the
STRAND VICTORIA UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER VOLUME 60, ISSUE 7 | 16 JANUARY 2018
Review: Dior at the ROM The Royal Ontario Museum celebrates couturier Christian Dior and his legendary body of work page 11
New year, new you: Horoscope edition STRANDED | REBECCA GAO page 14
Editors’ picks: best of 2017 ARTS AND CULTURE | VARIOUS page 12
Basic human decency OPINIONS | MEG ZHANG page 6
02 NEWS
EDITOR | AINSLEY DOELL NEWS@THESTRAND.CA
UTSU appoints Adrian Huntelar as new VP University Affairs uma kalkar associate news editor
On November 25th 2017, the University of Toronto Students’ Union (UTSU) Board of Directors voted in Adrian Huntelar as Vice-President University Affairs following the resignation of Carina Zhang on September 3rd 2017 for personal reasons. UTSU president Mathias Memmel forwent Section five, part B of Bylaw X, stating that board members are to be elected during the fall and spring election dates, more precisely noting that “[i]f the vacancy occurs on or after August 1 or once the Fall Session General Elections process has begun, the Executive Committee shall post the vacant position for no less than twenty (20) days, conduct an interview process and select no less than two (2) candidates to send to the board of directors for election.” Earlier this year, UTSU rejected an amendment to the current by-laws that would combine the roles of VP University Affairs and VP External at the 2017 Annual General Meeting. Huntelar, a third-year Peace, Conflict and Justice Studies and Political Science student, was previously appointed to the UTSU General Equity Director position in May of 2017, where he represented low-income students.
Huntelar explained to The Strand that he is “honoured and humbled to have been appointed VP University Affairs of the UTSU.” Huntelar’s main focus is improving food security on campus, an issue he started working on before his appointment to VP University Affairs. Huntelar stated that “[i]t’s far too difficult to find food that is healthy, affordable, and accessible to commuter students and to those with dietary restrictions. I hope to create a stronger food security landscape by introducing new services, as well as lobbying administration to create a University-wide food security plan.” Additionally, Huntelar wants to establish a “Student Bill of Rights that would lay out exactly what [students] can expect from the University when navigating their educational experience.” This legislation would clearly define and defend student rights so students can receive adequate support and be properly accommodated. Huntelar plans to alleviate some of the financial burden that students face by “working to make the University more affordable by lobbying for the reduction or elimination of several compulsory fees, and promoting the financial accessibility of textbooks and digital learning materials.” Huntelar believes that these changes can be enacted by working with the Vice-Provost Students and the Vice-Provost International Student Experience.
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| hana nikcevic
Equity Commission holds first meeting of semester ashley meehan staff writer
The new semester brings many new initiatives for the VUSAC Equity Commission. The first meeting of 2018, on January 8th, gave an overview of the year so far and the semester to come. Led by Shailee Koranne, the VUSAC Equity Commissioner, the meeting kicked off with a reflection of past commission events. These included a collaboration with Students for Change for the Doc ‘N’ Talk: He Named Me Malala; Mic the Change, where 80 dollars were raised for Casey House; and the UTSG clothing drive. Coming up is the Art at the Intersections showcase; submissions are open until January 28th 2018, and more information about the event can be found on the VUSAC Equity Commission Facebook page. At the meeting, a main point of discussion was the lack of safety for students in the Church and Wellesley area, where a string of missing persons incidents
had occurred over the past few months. The Equity Commission is pooling resources with other campus groups, such as the Sexual and Gender Diversity Office (SGDO). There are no concrete decisions made as of yet, but there is potential for a taxi fund, a collaborative event with SGDO to connect people living in the Village, and a digital list of resources to circulate online. With the help of SGDO, the commission plans to address issues of guaranteeing safety at student-led events which will maintain the efforts coming from the student community. Upcoming Equity Commission initiatives include: to-be-determined programming for Black History Month, with a focus on Black history in Canada; increased equity training sessions for Vic clubs and levies; a finalized semester report; a social inequality panel in response to the Vic One plenary that featured the Keith Davey Forum on Public Affairs; continuing efforts toward making all the bathrooms at Vic genderneutral; discussions about how to show solidarity with
the Palestine liberation; review of the Vic event booking policy in light of the Free Speech Comedy Show that was held at Bader; and many more. The meeting had a casual but comfortable atmosphere where everyone was encouraged to share their ideas. Equity Commission meetings are open to all UofT students and they will now be held weekly to accommodate more students. The meetings all take place in the VUSAC office at 5:30PM and will be held on: January 8, 17, 22, 31 February 5, 14, 26 March 7, 12, 21, 26 April 4 Koranne also holds office hours in the VUSAC office on Wednesdays from 3:30PM to 5:30PM. Visit the VUSAC Equity Commission Facebook page for more information and weekly updates.
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| hana nikcevic
NEWS 03
@STRANDPAPER THE STRAND | 16 JANUARY 2018
TTC board votes in favour of moving forward with U-Pass Proposed model “essentially” same as one rejected by students in 2008 ainsley doell news editor
In December 2017, the TTC voted in favour of moving forward with a U-Pass that allows students to use public transit at a lower and fixed cost. This U-Pass would theoretically come into effect in September 2018. However, it does not yet have the necessary student approval. If approved, the U-Pass would be administered using the PRESTO fare card. The cost of the pass would be included in student fees collected by the university, without the option to opt out. UTSU policies require a referendum to approve the change in student fees. Pricing for the U-Pass has yet to be announced. The mandatory opt-in clause is designed to keep the cost as low as possible while ensuring that the TTC maintains a “net-neutral financial position,” according to the TTC’s staff report. The U-Pass would be available during academic semesters, and will include fare-integrating solutions with York Region Transit and Brampton Transit. The proposed model is similar in structure to the one that post-secondary campuses in Toronto voted on in March 2008. Ultimately, it was voted down by students. The main objection documented was that the fee was manda-
tory, but not all students felt that they made use of public transit often enough for the pass to benefit them. A U-Pass was launched at UTM in 2007 with the cost included in their student fees. In 2008, the proposed cost of the U-Pass was $720 a year, which worked out to $60 a month for transit. This was 60 percent of the then-cost for student transit passes. Stuart Green, Senior Communications Specialist in the TTC’S Media Relations and Issues Management in the CEO’s office, says that “the final U-Pass report including structure will be coming to the board shortly and expected to be in place for sept [sic].” In terms of differences between the model rejected in 2008 and the current proposal, “essentially the concepts are the same.” The TTC staff report states that “A U-Pass makes transportation more affordable for postsecondary students and could potentially unlock additional economic, educational and cultural opportunities.” In order for the TTC to implement the UPass, at least either UofT St. George, York University, or Ryerson must adopt the system. Their large campus populations reportedly “mitigate financial risk to the TTC.” Between January and November 2017, the TTC sold 704,881 Post-Secondary Metropasses. The monthly average of sales was 64,080. photo
| hana nikcevic
