I rented my arm as a makeshift plunger to pay my tuition
With rising tuition costs becoming more and more of a reality, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that money is always on students’ minds. For most students this means finding a part-time job, especially when summer rolls around. That leaves many to seek positions stocking shelves at a local grocery store or making double mocha frappaccchinos with low-fat milk and extra whip.
However, that was not what Vancouver resident and SFU student, Tara Phillips, found on her job hunt.
“All the regular jobs are taken these days. Tim Hortons and McDonald’s aren’t even hiring!”
Phillips has worked such summer jobs as a “directions assistant,” which entailed glorious work like standing in a hallway telling people if they need to go left or right.
“A sign could have done my job, but hey, I was getting paid,” reminisced Phillips. “Hell, last summer I worked as a ‘toilet clearance attendant,’ which involved me using my arm to clear clogged toilets for a plumber who couldn’t afford a plunger.
“It wasn’t great, but at least I have work experience now. Maybe I could work in a grocery store bathroom next summer. Besides, it was better than the alternatives.”
Even more unsettling than Phillips’ employment history are the jobs she chose not to pursue. On Craigslist, she found listings such as “assistant coffee boy apprentice,” and “live store mannequin.” These positions might seem tame compared with “human table” or “ornamental aide,” “both of which listed one of the job’s responsibilities as ‘sweating copiously without producing a strong odour.’”
Many students are forced to make tough employment decisions due to their financial situations, and consequently there are more and more “picture straightening assistants” and “book closing aides” hired every day.
“Students will work any job these days, as long as it pays in cash and not overripe produce,” concluded Phillips, sadly shaking her head.
Phillips and others like her should not feel defeated, though, as studies show students with undergraduate degrees have a 75 percent chance of getting hired as a barista at Starbucks.
Laugh Track: An interview with The Lady Show’s Fatima Dhowre and Katie-Ellen Humphries
At no point during my interview with Katie-Ellen Humphries and Fatima Dhowre did anyone use the term ‘supergroup,’ and yet it’s a word I keep returning to when I think of The Lady Show. On their own, Dhowre, Humphries, Morgan Brayton, Robyn Daye-Edwards, Erica Sigurdson, and Diana Bang are all well-known and well-respected comedians with countless accolades to their names; but just like the members of a late-‘90s pop boy band, they’re stronger together than they are apart.
For the yet-to-be initiated, The Lady Show is a monthly comedy show in Vancouver, born out of a shared admiration for, and joy of hanging out with, each other. The variety show structure of a typical Lady Show lets each comedian play to her own strengths, while also giving an opportunity to branch out. The Peak sat down with Dhowre and Humphries to learn more about what a typical Lady Show looks like and what inspired the change in home base, from local comedy haven Little Mountain Gallery to the East Van stronghold of the Biltmore Cabaret.
The Peak: Where did the inspiration for The Lady Show come from?
Katie-Ellen Humphries: We all work together on a show on OUTtv called Morgan Brayton & Other People, so that was where we started collaborating together. We realized we really liked that group of folks, and then also had this motivation amongst ourselves to create some different things outside of what we were typically doing, so whether we were doing stand-up and wanted to start writing more sketch, or do more character things. So it was born out of the TV show, and we just wanted to spend more time together. [Turns to Dhowre] I don’t know if you know this, I love you guys and I love hanging out with you, but I don’t make a lot of time for social activities.
Fatima Dhowre: I do one regular thing once a month, and everything else is work and comedy.
KEH: It’s an enormous blessing of this show, that I get to hang out with these women that I love so much.
P: What was the show originally envisioned as? Has The Lady Show changed in any significant ways from that vision?
FD: I don’t think so. It’s stayed pretty true to the vision so far. We just wanted to challenge ourselves, comedically, and introduce a really good show to the scene, and that’s exactly what’s happened.
KEH: For the audience, I was really hoping to draw some people who might not necessarily go to a traditional comedy show, because of the turn-off from comedy for any reason. We have hardcore comedy fans, we have people who come for the first time, we have people who come back because they had such a great time. It’s just this really diverse and fun audience.
