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SFU Tuition Freeze Now presents at SFU Board of Governors meeting

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Peak Web
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At the SFU Board of Governors meeting on Thursday, January 24, students from the Tuition Freeze Now campaign presented in front of the board.

Tuition Freeze Now seeks to reject SFU’s proposed tuition increases for the 2019–20 academic year, and is supported by the Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS), the Graduate Student Society (GSS), the Teaching Support Staff Union (TSSU), SFU Left Alternative, and SFU Students of Caribbean and African Ancestry (SOCA).

Undergraduate student Annie Bhuiyan started off the presentation, explaining that Tuition Freeze Now is “a group of students who have come together to challenge SFU’s proposed tuition increases for the coming year,” and that “this can range anywhere from a 2% increase to a 20% increase, which is outrageous.”

Masters student Seamus Grayer expressed disappointment that there was only one student consultation at the Burnaby campus, because “it was extremely inaccessible and inconvenient for a great many students, including those who spend their time at the Vancouver and Surrey campuses, where no public consultation was ever held.” He noted that the consultation was held “in the morning, right in the middle of exams.”

Grayer later told The Peak that vice-president finance and administration Martin Pochurko approached him after the meeting to let him know that there had been consultations at the Vancouver and Surrey campuses.

“What I said was that we had budget consultations in Vancouver and Surrey and that the invites went out to the University Community but not specifically targeted to students,” Pochurko subsequently explained in an email to The Peak.

“In the future, we will be sure to target students in the invite.”

Giovanni Hosang, undergraduate student, explained that Tuition Freeze Now “attempted to put forward a motion for the administration to draft a budget for the 2019-2020 year that does not include a tuition increase.

“We have been told, however, that this cannot be discussed at this particular meeting because budgetary matters are not concerned on the agenda.

“This process is a symbol,” Hosang continued. “A symbol of how hard it is for us to get involved with the Board of Governors’ process and SFU administrative matters.”

Thomas Budd, graduate student member of the board, thanked the students for their presentation, and asked if they had any input on what would make for a better consultation process.

“Mostly just that the budget isn’t already created when the consultation process starts,” responded masters student Kayla Phillips. “You can’t consult on something that has already been created, it has to be collaborative.”

Jill Earthy, order-in-council, also thanked the students. “It’s amazing to hear from the students and it’s really important to us [. . .] when we are around the table, this topic comes up every year,” Earthy said.

“Your voices are heard.”

President Andrew Petter noted that the board would take the views that were expressed in the presentation very seriously.

“Compared to other universities we have a much more open consultation process already, it’s very much informed by students,” Petter said. “That doesn’t mean that we couldn’t do better, we can always do better. I think that the process is there to illicit and provide input and to provide additional opportunity for the board to hear your concerns.”

After the BOG meeting, some of the Tuition Freeze Now members met with The Peak for an interview, in which they outlined their three primary demands.

“First we want a full tuition freeze for the next two academic years, and that is a 0% increase for all students,” explained Jade Ho, PhD student.

“Our second demand is that we can work with SFU students and the student society to lobby the provincial and federal government to address the underfunding of higher education,” said Ho.

Grayson explained their third demand, which is “more information and more of a consultation process.” He added that it was third on their priority list because simply modifying the consultation process is not enough if the university does not make any other changes.

In terms of the consultation process, Grayson noted that “our argument isn’t that they didn’t follow the rules, they did. Our argument is that the rules are bullshit.”

Ho added that “President Petter’s comments about the consultation process [ . . . ] right after a student just said that we think the consultation process was crap [ . . . ] as a student hearing that, I really feel like what we were saying wasn’t heard by our own president.”

Moving forward, Tuition Freeze Now plans to start a letter-writing campaign, continue petitioning, and possibly partnering up with community organizations to plan events. They hope to get students packed into the next board meeting and that all of this will lead up to a big rally in March.

Love letter to SFU #3 (To the Women’s Centre)

By
Peak Web
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Image courtesy of Pixabay

By: Kitty Cheung, Staff writer 

Dear Women’s Centre,

You hold a very special place in my heart, and I can only express this love through gratitude. I want to thank you for this safe haven, including both the All Genders Resource Area and the 24/7 lounge. With this wonderful space, you have supported my health, my education, my creativity, and my self-esteem.

You’ve always known how to help me feel comfortable in my own body. Whether you provided me with tampons and pads when my cycle snuck up on me or bestowed safer-sex supplies for if I ever wanted to get it on… you’re a giver.

