April 3, 2013 by The Omega

VOLUME 22 ISSUE 25

APRIL 3, 2013

ÎŠ

TRU better than most at preparing grads 3

Email us to get paid for writing next year

Athletes recognized at annual event 7

Do you have a family doctor?

...probably not

TRUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Independent Student Newspaper

April 3, 2013

Feature Where are all the family doctors?

Shortage of medical professionals in Canada hits close to home Courtney Dickson Ω Roving Editor

Some Kamloopsians are investing more than two hours of travel time to visit their family doctor in outlying areas such as Ashcroft. Kamloops is no exception when it comes to the national shortage of medical professionals. Family doctors are particularly in short supply. As doctors retire, open private clinics or find higher-paying jobs in other provinces, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find a family doctor in Kamloops, whether you are new to the city or have lived here for years. Dr. Antoinette Kitshoff of Ashcroft said some of her regular patients travel from Kamloops to see her. “A lot of Kamloops patients I have moved from Ashcroft to Kamloops and couldn’t find a family physician in Kamloops so they came back to see me.” Kitshoff is one of three doctors in Ashcroft, all of whom came to Canada from South Africa to practice medicine. “I came to Canada because I wanted a change from South Africa. I felt I could help in the town of Ashcroft,” she said. “There is no excuse for the people in Ashcroft and Cache Creek to not have a doctor. There are two new physicians taking patients,” she said. “Everyone should have a family physician.” Kitshoff helped recruit the two doctors that joined the Ashcroft community in January. Not only is travelling to Ashcroft to see a doctor costing time, it also costs money for gas to get there. Ashcroft is 95 kilometres from Kamloops, making a round-trip 190 km. As Kitshoff pointed out, “in the winter, that can be a bit of a mission.”

easier because they have my chart.” Chan receives her annual physical from Summit Medical Clinic, but not always from the same doctor. It bothers Chan that she has had such trouble finding a family doctor because in Kitimat she never had this problem. “Everybody had a family doctor there,” she said. If Chan had a driver’s license, she said she would consider driving to see Dr. Kitshoff and her colleagues in Ashcroft. In fact, she said she would be willing to go as far as Kelowna if she could find a family doctor there, despite the added cost of travel. Though she is willing to make the trip to see a doctor, Chan isn’t happy about it. She described the inconvenience and added cost of gas for travelling “unacceptable.” Following her graduation from Thompson Rivers University in May, Chan and her husband plan to remain in Kamloops, despite the family doctor dilemma. Rob Blair is another Kamloopsian without a family physician. He was born in Kamloops and has been in the area for 35 years. When his doctor retired less than five —Katherine Chan, years ago, there were no plans for a new TRU student doctor to take over the practice and Blair Katherine Chan moved from didn’t think it was necessary to go Kitimat, B.C. 10 years ago and has searching for a new one. On Feb. 24 Blair spent more than not had a family doctor since she five hours in the emergency room came to Kamloops. “I was looking for about two at the Royal Inland Hospital (RIH) years. Every time I went to the simply to get a doctor’s note after walk-in I’d ask if there were having the flu for a few days. He openings. I stopped looking tried visiting his regular walk-in because it was just pointless,” she clinic, Summit Medical Clinic and was disappointed to learn that it said. “A lot of people I talk to rely on closed early on Sundays. When he finally got to see a doctor at RIH, the walk-in clinics.” “Walk-in clinics waste, like, half physician spent only five minutes your day,” Chan said. “I get up and asking him questions and writing get there for nine. Then they tell the note. After his episode at RIH, Blair you to come back three hours later and when you go back you sit there decided he is going to look for a family doctor. He won’t, however, for 20 minutes.” Chan said she now sees a doctor look outside the city. “I couldn’t see myself going only once or twice a year. “I go to the same walk-in clinic outside Kamloops.” A new program, called “A GP every time so that makes it a little for Me,” is being launched by the B.C. Medical Association and the Ministry of Health to try to find family doctors for the thousands of British Columbians who are without. More than $132 million in funding will go towards this initiative. The hope is to provide all British Columbians with a family doctor by 2015. According to the B.C. government, one part of the plan is to give patients the option to consult their doctor via phone. The hope for this is that doctors will be able to take in more patients because they will be able to spend less time with patients by speaking with them over the phone. The B.C. government will pay doctors $15 per phone call, to a maximum of 500 calls per year. it harder and harder to find a This will begin April 1. Sandy Upson is a fourth-year student at Thompson Rivers University and has been without a family doctor since she moved to Kamloops and started university in 2009. “I haven’t gone looking for a doctor, but I will if I end up staying in Kamloops after I graduate in December,” she said. Though Upson chooses not to have yearly check-ups, she recognizes the importance of having the option. She said having a family doctor is important to help patients build trust and confidence in their doctors. “I’ve gone to the doctor before and not said what I wanted to say because I felt uncomfortable,” Upson said. Upson said using walk-in clinics can be trying at times. Sitting in a room full of sick people, waiting for hours to get in and standing in line make the walk-in clinic experience undesirable.