P: Would you be able to walk me through a standard evening at The Lady Show?
FD: Only a couple of things have changed, but it basically follows the same formula. We always have a big sketch and an opening dance number to kick off the show, really hype everybody up, and then we traditionally have a featured guest, and that always changes. Sometimes it’s a stand-up guest, sometimes it’s a character performer, sometimes it’s a sketch performer. The two consistencies that we continue to do is a big opening number and we close together.
P: From reading past interviews, there’s definitely a feminist awareness to the show, but The Lady Show also seems pretty casual about it.
KEH: I think, for myself anyways, and I’m finding this in my own stand-up right now, is I don’t think it would be inaccurate to say there’s a feminist bent but it’s certainly not the end goal. The end goal, 100 percent of the time, is comedy and entertainment. We are there to have a good time and we’re there to entertain people. We are feminists…
FD: Maybe sometimes those points will come through in the comedy, but comedy is always the goal.
KEH: Morgan has been doing sketch comedy for 20 years, and at one time in her life, she created an all-female sketch group specifically to make a space where women could do comedy, because they didn’t have that room before, and that’s not the case for Fatima and I. There’s tons of room, it’s very inclusive. So we didn’t make The Lady Show specifically to be like, “This is a space for women to do comedy.” We like these women, and we like creating a community.
P: If the members of The Lady Show were to pull off a heist together, what would everyone’s role be?
FD: Morgan would be our mastermind planner, in charge of planning. She’s the person doing the voiceover during the heist montage.
KEH: Morgan would be the George Clooney, for sure. Erica would be on schematics, and she’d be the one to do any of the hacks and tech stuff. Robyn would be our femme fatale. Dianna would be our master of disguise. I would probably be the getaway driver, I’m a pretty reliable DD.
FD: I could be the secret weapon. I’m very good at distracting people.
KEH: We might set Fatima up as a lounge act, and then she’d be singing and drawing everyone’s attention, and that’s when we pull off the heist.
P: This month marks The Lady Show’s debut at the Biltmore Cabaret. What inspired the transition from Little Mountain Gallery?
FD: I feel like we just outgrew that venue. We were running two shows a night there, because we couldn’t fit everyone into one show.
KEH: We started with one show, and because we were selling out, we added a late show. It just felt like time. We’re sad to leave Little Mountain Gallery, but we’re so excited about moving to the Biltmore. It just seemed like a natural transition.
P: What will be different about the June 10 show than from previous instalments?
FD: This is the first show where all of us are there, the entire full cast. At least one of us has been away for every show, and this is the first one ever since Diana joined us that everyone is there.
KEH: We have every single member of the cast, so we’ve opted not to invite an outside guest this time. We’re kicking it off with an inaugural, full-cast Lady Show. Aside from that, you’ll get everything that you were getting out of The Lady Show previously. We’re still going to have a raucous dance number, we’re still going to have songs and character pieces.
FD: Everything you get at a Lady Show.
KEH: But we’ll have air-conditioning this time, too.
Catch Dhowre, Humphries, and the rest of The Lady Show gals on June 10 at their new home, the Biltmore Cabaret. You can also check out Dhowre’s new show, The List, happening June 17 at Havana; if you’re braving the unwashed masses at Pemberton Music Festival next month, you can catch Humphries opening for Maria Bamford on July 14.
Homebrewing 101
A buzz brewing at SFU
One of SFU’s best-kept secrets is its beer culture. Ever since SFU’s S.F. Brew club defeated UBC’s brUBC at the first Annual University Home Brew Awards back in 2013, we’ve been a force to be reckoned with in the beermaking game.
Featuring not only brewing courses, but a Craft Beer and Brewing Essentials certificate available for the keen beer enthusiast, it’s no wonder S.F. Brew earned Best in Show for their beer, Hoparella. Though the club is no longer active, they may one day return.
Maybe you’re not on campus a lot this semester, and can’t justify the commute to the mountain for a beer class — don’t fret! There are other learning opportunities around town. We are, after all, living in a bustling craft beer metropolis. The Vancouver Homebrewers Association and the Campaign for Real Ale Society of British Columbia both offer membership programs, with cheap rates and plenty of experience and knowledge to share.