 

Your table laden with safer-sex supplies and consent toolboxes, which caters to a variety of sexual orientations, allowed me to learn without shame or embarrassment about different kinds of sex outside of heteronormative standards — especially through the flipbooks! While the pink did rise to my cheeks to be caught pouring over their animations such an animation of two men putting on a condom before making love, you made me feel safe and unjudged with your sex-positive nature. I love how we share similar values, and that you challenge me to open up my perspective.

Perusing your feminist library, I’ve benefited from your knowledge of history, literature, health, art, and so much more. You’ve taught me so much about this world, especially from a women-centric perspective. You’ve introduced me to so many badass, intelligent ladies, empowering me to become the most badass, intelligent version of myself.

Women’s Centre, you’ve supported my education with your consistent generosity. Whether it’s the granola bars on the library coffee table that help fuel me before lecture, the coffee in the kitchen so that I can stay awake during said lecture, or that musty orange armchair that welcomingly envelops me as I do readings, I cherish you.

 

Thank you for giving me a safe space to take naps between classes, nestled in the arms of your comfy couches and well-loved blankets. Thank you for providing a warm place to spend the night before 8:30 a.m. finals. Being able to avoid over an hour’s worth of transit in the morning is a blessing, doing wonders to both my sleep schedule and study habits. On top of that, you have provided me with a splendid spot to cook on campus, complete with a microwave to warm up my lunches. My leftover dinners would not have tasted so good the next day if not for you.

 

I love that you also have a garden plot in the Embark Learning Garden outside of TASC II. Our collective planted seeds in that plot, which flourished and grew into fresh vegetables that I remember harvesting and bringing back to your kitchen, for many others to enjoy and to nourish their families.

 

Don’t even get me started on how active and engaging you are. Whether it was joining in on a community cooking workshop, cuddling with Ezzie the Australian Shepherd, healing with ArtThrive, or knitting with the Creative Collective, the resources and activities that you’ve provided to aid my mental health and student experience are wonderful. Even when there isn’t a specific event happening within your walls, you are free, open, and inclusive. I can always stop by to say hello.

 

I especially appreciate how supportive and strong you can be in emergency situations. For those of us who may have been impacted by sexual violence or who are struggling with mental health, your crisis referrals and peer support resources make you a blessing for myself and so many others on campus.

 

Once again, thank you for being here for me and for all of my fellow self-identified women on campus.

 

With love, light, and much gratitude,

Kitty

 

SFU women’s basketball win sixth straight game against Alaska Nanooks

By
Peak Web
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Sophie Swant led the Clan with 20 points. (Photo courtesy of SFU Athletics)

By: Brandon Braich

On Thursday night, the SFU women’s basketball team hosted the University of Alaska Fairbanks Nanooks in the West Gym on Burnaby Mountain. The Clan came into the game winners of five straight, looking to extend the streak to six.

At 4:46 into the 1st quarter, however, SFU (12–6) looked up to a surprising 7–8 deficit against the visiting Alaska Nanooks (3–14). From that point the Clan locked in and dominated the remaining 36 minutes. Led by Sophie Swant (20 points), a barrage of 3 pointers, and stifling defense, the Clan defeated the Nanooks 85–48 in front of a crowd of 307 at the West Gym.

It was a complete effort by SFU, totalling 38 bench points, with every active player recording a bucket.

“It’s nice when everyone scores, and overall I was pleased,” SFU head coach Bruce Langford said. “We ran the floor and ran early offense quite well.”

“I thought we took over when we shifted our first group in the first quarter and started to play some full court pressure.”

SFU’s defense was on full display in the second quarter when they held Alaska to only one field goal, finishing the half with a 39–16 lead. Samantha Beauchamp was a force inside recording five blocks, while their pressure defense was able to generate 20 turnovers leading to 20 points. Kendel Sands forced several turnovers herself, with her tight on ball defense.

“At the end of the first, and second, the moment flowed quite nicely,” said Langford.

Alaska opened the second half with a 3, but Swant quickly answered with a jumper of her own and SFU’s full court press forced a five second violation on the inbounds erasing any doubt of the outcome.  

It was a balanced effort behind Swant. Jessica Jones was the only other double-figure scorer with 11 points and 4 assists, including 3–6 from deep. Taylor Drynan finished with 7 points, 6 assists, and 4 rebounds. Claudia Hart chipped in nine points off the bench on 4–7 shooting.

Ashlie Blackburn, Emily Evans, and Marian Wamsley lead the way for the Nanooks with 11, 10, and 10 points each.

