November 27, 2013

TRU student heads to Arizona for world record attempt Pg. 11

The Omega Thompson Rivers University’s Independent Student Newspaper

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Volume 23, Issue 13 November 27, 2013

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Trades pilot program launched at TRU Jessica Klymchuk Ω News Editor

Sensible BC is petitioning for a marijuana referendum that would decriminalize marijuana.

( Jessica Klymchuk/ The

TRU is offering a new pilot program for commercial truck and transport mechanic apprentices that allows them to finish all their schooling in one block. The diploma of transportation and motive power was officially announced

by B.C. Advanced Education Minister Amrik Virk on campus Nov. 19.

“There’s a lot of consultation Omega) in our trades that said we needed to be more f lexible, that we needed to look at new ways of

Students bring Sensible BC campaign to campus Jessica Klymchuk Ω News Editor Students don’t have to go out of their way to support the most recent effort to decriminalize marijuana. Mike Neigel and Madi Lowe have brought Sensible BC’s campaign for a marijuana referendum onto campus in an effort to reach a demographic they felt was being missed.

It’s not as though the student demographic was being ignored, but that there is a lack of student canvassers, Neigel said. He and Lowe are the only student canvassers he knows of, but he wants young people to be aware of the issue at hand as well as the democratic process involved.

“It’s super important, because we are the ones that have recently come of voting age,” Lowe said, ”and a lot of people don’t use that privilege … I think it’s important to let people this age know.”

collected around 75 signatures on campus, but said they might have more if they were in a higher traffic area. So far they have only been able to campaign in the Campus Activity Centre, but will have a table set up in Old Main on Nov. 29.

“Considering the traffic in the building and the controversial nature of the topic, I think it’s gone well,” Neigel said, adding that there is still time for people to show their support.

However successful Sensible BC’s campaign turns out to be, Neigel and —Theresa Edstrom Lowe think educating the community on South Thompson oganizer, Sensible BC the topic is just as important. The response from students has been mixed, but they said “I think that younger people many people aren’t taking the might support legalization but time to learn what the petition they are less politically engaged, is for. they don’t have as much time and they don’t have any faith in the system,” he said.

See PETITION Pg. Neigel and Lowe have

delivering education,” he said.

“It needed to be responsive to regional economic and regional employment needs.”

Traditional apprenticeship programs see the classroom work spread over four years, but the new pilot program allows students to complete their classroom work and co-op training in the first 61 weeks.

“You look at a system where an apprentice goes to school, goes to work and then comes back, and we had a lot of feedback saying that wasn’t working,” Virk said.

See NEW PROGRAM Pg.

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Sensible BC director Dana Larsen said it saw the decriminalization of marijuana as a young person’s issue, but was surprised to see a large portion of its volunteers are actually senior citizens. He said it’s important to reach every demographic.

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I’m not giving up until the very last day.”

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B.C. Advanced Education Minister Amrik Virk announced the launch of the “front-end loaded” program on Nov. 19 that sees apprentices completing their schooling in one block.

( Jessica Klymchuk/ The Omega)

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News

November 27, 2013

Petition only first part of intended action From Sensible BC, Pg.

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“I think when people hear about this petition they jump to the conclusion ‘oh, it’s legalizing pot,’ but this is to give them a chance to vote yes or no if they want,” Lowe said. “So once people listen I think they are a lot

more open minded.”

Sensible BC needs to collect at least 10 per cent support from each of B.C.’s 85 electoral districts, a total of around 400,000 signatures, in order to force a referendum.

The 90-day petition began Sept.

9 and will wrap up Dec. 5. If the campaign is successful, a referendum to decriminalize

Madi Lowe and Mike Neigel have collected around 75 signatures for the marijuana referendum petition on campus.

( Jessica Klymchuk/ The Omega)

marijuana in B.C. will be held in September 2014.

Larsen said the campaign has collected around 150,000 signatures and at this point they are pouring in faster than ever. Both the South and North Thompson need around 4,000 signatures each. He said North Thompson is over the halfway point, while South Thompson is just about half way with two weeks to go.

“I’m not giving up until the very last day,” South Thompson organizer Theresa Edstrom said.

Larsen said if this campaign fails, Sensible BC will have a head start for the next one, and either way it’s only one part of a much larger campaign.

With the referendum, Sensible BC is calling upon the B.C. government to pass the Sensible Policing Act, an amendment to the B.C. Police Act, which will decriminalize marijuana possession in the province. A second part of the proposed act calls upon the federal government to remove marijuana from the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act and ultimately start legally taxing and regulating marijuana.

Strategic priorities consultation calls for feedback Ashley Wadhwani Ω Contributor TRU welcomed all citizens to attend the second strategic priorities consultation on Nov. 18 in the Campus Activity Centre. The consultation was intended to open discussion to community members on the future of TRU for the next five years.

The meeting began with a speech by TRU president Alan Shaver, inviting the 70 attendees to discuss their aspirations and hopes for the future of the university.

“Look and see how we can take TRU to the next level,” Shaver said.

Brenda Aynsley, executive director of United Way Thompson Nicola Cariboo, took the f loor and explained to attendees the four themes the consultation would be focusing on: community, students, research and learning and teaching. The themes were the result of two surveys that were conducted in the last two months.

The first was held Oct. 15 to Oct. 23, with 1,700 responses and the second was held Oct. 28 to Nov. 4, with 1,110 responses, according to results published online.

The approach was a handson experience for all attendees, with different boards placed on tables around the room with titles ref lecting the four main themes. Attendees were told to walk around the room to the different tables and write their ideas down on Post-it notes and stick them to the boards. If their idea was already written, or they agreed with someone else’s idea they could show their support by placing stickers on the notes.

Apprentices Jamie Gainsforth and Eric Moore show B.C. Advanced Education Minister Amrik Virk how a technologically advanced engine operates. ( Jessica Klymchuk/ The Omega)

New program allows apprentices to finish schooling in one block From TRADES, Pg.

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He said the new program is in response to employers needing apprentices at work when they are required to return to school and apprentices who struggle to find workplace sponsors because of that.

“The employers and those who are representative employers absolutely benefit because they stay at that work force with uninterrupted attention and potentially you keep your employees for a long time,” Virk said. “They’re going to return to you and they’re going to stay with you.”

The Transport Career Development Association and the Industry Training Authority (ITA) developed the new model. Sixteen students began the pilot program in August 2013 sponsored by BC Transit, Cullen Diesel Power Ltd, Inland Kenworth and Peterbilt Pacific Inc. ITA is providing $179,600 in funding to support technical training in the program, which

also includes employer-specific training.

“Thompson Rivers University has been extremely accommodating and supportive in the launch of the DTMP program,” Peterbilt apprentice Jamie Gainsforth said. “The facilities allow us to experience a little bit of the shop atmosphere and try things that we might not get an opportunity to do until further into our careers.”

TRU president Alan Shaver said the program is an example of the innovation universities are going to have to strive for in order to meet the future needs of students and employers.

A press release from the Ministry of Advanced Education said “in the Cariboo, 23 per cent of the regional trades labour demand between 2010 and 2020 would be for machinery and transportation mechanics.”

The program is focused on commercial transport mechanic apprentices but Virk said there could be examination of how it can be expanded further.

Community corner Are you one of the 1300+ people who have signed up to receive mobile alerts from TRU Alert?

TRU assistant professor of philosophy Dr. Jenna Woodrow makes an addition to the strategy.

(Ashley Wadhwani/ The Omega)

“I believe that if you engage people that are passionate and involved in the university, that the end product will be improved,” Shaver said.

