The Confluence | January 2nd, 2019 | New Beginnings

Confluence JANUARY 2ND, 2019

YOUR OFFICIAL COLLEGE MAGAZINE

The

PEARCE MY SOUL WITH INSPIRATION

NEW BEGINNINGS

06

THE U-PASS AND U 8

RAZBLIUTO 11

BREATHE HEALTHILY LIVE HAPPILY 12

It’s the Chief

Damon Robinson Editor-in-Chief

If print media is dead then why am I here?

Hey guys, it’s me again. Welcome back to the College of New Caledonia for the 2019 Spring semester! It’s nice to see you again you beautiful person. Anyways, there is a lot of cool stuff happening this semester, and I am very excited to see what you all think about it!

One of the things I’m excited to share is that one of the things planned for CNC is a brand new sports team.

The students’ union along with some passionate students have been advocating for a sports team for the past semester, and we are excited to say that we are moving to the next stage of forming a brand new, official CNC team. Make sure to keep your eyes peeled as there will be people who are looking for your voice and hear what you all have to say regarding the team.

Among other things, we are making a massive push for content this semester. We really want to showcase the talented students of CNC. If you have any work you are proud of, or if you want $20, send your stuff in. Who knows? It might just make it in the next issue.

Here’s the News Paige Riding News Editor

Happy New Year! Here’s to hoping 2019 doesn’t suck as much.

They say that the year is what you make it. Frankly, those people are too optimistic and make me sick. Stupid positivity.

If you have a New Year’s resolution, I encourage that you focus not only to better yourself, but to better yourself for others. Self-reflection is fantastic, but if the work you put in stops at you, it will stop short. Helping another person to have a better year results in that person returning the favour, and then this resolution reaches many others. And don’t make your resolution to give up chocolate. We all know how that will end up.

In other news, I turn 20 in less than a week. No longer being a teenager is terrifying; the connotation of the “-teen” suffix is one with less responsibility, in a sense. Taxes! Tuition! Wanting to go to bed by 9PM! The horror!

A part of me wants to go back to grade 4 when I was trading Pokémon cards and not doing three midterms a week.

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I look forward to beginning my final semester here. I hope your holidays were relaxing. May you all have a great semester, and an even better 2019!

Damon Robinson

Paige Riding

Harman Dandiwal

Editor-in-Chief, The Confluence

News Editor, The Confluence

Organizer, CNCSU

Submissions, inqueries and requests can be made to editor@cncsu.ca, in person at the CNCSU office room 1-303, or mailed to “The Confluence c/o CNCSU 3330-22nd Ave. Prince George, BC. V2N 1P8” All submissions are welcome, the authors of edited works used in the confluence receive a $20 cheque upon publication. Advertisement rates are available upon request.

ABOUT THE COVER “I started photography in High School and from that day i never stopped exploring. Photography is not only my hobby it’s my passion so that’s why these days I am working as a Filmmaker and Photographer under AD Photography. In the end i just want to thank the Confluence for featuring me as their cover. thanks you so much.”

Akashdeep Gill Student, Freelance Photographer

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The Confluence is produced biweekly at the CNCSU office on CNC’s Prince George campus

by Damon Robinson and Paige Riding.

CONTENTS PEARCE MY SOUL WITH INSPIRATION PAGE 6

DIRECTION PAGE 10

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THE U-PASS AND U PAGE 8

RAZBLIUTO PAGE 11

MESSAGE FROM DOGGO PAGE 14

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BREATHE HEALTHILY, LIVE HAPPILY PAGE 12

PEARCE MY SOUL WITH INSPIRATION

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WRITTEN BY: MADISON BUCKNER

When I think of our educational institution and attempt to pinpoint my favourite experience in my short year as a transfer student, I am presented with a myriad of adventures: the classes, strangers becoming friends, the post-exam celebratory sushi lunches. Yet, of my 26 weeks of a student last year, the predominant memory is the scent of an oil diffuser.

I believe there is a connection between our sense and our emotions; it is this intangible

aroma that defines my first year. Rather, it represents the nurturing, championing and freedom of self-expression that you will gain as a student from the office of which the smell stems: Graham Pearce.

