When you can’t graduate on time because that one last course you need isn’t offered
By: Hailey Miller, Staff Writer
Nothing’s more exhilarating than knowing you’re one course away from graduation. Just one more semester, and you’ll finally have grown from a little caterpillar studying in a field most people haven’t heard of to a beautiful butterfly with snazzy credentials no one will even remotely understand. The sweet victory of getting a flimsy piece of paper to denote your degree is just a sweaty handshake and a stumbly step across the stage away, with an incorrect name pronunciation as the cherry on top.
You’ve mentally prepared and plotted the last pesky course you must take. All that remains of your degree requirements is one of the following: Graduation Station 400, Straight Outta SFU 400, Convocation Club 400, or Mastered It 800. You’re praying to registration that your computer screen doesn’t freeze.
Go, graduate, go! Course registration time has opened, and you’re more excited than a raccoon digging through an overflowing trash can in the AQ. Eagerly, you scroll past the useless courses you’ve already forgotten about. Did you even take Honour Roll Know-It-All 400? For graduate’s sake! Are they really going to make you pay fees that even a loan can’t cover for some useless last course? You’ll have to set up a GoFundMe just to submit your graduation application!
Only one option is available on the list: Graduation Station 400. You smash your keyboard and chaotically click your mouse with greater pomp and circumstance than the graduation song itself.
Error: cannot register. This course is not available for the next three (3) semesters. Please try again next year.
Dread and dismay fill your day as you anxiously reload the page, hoping the issue will resolve itself. Suddenly, you can no longer smell course completion in the air.
Please choose one of the following for when your graduation is a year late, and you can’t invite any guests because audiences are so passé:
Trips and Falls at Convo Mall 400, Wrong Regalia Wearer 500, Scraped By in the Blink of an Eye 500, or Barely Passed 800.
Please note: Graduates must also enrol in Can’t Afford the Convocation Fee 400. Otherwise, their fashionably late, hot (graduation) date with bidding SFU adieu won’t go through.
You sigh in disbelief. You waited over four years for this crappy course selection to really tie it all together and put a big, ugly, colour-clashing bow on top of a degree you won’t get for at least another year? That is, if the whole program doesn’t get cut first. Might as well forget it all now. Drop everything and move on! Who needs a degree anyway? Honour Roll Know-It-Alls are so last convocation.
Prepare to care for the Fair in the Square
By: Amrit Kamaal, Peak Associate
On June 9, the Fair in the Square, kicked off. Best of all, it was absolutely free of charge! Visiting the event for the first time helped me re-experience the feeling of creating new connections — like I would in the children’s festival in my city. Although the fair has said goodbye for this summer, it’s never too late to add it to your bucket list for next year.
Located at Victory Square Park, Fair in the Square is hosted annually by the Central City Foundation and their partners at Vancouver Community College (VCC). This year, Collingwood Recreation Society paired up with them to co-host this event as a means of “connecting with our community, while celebrating the vibrancy and resilience of our inner city.” For nearly two decades, this community function has hosted over 3,000 attendees, inviting them in with free refreshments, activities, and the artisan market. The participants and volunteers all showed generosity to my friends and I by exchanging stories of their lives in Vancouver. As first-time fairgoers, this event radiated a sense of familiarity in me and drove me to learn about this event’s significance to other peoples’ childhoods. This year marked its 16th annual instalment, which was packed with live music from talented singers.
You could feel the alluring sense of community from a mile away, with loud, inviting party music and the savoury aroma of free BBQ. The lineup for food went around the block, with visitors making a mental note to come back for seconds. In the meantime, student volunteers flocked to each corner of the park, providing refreshments to beat the heat. People saved each other picnic tables and blankets, taking turns standing in line for food to share with one another. These wonderful eats were graciously prepared by the VCC Culinary Program!
“You could feel the vibrant sense of community from a mile away, luring people in with the loud, inviting party music and the savoury aroma of the free BBQ.”
We sat in a big crowd in the middle of the park, where we saw hundreds of festival–goers make connections with each other with big smiles. From our picnic blanket, we enjoyed live performances and musical shows that concluded in the audience begging for an encore. Local bands and singers that had the audience swaying along included alternative R&B artist Deocera; Wildflower, Women of Turtle Island Drum Group; and contemporary gospel hand-drummers, M’Girl. The energy that every performance had, although contrasting in sound and style, all gave off love for the craft and the audience. The communal atmosphere shone through, with people showing off their best dance moves!