“The original survey was a little restrictive and prelimited,” said Karl Hutchins, a faculty member of the archaeology department at TRU. “Students might be intimidated by not having anything to contribute, but they can add dots instead,” said Hutchins.

The first survey results showed 42 per cent, or 710 of the total respondents were students.

Of the 710, 233 were first-year students.

TRU philosophy professor Jenna Woodrow took the survey

and placed notes and dots on the “research” and “student” boards.

She said that there is a huge amount of interconnectedness with the university and the community.

The 35-person committee deciding the strategic priorities of the university includes 10 faculty, 10 students and alumni and community members. This meeting was only the first of four consultations that will be held.

When asked by an attendee what would happen after the feedback session, Shaver said that the priorities for the university would be determined through “discussion, discussion, discussion, decision.”

This is part of TRU’s Emergency Notification System which will alert you in the event of a major emergency on campus.

To receive the messages you need to sign up at http://www.tru.ca/alerts If you have signed up, please note there will be a test of the system on Dec. 17 at 11 a.m.

You will receive alerts via whatever means you signed up for – email, text, or voice mail – followed by an ‘All Clear’ message once the test is done.

If you have any problems with the sign up process, or experience any technical issues during the test, please send an email to safetymanager@tru.ca.

Editorial & Opinion

The Omega · Volume 23, Issue 13

The Omega www.truomega.ca

November 27, 2013 Volume 23, Issue 13

Published since November 27, 1991

Take your vacation ... seriously “Human beings aren’t designed to expend energy continuously.

Rather, we’re meant to pulse between spending and recovering energy.”

editorialstaff EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Mike Davies

editor@truomega.ca

250-828-5069

@PaperguyDavies NEWS EDITOR

Jessica Klymchuk news@truomega.ca @jjklym

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Courtney Dickson arts@truomega.ca @dicksoncourtney SPORTS EDITOR

Adam Williams

sports@truomega.ca @AdamWilliams87 ROVING EDITOR

Karla Karcioglu

roving@truomega.ca @0_kmk_0 SCIENCE & TECH EDITOR

Mark Hendricks

sci-tech@truomega.ca @MarkHendicks5 COPY/WEB EDITOR

Sean Brady

copy@truomega.ca @iamseanbrady

omegacontributors Ashley Wadhwani, Jessica Buick, Nathan Weissbock, Kevin Skrepnek

publishingboard EDITOR-IN-CHIEF * Mike Davies INDUSTRY REP* Sylvie Paillard FACULTY REP* Charles Hays STUDENT REP* Travis Persaud STUDENT REP* Hugo Yuen STUDENT REP* Adam Williams

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Literary and visual submissions are welcomed. All submissions are subject to editing for brevity, taste and legality. The Omega will attempt to publish each letter received, barring time and space constraints. The editor will take care not to change the intention or tone of submissions, but will not publish material deemed to exhibit sexism, racism or homophobia. Letters for publication must include the writer’s name (for publication) and contact details (not for publication). The Omega reserves the right not to publish any letter or submitted material. Opinions expressed in any section with an “Opinion” label do not represent those of The Omega, the Cariboo Student Newspaper Society, its Board of Directors or its staff. Opinions belong only to those who have signed them.

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Editor’s Note Mike Davies Ω Editor-in-Chief Well, here we are at the end of another semester (at least as far as issues of The Omega are concerned). Sure we’ve still got a few final assignments to hand in and maybe a few exams during the exam period to worry about, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel, as the cliché goes.

Bad news, though. I have one more assignment for you fine folks after you’re done with your classwork for the semester.

That assignment is this: Sleep, relax, do something fun that doesn’t require much focus, and then sleep again.

Too often these days, people have opportunities to relieve the seemingly unbearable levels of stress that accompany postsecondary educational demands, but they don’t take advantage of them.

Trust me when I say that I fully realize many of you need to take the opportunity that the winter break affords you to stabilize (or at least subsidize) your financial situation by getting a seasonal job — or, more likely, picking up more hours at the job you

Cariboo Student Newspaper Society (Publisher of The Omega) TRU Campus House #4 900 McGill Rd, Kamloops, B.C. V2C 0C8 Phone: 250-372-1272 E-mail: editor@truomega.ca Ad Enquiries: accounts@truomega.ca

(Correspondence not intended for publication should be labelled as such.)

Twitter: @TRU_Omega “Like” us on Facebook.

Do it.

Seriously.

already need to sustain yourself while at school.

I suggest that you at least take some time off, however, and there are more than a few reasons why.

Elizabeth Anne Scott, author of 8 Keys to Stress Management, award-winning health blogger and contributing columnist to Ask.com’s health section, writes a lot about “burnout,” which is a feeling I’m sure many of you have on a regular basis.

“If your whole life consists of responsibility and work, and you don’t have a creative outlet or regular outlet for good old fun, it’s harder to sustain yourself through the stressful times in life,” she wrote in a May 2012 article entitled, “Daily life stress and burnout: What presents the highest risk.”

In an earlier article (July 2011) she wrote about the importance of periodic vacations, saying, “the psychological benefits that come with more frequent vacations lead to increased quality of life, and that can lead to increased quality of work on the job.”

When you combine these two ideas, it says to me that it’s important to take a vacation once in a while that relieves you of your stressful responsibilities and allows you to recharge your emotional batteries with activities you enjoy in order to be better at the stressful stuff when that’s what you need to be accomplishing.

“The importance of restoration is rooted in our physiology,” agrees Tony Schwartz, author of Be excellent at anything: The four keys to transforming the way we work and live. “Human beings aren’t designed to expend energy continuously. Rather, we’re meant to pulse between

spending and recovering energy.”

In his contribution to the New York Times in February of 2013, he outlines some of the important aspects of both human physiology and psychology and illustrates how rest and relaxation contribute to the effectiveness of a person when engaged in stressful, necessary activities.

In it he cites one of many studies that are out there in regards to how vacations (and other forms of downtime) contribute to productivity in which an accounting firm found that for every extra days of vacation an employee took over the course of a year, their work performance increased by eight per cent, as rated by their employer.

Couldn’t we all use an extra eight (or more) per cent increase

in productivity?

Ten days of relaxation and focusing on entertainment and enjoyment could be all it takes, and what better time to engage with that rejuvenation than when it’s cold and windy and you don’t have to be in class for three weeks?

If it’s a realistic possibility for you, I highly suggest it. If it’s not, all I can say is don’t spend too much of your “downtime” over the break on stressful things like getting ahead of your readings before next semester starts.

If you have time to get some reading in, pick up a novel and escape into a different world instead of immersing yourself in the one you’ll be surrounded by in January.

And have a snowball fight.

See you in January. editor@truomega.ca

Why is it when we’re at work (or school) we wish we were at home in bed, but when we’re home in bed we just think about work (or school)? Maybe because we don’t take enough time off.

(Image courtesy kroszk@/Flickr Commons)

World Health Organization looks to end AIDS

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Wellness Matters Courtney Dickson Ω Wellness Columnist The first day of December means we get to start our advent calendars and that most of the creepy moustaches from Movember will disappear. It also marks the 25th World AIDS Day, a day to raise awareness and support those living with HIV and AIDS and to remember those who

have lost their lives to the disease.

HIV attacks the immune system, weakening their body’s defence against infection and other diseases. It’s contracted through semen, vaginal secretions, blood and breast milk. There are various stages of HIV, the last of which is AIDS. AIDS can take anywhere from two to 15 years to develop, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

When AIDS takes holds, it can mean severe medical issues may begin to arise.

In 2012, an estimated 35 million people were living with HIV worldwide.

