit, there are also forthcoming immersive experiences for Picasso and Monet. Because of the overwhelming success of the van Gogh Experience in Saskatoon, we could be seeing another immersive experience hit the province sometime soon.
nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
carillonregina.com | the carillon |
arts & culture
8
Restaurant review: Rock Tavern
New tavern has cozy atmosphere, big portions, and ROCKin’ fish n’ chips
hammad ali staff writer I’m one of those people who loves going out for a meal by myself. After a long, tiring week, I like to go out someplace cozy, order a drink and some comfort food, and more often than not I’ll take a book along to get some light reading done. Sometimes, I might even take my work along with me. On more than one occasion, I have solved something I was stuck with for hours as soon as I sat down with the same problem at a local diner. All of which are reasons why I was glad to see the newest neighborhood restaurant open on south Albert, just a moderately distanced walk from my place. Two doors down from Dandy’s Ice Cream at 4550 Albert Street, Rock Tavern is the latest neighborhood gathering spot serving delicious food, local craft beer, cocktails, and a variety of wines in a cozy, welcoming atmosphere. Open every day from 11:30 a.m. to at least 10:30 p.m., their menu offers a wide selection of appetizers, soups and salads, burgers,
pizzas, and a number of other main courses. For dessert, you can actually order a scoop of the vanilla ice cream from Dandy’s. It can even come along with a warm chocolate brownie, made in house, if you like. The restaurant has been in operation for just under a month, and has a growing social media presence on Facebook (Rock Tavern) and Instagram (@rocktavernyqr). Be warned if you follow their pages, though! Sometimes photos of delicious burgers or sandwiches pop up at times when you are supposed to be working or sleeping, and this has posed a slight inconvenience for this writer more than a few times. Some of us had the opportunity to go down there for dinner this past week, and I for one will definitely be going back. It was the evening of Remembrance Day, and the place was not too busy or loud, something I was thankful for. Chef Braitman was in fact able to come out for a chat with our party of around 10 people, and highly recommended the fish and chips. While I had originally intended to go with the
Rock Tavern
Southern Heat Smash Burger (it was the perfect weather for it that evening), a number of us took his recommendation and had no regrets. Made with rockfish, which is a variety of the pacific snapper, the fish and chips were flavorful, soft, and flaky – and at 12 ounces of fish, more than enough for someone with a healthy appetite. In fact, some members of our group eventually had to get takeaway boxes for theirs. When sharing this tidbit with the chef, he mentioned that the fish and chips
is one of their fastest moving items, and they have a 6-ounce fish burger on the menu also made with rockfish. After 12 ounces of lightly battered and delicious fish and chips, I didn’t have room for dessert. However, I have found myself staring at the burger section of the menu multiple times since on their website. I figure if I do a weekly visit for the next little while it will still be two months before I have tried one of each, four months if I want to alternate with the fish and chips. If you take
a look at their menu and think it looks pricey, I definitely want to point out that the portions are huge. In fact, two members of our group were able to share one. Personally, I would never do such a thing, but I also used to eat two dinners daily for a big chunk of my life! Be that as it may, I highly recommend the Rock Tavern! Go down there the next time there’s a Riders game, enjoy it on their big screens along with some drinks, and, if you are feeling peckish, get the fish and chips!
Rock Tavern
The Rock Tavern & Eatery logo on a photo of group of people drinking wine around a table. Guess you didn’t get the E-Vite…
Restaurant review: The Lazy Owl
Come for the empty Cabela’s feeling, stay for the clamato on tap
jorah bright arts writer
Food services at the University of Regina are sparse right now. Until the winter semester begins, we have Extreme Pita, the newly opened Tim Hortons and Momentum Café, and URSU’s own Lazy Owl, which re-opened in September with a new name and new menu since it closed in 2020. And it’s interesting, to say the least. The hours are strange: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and only on weekdays is certainly a choice. It eliminates the ability for students to go out drinking with friends on Friday nights, or to go out for drinks on the weekend at all. Since I’m only a second-year student, I can’t tell you what the old Owl looked like before the rebrand. (Editor’s note: For some reason, the rebrand did not actually include décor changes of note). But the new one has a very strange atmosphere. It has the same atmosphere as a Cabela’s right before closing, except sometimes they’re playing a morning talk show where they talk about shoes on the TVs. The combination feels like a breach in The
Owl’s aesthetic. The new menu is seemingly very fancy – unnecessarily fancy. And poorly executed in its fanciness, to boot. I don’t need a salad with chickpeas and dried cranberries when a basic chicken caesar salad would do the job just fine. The options aren’t varied. There are only two vegetarian options, and that’s it. And no, the vegetarian options are not the salad or the veggie wrap, despite both of those things being mostly vegetables. The vegetarian op-
tions are actually the poutine and the cauliflower bites. Similarly, there are very limited halal options. There is the aforementioned poutine, two chicken burgers, and the Cali club. Yet, despite the chicken being listed as halal in the Bacon Cheddar Burger and the Cali Club, there is also bacon in both those meals. It just doesn’t make sense to list a meal as a halal option but then put something non-halal in the meal. The salad dressing they have
for the caesar salad side with the grill orders has an aggressive amount of garlic, yet still somehow tastes watered down. If you get the fries that come as a side dish for many orders in the evening, they often taste like they were cooked earlier in the day instead of fresh. For Christmas, they have a cranberry buffalo wings option, and I am very confused. Tart and spicy seem very strange together. I guess I still haven’t eaten an orange since my last article, so I
Hannah Eiserman
The Lazy Owl: too lazy to add Lazy to their old Owl.