“Walk-in clinics waste, like, half your day.”

People in Kamloops are finding family doctor. —PHOTO COURTESY HANG_IN_THERE/FLICKR COMMONS

Emergency rooms are becoming a last-minute solution for students in need of medical assistance.

—PHOTO COURTESY MAR K COGGINS/FLICK R COMMONS

For “vulnerable” patients, doctors will receive an additional $200 per patient for taking such patients on. Doctors will also be paid $315 per calendar year for each new patient they accept who suffers from complex health issues. Doctors will also receive $40 per 15-minute phone call with these patients, up to three phone calls per year. The B.C. government has

budgeted $60.5 million over the next two years for this part of the initiative. Some future patients are not too excited about this idea. “It might work. I think in person is a lot better. I’d rather see a doctor in person,” Blair said. Upson also said interactions with physicians “should be face-toface.”

Puzzle of the Week Puzzle of the Week #20 – Date Digits

For the last puzzle of the year, here are two dealing with dates. If a date is expressed as digits, there are a number of formats that can be used. One, called ISO 8601, is YYYY-MM-DD. For some years, there are a number of dates where all eight digits are different. For 2013, however, there are no such dates. Why not? If the format YY-MM-DD is used instead, there are dates in 2013 where all six digits are different. How many such dates are there? See you next year! This contest is sponsored by the Mathematics and Statistics department. The full-time student with the best score at the end of the year will win a prize. Please submit your solution (not just the answer but also why) by noon next Wednesday to Gene Wirchenko <genew@telus.net>. Submissions by others are also welcome. The solution will be posted the Wednesday after that in the Math Centre (HL210A). Come visit: we are friendly.

ON THE COVER: The B.C. government hopes a new program will make doctors more accessible than ever. – PHOTO COURTESY LOWER COLUMBIA COLLEGE/FLICKR COMMONS

The Omega · Volume 22, Issue 25

THE

MEGA

www.theomega.ca

April 3, 2013

News

Volume 22, Issue 25

Published since November 27, 1991

editorialstaff EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Mike Davies

editor@truomega.ca

250-828-5069

@PaperguyDavies NEWS EDITOR

Devan C. Tasa

news@truomega.ca @DCTasa ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR

Brendan Kergin

arts@truomega.ca @roguetowel SPORTS EDITOR

Adam Williams

sports@truomega.ca @AdamWilliams87 ROVING EDITOR

Courtney Dickson

roving@truomega.ca @dicksoncourtney COPY/WEB EDITOR

Taylor Rocca

copy@truomega.ca @manovrboard

omegacontributors Samantha Garvey, Allison Declercq-Matthas, Karla Karcioglu, Mark Hendricks, Andrew Snucins, Jess Buick, Travis Persaud

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF * Mike Davies BUSINESS MGR * VACANT INDUSTRY REP * Mike Youds FACULTY REP * Charles Hays STUDENT REP* Sadie Cox

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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 the Letters & Opinion section 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.

All material in this publication is copyright The Omega and may not be reproduced without the expressed consent of the publisher. All unsolicited submissions become copyright Omega 2012.

TRU successfully providing students with career education Karla Karcioglu Ω Contributor

Compared to other post-secondary institutions, TRU is successfully educating its students in academics and assisting them post-graduation in finding employment. What makes TRU stand out from other universities is they are merging the academic side of the university with career education. “We’re a little university,” said Shawn Read, student employment coordinator at TRU, “But we are trying to do some innovative things.” TRU’s career education department has just 12 staff members working hard to provide more than 13,000 students and countless alumni with an abundance of services and education in and outside of the classroom. “TRU is closer to getting it right than many other universities”, said Paul Smith, executive director of the Canadian Association of Career Educators and Employers (CACEE). CACEE is a national non-profit partnership of employer recruiters and career services professionals that was formed in 1946 and aims to “help career service professional and employers have access to strong professional networks and professional development opportunities.” Smith said mission statements from most other universities don’t include any

mention of jobs or careers, despite the data showing the majority of post-secondary students are at these institutions with the intention of getting a career. Read and Larry Iles, career education coordinator at TRU, hosted a webinar event with CACEE for other postsecondary institutions, explaining their methods for integrating career education into academic learning at TRU. “For the last 10 years we’ve been trying to move the career education department into the academic realm of TRU,” Read said. “It’s important for us to be in the classroom as much as possible with our students and to teach them the fundamentals of their career planning and development for their future, so that when they leave these walls they are prepared for the next phase of their life.” The career education department has been working with various programs to bring their resources and knowledge to classes and to talk to students about the labour market, job prospects and marketing their skills. On top of that, they’ve focused on providing tailored events for students in different programs. They’ve also worked to establish co-op as a forcredit elective within some programs. Forseille credits TRU’s small size as a key component in the departments success. She said it’s easy to call up various people and departments on campus and to work together on new career education programs.