Between 1985 and 2012, more than 74,000 Canadians tested positive for HIV, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada.

The number of new cases reported has been decreasing since 1996, but it’s still too many.

The WHO has held strong to the theme of “Getting to Zero” for the past couple of years. Their goal is to ultimately eradicate HIV and the discrimination and stigma

surrounding it. This year, the WHO is campaigning primarily for improved access to prevention and treatment for young people living with HIV. Durex and the MTV Staying Alive Foundation have started a campaign to educate people about HIV, primarily enforcing that anyone is susceptible to the disease. They also plan to give away 10 million condoms, as unprotected sex is a common way HIV is transmitted.

HIV and AIDS are important to recognize, because while scientists are working on it, there is no cure. Those living with the disease can take medication in order to live healthier lives, but it’s something that will never go away.

Not only are there physical issues involved with AIDS, but also psychological and emotional issues. People who know little about it often don’t know how to handle themselves around those with HIV, making life uncomfortable for people who are already having difficulty.

Stigma and the disease itself can only be decreased, and as the WHO hopes, eradicated, through education. Learning about AIDS and HIV in order to protect yourself and others is important, but it’s also important to know the facts and understand what those who have unfortunately contracted the virus are dealing with.

You can pick up some free condoms from TRU’s wellness centre, as well as any other information about AIDS and HIV. Kamloops is also lucky enough to have the ASK (AIDS Society of Kamloops) Wellness Centre on the North Shore, where knowledgeable and friendly staff are working to educate the community and provide care for those living with HIV and AIDS. It may not have an effect on you now, but one day you or someone you know may end up with the virus. If we can all learn a little more about AIDS, hopefully the stigma attached to this disease can be suppressed and the care for those affected can improve. arts@truomega.ca

Got a health or wellness topic you think Courtney should explore?

Email her at arts@truomega.ca (yes, she’s our arts editor, too. Multi-talented, this one is).

Science & Technology

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November 27, 2013

Cellphones disrupt sleep cycles

Sleeping with electronics can affect productivity and alertness Connor Ward The Cord (Wilfred Laurier) WATERLOO (CUP) — Scientific studies are finding that sleeping with, or near, a cellphone can have serious adverse effects on health. A 2010 study conducted by Pew Research Centre found that 90 per cent of Americans aged 18 to 29 sleep with, or near, their phone.

Those who text are also 42 per cent more likely to sleep with their phone. The main concern for researchers is the constant f lurry of incoming texts and messages, causing young adults to constantly check their phones throughout the night.

Professionals believe that a constant surveillance of the cellphone causes sleep disruption, causing daytime fatigue, as well as negative effects on memory and attention.

One researcher noted that distracting devices, such as cell phones, could actually affect daytime alertness.

“We have jet lag in a different form now in modern life called social jet lag,” said Richard Horner, professor of medicine and physiology at the University

of Toronto. “Because we are exposing ourselves to activities and light at later times, then trying to reset ourselves in the morning.

“It’s like we’re in a different time zone.”

Horner is also the director of the research program, Sleep and Biological Rhythms, which looks into all aspects of sleep-related rhythms.

“There is an issue that people talk about called sleep hygiene,” Horner said. “This argues that we should take our sleep health as importantly as we value nutrition and physical activity for general health and well-being.”

Another recent study done by Washington and Lee University in Virginia found higher levels of interpersonal stress in young adults who text late into the night regularly. The study also claimed that not only are young adults pushing back the time at which they go to sleep, but the light emitted by the phone’s screen makes it difficult for the body to produce melatonin, the chemical responsible for signalling the body to sleep. This means sleeping with a cellphone can both push back bedtime and make it difficult to fall asleep once someone is ready to sleep.

Not only are young adults getting less sleep, the sleep they are receiving is also of poorer quality.

“There have been so many studies done that show that sleep affects performative tasks and motor skills,” Horner said. “It’s not just the fact that you’re going to be awake; your brain processes information to you while you are asleep.

“Pulling an all-nighter is never a good idea … people don’t perform well the next day.”

Horner also discussed human performance after long, sleepless periods; comparing insomnia and severe lack of sleep to human performance after drinking alcohol.

“After about 18-20 hours awake the body performs on tasks that require skills similarly as if they’ve had two drinks,” he said.

As more studies are done concerning phone use during the night, results increasingly confirm that cell phones and electronic use before bedtime has serious effects on our health.

“It’s a question of how well we can prioritize,” continued Horner, “and whether the short term benefits actually last a long time.”

This week in science International Space Station celebrates 15 years of orbiting, a “new” predatory dinosaur, and Mars’ atmosphere being tested Mark Hendricks Ω Science & Tech Editor

Fifteen years in space The International Space Station (ISS) celebrated its 15th anniversary circling the earth on Nov. 20, 2013. To date, the ISS has had more than 200 visitors from 15 nations, representing a truly international collaboration.

The ISS is a low-Earth orbit research station that was constructed by multiple countries. Canada, USA, Russia, Europe and Japan have all contributed parts to the ISS. The station serves as a research laboratory where astronauts can conduct experiments in an environment that is impossible to recreate on Earth.

Experiments aboard the ISS have contributed to advanced robotic surgery, clean drinking water for people who aren’t near water treat-

ment plants and remote medical diagnostics.

The ISS was propelled into the cultural consciousness last year thanks to Chris Hadfield’s stint as the commander of the ISS, where he live tweeted space to a mass audience, bringing people closer than they’ve ever been before.

Find out more: www.nasa.gov/station

Newly discovered dinosaur dominated the landscape before T-Rex Paleontologists discovered a new predatory dinosaur that existed before tyrannosaurus rex and is the third largest predator ever discovered.

The fossils were from a juvenile, so the exact size of an adult is uncertain but even so the bone size suggests a predator that was 30 feet long and weighed in at four tonnes.

Astronaut James H. Newman during a spacewalk preparing to release the first combined parts of the ISS space station in 1988.

(Image courtesy NASA)

“It’s been 63 years since a predator of this size has been named from North America,” Lindsay Zanno, a North Carolina State University paleontologist and lead author of the study said in a press release. “You can’t imagine how thrilled we were to see the bones of this behemoth poking out of the hillside.”

The team made the discovery in Utah’s Cedar Mountain formation in 2008, but the results weren’t published until Nov. 22 in the journal Nature Communications.

Find out more: http://news.ncsu.edu/releases/

Orbiter to explore Mars’ upper atmosphere NASA launched a new space orbiter on Nov. 18, 2013 to explore Mars’ upper atmosphere and attempt to solve the mystery of what caused the change in the planet’s atmosphere.

Four billion years ago, Mars had an atmosphere thick enough to support liquid water, but today only a trace of that atmosphere remains.

The Mars atmosphere and volatile evolution orbiter (MAVEN) will reach the red planet in September 2014 and begin its mission then.

MAVEN consists of eight separate sensors that it will use to analyze the upper atmosphere of Mars.

Maven is also carrying a DVD that contains 1,100 fan submitted haikus and a list of 10,000 MAVEN supporters. The cover of the DVD was also a community contest and was designed by a kindergarten class.

Find out more: www.iflscience.com

Falling asleep by (or with) your cellphone leads to terrible things when you’re awake, according to new studies.

(Photo courtesy wanderingone/Flickr Commons)

Microgrids generate sustainable energy at BCIT Simon Little The Link (BCIT) BURNABY (CUP) — Researchers from BCIT’s Group for Advanced Information Technology (GAIT) are working on a ‘micro’ project that could have major impacts on the way Canadians use power.

The project is Canada’s first Smart Power Microgrid — a network of smart meters, renewable power sources and monitoring software distributed around BCIT that have transformed the school from an ordinary campus into a model power grid.