Recently, some of SFU’s most entrepreneurial students have been capitalizing off the buzz around homebrewing. If you love beer, but not all the mess and waiting around of homebrewing, never fear. Sit tight with your store-bought beer until 2017, when the automatic homebrew machine Brewstr will hit the shelves. Think Keurig, but for beer. Designed by SFU students Ryan Lymburner, Kavi Sekhon, Derek Muxworthy, Karan Thakur, Jordan Sciberras, and Jeremy Thompson, SFU continues to make waves in the craft beer scene.
How is beer brewed?
The first step is “mashing” where hot water is mixed with the “grist” (milled grain). During the mashing, the starches are converted to sugars and then the “wort” (the sweet resulting liquid) is drained off the grains. The wort is boiled for a while, concentrating the sugars and other non-water components. Hops are added during the boil for bitterness, flavour, and aroma. Longer boiled hops equal a more bitter and less flavourful and aromatic brew.
Then the hopped wort is cooled and yeast is added to begin the fermentation process. The yeast consume the sugar, converting it into carbon dioxide and ethanol in the process. Once the fermentation is complete the yeast settles, allowing the beer to clear. Then it’s bottled, and bam — delicious. And you can do this whole science-y process yourself at home.
Local trends
Last year, sours were big. I couldn’t go anywhere in the city where my server wasn’t trying to tempt me with one. This year, it doesn’t seem like there’s one genre that takes the cake. At least, not yet.
Instead, brewers seem to be going for whatever brews float their boat. Steamworks has their farmhouse wheat ale out, combining citrus and spice in a hoppier-than-it-should-be end product. It’s a refreshing way to kick back at the end of a long day.
Meanwhile, Moody Ales has gone for exciting over refreshing with their 2016 bourbon barrel-aged Russian Imperial stout. An easy sip, this almost pitch-black beer is big on bubbles and flavour. The aroma is rich in oak, bourbon, and molasses with a hint of toffee. Thick, creamy, and balanced, this experiment turned out well.
In East Van, Bomber Brewing and Doans have teamed up to create the living skies rye pilsner, with big rye spice flavour. It’s a good call on a warm summer day — or any day at all, really. Nicely balanced with big body and notes of lemon and grapefruit, it’s an easy-drinking beer with a hoppy finish.
Last year was the summer of the sour, but they’re not completely extinct this year. Parallel 49 Brewing has a Bodhisattva dry hopped sour ale, and it’s actually pretty sweet for a sour. The big tropical fruit flavours balance the sourness, and the big hops round out the experience. It’s a good introductory sour if you weren’t around last year, or if you know someone who just turned of age.
What you’ll need and where to find it
Almost every budding brewer in my life swears by Dan’s Homebrewing Supplies at 835 E. Hastings Street. They’ve got everything a young brewmaster needs, from equipment to ingredients to friendly advice and know-how. Another good store is Centennial Homebrewing Supplies at 2985 Rupert Street. They also host a good selection of everything from hops and malts to kits and sanitizers. There are others, of course, but these two are the ones I hear the most about.
You’re going to need a lot of equipment. But the good news is you probably have at least a few of these items already. You can buy the rest at a store, or I have a couple of tricks if you don’t mind getting a little dirty and putting a little elbow grease into it.
Big stockpot. The bigger the pot, the more beer you can brew. Eight quarts is the absolute minimum, while 12 quarts is perfect for a gallon of beer (almost four litres). If you don’t have one, and you can’t really afford one, try thrift stores or any restaurant closing its doors. They may sell a good pot at a steal because they’re going out of business.
Long spoon. It’s got to be long enough to comfortably reach the bottom of your brew pot, and shouldn’t be wooden if you can manage it. Sterilization is key to brewing, and wood and other rough surfaces can become a veritable breeding ground for bacteria.
Scale. If you can steal one from your parents, go for it. An electric one is best, especially with the tare feature. You just need something basic that can measure grams and ounces, and be accurate for one-gram increments.