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Read said the history of TRU, having developed as a multi-purpose institution with a variety of program types, might play a part in the university’s success with career education. Read said, “because of that I think we’re more open to new ideas and new possibilities.” “It’s not about taking away from the classroom’s academic education, but about adding to it,” Read said. “When you combine [academics and career education] together that is a very pow-

erful education for our students. That is why I think our department is really motivated. Because we see how important that is to the overall education.” “I think we owe it to students to support them in their career development,” Forseille said. Read and Forseille both emphasized the role students play in their own career education. “Don’t trust that there will be work at the end of your degree, you’ve got to make it happen,” Forseille said.

Devan C. Tasa

“Under the proposed quality assurance framework, institutions that have mature quality assessment processes and practices will have greater independence from external oversight by government.” The framework proposes five levels of maturity for post-secondary institutions. At level one and two institutions, where quality assurance processes are ad-hoc and barely existent, the government will review the institution. At level three and above, where quality assurance processes are organized and sustainable, the government will review the process and the institution will receive more autonomy. The government also wants to apply a standard level of tuition protection for students across the entire post-secondary system. It proposes that all institutions submit a percentage of tuition revenue to a fund that will repay students their tuition if their institution closes down. The quality assurance framework also has the potential to make it easier for post-secondary institutions to deal with student transfers. “Having all post-secondary education institutions under a single quality assurance framework, combined with the implementation of a qualifications framework,” Gilmore wrote, “will strengthen B.C.’s transfer system by providing greater understanding of the requirements all institutions undertake.” But that doesn’t mean that students will suddenly be able to transfer their courses to another post-secondary institution easily. “Individual institutions remain the primary arbiters of whether to accept transfer credit,” Gilmore wrote. The green paper said it hopes a new quality assurance body will be cost neutral. It expects to charge post-secondary institutions a fee every time it uses the services provided by the body.

Reforming post-secondary quality assurance Ω News Editor

Cariboo Student Newspaper Society (Publisher of The Omega) TRU Campus House #4 Box 3010, Kamloops, B.C. V2C 0C8 Phone: 250-372-1272 E-mail: editor@truomega.ca Ad Enquiries: managerofomega@gmail.com

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

The Career Education Department has an abundance of resources to help TRU students and alumni find their way in today’s job market. —PHOTO BY K ARLA K ARCIOGLU

The provincial government wants to streamline the process in which the quality of education from post-secondary institutions is verified. There are four separate bodies that evaluate and monitor the quality of education in B.C., depending on the type of institution. There are 11 public universities, 11 public colleges, 15 private degree-granting institutions, 330 private career training schools and 13 private theological institutes. The province wants to have a single body that is easier to understand and has clear processes and reporting requirements while still accounting for diversity between different institutions. “Under the proposed quality assurance framework,” said John Yap, who was the minister of advanced education, in a press release, “students can be assured of the post-secondary education institution they attend, the education promised will be the education delivered and the credentials earned will have value when they seek employment to choose to pursue further education.” The proposal is still in the discussion stage. The province has issued a green paper with a proposed quality assurance framework as a basis for discussion. At March 25’s senate meeting, Ulrich Scheck, TRU’s provost and vice president academic, said the university was working on a response and encouraged senators and staff to fill out the province’s online survey. At previous senate meetings, Scheck indicated the university has concerns that the new framework would erode the university’s autonomy. The government says that won’t be the case. “A grounding principle is that the rights and privileges of institutions will be respected,” wrote Dan Gilmore, communications manager, in an email.