can’t say much about strange fruit flavours. Another menu item that just confused me was clamato under fountain drinks. Clamato is not a fountain drink. I would be concerned if I saw a soda machine dispense clamato. Why is clamato on tap? Who is drinking the clamato on tap? Are they okay? Also, despite being a student-union restaurant, it’s kind of pricey. I can’t always afford to spend $15 on a meal alone and then spend $3 on a fountain drink, clamato or not. But let’s talk about the good things at the Lazy Owl. The seasoned fries are very well-seasoned. It’s a good combination of spices. The breakfast skillets are huge. It comes in a massive bowl and looks daunting to finish. It’s a large amount of food for $12. The Long Island Iced Tea tastes like those gummy coke bottles. The cinnamon buns are pretty good. Though I don’t drink, multiple sources have told me the Lazy Owl buys good tequila. Hopefully, in the future, the Lazy Owl will have more options for varied diets, and make the atmosphere feel less like a nearly closed Cabela’s.
nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
carillonregina.com | the carillon |
arts & culture
9
Quest for Champions monthly LARP event Regina LARP group mixes wholesome family fun with safe and structured violence
hannah eiserman arts editor During the past six months working for the Carillon, I have been continually put into weird situations that ultimately end up to be some of the most fun I’ve ever had. This week, I unearthed a Facebook event by Quest for Champions LARP (Live Action Role Playing) group and thought it would make for an amazing article – and would bring something entirely new to the pages of the Carillon. Now, before we continue, dear reader, I command you to dispel all of your pre-existing ideas about what LARPing is – I promise you this was actually nothing like what you would imagine. Yes, there were a few folks in full or part LARP regalia, including my tour guide and event organizer Dylan Biasutto, the owner of Regina Battle Ground Stefan Shewfelt, and fellow participant Kaitlyn Erz, but plenty of us fought in street clothes. General use weapons were provided and constructed by Biasutto, mostly out of PVC pipe, duct tape, and pool noodles. The foam padding on the tips of the arrows didn’t stop them from stinging, but that was the weapon packing the most bodily damage. These weapons did require a bit of imagination, but the hardcore LARPers like Biasutto had their own custom-made weapons that look surprisingly like the real things! Biasutto also took me on a tour of the Battle Ground, which is in the old Sears building and also absolutely massive! Closest to the door, they have the beginnings of a medieval-style tavern, which is so far just the bar and some bits of room décor. As of right now, they can still do events with a temporary liquor license, but hope to eventually be fully operational with a full liquor license. Biasutto says that on LARP nights they have even had Dungeons and Dragons groups play sessions in the tavern area. There’s also a padded archery area and a back area designed for Nerf gun fights with towers and shelters. Those two rooms are also able to be rented out for parties. Biasutto saw a need for a group like Quest for Champions
Hannah Eiserman
Two LARPers duking it out in the melee ring. Are you not entertained?!
in Regina and hopes they can help provide some good, free, wholesome fun for the city. We chatted a bit about how Regina is a chain city, and finding unique options for fun like this seem few and far between. It’s a perfect way to meet new people, take out some aggression, and get some exercise. More importantly, though there may be a medieval-style tavern in the works, the LARP event isn’t centred on alcohol like a lot of events in the city. The LARP group meets
get more folks to come check it out. And if you do come check it out, you will be back. Biasutto tells me that every first-time player has come back again, probably due to his insane persuasion skills. I came purely as a journalist and a spectator, and was hailed into the fighting for two whole hours. Spectatorship is not an option at the LARP events – but don’t worry, the fear of looking silly starts to go away super quickly when you get to hold a huge foam sword or axe – and completely evaporates when
ing those arrows for the most part – with a long sword, a shield, and a small throwing dagger. Biasutto explained to me that what types of equipment you’re allowed depends on a point system. For example, you’re not allowed to wield two “two-handed” weapons (like my long sword), but the shield and sword combo seemed to be legal. I was too busy trying to stay alive to take notes on the exact rules of the game, so there’s even more reason to come out yourself and give it a try.