SFU shot 45% from the field and went 11–31 from three. The 85 points was a season high for the Clan. Their defense limited Alaska to 20–61 shooting (33%) and 2–15 from three. The story, however, was SFU’s diverse and unselfish attack. 22 of their 31 buckets were assisted.

“We moved the ball well,” said Swant. “I think it makes us really hard to guard when everyone’s scoring, because you shut down one and someone else is going to hit the shot.”

It was SFU’s sixth win in a row, including a stunning upset over the number-one ranked Northwest Nazarene University. With the playoffs drawing closer, SFU may be peaking at the right time.

What’s next:

SFU now turns their attention to Saturday, where they face a tough test against the number 11 ranked Alaska Anchorage (18–1). With the challenge ahead, Langford seemed relieved with the small workload his starters carried.

“We had some injured players, so it was nice to be able to get them some rest,” said Langford.

The game will be played at the West Gym on February 2 at 7 p.m.

“Today wasn’t really the test,” said Swant. “The test will be on Saturday.”

 

Album Reviews

By
EIC
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By: Alex Bloom

CARE FOR ME by Saba

Intimate. Moving. Graceful. These are three words that come to mind instantly after listening to Saba’s 2018 album, CARE FOR ME. One of the first things I noticed was how the production throughout this album is infused with a sense of melancholy that fills every word of every verse with unbidden emotion. And that is exactly what this album is intended to do: unlock those emotions that we would rather not think about most of the time. In an interview with Sway in The Morning, Saba described CARE FOR ME as “an emotional rap album” that documents the “lowest point” of his life.

        This album exudes honesty, and tracks like “FIGHTER” and “PROM / KING” come across more like stories than songs. CARE FOR ME is aptly named in that it is an album that demands your full attention. While, of course, there are standout tracks that work well on their own, such as “BUSY / SIRENS” and “LIFE,” the album is a musical journey that is best listened to from start to finish.

Anyone who thinks that all rap music is juvenile, or that rap somehow isn’t poetic, surely hasn’t heard of Saba. One constant of this album is his ability to capture human emotion — ranging from the angst of day-to-day life, societal expectations, and dealing with tragedies like the death of a loved one — in an eloquent but digestible fashion. CARE FOR ME is a masterpiece that reflects real life, and it is clear throughout that Saba is an artist who isn’t afraid to be vulnerable.

Planet Bando by So Loki

If anyone still thinks Vancouver doesn’t have an interesting music scene, they probably haven’t heard of So Loki (Sam Lucia and Geoffrey Millar). These two local artists should be on the radar of any fan of hip-hop. On first listen, Planet Bando stands out from So Loki’s past work (such as their collaboration with bbno$ — Whatever) due to its intensity. The opening track “One” starts off the EP with energetic rap verses from Lucia and powerful, layered production from Millar.m

Throughout the six-track EP, So Loki maintains the energy from “One” and continues on from there without slowing down. Planet Bando is the perfect addition to any turn-up playlist and will have you moving your feet instantly, clearly encouraged by lines like “Everybody shake that ass / If you not, then you better make room for the dancers” on “Spensive.”

Planet Bando may come across as more serious than Whatever, but it somehow manages to remain just as fun. “Elephant Man” is an instant ear-worm, and “No Regrets” ends the EP on a jubilant note. My only real criticism is how short the EP is, totaling just about 14 minutes. While I will miss opening lyrics like “Bob Ross flow” from Whatever, it’s clear So Loki haven’t lost their “Swagu.”

Bonus Single: “Wave (feat. AstroLogical)” by Kapok — Single

While this track isn’t brand new, Kapok is a Vancouver based Mayan-Canadian rapper who you need to know about if you love hip-hop. “Wave” is an upbeat song that is sure to brighten even the greyest Vancouver day. Kapok delivers masterful flow and nuanced lyricism while maintaining an overall sense of fun and levity that makes “Wave” infinitely replayable.  He was also recently named one of Rudegang Entertainment’s top five Vancouver Hip Hop artists of 2018, so be ready for more great artistry from him this year.

Profs Vague Tweet About Their Students

By
Peak Web
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Jarielle Lim

Ever wondered what your profs twitter feed looks like?

Written by: Kitty Cheung, Staff Writer

aRE yOu kIDdiNG mEE?? Why would you even sit in the front row if you’re going to snooze through it?

I come here MWF every week just to get my voice drowned out by shuffled papers and lecture seats with folding tables. wow.