What’s happening around Vic this month? UTSU Frost Week - Free Pancake Brunch January 18, 10AM 7 Hart House Circle (Great Hall) The UTSU welcomes students back to school with its annual Frost Week. Come to Hart House’s Great Hall to enjoy a free pancake brunch! The UTSU will be collecting non-perishable food items for its food bank. The Crucible January 19 to February 3 Hart House Theatre Hart House Theatre is putting on a production of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. Set in Salem during the late 17th century, the play follows a community that falls victim to gossip and superstition—issuing a warning especially potent in today’s culture of “fake news.” This production of The Crucible is directed by Michael Rubinstein. Star Talk: “Computer Vision on Mars” January 24, 7-8PM McLennan Physical Laboratories, Room 137 Jonathan Kelly, assistant professor at the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies and the Director of the Space & Terrestrial Autonomous Robotic Systems Laboratory, will be speaking about how modern computer vision technologies have been used to glean understanding of Mars over the past 15 years. Weather permitting, there will be an observational component through the telescopes on the 14th floor of the building at 8PM. Hosted by the Astronomy and Space Exploration Society, the event is free for all who would like to attend. All Our Relations: The Art of Land and Indigenous Stewardship January 19, 4-6PM Jackman Humanities Institute, Room 100 A roundtable discussion “unpacking the concept of ‘stewardship’ from perspectives rooted in place and culture.” Participants will be discussing questions such as “What is stewardship in relation to Native Feminisms, Indigenous concepts of land, gender, and territory? How does stewardship intersect with sovereignty, artistic practice, and collections?” The discussion will be moderated by Michelle LaVallee, Director at Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada Art Centre. A full list of participants can be found on their Facebook event page, “All Our Relations: The Art of Land and Indigenous Stewardship.” Pundit: Stand up for Social Justice January 19, 9-11PM Cat’s Eye OPIRG Toronto and VicPride are hosting a comedy night, featuring comics such as Elvira Kurt, Danish Anwar, Brandon Ash Mohamed, Jordan Foisy, and DJ Mausner, celebrating their identities. The event is paywhat-you-can, with all proceeds going to LGBTOUT to help cover costs associated with their federal court case, where they continue to fight for LGBTQ2SIAA rights in post-secondary institutions. Reserve a place at tinyurl.com/yckpl9vh. Ghost in the Machine: Tech and Society January 24, 6:30PM Toronto Reference Library A panel moderated by Jesse Hirsh, where experts and professionals debate the ways in which technology will continue to transform society, and the responsibility of companies to make technology more “sensitive to the diversity of human experience.” This free event is hosted by the Lassonde School of Engineering as part of the Next 100 series. Ticket reservation and information about speakers can be found at lassonde.ticketleap.com/ghost-in-themachine.
04 EDITORIAL
EDITORS-IN-CHIEF | MOLLY KAY AND ELENA SENECHAL-BECKER EDITOR@THESTRAND.CA
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The Strand has been the newspaper of record for Victoria University since 1953. It is published 12 times a year with a circulation of 1200 and is distributed in Victoria University buildings and across the University of Toronto’s St. George campus. The Strand flagrantly enjoys its editorial autonomy and is committed to acting as an agent of constructive social change. As such, we will not publish material deemed to exhibit racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, or other oppressive language. The Strand is a proud member of the Canadian University Press (CUP). Our offices are located at 150 Charles St. W., Toronto, ON, M5S 1K9. Please direct enquiries by email to editor@thestrand.ca. Submissions are welcome and may be edited for taste, brevity, and legality.
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| mia carnavale
This year, I’m doing love, my way What I learned on the first day of 2018 elena senechal-becker editor-in-chief
On January 1st 2018, when I was back in my hometown for the holidays, I went to see the much-hyped and equally controversial “cinematic ravishment” (New York Times, Manhola Dargis) known as Call Me By Your Name. My mother accompanied me, and tried to convince my younger brother to do the same by explaining that “it’s not a film about gay people, it’s a film about love!” As though those two things couldn’t be true at once. I will admit that I was extremely surprised by the sheer force of the impact that this film had on me. I couldn’t speak to my mom for about twenty minutes after the credits finally rolled because I was sobbing uncontrollably. Driving home from the movie theatre, trying to get a grip so as not to worry her, I felt an incredible catharsis. At first, I didn’t really understand why. I didn’t, and still don’t particularly think that Call Me By Your Name was a phenomenally well-directed or cleancut film. As one of my friends mentioned to me later, it seemed more like a Hollywood movie “trying to be a European art house film.” For a film set in Italy, with a dialogue alternating between three different languages, it felt undeniably American. Though the camera-work was beautiful, and the aesthetics of the Northern Italian setting were very obviously meditated and carefully constructed, the narrative lacked consistency and sometimes felt forced and unnatural. I wasn’t really feeling the chemistry between Elio (Timothée Chalamet) and Oliver (Armie Hammer) until later on. Though I can’t discredit their performances, as they were both excellent, the film as a whole didn’t strike me as a Best Picture candidate. I also don’t particularly think the film is an accurate portrayal of what it means to be queer, or to have queer relationships. The age gap between Elio and Oliver (seven years, with Elio being 17 and therefore, still a minor) is worrying at best and paedophilic at worst. Even though the film is set in 1983 and not in 2018, there was a certain disconnect between the director’s intentions in representing queerness on screen, and the authenticity that I believe should be afforded to queer characters. Those who were mainly represented are both cis white men whose sensibilities and interests I don’t particularly relate to. So why did I react so viscerally?
I’m sure that Call Me By Your Name’s stellar soundtrack also played a role in my subsequent breakdown; a host of musicians, from Sufjan Stevens to Ryuichi Sakamoto, scored the film to make sure I’d feel as heartbroken as possible once it reached its inevitably sorrowful conclusion. There was one song I found myself listening to over and over again after I’d seen the film: “Love My Way” by The Psychedelic Furs. This is the song that plays while Elio watches Oliver on the dance floor, and finally joins him in a moment of self-assuredness. The chorus goes like this: Love my way / it’s a new road / I follow where my mind goes. As 2018 dribbled on, I kept listening to this song and feeling more and more connected to those lyrics. The more I think about my reaction, though, the more I think that in a way, my mom was right. Call Me By Your Name is a film about love and how deeply fleeting it can be, yet still incredibly meaningful and enriching. Towards the ending of the film, Elio and his father are having a conversation about Oliver’s departure and Elio’s sadness at the thought of never seeing him again. His father shares with him the following: “In your place, if there is pain, nurse it, and if there is a flame, don’t snuff it out, don’t be brutal with it. We rip out so much of ourselves to be cured of things faster than we should that we go bankrupt by the age of 30 and have less to offer each time we start with someone new. But to feel nothing so as not to feel anything—what a waste!” I’d never heard anyone so accurately describe something that I had thought about many times before. In love in all its forms, we are taught to suppress our feelings very early on in order to avoid pain in case of failure. This is a question of survival for most of us, and I think it applies to most of the things we are passionate about. But sometimes, it makes us passive. I’m tired of passivity. I’ve been taught to stay quiet and manage my feelings in the corner for long enough. So on January 1st 2018, I made a promise to myself to feel everything as deeply as I could this year, to follow my instincts, and to react accordingly. To me, it meant something that this was the first piece of mainstream media I consumed in 2018. I’m looking forward to a year where complacency is gradually pushed out of the picture, where being passive is no longer an option, and where we fight even harder for what we believe in. Where queer stories can be told in more accurate ways without the weight of a hegemonic Hollywood limiting them. I’m looking forward to love, my way.