Thermometer. A digital thermometer or candy thermometer are your best options, as you need something fast yet accurate. Do not use a meat thermometer — you’re not cooking a roast.
Sanitizer. One jug will last eons. Everything needs to be clean and sterilized if you want delicious beer.
Strainer and colander. Each should be able to hold about five quarts, or be approximately 10 inches in diameter. The colander should be metal, the strainer non-melting plastic at the minimum. You can use the colander to keep your malt from burning on the bottom of your pot. Thrift stores have great deals on these items.
Hydrometer and hydrometer tube. The hydrometer measures a liquid’s density, allowing you to know how much sugar is present before and after fermentation, and thus, what your beer’s alcohol content is. You may also want a hydrometer tube or test jar. It makes it easier to measure gravity, rather than letting the hydrometer bobble freely in your pot. Try buying one off a rebellious teenager in a high school chemistry class — it looks a lot like a graduated cylinder.
Bucket. As big a bucket as you have beer. Make sure it has a lid. You can get big 20 litre ones from restaurants if you ask nicely.
Airlock. This spiral tube of magic (well, sanitized liquid if it’s a bubbler) must have a rubber stopper on the end, and fit into the hole in the middle of the lid of your fermentation bucket. If you adopted a bucket, you’ll need to cut this hole yourself.
Jug. Preferably glass, preferably tinted to keep the UV rays out of your brew. This acts as a secondary fermenter and you need to make sure there’s a hole in the jug’s stopper for the airlock.
Plastic tubing and clamp. This will act as your siphon. It’s all you need, but other options make your life easier if you can spend the money. A racking cane prevents sediment from being stirred up in the fermenter, a bottling wand (or bottle filler) regulates the beer flow so none of it gets wasted between bottles, or an auto-siphon if you’re feeling fancy.
Bottle capper. The butterfly type is the easiest and least expensive capper to use. Highly recommend.
Bottle caps. Sorry folks, but you’ve got to use new bottle caps with every brew. Luckily they’re cheap. Pro tip: you can buy them in different colours if you’re doing multiple brews at once.
Beer bottles. You can buy these, sure, but you can also just drink your store-bought beer and clean out the bottles you get — you’ll need a bottle cleaner if you go for this option. Avoid twist-tops: tinted glass is preferred and recommended.
Ingredients. Quantities and types will vary according to recipe — and don’t worry, we have a recipe to tempt you. Generally you’ll need water, yeast, hops, malt(s), and corn sugar. Put your yeast in the fridge, starch in an airtight container, and hops in the freezer immediately after acquiring them. Liquid yeast left out at room temperature can take a turn for the worse in a mere couple of days.
Optional: Brew bag. Made of a material similar to linen, this mesh bag acts as a lining for your brew pot to aid in lifting out your malt without taking too much liquid with it. That stuff’s precious.
An easy-drinking summer recipe to get you started
(Plus, it’s a little fancy to impress your friends!)
The American Homebrewers Association shared this gem of a recipe, the lampo bianco white lightning Belgian ale.
You will need:
- 3.5 lb (1.6 kg) | US two-row or pils malt
- 4.0 lb (1.8 kg) | Malted wheat
- 0.5 lb (227 g) | Flaked oats
- 0.2 oz (8 g) | Chinook 11 percent a.a. (60 min)
- 0.35 oz (10 g) | Simcoe 12 percent a.a. (10 min)
- 0.5 oz (14 g) | Columbus 12 percent a.a. (0 min)
- 0.4 oz (12 g) | Indian coriander (2 min)
- 0.07 oz (2 g) | Cardamon whole pod (2 min)
- 3 g | Dried ginger (2 min)
- Zest of half a lemon (2 min)
- 46 oz (1.4 litre) | Muscat grape juice concentrate
- Belgian wit ale yeast (WLP550 or Wyeast 3944 or 3942)
Directions:
Do a mash with all the ingredients except for the yeast and Muscat grape juice, for 60 minutes at 154°F (68°C). Then mash out. Boil for 60 minutes before adding Muscat grape juice concentrate to the fermenter at the end of the primary. Ferment at 75–78°F (24–26°C). This recipe will make about five gallons of beer.