“
There’s nothing more humbling than seeing just how fast you would die in Game of Thrones – which, for me, was way faster than Ned Stark or the Night’s Watch deserter whose head he chops off in the first episode. – Hannah Eiserman
for these informal battles once a month in addition to a larger event in both the summer and the winter. The summer event takes place a bit out of the city in a wooded area and is quite a big shindig, with bands and merchants joining in. They hope to start meeting twice a month once they get a more dedicated group going, Biasutto tells me. For now, they’re just hoping to
you get to start whacking people with ‘em. The group is also unbelievably inviting and accepting, so there’s no reason to feel awkward about being a newcomer. If you jump right in, like I did, you’ll be surprised what you find. I fought – and the term ‘fought’ is used loosely here, because really, I was a big coward and hid behind the shelters avoid-
Essentially, the way it worked was if you were struck by a weapon in your arms or legs, you would simply stop fighting with that arm or hop on the opposite leg. If you lost both legs you could still fight, though you’d be confined to the ground. If you were hit in the chest or back, you “died” and were out of the round. We started out fighting in Hannah Eiserman
teams of five and played a few rounds that way. Then we played an “everyone for themselves” style round before another wave of new players joined us. But the real fun was the melee tournament (paired fights using only close-range weapons). Each player drew a number to make matchings randomized and fair, and those players fought to the “death,” best two out of three. I won precisely zero of my two rounds so I sat the rest out – but I got to watch the real pros fight. And got some fantastic photos! I have never been a particularly athletic person so I didn’t feel like I was operating under any delusions of grandeur, but there’s nothing more humbling than seeing just how fast you would die in Game of Thrones – which, for me, was way faster than Ned Stark or the Night’s Watch deserter whose head he chops off in the first episode. My terrible performance actually motivated me to come back and practice next month, however, not the opposite. It was an incredible workout and just an obscene amount of fun. That being said, I’m pleased to announce there were no high school gym flashbacks! Okay, maybe just one when I was picked last for one of the teams, but it was midway through the night and my lack of skills had become glaringly obvious, so I don’t blame them. But don’t let that stop you – if I can do it, anyone can do it! The group is very welcoming and inclusive, with participants of all fitness and age groups. And I mean all age groups: we had a little assassin, Fynlie Gettle, who was elementary school age, absolutely wipe the floor with us (and her dad did pretty good too)! I truly can’t recommend this group enough. It was such a blast. I didn’t have the foresight to ask when the next battle will be because I was too busy fighting for my life, but you can find the group on Facebook easily (Quest for Champions – LARP) and I’m sure they will post the date and time for their December event soon!
nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
carillonregina.com | the carillon |
arts & culture
10
Local mom friend’s guide to gift giving Don’t wait until it’s too late, start shopping now with these hot tips
jorah bright arts writer ‘Tis the season for gift giving! It’s the time of year when your grandma texts you asking for your wish list and you never respond because you have no idea what you want, despite knowing that the request was coming. Sometimes you hit a brick wall with gift giving. What do you want? What do your friends want? What does the person who says they have everything they need want? It can feel like a lot of pressure to get something your loved ones will truly love and use. Let’s get the obvious answer out of the way: socks. As much as everyone complains as a child about getting socks for Christmas, as an adult I constantly need socks and love getting socks for Christmas. The coziest socks are reading socks from Indigo. These socks at full price are $34.50, but have a fuzzy soft lining and a knitted outside. I’ve bought a couple of pairs in my years, and every time I went to buy some I was able to find a few pairs on sale for a cheaper price. Unfortunately, the reading socks are gendered (why do socks need to be gendered?) but I can confirm that the men’s reading socks are much more comfortable. If you know someone who loves ice cream, Dandy’s Artisan Ice Cream here in Regina is delicious and has some of the best and fanciest ice cream I’ve ever had. They offer gift cards starting at $10 for your friend with a sweet tooth. In addition, they have very fancy chocolate at the
same location from the Luxe Artisan Chocolate company. Luxe sells delicious and visually beautiful bonbons in many of the same flavours of their ice cream. They also have equally fancy chocolate bars. The chocolate is a bit on the pricey end, but it’s delicious. Another item on the pricier end for those in your life who love jewelry is Hillberg & Berk. H&B is very popular among young women and the business started right here in Regina. A set of earrings runs from $50 to $150
their items from locals. The staff are incredibly kind if you don’t know much about crystals but you want to get a gift for someone who does. For your nerdy friends in Regina, Comic Readers is a great local shop. They have a large stock of comic books and manga books for those interested. They have a varied amount of board games, from card games including popular ones like Cards Against Humanity to classics like Settlers of Catan, all the way to
owner is incredibly kind and helpful for those looking for the right gift. An awesome thing to get for your artsy friends is commission work: order commissions of different types of artworks depending on what your friends and family like. This can be on the pricier end, but totally worth it since you’re buying straight from the source and you’re not only paying for their work but also their expertise and supplies. Etsy is a great place to go for hand-
“
If you’re willing to pay a little bit more for high-quality art from a prairie local, I recommend @hailiiz, an artist from Manitoba who you can find on Twitter and Instagram. – Jorah Bright