April 3, 2013

News Cell phone radiation examined again, North Korea threats and tattoos that give e-feedback? Mark Hendricks Ω Contributor

Safety standards for cell phones The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ordered an official inquiry into safety standards with regards to cell phones on March 29. The investigation focuses around cell phone radiation and the effects it can have on the user. Cell phones already have safety standards with regards to radiation but they haven’t been updated since 1986. For comparison purposes, the new phone on the market at that time was the Nokia Talkman. It weighed 4.8 kilograms, had its own carrying case, and cost more than $3,000. The notice of inquiry was issued nine months ago, but was only officially registered on Friday. This allows the FCC to start collecting data about the testing processes for cell phones. The FCC has stated this is being regarded as a standard procedure and the rules may not change at all after the inquiry. Where you can find out more: news.cnet.com

North Korea openly threatens the United States North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has continued issuing threats and claims to have missiles targeted at U.S. soil. “He finally signed the plan on technical preparations of strategic rockets of the KPA (Korean People’s Army), ordering them to be on standby for fire so that they may strike any time the U.S. mainland, its military bases in the operational theatres in the Pacific, including Hawaii and Guam and those in South Korea,” according to the Korean Central News Agency, the official state-run media outlet in North Korea. This is the latest in a long line of threats dating back to when the UN tightened sanctions on North Korea after their third nuclear test. “The time has come to settle accounts with the U.S. imperialists in view of the prevailing situation,” Kim said after the U.S. f lew two nuclear-capable stealth bombers on training missions over North Korean airspace. Where you can find out more: www.guardian.co.uk

Tattoo tracked troops The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency hopes to develop tattoos that will track all of a soldier’s vitals in the hopes of better understanding combat fatigue. The tattoo will track heart rate, temperature and bio-electric responses. Current materials will allow sensors and transmitters to be adhered into a membrane that can be stuck to the skin. The membrane will form the basis of the tattoo and is f lexible and strong enough to be stretched into a design that is capable of withstanding the rigors of combat. The material won’t be embedded into the skin like a traditional tattoo but will instead sit on the surface of the skin like a temporary tattoo. “This innovative design contains all of the necessary components in an ultrathin layer about the thickness of a human hair,” wrote Zhenqiang Ma, an electrical engineer at the University of Wisconsin, in a review of the technology. Where you can find out more: www.wired.com

NEWS BRIEFS

Elections held for board of governors and senate student representatives TRU is now holding online elections for one student position on the board of governors and two student positions on the senate. Elections began March 26 and will end April 8. One can vote by logging into their myTRU account and clicking the student resources tab. Results will be posted April 12. Running for the board of governors position are Emily Bootle and Sadriddin Mirkhodjaev. Running for the senate are Trad Bahabri, Sadriddin Mirkhodjaev, Dylan Robinson and Janice Yeung. The board of governors makes decisions related to the financial governance of the university, while the senate makes the decisions related to academic governance.

TRUSU looking to expand student representation TRUSU is looking to expand the number of student representatives sitting on faculty councils and board of governors committees. The students union has sent letters asking TRU’s nine faculties to add a student representative. So far trades; adventure, culinary arts and tourism; nursing; and sciences have added a representative to their councils, while arts; business and economics; and student development are looking at adding one, said Alex McLellan, TRUSU’s research co-ordinator, at its March 27 meeting. But efforts to add student representation to board of governors committees have been less successful. “The institution is not interested in having students at that level,” McLellan told council. Any new student representatives would also serve on TRUSU’s Student Caucus, which is currently made up of student representatives on senate committees.

Committee searching for new vice president The search to replace TRU vice president finance and administration Cliff Neufeld, who retired on March 1, has begun. Dylan Robinson, TRUSU’s vice president external, is sitting on a committee that’s looking at candidates for the job. “The committee has narrowed it down to a long list of 20,” Robinson told TRUSU’s March 27 meeting. Robinson said that list will be further reduced to five people and then the committee will enter discussions to reduce that number down to three. That’s expected to take until the end of April. Those three candidates will then be interviewed. There has been no deadline set to fill the position.

TRUSU expected to meet budget: Lane The students union expects to meet the numbers presented in its 2012-2013 TRUSU budget, executive director Nathan Lane told March 27’s TRUSU council. “We expect to deliver quite accurately the budget presented to membership,” Lane said. Lane was presenting the students union’s finances as they stood at the end of February 2013. In terms of revenue, TRUSU has collected 90 per cent of its expected membership dues, with the remainder expected to come in during the summer, said Lane. TRU budgeted $990,000 in revenue from fees this school year. Revenue from Blazers and Kamloops Film Fest sales were higher than expected, with 4,300 Blazers tickets and 240 Film Fest tickets sold. Revenues from Common Grounds are less than expected, but Lane told council that March and April have traditionally been busier months.

Enrolment report presented Enrolment for courses at TRU is relatively stable, said a report presented to TRU Senate at its meeting March 25. According to the report, which examined how many courses were taken in the winter semester, course enrolments went up by 0.8 per cent from Winter 2012 to 28,494 courses. The number of enrolments by international students increased by 2.6 per cent to 6,744 courses while the increase for domestic students was 0.3 per cent to 21,750 courses. The biggest increases percentage-wise were seen in business and economics, which saw an increase of 9.1 per cent to 5,700 courses and student services, which increased by 2.3 per cent to 267 courses. The biggest decreases were seen in human, social and educational development, which was a decrease of 9.2 per cent to 4,404 courses and nursing, a decrease of 5.2 per cent to 1,452 courses. This winter, there are 7,575 students, with 1,555 of those being international students.