Prior to registering in Pearce’s 103 class, Composition and Style, I had mapped myself to complete my first-year English credits online. A close friend of mine, a former College of New

Caledonia Social Work student, caught wind of my game plan and immediately protested my decision. He told me that if I cared about my education at all, I would get myself a seat in Graham’s class; he sang Graham’s praises. Despite my reservations (how can one instructor hold such revere, it must be a one-off rapport), I listened to my friend and secured one of the last seats in the class.

student; I found value in either following the majority or bowing my head when I disagreed with certain concepts. Three times a week, for 13-weeks, I would hear the phrase “you have the right to offend, and the right to be offended”. Immediately, yet silently, I agreed with this statement. I so feared publicly stepping into that mindset that I only shared my views in the privacy of his office, a place I trusted I wouldn’t be judged.

As the semester progressed, I equally found that trust in my classmates, and eventually, I realized I didn’t need to have that trust to express my views.

Through Graham’s lectures, paired with his innate belief in the freedom of speech, my confidence in writing and critical thinking skyrocketed. I learned how to respectfully voice my opinions while simultaneously considering and appreciating the beliefs of my peers.

I immediately understood why his classes were so desired. This impression only solidified as the semester progressed. Roger Federer was upgraded to Maggie Nelson; instructor led lectures developed into 20-person conversations where everybody was heard; assignment restrictions were laxed and time timeframe for marking turnaround was minimal.

Pre-English 103, I was a quiet

If you find yourself in his 103, don’t look at it as a necessary first year credit. Instead, recognize it as an opportunity to step outside of your comfort zone; I guarantee you’ll flirt with the edge of society, and you won’t regret it.

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Day one of class, I had no idea what to expect of the man walking through the classroom door. Ironically, it was me who walked through the door after him; I got lost on my way and resigned to asking for direction.

I was horrified to be late for the first lecture, yet I was welcomed with a warm smile and a syllabus stating I had no required textbooks, nor a final exam, followed by a class reading of an article about Roger Federer.

Pearce lives up to and exceeds his reputation floating through our hallways. His teaching is fresh, his grading is fair, and his humour is cringe-y.

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The U-PASS and U WRITTEN BY:PAIGE RIDING

Included in the fees of the semester, students gain access to a U-Pass that provides free entry to the Aquatic Centre as well as the public transit system around Prince George or Quesnel, depending on what campus one attends. With the new semester beginning, the CNCSU wants students to have peace of mind when it comes to their U-Pass expiring.

Quesnel and Prince George U-Passes have different grace periods. For PG students, there is a 10-day grace period after the sticker on a student’s card expires. For the fall 2018 semester, the current U-Pass expires on the 31st of December. With the grace period, that U-Pass will be accepted by bus drivers until the 10th of January, 2019. There is no access to the Aquatic Centre with an expired U-Pass. Bus trips required of a student are allowed in that grace period of 10 days; however, access to the Aquatic Centre, which is arguably a recreational luxury, will not be until a there is a new U-Pass distributed. In Quesnel, all utilities are accessible in this 10-day grace period. This difference is due to a different contractual agreement within the two campuses.

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By this same contract, the CNCSU is not allowed to provide students with the spring 2019 U-Pass until January 2nd. When distributed, this new U-Pass will be valid until the 30th of April, 2019. During orientation and any time during regular office hours, the Students’ Union office will be open and more than happy to change the sticker on one’s student ID card. Office hours are still 9-4PM, Monday to Friday.

We look forward to seeing new and returning students, and we hope to help however possible with U-Passes, locker renewals, and any other matters students may need addressing.

Poetry Run Out Of here There, Maybe?

No

Come on Here, Away?

Towards Tower Over me

Come back To me Away From me Not that me The other one

Beneath me Seems right It is all That seems right Since I left I am lost

The one You believe in So neither Right?

Left Towards you

Losing Will lose More of my sense Of direction Without you Did I

I depart From me To You Now I Wonder where

Ever Have The chance To decide My location To choose

I went I want I wish I worry But it Does not mean

My way To go Was it Fate Fast

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It matters At All After All I always Allow A lot Of lies In lieu Of love Right?

You left Come back No not That way This way Near Dear,

You did not

Fleet Footing Faltering Someone stop These words From fumbling Away from

My teeth They creep In between Squeeze like I Love You That would Falsely splatter On walls Away from My eyes

Mean it Mean to Right?