depending on the type you want, and the bracelets and necklaces are around the same price range. For the small children in your life, Wonderbly is a company that sells personalized children’s books. Each book costs between $13 and $50, and the cost depends on the format and the story. You can personalize the character’s name and, for some books, even what they look like. If you’re in the Moose Jaw area, I highly recommend Essential Elements & Metaphysical. They have a great selection of crystals that are reasonably priced, as well as tarot cards and readings. They also source lots of
the lesser-known games like Lost Ruins of Arnak. For the Dungeons and Dragons fans in your life, Comic Readers stocks many of the D&D sourcebooks and expansion books, as well as lots and lots of dice. They supply TTRPG miniatures as well as the tools to paint them. There are two Comic Readers locations in Regina so you may not have to travel across the city to find what you’re looking for. If you want a more specific TTRPG gift for a friend, there’s the Warhammer store in Regina which caters specifically to the game Warhammer. If you don’t know a lot about the game, the
made work and has so many different options for different types of art. It also has great options for pet portraits, which have been growing in popularity over recent years. If you’re looking to commission an art piece, Twitter is also a great place to look. Just search ‘commissions’ and you’ll be able to find people that do art commissions as well as look at their past work. If you’re willing to pay a little bit more for high quality art from a prairie local, I recommend @hailiiz, an artist from Manitoba who you can find on Twitter and Instagram. Pro tip: if you choose to commission someone you find
online, make sure you know the art is theirs and not just something they found online and are passing off as their own work – and don’t try to haggle down prices! If you’re starting to panic about what to buy your mom, as I often do, the best panic option is flowers. Show up to her door with flowers or hide them until Christmas morning. Flowers are always a great gift for your mom or grandma. One of the biggest questions I ask myself when I look for gifts is a classic: “what would they want to buy for themselves but would never actually get to? What would they stand and stare at for five minutes in the store before turning away?” If you can go shopping with them, pay attention to what they stop and stare at. Pay attention to what distracts them from their shopping goals. That might be your best bet! If none of these seem like they will work, I firmly believe that you can never go wrong with a Squishmallow. They’re soft, they’re fluffy, they’re cute, and they make you feel better. I’ve never met someone who doesn’t like Squishmallows. In Regina, they currently have them at SaveOn-Foods. And these are my go-to’s for gift giving and a little bit of advice from your local mom friend who is constantly buying their friends gifts! Above all, try not to stress about it too much. If you don’t know what they want, buy something that will make them happy. Sometimes simply providing a fleeting moment of joy can be worth more than you expect. Ben White via Unsplash
A Christmas present that’s definitely too small to be the hippopotamus I asked for.
sports
11
editor: vacant sports@carillonregina.com the carillon | nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
Behind the Cougars scene with Braden Konschuh While Sports Information Director may seem a simple role, the coordination necessary is anything but
victoria baht sports writer For the last couple of weeks, the Carillon has taken you through multiple interviews with players from the hockey team, volleyball team, swimming team, coaches of rugby, the head coach of women’s basketball, and so many more. We really wanted to focus on the people behind the events this year, and to take a more in-depth look at what it’s like to be involved with University of Regina sports. This week we interviewed Braden Konschuh, the Sports Information Director at the university, who has been in this position since 2006. Were there any previous jobs that you were involved in at the university? If so, what were they? Konschuh has been involved in this role for his entire time at the university, but his job has changed over the years. He now is working with the Faculty of Kinesiology & Health Studies rather than just with student-athletes. What all does your job entail? “I like to group our duties into five distinct categories: media relations, communications, game night, administrative, and archiving. Media relations duties include serving as the primary point of contact and helping generate positive media coverage for our Varsity sports and other units in the Faculty. This can include helping coordinate interviews, providing content (photos/videos) to media outlets, pitching story ideas too. Communications duties include providing content for social media, websites, and at games.
Arthur Images
“Here’s a picture of me probably tweeting something.” – Braden Konschuh
We run, or help run, a total of 27 accounts across three different social media platforms including the flagship @reginacougars and @reginarams accounts. Our team is responsible for providing timely content for the Regina Cougars, Regina Rams, and KHS websites as well as portions of the Canada West and U SPORTS sites. We also produce your standard program with rosters and standings for all home games.” “Game night duties, always hectic and always fun! We have a
eo screen during games is all designed by us. It’s standard for two of our home events to be happening at the same time – and even up to three at some points in the fall – so preparation and planning are vital to pull all of this off week in and week out.” “Administrative duties are the less-exciting, but still critical stuff like payroll and budget and credit card reconciliation. Archiving is mostly an offseason project. We keep comprehensive player and team records for our
2005 to take a graduate assistant role with Pilot Athletics and pursue a master’s degree in management communication. My old boss Dick White hired me right out of Portland in 2006.” What are you most proud of accomplishing through your time in this role so far? “I’m probably most proud of the recent advancements we’ve made in video production, both for the in-game webcasts and for features between events. It’s hard not to keep an eye on what other
“
It’s standard for two of our home events to be happening at the same time – and even up to three at some points in the fall – so preparation and planning are vital to pull all of this off week in and week out. – Braden Konschuh