Many local businesses were present in the artisan market, displaying their talent and amazing products to the community. One of the vendors was the Enterprising Women Making Art, which features handmade pieces of art and jewellery. This business provides employment opportunities for all women, with the hope of “strengthening and fostering women’s full and equal participation in the community and economy.” My Sister’s Closet is another Vancouver fashion staple to check out, advocating for “zero-waste, eco-fashion, and the thrift movement.” This business offers deals on high quality clothing in an ecofriendly way, with their raised funds going to Battered Women’s Support Services.
When I was a child, I used to love going to the children’s fairs held in my local playground before they shut down. Coming to this festival helped me reconnect with that lost part of my childhood again, allowing me to feel welcome in the community once more.
Kings Ransom vs. Saving Sakic
By: Kaja Antic, Staff Writer
As a documentary enjoyer and hockey enthusiast, I was intrigued by the ads I kept getting on my television about a new hockey-related documentary: Saving Sakic. Joe Sakic, former National Hockey League (NHL) legend and current president of hockey operations for the Colorado Avalanche was the subject — or his 1997 contract situation was.
Saving Sakic is not the only hockey documentary to focus on contractual obligations or executive office decisions, though it is a rarity in the already-scarce genre. Kings Ransom was an ESPN documentary made in 2009 that covered the impactful, game-changing trade, also known as a blockbuster trade, that sent Canadian hockey player Wayne Gretzky — from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings.
As both documentaries covered the business side of hockey, I thought it would only be fitting to review them together, comparing and contrasting both the situations and the execution of these stories.
Kings Ransom (2009)
The 2009 ESPN documentary covers the August 9, 1988 trade that sent Ontario-born, hockey’s “the Great One,” Wayne Gretzky, from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings. In the NHL, teams can trade players for other players or draft picks. There are some nuances and restrictions to them, but it’s a common occurrence. The deal included two players being sent south of the border with Gretzky, while Los Angeles sent back two players and $15 million USD — a larger amount than any current NHL player’s annual salary.
The film covers the success the Oilers had in the years leading up to the trade, where Gretzky had served as captain during their Stanley Cup wins in 1984, 1985, 1987, and 1988. Gretzky features heavily in it, along with former Oilers owner Peter Pocklington, former Kings owner Bruce McNall, and Gretzky’s wife, actress Janet Jones.
The trade was largely a business decision from Pocklington, who claims he was unable to afford a potential salary increase for Gretzky and continue to keep the team afloat in the small market of Edmonton. This film, however, focuses largely on the human effects of this transaction.
The Avalanche had an unlikely hero though — legendary actor Harrison Ford and the film Air Force One.
Pocklington faced death threats for his decision — even though the Oilers would win the Stanley Cup again without Gretzky in 1990. His wife, Jones, was branded the “Yoko Ono of the Oilers” for her perceived involvement in influencing Gretzky’s departure, and many took the trade as Gretzky abandoning Edmonton, and Canada as a whole.
Bringing Gretzky to Los Angeles turned a lot of attention to the often-forgotten American market, and paved the way for many southern teams in the future, including two more in California. Overall, I think the film provided a decent, in-depth look at the trade itself and the decision making surrounding it, though it left much to the imagination regarding the impact Gretzky’s arrival had on hockey in California, as aside from a short mention of the NHLers hailing from California today, there was no real analysis of the post-trade effects. The story ended in the 1988–89 season, but there is so more history to be explored. When it comes to blockbuster trades such as Gretzky’s, the trade itself and the context in which it happened is only part of the story, and this documentary lacks the legacy and rippling impact of the trade.
Saving Sakic (2024)
This recent documentary focuses on the 1997 offer sheet that almost sent Colorado’s Avalanche captain and Burnaby local, Joe Sakic, to the New York Rangers. The offer came only a year after the Avalanche had won the Stanley Cup — with Sakic earning the Conn Smythe Trophy for playoff MVP.