Enrolment report presented

Briefs by Devan C. Tasa

International Intonation

After the senate’s Fist Nations committee asked the body to develop a strategy to increase the number of staff of Aboriginal descent, an associate vice president said that research is needed before action is taken. The university has an equity policy that tries to ensure that more women, First Nations people, visible minorities and people with disabilities are hired, said Dennis Powers, the associate vice president of human resources, at the March 25 senate meeting. The current number of staff that belongs to those groups is unknown. “We need to survey our employees again soon and we need to ask the people of the designated groups how they find working here,” Powers said. The last survey was conducted in 2010 and had 43 per cent of TRU’s staff of approximately 1,200 participate. Of that number, 60 per cent were women, 3.2 per cent were First Nations, 7.4 per cent were visible minorities and 3.6 per cent were persons with disabilities.

The Omega · Volume 22, Issue 25

Life & Community Trash to treasure, TRU holds its first Upcycling event Mark Hendricks Ω Contributor

What do you do with a random assortment of metal washers, nuts and leftover bits of metal from a shop f loor? Make a fruit bowl out of them of course. That, along with an end table made from old plywood, broken discarded tiles and extra rebar were TRU student Larissa Pepper’s entries for TRU’s first ever upcycle event that took place on Wednesday, March 27 in the BMO Student Street. “Just trying to make something new out of something old,” Pepper said. Upcycling is the process of taking old discarded materials and turning them into something new. Students were able to take part in the upcycling event to earn points towards the new certificate in leadership in environmental sustainability. The certificate can be earned alongside any degree and is formally acknowledged on the student’s transcript. “It’s unique in the world,” said Peter Tsigaris, the chair of the environmental advisory committee at TRU and the lead organizer for the Upcycle event. “No other university is offering this kind of certificate.” According to Tsigaris between 10 and 20 students participated. Students who participated in the Upcycle event earned three of the 12 points needed for the certificate. Attending the event awarded one.

The top three student entrants also received a $100 tuition waiver for the certificate in leadership in environmental sustainability as well as $20 bookstore cards. Besides the student creations there was also a table that was giving demonstrations on how to make bowls out of old newspaper, a booth for more information on the new certificate and an extremely popular popcorn stand. Local artist Bill Frymire was also at the event to show off his upcycled art. He displayed two pieces. One was a portrait of Queen Elizabeth made entirely out of Canadian pennies and the other was a portrait of Keith Richards from the Rolling Stones that was constructed entirely of beer bottle caps. “I like to use material that says something about the final results,” Frymire said. The crafting of the pieces is time consuming. The portrait of the Queen took more than 100 hours of labour consisted of 3,800 pennies of precise shades narrowed down from 12,000. “A lot of people look down on recycled art, there’s sort of a stigma there,” Frymire said. “So that’s something that we need to overcome.” Pepper believes that upcycling is something that everyone should try. “Just try it, you never know how it’s going to turn out,” Pepper said. “And you just might make something you really love.”

This table was made out of scraps that could haqve been found around a metal work shop. —PHOTO BY BRENDAN KERGIN

Outside art gives campus grounds a new dimension Allison Declercq-Matthas Ω Contributor

With the sun out, students have been leisurely basking in its rays and cavorting around the grass in play. Amongst their activities a number of odd structures sat without movement. A sleeping giant rests on a knoll in the Campus Commons among the sunbathers. A sundial utilized the light by the International Building. An Easter Island style head gaped at passing students. A series of constructed stones circled a monolith within the traffic circle. A number of other works lay across campus; these are all part of a 3-D sculpting class by professor Donald Lawrence. “We did an in-class workshop on solar phenomena,” Lawrence said. He used examples of ancient works and contemporary pieces to inspire the class to create large works for the outdoors. Called the Henge Project, Lawrence’s 20 students split into smaller groups of various sizes to complete the task. “There were four students working on the bus loop traffic circle project,” Lawrence said. “Two worked on the sleeping giant.” Once he let the Thompson Rivers University facilities know about the project, Lawrence set it in motion. A number of the projects were advertised in posters under the name Orion Project. They chose to collaborate with other groups to form a larger piece in the formation of Orion’s Belt from the constellation Orion. Disaster struck soon after the pieces were placed outside. A short burst of rain, hail and wind tore down a number of the projects and damaged works made from water-susceptible materials. “We fluked out with our tarp idea,” said Luke McLaughlin, a first-year arts

student in the class. He and another student, Denise Joe, created the works resting on the knoll by the House of Learning out of tent tarps. He created the balanced spearhead standing over the giant. Dubbed Oldowan Kenobi, the piece was originally meant to be on grander scale with ten spearheads set in an astronomical formation. Time and material scaled the work back. “If I do this again next 3-D class I’ll know enough to make them strong enough,” McLaughlin said. “I like the scale. You never see them that big.” McLaughlin helped Joe finish her Sleeping Giant when she hurt her finger and couldn’t manipulate the material. She used $4 worth of material towards the piece. “Everyone seems to go over to it and jiggle it to see if it moves,” said Joe. “I know it makes people think.”