wonderful Creative Media Team led by two talented film students, Morgan Fleury and Matt Degenhardt, that handle our home canadawest.tv webcasts. We stream our home games for all of our team sports, and the CMT has been instrumental in raising the bar each year in terms of broadcast quality. Head to any of our home games and you’ll see 4 to 8 people working hard on the production team. Our team also handles game statistics and certain aspects of fan experience at the gym – what goes on the vid-
Varsity sports.” Were you personally involved in any sports or coaching that encouraged you to take on this job? “I’ve always loved sports and played hockey and baseball growing up. I went to Bemidji State in Minnesota and started working stats at Beaver hockey games, and it just kind of went from there as I started helping out at home games for other sports. I graduated from BSU in December of 2004, and then went to the University of Portland in January of
Canada West schools are doing in this area and I feel great about the level of quality and professionalism of the broadcasts – again, full credit to Morgan and Matt for what they’ve been able to do with this and also to the KHS Dean, Harold Riemer, for his support in this area.” What sorts of information are you responsible to manage? Is there anything that would surprise people or that you were surprised about when you took the job? “I’ll say the biggest surprise
to me when I took the job is how many events we would host at exactly the same time. In Portland, they would take great care to ensure that they wouldn’t host, say, a basketball and a soccer game at the same time. Here, though, it’s common to have basketball going on at the exact same time as hockey. It was a bit of a learning curve to figure out how best to manage multiple events happening at the same time at different locations. “I’d say the biggest thing that would surprise people is the breadth of skills required to effectively perform in this role. Design skills, basic coding, ability to write at a professional level, skills in crisis communications, coolness under pressure, detailed statistical knowledge for all of our Varsity sports, social media fluency, a sharp attention to detail...the list goes on.” We’d like to thank Konschuh so much for all the great detail – it almost felt like I was working beside him at the desk as we took this interview. A couple of last remarks added by Konshuh were that he is always looking for more help with that grand list of tasks and responsibilities, and if current students are interested, they can find his contact information at reginacougars.com. He also suggested we interview Morgan and Matt from the creative media team to walk through an average production night at a basketball game, and we will be doing just that in the last issue of this year, so keep your eyes peeled next week!
nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
carillonregina.com | the carillon | 12
sports
Ice skating and skiing in Regina area
Whether you gravitate towards exercise solo or in groups, winter doesn’t mean the end of your opportunities
amina salah staff writer Hot chocolate with marshmallows, cozy sweaters, warm and minty candles, and blazing winds – winter is known for its coziness for some, and its seasonal depression for others. As the weather gets cooler and the roads get slippery, it becomes harder to stay active and continue the habits we’ve built over the summer. It’s important to note that our bodies generally tend to slow down during the winter. That is normal and okay. If you find yourself slower or more tired, let this be a reminder that you are not alone. Amidst all of this, it’s important to implement at least some form of exercise. Sometimes going to the gym all of the time is draining and you just want to be outside for once. There are many outdoor activities perfect for this, my favourites being ice skating and skiing. Ice skating in Regina is something that is easier to do in comparison to other places. For starters, there are many outdoor ice skating rinks in the city, my favourite one being the one in the downtown area. It is a beautiful, cozy location where they also
serve hot chocolate and coffee sometimes. The lights are absolutely breathtaking and make the experience much more entertaining. It is a good way to be active because you can go alone without actually being alone. You can also bring some friends over if you’d like – they are beginner friendly, so you can find chairs there sometimes to help you balance if you’re still learning. The people are friendly and they will help you stand up if you fall down. There are many other outdoor skating rinks, such as the Grassick Playground Outdoor Rink, the Leslie Park Rink on Victoria Avenue, and the Lakeview Park Rink, among many more. Skiing is also another great form of staying active because it is an outdoor sport. If you are someone who is looking to burn some calories and strengthen your muscles, skiing is just the sport for you. I find that skiing is one of those things that allows you to focus on one thing. It is a somewhat healing sport that allows you to focus on your surroundings and enjoy them. It is always something that helps improve my mood. What makes it even better is that it is accessible in and around Regina. There are many places
in Regina and a little bit outside the city that provide places for skiing, and normally have rentable equipment available – there are even resorts, and Sunshine & Ski Ltd is one of them. There is also Kinsmen Park Cross Country Ski Trails. Mission Ridge Winter Park is another place that offers not only skiing but also snowboarding. It is currently closed, unfortunately. However, if you are in need of some winter outdoor sporting equipment, then Fresh Air Experience is the best place to go. They have equipment for skating, skiing, snowboarding and more. As the weather gets colder, it is important to continue taking care of ourselves. It is important to move your body and get some exercise, and outdoor winter activities are the best way to do so. They are fun activities because you can do them alone, but there is also the option to do them with other people, making the experience even better. That is why I think that winter gives us an opportunity to embrace the changing seasons and appreciate the opportunities it can give us to stay fit.
Loly Galina via Unsplash
Scared you’ll fall and make a fool of yourself if you try skating? Just go stand on the ice and take pictures – no one will know the difference when you post it!