Dr. Hassan Farhangi, director of GAIT, has spearheaded the project since its inception six years ago.

Farhangi said that BCIT’s industrial site-like trades programs, office-like classrooms and home-like residences provide an opportunity to simulate a real-world urban power grid in which to test new technologies.

“It is a scaled down version of the grid: it has generation capacity, it has load, it has communications systems, it has command and control,” Farhangi told The Link.

The project, still in its first phase, is currently about measuring power use on campus and testing the ‘smart’ communication tools that collect this data, according to Farhangi.

Just shy of 10 buildings are wired with smart meters, which relay information on when and how much power is being used to a control centre to be analyzed.

The more visible side to the Microgrid is BCIT’s power generating capacity. Green tech is springing up all over the campus, and between solar, steam, natural gas and wind, the school is generating about a half a megawatt of power, explained Farhangi.

“That’s well shy of the six megawatts BCIT consumes,” said Farhangi, “but significant considering the project is all about research and experimentation.

“They may not generate as much, but they give us the opportunity of getting to know these technologies, and all of the issues that are there, to integrate these sources of energy into a functioning campus.”

It is here that the Smart Microgrid could have big effects off campus.

Utilities like BC Hydro, Farhangi said, are highly concerned with risk.

By demonstrating how these smart and renewable technologies perform under real world conditions, he explained, the BCIT program brings them one step closer to reality.

Down the road, Farhangi sees the program growing in exciting ways.

“We have defined a road map of technology that needs to be developed over time,” he said.

As researchers develop the ability to measure power usage in real time, Farhangi added, future phases of the smart grid could communicate that information to end users, empowering them to reduce consumption.

Farhangi also noted that the project has drawn a lot of investment to BCIT, which is beginning to pay dividends for students.

“We are attracting a large amount of private and public funding, not only for our research purposes but for our educational and training purposes as well,” Farhangi explained. “All of these assets are going to be made available to our school and our students.”

In the meantime, students will soon be able to interact with the Smart Microgrid in more tangible ways.

Farhangi invited students with access to electric vehicles to make use of the Energy Oasis, currently under construction, free of charge once completed.

The Omega · Volume 23, Issue 13

Life & Community

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In the year 2073 TRU’s Campus Master Plan looks far into the future Sean Brady Ω Copy/Web Editor It’s a plan that reaches as far as 60 years into the future. The Campus Master Plan attempts to illustrate how Thompson Rivers University will operate and expand in the coming years.

The plan shows several large buildings cropping up around what planners called the “campus heart,” the area around the House of Learning and Campus Activity Centre.

Building types range from housing (market, student or mixed-use) to academic and retail/commercial.

Current students who bring their grandchildren back to their alma mater might still recognize a few things, however.Buildings like the Campus Activity Centre, the International Building, the science building and even Old Main (at least portions of it) are among those that may still be standing, according to the plan.

Those buildings remain in the plan because of their importance to the campus network, according to Ray Wolfe, senior associate architect at Stantec.

Wolfe was joined on the town hall’s panel by two of his colleagues: urban planner Carla Guerrera and campus planning specialist Leonard Rodrigues.

As the rest of the campus grows, one thing will not: parking. The plan envisions a self-contained “destination campus” instead. During the town hall presentation on Nov. 19, Wolfe explained the situation.

“A commuter campus requires you to drive to campus, hang out for five hours and go do your coursework, but then you drive away because you don’t live on campus or you don’t work on campus.

The final phase proposed in the 2013 Campus Master Plan shows a number of new buildings cropping up on campus, including more open space and pathways, academic buildings, mixed used areas (academic, retail, student housing) and market housing areas.

(3D Rendering courtesy Stantec)

“Once you become a destination campus, it’s a whole new ball game.

You’re living, you’re working and you’re playing on campus. And that’s the kind of campus that is envisioned in the master plan,” he said.

While student population is expected to increase, the upward trend that the university has seen in student population during the past 10 years is not projected to continue.

From 2003 to 2013, which includes the school’s transition from college to university, campus capacity increased by 6,000 students.

“Currently, you have about 10,000 full-time learners on campus – we’re seeing that projection go up to 13,000 students, as well as 3,000 faculty,” Wolfe said.

After audience members raised questions over the figures and the idea that the campus will only grow by an additional 3,000 students, Wolfe noted that the figure was suggested by the steering committee, and that the expansion within the plan is mostly to do with increasing space per student.

The university currently operates at 11 square metres per student, a figure Wolfe said makes the campus “under-spaced” as a research university.

Cliff Neufeld, former VP admin and finance and the town hall’s host, said that research universities across the country usually measure between 20 and 35 square metres per student.

“We’re vastly undersized at this time,” Neufeld said.

Despite the modest increase in student capacity, the campus population is still expected to grow considerably, with market housing opportunities offered along the southern side of the university’s boundaries on the McGill corridor and on the northern boundary along the slopes. The on-campus commercial ventures are expected to “give back” to the academic segments of the university, according to Wolfe.

The market housing and retail opportunities to be built on campus will provide an additional $18 to $27 million in revenue for the university, according to plan documents.

“Let’s face it. The government doesn’t give out the kind of money

it used to, and it’s a real struggle to all of us in post-secondary institutions,” he said.

“So how do we think about it differently? One way to do that is to ask yourself the question: how can we generate revenue? What are the development opportunities?

We think we’ve some really good spots on campus that make sense to develop market opportunities that can give back to the academic building and infrastructure.”

The Campus Master Plan has now been through four consultations and will be presented to TRU’s board of governors for initial review and comment on Dec. 6 and the decision over whether or not to adopt the plan will be made in February 2014.

TRUSU aims to help women escaping violence Tampon drive hosted by TRUSU will help provide basic necessities Karla Karcioglu Ω Roving Editor TRUSU women’s representative Olivia Skagos has organized a tampon drive to benefit the Kamloops Y Women’s Emergency Shelter for this year’s National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.

“We really wanted to be proactive in creating a dialogue and action targeting violence against women,” Skagos said. “[TRUSU] identified the Y Women’s Shelter as a really excellent organization [that is] really working on the ground to get women out of those dangerous situations.”

Skagos is canvassing the TRU and Kamloops communities for items the shelter identified as most needed, including feminine hygiene products, toiletries, bus

passes and pajamas.

Michele Walker, director of violence against women intervention and support services for the Kamloops YMCA/YWCA, said the shelter relies on community support to provide these needs because the their funding does not cover everything.

“Sometimes women are leaving with little or nothing, [and] often don’t have access to a lot of finances while they are here,” Walker said. Providing basic toiletries and self-care items is a big help, she added.

Walker said this fundraiser also helps connect the organization with the TRU community.

“We’re able to bring some awareness on violence against women and how that affects people in our community,” she said, “including women who are in university, who are working at the university.”

Violence against women crosses all socioeconomic statuses, according to Walker, but she stressed that the important message is that there is help for women within the community.

TRUSU will accept donations until Dec. 6, the Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.

Opened boxes of feminine hygiene products will be accepted. All donations can be dropped off at the TRUSU help desk located in the Campus Activity Centre.

Questions for Skagos can also be left at the desk, or they can schedule an appointment for her.

The Kamloops Y Women’s Emergency Shelter is open 24/7.

To find out more call 250-3746162 or text 250-682-7931.