Left Me with Shells of Words Bullets Candy wrappers Once sweet Now irritating Like the Lingering flavour Of The old me From you That was All you left Me You Need it more Than I do Keep Telling myself So I Do not get Angry That I will Never

Get It back Front Face me Why do You turn?

Steer Cars and Words like You want To kill the Deer on The road The lamps Do not blink Long enough

For escape Stop Go Slow down!

No It is late Too late For those words You took them From me Posters Are now out If found Please return Home Wrecker You Me? Who owns The house Not ours It was Gone Before Going Coming Up The stairs Creak and Ache From your Foot On My Throat Gasp Gulp Go away Come here There Nowhere Near me No Yes

DIRECTION

By: Paige Riding

RAZBLIUTO

By: Damon Robinson I’ve forgiven you.

It wasn’t what you wanted to hear, but like the embers emitting from fire amongst the smell of petrichor Symbolism of the now dead flame.

There are a lot of things I miss.

Maybe it’s the kiss recieved amidst The army of snow that grew amongst The then growing bonfire made of cedar.

Justified in our means.

The mind is equivalent to the soul, and while I left empty handed, to be candid, while I wasn’t the happiest man in the world, I was sure the luckiest man alive.

The narcissus you have given me, I still keep.

Because despite the feigning narcissism, the fantastic optimist in me thought we could tend a garden of violets. Yet, neither of us could recognize faithfulness and loyalty.

I understand it’s been a while, and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.

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But I’ve forgiven you.

Breath Healthily Live Happily

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Kathleen Sturt Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Hold it. Hold it for a few moments. Now while holding the breath, run. Run fast.

Run to the sanctuary. Quickly now.

However, the bitter and stale smell quickly catches up. I gasp and release the air. Inhale. No exhale. Why can’t I breathe out? My lungs begin to burn. I can feel my lungs swelling and my chest getting heavier and heaving with each failed attempt to breathe.

Inhaling now becomes harder. I try to breathe in again, but all that escapes is a loud wheeze as my lungs attempt to fill with life. I feel dizzy; the room begins to spin. I have to keep going; I can see sanctuary. Only a few more steps. Wheeze in, take a step. Wheeze out, take another. Finally, I have made it as the world around me starts to become dark. I enter the sanctuary and slam the door. Immediately I grab the blue canister and shake it for dear life before holding it to my mouth.

Press down. Inhale. Hold. Exhale and repeat. The swelling begins to go down, and breathing becomes easier once again. This description is only

a sample of what my asthma attacks felt like every day, multiple times a day, living with a chain smoker who smoked in the house and car regularly. Smoking in homes and vehicles should be banned, made illegal, and enforced stringently when children under the age of 18 live in the household.

My step-father was a chronic chain smoker; from the moment he got up to the very last minute before bed he always had a cigarette in his hands.

The moment he stepped into our lives the thick pungent smell of stale smoke followed him and that smoke

began strangling and beating my lungs on a daily bases like a bully waiting for his victim so he could take his lunch money. When we first moved to Prince George I was diagnosed with severe asthma. For the first six years of my life I was in and out of the hospital—I was almost transported to Vancouver because they couldn’t get my asthma under control—due to the pollution in the city as well as the cigarette smoke. Being in the hospital constantly didn’t stop him. When I wasn’t in the hospital I struggled every day to breathe. The maintenance inhaler did nothing for

I wasn’t one of them. A new sector of government should be created to monitor every home in the country to keep young people safe from the effects of smoking. Twice a month someone from that sector should be going to every house and testing for cigarette smoke inside the homes and vehicles. This can include an actual home visit and/or having a specialized monitor installed into the home (one that can’t be tampered with). If the monitor detects cigarette smoke it will go off and let the new sector of government who is handling these new legislations know about the smoke inside of the home. Once cigarette smoke settles it’s hard to fully clean that smell out of fabrics and to wash off of walls.

Every time I did a quick visit and left, as soon as I got home I had to wash my clothes immediately and shower because the smell burned my lungs and lingered on my clothes. I even Febrezed my car every single time. If you violate this law then punishment should follow, whether it be a fine or for repeat offenders who just don’t care to the possibility of having the children taken away. In 2009 British Columbia made it illegal to smoke in a vehicle with minors and if caught, you would receive a $109 fine. This fine needs to be tripled at least and there needs to be new legislation that includes stopping smoking inside of homes as well as more thorough and careful monitoring.