OPINIONS 05
EDITOR | KATHLEEN CHEN OPINIONS@THESTRAND.CA
A space in conflict Homelessness in and around the Victoria College campus leila atri contributor
Content warning: discussions of police violence and illness.
was slow to respond to the officer and looked fatigued and disoriented. Instead of helping the man, who clearly looked unwell, the officer reached down, grabbed his ankles and pulled him out of the booth. The man’s head hit the ground and the officer dragged his body across the floor, picked him up and kicked him out of the café. As a residence don, my colleagues and I are often asked to engage with the issue of homelessness with regards to security on campus. We hear concerns from students around the college campus, and advise students to call security or Campus Police if they feel uncomfortable. Of course, there is nothing wrong with prioritizing safety, but I take issue with our lack of attention to confronting the glaring stereotypes of homeless or visibly poor people as dangerous. As leaders in the community, we should be able to encourage safety while challenging misconceptions. It is our homeless community members that bear the greatest cost of such false narratives, sometimes with their own lives. It is crucial for us to reconceptualise the spaces we inhabit as members of the Vic community. Although the Victoria College campus and its surrounding community may be symbolic of new beginnings, academic rigour, or inclusivity to you or me, I challenge you to try on a new lens. Upon your usual late-night stop at the McDonald’s at Yonge and Charles, you might notice the Sanctuary, a community centre and safe space for homeless individuals. On your next run to Dollarama to pick up more dish soap, décor, or cheap snacks, notice the gentleman in the food aisle buying his next two meals. Waiting at the intersection of Bloor and Queen’s Park, notice the woman walking down the steps to the basement of the Church of the Redeemer to have her first meal of the day. Until we start to pay attention to this alternative narrative, and the way familiar spaces are used for basic human survival, we will remain blinded by our own immense privilege, and ignore one of the most blatant examples of inequality persisting within our own community.
In my years at Victoria College, I have witnessed an uncomfortable contrast of our campus and neighbourhood’s wealth with the harsh reality of urban homelessness visible in these same spaces. Since the rise of neoliberal economics in the 1970s and the subsequent end of federal leadership in housing policy in the early 1990s, there has been a drastic decline in provincial and municipal investment in new affordable housing units, as well as a significant reduction in funding to non-profits and cooperatives that engage in the same type of work. This paralleled a rise in economic inequality and homelessness. Today, in the city of Toronto, the average waiting time for a rentgeared-to-income (RGI) unit—what may be commonly known as “subsidized” or “social” housing—is eight years. Moreover, 200,000 people are on the waitlist for just 70,000 subsidized units. Compared to recent decades, today there are more people living in precarious housing, unsanitary and unsafe shelters, or on the street. As Victoria College students, we have probably witnessed this in our own community. Under the extravagant window displays on Bloor Street, a 60-year-old man lies on the ground with a circular piece of plastic suspended over his head, for people to drop their loose change into. For years I have challenged myself never to normalize their situation. Part of this involves listening to their stories. I met John* this summer as I was scurrying up the stairs that lead out of the Bloor-Yonge subway station. I noticed him struggling down the steps with a large duffle bag. When I asked if I could help with his things, I was surprised by his quick reply: “Yes, please.” We walked towards the food court where we rested his things on a table. John explained that he had been pushed onto the subway tracks earlier that morning, and had sustained injuries to both legs. *John’s name was changed for the sake of privacy.
IT IS CRUCIAL FOR US TO RECONCEPTUALISE THE SPACES WE INHABIT AS MEMBERS OF THE VIC COMMUNITY.
We agreed that John should go to the hospital. While in the cab on the way to the ER, I asked John more questions. Earlier, he had mentioned he had gastric carcinoma; in the cab, he clarified that his cancer was in its fourth stage. I realized John was extremely sick. He explained that he had been panhandling in his usual spot in the morning, and would have to return in the evening so that he could make enough to pay the daily cost of his medication. We also talked about his studies in college, subsidized by the military. John had served around the world for 30 years. He brushed over an incident where he was held captive in Afghanistan and brutally tortured. I can often find John at Bay and Bloor. When I see him, I sit down and we catch up. It is never easy; he usually tells me that he is tired of living like this and is “ready to go.” Whenever I don’t see him at his regular spot I wonder if he has, in fact, already gone. On top of all of these challenges, stigma and stereotypes associated with homeless individuals add to their difficulties. Two years ago, I was studying at the Tim Hortons on Bay Street when two police officers walked in. One of them began verbally harassing a man at a booth and ordering him to leave the premises. The man photo
This article is part of an ongoing series in which The Strand tackles issues relating to systemic oppression, privilege, and identity. All are welcome to contribute to the discussion. Pitches should be directed to opinions@thestrand.ca
| hana nikcevic
06 OPINIONS
EDITOR | KATHLEEN CHEN OPINIONS@THESTRAND.CA
The Women’s March in 2017 enabled and empowered millions of women to be heard. Yet, as we roll into the New Year, we must consider exactly whose voices we have heard.