You can reach Michele Walker by email at michele.shelter@ kamloopsy.ca

Olivia Skagos has already gathered some donations for the TRUSU tampon drive, but hopes to see a lot more come in

(Karla Karcioglu/ The Omega)

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Life & Community

November 27, 2013

A reason to rock

New tour sees Hamilton band The Reason come to Kamloops with Thee Attacks Jessica Buick Ω Contributor Hamilton-based band The Reason will be bringing their energetic, eclectic sound to The Blue Grotto on Nov. 28. Since the band’s formation in 2003, The Reason has experimented greatly with genres, ranging from a harder post-punk sound from their 2007 release Things Couldn’t Be Better to a more indie folk-rock style with their latest EP Hollow Tree.

“If we had huge success with our first album and a particular style, maybe we would’ve stuck with it,” said lead singer Adam White.

“Because we didn’t, we had more of an opportunity to expand our sound and experiment.”

White expresses the band’s excitement about the upcoming Western Canada tour, with fellow Anthem label mates, Thee Attacks, hailing from Denmark.

“We are all feeling really good about the tour, it’s going to be a classic Canadian winter tour,” White said. “Let’s just hope we don’t get snowed in.”

Thee Attacks will be opening the show with their sharp and crispy Black Keys-esque style. Combining with high energy of The Reason, the show promises not to disappoint.

“It was convenient that they were on the same label,” White said. “After listening to Thee Attacks’ album, we knew that they were the perfect band to tour with.”

The Reason has toured Canada many times, supporting well-known Canadian acts such as Hollerado, and has collaborated with Sara Quin of Tegan and Sara on their single “We’re So Beyond This.”

Their House Party tour marked their tenth anniversary and The Reason opted to trade in their wheels for something different – the train.

“The train tour was definitely a cool experience,” White said.

“Playing in the homes of our fans was a really interesting. The crowd was different every night.”

The House Party tour was sponsored by VIA Rail, Long and McQuade and Steam Whistle. As they toured, The Reason filmed their experiences in the hopes of being able to make a documentary showing what touring is like and to tell a story about the band. They launched a Pledge Project on June 10 with hopes of collecting funds to produce a quality DVD. “I was overwhelmed by the support, we launched the project, and within three days we had 50 per cent of our goal reached,” White said. “It made me feel great about the release and we’re hoping to have it out in the spring of 2014.”

It looks like Kamloops will have an excellent reason to get down to The Blue Grotto on Thursday night.

Thee Attacks and The Reason are set to impress with the combination of dynamic and driving sets that will no doubt appeal to their crowd.

Hamilton-based rockers The Reason will be at The Blue Grotto on Nov. 28. Tickets are still available.

(Photo courtesy Listen Harder)

Improv for a cause in the Black Box Theatre

®

Nathan Weissbock Ω Contributor

www.kamloopscrimestoppers.ca

REWARD Crime Stoppers pays up to

$2000 in cash awards Dan Ondang, Kory Cudmore and Erik Stephany have all taken a liking to the art of improv and will be performing on Dec. 1.

(Photo courtesy Andrew Cooper)

will be performing at the show.

The event will be hosted

by Allison Clow and Jessica Buchanan, who are both in charge of running the fundraiser. Clow said she will be sure to involve the audience, as the performers need to suggest scenarios for actors to perform.

Cooper noted one particular game viewers may see at the show, which he called “The Alphabet Game.” In this game, a setting is proposed by a member of the audience and the pair of actors must each begin their

line with the first letter of the alphabet, and then the reply to that dialogue must be the next letter of the alphabet. Both actors must cover all 26 letters of the entire alphabet, after which the game ends.

TRUDAT actors are hoping for a large turn-out and are eager to give their audience a great show.

The evening kicks off at 7 p.m. in the Black Box Theatre for drinks and refreshments, with the show starting at 8 p.m.

Entrance is solely by donation, but a minimum of $5 is required.

to anyone providing information which leads to an arrest, the recovery of stolen property or seizure of drugs.

Anonymity > Cash Awards

Call Crime Stoppers 1.800.222.TIPS (8477)

Hey, here’s a random joke: How do you confuse a newspaper reader?

MC82883

Fans of comedy and improvisation rejoice! TRUDAT (TRU Drama and Theatre club) will be hosting their first improv fundraiser on Dec. 1.

Improv is a type of theatre in which the performers execute scenes suggested by members of the audience. These actors generally employ humour and drama to create entertainment for the audience. One of the basic principles of this type of performance is that the actor will not have time to think or rehearse and will have to think on his feet, leading to creative and quirky characters or scenes.

The show will feature dozens of TRU students who are all members of TRUDAT. All proceeds from the evening will be going to the Bradley Munro Scholarship Fund. This fund was created in honour of Bradley Munro, a TRU student who passed away two years ago. The fund goes to students who need assistance paying their tuition.

“Bradley Munro really loved theatre, so I am very glad that we can be honouring his name by doing something he really loved, while giving back the community,” said Andrew Cooper, one of the actors who

Working to make a safer campus.

The Omega · Volume 23, Issue 13

Arts & Entertainment

7

Events calendar: December Les Miserables – Nov. 28 to Dec. 12 Sagebrush Theatre This classic musical tragedy comes to Kamloops after being seen by more than 60 million people worldwide. Fans of theatre should be particularly excited for this production to be hitting the local stage.

The Kamloops Art Gallery has played host to exhibits from TRU professors many times. Here is just a sample of what to expect during the gallery’s Landscape Revised exhibit.

(Photo courtesy Donald Lawrence)

Donald Lawrence talks camera obscuras and the art of research Ashley Wadhwani Ω Contributor Another TRU professor is being featured at the Kamloops Art Gallery as part of its Landscape Revised exhibit.

Donald Lawrence’s “Kayak/ Camera Obscura” piece is “about Don being the artist as an explorer,” said exhibit curator Charo Neville.

The piece is the combination of a German sea kayak built in the 1960s and a black hooded structure built by Lawrence. He attached a camera obscura lens, which inverts the image in front of it, to the front of the structure with a translucent cloth screen that allows the image to be projected.

Lawrence spent six weeks as an artist-in-residence at the University of Tasmania in 2011, where the camera obscura apparatus was constructed, installed on the kayak and then taken down Tasmania’s Tamar River, where the film A Camera Obscura on the Tamar was

created. Lawrence recorded the video himself, and navigated the river through the eye of the camera obscura.

Lawrence predicted that the lens shows a narrow 15 degrees of vision, and only immediately in front of the kayak. Like all experiments, during the first time on the river, Lawrence ran into a few technical difficulties, including the lens fogging up while he was on the river.

“The motion of paddling the kayak is natural to me, but the orientation of having what I’m seeing in front of me as upside down and backwards is disorienting,” Lawrence said. “‘Kayak/Camera Obscura’ and Camera Obscura on the Tamar bring together two interests,” Lawrence said. “One is my interest in sea kayaking, and the second is my interest in camera obscuras and other earlier optical apparatuses.”

Most of Lawrence’s work demonstrates the crossover between art and research, and play and creativity as a way of how academia views research.

“[We see] research as the creation of new knowledge, but new knowledge can often be in a creative form itself,” Lawrence said.

The process of planning the prototype for the camera obscura apparatus, creating the apparatus and then making the final product found in the exhibit, was a multipart process that Lawrence said is similar to methods in science research and engineering.

“I made a rough version just out of lumber, and assembled a mock version with duct tape putting all the pieces together to see if I was reasonably happy with the shape I had come up with,” he said.

His next project is currently being discussed with 12 other artists from all over the world who share his interest in camera obscuras. On ref lection of his past, present and future work, Lawrence said “There’s a roughness to [this] work and experience that simply fits for me.”

Landscape Revised will be on display at the Kamloops Art Gallery until Dec. 31.