Joe’s giant was a very personal project. She related the sleeping giant to a huge spirit within herself waiting to come out. The project was also about her ancestors resting but guiding the future. Joe and McLaughlin kept this in mind as they positioned the pieces. “We didn’t want to put it in a dark space,” said Joe. “Because it’s a spiritual thing as well.” Elysha Trigg, part of the second round of projects that went up, diverged from the class’s theme with a stocky humanshaped being standing before Old Main. She said the work would not have worked well in an indoor setting. “The wires in the body are manmade and the ribs inside, the core, are natural materials,” said Trigg. “A nature core and the outside artificial material, signifying we are born of nature and nature is of us.”

Sleeping Giant by Denise Joe and Oldowan Kenobi by Luke McLaughlin rest on a knoll by the House of Learning. —PHOTO BY ALLISON DECLERCQ-MATTHAS

April 3, 2013

Arts & Entertainment Concert/show previews: The Stanfields rock the Blue Grotto Jess Buick April Ω Contributor

The Dirty Jersey, show 8:30 p.m., $10 Headliner Brett Martin from Calgary tackles a wide array of subjects, from Hitler’s mother to how much winter sucks, so prepare for a variety of punch lines. Vancouverite Mike Greenwood and local Joey Jack will be around for some laughs as well. Shaun Verreault w/Wildwood McRae and Ray Gibson – April 13 The Dirty Jersey, show at 8 p.m., $20 Shaun Verrault may not be a name that leaps directly to mind, but most have heard some of his music. As lead singer and guitarist of Wide Mouth Mason, one of Canada’s premier rock/ blues outfits, he’s toured the country for more than 15 years. Now with some solo material (he’s got two albums of his own work), he’s got some young man blues to share. Classified – April 15 Cactus Jacks, doors at 9 p.m., $22 in advance, $28 at the door The East Coast has produced a few rappers of note lately and possibly the biggest name is Classified. Active since 1995 in Nova Scotia, he’s made it a long way and is now a national name in the hip-hop game and seems to be at the top

of his game. He’s touring with fresh material from his Jan. 23 self-titled release. Daniel Wesley w/ Joshua Hyslop – April 17 The Blue Grotto, doors at 9 p.m., $15 If Vancouver had its personality put into music there’s a good chance it’d sound like a Daniel Wesley song. His 2007 single “Ooo Ohh” pushed him into the limelight and while he hasn’t had the same success since then he’s got a new album coming out April 9, so maybe the Kamloops show will have a new breakout hit in its midst. Simon Walls – April 27 The Art We Are, show at 8 p.m., $5 Simon Walls walked across Canada. All the way. If that’s not a reason to shake this Montrealer’s hand, then perhaps his hard-earned acoustic folksystyled music will. With an acoustic guitar style akin to Jack Johnson this will do well to alleviate students’ post-exam nerves. Beauty and the Beast – April 30 Interior Savings Centre, doors at 7 p.m., $68.75 – $78.75 Disney may have animated the traditional French fairy tale first, but they’ve now produced a Broadway musical version, which will be our guest in Kamloops for a night of show tunes and people dressed as dishes.

Canadian Music Corner Travis Persaud

Ω Resident Music Guy Perhaps Amos the Transparent’s claim to fame is having the song “After All That, It’s Come To This,” featured on a Plenty of Fish commercial. It would seem they were hoping for another shot in the limelight with their track “Catch and Release” off their newest effort Goodnight My Dear, I’m Falling Apart. At the time of Goodnight My Dear, I’m Falling Apart’s release the band was seven members strong. Now just more than a year after the release, Amos the Transparent is down to five members. Though their band numbers are dwindling, Amos the Transparent tracks often rely on a big, full sound.