BASIC HUMAN DECENCY
Revisiting a year of misogyny, sexual violence, and solidarity
meg zhang contributor
Last semester I had the pleasure of writing a final essay about femininity in Batwoman: Elegy. When I sent it to a friend, he responded with a question that took me by surprise: “As a young upper-class white male, what actions should I take to support a more balanced society?” Several facets to his query astounded me. First of all, he had no qualms with acknowledging the privilege that comes with being a “young upper-class white male.” Moreover, he saw my paper about superheroes as a diving board for social change. His initiative—and the extent to which I was impressed with his initiative—left me with two questions of my own: how do we reproduce this type of open-mindedness and enthusiasm in a large-scale setting, and when can we stop praising people who demonstrate behaviour that ought to be considered basic human decency? Men and boys need to take on more responsibility in the movement towards dismantling systemic misogyny and sexism. However, we must also encourage girls to expect more for themselves. In her video “Will I Raise a Son Like Harvey Weinstein?” Mayim Bialik tells her viewers: “I was explicitly told by my father… to protect myself, my body, my heart from men because men only want one thing. They want sex.” She articulates a problematic strain of sex education; sex is presented as taboo and innately masculine, and women are taught to be afraid of it. They are taught not to expect or demand pleasure or satisfaction. In an interview with Deborah Treisman in The New Yorker, Kristen Roupenian, author of the short story “Cat Person,” explains that “women, especially young women, move through the world not making people angry, taking responsibility for other people’s emotions, working extremely hard to keep everyone around them happy.” Girls and young women must be taught the necessity of valuing their own happiness. Regardless of the extent to which we cover
our bodies, our line of work, our body fat percentage, or how sexually active we choose to be, we have the inherent right to be respected and treated with dignity. Moreover, we have the right to call out those who do not extend us this basic human decency. It is crucial for girls to adopt this mindset; the fight for justice is not over—we still have a long way to go. From the inauguration of an openly misogynistic world leader to the Hollywood scandal that exposed a shameful number of “open secrets” in North American workplaces, this past year has forced everyone to reexamine their views on sexual violence in the broader scope of women’s rights. However, 2017 also brought about passionate acts of solidarity and desperate cries for change. Less than 24 hours after Donald Trump’s inauguration, approximately half a million women filled the streets of Washington, D.C. to advocate for legislation and policies to further women’s rights, reproductive rights, and LGBTQ rights, among other issues. It was the largest single-day protest in the United States. Over four million Americans protested their newly-elected president’s disrespectful comments about women, as well as his alleged sexual misconduct. It was not only an American protest. There were over 600 marches on all seven continents. Toronto hosted its own march where tens of thousands of women marched from Queen’s Park to Nathan Phillips Square. The Women’s March in 2017 enabled and empowered millions of women to be heard. Yet, as we roll into the New Year, we must consider exactly whose voices we have heard. For instance, many women of colour were not wholly satisfied with the nature of the protest. Indeed, many critics of the march saw it as another example of white privilege. “White women and white bodies can… shut down cities ‘peacefully’ because they are allowed to… Black and brown people who march are assaulted by cops,” wrote blogger and author Luvvie Ajayi on Facebook. The march was not the only event to reflect this issue. This year also featured a great deal
of online activism. Following the Harvey Weinstein scandal in October, #MeToo took social media by storm. Social media ideally unites people from opposite sides of the world. It ideally encourages sexual assault survivors of any racial, religious, or socio-economic background to share their experiences. It ideally allows anyone to be what TIME calls a “Silence Breaker.” Highprofile and everyday women alike used this hashtag to share their encounters with sexual harassment and misogynistic behaviour. In fact, people tweeted this phrase over 500,000 times within the first 24 hours of actress Alyssa Milano’s post. However, Milano did not coin this phrase nor start this movement. More than a decade ago, Tamara Burke posted these two words after a young girl had confided to her that she had been sexually assaulted. So often we do not see women of colour receiving credit for their activism. It is scary how often the voices of marginalized women are diminished or altogether ignored in favour of white voices. Furthermore, we see that even online social movements tend to privilege white women in predominantly white-collar jobs over other demographics. We seldom encounter the accounts of single mothers trying to get by from paycheque to paycheque or those of domestic helpers and hotel staff whose first language is not English. There are systemic barriers (be they rooted in classism, xenophobia, or something else) that prevent these demographics from speaking out against their attackers. After all, it is all the more difficult to type those two words and hit “enter” when you anticipate it jeopardizing your personal safety or your family’s financial stability. The fight for justice is not over. We still have a long way to go. To demand justice for women is to demand justice for all women, women of colour, women of different socioeconomic backgrounds, women with disabilities, queer women, trans women, and all who have been historically marginalized. And while I think we’ve started to venture in the right direction, we must be cautious not to take one step forward and two steps back.
OPINIONS 07
@STRANDPAPER THE STRAND | 16 JANUARY 2018
photos
| maya wong
08 FEATURES
EDITOR | ERIN CALHOUN FEATURES@THESTRAND.CA
Embracing academic setbacks as a form of personal growth growth personal
kiana shahbazi contributor
The beginning of an undergraduate degree represents a world of possibilities. First year is a blank slate—it is up to you to forge your own path and to seize the opportunities made available to you at your institution. For those of us considering higher education, we start to feel the pressure to maintain a high GPA and get involved with as many extracurricular activities as we can manage. But that doesn’t mean that you need to lose yourself in the process. Kailea Switzer holds several degrees in education and currently works as an academic consultant. In her master’s thesis, Switzer designed an intervention for first year post-secondary students that would help ease their transition from high school. For most high school students, coming to university marks the first time they are living on their own. In order to effectively balance these competing demands, Switzer works with clients to develop strategies to make the transition more smooth. University is also a time when many students experience a shift in academic expectations and compare their GPA to their high school average. Rather than shying away from the possibility of failure, Switzer suggests vulnerability as a help-
FEATURES 09
@STRANDPAPER THE STRAND | 16 JANUARY 2018
ful antidote. We should open ourselves up to the chance that we may not succeed on the first try and, if all else fails, learn to come to terms with defeat as a necessary component of growth. “It might not be good enough, but that’s the point,” suggests Switzer. In other words, first year is not the end of the story. For students who are perhaps entering their second or third year, Switzer offers this advice: shift your attitude about school. She suggests that first year is meant for experimentation, while the remainder of our time is best spent defining our direction. We stumble into subjects that we know little about, but complete each year slightly more resolute in our interests. Our personal statements are constantly unfolding and our extracurricular involvement should reflect depth more than breadth, suggests Switzer. On perfectionism and the tendency to spread ourselves too thin while in university, Switzer believes that “perfectionism is procrastination, too. It showed up for me as a really intense need to control and to take action on things. I avoid working on [the task at hand] because I’m afraid my final work won’t be perfect—because that, in and of itself, is so anxiety-inducing.” Switzer encourages students to identify how perfectionism may manifest in their lives. Along
with adopting a more failure-friendly attitude: “Focus on enjoying [school]. It’s an incredible time in life to be surrounded by the opportunity to learn, and to have very little else expected out of you. [Although, this is not the case] for all students, as some are balancing a lot of other responsibilities. I think those students maybe even have a better perspective of how much value there is in the experience.” Switzer proposes these three tips for students as we move into the new year:
you’ll be able to locate it quickly and painlessly (but if you didn’t, it will be hard to find). When studying, make sure you practice retrieval to ensure you’ve stored new information where you can easily find it. Quiz yourself while covering the answers. This will reveal which information is neatly filed away, and what has been stuffed in your brain’s junk drawer. Prioritize sleep