The Rangers had just lost their captain Mark Messier — he was under no contract and decided to sign a controversial deal with the Vancouver Canucks — so the team decided to offer Sakic a $21 million contract, with an additional signing bonus of $15 million. Rangers executives knew that the cash-strapped Avalanche owners, COMSAT, would be unable to match the gargantuan offer in the seven day timeframe they had to match the eastern team’s offer.
The Avalanche had an unlikely hero though — legendary actor Harrison Ford in the film Air Force One. Beacon Pictures, owned by COMSAT, partially produced the film, meaning some of the proceedings would go to the Avalanche ownership group. Air Force One was a box office success. With the film’s release predating the August 7 offer sheet, the Avalanche team obtained the funds to keep their captain and build a new arena for both the hockey team and the NBA’s Denver Nuggets. Sakic would go on to win the Stanley Cup with the Avalanche team in 2001 as a player, and in 2022 as an executive.
Overall, I enjoyed the documentary, though I feel like it focused more on the production of Air Force One and the conflicts in building a new arena for the then-struggling Nuggets rather than on the supposed subject of the documentary. Sakic was hardly featured — I honestly think Ford had more screen time in the 48-minute film. The involvement of the more business-savvy side of hockey was interesting, though I feel like it brushed aside any meaningful discussion of hockey, outside of a summary of the Quebec Nordiques’ move to Colorado to become the Avalanche. It was a light-hearted documentary, and included Sakic’s career after 1997 — both on the ice and in the front office. I wish it had predominantly focused on the sport instead of the action film that may have aided it.
Both documentaries offer a good picture of the context in which the Gretzky trade and the Sakic offer sheet occured, however, without focus on the bigger picture — it feels lacking. Gretzky’s trade is considered to have changed the landscape of hockey in the US, however, the documentary doesn’t really touch on the rippling effects. On the other hand, Saving Sakic overly-focuses on the financial and operational side of hockey and the involvment of Harrison Ford in keeping Sakic on the Avalanche team rather than talking on the importance of Joe Sakic to Colorado’s hockey scene.
Council Chats: Council members begin cutting underspent SFSS budget items
By: Hannah Fraser, News Writer
On June 26, The Peak attended the bi-weekly Simon Fraser Student Society (SFSS) Council meeting via Zoom. The meeting involved a presentation of all SFSS budget items that were underspent by over $1,000 from the 2023–24 budget year and reports from the executive committee members.
Presentation of underspent items
Simar Sahota, vice-president finance and services, presented an Excel sheet of multiple categories in the SFSS budget. The total underspent amount of these items was $446,460 including Clubs Days expenses, Student Union expenses, and advertising expenses for communications. Underspent means less money was used toward these categories than was accounted for.
“Very, very stark cuts are necessary to maintain our basic and essential services for students.” — Adriana Cumming-Teicher, Out on Campus Collective Councillor
Sahota reported Council is hoping to balance out the budget over the next few years, deciding with the rest of the SFSS executive committee and FASS which items to cut, while increasing revenue. So far, the executive committee and FASS have decided to cut $37,350 from the budget. Though just a small proportion of the total underspent amount, Sahota said these first cuts are just a prudent estimate of what they want to cut for the next budget so far. Some of the largest budget cuts include:
- $20,000 decrease in large-scale Council events, underspent by $81,990 in 2023–24.
- $5,000 decrease in promotional material for communications, underspent by $24,281in 2023–24.
Adriana Cumming-Teicher, Out on Campus collective councillor and member of FASS, noted that “we’re running a massive, massive deficit.” She predicted the Council will soon be forced to drastically raise student fees to repair its financial situation.
“Very, very stark cuts are necessary to maintain our basic and essential services for students,” continued councillor Cumming-Teicher. Sahota said more discussions with student unions and clubs on their goals for the year will help the Council make more budget-cutting decisions.
Reports from the Executive Committee
Emmanuel Adegboyega, SFSS president, reported that aside from the work done on the budget, the SFSS executive is working through management restructuring discussions. Adegboyega also said he and some councillors met with Joy Johnson and a few of SFU’s vice-presidents to discuss issues affecting their SFSS membership amidst the recent layoffs, which have affected nearly 100 employees, and budget cuts.
Sam Killawee, vice-president internal and organizational development, said a lot of work has been done on the SFSS Health and Dental Plan. The Council discussed this matter in-camera, meaning guests and media were prohibited from observing.