Album review: Hit the Ground Running Ashley Wadhwani Ω Contributor Juice, an all-male rock band from Toronto, released their fourth album Hit the Ground Running earlier this year.

The 10-track album’s unique compilations of vocals, guitar, keyboard, piano, drums, percussion, bass, saxophone, flute, clarinet and trumpet do not go unnoticed, allowing every track to be its own impressionable blend of different selections of sound.

The first track, “Wake Me Up,” starts the album off with an upbeat rhythm of pop rock and catchy lyrics. Best described as one of those songs you can’t resist dancing to.

“The City” gives a jazzy feel, with keyboard, trumpet and lead vocalist Tom Hanley sharing some soul with listeners.

“Two Brothers” tells a story of two brothers who lose themselves to rock and roll. With Hanley belting out “never let your brothers go/addicted to the rock and roll” to a reggae-inspired

beat sprinkled with Max Stanutz on trumpet, and precise percussion from drummer Claudio Santaluce, “Two Brothers” could be a nation-wide hit.

“Indigo,” is the longest song on the album at six minutes.

This track slows things down, with softer piano, simple drums and a wide array of woodwind instruments.

A little relaxation is needed after all the energetic sounds listeners have heard up to this point.

While some bands can’t produce music to suit different moods and styles, Hit the Ground Running displays Juice’s ability to create a large spectrum of sound, from chill easy-listening to short riffs and faster rhythms.

To make this album even more

Improv Competition – Dec. 1 Black Box Theatre 7 p.m. Minimum $5 donation.

Go see TRU students battle it out for the title of improv master. Similar to popular show Whose Line Is It Anyway, it’s sure to be a hilarious evening. All proceeds go to the Bradley Munro Scholarship Fund.

Daniel Wesley with Van Damsel – Dec. 4 The Blue Grotto 8 p.m. $15 in advance.

Kamloops locals Van Damsel will open for alternative rocker Daniel Wesley for another evening of Canadian rock at one of Kamloops’ best live music venues.

Dishcrawl Kamloops – Dec. 4 Various locations. $60 in advance.

Visit four local restaurants and enjoy some of Kamloops’ culture for an evening, while meeting new people and trying new things.

Check them out on Facebook or Twitter for details

this is THE SHOES – Dec. 7 The Art We Are 8 p.m. $5 at the door.

Vancouver blues group this Is THE SHOES will be in town showcasing their soulful, raw and precise sound. Come in from the cold and join The Art We Are for some relaxing tunes and tasty treats.

Choral Rhapsody – Dec. 17 Sagebrush Theatre 7 p.m. FREE. Choirs from all over the area will be performing Christmas carols for those looking to get into the holiday spirit. There will even be opportunities to sing along.

(Image courtesy Juice)

appealing, it’s 100 per cent Canadian.

If Juice continues releasing albums like this, it will make their rise to fame come easily.

They only tend to tour within Ontario, but I have high hopes they will make their way out west. Their enthusiasm on the album was palpable, and I can only imagine what their stage presence is like.

If you have an upcoming social event, fundraiser or otherwise entertaining occasion, let Courtney know so she can get it in the monthly calendar. arts@truomega.ca

Life & Community

8

November 27, 2013

TRU Exam Jam pilot project kicks off Nov. 30 Karla Karcioglu Ω Roving Editor

There’s a good reason you’re seeing moustaches everywhere you go.

(Photo courtesy Scott Akerman/Flickr Commons)

Moustachioed Men unite for Movember Karla Karcioglu Ω Roving Editor The fundraising effort started in 2011, according to third-year law student Stephan Salo, when he, classmate Eric Rines and about 15 other students raised nearly $2,000.

Last year, the team was dubbed McLachlin’s Moustachioed Men, and consisted of approximately 25 students and faculty. They managed to raise $5,200 for prostate cancer research, surpassing their goal of $5,000.

This year the team consists of 32 male students and a female captain.

They have, as of Nov. 23, raised $6,039. This year’s goal is to raise

$8,000, according to Salo. He said the team is right on track to meet their goal.

Salo is soliciting friends for donations through Facebook, encouraging them by posting what he called the “ugly pictures of [his] facial hair.” Other fundraising efforts have included a moustache dyeing party. They plan to hold another party to shave them off.

Fei Kang, the team’s captain, said the men have exceeded her expectations and made her proud to be captain.

The team is registered under the Big Moustache on Campus (BMOC) network, run by Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield. BMOC

is first on the network leaderboard, consisting of 27,954 individuals and team members who have raised $1,616,694 as of Nov. 23.

The Moustachioed Men are ranked 15th on the BMOC team leaderboard. Dalhousie Rowe Mo’ Bros & Sistas is in first place with 84 members.

Canada sits in first place on the participating countries leaderboard, with $17,626,183 raised as of Nov. 23, with the U.S. in second place with a total of $14,562,049.

If you would like to donate, or keep track of the team’s progress, you can visit their team page by visiting http://ca.movember.com/ team/977809

It was standing room only at Clocktower Theatre Sunday Nov. 24 as former Kamloops mayor Mel Rothenberger delivered a talk on the proposed Ajax copper mine. Rothenberger, also former editor of the Kamloops Daily News, invited attendees to “imagine a town with no mine” and suggested the proposal was out-of-step with the city’s current brand, priorities, and vision. The event was sponsored by the TRU Faculty Association’s Human Rights Committee.

(Kevin Skrepnek/ The Omega)

Supplemental learning coordinator Elizabeth Templeman hopes TRU’s firstever Exam Jam event will provide a positive, energetic alternative to the common student mentality to start partying once classes are over and ignore looming finals.

Templeman was inspired by a presentation from two of her colleagues at UBC Okanagan (UBCO), focusing on the Exam Jam model. The level of excitement and enthusiasm led to her immediate desire to provide TRU students with their own Exam Jam. The event will be held on Nov. 30 on Old Main’s student street from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and will be dedicated to reviews and stress management techniques. There will also be light refreshments provided by Starbucks and the Centre for Student Engagement and Learning Innovation.

“It’s an attempt to fill the gap,” Templeman said, adding that TRU does a great job transitioning students into the university but drops them at one of the hardest parts, final exams.

She said she hopes it will help students get energized, motivated and focused on doing well on final exams by providing them with helpful tools and techniques.

Templeman along with others at the Centre for Student Engagement opted to keep the event small for its first year.

Initially, she had wanted to provide some professor-led exam reviews but instead there will be supplemental exam reviews in biology, philosophy, geology, physics and respiratory therapy.

Global competency coordinator Julie Taylor is helping organize the event. She has managed to involve the Writing Centre, the Math Centre and the library in the review sessions. She said the day will also feature a colouring station, hand massages, bowling, prizes and a possible appearance by the St. John’s Ambulance therapy dogs.

Taylor said that if students learn techniques to study properly they hopefully won’t be as stressed.

She hopes to see students helping other students study during the event.

For a full schedule of the day’s events, visit the events page at tru.ca.

Larissa Pepper thanks the financial donors on behalf of the 500 TRU students who received financial awards during TRU’s annual Foundation student awards ceremony on Nov. 21. Nearly $500,000 was given to TRU students. The Omega would like to congratulate all the recipients and wish them all the best. They’ve earned it.

( Jessica Klymchuk/ The Omega)

The Omega · Volume 23, Issue 13

Feature

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Busk it or bust it Vancouver’s street musicians strive to entertain despite multiple bylaws Romila Barryman Capilano Courier (Capilano) No matter what the weather is outside, the music still continues.

Guitar chords echo down Robson and vocals fill up the SeaBus bridge.