What it takes to be a Cougars three-point legend Faith Reid chats about gameplay, mindsets, and sports attire best suited for the court
victoria baht sports writer
Last week, the Carillon did an interview with head coach of the women’s basketball team, Dave Taylor – and in that same week, the team had games against the Bisons (U of M) and the Huskies (U of S). We wanted to keep the theme of basketball going as the season has just begun, so this week we did an interview with Faith Reid, who already ranks eighth place in school history with 97 career three-point shots. So, let us get to know the basketball career that Reid has! What is your coolest signature move? Reid states her go-to move when she is feeling the pressure from the opponents is a shot fake with a dribble between the legs, then a step back and a three-point shot. Which we know she is good at! Can you personally dunk? Is there anyone on the Cougars Women’s team that can dunk? There is no one who can dunk that is on the Cougar Women’s team. What do you personally feel like you are better at, playing offence or defence, and why? Personally, for Reid, it is not about playing on the offence side of passing the ball to her teammates with fancy dribbles and passes or the defence where she has to close-out really fast. No – for Reid, her importance of the game is to always score points! What is your team’s go-to
bench cheer when the game is close, and your team is playing defence to put the pressure on the other team?
The women’s basketball team go-to is “defence, with some poorly timed clapping in between.” What are the most chal-
lenging parts of basketball for you and why? “For me the biggest challenge is mental. Being able to get out of Arthur Images
Elbows – the real MVP when it comes to pushing past a screen.
a bad mindset mid-game or after a mistake is always hard, and I like to be perfect so accepting it and moving on to be able to play the game better has always been a challenge for me.” What is the most rewarding part of basketball for you? Why? The most rewarding part of the game is winning, along with creating many strong memories with the team. What do you like especially about watching and playing basketball? “The strategy of the game, and the flow of how a team or player is so specific and unique to each person.” What is your go-to sport brand of clothing that you wear the most for training? “Well, [for] the team it’s Under Armour, but I wear Puma shoes and for shorts I use Hercourt which is a female owned business out of BC.” What is your go-to move when you are pressured by an opponent? For Reid, as we know, she is good at three-pointers, so from her perspective why not shoot another when the pressure is on – it’s gotten her this far! Now you know how all the three pointers are made on the team – the answer (for now, at least) seems to be Reid! You also got to know her sense of style, which by the looks of the Hercourt website involves supporting women and making sure they have the equipment and attire needed to perform at their best.
op-ed
13
editor: sarah nakonechny op-ed@carillonregina.com the carillon | nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
Scrapbook of everyday life
The moments in our life don’t have to be good or bad – they can simply be Our memories are scrapbooks consisting of an endless number of moments that we can never return to but will continue to carry with us. Doesn’t that sound beautiful? It can be, and oftentimes it is. We carry the memories and stories of those that we love, those who may no longer be with us, and of those who we still care for but may no longer be in touch with. These countless moments have continued to shape us into the people that we are. These moments may not always seem like they are significant. They may be something as simple as remembering an old friend for a brief second when you order a ridiculous coffee that reminds you of them on a cold afternoon. They may also seem to be everything, like remembering your grandmother every time you scan your bookcase and see one of the children’s books you used to read together and the investment she had, in you and your well-being. But what do we do with those snapshot moments of our lives that aren’t so great? How do we continue to move forward when we are reminded of them and the pain that they caused for us and those we care about constantly? When we want nothing more than to throw them away and never look at them again? I so desperately wish that I had an answer to that question. I wish there was a way to diminish the amount of space these moments hold, if not to be rid of them altogether. There are many photos in my own life scrapbook that I would not mind burning as I’m sure everyone has, and yet we are forced to continue carrying them as though they are not harmful to us. I think this can be strangely beautiful too. If we only focused on the good and ignored everything negative that we have been handed, we would not be able to appreciate the ways that we have grown in as meaningful of a way. Flipping back to those darker times can help us avoid potentially going back to them by allowing us the knowledge and strength to push forward. Things might be hard, but they’re supposed to be. Anything worth having is not something that is simply placed in your lap. The successes and joys that we have are the same. They would not hold the same significance in our lives if there were not bad things in our lives to compare them to. We have all heard those cheesy, overused sayings about needing rain to experience a rainbow, among others. But do we need to look at such a specific perspective of the situations? Must everything only be good or bad, happy or sad, black or white? Personally, I am content coming out of a bad situation and just simply being in a neutral spot. Just because things are not bad does not mean that they are going to be good, and that is perfectly okay. Sometimes, we need to just simply be. Experiencing such a jarring emotional rollercoaster of such aggressive highs and lows would be very taxing on the system. Sometimes, being in a neutral place is better than pushing ourselves to be experiencing something else. I think we oftentimes forget that this is an option for us to exist in. Just like with a physical scrapbook that we are creating, we capture the moments that we see and consider to be the most worthwhile and noteworthy. These are not ones that are mundane and every day. You never see photos of people taking a nap or getting ready for
“
We capture the moments that we see and consider to be the most worthwhile and noteworthy. – Sarah Nakonechny
Estee Janssens via Unsplash
Are you going to find a way to scrapbook your scrapbooking memories?
work in the morning. These are not considered to be exciting or noteworthy activities, so we do not bother with documenting them. We do this internally with the moments of rest we take. These are not moments that are worthy of being acknowledged and as a result they are not worth taking the time to think about for longer than a fleeting moment. To be better equipped to handle the negative moments that will inevitably find their way to us once more, we must give time, space, and acknowledgement to the
moments we take to slow down and to breath. To be neutral is to not be indecisive or unproductive. To be neutral is to take care of oneself by not investing our energy or time into the things that do not serve us. As much as we would all enjoy having the opportunity to fill our life scrapbook with joyous, beautiful moments that bring nothing but positivity with them, that is not something that can realistically be accomplished. We must cherish the good moments, allow time for the neutral moments, and acknowledge the bad moments for what they are.