3 mins to the end of class. Let the chorus of backpack zippers begin

office hour visits went from #0to100 #REALQUICK after first midterm hah

marking assignments be like missing student number = missing grade on Canvas ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

watching my email inbox flood the morning of the final (◕‿◕✿)


Live On Campus FREE

By
Peak Web
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Photo curtesy of Pexels

Lose the landlord and live for free on the Burnaby campus

Written by: Hannah Davis, Peak Associate

According to my cranky neighbour Terrie (who’s a totally reliable source because he shouts when he talks), Vancouver is “one billion times more expensive than anywhere else in the world!” Terrie inspired me to share this list of places to live at SFU — places that are beautiful, chic, and most importantly, FREE.

Amongst the construction

Half-constructed buildings are a beautiful place to call home. The new SUB building will make a great abode for any student who wants to live on campus, conveniently close to gorgeous amenities, and a mere stone’s throw away from a butt-ton of construction.

Another amazing feature of the potential home is the missing walls. You will always be reminded of the great outdoors, as well as constantly bullied by some nasty winter winds.

Terrie’s Take: Being COLD and BROKE is a really good way to build character, a GREAT AND IMPORTANT thing that you millennials seem to care NOTHING ABOUT!

In the library pretending to be a ghost

Everyone wants an at-home library, but no one gets to say their entire house is a library! Book nerds will reach climax when they hear about your living situation!

Every evening, when the library is supposed to be closing, throw on a white sheet and begin your bedtime routine by lurking in the upper floors in the library. If you come across any security guards, you’ll spook them into evacuating the premises. Use your ghost sheet and your backpack as a pillow for a lumpy yet much-deserved sleep.

Voila! You’re now living in the library, thanks to baby boomers who graciously wrecked the economy for us.

Terrie’s Take: I AM A GHOST. I DON’T have to pretend. And HOW DARE you call me a baby boomer!

In the pond like a swamp monster

The pond is luxuriously spacious, with a gorgeous open floor layout and no ceiling which is incredibly modern and chic. If you’re worried about privacy, don’t fret; one will not notice you lurking in the shallow waters because the koi fish will block you from unwanted eyes. The only thing you will have to worry about is people rudely intruding on your home when they fall into the pond during convocation.

Terrie’s Take: “You can also eat the koi fish! FREE SASHIMI.”

Inside any of the sculptures at SFU

Anyone who has ever set foot on the SFU campus knows how obsessed it is with abstract sculptures. These sculptures actually provide some prime real estate for students. Live inside an abstract sculpture by fashioning an invisible door which you can seamlessly enter and exit without scrutiny.

Alternatively, become an abstract sculpture. Simply pitch a beautiful tent next to some random art on campus and voila! You can live freely under the guise of your living conditions being art.

Terrie’s take: I am a work of ART! My body is a MASTERPIECE. When I walk down the street people mistake ME for an ANIMATED Greek sculpture! My living conditions are always art—

*The rest of Terrie’s take is omitted for explicit descriptions of Terrie’s “gorgeous muscular body”*

What grinds our gears: Escalator etiquette-breakers

By
Peak Web
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Illustration by Hannah Zaitlin

Written by: Trevor Roberts, Peak Associate

Escalators. They’re loud, they’re expensive, and if they’re in a SkyTrain station they break down all the time. But they’re not that hard to use. There is one rule to using an escalator: stand on the right, walk on the left.

As simple as this should be, I’m stuck behind too many people each day who think they’re “exceptions.” Apparently, people need some clarity about how this fairly intuitive rule always applies.

First, stay to the right if you really want to stand. If you’re choosing to take up an entire escalator step when you don’t actually need to, then you should’ve taken the stairs so that you wouldn’t hold up the rest of us.

Second, If you are walking with a friend, or God forbid a group, line up along the right if you want to stand. Whenever I see a couple standing side by side on the escalator at Waterfront Station, I secretly make a wish that they have to go through a messy breakup and can never inconvenience anyone ever again.

Last, and most importantly, under no circumstance should you ever stand with a bag or suitcase on the same step as you. We know you’re some fancy, jet-setting VIP with a lot of important things at hand, but please keep out of the way. People have places to go.

Most of this should be just common courtesy. Our ancestors had no choice but the stairs for literally thousands of years, so don’t just take escalators for granted. Use them with respect for those around you, and I’m sure we’ll all get along just fine.

Long story short: I’m too exhausted to be a workaholic anymore

By
Peak Web
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Image credit Tiffany Chan

By: Hailey Findlay

In my first year of university, I developed my first addiction: coffee.