Prioritize eight hours of sleep a night. Why? The Avoid relying solely on your brain to remember process of memory consolidation (moving information from short-term to long-term memory) Rather than relying on planning and list-making, happens while we are sleeping. This stage is critimentally holding reminders drains our “brain bat- cal and helps us make sense of complex informatery.” This leaves us with fewer resources available tion that escapes us while awake. In other words, for other tasks. We get distracted by other respon- you need to sleep so your brain has time to do its sibilities more easily than we’d assume. Instead, job. try using a planner. As soon as something comes up, write it down; that way, your brain doesn’t Every student learns differently. University is a journey that allows students to develop their acahave to hold onto it. demic preferences, and the mistakes we make in Practice retrieving stored information the process will only help us grow. When we learn, we encode information. When we are tested, we rely on that retained information. It’s like looking for a file on your computer—if you’ve saved it with a deliberate filename,
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| emily fu
10 SCIENCE
EDITORS | TANUJ ASHWIN KUMAR AND NADINE RAMADAN SCIENCE@THESTRAND.CA
FEED review: How speculative fiction mirrors modern society jasmine ng staff writer
In an era of rapidly developing technology and everpervasive advertisements, speculative fiction is flourishing. FEED by M.T. Anderson is a novel that examines our relationship with the Internet. In Anderson’s work, the Internet—aptly named “the feed”—is planted directly into the brains of the population. While there are benefits to their instantaneous and limitless access to knowledge, people are also bombarded with endless streams of advertisements. Numbed by the constant barrage of commercials and reality television, the characters live in willful ignorance of the pollution of the Earth and the corruption of the corporations that provide their media. Looking beyond their hover-cars and novel drugs, FEED holds a mirror to today’s society and extrapolates a very plausible future. Most notably, it showcases the different forms of our dependence on the Internet, for better or for worse. One aspect of the characters’ dependency on the Internet is apparent at the beginning of the novel. The main character, Titus, and his friends, go on vacation to the Moon, where they are assaulted by a political group called the Coalition of Pity. Their feeds are hacked and they are knocked unconscious by the police. After this incident, the group wakes up to find their feeds silent. Titus states: “Suddenly, our heads felt real empty.” As the group recuperates in the hospital, they quickly find themselves bored. Their dependency on the feed in this instance is shown in their discomfort with quietude. They are accustomed to and even comforted by the constant stream of broadcasting. Though the characters learn to find their own fun in the radio silence, they quickly forget their shared
experience once their feeds’ function returns. It seems their dependency is much like addiction; the drug seems necessary to the addicted. This situation is not entirely far-fetched when compared to smartphone dependency. The consistent buzz of information emanating from cell phones has become normalized, and when disconnected from it, the resulting silence can be uncomfortable and sometimes eerie. The second and more haunting dependency on the feed is revealed as Violet, Titus’s girlfriend, finds her feed malfunctioning after the attack. This breakdown progresses much like a neurodegenerative disease, causing her to lose her mobility and memories. She applies for a compensated replacement for her feed, but her application is rejected on the grounds that she does not have a consistent purchasing history. Therefore, she is not considered a worthy investment by the private companies that provide the feed and its services. Her father says: “We Americans are interested only in the consumption of our products. We have no interest in how they were produced, or what happens to them once we discard them.” Her story shows how the consumerist culture benefits those that are willing to subsume themselves in it, and punishes those that do not subscribe. Violet’s predicament is not only heartbreaking but horrifying, as it illuminates the prioritization of profit over all else. Simply possessing the feed condemns all the characters to dependency on the companies that created it. The themes in FEED are eerily familiar and applicable to the present day. By juxtaposing Titus, who subscribes to the feed’s culture, and Violet, a “dissident with a heart of gold,” Anderson captures the conflict in desiring a perfect life while resisting the companies that created that very idea. He intersperses Titus’ complacent narration with moments of lucidity—a
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| candlewick press
news broadcast, an unnamed narrator’s reflection—to create a clear-sighted commentary on the impact of the advertising that permeates modern society. As it appears, despite the constant flow from the feed, everyone still seems hungry for more.
SSSCR presents: Stem Cells: Frontiers Extending the frontiers of knowledge avani krishnan contributor
Canada has always been at the very forefront of stem cell research. From being used for bone marrow transplants to treat cancers such as leukemia, to recent clinical trials that use neural stem cells to treat spinal cord injuries, stem cells have the capacity to repair and mend our bodies. It is safe to say that the field is a stepping stone to transforming and restructuring health care as we know it. The prospects of stem cells seem quite straightforward, but one aspect remains unclear to the majority of the public: what is a stem cell? Stem cells are immature blood cells that have the ability to self-reproduce and differentiate into different types of tissues and cells. For example, a type called mesenchymal stem cells that you can get from marrow or umbilical cords, can differentiate into red blood cells, white blood cells or platelets. Unlike specialized cells, such as muscle cells, that lack the ability to replicate and replace themselves, stem cells can divide and produce identical copies of themselves and have the ability to do so throughout the life of an organism. In other words, stem cells replace damaged cells that our bodies cannot replace naturally. Stem cell research is only in its early stages of growth. However, by diving into this field, we can succeed in various therapeutic fields such as regenerative medicine since stem cells have the potential to create new cells, tissue, and organs that can be used for transplantation—saving millions of lives. With that being said, SSSCR would like to invite you to our annual Stem Cells Conference, which will be held on January 27th 2018 at Bahen Centre. The Student Society for Stem Cell Research, or SSSCR, is an international network dedicated to the advancement of scientific research for cures. The day-long conference will encompass the many advancements towards the improvement of medicine using stem cells. It will present new discoveries and progress in stem cell research, specifically pertaining to ethics, policies, innovation, publication, and technology. Researchers from a variety of hospitals and institutions in Toronto will be invited to present their current work on the topic of stem cells and how these cells have pioneered a number of innovative techniques. In addition to researchers, graduate students will also be invited to present their research. Furthermore, speakers will have the opportunity to conduct smaller-scale discussions on specific subjects
within the field. Finally, there will be a panel discussion towards the end of the day looking at leading issues surrounding stem cells in medicine. This conference will provide an opportunity for attendees to gain pertinent information regarding the basic principles of research, and to connect with professionals of the field in order to learn about the successful streak the field has had in extending the frontiers of knowledge. Follow us on Twitter @ssscr_toronto and our Facebook event page Stem Cells: Frontiers to get updates about the conference and ticket information.
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| penncurrent.upenn.edu
ARTS AND CULTURE 11
EDITOR | SABRINA PAPAS ARTSANDCULTURE@THESTRAND.CA
Review: Dior at the ROM The Royal Ontario Museum celebrates couturier Christian Dior and his legendary body of work
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hana nikcevic photo editor
Last week at the Golden Globes, Hollywood wore black. Effectiveness and sincerity aside, there’s one thing we know: clothing sends a message. In Toronto, recently-exhibited works in textile have placed a spotlight on these communicative possibilities. In Every. Now. Then (2017), the Art Gallery of Ontario showed Esmaa Mohamoud’s basketball jerseys-turned-ball gowns (One of the Boys, 2017); a year earlier, Toronto: Tributes + Tributaries featured Anishinaabe artist Rebecca Belmore’s Rising to the Occasion (1987-91), a Victorian-style gown with a beaver-dam bustle. In addition, recent Sobey Award winner, Ursula Johnson was chosen in part based on her Ode to Miss Chief Eagle Testickle (2016), a birch bark jacket with a Bench logo. These works explore ideas of gender; ideas of identity––Blackness, Indigeneity; commodification; and the messages symbolically contained in material. As unique pieces produced specifically within the discursive space of “art,” we interpret these works as meaningful, as significant, as instigators of change. But what about when textile isn’t so clearly produced as just art? Initially, Dior might seem to lack significance. The exhibit denotes 70 years since Christian Dior founded the atelier named after him, and the ROM prides itself on being the steward of the largest collection of Dior’s works in Canada; still, there might be a question of whether the exhibit poses any relevant social arguments. The period on which the exhibition focuses, and from which it draws its objects, is that of the atelier’s foundational years, 1947 to 1957, during which Dior pioneered his “New Look.” At the centre of the “New Look” philosophy was an aim to uplift women from the hardships of wartime—its gravity, depression, and finan-
| hana nikcevic
cial strains—by making them feel, once again, “like women.” Defining womanhood through opulent dresses, tiny waists, and full skirts isn’t “modern” or progressive by any stretch of the contemporary imagination; at the time, however, the concept was met with a frenzy of recognition and desire.