By fighting against the way in which life naturally progresses, we do a disservice to our own life and to the experiences of those around us. Accepting the highs, the lows, and the pauses in between allow us to not only be cared for and looked after, but to also allow a greater opportunity to enjoy the smaller highs a lot more.
sarah nakonechny op-ed editor
nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
op-ed
carillonregina.com | the carillon |
14
Those who brave the elements
Appreciating those who keep the city functioning through snowstorms If I mention to you the snowstorm that took place on Tuesday November 16, I’m sure you’ll know exactly what day I’m talking about. You’ll probably have your own set of stories about not being able to get out of your driveway or street, seeing countless vehicles stuck in various places across the city, or about the snow day that schools got. No matter where you were or what time you experienced it at, there was no way for any of us to avoid that storm. But what about those who don’t have the luxury of complaining about the storm from the comfort of their own home, those who are forced to go out and brave the elements? I’m talking about more than just the first responders who were out there. I’m talking about the tow truck drivers, all the crews that were removing snow, and the electricians restoring heat and power to our homes, among many others. We sing the praises of our first responders often and we should, as the work they do certainly warrants it, but we cannot forget about those who are the foundation of our cities during these types of storms. Without these unsung heroes, we wouldn’t be going anywhere. Think for a moment about anytime that you’ve been forced to stand outside when it’s cold and blustery. Maybe that’s been a few minutes while you wait for your parents to unlock the front door to your home, or maybe it’s curled up in an ice-skating shack trying to thaw your fin-
gers and toes after hours on the rink. Now, I want you to think about being that cold, or even a little bit colder, and being required to continue to be outside, trying to maneuver through piles of snow all while dealing with a distressed stranger. Welcome to being a tow truck driver. How about any time you’ve panicked as the car you’re in, or possibly operating,
hits a patch of ice and your back end fishtails behind you? If you think that’s hard while driving through streets that have already been cleared, try being the person clearing them, not knowing how much ice might be underneath all off the freshly fallen snow. It is easy for us to sit back in our warm homes and complain about the storm rag-
Wikipedia Commons
You better be coming back for those snow ridges you have caused.
ing outside through the night. It is another thing to be one of the people who must brave the elements and pray that they can do the job that is required before the world wakes up and keeps going. The world would cease to move if it weren’t for these brave souls going out and doing the work that the rest of us would be incapable of performing, ensuring that main roads are cleared, that sidewalks and parking lots have been shovelled, and setting down salt and sand to ensure that we have traction for both our cars and feet. I would never be able to go out in the middle of the night and begin that process without being terrified, knowing that someone may lose control on a patch of ice or not slow down when passing me stopped on the side of the road. Going to work and knowing that the biggest workplace hazards are the unknown things brought forth by mother nature and the other individuals who are doing whatever they can do to also return to their nice, warm beds must be terrifying. For those who put themselves in the way of the elements to ensure that the rest of us can keep moving forward with our day to day lives, I commend and appreciate everything you do.
sarah nakonechny op-ed editor
Commuting without a vehicle
Options for getting around Regina when owning a car isn’t one It’s that time of the year again – the white winter landscape that starts to develop sometime around early to mid-October and stays till about the end of April each season. Winter brings with it numerous activities such as skiing, curling, and ice fishing along with a variety of celebrations like Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Years for those who choose to celebrate. To embrace winter, staying warm and commuting are two essential survival techniques to master. Here are useful options for commuting both within and outside the city during the winter months. Public transit can be the most consistent and reliable form of transportation within the city. Public transit requires passengers to have a bus pass or bus fare in lieu of individually commuting between different locations. University of Regina students have access to subsidized bus passes available each semester which is highly
beneficial during the winter. The website of the public transit in Regina called TransitLive provides real time information to commuters about bus timings and routes. The map also includes the locations where roads are blocked due to construction or other mishaps if there are any. The public transit system has also included on-demand bus stops at specific locations. It is interesting to know that if a person is unable to get to a designated bus stop due to bad weather conditions, a palm-out hand waving signal is all it takes to stop an upcoming bus, regardless of whether the spot is a bus stop. Carpooling is another option for those looking for something other than public transit. The extent of carpooling options depend on the networking circle of a person. Various workplaces, culture clubs, or social media groups like Regina Rides allow people to request or reply to carpooling options for any transportation require-
ments. The degree to which carpooling options are viable depends on the level of trust and reliability people share amongst themselves. Sometimes generous strangers agree to offer a ride to a person waiting for transport on a cold winter evening. An easy-to-access commute alternative is cabs that are available at the click of button on your cell phone. Uber, which is one of the highly used transportation apps, arrived in Regina in 2019. Other cab service companies include Co-Op Taxi, Regina Cabs, and Capital Cabs to name a few. These cabs can be easily booked with a phone call, and on most occasions offer great service. Cabs are pricier than public transit and carpooling options, but nevertheless serve as a handy way to get around the city in winter. Some people also travel back and forth outside the city for work or pleasure during the winter. On such occasions intercity
bus and shuttle services are useful. Rider Express is an intercity bus service provider that allows users to book rides to cities like Saskatoon, Edmonton, and Winnipeg among other locations. Bookings can be made by calling their office or through apps like Busbud. For commuting between different cities, it is advisable to book in advance and follow up with the service provider to know about any changes in schedule or route. Winter can be tough without a personal vehicle - but on the flipside, with the options explored above, commuting either alone or in a group can turn out to be an exciting and adventurous journey.