It wasn’t so much that I liked the taste. What I really latched onto was more the wide-eyed, jittery energy. If I scheduled my cups just right, I could avoid getting too sick from the seven cups a day that pushed me through a full day of class followed by a six-hour work shift (topped off with a study session ending at 4 a.m. of course) only to begin it all again the next morning with a fresh cup of joe.

I chose this vicious cycle, and so many other students choose negative cycles of their own. It might be like mine, a caffeinated cycle in which students knowingly degrade their own health, desperate to keep up the ever-fleeting “work-life balance.” Or it can be a cycle of loans, stealing money from their future in an effort to graduate and find a decent-paying post-grad job.

Over and over, adults remind me that my unlimited energy as a young person will help me persevere, saying things like “ahhh, I remember those days, you’ll get through it” or “this is just what you do in university.” So I duck my head and drink some more coffee as I open my laptop and continue the cycle of trading my health for grades.

When people first learn about my schedule, one of the most frequent responses is praise: “Wow, you’re such a hard worker!” or the joking “Wow, you’re basically Superwoman!” In first and second year, these comments helped me justify my workaholism. That’s what got me hospitalized for two days, pumped full of fluids after passing out in an evening tutorial.

Since then, while hoping to see change, I’ve noticed that the glorification of overworking is only worsening, particularly in universities. The idea that students have unlimited energy thanks to their youth is an terrible myth. Superficially, it seems accurate; many of us can and do pull all-nighters on a regular basis. But to exhibit the energy needed for that, we trade away our physical and mental health.

There’s another response I hear often: it goes along the lines of, “Just don’t work so much! Have you tried getting a bursary?”

Of course I’ve tried! Bursaries are given to those who have “demonstrated financial need” as assessed by SFU. What does that mean?

“Level of need” is based on a few factors, including how much your parents make (but not whether they help you or not). Additionally, when filling out a bursary application, they determine how much money you make based on your tax return from the year prior. So if, like me, someone decides to overwork themselves in their first year of university, their tax return will reflect this, meaning they won’t be seen as “demonstrating financial need” and will be denied a bursary. Therefore, they will need to keep working an unsustainable amount or take out a loan.

My frustrating experience has taught me many things. For starters, it has taught me that those Instagram health gurus are right when they say that stress directly influences your health. I have learned that coffee should not be treated as a main food group (no matter how much I think I need the caffeine).

My experience has also formed my opinion that the bursary process needs to be revised. Overworking needs to stop being glorified and seen as an ideal. No student should have to work themselves to the bone, or to the point of hospitalization, to be able to have money to attend school.

Between maintaining competitive grades and funding their own tuition or housing, the pressure placed on students creates inequity. This is particularly true in courses where grades are given on a bell curve, pitting students with vastly different levels of funding, and therefore different amounts of time they can allot to studying, against each other.

Is it too much to ask to not have to overwork myself to the detriment of my health and be told that it is “all part of the university experience?” I’m too exhausted to be a workaholic anymore.

Changing my workaholic tendencies hasn’t been easy and I still have moments (or weeks) where I fall back into old habits. Sometimes, I have trouble making sure I don’t take on too much, but I have realized that I don’t have to take on everything by myself. If you are like me, just remember that there are always people around you who want you to succeed and who are there for you if you need help. I am lucky enough to have a wonderful partner who cooks for me when I am too busy to remember to feed myself, and I have an awesome manager at work who helps me prioritize school by giving me flexible hours.

If you find yourself getting overwhelmed or overworked, reach out to those around you and never be afraid to ask for help. Just always remember to pay it forward.

Which Movie Villain Are You Based On Your Study Habits?

By
Peak Web
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Photo curtesy of Prepscolar

Written by: Jennifer Low, peak Associate

Studying truly brings out the darkness in all of us. All those intense nights of isolation, despair and desperation — you know who else goes through all this? Classic Villains. Who are we kidding? We all go through enough stress, anger and mental breakdowns to turn us all to the dark side. There’s no doubt that desperate times can drive someone to villainy.

Darth Vader

If you’re a Darth Vader studier, you spend exam season isolating yourself from the outside world. Storming down the hallway, cloaked in a fuzzy (and highly intimidating) blanket you bought in first year; every appearance outside of your bedroom is fraught with drama and angst. You might as well have the imperial march playing whenever you enter the room.

Thanos

If you study like Thanos, you’ve got one solid goal that no one can sway you from. You may be efficient, but you lack the motivation to actually get up off your chair and get started. Your ideas are crazy…but it just might be crazy enough to get you an “A.”