Chitransh Motwani, vice-president events and student affairs, said fall welcome events are being planned.
Horoscopes July 8–14
By: Sonya Janeshewski, Peak Associate
Aries
March 21–April 19
If you’re an Aries man, yikes. You’re already prone to Chronic Mansplaining, which can be reputation-threatening if not caught early. To avoid a cosmic pummeling, be humbled publicly this week. If you’re an Aries non-man, this is your chance to do the humbling.
Taurus
April 20–May 20
You’re the kind of person who always wears the same outfit to campus like a cartoon character and makes plans only to regret leaving your dorm. This week, I advise eating vegetables and seeking out dark, moist environments because your goal is clearly to turn into an earthworm. Not even a caterpillar who will transform into a butterfly — you’ll just become a slightly older worm.
Gemini
May 21–June 20
Are you constantly trying to be the “goofy” friend? Is your one personality trait that you’re “unserious?” Gemin-I don’t care. I’m surprised you can walk up the stairs to the AQ the way you’re using humour as a crutch. This week, put a cast on that fractured funny bone and heal by finding a personality.
Cancer
June 21–July 22
This week, avoid fur coats because people might mistake you for a doormat. And they would be right. So wipe the footprints off your face and remember that desperation is cringe. Never get played by someone who looks like one of the glyptodon from Ice Age.
Leo
July 23–August 22
You know diamonds are a girl’s best friend, yet you’re still settling for granite acquaintances? Make it make sense. This week, dump that situationship. Regardless of the problem, just do that.
Virgo
August 23–September 22
Virgos are some of the most judgemental people. Put that watchful eye to use this week and check yourself, or better yet, use it to kickstart your career. Your sharp tongue could chop vegetables, and all that arguing would make you a decent lawyer. Of course, there’s also the best career for judgemental people — writing student newspaper horoscopes.
Libra
September 23–October 22
Summer’s here, and you think love is in the air, but that’s just pollen from the neighbour’s daisies. At least something’s getting some action, though. This week, give your habits a romcom protagonist glow-up because the only double D’s you have right now are Desperation and Dehydration. Your knight in shining armour would not make you wait like this, so book your own table at Pho 99.
Scorpio
October 23–November 21
You’re not a rare breed, but you sure are a strange one. I know you bought one leather jacket and think you’re cool now, but I’ve got bad news for you — no one’s buying the edgy act. Every time you turn around, we see the Southside Serpents logo. This week, I recommend finding a new wardrobe aesthetic that isn’t “Riverdale wardrobe liquidation sale.”
Sagittarius
November 22–December 21
If I have any advice for you this week, it’s to first lower your voice a few decibels. Actually, lower everything: your expectations, your screen time, your shoulders . . . This week, don’t forget your lower body workouts. This way, when you hit the floor this weekend, you’ll have no problem getting low low low low low low low low. Thank me later.
Capricorn
December 22–January 19
You’re known as the “mature” friend, because you were the first person in your friend group to get grey hair. No matter how much you scream that it’s just one and you only got it because organic chemistry midterm was brutal, you can’t escape the grandma allegations. Stop letting these insecure children age you before your time. This week, ditch the stamp collecting and do something to remind yourself of your youth, like hit the club or throw a raging kegger. After all, responsibility is only good in moderation.
Aquarius
January 20–February 18
Before you finally decide to escape to the woods and go off the grid once and for all, maybe chill for a second. No way are you surviving out there. While bears are better than men, they won’t stop to hear that opinion if they catch your honey-propolis shampoo. This week, try to find a playlist that isn’t entirely Taylor Swift’s folklore.
Pisces
February 19–March 20
Oh Pisces, head in the clouds and stars in your eyes. But you’d better bring yourself down to earth because you’re more hopeless than romantic. If you don’t put boundaries up fast, your dreams will turn into nightmares full of unachieved goals and waking up on grimy mattresses to someone who made you split the check at A&W. This week, challenge yourself by going a day without checking if your crush saw your Instagram story.
Glitter Crash is here to smash stereotypes about disability
By: C Icart, Humour Editor
Editor’s note: this event has been cancelled.
If you’re looking for a show to celebrate Disability Pride Month, look no further than Glitter Crash, presented by Twisted Tassels Productions. The burlesque and drag showcase will heat up the stage on July 13 at The Cultch’s Historic Theatre. Starring disabled performers from across Turtle Island, this showcase aims to “celebrate diversity, empowerment, and the beauty of inclusion.”