sonali currie contributor
Sonali Currie
Won’t have to worry about that expired meter if you take the bus.
nov 25 - dec 1, 2021
carillonregina.com | the carillon |
op-ed
A take on body modifications
15
No matter which side of this love/hate relationship you’re on, respect is key
Body modifications come in many different forms. Whether it is piercings, lip fillers, cosmetic surgery, coloured hair, or tattoos, you have probably seen it all on your Instagram explore page. Of course, everyone has their own thoughts regarding them. Some view them as controversial, others believe it is okay if it doesn’t hurt anyone. Body modifications today are more common than we have ever seen before. I personally don’t care what people choose to do with their bodies. I believe that people should think about them seriously before getting something done just because it is what is trending on Tiktok. 20 years ago, the ideal standard was to be thin. Today, while thinness is still a standard, so are curves. This is the main reason why Brazilian Butt Lifts (BBLs) are common today despite the health risks. There are some body modifications that come with a serious cost. BBLs, for example, have a higher mortality rate. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons stated that the BBL death rate was 1 in 3,000 in 2018, higher than any other cosmetic procedure. This affects younger people much more as they’re exposed to much more through social media today. It is hard to keep up with beauty standards, the current trend of tattoos, fillers, Botox, and other cosmetic procedures. I always say that I don’t think I would survive as a functioning person if I was a teenager in the age of TikTok and Instagram. Young girls especially are told that they must fit a certain category to be considered as beautiful. As a result, they get procedures done to their bodies or faces. Of course, I believe that everyone is al-
lowed to do whatever they want with their body, but I also believe that this industry is one that does not care about the well-being of people. Surgeons will accept anyone for procedures because it makes them money. The harsh truth is that addiction to body modifications make their bank accounts bigger. They don’t care that it harms the people getting them. I wish that there were therapists at every plastic surgeon’s office to help ensure that the person is 100 per cent certain
“
are open about their body modifications instead of hiding the truth about them. The only body modifications I have are piercings. I’d like to get a smiley piercing someday, but I am absolutely terrified of the pain and the healing process. I personally love nose piercings, although I do not have one. I especially love the look of double nose piercings, it looks regal. I only have two piercings on each ear and got them when I was a baby. In my culture, people get their piercings as babies instead
At the end of the day, body modifications are a form of self-expression. – Amina Salah
about getting a procedure done. There are people walking around with body dysmorphia, and as much as I hate to state this, surgeons don’t really care because it is this category that makes them money. I am personally against body modifications that have high mortality rates or that will mentally harm the person getting them. What boggles my mind is when people are not forthcoming about the work that they have had done, and then indirectly influence other impressionable young people. It is extremely shady. I respect people who
of when they are grown up. I have not necessarily experimented with any other body modifications because I personally don’t feel the need to do something that is permanent. I change my mind almost a hundred times a day and I will like something, then hate it the next day. I dyed my hair blonde and was meaning to keep it like that, but I decided to change it to black with deep red highlights on a random Thursday just because I felt like it. Therefore, I think I wouldn’t be the best person to get certain body modifications done because I’d regret
them sooner rather than later. I do, however, respect people’s autonomy to do whatever they want with their body. A lot of things were new to me initially and took some time to understand, as many things are out of my comfort zone and worldview, and I have my own experiences that are different from the those who were born and raised in the West. Some things are different to me. However, it is important to note that sometimes different is not necessarily bad, it’s just different. It’s something that should be understood and even if that is not possible, respected. I have heard stories of people hiding or covering their tattoos and removing piercings for employment purposes. I think it is sad that people must conform to what is considered “acceptable” by the public. They must make themselves smaller and hide every trace of who they are. It is unfair that people have a certain view and belief of people with tattoos and piercings and thus treat them with a lack of respect. People deserve to be treated with dignity regardless of their appearance or body modifications. At the end of the day, body modifications are a form of self-expression. People should be allowed to express themselves whichever way they want. Body modifications give people a sense of self, making them important to some people. It is absolutely nobody’s right to dictate what someone can or cannot do with their bodies or faces.
amina salah staff writer Tamara Gore via Unsplash
My body is a temple, so I decorated.