Bags, shoes, jewelry, and perfume are included in the exhibit, looking at how the multifaceted experience of dressing oneself allows for the potential of the “lifestyle brand”—a character, a spirit, an all-permeating feeling that the consumer can attempt to channel in multiple ways. Samples of textiles and embroidery are shown alongside their makers’ catalogues; displayed next to these are Dior’s own notes regarding intended purchase and use. Seeing Dior thus—as an arrangement of creativity and economy— speaks to the often-overlooked complexity of fashion houses and brings up interesting questions of creative motivation. Palmer notes that Dior’s enthusiastic use of embroidery was a deliberate celebration of French culture and support of the national economy (the country has a historic tradition of great embroiderers). Which decisions, then, were aesthetically based? Which economically, nationalistically, or practically? Seeing the extensive amount of craft that went into each dress also calls into question the current mainstream model of “fast fashion,” which tends towards the cheap, disposable, and ultimately unsustainable. Included, too, are the names given by the designer to each of his dresses. This highlights their nature as art as we traditionally think of it (which is to say: as unique, original, titled works). Negotiating this, then, with the business side of a fashion house is a way of thinking that’s more commonly the domain of auction houses, private galleries, and commercial art fairs; bringing it into the new space of the ROM highlights the ubiquity of commercial concerns, often felt to be uncomfortably antithetical to the idea of “pure art.” This, again, points to the boundary-crossing nature of fashion and its ability to mean many things at once. Neatly organised into groups by style, however, and dramatically spotlighted in the darkened space, the pieces on show in Christian Dior are also––very simply––beautiful. The beadwork and embroidery of Palmyre (1952) is meticulous brilliance on a simple, ice-blue form; Isabelle’s (1952) silk-satin pleats are tied together with a form-giving, contrasting sash; the interweaving folds in the crimson silk of Delphine (1956) suggest the entire dress was magically folded into being. A bottle of perfume is illuminated as though a crown jewel; pinned embroidery samples uncannily resemble hides, suggesting they’re one step away from being animated. Each dress has a defined, geometric sensibility that imbues it with presence and life. Walking through the exhibit has something of the effect of walking through a crowd of ghosts. This direct relation of the dresses to bodies is referenced–– information panels identify their original models, original wearers, and the occasions of wear––and the idea of selfrepresentation is thus centred. There’s only one fairly minor issue worth mentioning: the use of iPads as digital didactic panels. For each of the dresses shown, there is an interactive screen with information about the item’s materials, production, and wearer, as well as detailed views and original sketches. Although informative and allowing for fantastic image quality, these can only be effectively used by one individual at a time. As a result, they’re far less convenient than analog didactic panels when the
BRINGING IT INTO THE NEW SPACE OF THE ROM HIGHLIGHTS THE UBIQUITY OF COMMERCIAL CONCERNS, OFTEN FELT TO BE UNCOMFORTABLY ANTITHETICAL TO THE IDEA OF “PURE ART.” Dior identified and responded to a nearly universal latent feeling, and, interestingly, even though this feeling was not exclusively or specifically about clothing, clothing was able to offer the ideal respite. As per a sexist tradition, works in textile have long been disparaged for being “lower” forms of art and “women’s work.” Likewise, fashion is denied credence as art for being seemingly too related to vanity and, again, the frivolous domain of women. With the “New Look,” however, we see fashion define a zeitgeist, and the ROM’s exhibit duly champions the multifaceted power of fashion in its relation to the centrality of self-representation. Curator Alexandra Palmer has designed an exhibit that dismantles the usual one-sided perception of fashion. Featuring pieces from a variety of intended contexts for wear, the exhibit studies the character-changing potential of clothing as well as the ways style responds directly to social context.
exhibit is busy (breathing down someone’s neck while they cycle through the pages at a snail’s pace, not recommended). Providing insight into what is often considered an irrelevant and unreal world, the ROM’s thoughtful presentation of Dior’s works grounds couture in the social, economic, political, and personal. The meticulous creative and organisational work that went into creating each of Dior’s couture pieces is made apparent, and this begins to explain why it’s possible for fashion to have answered a near-universal desire: it’s simultaneously an artwork, a piece of clothing, a relationship, and a statement. This, in turn, only highlights the magic of the show’s visual effect—unconsidered, it’s stunning; considered, it’s stunning with evidence. In allowing scholarship and passion to coexist, the ROM rightly affords fashion the multifaceted consideration that art traditionally receives. Christian Dior is on at the ROM until March 18, 2018.
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EDITOR | SABRINA PAPAS ARTSANDCULTURE@THESTRAND.CA
The Strand’s Best of 2017 Our editors pick their pop culture faves from the past year Elena Senechal-Becker EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Best album of the year? The Greatest Gift by Sufjan Stevens This album only came out a few weeks ago, and with only four original songs to show for (the rest are covers and remixes of Stevens’ previous album, Carrie and Lowell), it still managed to make its way into my heart before 2017 was over; what can I say, I’m a sucker for some Sufjan. In new classics like “The Hidden River of my Life,” Stevens manages to tell the story of his upbringing in Michigan in a way that is both specific and relatable. Molly Kay EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Best album of the year? CTRL by SZA I listened to this album a few times trying to figure out what exactly I wanted say about it, but, to be honest, there’s nothing I can say about her that SZA hasn’t said better herself. I love her sound, her style, her deeply personal storytelling, and her everything! If you haven’t listened to CTRL yet, you’re seriously missing out on the best album of the year. Oh, and did I mention that I Love Her? Sabrina Papas
ARTS AND CULTURE EDITOR
Best film of the year? Lady Bird I’m hesitant to label anything as perfect, but Lady Bird quite simply is a perfect film. Best album of the year? Life Will See You Now by Jens Lekman Life Will See You Now moved away from the quiet folk of Lekman’s previous al-
bums, but his wholesome and vulnerable lyrics about love and friendship remain. Please just listen to this album. Harrison Wade ASSOCIATE ARTS AND CULTURE EDITOR
Best film of the year? Columbus Columbus might be another coming-ofage story, but it captures a banal kind of beauty and sadness that most films want to erase. Starring Haley Lu Richardson and John Cho, the film is mediated by director Kogonada’s careful pace and eye for architecture, uncovering art in the most ordinary places. I’d like to see more films like Columbus: stories made of kindness and conversation, and about the difficulty of honestly understanding other people.