I wish my step-father took my health, and his granddaughter’s health more seriously and at least smoked outside.

If the government is reporting that second hand smoke amongst minors under the age of eighteen is one of the highest causes of death, then they need to step up their game and implement new rules and regulations regarding smoking inside of homes and vehicles. The government should be looking at Bhutan and Uruguay, two out of five countries with the

strictest smoking laws, for guidance and support. Children deserve the right to not have to be near such horrendous smells and conditions and should have the right to say so. Smoking inside of homes and vehicles needs to be banned to save more people from dying of secondhand smoke.

Works Cited “WHO global report on trends in tobacco smoking 2000-2025 - First edition.” World Health Organization, http://www.who.int/ tobacco/publications/surveillance/ reportontrendstobaccosmoking/en/ “B.C. sets $109 fine for smoking in cars with kids present.” CBC News, CBC/Radio-Canada, 18 Mar 2009, https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ british-columbia/b-c-sets-109fine-for-smoking-in-cars-with-kidspresent-1.838560

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me and the emergency inhaler, that you are only supposed to use a few times a week at max, I used multiple times a day. From elementary school to graduation I was constantly pumping my body full of asthma steroids just to find a few moments of relief that my lungs so desperately craved. Just before I turned 19 I moved out and rarely went back to the house to visit because I couldn’t stay longer than five minutes before I felt an attack coming on. When my daughter was born I told him that if he wanted to see his grandchild at his place that he would need to stop smoking inside. He was always welcomed to my home but never came because he knew he wasn’t allowed to smoke in the house. My reasoning was because I knew my kin had a higher chance of becoming an asthmatic and I wanted so desperately to spare her of the pain that I had to go through.

His response was “I’m not taking demands from you.” That was the end of our relationship. Smoking was more important to him than his daughter and granddaughter’s health.

Smoking in homes and vehicles with children under the age of 18 should be illegal and monitored.

There are so many activists out there that say it’s the child’s choice to do something (an example being people against abortions because they say it’s impinging on that person’s human rights) but when it comes down to it, do they really have any rights?

It isn’t our choice to sit in a small confinement and breathe in the second hand smoke which is found to be more harmful than smoking the cigarette ourselves. If we truly have the choice, than a four-yearold should be able to tell the adult to not smoke in the vehicle or home.

But of course that isn’t how things work. According to the World Health Organization, every year at least 600,000 people die from second hand smoke. I’m honestly surprised

HEY GUYS. SUBM SUBMIT TO

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The

MIT YOUR STUFF. Hey guys, it’s me Damon again. I wanted to use this space to let everyone reading this know that we are actively looking for submissions. One of my primary goals doing this job is to showcase your work, get you recognition and give you McDonalds money.

I know that there are a lot of students here who are incredibly talented, and absolutely deserve the spotlight. If you have any work that you are proud of, feel free to send it to editor@cncsu.ca.

Just in case you’re wondering, here is what we are actively looking for at the Confluence:

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- Essays (500+ words) - Photography (Cover Photos, Stock Images, Cool Stuff) - Poetry (Literally anything.)

- Art (Painting, Drawing, Graphic) - Stories (Fiction, Non-Fiction, What you did last Saturday) - Also, if you’re good at making comics. Let me know.

Support and Crisis Contacts and Help Lines • Crisis Line- for immediate 24/7 support and information and referrals: 250-563-1214 Toll Free: 1-888-562-1214

• Youth Support Line: 250-564-8336

Chat line at www.northernbccrisissuicide.ca

• Provincial Suicide Hotline 1-800-SUICIDE or 1-800-784-2334

• College and University students for mental health • CNC Counselling: 250-561-5818 • UNBC Counselling: 250-960-6369

• Individuals who identify as aboriginal or wish to access aboriginal services • Carrier Sekani (Family Services): 250-562-3591 • Central Interior Native Health: 250-564-4422 • Native Friendship Centre: 250-564-4324

• Healing Centre: 250-564-4324 • SUCCESS Chinese Help Line:

Cantonese Help Line, available 10 a.m. – 10 p.m.: 604-270-8222

Mandarin Help Line, available 10 a.m. – 10 p.m.: 604-270-8222

• Bounce Back teaches effective skills to help adults overcome early symptoms of depression and improve their mental health: www.bounceback.ca