Be it in the middle of frigid winter, golden crisp fall or t-shirt wearing summers, these street entertainers that can be heard throughout the city. Known as buskers, these musically inclined individuals are frequently found performing in various skytrain stations and street corners all year round, and have taken it upon themselves to ensure that there is always an upbeat chord every few blocks.

DONT STOP ME NOW If you’ve ever seen a busker jamming outside, you may have noticed a white card propped up alongside their musical instrument that showcases a headshot and general information of the performer. Various licenses can be obtained through the City of Vancouver, Granville Island, and TransLink. The City of Vancouver calls these licenses Street Entertainment Permits. For performers choosing to showcase their talent on the streets, a maximum of three people can make up a busking group and valid permits must be on hand by every individual performing. Performers go through an audition process where they are then issued a license to perform in the street around the city if they are accepted.

Of the three choices to obtain busking licenses, TransLink has

been the oldest supporter of the art form in Vancouver. It was as far as Expo 86 that the transit company allowed various performances throughout different platforms and stations. Among hundreds of buskers, only 40 are selected to play each year. The audition process takes place in front of a panel of judges, as well as performers competing for the same licensing.

Upon selection, the 12-month permit for the license is a total of $75. “I make that up within the first day of busking. It’s a very fair price,” says busker Keanna Anarson. TransLink buskers also have the upside of being sheltered during performances throughout various stations. “Number one, you’re inside away from the cold and it’s a constant flow of people,” she continues, “Second, when you’re busking on the street and you ask someone when they’re going to be done and they can go ‘Oh, whenever I feel.’” However, a TransLink officer, who chose to be unidentified for privacy reasons, states that the mutual understanding between TransLink buskers is very high when it comes to respecting the scheduled performance times and audienceinteraction etiquette. “These are unwritten rules between buskers who have licenses with us,” he explains.

Licenses on Granville Island go through the same process of auditioning as the City of Vancouver and TransLink.

Licenses are revoked through a three hole punch system.

This means that any manner of disrespect and disobedience of regulations result in one-hole

punch on permits of performers.

At three hole-punches, the busker’s license is then revoked. Although reapplying for future licenses is allowed, if the performers are granted a new card, the conditions around the license are more rigid.

AMPLIFY MY WORLD, NOT TOO MUCH THOUGH The standards around busking are regulated by city by-laws. One of the most contested by-laws in place for buskers is their ability to amplify their instruments or vocals. New regulations introduced in the year 2013-2014 are restrictions surrounding bagpipes and amplified flutes. These instruments were initially banned

by Granville Island and the City of Vancouver. But recently, revisions have taken place which allows the instruments to be played. Officials expressed that the addition of the two instruments have been revised to establish diversity and a range of acts.

The bylaw regulating volume of performers is currently set to a limit of 70 decibels. Instruments that can create their own sound (such as vocals, guitars, accordions, etc.) are not permitted to be played with amplification.

“It’s like conversation level,” says Sons of Granville guitarist, Matthew Lennox, “asking a performer to do that is like asking an artist to paint within the lines.”

As a result, many buskers are found breaking the regulations in order to be able to perform their art. Most recently, drumming circle, Kutapira, was banned from busking by the City of Vancouver after numerous complaints by surrounding businesses.

“You can perform on a level that you can be heard with amplification and not cause disturbances,” states Anarson. “I personally think that the decibel level should be raised to at least 85,” explains Lennox.

Another TransLink officer, who wanted to rename nameless, expresses that the general noise levels with buskers rarely cause disturbances to transit users. “If it gets to a point where I can’t hear my radio over them, that’s when I have to tell them to turn it down,” he explains.

However, exceptions have been made for instruments prohibited from amplification. Lennox successfully obtained permission from the City of Vancouver to amplify the instruments used in Sons of Granville, after arriving back from Europe. He compared busking laws and regulations abroad to plea his case. “They initially denied my request,” he continues, “I called them back thoroughly explained my reasons, and they made an exception. I haven’t gotten a single complaint.”

A VANCOUVERITE’S APPLAUSE

Joe Dobson, ESL Department Tel: 250.371.5642 Email: JDOBSON@TRU.CA

“Artistic and cultural life is integral to Granville Island’s creative environment as it encourages performers to showcase their craft,” states the initial page of the busking regulations at Granvilleislandbuskers.com.

The 2013 Busking Program for Granville Island guideline continues to outline etiquette and management of sound and legalities.

This is one of the many guidelines that express the intent of support the community has towards street entertainment in Vancouver.

Performing on such a public stage can have its safety risks as well. “It’s a bit different being a girl and different being by myself,” admits Anarson. “There are people who can’t take a hint.”

One incident involved a homeless man who shouted profanities at Anarson during her performance.

“He was very drunk,” she recalls,

(Illustration by Jana Vanduin)

bartending money.”

He says that he makes $4,000 dollars through performances in the months of September and October alone.

“It’s all about flow,” Anarson explains, “I can’t expect to make the same amount everyday. So, I’ll do songs people don’t expect, like ‘Pursuit of Happiness’ by Kid Cudi. I do a cover of ‘Hallelujah’ and I make it reggae,” Anarson continues.

“In the winter and fall, I’ll play more covers and songs that are upbeat and make people happy.”

To the performers that fill streets and stations with entertainment year round, the support from Vancouverites is not a seasonal one.

“We definitely make more in summer, there are more tourists, but you can make good money in the winter,” says Lennox.

Though there are several challenges in being a busker, Anarson finds —Keanna Arnason, that Vancouverites are sufficiently supportive.

Vancouver Busker In a comparison to busking in Salmon Arm, she notes that the small town attitude is “someone else saw and went and not so different despite the big city got security.” Other incidents feel Vancouver has. include uninvited flirtatiousness.

“As far as being a girl and being “I keep the conversation flowing vulnerable, it’s all about how you and handle them as professional talk to people,” she says. “Being as possible. If it gets past what I forceful and being assertive helps can stand, that’s when I’ll call a me get by.”

TransLink officer.”

Anarson admits that Although Vancouver’s streets Vancouverites have helped her become quieter during the winter get by tough situations whenever season, meeting the financial she performs. “Other people will goals set up for the buskers is not come up and help me and people impossible. are very supportive. If I’m alone “I’ve covered a lot of my debt and someone is harassing me they through busking,” says Lennox, won’t just turn the other cheek, “I guess you could say it’s like you know,” she explains.

“

Being forceful and being assertive helps me get by”

Coffee Break “Zoom, Zoom”

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crossword

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Puzzle of the week Puzzle of the week will return in January with new puzzles to work your mind and train your brain...

We could all use a little edge in that, right?

Plus...there are prizes for answering these, and everyone likes prizes.

I think.

I do.

If you don’t, that’s cool, I guess.

1. Awestruck 5. Gelling agents 10. Kind of car 14. Box 15. Nine performers 16. Roulette bet 17. Auto list 20. Besmirch 21. Sound entrance point 22. Metallica drummer, Ulrich 25. Limerick, e.g.

26. Good, in the ‘hood 29. Insect stage 31. Female demons 35. Altar avowal 36. Period 38. As recently as 39. Auto list, part 2 43. One of the Simpsons 44. Rolls’ first aero engine 45. Between pi and sigma 46. Enduring forever, old way 49. Cozy retreat 50. Bit 51. Math term 53. “La Scala di ___” (Rossini opera) 55. Anonymous guy in court 58. Rarin’ to go 62. End of auto list 65. India setting 66. Deceived

67. Little biter 68. Cravings 69. Parkinson’s treatment 70. Pianist, Dame Myra Down 1. Short court figures?

2. Bit of physics 3. 100% 4. Kind of wave 5. “Wheel of Fortune” purchase 6. “The Bourne Supremacy” opening locale 7. Add to the pot 8. Chart anew 9. Chole or ergo followers 10. Rare 11. Music category 12. Cork’s place 13. Like some humor 18. Milkshake 19. Perlman of “Cheers” 23. German industrial region 24. “The final frontier” 26. Religious book 27. Acknowledge 28. Throw the ice bucket 30. Geo-political org.