our focus instead shifting on the intricacies of modern relationships. Best album of the year? Powerplant by Girlpool I saw Girlpool on tour for this album at the Horseshoe Tavern in May, and they were so incredible live. Powerplant is such a quietly powerful album and has lyrics that speak strongly to being a young person in 2017. Hana Nikcevic PHOTO EDITOR
Best album of the year? Melodrama by Lorde
PODCAST EDITOR
Best film of the year? The Greatest Showman The characters who were viewed as “broken” or “abnormal” found a space and a community where they were accepted. I
David Lynch, Mark Frost, and a cast of returning favourites and newcomers (Naomi Watts!) again reimagine what television can be. The Return is so disarming and haunting, that it almost feels like a completely new series instead of a third season of Twin Peaks. But there are enough wrinkles, in the show and on the performers, to remind us why we still love these people: change is not something to be feared, but welcomed. Maia Kachan ASSOCIATE ARTS AND CULTURE EDITOR
Best TV show of the year? Big Little Lies What I loved the most about this series was the way that the aim of the viewer changed. It started with us trying to figure out the death of someone at a party and ended with us hardly caring about it,
Rebecca Gao STRANDED EDITOR
Best film of the year? Get Out Finally, someone revealed that the true horror in North America is white liberals from the suburbs. Best TV show of the year? The Good Place The spiritual successor to Parks and Rec: constantly optimistic, funny without being mean. Also, Kristen Bell rocks. Kody McCann DISTRIBUTION MANAGER
| yilin zhu
Carol Eugene Park
Best TV show of the year? Twin Peaks: The Return
Lorde makes you thankful for the breakup that lets you feel this album to the fullest. It feels cohesive, diverse, and conclusive. I’ve listened to it every day since it came out, which is probably why I didn’t have time to form an opinion for best film or TV show. Lorde for the Nobel Prize 2k18.
illustrations
A movie on epic proportions that pays homage to the original movie and the source material, by Philip K. Dick, while still standing alone in many ways. An amazing sci-fi movie that asked questions about what it means to be human, and where we are headed in the future.
Best film of the year? Blade Runner 2049
was sobbing during the entire movie—no shame. Each character was hurting and it really resonated with me. Am I broken? The movie told me no! Best TV show of the year? Dynasty The show is sexy, dramatic, infuriating, and relatable. It deals with themes of family, acceptance, love, loneliness. The characters are sassy too! Annika Hocieniec VIDEO EDITOR
Best album of the year? Saturation Trilogy by BROCKHAMPTON I know it’s three albums, but to separate them would make each incomplete. The new age boy band combines classic rap with jazz, electronic, and spoken word to make incredible songs. Many of the songs feel upbeat, but their lyrics reveal topics such as racism, internalized homophobia, rape, mental health issues, and addiction. Through the three albums, it’s culminated this generation’s ironically positive outlook while dealing with lifeshattering events.
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@STRANDPAPER THE STRAND | 16 JANUARY 2018
Review: Call Me by Your Name Navigating the eroticism and fantasy of melodrama photo
harrison wade associate arts and culture editor
Don’t hold your breath for a nude, lounging Armie Hammer. Call Me by Your Name is steeped with sensuality, but it leaves sex off-screen. All we’re shown are the traces and precursors (see the already infamous peach scene). Directed by Luca Guadagnino, following his equally sensual A Bigger Splash, this film finds comfort in desire. It is a summer of first love, where sunbeams rest on bare skin, sweat stains backs and armpits, and teenagers are always running down to the river. Even the classical statues—fading figures caught in time—are sinuous and sexual. Elio (Timothée Chalamet) spends his summer at an Italian villa inherited by his parents. He reads, transcribes music, and goes out at night. His parents work and host; his father (Michael Stuhlbarg), an archeologist, dredges up lost statues from the sea. All of this we learn after the arrival of Oliver (Armie Hammer), the grad student Elio’s father hired. Context becomes part of the film’s dressings; Oliver, polite and American, is the centre of attention, and Call Me by Your Name never lets Elio and Oliver separate. They play the roles of good host and good guest with deepening intensity. Elio shows Oliver around town on their bicycles, only for Oliver to abandon him after coffee; Oliver asks Elio to replay a melody on piano, and Elio teases him with alternations and variations. This is Elio’s coming of age story. Romantically, Oliver
is Elio’s first major passion, when love is quick and blind. Sexually, Oliver is ostensibly Elio’s first homosexual relationship. As if he were an unattainable dream, the film likes to put Oliver in the background of shots, foregrounding Elio’s body. The question of power is asked when the film breaks from this pattern in a jarring series of close-ups on Oliver, highlighting how little we know of him. There is a power imbalance—between a man conscious of his sexuality and one coming into it, and between an adult and a teenager. But the film, as is Oliver, is careful and consensual. Elio’s parents seem to exist just off-screen and are more than conscious of the affair. For these men, love exists less in dialogue and more in physical presence. Elio and Oliver flirt and fall for each other in a look or touch, in the space they share. At the beginning of the film, the shots are made up of movement: characters walk towards the camera, and then away, as it pans or tracks to follow. As if these people can only come so close to what they want to say. One of the film’s many casually choreographed shots involves this movement around a World War I monument. Elio comes close to the camera and Oliver moves away, disappearing behind the monument before the men reappear together. Brought together, they can finally admit their attraction to one another. But the shot goes on, as the men again move towards the camera and then away, biking out of town. Racing through the Italian countryside, the camera stays still and lets them wind over the dusty roads until they are only specks—for a moment I wished they could
| courtesy of TIFF
diminish into nothing and find happiness escaping the film. Elio and Oliver, however, exist within the conventions of melodrama. Their world must be ideal, must find sorrow as much as it finds erotic joy. The setting is idealized, devoid of political and personal conflict. Here, 1983 is a style to be worn, enticingly put together by costume designer Giulia Piersanti. The Italian villa and antiquarian statues have no rough edges, but exist with total sensuality as photographed by Sayombhu Mukdeeprom. Even the songs by Sufjan Stevens exist in unique sequences. For some, this perfection will be off-putting; either approaching an upper-middle class political privilege, or seeming like something close to curation. But I think it adds to the urgency and the weight of the film. For Elio, this romance is the first and last time that love will seem like the answer to everything. Elio’s father will say as much in the final moments of the film. Call Me by Your Name privileges Elio and Oliver’s love over all else, and in doing so encourages feeling. Feeling which is also offered to the audience for use in and outside the theatre. If the story is an unattainable fantasy, it is also a radical affirmation of emotion. It is joy and sorrow and growth through these experiences; it is a warmth to escape to during these winter months. Call Me by Your Name is now playing at the TIFF Bell Lightbox.