Woohoo, Boohoo
Woohoo: Jam
Whether as a delicious treat or a session full of funky fresh beats, jam is the ultimate champion. There are strawberry jams, cherry jams, apricot jams, sick jams, groovy jams, suave jams, jams for all occasions.
Jam is a dignified breakfast spread upon which kings and gods feast, because everyone understands how holy a good jam is, blessing the breakfast table with its beauty. Jam is so beautiful that if this were one of those weird Miss Universe beauty contests — which are uncomfortably objectifying, demeaning, and horrifically sexist — jam would easily win the swimsuit section.
The sweet treat also reminds you of your even sweeter gran. Do you remember the last time she made you a big jar of strawberry jam? Your grandmother still makes you jam because even though you’re an ungrateful git who doesn’t visit often enough, she still loves you enough to bestow such a gift upon you. Now, go eat some fucking jam and call your grandmother.
Boohoo: Peanut Butter
Peanut butter is a nut butter. Honestly, the term “nut butter” is too much for my immature self. While all of you continue slathering your breakfast goods in the butter of nuts, I’ll seek a more civilized meal with fewer genitalia references.
Peanut butter is also highly suspicious because it comes in too many forms. Crunchy, smooth, unsalted, stir, no stir, natural, creamy; if this were the 1500s, we would’ve burned peanut butter at the stake because of its suspicious, witch-like shape-shifting. Too bad this isn’t the 1500s.
Additionally, the peanut is a flimsy fucking nut. Think about the sheer quality of the hazelnut: beauty, grace, boldness, and brilliance. Now compare that to that shit stain, the peanut. The peanut peevishly sits in its clumsy shell, desperate to keep people believing its lie. That’s right. Peanuts aren’t even nuts. They’re legumes. How can you put your trust in such an unfaithful breakfast spread?
The Walking Dead always kills off black people, and I’m OK with it
[dropcap]A[/dropcap]s a communication undergraduate, I’m constantly exposed to issues that plague the creative industries. Subjects such as diversity, representation, and the role of online cultures come up regularly. Social media allows fans and critics to voice their complaints to the producers of films and television shows, who in turn either adjust their productions accordingly or ignore the issues altogether.
However, this development isn’t always a good thing. When enough angry people voice what might truly be a non-issue through the virtual megaphone, it almost sounds like rational, critical discourse. Through a racial lens, the backlash that erupts on social media whenever black characters are killed in certain TV shows, while well-intentioned, often falls into a ‘non-issue’ discourse. Worse, it takes the spotlight off the more critical underlying problem: racial representation.
While this occurs with many TV shows, AMC’s hit series The Walking Dead is a prime example of this phenomenon. The Walking Dead follows a group of survivors into a world infested with zombies. Each season, the main group of protagonists expands and diversifies.
Apart from exploring themes such as what it means to be human, the show kills off popular characters as a substantial part of its charm. Viewers tune in for the deaths and stay for the occasional gems of character-driven storytelling. However, there’s a recurring complaint that the show doesn’t tend to have more than one regular black character at a time, as each seems to be killed off and quickly replaced by another black character. As a black man, this complaint annoys me.
We’re at the point where there will never be enough black characters on the show to stop the complaints.
During the earlier seasons, it could’ve been considered an astute observation. However, with time the show began to introduce multiple African American and other minority characters at the same time. Still, the complaints about killing off black characters persisted. Considering how death is a major part of the show, why should a character be spared because of the colour of their skin?
What is the point of investing in a character when you know they’re safe from the cruel hands of the producers and writers? The whole aspect of equal representation is rendered useless if the producers can kill off 20 white characters without any race complaints; but when one black character is killed, the outcry is focused mainly on the character’s race, rather than the audience’s investment with the now-deceased character.
Furthermore, when these social media barrages affect the outcome of the show, the production stops being the story the creators want to tell, and becomes something more akin to fan fiction.