32. Dead to the world 33. Island greeting 34. Church assembly 37. Borders 40. Naturally formed methane

41. Different 42. Hunting dog 47. Diamond complement 48. Ultimate object 52. Put an edge on 54. Expression of disgust 55. “Light My Fire” singer, Feliciano 56. Father of Balder 57. Tropical plant 59. Heredity carrier 60. Geologists’ studies 61. Vermin 62. “Waterloo Bridge: Gray __”

by Monet 63. Criminal’s nemesis 64. Santa ___ winds

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E P S L E B S I F A R E W E I I M A G N T I B E H I T G A S E P N J H O W E U R E A S T E R N R A I L S E R G S B F T H E W E E R T E R R E E G

A C L O L L O T O S L L D Y S A L G A

P L O D

LAST ISSUE’S ANSWERS

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November 27, 2013

MYLES MELLOR AND SALLY YORK

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Are Blair Waldorf and Seth Cohen engaged?

In what seems to be some sort of early 2000s TV crossover event, Adam Brody a.k.a. Seth Cohen, and Leighton Meester a.k.a. Blair Waldorf, have become engaged. Though the couple has yet to officially make the announcement, engagement reports have been confirmed by

People, E! News, Us Weekly and MSN’s Wonderwall.

This is the ultimate romantic pairing – straight out of teenTV heaven. The O.C. and Gossip Girl stars have been dating for less than a year. They worked together on the 2011 film The Oranges and will work together again in the upcoming comedy Life Partners.

The typically private couple (whose breakout television

shows were both created by Josh Schwartz) rarely comments on their relationship, but has made a few affectionate, yet low-key, appearances in Hollywood over the past year.

Sources tell Wonderwall that Brody, 33, popped the question to Meester, 27, sometime this fall. On Nov. 10 the couple was said to have celebrated in Los Angeles with close family and friends at an engagement party.

So am I the only one drooling over this pairing?

Last February, news broke that they were in fact an item, which came as a surprise to many, as the two have been able to live relatively low-key lifestyles after shooting to fame thanks to their teen soaps. At the time a source told Us Weekly that the two had been “secretly dating” after a friendship that spanned over several years.

Got a joke? Got a comic? Send ‘em in and we might run ‘em.

In a 2012 interview with Luck y magazine, Meester was quoted saying “I love love. It’s the most intriguing universally understood emotion.”

I have real hope for these two… well as much hope one can have for a Hollywood couple.

Neither Brody nor Meester have been married, and there is no word yet on whether they’ve set a date for the rumoured nuptials.

editor@truomega.ca

Sports

The Omega · Volume 23, Issue 13

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Falling into the record books TRU student seeks a spot in skydiving world record attempt Adam Williams Ω Sports Editor When Nick Byers first came to TRU from his home outside of Toronto, he was a self-described ski bum. He was registered in the tourism program, a program which he said allowed him to spend as much time as possible on the ski hill – more or less the entire reason he moved to Kamloops.

But then, a short while after arriving in the city, he went skydiving for the first time. It was a life-changing experience, and after that first jump he hasn’t seen much of the ski hill since.

“When I was 18 I thought it would be really cool to give [skydiving] a try. I didn’t know anyone who had done it before,” he said. “I tricked my parents into giving me a skydive for my 18th birthday and did my first jump with my dad and my brother and haven’t really looked back.”

Now more than ten years and 4,169 jumps later, the 29-yearold Byers is still jumping. He’s now a coach and instructor on top of being a recreational diver and is responsible for starting the TRU skydiving club — a means of making skydiving accessible for students on campus. He gives lessons and provides coaching at little to no cost to otherwise cash-strapped students, hoping to open the door for everyone to be able to participate in what is otherwise an expensive sport.

This winter break he’s hoping to add a world record to his list of skydiving achievements.

Byers will be travelling to Eloy, Arizona on Nov. 29 and will be attempting to be part of the first world record for “Sequential” skydiving.

Sequential, or big way, skydiving involves divers jumping out of a number of planes, syncing up during free fall and linking themselves together to make formations. In order to set the world record, Byers and his fellow divers will need to perform a minimum of two formations in a single jump, though they will be shooting for more.

And it won’t be just three or four skydivers linking up to perform these manoeuvers.

Instead, Byers will join about 200 others, all of whom will be coming together mid-air to make a single formation, to set the record. The group will be jumping from between 18,000 and 20,000 feet and will perform as many manoeuvers as possible before pulling their chutes.

The group will make a number of jumps throughout the course of their week in Arizona, first splitting into two teams of about 100 divers, competing against each other to set an original record. Then, the teams will join together in a group of more than 200 and attempt to best the original record both in number of jumpers and number of formations performed.

The world record attempt will be the culmination of a number of years of training for Byers. Big way skydiving has been his focus for about four years now. It was about that long ago that he first hooked up with the group that is organizing this world record attempt. He started off performing smaller formations with groups of four or eight people, learning how to properly f ly his body and be in the proper position during free fall, and has slowly become part of larger and larger formations.

After many dives and countless hours spent training in wind

tunnels, he’s on a short list of people who are qualified to take part in a world record attempt like this one. Byers said that between 300 and 500 people apply to be part of an event like this, with only about 200 being successful in this case.

“I’ve spent countless hours and skydives and dollars, training with people in Canada and the U.S., in other parts of the world, just to work on my skills to get better at doing this, so I could one day get a world record.”

Despite the inherent dangers involved in hurling himself out

of a plane week after week, Byers has been hooked on the sport of skydiving ever since his first jump. He said the variety of opportunities that skydiving presented, along with the different disciplines available — big way, small formation, f lying wing suits, participating in team competitions — really drew him in, and has kept him coming back again and again all these years later. Byers now studies sciences at TRU and is hoping to go to medical school one day.

Despite the high costs involved in something like skydiving (he will

Top right: Byers takes his friend Taylor for her first ever jump over Queenstown, New Zealand in the spring of 2012.

Above left: Byers was a part of the Canadian Record formation jump in the summer of 2012 in Farnham, QC. Above right: Byers landing a tandem jump as an instructor in summer 2013.

pay between $3,000 and $3,500 to be a part of the world record attempt) he’s always found a way to make it work.

“It’s not really a feeling that you get anywhere else. Jumping out of an airplane is just really, really cool,” Byers said. “The people in skydiving are, for the most part, pretty frigging cool.

They are some of the friendliest, just the nicest people that you could know.

“Combine the nicest people with one of the coolest things you could ever do and why would you not keep doing it?”

(Photo courtesy Erika Dufort) (Photo courtesy Andrew Toman) (Photo submitted)

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November 27, 2013

TRUSU Membership Advisory Travelling for the Winter Break?

Save some money!

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Thompson Rivers University Sarah Soloman

08/06/1993 09/2013 - 12/2014

Public Governance Workshop Series Strategic Planning with Dr. Katherine Sutherland

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Wed Nov 20 at 6PM in the TRUSU Lecture Hall Light refreshments provided

Tampon Drive The Women’s Collective is holding a tampon drive to support the YWCA Women’s Emergency Shelter. Donations can be dropped off at the Members’ Services Desk in the Students’ Union Building

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