Playlist: Sickerwinter maia kachan associate arts and culture editor
Sickerwinter, named and inspired by an early Frankie Cosmos album, is music for cold January Sundays and staying in bed. It includes bedroom pop influence, highlighting some artists of a recent resurgence of lo-fi musical aesthetics. “Gutter Girl” – Hot Flash Heat Wave “Vampire Banquet” – Fox Academy “Colorado” – We Are Trees “doing all the things i used to do with people, “Everytime” – boy Pablo part 2” – teen suicide “Leonie” – Frankie Cosmos “Sad Valentine” – No Vacation “Trick or Treat Dancefloor” – Cherry Glazerr “Sleepless” – Girlpool Listen now on Spotify! “Road Head” – Japanese Breakfast “Room” – Palehound “Philadelphia, Don’t You Haunt Me” – Cyberbully Mom Club photo
| molly kay
14 STRANDED
EDITOR | REBECCA GAO STRANDED@THESTRAND.CA
2018 Horoscopes
rebecca gao stranded editor, aquarius
Aries Well, well, well, Aries. New year, new you, eh? NOPE! You know better than anyone that people don’t change! Take this year to drive yourself deeper into your own shit. Wanted to start working out? You know that won’t happen. Thinking of starting papers before the day its due? Hell no. 2018 will be a year of extreme stasis, Aries!
Taurus This year, your ruling planet Mars will be in constant flux, Taurus! Not only will some stupid human land on it, but that stupid human will be YOU! 2018 is the year that you’re launching yourself into space! How exciting!
Gemini You’ve had a crazy year, Gemini! 2017 was the year that you really found yourself. You learned about web security and decided to cover your webcam with a bandaid—you really duped the NSA, Gemini! 2018 will be somewhat of a continuation of 2017. You will continue to learn more about the world around you and do the absolute least to implement your newfound knowledge. Don’t forget that education is forever, Gemini!
Cancer 2017 was absolutely WILD, Cancer! Let’s keep it rolling by hiding yourself in the jungle! Do it! Do it! Do it! Do it! DO IT!!!
Leo OH.EM.GEE! 2018 will be a super hectic year, Leo! 2018 will be the year of radical change! On October 26th, the moon will enter a super cycle and your life will be thrown into a tornado. Literally! Your entire life, all your loved ones, and earthly possessions will be thrown INTO THE SKY! Take this tragedy as an opportunity to reinvent yourself, Leo! Who needs material objects when you have spiritual and cosmic fulfillment!
Virgo This is your year, Virgo! This is the year you finally leave behind men who talk about Infinite Jest and how hoppy their IPA is! Take advantage of all the new men in your life, especially those who talk about Howl and the weed plantation they have in their Annex basement! Trust me, this is a step up. But only barely. We can’t get ahead of ourselves, Virgo. We know we don’t actually experience self-growth! That’s a myth!
Libra Hey, Libra. Call me.
Scorpio Wow, Scorpio. I cannot believe you even made it to 2018. After Mercury being in retrograde for much of your time last year, we all thought that you weren’t going to make it! But congrats, you did it! Unfortunately for you, 2018 will be even worse. Uranus will be in retrograde this year, meaning that the stars will fall from the sky and target exclusively you. Take this as an omen, Scorpio, and run!
Sagittarius “What do the stars have in store for me?” You asked at exactly 11:59:59 on December 31st 2017. Lucky for you, the stars have tons in store for you for 2018! On March 5th, you will finally get your tenth stamp on your Caffiends card! On September 18th, you will bake the perfect butter tart. On November 7th, your parents will bring you exactly one (1) tupperware of soup. Sounds like an eventful year, Sagittarius!
Capricorn Capricorn, 2018 is going to be the year of LOVE! On April 28th, rebellious Pluto will enter Uranus, causing some discomfort in your heart. Harness that discomfort and take a hard look at those around you. Maybe the love of your life is right under your nose, Capricorn, and you never even noticed! Alternatively, 2018 will be the year that you throw up after literally chugging Swiss Chalet sauce. Either way, great year!
Aquarius You’ve had a big year, Aquarius! 2017 was the year of realizing things, and for you, that meant realizing how fake everyone is! In 2017, you cut so many people out of your life, that in 2018, you have no friends! Amazing! Keep that ball rolling by continuing to cut people out of your life. Keep cutting until there’s no one left to cut, then KEEP CUTTING. Enter solitude. Let the vast emptiness of a hermit’s life consume you. Then keep cutting!
Pisces 2018 will be good to you, Pisces! Not only will Jupiter wrap around Earth exactly 90,126 times this year, but you will ALSO circle the Earth many times! It’s finally time for you to go on exchange—you’re young, hung, and clearly march to the beat of your own drum! Get wine drunk with nuns in the south of France, roll down a steep hill in Germany, accidentally cross the English Channel and get apprehended by Interpol! Let 2018 be the year that you distract yourself from the traumas of 2017 so that when you return to UofT next semester, all you’ll be able to say is “when I was abroad…”
@STRANDPAPER THE STRAND | 16 JANUARY 2018
STRANDED 15
Trendz Big Trendz coming Your Way
max nisbeth trendzetter
Welcome to the Trendz section of The Strand where I share the hottest and dankest trendz sweeping the nashe (nation). This week’s fresh, swaggy trend is jazz of covers of Pokémon soundtracks, more popularly referred to as Pokémon Jazz. These fat, sweaty tracks are absolute gems for relaxing, studying, partying, and especially, knitting. Modern music has finally reached a pinnacle of excellence. Your eardrums will be permeating with satisfaction against these voluptuous sax solos and slimy snare rolls.
Listen! I understand the initial hesitation. People didn’t understand Tesla when he first came out dropping electricity on fools, but look where he is now—in elementary school science textbooks. Pokémon Jazz could be in elementary school science textbooks! We just need to group together, believe and let ourselves be taken back to a simpler, 32-bit time when an eleven-year-old could travel across the country battling strangers and train wild animals, BY THEMSELVES. Get on top of this hot new fad before it goes full normie, folks. Stay tuned for next month’s big, greasy trend hitting Vic nashe. See ya, homies.
In 2018, we’re leaving behind... - Vegan bangs
- Varsity athletes
- The Earth Sciences Department
- Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
- Anthony Burton talking about Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace - The Bullshit - Powerplays
- Samosas at every goddamn Vic event - Riverdale
- Kylie Jenner memes - Aziz Ansari
- Everyone we went to high school with - “Nice” guys
- “Nice” girls
-”Nice” people - Listicles - 2017
- This physical plane of existence
16 STRANDED
@STRANDPAPER THE STRAND | 16 JANUARY 2018
The Man Inside the Northrop Frye Statue is Really Hot!
leo morgenstern associate stranded editor, statue enthusiast
There are a few things everyone who goes to Vic knows. There’s Caffiends’ one dollar coffee, VOCA pancake day in the Cat’s Eye, and of course the golden statue of Northrop Frye. But here’s something you probably didn’t know: the man who sits inside the statue is seriously hot.
Damn! It’s almost an injustice that he has to cover his perfect face with that Northrop Frye mask every day. But somebody has to be inside the Northrop Frye statue. Those are the rules. Hottie alert! photo
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| handout/reuters
| cjnews.com
Take a look. photo
| moose knuckles
What hot, hot men!
When he isn’t being inside a statue, he likes to spend time with his friend. Here they are being hot together.
I think I speak for everyone at Victoria College when I say thank you for your service, Sir!
Maybe Kylie Jenner Was Onto Something Is every year the “Year of Realizing Stuff”? molly kay tmz staff reporter
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| kylie jenner