We’re at the point where there will never be enough black characters on the show to stop the complaints. These complaints about killing off black characters divert the discourse from the underlying issues of racial representation. The Walking Dead tries — it really does. Is there a good reason though, why in a show set in Atlanta, Georgia, where 54 percent of the population is black according to its 2010 census, only 14.4 percent of the cast is black as of the sixth season?
There’s only so much realism you can have in a show about zombies, but representing the racial diversity of its setting would be a nice touch.
My journey towards waste reduction
This is the first article in a three-part series about Kendra’s journey through waste reduction.
You see that? That Mason jar filled with garbage right there, boys and girls, is Lauren Singer’s garbage — after not one day, not one week, but two years. Singer’s made a name for herself as an online blogger, talking about how we all need to live waste-free. This is the Mason jar that perplexed me, motivated me, and pushed me to figure out how any of this was possible. As odd as it sounds, this jar sparked a lifestyle change for me.
Baby steps
Buying things is the first order of business, which seems a bit ironic considering the goal is to reduce consumption and waste. To reconcile this, I reminded myself that these things are an investment and not intended for short-term use.
At the bottom of this article, I have compiled a list of resources if reading about zero waste living inspires you as much as it did me. I spent a full day looking in all the wrong places for reusable items, and I don’t want anyone else to waste time walking all over the dang city on a wild goose chase for jars and organic soap bars. Learning about waste reduction, and how to get ahold of products to help you is so important. Creating a sense of accessibility is one of the goals of writing this piece, so I hope you take advantage of some of my research.
Other than making a few small changes, I signed up for a Car2Go because I thought everything would be difficult to carry around. But as I later found out, a $15-flat of Mason jars weighs less than a six- pack!
After a short time of researching, I am discovering there are countless resources for living a zero waste lifestyle right here in Vancouver. I have become more conscious of what I have control over and can change. I feel empowered, I feel less guilty about merely existing in this capitalist world, and I feel just plain ol’ good. Yes, it’s a slow start and impossible to change overnight, but it’s definitely something that can be incorporated into everyone’s lifestyle.
This consciousness has trickled into areas I had not expected. I began to cook vegan dishes to combat the copious number of cheeseburgers I consumed in the last month. I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the taste and fullness factor — but real talk, I still eat cheeseburgers.
Alternative items
All of these fine-looking products right here are helping me reduce waste, and it’s not costing me as much as I thought it would. I spent around $70 including some of the containers, which sounds pricey, but to refill costs very little. To fill the large glass spray bottle with all-purpose cleaner was only $2.44. Once you invest in the refillable containers you’re ready to start saving money!
I carry a water bottle with me everywhere I go. I have a plastic one, however, even BPA-free still leaches chemicals into your water. So for those about to purchase, please avoid plastic. There’s no such thing as a safe plastic.
Diva cups. Men, permission to skip this paragraph. When they work they’re pretty great! They use silicone, with no wasteful cotton and no worries about getting toxic shock syndrome. The trick is finding one that fits properly and being OK with, shall I say, knowing your vagina as more than an acquaintance.
Other than the obvious BYOB (bring your own bag) and water bottle, there are biodegradable toothbrushes, organic sandwich bags, dryer balls, Mason jar drink lids — and the list goes on. Just check out some of the many stores around Vancouver located in the links.
Say no to straws! If you absolutely need one they make reusable ones!
I know we are all poor students, but boycott dollar stores. Invest in a few good kitchen items and keep them forever. Cast iron pans are best. Bamboo and stainless steel are also good materials that will not have toxins if they are good quality.
After buying the necessities that will prevent you from using disposable versions, it is imperative to take a good, long, hard look at the various things you are buying. Don’t let your things own you.
Zero waste seems like a lot of work and I’m lazy
In the past, you might have found me sprawled out on my couch, indulging in bottomless Netflix and avoiding adulting.
As much fun as it is staying in Neverland with the Lost Boys, I found that going to a local farmers market was much more fun! With the draws of local, fresh, organic produce — not to mention locally brewed beer — in the most scenic areas of Vancouver, it becomes a social event rather than a humdrum chore. While it does require you to get off your couch, I promise, it’s highly rewarding.