Twisted Tassels is a local burlesque company that presents talent from marginalized communities. Oftentimes, “disability seems to go to the wayside,” even in some of the most inclusive shows. The Peak spoke to Twisted Tassels founder and producer All The Way Mae, who hopes that Glitter Crash can help “push the local performance arts community to recognize disability and include that in their efforts to diversify their own performances and productions.”
Glitter Crash is the first show of its kind in so-called Canada. Audience members will have to leave their preconceived notions about disability and performance arts at the door. Some of the best disabled performers around will be displaying their talents in this groundbreaking showcase. This includes the winner of the 27th annual San Francisco Drag King Contest, LOTUS BOY, the badass burlesque veteran Lady Drew Blood, and lək̓ʷəŋən-based (colonially known as Victoria) mega babe Holly Shirt who’s been “putting the sex in dyslexia since August 2020.”
disabled performers in drag and burlesque subverts some common misconceptions “that disabled folks don’t have sex, or aren’t interested in sex, or like sexuality is not a part of the disabled experience,” says All The Way Mae, who has been producing shows on and off for nearly two decades. While asexual disabled people do exist, disabled people are “not perpetual children that need to be infantilized or protected and aren’t able to have relationships or sex or own [their] own bodies,” they continued.
“Audience members will have to leave their preconceived notions about disability and performance arts at the door.”
Burlesque and drag are outlets that provide a lot of agency to the “individual performers to really speak to their truth and showcase what it is they want to show,” All The Way Mae told The Peak. Glitter Crash will be no different as “a few performers are doing acts that are very specific to their own experiences of accepting their disability or the challenges with their disability.”
The passion with which All The Way Mae speaks about the show is enough to convince anyone that this is an event they should not miss. Glitter Crash rejects tokenism by putting disabled voices front and centre in all aspects of the production. There will be something for everyone as the numbers range “from sultry stripteases to defiant acts of political commentary.”
More information about each performer and what they bring to the show can be found on the Twisted Tassels Productions Facebook and Instagram. The importance of making spaces as accessible as possible is not just modelled on stage at Glitter Crash. Masks will be mandatory, and extra masks will be available at the venue.
Tickets range from $41.30 to $61.30 and are available at thecultch.com.
The Bright-er Side: Local travel
By: Izzy Cheung, Arts & Culture Editor
With work, school, and a variety of other commitments, who has the time to take a month-long trip to Europe? Even finding a week to chill on a tropical beach can be difficult, which is why setting aside a few days for local travel can do wonders for a mental reset. Chances are, if you’re looking for a short break mid-semester, you won’t be able to hop off the plane at LAX. A long weekend is much better suited to enjoying the natural beauty offered by a quick stay on Clayoquot Sound.
Imagine this: you wake up, peel open the blinds, and enjoy a coffee on the balcony while taking in the majestic view of Cwítima/Kacwítima (Líl̓wat language) or Skwik̲w (Sḵwx̱wú7mesh language), otherwise known as Whistler Mountain. You don’t even have to drive here — a 2–3 hour shuttle ride can land you in this ski town that rivals places like Banff and Aspen. Some of the best adventures can be held in our own backyard!
There’s no better place to visit than Salt Spring Island when you’re craving a quaint, cozy weekend getaway. SYOW̱T (Ganges Harbour) is home to most of the island’s restaurants, markets, and shops, while Tl’elhum (St. Mary Lake) and Ts’uween (Mount Tuam) can be found farther inland.
Regardless of where you go, travelling is always a fun experience. For less stress and more rest, keep your journeys close to home and visit a local gem!
What Grinds Our Gears: Packing for a local getaway
By: Hailey Miller, Staff Writer
I love a nice, local stay-cation. There’s nothing better than being a tourist in your own town. What really gets me, though, is that no matter where I go I still have to pack. Who has time for that? Don’t even get me started on international adventures — packing for a quick trip to Vancouver Island, Skwelk̓wélt (Sun Peaks), or Skwiḵw (Whistler Mountain) is bad enough.