Brendan Kergin

Ω Arts & Entertainment Editor With nearly 10 years behind them, Black Mountain has put together a strong collection of work best described as hard psychedelia. This isn’t the light melodic psychedelic rock of Tame Impala or Dinosaur Jr., there’s more of an edge, but it still includes the big wandering guitar solos and some dreamy vocals. In fact, Black Mountain’s vocals should be noted due to their mixture of male and female, adding a broader complexity to the flowing style of music. It doesn’t hurt that Amber Webber has a very good voice, which mixes well with lead guitarist and vocalist Stephen Mc-

As a nod to amateur culture, the band released guitar chord progressions to all their songs in their early days. For some songs the band even released YouTube instructional tutorials, providing fans with insight into the work behind the scenes of select Amos songs. This was well received and proved to be a nice personal touch from the Ottawa, Ont. group. As a starting point, give “Greater than Consequence” a listen. The band ramped up this track’s sound on Goodnight My Dear, I’m Falling Apart. “Greater than Consequence” was originally featured on an EP entitled My, What Big Teeth You Have as an acoustic song, but appears on Goodnight My Dear, I’m Falling Apart with a greater tempo and driving electric guitar riffs. Bean’s more genre-typical rough wail. But she doesn’t leave the band behind; with guitar licks worthy of the ‘80s and a heavy rhythm section this is the ideal level of metal for people who aren’t fans of metal. There’s none of the screaming or misery, just some heavy psychedelic rock reminiscent of a variety of eras, ranging from the 1970s psychedelic rock originators to 1990s grunge bands like Mudhoney. The Vancouverites have done well for themselves as well, with a long list nomination of Wilderness Hear for the 2011 Polaris Prize, where you can find the title track, which would be a good introduction to their sound.

Haligonians the Stanfields continued their trek west with a stop in Kamloops’s Blue Grotto Wednesday, March 27, before continuing on to the coast. For their one night stand they included local cover act the Dave Coalmine Band. While the Creed-esque snarling of the Dave Coalmine Band may not have been the best opener for Celtic/Maritime rock band the Stanfields. The crowd wasn’t very intrigued by the series of rehashed songs from the likes of the Beatles and Neil Young; then again the band didn’t look that ecstatic either. Their set of familiar songs slightly dampened the excitement in the bar. It wasn’t until around 10:30 p.m., with the air drenched in cologne and a crowd of about 40, that the music the audience was there for started – good old-fashioned East Coast punk rock. The Stanfields took the stage, winning the audience over immediately with driving, aggressive roots tunes. The quintet showed their musical superiority, with every member having a microphone, fleshing out the melodies and harmonies to each song. Also, the addition of a bouzouki, a Greek instrument that produces a sharp metallic sound similar to a mandolin, played by Jason Wright, brought a Celtic sound that isn’t often heard in Kamloops. They played an hour-long set,

Still recruiting editors for next year’s Omega team. Contact Mike at editor@truomega.ca

Brett Martin w/ Mike Greenwood and Joey Jack – April 11 and 12

East coast rockers The Stanfields, wailing on their respective instruments at The Blue Grotto. —PHOTO BY JESS BUICK

which seemed far too short, including a mix of songs from both their full-length albums, Vanguard of the Young and Reckless and Death and Taxes. Highlights were “Dirtiest Drunk (In The History of Liquor)” (their first big single), “Ship to Shore” (their biggest song to date) and “Boston States” (which was just really good). The most stirring thing Landry talked about during the performance was the dedication of the song “Up The Mountain” to fellow East Coast rocker Jay Smith, the guitarist for Matt Mays (who recently toured through Kamloops). Smith passed away in Edmonton earlier on Wednesday while on tour. One could see the sorrow in the band as they played this in-

credibly powerful song. They sported attire that was completely appropriate – from work boots to sneakers and more members had an abundance of facial hair than not. They looked like working-class guys, clearly visiting the Blue Grotto just to rock – no glitz, glamour or theatrics. The bass player, Craig Eugene Harris, had his hair pulled back with a bandana and a warrior-like intensity in his eyes, which quickly transferred into ferocious playing. They really did show their chops, too, as lead singer Jon Landry sang so hard you could see the spit shooting out of his mouth. The band was extremely tight, showcasing the chemistry between each member.

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The Omega · Volume 22, Issue 25

Sports TRU athletes recognized for outstanding performance Courtney Dickson Ω Roving Editor