Yes, this lifestyle takes effort. No, it’s not always easy. Yes, it’s worth it. Here’s why:
- Save money. With your own containers in tow, you can purchase multiple cleaning products and bulk foods for fractions of a dollar at the Soap Dispensary, Basic Refill, or the soon-to-be permanent Zero Waste Market.
- Save the environment! Every day we see terrible doomsday headlines in our newsfeeds that leave us feeling paralyzed and hopeless, but every once in a while great news pops up with local heroes and stats that show we are improving! Be part of the good statistics! Make sure you’re doing your part.
- Feel warm and fuzzy inside. It can be hard to get over our pessimistic attitudes towards going green, but reducing waste will actually make you feel good about yourself!
- Save yourself. You’ll be healthier eliminating pesticides and other harsh toxins from your life.
Overall, this lifestyle is my personal choice. I will not force it upon roommates, friends, or family. That being said, I find the little changes I’ve made tend to rub off on others. I have always believed we are all a lot more adaptable than we give ourselves credit for. When our environment calls upon us to live a certain way, we just do it. Although it may not be immediately obvious that our environment has changed with all the abundance of things, we can use our big ol’ brains to see that adaptation is required.
Combat haters
It’s easy to say that one person can’t change anything — that one person can’t fight capitalism, consumerism, or neo-liberalism. It’s also easy to succumb to this way of thinking.
Fight it.
Challenge yourself to do more than just press a button saying you support the environment. Yes, knowledge is power, as the old adage says, but actions speak louder than words. I wholeheartedly believe that one person can create change in the world. If my small actions around the home can affect others and change actions, then why can’t this formula be used in the world?
It’s a nice thought, and the world needs more of them.
Zero Waste Club: Green consumerism
When I attended this meeting, it felt like the first day of grade school. I had a burning self-consciousness about my plastic water bottle and my wrappers from a coffee shop sandwich I just ate. I was worried I would be judged, but I set that aside and what I saw was a friendly group of people coming together over a common concern.
Painstaking research went into the meeting where they went into great detail on the most environmentally friendly and healthiest alternatives to the common way of buying products. The toxicity of nearly everything in our lives is shocking and if you don’t care about saving money or the environment, you can be selfish and care about saving yourself from harmful agents.
Inefficiency is the secret word to get into the capitalist club. It is bred into every fiber of every mode of production. Planned obsolescence, which reportedly began with the light bulb, is where things are designed to break over a certain period of time. Why is this allowed?
France recently passed a law where a product must tell you how long it will last before you buy. Instead of wasting resources, we should be outright banning this ridiculous trend in the marketplace. Jacquie Rolston with Vancouver’s Zero Waste Club noted that it doesn’t just waste resources — it wastes people’s lives. So many of us work our whole lives away just to make something that will be used for less than a day and thrown out. “Somewhere, someone is paying for your cheap product,” Rolston said.
Everything is optional. Everything will be garbage — including you. If that’s not enough to make you feel awkward about our garbage situation, I don’t know what will.
Educate yourself! Like Zero Waste Club on Facebook to catch their next free meeting. https://www.facebook.com/zerowastevan/
Reflection time
Zero waste is a transition. It takes time. Do your best and keep curious about alternatives! After three weeks I can honestly say I am nowhere near zero waste, but I am proud of the changes I have made.
The reality is that almost everyone in some way, shape, or form is worried about the environment and our impact on it. So I am left with burning questions.
Why aren’t we all banding together and why are we not all demanding our government change things?
What is it about our political structure that is so hard to change? Why is it so hard to petition for new policies?
These are all questions I will be trying to find the answers to in the the rest of my Zero Waste Adventure. Stay tuned for part two!
Links to help you get started!