Firstly, since the weather changes in the blink of an eye it makes me question what I even need to pack. Do I pack a swimsuit to take a dip in the ocean, and a parka for the same trip just in case a sudden cold snap of blustery winds makes its debut on the shoreline? What about the mountains? Sure, they’re full of snow and cold in the winter, but that doesn’t mean I should forget sunscreen! Not to mention if I hit the slopes in the summer I better prepare for quite the heat rush and more mosquitoes than a swamp. Bug spray, packed away, anyone?
I need a separate suitcase for every season, which is applicable for every stay-cation. As a lifelong last-minute packer, I never know what kind of curveball is going to be thrown my way, so I pack it all, or not nearly enough to get through the first day of my getaway. Who thought they’d need to rent a U-Haul just for all the excessive packing? I might as well bring everything but the kitchen sink!
Volunteers prevented from entering CRAB Park amidst street sweeps
By: Hannah Fraser, News Writer
Content warning: description of police violence.
According to local advocates, “The Vancouver Park Board is creating a daily exclusive ‘work-zone’ around the encampment at CRAB Park, preventing volunteers and media from entering.” The work zone has been established since the week of June 10, amidst ongoing street sweeps happening across Vancouver for years. Recent escalations have involved park rangers dismantling residents’ homes and seizing their belongings, following Park Board bylaws newly established in April. These bylaws say CRAB Park residents are permitted to shelter there overnight but must take down their shelters in the morning by 7:00 a.m. unless they’re in the designated area, which is scaled to fit 14 residents.
Items park rangers have confiscated include “blankets, clothing, tarps, potted plants, a memorial wreath, spice rack, and first aid supplies to a dog’s water bowl and cultural carving tools,” said local advocates in a press release. “They open or enter tents without a 24-hour written notice, and residents have been threatened with eviction if they swear.”
Local advocates report that “rangers have become increasingly heavy-handed in enforcing [the] new set of bylaws,” now introducing daily work zones. Three CRAB Park advocates said they have been shoved by police or rangers, with one volunteer stating they were pushed by an officer telling them to “move back or we do this another way.”
Another volunteer recounted their experience on June 13: “I moved to where [the police officer] gestured . . . But he got in my face, his lip curled, he snarled, ‘You just want to make trouble,’ and grabbed my arm and shoved me toward a different set of garbage bins.” The Peak corresponded with Fiona York, a volunteer and advocate for CRAB Park residents, for more information on the ongoing street sweeps. York noted park rangers have also tried to seize a volunteer’s bike. The volunteer had to get on the bike while the rangers tried to pull it from her so she could keep it.
York expressed she encountered “one of the most horrifying things” at the street sweeps — rangers seizing “a memorial wreath for one of the residents who had passed away.” The recent work zone prevents volunteers from intervening in incidents like this and standing up for park residents.
“They just don’t want that visibility of homelessness, the visible poverty. They’re just wanting to sweep that away.” — Fiona York, advocate for CRAB Park residents
York said the park rangers are quick to “criminalize and make people into bad people for wanting to have their own little space,” which pushes residents into situations where they are “more vulnerable.” She recalled one instance where a resident was speaking loudly about the rangers and happened to spill some liquid out of a bottle she was holding. She was arrested for assault, as they alleged she was purposely throwing liquid at them.
York estimated that “the money the city has spent related to the CRAB Park encampment, which was set up in May 2021, is more than $1 million.” This includes a “$660,000 grant from the Union of BC Municipalities to fund temporary rangers,” and various services from the Park Board, sanitation department, city, and police.
York said a tiny home community could be built in two months, with one tiny home costing roughly $6,250 monthly to operate. She suggested the money spent on street sweeps could have been better used to build ten tiny homes. Vancouver’s first “tiny shelter” project was “a collection of 10 single-room structures on a former parking lot on a city-owned property on Terminal Avenue,” which residents moved into in December last year.
The City said, “The shared goal of the Park Board and the City is to support those sheltering outdoors to come inside.” During the winter months Vancouver shelters are often full and faced with turning people away from shelter space. CRAB Park residents also express their desire for their own spaces with a lock on the door, but the street sweeps continue to be funded.
“They just don’t want that visibility of homelessness, the visible poverty,” said York referring to the city. “They’re just wanting to sweep that away.”
The Peak reached out to the Park Board for more information, but did not receive a response by the publication deadline.