You don’t care how many nights of Red Bull-fueled work you’ll have to do or how many friends and loved ones you have to sacrifice to get to that perfect GPA. (Neglecting to go to your Grandma’s 98th birthday in order to work on a presentation is no biggie, right?)

You always put in 110% and your “Fine. I’ll do it myself.” attitude ensures that even in those dreaded group projects you’ll do well. You’ll do anything for that grade.

Voldemort

If you study like the Dark Lord, you can always be counted on to rise from the dead at the end of every school year. No matter how low your GPA is, you always come back with an academic vengeance.

Unfortunately, you believe that everyone is out to get you — particularly that bespectacled golden-boy in class who always seems to do well no matter how much they slack off. You swear the rest of the class is in some secret study group to practice beating you in every test, ensuring the curve will never be in your favor. Everyone knows you’re in the class but just like He Who Must Not Be Named, you don’t show up until the last second . . . to write the final exam.

Scar

If you’re a fourth year student and can’t stand the idea of some upstart little first year beating you on the midterm, you study like this Disney villain. If you study like Scar, you know the grade you deserve and you won’t take anything less.

Spending hours in your dark cavernous bedroom, plotting away, you are going to make the bell curve work your favour… even if it means screwing over some peers. Your work mantra? “Be Prepared.”

Joker

Are people always asking, how do you manage to study, stay on top of your assignments and still have fun at the same time? Maybe they even call you a little insane?

If you study like the Joker, your genius-level intellect is only rivaled by your crazy sense of humor. While all the other students are dwelling in melancholy in their rooms every night finishing assignments, you don’t worry, you know you’ll get it all done…

Even if you don’t finish on time, you’re way more creative than those other unimaginative “my dog ate my homework” and “My printer broke” liars. Your excuses involve a bit more pizzazz. Sure, blackmailing a prof or swapping identities with a first year is illegal, but it’s way more likely to get you out of that Calculus final than their excuses.

A warning letter from the future

By
Peak Web
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0
Photo curtesy Wikimedia

What would you warn yourself about from the end of the semester?

Written by: Nathaniel Tok, Peak Associate

Dear four-month-younger Nathaniel,

Hi there, bud! It’s been four awesome months at school. The buses reach the station just in time for you to catch the SkyTrain, your code compiles on the first try, your paper comes back from your prof with no red ink, and we all live happily ever after…

Oh, god. Of course I’m joking.  

Listen very closely: if you want to get through this without mentally crapping yourself, you’ll do a real close reading of this letter. It’s going to be one arduous, terrible semester.

I would tell you to run, but at SFU, where could you run to? You’re literally on top of a mountain surrounded by forests.

First of all, just as the semester begins, a massive snowstorm is going to hit. How hard, you ask? Well, bloody Whistler is going to tweet out a shut off its chairlifts because of “unforeseeable severe inclement snowy weather.” Guess where you’re going to be when that happens? At the end of a 145 lineup longer than the reading list for HUM 113: Appreciation of France, the elective everyone called a GPA booster. Seriously, how can a country have 246 varieties of cheese? Make sure you bring your skis to class if you want a guarantee of getting home this term.

That’s not all. Remember your favourite study spot at the basement of the library? Haha, well, the first-years who have survived their first semester have grown up, and they have annexed your study spot! They fell upon it as you took a definitely well-deserved coffee break and rudely swept aside your stuff, exactly the same way CHEM 282 swept aside your med-school dreams. You could organize a decisive counterattack to seize it back, but let’s face it, you can check Facebook anywhere in the library.

And for the love of the free stuff from Career Fair Day, print out your readings! Not so you can do better in your courses — that’s hopeless — but so you can sleep better. What do you get when you print out and assemble hundreds of pages of papers, articles, and random literature? A textbook. And we all know that in a pinch, reading a book is a great technique for sleeping. In fact, after this semester ends, you should work on a way to soften hardcovers so that university students can double their massive textbooks for use as pillows in between classes and in transit.

Also, having readings around your person makes it easier to pretend you’re studying and shoo your family away so you won’t have to attend the anniversary of the death of your great-aunt’s goldfish.

With love from a very concerned friend,

Your future self.

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Simon Fraser University’s independent student newspaper since 1965.

Contact us: [email protected]

© The Peak Publications Society 1965-2024

Simon Fraser University’s independent student newspaper since 1965.

Contact us:
[email protected]

© The Peak Publications Society 1965-2024