Blogs
Local/ Online Shops
www.thesoapdispensary.com
http://secondnaturehome.ca
http://www.lifewithoutplastic.com/store/ca/
http://www.oldfaithfulshop.com
Recycle/Share
http://vancouvertoollibrary.com
Information
http://vancouver.ca/news-calendar/want-to-compost-but-don-t-have-a-backyard-.aspx
http://www.becomingminimalist.com/clutter-stats/
http://www.consumedthemovie.com
https://specwaste.wordpress.com
Deepak Sharma resigns as SFSS president
Deepak Sharma is no longer the President of the Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS).
The Peak has received confirmation that Sharma failed to meet membership eligibility status and has been forced to resign. His seat has since been “deemed vacant,” according to a press release from the SFSS.
This comes just over a month after the current Board of Directors took office on May 1. The SFSS elections had notably poor turnout, with one position on the board failing to even garner a single candidate.
Larissa Chen, VP Student Services, will be taking over the responsibilities of President for the time being as per the society’s bylaws.
“The SFSS just got exciting again, didn’t it? In a really bad circumstance,” she admitted.
The board learned at their May 19 meeting that Sharma’s eligibility status was in question. From that point on, Chen took over the responsibilities, and he was instructed to stay away from all Board duties. However, as an act of good faith, he was still publicly listed as the President of the SFSS, in the event that it was a clerical error that had nullified his eligibility.
The position wasn’t officially vacated until the most recent board meeting yesterday. Now, the board must decide how to move forward.
“We can either have a by-election, or we can have a [simple resolution]. Another option is to leave it as it is and for me to continue being interim president,” said Chen.
“Those are the next steps for board. I don’t want to comment on it now because I don’t want to say anything concrete and then for it to be an error.”
Former SFSS President Enoch Weng said it was a surprise to learn about Sharma’s resignation.
“A million things went through my head [when I heard]. Why? What were the reasons? Was it personal?” said Weng. “Then I learned that it was membership eligibility.”
“I honestly believe that he did his best, it’s just an unfortunate thing.” – Enoch Weng
While Weng and Chen both declined to comment on the specifics of membership eligibility, former board exec Kathleen Yang wrote in a Facebook post that “Failing to meet membership eligibility usually means that you were not considered enrolled in any SFU courses for two consecutive terms.”
This definition matches the one offered in the Board’s bylaws, which notes that membership in the SFSS “shall cease when a member fails to register for undergraduate courses at the University for two consecutive registrations.”
Weng said that he found the news to be a shock.
“I did do my transition with Deepak and I saw kind of what he did and the plans he wanted for this year,” he said. “I honestly believe that he did his best, it’s just an unfortunate thing.”
He did hope that students both take note of this situation, and hopes they aren’t too dramatically affected by it.
“It’s something that students should care about, because of the SFSS manages student fees and helps with student life,” he said. “Students won’t feel too much, because life goes on. In terms of the board, and how they’ll feel, there definitely will still be huge bumps because you don’t have a presidential figure.”
Sharma only ran against one opponent in the last SFSS election, and that was Darien Lechner. Sharma ultimately won with 63.2 percent of the vote, with a total of 1,870 votes. Lechner said that he finds this development disappointing, but hopes to see some good come out of it.
“I think that he should have done his due diligence at the time and made sure he would have been able to serve the full term,” he said. “I reach out to him, and whatever situation he’s going through he has my full condolences, but I see this as an opportunity for some positive things to occur.”
The next board meeting is scheduled to take place on June 16. Chen said this is when the board hopes to discuss their next course of action.
She acknowledged that the situation has been something of a trial-by-fire for her.
“It has been a challenge — however, I find that my team is amazing. The execs have distributed the responsibilities and we’ve all been very proactive. The board is very responsive.
“Imagine what it’s like to just come into board, and for this to happen to the new members who have never experienced this. They’ve been so wonderful, they’ve been responsive and responsible, and they’ve done a very good job.”
She concluded by hoping that Sharma is not antagonized during this time.
“This is a very difficult situation to be in, and I think that it has impacted us and [Sharma] a great deal. In terms of moving forward, I think that one key thing I want to note is that I want the privacy and the confidential matters to be respected.
“I would hope that people would have enough respect to not pry for answers when they shouldn’t be.”
Deepak Sharma could not be reached for comment at time of publication.