The entire Wolf Pack athletics department, minus the golf team, was in fine-form for the annual Wolf Pack awards banquet March 28. MCs Colin Carson and Spencer Reed of the men’s volleyball team set a light-hearted tone for the awards early in the evening, poking fun at their female counterparts. They said more than 50 girls tried out for the women’s soccer team this year. “They would have had a better chance of making the women’s volleyball team,” Carson and Reed said. TRU president Alan Shaver addressed the athletes and coaches, expressing his excitement regarding the beginning of the baseball season and his appreciation for the athletes at TRU. Carson and Reed presented some “fun” awards, including the Taco Del Mar award. Athletes “check-in” when they visit the restaurant and the hosts wanted to honour those who checked in the most; the entire men’s basketball team checked-in at Taco Del Mar more than 3,400 times in the past year. Graduating athletes (and coaches) were recognized and represented by comedic duo, Jen Ju of women’s basketball and Aaron Lystang of the baseball team. Though they had a lot of fun with it, they gave a heartfelt speech, thanking their fellow athletes and coaches. “Throughout the years, Jen and I have learned that nobody can succeed on their own,” Lystang said. “Many of you have even disposed yourselves of the confining label, coach, and taken up other roles such as parental, or counselling, or like Scott Reeves‘ role for me, a father to confide in, a counsellor to seek advice, a lifeguard to save you from drowning in adversity, as well as the victim role, constant-

TRU Sports Task Force athlete of the year award winner Kevin Pribilisky, presenter Vice President Advancement Christopher Seguin and award winner Diane Schuetze. —PHOTO BY ANDREW SNUCINS

ly suffering the butt-end of my bad jokes,” Ju said. John Antulov, co-head coach of the men’s soccer team, delivered the speech from the coaches after hobbling on stage on crutches. He told the Wolf Pack how much he valued his own time as a student athlete and how TRU’s young athletes should be glad they’re in the position they are. “This is unique opportunity that you guys have, to excel in school and sport and nurture these life lessons along the way,”

Antulov said. The more serious set of awards began with a relatively new award, the Tyler Lowey award. Lowey was the first person to be presented with this award last year after he lost his eye to a fastball in October 2011. The Tyler Lowey award is meant for an athlete who suffered some kind of adversity and was able to overcome it. Lowey presented the award to two athletes this year, both of which were incredibly deserving of it. “This is an award that no one

Coach Jack Miller, Doctor Roger H. Barnsley Scholar athelte of the year Justin Smeaton and presenter TRU president Alan Shaver. —PHOTO BY ANDREW SNUCINS

really wants to win,” Lowey said. Kevin Cramer of the baseball team hit his head on the bottom of the river in August 2011 and was temporarily paralyzed from the neck-down. Lowey was one of the men who pulled him out of the water when he f loated to the top, not moving. Lowey said Cramer was one of the many reasons he was able to come back from his own incident last year. The two athletes supported each other throughout their ordeals. “There would be no Tyler Lowey award without Kevin,” Lowey said. The second winner of the award was Sebastian Gardner of the men’s soccer team. Gardner was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma in the fall of 2011. Doctors told him there was a 95 per cent chance he would overcome the cancer and he did. He joined the team again this past fall and had a great season. But during a routine check-up over the winter, doctors discovered the cancer had returned. “He’s the toughest person in this room,” Lowey said. Though the Tyler Lowey award is more intense than some others, Lowey was sure to keep the room laughing. “I know a little about comebacks. Christmas break, I rolled my ankle coming home from the pub,” he said. Though an error was made on the PowerPoint and the award was mistakenly awarded to women’s basketball star Jen Ju, Abbey McAuley of the women’s soccer team was the true winner

of the Cliff Neufeld Leadership female athlete of the year award and for the second time. McAuley won for the first time in 2011. MC Spencer Reed appeared shocked when he heard he‘d won the Cliff Neufeld Leadership male athlete of the year award. This award is given to athletes who excel in their sport and who contribute to the betterment of their community. The TRU Sports Task Force athlete of the year award is based solely on an athlete’s performance on the field, ice or court. Women’s basketball’s Diane Scheutze, CIS all-Canadian and national leader in total rebounds, took home the female athlete of the year award, not surprisingly. Kevin Pribilsky of the men’s basketball team, who is graduating this spring, took home the TRU Sports Task Force male athlete of the year award. According to Larry Read, sports information officer, the Doctor Roger H. Barnsley Scholar athlete of the year award is the most prestigious of the three major award categories. Athletes that perform exceptionally both in the classroom and in athletics are presented with this award. Presented by TRU president Alan Shaver, winners for this award were Rolena deBruyn of the cross-country team (who was unable to attend; coach Jack Miller accepted the award on her behalf ) and men’s soccer’s Justin Smeaton. Both winners have grade point averages higher than 4.0.

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April 3, 2013

TRUSU Membership Advisory

H S BA APRIL 8 11AM-3PM CAMPUS COMMONS

Pride Parade April 5th • 11AM - 1PM

Campus Commons Hosted by the TRUSU Pride Collective

Done with your books this semester?

Post-Secondary Education Fact:

Only 27% of Youth voted in the 2009 Provincial Election

This Week: • TRUSU Film Club presents Django Unchained • Pride Parade • Spring Fling Dance • Council Meeting Check out the Events Calendar at trusu.ca for details!